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Saturday, December 25, 2010

Nativity

Luke 2

The Birth of Jesus
 1 In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. 2 (This was the first census that took place while[a] Quirinius was governor of Syria.) 3 And everyone went to their own town to register.
 4 So Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. 5 He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. 6 While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, 7 and she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She wrapped him in cloths and placed him in a manger, because there was no guest room available for them.
 8 And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. 10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. 11 Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. 12 This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
 13 Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,
 14 “Glory to God in the highest heaven,
   and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”
 15 When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”
 16 So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. 17 When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18 and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. 19 But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. 20 The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told.
 21 On the eighth day, when it was time to circumcise the child, he was named Jesus, the name the angel had given him before he was conceived.

Friday, December 24, 2010

'Twas the Night

North Pole

A very Merry Christmas to all my lovely readers...I hope you get everything you hoped for, plus one.

You are truly the prettiest ones out there.

Even you, Mark.

Thursday, December 23, 2010

This Goes to Eleven...

Derek in 4

He's off the charts, man. Eleven years old.

No more Kids Menus. Boooooo.

What can I say that hasn't been said before?

I can say that his kindness grows exponentially with his age. That his sweet attitude toward others is inspiring. I can say that he reminds me more and more of his father, which is an amazingly good thing.

I can say that over the past 11 years I've watched him grow from a chubby little baby that rarely cried into a tall and gorgeous young man who rarely complains.

I can say that he is a sweet and loving big brother who shares his things without a thought of selfishness.

Most of the time.

I can say that when I gave him his birthday hug this morning, his head hit my chin.

And I'm tall.

And I have to say that this morning, when he walked down the stairs and saw the balloons on the chairs, and the presents on the table, he walked into the kitchen with his eyes wide in wonder and said,

"Did you do this for me while I was sleeping?"

"Yes, I did," I said. "Happy Birthday!"

He walked around to the other side of the kitchen, where I was pouring a cup of coffee and grabbed me and hugged me so tightly I couldn't breathe for a moment. His curls brushed my cheek and his arms reached all the way around me. (I remember when his curls brushed my knees and his arms reached to my sides...)

"Thank you, Mom."

And then I died of happiness.

I'm writing this from heaven.

Tuesday, December 21, 2010

Exhaustion Comes in Small Packages

Jasper

Say hello to Jasper. He's an 11-week old German Shepherd puppy.

I don't know why I never remember what it takes. It's like having a baby, except this one doesn't wear diapers and you have to follow him around all day and read his little puppy mind to find out if he's getting ready to pee on your floor.

And babies don't really move around much for the first few months, and when they wake up in the middle of the night, you don't have to take them outside and stand in the cold rain while waiting for them to just do their business already.

But, like babies, all that effort and exhaustion is worth it, really. Where else can you get a face like this that looks at you like you hung the moon and arranged the eclipse all at the same time. (Did anyone see it? It was cloudy here...)

Raikki and Chico are adjusting well - Raikki is fairly certain we got the puppy just for him canIplaywithhimNOWohmygoshheissocute,now,now,now,NOW!

That boy needs to learn to relax, people. Which is pretty much the definition of "boxer."

Chico likes to walk up to Jasper, sniff all the important bits, and then growl at him, as if Jasper had approached him.

Because Chico is criminally insane. Which is pretty much the definition of "chihuahua."

I think they'll all be just fine...

I entered the @shakeitphoto contest: Connections

Monday, December 20, 2010

Let the Countdown Begin

Good Morning, Stone Mountain

We spent the weekend at Stone Mountain Park near Atlanta, Georgia...an early birthday trip to celebrate Derek's upcoming 11th on Thursday. We often take little weekend getaways for the boys' birthdays, rather than having a big party, because we don't like other people, especially kids.

That's a joke. We like kids okay, just not enough to feed them cake.

Anyhow...we started the tradition when Derek was probably 5 or 6, and it's been a wonderful way to mark the passage of a new year, to spend some time together as a family, and to have a little getaway from the normal grind. We mainly started it to be sure that Derek's birthday didn't get swallowed up by Christmas, and so far it seems to have worked pretty well.

