October 7, 2008

Boobies and stitches.

Both Mark and Sebastian were home sick from school today.
Whatever it was that had Mark puking yesterday, has taken a hold of Sebastian today.

I had my post-op stitches out appointment today, and Sebastian didn't want to stay home, he wanted to go with me and take pictures of my stitches coming out, so I let him. (You can read about my appointment and see those pics at the link)
Mark stayed home and laid on the couch watching tv and stuff.
He said he couldn't eat anything all day, and when we stopped for some food on the way home, Sebastian said about 45 minutes after eating it, that he felt wicked sick.
Luckily, he didn't puke until we actually got home though.

Sebastian loves my surgeons offices, it's all modern furniture in black, red, white, and gray.
Very sleek, very simple and organized, he just loves it in there, and I have to agree, it's very soothing sitting in his waiting room and even the patient rooms.
He carried the theme from the waiting room into the patient rooms, and it all just looks very nice, it's calming.

I want to also tell you all that tonight is the very last night for the Boobiethon.
Picture submissions have closed, but they will be there until midnight taking your donation.
That's right, I said your donation.
They are sooooo close to reaching $9,000, and your donation could be the one that gets them to that amount.
So please, please, please, be helpful, be generous, and donate whatever you can to the boobiethon
They have posted to Twitter, that all donations of just $15 and up, will get access to the naked pay-per-boobies page.
That's a helluva deal folks!! And it will end in just a few more hours, help us make $9,000!!

October 6, 2008

Ms. Cooper? He threw up.

The school called a few minutes ago, specifically the school nurse.
Mark threw up, needs to come home.
So I said ok, send him home.
She asked if it was ok for him to walk or would I be picking him up.

Obviously I can't be picking him up, and we only live a few blocks from the school, so uh yea, he can walk.
She didn't seem approving of that answer and asked me again.
I had to explain the situation to her, and then she was a bit more understanding and allowed him to walk.
I asked her if someone could notify Sebastian that his brother had left, they walk home together every day, she said she'd make sure that he knows.

I really hope this is just like a food thing and not a flu or virus kind of thing.
Puking is seriously no fun with all this hardware inside me.

August 29, 2008

Subs and sales.

One of the things I like about going grocery shopping with Sebastian, is that we get to talk.
We walk there and then cab it back, but the whole way there, it's just he and I talking about whatever crosses his mind.
Today we got to talking about his new social life.

He got asked on a date.
By someone he doesn't really like all that much, but he was polite turning them down anyway, which is good, is what I taught him to do, but then he told me about who he does like.
Which was even cooler.
I won't divulge her name, he trusted me with this information, he trusted me to talk to me about it all, so yeah, I feel pretty good right now.

Then we got to Publix, checked the vendor coupon rack, and the clearance table where I found a good deal on the conditioner I like to alternate with every few weeks, and I had 2 coupons for $1 off 1 bottle, and 1 coupon for $2 off 2 bottles.
I needed to use the 2 $1 off coupons, they were set to expire on the 31st, so I like to carry my coupons that are set to expire with me every time I go to the store just in case I find deals like this.
Anyway....
They had Loreal Vive for dry hair, 2 for $2.99, so I bought 4, and using my coupons, I got 4 bottles for just $1.98.
They also had some assorted Loreal hair color, not my color, so I passed those up, and they had a big basket of patio furniture covers on clearance as well.
I did notice that they had a whole bunch of patio chairs and tables outside the doors, on sale to get rid of them, it is the end of the season after all, time to get rid of the summer stuff.
They had a whole bunch of other stuff, and I probably would have dug around a bit more but Sebastian starts getting antsy if I spend too much time at the clearance table.

Then I went around and picked up all the food and stuff I had on my list, and then checked out.
We then headed over to Subway to grab some subs to eat at home for dinner tonight.
This wasn't my normal shopping trip, this was just extra food for the long holiday weekend.
The teens eat a lot normally, and with the long holiday weekend, I had to go get more food, plus we're having my niece Susan over for the day tomorrow.
Yay!
I love it when she comes to play for the day!

But anyway, I did have a list and some coupons, so here's how it went down today.
Total price before coupons;
$113.78
Total coupons:
$38.50
Out of pocket price:
$75.28

That's not great, but also not bad considering this was just a small weekend pick-up trip.
On my next shopping trip, it will be the big one, so I'm going through and making my meal plan list, recipes, and all of that like described below.
Ok, off to do more stuff.
Later days.

August 26, 2008

Enchilada, enchilada, la la la la la!

I am so incredibly tired right at this moment, my insomnia from last night is catching up big time right now, but no, no time for that!
I need to get out to the kitchen and finish the silverware, then start dinner, and then help Mark figure out which of his secret hiding places, he hid his new pens that he got for his birthday.

My sister got him this really cool pen and digital pencil set for his birthday, he's a connoisseur of fine writing instruments, he finds some really nice pens sometimes, so sis got him his very own set.
They are heavy weighted, and wrapped in a silk red and black dragon print.
They are very nice.
But he put them in one of his secret hiding places, then took them out and used them, then put them in a different hiding place, took them out of there and used them, and then put them in another hiding place.
And now he can't recall which of his many little hiding places around this house he hid them last.
He wants to take the pen to school tomorrow, so he wants to find them and is freaking out because he can't remember where he put them.

Do you have any idea how hard it is to help a kid find his stuff in secret hiding places, if he won't tell you where the secret hiding places are?
See, if he tells me, then they won't be secret anymore, but mom, omg, help me find them!
Hahahaha
I have to laugh every time he says help me because he won't tell me any of the spots.
Then he gets mad because I'm laughing, and I'm trying to help him see how illogical he's being.

"Son number one-o, how can I help you find them in their secret hiding places, if you won't tell me where any of the secret hiding places are? You're getting mad at me for not helping you, but I can't my funny little man with the multiple secret hiding places, because I don't know where the secret hiding places are."

And then he got mad, stormed out of the room, and yelled, "You're not helping me any!"
And I laughed again.
I couldn't help it.
So I did the only logical thing I could think of without having to make him tell me any of the spots.
I asked him to try and re-trace his steps from the last time he used them.

That's when he gave me the teenage eye roll of death.
Moms, you all know that eye roll, one eyebrow up, one down, and the eyeballs go so far back in their heads, you think they're about to pass out.
We've been off and on looking for about an hour now, no luck yet, I hear him in his room mumbling something about mom, my special pens, dammit, where did I put them, crap, and a few other choice words.
I'll go back to helping him find them after I finish the dishes and start the burger for the enchiladas in the skillet.
Yup, enchiladas for dinner, Sebastian insisted.
Okey dokey pokey.

August 26, 2008

He's taking a sick day today.

As I posted last night, Mark has a head cold, well, it was just a head cold.
Shortly after I posted last night, Mark sort of stumbled out to me, leaned over, said feel my head, and then said I have to go to bed mom.
His head was warm, his eyes were all glassy, his skin was pale, and off he went to bed after I gave him two more cold tablets and some more water so we could try to keep him from being dehydrated.

I went in to check on him a little while ago, woke him up to make him take some more water and ask how he was feeling, and his head was still warm, his eyes still glassy, and he just said "feel bad mom" as this sad little frown curled up his lips.
So he won't be going to school today, when Mark gets sick, he really gets sick.
And he rarely gets sick so I know that this is a serious, non-faked illness.
Mark only gets sick about once per year, but when it happens, it knocks him on down, and he's just useless.

Because all of his classes are modules, meaning he controls his own pace, and as long as the required amount of modules get completed every single quarter, he can take a sick day.
I know that when he's well enough to go back, he will do twice as many modules to bring himself back up to the pace that he set for himself this year.

Sebastian however, will be going.
He's done getting dressed and he'll be leaving for school shortly.
Mark can just stay sleeping until I'm ready to leave for my lab work, I'll check on him before I go, and then when I get back I'll check on him again, make him drink more water, maybe some juice if his throat is up to the acidity, and then I'll just let him get as much rest as needs to so he can get back to normal.

August 20, 2008

He's taking guitar class.

Sebastian is.
He signed up for introduction to guitar this year, and because we can't afford to buy one, we're renting one from the school.
It's not expensive at all, just $50 for the year, but I don't have the whole amount right now, so they said I can send in whatever I do have every month or every week, whatever works best for me.
So on my next payday which is next week, I'll send in $20 of it, then pay my bills with the rest, and then on the next payday, I'll pay the other $30 off.