We've felt sorry for him all these years, but he told me the other day that he was the luckiest kid he knows, because he gets THREE WHOLE DAYS OF PRESENTS IN A ROW!

I love that kid.
****************************
Because it isn't enough to get ready for Christmas and a birthday, I'm also baking about a bazillion cookies, wrapping the rest of the presents, cleaning the bathrooms (I keep forgetting those) and picking up our new puppy today.

Yes.

I did say that.

All I can tell you right now is that he's going to be ginormous, and his name is Jasper.

You'll have to wait until later to see photos.

He's very fuzzy, which makes it incredibly hard to focus my camera upon him.

What?

Raikki needed a Christmas present, too...

Friday, December 17, 2010

Freedom!



How can you tell it is the last day of school before Christmas break?

Because things get downright silly, people.

Here's your assignment...track how many accent changes Joshua goes through before his speech is over.

And have a great weekend!

Thursday, December 16, 2010

It's Christmas! Not yet! But kind of! Not really!

gumballs

In the last week before Derek's birthday and Christmas hit us, Dr. SmartyPants and I have begun speaking in code and hiding lists in our pockets and closing the screen on the laptop just as the boys walk in the room and LYING - oh the lying.

Christmas...it's not the season of giving. It's the season of LYING.

Mercy. If Santa still had me on a list, it would be the naughty one. Because I'm a lying liar liar pants on fire.

"Mom! There's a package at the door! Oh, it has your name on it. What is it?"

"It's just books, darling. You know how Mama likes her books!"

"What's the name of the book? Can I see it?"

"No, my sweet precious angel. The book is called "Nunya," and you can't see it. It's only for grown ups. I'm so sorry my dearest love."

"You sure get a lot of books, Mom."

"I know, little man. Mama does like to read. Everything I know, I learned from a book. Never stop learning, sweetness. You can be anything you want to be!"

"Mom? Why are you doing that weird thing with your hands and flitting about the room like a fairy?"

"It's Christmas spirit, dear."

"Is that a beer, Mom?"

"It's Christmas spirit, dear."

Cheers...

Tuesday, December 14, 2010

It's Tuesday! Let's Celebrate!

noel

Ah. Tuesday.

What can one say about Tuesday? It's neither the beginning of the week, the middle, nor the end.

It doesn't have the angst of Monday, nor the joy of Friday.

It lacks the lazy, worshipful quality of Saturdays and Sundays.

It, along with Thursday, are the days least likely to produce a "yippee!" reaction, don't you think?

I kind of feel sorry for Tuesday. It's like the middle child of weeks. I'm a middle child.

I know exactly how it feels.

Monday, December 13, 2010

Walkin' in a Winter Wonderland

Snowy Morning

It's a snow day! Dr. SmartyPants work was closed, so we decided to close the school system here, too, even though our commute is from bedroom to kitchen table. The boys have headed outside to sled down a nearby hill, and the Smarty and I are getting busy with the honey-do list.

Snow day...FTW!

Friday, December 10, 2010

Friday! O Happy Day!

Reflecting

I think Friday is a good day to list good things, don't you? I'm pretty sure I stole that from Char, but I'm hoping she won't mind...

Thursday, December 09, 2010

My Readers are the Prettiest

Deck the Halls

Thank you all for your sweet words about my friend, Maynelle. She was a treasure. Her funeral was sweet and poignant and touching and I was so honored to be included in it.

Today, though - life moves on at a frightening pace. My sweet little baby boy will be 11 in just a couple of weeks. How does that happen? My other sweet little baby boy is up to my shoulder and doesn't cuddle in my lap anymore...mainly because he wouldn't fit. (He's still known to snuggle up really good first thing in the morning. Especially if I have a blanket.)

My Christmas decorations are up outside, including my new sweet Christmas hippo, Hector. (See him? Right there in the front? Isn't he ADORABLE?)

Tuesday, December 07, 2010

In the Pink

Pinky

I got word, yesterday, that a sweet, dear friend of mine passed away. (This is not going to be a sad post, by the way...keep reading.) Maynelle was in her 80s, and over the last year or so had begun the journey to meet her Savior. I believe she was ready and eagerly anticipating that meeting. My only regret in her passing is that I was unable to see her after I got back to Knoxville, before she left this life.