Because we're renting it, if it gets damaged, we are responsible for the full price which is like $300, which I definitely don't have, so to prevent it being damaged at home, he's just going to leave it at school every day.
The school said if it gets damaged on school property by another student or the janitor or whatever, then we won't have to pay for it.
So I told Sebastian to just go ahead and leave it at the school.
I do not want to be responsible for it being broken at home, or stolen from our home, or because they walk home, have some jackass kid try to beat him up and steal it or something like that.

But I do think it's cool that he's taking lessons.
He loves music, he's always been interested in the guitar, so I'm hoping he takes to it pretty easy.
Once he gets good at it, I'll have to try and buy him a used one so he can have one all the time, that is if he likes playing and is good at it.
That's another reason I'm renting.
Kids are fickle, especially him, if he hates it, then I'm not out a huge amount of money on an instrument that's just going to collect a lot of dust.

August 20, 2008

Normal schedule finally?

Both the teens have now gone back to school again, hopefully there will be no more gaps between days.
This entire house needs to get back on the school schedule and stay there.
It was a long summer of staying up late, sleeping in half the day, and basically being as lazy as possible, but now we all need to be back on schedule and get cracking on what needs to be done.

I'm happy to report that the acne products I bought for Mark over the summer have worked really well, his skin looks good and clear, he's happy, so I'm happy.
The both of them have started taking more interest in their appearance over the summer, so hopefully they will keep that up all year.

When they get home this afternoon, we might need to go to the store, I haven't decided yet, but I bought hurricane supplies, not actual meals, so I think I may need to go back and get some real food for dinner.

August 18, 2008

Hello Fay.

I'm fine, just having my usual freakout spasms and crap from the weather, and muscle relaxers are messing with my head.
School is already canceled for Sarasota county tomorrow, it's a cat 1 or less, not more, no worries.
We have plenty of food an water, we're good.
The power will probably go out, but eh, that's nothing.
I'll be back later on when I feel better.

August 8, 2008

Clearing up in time for school.

The acne cream I bought for Mark is actually working, and it's really working very well.
I bought him a special bar of soap and some cream stuff that you dab onto the pimples and leave on over night, and by morning, the zits are all dried up and gone.
He's very impressed, so much so that he's washing his face every night before bed, and every morning when he wakes up.

His face is clearing up really nicely in time to go back to school.
I hope he doesn't get another massive breakout, that would suck.
But this stuff seems to be keeping new pimples from even forming, so that's a major bonus.
He's taking much better care of his skin, paying attention to it, and because it's clearing up, he wants to wash his face.
It's been so disheartening using products that didn't work, and I really think that kept him from taking care of his face.

August 6, 2008

They have their schedules but not supply lists.

Schedule pick up for school went ok, Sebastian's was easy, mark's not so much.
He's in the new view program because he fell behind on his credits when I had my first surgery in 2006, his freshman year, and it's been hard for him to catch up.
They missed a lot of school, he wasn't focusing because he was so worried about me at the hospital and then when I came home, he would be at school, worried I was home alone, and he wasn't doing his work and sometimes he would just leave and come home to take care of me.

I cannot let that happen this time.
No matter how I'm doing when I get home from the hospital, I can't allow him to be more concerned with me than his studies.
I am going to come up with some sort of way to make sure that I am taken care of so that he doesn't worry.
Once I have the dates, (still haven't heard from Cindy yet) I am going to find out about a home health nurse, whether or not I can have one, how often they can be here, and for how long each time.
I'll make it work this time so that Mark can get all of his credits.

August 6, 2008

School schedule pick-up day.

Good morning!
It's been awhile since I've posted this early in the morning eh?!
Today is school schedule pick-up day, so we all have to get up early despite the late hours we all kept las night.
I think it's going to hurt them a whole lot more than it hurts me, I'm used to not getting more than a few hours of sleep.

We'll be heading up to the school with Mindy and her son Jeff, getting their schedules, and then getting back here because I have a lot of things to do that I've been putting off for a few days.
I have work to complete, a house to clean, dishes to finally do.
I just haven't felt like doing much of anything, and now I have to do all of it because I have a lot of things to take care of.
I'm hoping that some partial supply lists will be laying around by a few teachers too.
I hate not knowing what they need until the first week of school, and I might be a bit busy with a lot of different things.

July 24, 2008

So that's where all my shirts went!

I decided to start going through Sebastian's clothes first today.
I had to dig through all of the clean clothes piled up on top of his dresser first, then I could get into the drawers.
We ended up with 2 big garbage bags of clothes that no longer fit him, and all of them are still in good shape, so I'll be donating all of those to the Goodwill.