Maynelle was one of those women that makes you want to be a better woman. She's who I want to be, if ever I decide to grow up. Retired and widowed by the time I met her, she was the very picture of a confident, independent woman. She spoke her mind, although never cruelly. She stuck to her principles, even when it cost her plenty to do so. She was a fiercely loyal friend.

She was raised in a different world than the one she left, but I never saw her shrink from the changes that modern culture wrought. Where others might have judged someone based on external appearance, she seemed to see right through to the heart. I watched her embrace pastors and prostitutes with the same arms, never treating one any differently from the other.

There are so many lessons to be learned from those who have so many more years of experience than we have. I've noticed it, not just in Maynelle, but in my own grandparents who are in their 90s, and have seen so much more joy and pain and heartache and new life and death and change than my feeble 42 year old brain can even imagine. The ones who tend to live happiest are those that learn to roll with the punches without losing their integrity and without becoming bitter and hardened by the experiences. They are the ones that are able to see that there is so much more to this life than the petty annoyances that surround our daily activities.

So, thank you, Maynelle. Thank you for showing me, and everyone you met, what it means to be a woman after God's own heart. Thank you for demonstrating what it means to be a woman of character and integrity and grace and peace.

Thank you for being my friend.

Monday, December 06, 2010

Life is too Precious for all the Drama, People.

Now all we need are presents

Okay. I'm sick of the Comcast story. I feel the need to conclude it quickly...

They came. They didn't show up when they promised. They blamed me. The problem was resolved. I can quit my whining now, at least until my bill comes.

Honestly. Such problems. Poor me - my HD signal is not beautiful. How awful.

Sometimes I stop and listen to myself and I think I'm going to throw up. I mean really. There are people starving in the world, dealing with life-threatening illnesses and war and homelessness, and I spend an entire week bitching about how my cable service provider just doesn't treat me right? Let me tell you something...

Last Friday, I had a terrible, horrible, no-good, very bad day. I'd hardly slept all week, what with the tornadoes and dog diarrhea and the traveling to Alabama and back. I dropped everything I picked up. I almost blew up my Mustang. I shattered an ornament in the middle of the Target. Comcast didn't show up when they said they did. I stubbed my toe, I cut myself shaving, I was out of moisturizer, whatever. Everything seemed to be going absolutely wrong. I was tired and cranky and just miserable and fairly certain I was having a neurological crisis.

And I wallowed in it. I rejoiced in it, probably. My martyr syndrome switched into overdrive and I milked it for all it was worth. Do you ever have days like that? I was a wet blanket, man. We were supposed to go to the Christmas parade, but there was no way in hell I was leaving my house, and I coerced Dr. SmartyPants to pick me up some teriyaki chicken on the way home cause I sure wasn't going to cook, either - I figured I'd start a kitchen fire.

Saturday was a little better, but I was already planning all the tweets I could tweet and the posts I could post about my terrible, horrible, no-good, very bad day, when I saw Melinda's status update on Facebook...

asking for prayer for my Grandson, Brian. He's been diagnosed with Kawasaki's disease, about to start treatment in the hospital. I've no doubt he'll be fine, prognosis is positive, but please pray.


Suddenly, my Friday seemed pretty darned insignificant to what my sweet little 3 year old great-nephew was going through...what his parents and grandparents and great grandparents and the rest of his family were going through.

And I got a huge dose of perspective.

Who cares if my HD channels aren't beautiful?

My kids are.

Who cares if my Mustang never works again?

My husband has a job.

Who cares if I shattered an ornament into a million pieces in Target?

My family is whole and healthy.

Sometimes I find myself addicted to the little dramas that play out over the course of a normal, average week - those things that set my heart pumping a little harder and raise my temper a little. They keep things interesting and keep life from being too monotonous and boring, but I'd much rather have a boring and monotonous life than to be sitting in a hospital, waiting to hear the prognosis of one of my kids, wouldn't you?

I've seen other bloggers devote particular months to thankfulness (November is great for that, I guess) and grace, and it strikes me that this is the very reason to do that. We (I) tend to focus so much on the negative things that go on around us, those First World problems that keep us so vexed...

  • the line at Starbucks was ridiculous! I can't believe I had to go to Panera for my coffee.
  • that man completely ruined that scene in Harry Potter by whispering to his wife what was about to happen!
  • I've been waiting 3 hours for the repairman, and he still hasn't showed!

When we need to focus on the things that really matter...

  • my boy climbed in the bed with me this morning, snuggled up beside me like a baby and went back to sleep.
  • my husband fixed the damage I did to my car, without one word of scorn (and I totally deserved scorn.)
  • i have food in my pantry, and the mad skilz to cook it.

So. I'm going to end the year right. I'm going to force myself to focus on grace and mercy and thankfulness. And you'll all just have to come along with me, okay?

By the way - Brian is responding very well to his treatment, and is expected to go home within a day or two. Please join us in prayer (if you pray) or in sending good, strong, healing thoughts his way. I know a whole bunch of people in Louisiana who would be thankful for it...

Friday, December 03, 2010

The Saga Continues...(or how social media gets results...) Part III

Sunset (aka Ouch! My Eyes!)

I apologize for disappearing on you in the middle of the saga. I was down in Alabama and between the tornados and the exploding dog diarrhea, I suffered a great lack of sleep and brain function.

But that's a different story.

For this story, we need to remember that everything seemed to be in order. Twitter had sent us a Comcast knight in shining bucket truck and we had headed out to see Harry Potter, glad to be finally done with the drama.

By the way - the Harry Potter movie experience is yet another story I have to tell. Melinda is convinced that I'm a rude person magnet. I'm just sayin'.

So, last Saturday, we went to bed, secure in the knowledge that our cable and internet woes were taken care of. We got up Sunday morning, picked up the boys and drove up to Townsend for our long run of the week (5 miles!  Woot!). Afterward, we headed up to Cades Cove in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and enjoyed the gorgeous day.

When we returned home, we turned on our shiny new cable and tuned it to an HD channel and noticed that it seemed to have a problem with its vertical hold. Anyone remember the vertical hold dial on the old TVs?

Yeah.

That.

Then the diagnosis begins. My engineer husband starts switching out boxes and cables and RCA cables and moving things around to try and determine if the problem is with the boxes or the cables or the TV or whatever. Nothing changes. As a matter of fact, the TV in the bedroom (which had been functioning properly) now also developed a vertical hold problem.

Sigh.

Do we really need television?

Dr. SmartyPants finally calls the Comcast helpline, they check our line and say they need to come out and make some adjustments to the outside connection. We, of course, were all leaving town in different directions the next day, so we scheduled an appointment for Friday, which is today.

Just so you know, I fully expect the first bill to be completely wrong.

Tuesday, November 30, 2010

The Saga Continues...(or how social media gets results...) Part II

Tennessee is Scarier than I Remembered.

So. When we left our charming story yesterday, I had tweeted my annoyance with Comcast's ineptitude, and had received a reply from "ComcastBill." He'd asked for an email of the details of the problem I was having, and I was only too happy to oblige.

Dear ComcastBill,

The installer came today to hook up my new service. It was supposed to have included the following:

1 HD DVR box
1 HD box
1 wireless modem

We received instead

1 regular digital cable box
1 regular modem (with cable - not wireless)

Now we have to drive to the other side of town to pick up the correct boxes and install it ourselves in order to avoid an additional charge for installation. I've already been charged for the installation of the wrong things.

That's it.

I wasn't feeling particularly talkative, especially given my self-induced ban on cursing people out.

Or, as we really say down here in the south...dawg-cussing people.

Dr. SmartyPants was unhooking all the cables that the installer had spent his time hooking up so that he could take them across town to the local office and trade them for the correct things. He was not happy. There may have been some under-the-breath cursing from him, as well. I waited for a reply from ComcastBill.

And waited. And waited.

Then I tweeted again.







A few minutes later, I received an email from Bill, asking for my account number, which I promptly sent because I have nothing better to do, apparently, than to wait around for Comcast all freaking day.

Dr. SmartyPants left, not willing to risk the rest of the afternoon on Bill's prompt reply.

I may have tweeted a couple other uncomplimentary things.







An hour later, I got an email from a different Comcast dude. We'll call him Comcast Mike.