But as I was going through his clothes, I found out where all of my missing company logo shirts had gone to.
He swiped them.
Over the last few years, I've gotten quite a bit of free t-shirts from various blogging companies, a few forums I'm a member of, and a whole bunch of t-shirts with movie and band logos on them.

Every time I did the laundry and *know* I had washed, dried, and folded those shirts, and placed them in my pile on top of the dryer until I would go to put them away, they vanished.
I was never really sure where they went, but I would always see him wearing one of them every so often during the school week, but he would always say he was just borrowing it for the day, he wouldn't take it again once he put it in the laundry basket.
But I never did get them back.
All totaled, I found 17 of my shirts in his dresser drawers.

When I looked at him after adding another one of my shirts to the pile I was taking back, he just smiled and got a little red in the cheeks, then threw his arms around me and said I was his homie.

July 24, 2008

Time to sort it all out.

With a month left to go before school starts, it's time for me to go through all of the teens clothes and shoes they currently have, and figure out what fits, what's still in good shape, what doesn't fit but is still in good shape that can be dropped off at the Goodwill, and to figure out what exactly they will need to start school.

I have this tall standing wine rack that I got from Publix a few years ago, they were getting rid of it, it was a display rack, so I took it and instead of using it for wine, I've been using it for shoes.
It makes an awesome shoe rack, see?

It's a bit messy right now, it's covered with old jackets that are too small and need to be donated to Goodwill as well, there's some shoes on there in great shape that no longer fit, we can donate those too, and there are about 8 pairs of shoes on the floor under and around it, that the teens have just dropped on the floor instead of putting on the shoe rack.
*eyeroll*
So I need to have the teens go through all of those shoes and jackets, try them all on and find out what fits or doesn't, then bag up everything that doesn't and donate it all.

There's a pair of boys soccer cleats on that rack that Sebastian wore maybe 3 or 4 times for a summer soccer program 2 years ago, and they are in incredible shape, they are practically brand new, and if someone wants them, they can have them.
I'd be happy to send them to a mom whose kid is doing soccer and needs some cleats.
They are Nike Versatract, US size 7.
You can click for a bigger picture to see just how good of shape they are in.

They retail for about $25-$30, and they are really like brand new so if anyone is interested in them, contact me.
First come, first get.

July 23, 2008

No Tax-free holiday in Florida this year.

Source

State lawmakers decided against the tax break, saying the state couldn't afford it.

Finding clothes you like is the easy part, but paying for them is getting a little tougher. The week-long sales tax holiday won't be giving shoppers a break this year.

"The state of Florida gets almost all of its money from sales taxes. Sales tax revenues are down, down, down. As a consequence, we can't afford to pay our bills. And so this little holiday amounts to a significant amount of money, and this year frankly, the state of Florida just couldn't afford it," says Representative Keith Fitzgerald.

The sales tax holiday simply suspended paying state sales tax on any back to school items like clothes, shoes, backpacks, and all school supplies, under $50 each, to make back-to-school shopping a little easier on Sunshine State parents.
The state has decided to suspend the sales tax holiday this year because the state needs the money.
Well if the state didn't spend our tax revenue dollars on stupid crap, they wouldn't have to do this to parents who struggle to get their kids ready to go back to school.

This news is definitely sucky.
I have two teenagers who go back to school in about a month, and I have a lot of clothes, shoes, and a ton of supplies to buy for each of them.
It was always hard doing the back to school shopping anyway, it costs a lot to get kids ready to go back, and now it's going to hurt Florida parents even more.
Right smack in our wallets.
Ouch.

I know I'll be doing some major price comparisons before going to any stores.
I'll be going through sales flyers looking for the best and lowest prices, checking out all of the sales and comparing each store against one another for the best possible prices.
Two kids in high school with huge lists of expensive items, not to mention the new shoes and clothes they both need as they have both grown a lot over the summer, is going to be very hard.
I'll probably be going store to store, buying items at each store that has the best prices.

Hang in there Florida parents, let's hope the teachers won't ask for any big-time expensive items this year.

July 15, 2008

Tourettes syndrome kids.

I'm watching the ABC Primetime show about teens with Tourettes syndrome, and my heart is just breaking.
Watching what these families go through every single day is just exhausting, I can't even imagine what they deal with.