Diahn,

I apologize for the equipment issue.  Please "reply to all" with the phone number linked to your account and your zip code.  We will look into this with our local colleagues, and somebody will contact you to resolve.  Have a good day.

Thanks,

Mike 

To which I promptly replied. Again. In detail. With great irritation.

I was actually halfway through the email when Dr. SmartyPants returned from picking up the correct equipment...

Michael,

The phone number is blah blah blah. Zip code etc etc.

My husband has already headed to the local office to exchange the equipment and get it corrected, so that we can have our cable and Internet access today, as we scheduled. We are very disappointed with the set up process so far.

We went through your online ordering system, and it was so cumbersome and difficult to navigate, that we are not exactly surprised that the order was completely wrong. I tried very hard to get the online chat customer service rep to send me confirmation of what I ordered, but all I could get from him was the confirmation of the install date. I tried to get more information about the chat itself (as in who was "helping" me), but was only able to get the chat script records.

random number sequence signifying stupid chat with Husain.

Your online system is a mess, frankly. I'm astounded that a company that prides itself on its Internet capabilities can have a web presence that is so incredibly ineffective.

My husband just returned from the local office, and the staff there (as well as the installer whose time was wasted this morning) was incredibly nice, sympathetic, and helpful.
And, being fair-minded, I tweeted about the local office...I don't want to be a hater, people...






And he ever so quickly replied thusly:

Diahn,

I am glad that everything is in order now, but am sorry that it has been frustrating to this point.  Feel free to reach out any time should you need any additional assistance.

Mike
I am so glad he thought everything was in order. And frustrating is an understatement.

So, I left the Smarty at home putting the cable and internet in order and drove the boys over to their friend's house for a sleepover, confident that it would all be set up when I got home. I stayed and visited with my friend for a while, and when I got back to the house...

There was a Comcast truck sitting in the driveway.

I walked in, and asked Dr. SmartyPants where this Comcast guy had come from, and he told me that the guy had shown up 15 minutes before I got back, and said he'd heard we were having some trouble.

Mmhmmm. Twitter, anyone? Had to be.

Smarty had just finished setting up the internet, which was working fine, but he invited the guy to come in and help with the cable, since he was there.

Which turned out to be an excellent thing, because neither of the boxes that the Smarty had picked up at the Comcast office were actually working properly - they were still assigned to the old account numbers or something, so they wouldn't have worked if he'd tried to set them up.

Because Comcast is AWESOME like that.

By now, it's getting late. The boys are at a sleepover. The boxes are still not unpacking themselves.

But at least the cable is squared away, right?

RIGHT?

Sure it is...so we decided to go see a movie and celebrate. (Harry Potter...it was wonderful.)

Saga over. Twitter FTW!

Or maybe not quite yet...Part III will tell the, ahem, rest of the saga...

Monday, November 29, 2010

The Saga Continues...(or how social media gets results...) Part I

Left

Look! Pretty picture!

Now, let's get down to business, shall we?

You may remember that I told you about a friendly little chat I had with a Comcast customer service representative a month ago.  Well, Saturday was our install date and because the technician was scheduled to be here between 8 am and 11 am, he arrived at 11 am.

Which was awesome.

Because I love waiting.

Anyway - he comes in and gets to work, attaching cables and bringing in boxes and moving stuff around to get to the outlets. When he's finally done, and he asks us to sign off on the order, we ask a couple of questions, like what is the information needed for the wireless internet and why there is no box for the bedroom TV.

To which he replies, "You signed up for a regular modem. And one box for the living room. And that's all."

Now, when we had the friendly little chat with Husain, he promised to send out an email detailing our order...do you recall? And I told you that his email had nothing to do with our order and was only a confirmation of our install date and time? And how I had very little confidence that anything would be correct?

I hate always being right.

We ordered one (1) HD DVR box for the living room, one (1) HD box for the bedroom, and one (1) WIRELESS (because it's the 21st century, people) modem for the house. All that was to go along with the particular package that we ordered that has HD channels.

He brought and installed one (1) regular digital cable reciever and one (1) regular WIRED modem. So, he brought a box that is not able to even get the channels that we are signed up and supposed to be paying for.