This one girl, Devon, has been home-schooled most of her life, and they decide to send her to public school.
The stress of it all sends her body into ticks that cause her to hurt herself.
This really is just breaking my heart.
I cannot imagine having a child with this syndrome, and then make them go to public school.
She's 11 years old, that makes her in middle school, and man, what a horrible age that is to begin with, kids are so cruel to each other at this age and grade.
There are some kids who are nice to her, but you know there are kids who are snickering behind her back, some probably even to her face.
I don't know if I could send my child to public school with this syndrome.
I know how cruel kids are, this would send those mean kids into over drive with their torture of the kids who are different.

July 7, 2008

Back to school readiness.

The teens go back to school on August 18th, so between now and then, I have to get everything in order.
Health physicals need to be done, eye exams, hearing tests etc.
Things like vision and hearing can be genetic, so it's important to get the teens tested every year for those problems.
Sebastian already wears glasses, so it's time for him to get another exam and a new prescription if it's needed.
Mark will need to be checked to see if his vision is still 20/20.

He has vision like a hawk.
He can read street signs several blocks away, people crossing the street on foot at night in dark clothes, great, great eyesight.
I hope it stays that way for him.
Both Sebastian and I have to wear vision correctors, Sebastian with his glasses, and me in my contacts.
Sebastian would like contacts, but he's very afraid of putting anything near or in his eyes still.
It takes awhile to work up the nerve to do it yourself that first time, and even the first few times.

I need to have their spines checked out too.
Their primary doctor can do the scoliosis exam as part of the physical, and I know how to check it as well.
You should always have your child stand facing you, not away from you, and have them bend forward like they are going to touch their toes.
From the front view, not only can you see if there is a rib hump, but any shoulder unevenness as well, because their fingertips will not be level if there is a curve.

I need to get them measured for correct shoe and clothing sizes, and then wait for the school to wait until the last possible minute to tell us what supplies they will need.
There is nothing more annoying than getting that list the first week of school.
The tax free shopping week is already over by then, so now everything we have to buy is at full price with no tax break discounts.

I usually do buy all the basics during that week though.
Pens, pencils, binders, folders, reams of paper, and the backpacks etc.
It's the specialty items that we never know about until later, and those are usually the most expensive and the ones we could really use the tax break on.
I really wish Sarasota County would force these teachers to have their lists ready for the tax free shopping week.
It's not fair that we have to wait to buy the $50 calculators and other expensive items that first week of school after just spending a ton of money on everything else.
And if we don't get the items they request that week, the kids lose points.
How fair is that?!

June 14, 2008

Pump Up the Volume (1990)

Sebastian and I decided to walk down and get us all some subs for lunch, and the going out of business Boogie Woogie cd, dvd, and video game store, is still open, and now everything is up to 75% off.
So we swung in to check and see if they had any more good deals.
All their used dvds are now another $3.50 off, so movies are super duper cheap.
I found buried amongst some truly horrible titles, the 1990 film Pump up the Volume starring Christian Slater.
Anyone remember this one?

When a book on Lenny Bruce falls into the right young, disaffected, youthful hands, the FCC has its work cut out for it. Christian Slater plays a quiet high school student whose alter ego "Hard Harry" cries injustice and spins punk and rap records from his basement at night for a growing fan base who finds his radio frequency. When the ultra-conservative school administration starts swinging, Hard Harry's fans rally, and Slater gets the girl.

And unlike most teen movies of the 80's and 90's, there is no prom, there is no wrong side of the tracks love story with a super happy ending and pretty pink dress, this is teen rebellion with all it's angst and problems, from suicide, to coming out of the closet in a defining moment kind of way.
Instead of the usual stereotyping of being a fag, Hard Harry instead tells the young male caller how he finds the bravery of people to be amazing, and with that he signs off for the night leaving his listening fans to ponder the coming out confession and who they are as well.

The movie has it's absolutely silly moments as well, it's truly stupid in some parts, but hey, no movie is without it's flaws.
But Pump Up the Volume is a really decent flick and has an amazing soundtrack.
Liquid Jesus' anthem- Stand, to Chagall Guevera's Tale O' The Twister, and Concrete Blonde, Peter Murphy, The Pixies, Soundgarden and Sonic Youth.
The opening song that is played several times throughout the film, Everybody Knows, is done by both Leonard Cohen and Concrete Blonde in the film, yet Cohen's version is noticeably missing from the soundtrack.
I prefer his version over the latter myself.
His voice is raw and real, and his version is slowed down a bit, allowing you to hear every word, and really get a feel for the meaning behind the lyrics.