Genius.

He apologized, told us we could take the boxes and modem down to the local office and exchange them out and avoid additional installation charges (which would be substantial if he came back out.)

So. We waited all morning for the guy to get there, he shows up and installs the wrong stuff, and WE can correct it.

I was a little peeved. So I tweeted this:







Shortly afterward, I tweeted this:





Which was true. He said that we'd be surprised how many wrong orders he installs. Especially those that are handled through their web orders.

I didn't tweet those things to affect any change on the universe, but rather to vent to the universe a little. I was pissed, I was tired, I needed to set up my DVR to record Glee. I had things to do, people.

But, did you know there are people who are paid to look at tweets like that? Yes indeedy-do, people. Real live people who have to read our vitriolic rants against the corporate machine.

So, I got a response...





So. did ComcastBill help?

Come back tomorrow for Part II of the saga....

Monday, November 22, 2010

The Sun Sets

Sunset on Quincy

It's true. The sun is setting on our time in DC. I'm packing the kitchen today, which means
  1.  we really are leaving.
  2. we'll be eating takeout for Thanksgiving and pretty much every meal between now and then.
We've cleared our bucket list, and managed to see everything at least once, including the Pentagon last Friday. I have no pictures of that because you can't take pictures inside the Pentagon.

You can't take pictures outside the Pentagon, either.

Which explains why I was tackled on the southwest side and held at gunpoint.

Okay. That didn't happen. But it sounds a lot more exciting that what really happened, which was that a very nice Pentagon policeman stopped me as we passed his post close to the Pentagon memorial,  asked me very kindly to please delete the photos I inadvertently took because I can't read signage, and watched me as I did so.

Then he apologized for the bother.

I was hoping Denzel Washington would show up in a flak jacket, order me to the ground and frisk me just for good measure, but it didn't happen.

Oh well.

In any case - I may not post again between now and Friday - depends on how quickly things get packed in the truck, when we disconnect the Verizon here and whether the hotel we're staying in Wednesday night has internet access.

And also whether I have any energy left to type something.

If I don't see you between now and Thursday, and you happen to live in these here United States - have a fantastic Thanksgiving - eat a ton of turkey and dressing for me, okay?

Peace...

Saturday, November 20, 2010

In an Instant

instant dc

I'm just going to pop in here for a moment and say that the instant dc show opening was SO COOL. There were over 200 people that came through, and at some times during the evening it seemed that they were all there at the same time. It was loud and frenetic and energetic and so exciting.

I met each of the other photographers and was absolutely blown away by how incredibly nice everyone was. It's so odd to meet people for whom you have some online knowledge - you feel as if you know them, somehow, but have never seen them, nor heard their voices. I had such a great time talking with them and firmly affixing a voice and personality with their images.

instant dc

My boys were fantastic - eagerly viewing all the action and taking their own photos of everything...

instant dc

And Dr. SmartyPants was so wonderful and supportive. I think I'm going to keep him. Plus...he looks so cute in his new groovy glasses, don't you think?

By the way...did anyone notice that he jumped out of obscurity and commented on a post last week? First time in, well, ever!

Hi honey!

Make sure you click on this picture, and view it larger...It's really cool...

instant dc

Wednesday, November 17, 2010

Holy Praying Mantis, Batman!

Pray

The boys and I went to Dinosaur Land today.

They had a giant praying mantis.

And King Kong.

It was pretty much the best thing I've ever seen in my whole entire life.

I'm still processing the photos...there will be more...

Oh yes. There will be...

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

Today

Single

  • It's raining.
  • I'm baking more pumpkin bread.
  • I need to go to the grocery store and buy paper plates so I can pack up the rest of my regular ones.
  • We had a really light school day.
  • I found a new free iPhone camera app called Pudding Camera.
    • I really like it.
    • It's all in Korean.
    • I can't read Korean.
  • I need to run.
    • It's raining.
    • I need to go anyway.
    • sigh.
  • I'm going to go help hang the photography show at Fathom Gallery.
  • I'm ridiculously excited about it.
    • Which means I'm ridiculously nervous about it.
    • Because I'm awesome like that.
  • I'm waiting.
  • I'm anticipating.
  • I'm hungry.
  • It's raining.