Everybody knows that the dice are loaded
Everybody rolls with their fingers crossed
Everybody knows that the war is over
Everybody knows the good guys lost
Everybody knows the fight was fixed
The poor stay poor, the rich get rich
Thats how it goes
Everybody knows

Everybody knows that the boat is leaking
Everybody knows that the captain lied
Everybody got this broken feeling
Like their father or their dog just died

Everybody knows, everybody knows
Thats how it goes
Everybody knows

Anyway, it's a good a movie, on a scale of 1-5 stars, I give it a 3.5, and only that low because of some of the silliness.
I really think they could have left that out and had a truly remarkable teen rebellion film on their hands that was unlike every other teen movie past or present.

May 28, 2008

They sent him home.

When he fell, it happened so fast, and he felt the pain in his arm more than any other part of his body that hit the ground.
But he did hit his head, so about 15 minutes after they called, they called again, and said that he hit the back of his head when it happened, and he has a small lump, a headache, and should be sent home for precaution.
So he's home and resting, just laying on the couch watching tv.

I was able to get a message to Mark so he didn't go searching for Sebastian when school lets out, they walk home together every day, and Mark emailed me to let me know he got the message and asked how his brother was.
I told him he was fine, just laying down.
I put some Staphaseptic on the puncture, and covered it with a band-aid.
He'll probably have a mark there for the rest of his life now.
For some reason, even if you get all the lead out, you still end up with a black dot on your skin forever.

May 28, 2008

Fell on a pencil.

The school just called.
Sebastian was walking down the hall and tripped, and then landed on a pencil.
The way the nurse was talking, I thought for sure she was going to say it went in his eye.
I finally just said "How bad is it?!"

"Oh, he's ok. The tip of the pencil went in his arm, he pulled the lead out and washed it thoroughly, but he has a scrape about an inch and a half long."
Ok, so it's his arm and not a vital organ.
Ok good.
I talked to him and he said he's fine.
I asked him if he whacked his head when he fell, he said he doesn't remember, it all happened so fast.
So I told him if he starts getting a headache or feeling like he's going to throw up, he needs to go back to the nurse and we'll get him home.

Oy vey!
Just 2.5 days of school left, and he starts injuring himself now.

May 27, 2008

So much to do, no energy to do it all.

I have so many things that I need to do, I've gotten way behind on a lot of things.
I forgot to pay my medicare supplement part D bill, so I need to do that.
I have about 30 some odd emails to reply to.
I have 2 sink-fulls of dishes to do, and I need to finish installing a few things on the boys computer.

But I gotta tell ya, it is so much better with the xbox in their room now.
I have actually been able to watch the news every day and all my "gay and boring" tv shows.
The boys said they are so thrilled to be in the other room because the tv shows I watch are boring and gay, like really gay.
Funny, they would always ask me what time such and such show comes on. *eyeroll*

I can't believe the last day of school is on Friday.
This school year has just flown by so fast.
We are gonna be up each other's butts all summer.
I need to get them both jobs. hahaha

Ok, I really need to get cracking on all those emails and other things.
Later days.

May 22, 2008

Are they suffering premature senility?

The teens that is.
Today when they came home, it was like they had both completely lost their memory, and blew off their chores.
Now, they don't have many daily chores at all, so it's not like they have to come home and clean the entire house, so blowing them off was kind of stupid.
Now they'll have twice as much to do tomorrow.

Mark's chores are to come in and take out the trash and recyclables, and put a new bag in, and put his clean laundry in his dresser.
Sebastian's chores are to clean the 2 litter boxes and sweep the floor around them, and put his clean clothes away.
Piece of cake right?

I don't nag them about their chores, it is their job to do them and remember to do them.
I could have spoken up and reminded them, but they are semi-adults now, they should just know to do this.
For the last 3 months, they have come home, put their backpacks away, do their chores, then any homework they have, and then they can play.
They have just done it, it's been awesome.

I was laying on the couch when they came home, just trying to rest my busted up shoulder, so maybe they thought they shouldn't make any noise.
But I wasn't sleeping, I was just laying down watching the end of Days of our Lives, they could have made noise and it wouldn't have bothered me at all.
I even said hello, how was school today, I got some snacks for you while I was out today, and they replied.
They know I wasn't sleeping.

But now the kitchen trash can is near over flowing, the recycle bucket is too, and all of their clean clothes are piled up on top of their dressers where I put them so I can do more laundry tomorrow.
The cat litter boxes stink so bad, so yeah, tomorrow is going to suck for Sebastian when he has to clean them.
Oh well, not my problem.
They also failed to feed and give fresh water to the cats this morning before they left for school, so when I got up and went into the kitchen, all 3 cats were trying to trip and kill me because they were so hungry.

Tomorrow the teens will complain about how much trash and recycles there are, how bad the cat boxes smell, and how come they have so much laundry to put away.
I do a load of clothes every single day, I have to because there are 3 of us who take a shower every day, and so clean towels get used up fast around here.

Maybe it's the end of the school year lazy settling in or something.
They get out on the 30th, and they are barely doing any work at school.
Some of Sebastian's classes have been watching movies all week, and in Mark's classes, they are allowed to play online if they completed their daily modules.

I just realized how much I'm rambling.
Ack! Sorry 'bout that.
But if I owe you an email, I'm going to start working on those.
I got my second wind about 20 minutes ago, so I'll probably be up for awhile.
Later days!

May 21, 2008

The rainy season begins.

Yesterday after my massage appointment, the skies opened up.
Lightening, thunder, and gallons of rain came down and didn't let up until about 5pm.
The teens walk home from school everyday, we only live about 7 city blocks from the high school, it's barely a 10 minute walk.
I knew they would be soaked when they came in the door, so I positioned myself at 2:37 and waited for them to walk in.
They get home every single day at the same exact time, 2:38pm.
I don't know how they do that perfect timing every day, but they do.
Anyway, like I said, it was down pouring really bad at that time, so I waited for my perfect moment.

Ha!
They were soaked right down to their boxers, their shoes were just like little spongy buckets for walking, their backpacks were full of water, all their notebooks and everything were just water logged.
That part wasn't so funny, we lost a really expensive calculator, but hey, school gets out on the 30th, so not a huge loss.
But damn if it wasn't funny watching them come in.
Sebastian loves getting wet, playing in the rain, so he was all hell yeah baby! That was fun!
Mark on the other hand wasn't quite so pleased with being so wet.
Haha!
I made them go straight back to the laundry after I snapped my picture, and strip out of the wet clothes and place them straight in the dryer, and then dry off and put on clean dry clothes.

I'm hoping it doesn't rain again today, but it has that look in the sky, it's a little gray, a little cloudy, and the humidity is way up.
If they get soaked 2 days in a row, they may get a little mad.
Well, not Sebastian, he's a puddle jumper.

May 14, 2008

Just 2 more weeks! Ack!

I can't believe how fast this year has flown by.
The teens get out of school for the summer in just 2 weeks, on the 30th.
Can you believe that?!?

I was sitting here tonight watching Law and Order, and going through coupons for tomorrow's grocery stockpiling, and it hit me.
Just 2 more weeks to go and then they'll be here around the clock.
Sleeping, eating, playing video games.
Making messes, asking what there is to do, what's to eat, when is dinner, and making the dreaded summer statement, "Mom, I'm bored."

I'm hoping that Mark gets a call back about the applications he put in, I'm going to have him call the game store and ask if they had a chance to look it over yet, and would they be interested in an interview.
He went as far as applying, he can go a step further and show serious interest right?

I'm sitting here at my pc, and Shahiro and Kali are playing together, running all over the house, scrambling across the furniture, and then Shahiro found a spot to hide so she can dive-bomb on Kali.

Yeah, Kali will never see her hiding under that sheet.
Nope.

April 22, 2008

I only dreamed I woke up.

I have 2 alarms, 2, and they are both set for 5:45am.
You know where this is going don't you?

I must have dreamed I woke up and got the teens up, because when I rolled over at 7:54, and decided to get up for the day, I came out to the living room and saw that the bar was still on the door.
I ran to Mark's room where he was still fast asleep, I screamed in a total panic, "Wake up OMG! I don't know what happened! OMG!"
Mark gets up, asks what time it is, I tell him it's almost 8am, and he's like "Fuck. By the time we get there mom it will be after 8, I won't get in. They'll send us home for being tardy, especially me, new view program? Yeah. What happened?"

I told him I didn't know, but I know I set both alarms, I do it every night at 10pm, I must have just rolled over and shut them off and went back to sleep.
He was like it's ok mom, I can do my work at home, but Sebastian, he's screwed.
Yeah, I know.
Fuuuuuck!