Monday, November 15, 2010

Reflecting

reflecting

We are at the point where boxes are accumulating in the dining room, drawers are being cleaned out and the moving truck has been reserved. We've crossed almost everything off our DC bucket list, and have made the necessary plans to cross the rest off in the next few days. Over the weekend, we did a couple of things that were on my list, like photographing some of the monuments at night and taking a 3 mile run on the National Mall.

The boys weren't really on board with the last one there, but I reminded them  of the number of times I've been to see C3PO in the Museum of American History and they decided to not gripe too much about it.

Monument

Running past these monuments was like being in a movie.  I don't know exactly how to explain it, but I felt like part of something much larger than myself. I've been on the mall a hundred times over the past couple of years, but it's never ceased being inspiring to me. The men to whom these monuments are dedicated were just men, not gods, but they stepped outside of their comfortable lives to make sacrifices for a purpose larger than themselves.

They lived epic lives.

I want to live an epic life, don't you? It won't be on the scale that Washington or Lincoln or Jefferson lived, but I don't want to go through life just making the motions and hoping not to rock the boat too much. I want to rock the boat. I want to shake things up. I don't want to do it for the sake of monuments or glory or fame or fortune, but rather because I believe life is meant to be lived epically, and I want to be an example of that for my kids.

If we each were to step out and do something impressively great, instead of passively mediocre, how would it add up? If every person in our sphere of influence were then to step up and do something bold or grandiose, how quickly would that ripple across the country? We need an epic movement of epic actions. We need inspiration and selfless acts of greatness to wake this world up and set it on fire.

So, while I'm packing up my house here, and preparing to move back to Knoxville, I'll be searching for ideas - small steps toward living an epic life. It's going to involve a lot of stepping outside of my nice little cocoon and spreading my wings a bit, but I'm going to do it.

(Ideas are welcome...)

Thursday, November 11, 2010

Metropolis

courthouse

This is one of the things that I will miss about DC, that Dr. SmartyPants will definitely not be missing. And if I had to ride it every day, twice a day, at rush hours, I would probably agree with him.

But I don't. So I still like it.

I love the ease of it. The lack of traffic issues. The not having to find a parking place parts.

vienna

I love the people watching. Except the guy that exposed himself to my parents.

I didn't like that guy.

orange line

I like that it will take me almost anywhere I want to go. (Because you know I can walk the rest of the way...)

And I love the light that filters down the escalators when you travel back up above the subterranean tunnels.

virginia square

Especially this one. In my neighborhood.

Where I walk.

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

He's a Keeper

As much as I miss Oscar, this boy makes my heart go pit-a-pat...

Raikki Romeo

Right now, he's lying on the floor, looking under the couch, and crying because he can't reach his favorite tennis ball.

It's the saddest thing, ever.

It's so sad, I can't possibly get the ball for him because it would make him stop crying and then he wouldn't be so cute.

I am, truly, an evil woman.

Pout much?

Oh, come on. You'd do it too.

Tuesday, November 09, 2010

Monday, November 08, 2010

This Little Piggy Went to Market

farmers market

Holy smokes, I'm going to miss this.

Every Saturday, we walk a little more than a mile down our city streets to the city farmer's market. It's where I pick up my wonderful and delicious hydroponically grown lettuce that is the basis of all of my meals. I don't know how I can live without it. It makes grocery store lettuce taste like old newspapers.

We walk down together and pick out our produce for the week and sample the various fruits and vegetables...

samples

Here, the boys are trying out the incredibly rich chocolate milk from Clear Spring Creamery - a grass-based natural dairy in Maryland. Let me tell you - I don't even like milk and I like their milk...

radishes

Everything is so beautiful and appealing - it just makes you want to eat better.

pears

Mmm...more samples...

There is a really nice farmer's market in Knoxville - the main difference is that, well, we have to drive there. I know, I know - I keep harping on about it - the walking thing, but honestly...

It all comes down to it.

It just means that we'll have to make a habit of getting up and driving to downtown Knoxville and spending the morning getting our marketing done before we do anything else.

A new tradition - a new mindful task for our Saturdays...