I hate it when this happens.
I've done this at least 3 times now this year, and I can't explain why I do it.
I just have no idea why my brain doesn't register the difference between the dream and reality when the alarms go off.
Like wtf am I dreaming about that would cause me to think I got the kids up?
Dammit.

April 21, 2008

It all turned out ok.

The detective pulled the kid and several others aside at once, all who had been suspected of having drugs with them today.
He had ended up passing it off to his girlfriend to hold earlier in the morning, but after being pulled aside and questioned, he told Sebastian he wasn't going to bring anything to school again.
He told Sebastian he had too much to lose with only a month of school left for the year.
He has no idea how or why he got pulled aside, he wasn't alone when the detectives did it, so it looked like a random type of search, which is what we wanted.

I'm glad it's over, Sebastian is glad it's over.
He said that he never wanted the kid to get in trouble, he just didn't know how else to get out of having to take it.
So at least the kid was spoken to, realized he had an awful lot to lose, and hopefully will not bring anything to school again.
Sebastian came home extremely relieved.
Like a major weight had been taken off his shoulders.
He was happy and in a good mood when he came in the door, and we sat and talked about it.
I think he was relieved the kid didn't have it on him, he really didn't want the kid in trouble, and so when they saw each other in the last class of the day, they were able to talk and be "cool" with each other.
All Sebastian wants is to get through school without any problems, doesn't want to make enemies, but also doesn't want to have to do things just to fit in and be accepted.

April 21, 2008

Keeping myself busy.

While waiting to find out what happens today, I'm trying to keep myself busy.
Actually, it's not that hard.
I saw a single cockroach last night, and so the deep clean has begun.
I know how it got in, that mini fridge I borrowed.
They had kept it in what is basically a storage room, used it only for sodas and beers, but the cat and dog food was stored right next to it in open bags.
In Florida, you cannot have open food anything.
Everything has to be in plastic containers or kept in the fridge.

So I've started in the kitchen where the roach was seen.
I've done all the dishes, and am just taking a small break so I don't over do things.
I'm wearing my sling so I don't mess with my arm and cause more pain too.
Next up, I'm taking everything out of the cupboards and washing all the shelves down with a water/bleach mixture.
That's not only the food cupboards, but also the ones below that hold all the pots and pans.
Then I'm going to wash down all the counter tops, wash the cupboard doors, the stove top and front, the baseboards, and bleach the sink.
Then I'll head into the bathroom and bleach the hell outta that room too.
Then I'll sweep, vac, and then mop all the floors with bleach too.
It has to be done.
If you see a single roach, it means there are hundreds more just not brave enough to come out when the lights are on.
Once every thing is clean, I'll get some roach bait/traps, and the house will be free and clear within a week.
You have to take charge of a roach situation as soon as you see one.
If you don't, they breed like crazy and it gets beyond normal cleaning and you have to call in pest control.

In between, I'm also messing with the position of the antenna so the converter box works better.
I've almost got it.
Almost.
I still can't get those 2 local channels, but I'm working on it.

April 21, 2008

You fucked up someone's life because of a plant.

I have received only 1 negative comment on the situation with Sebastian, I just got it.

A guy who used the name "no way", but has a valid email address, Gregory Rice, said this;

No fucking way was this a good idea. The kid/s already applied to
college. How long until he graduates, less than a month? But now, he
can take another year of high school, get put on probation, and you say
serves him right, like he was really trying to harm anybody. He was
probably just joking around with Sebastian anyways. Now he/s gonna get
fucked like nobody/s business. I can/t believe you decided to fuck up
someone/s life because of a plant. You/re all a bunch of dick wads.
fuck you.

It wasn't a joke. This kid has been trying to get my son to smoke all fucking year.
He would pull him into the construction hallways, light up, and try to get my son to smoke it.
He had tried sliding a joint in one of his books one day, invited him to his house to smoke, offered to walk home with him and smoke.
You don't know the situation, you don't know how serious the situation was.
Believe me, we agonized over what to do with this, it wasn't an easy decision at all.
But my son and I had a choice, turn this kid in, or risk my own son getting caught with it and expelled.
I nipped that problem in the bud, sorry if you don't approve, but if this kid valued his future for going to college, he shouldn't have persisted with his attempts to push on my son.

I know it's just a plant, I don't care if people smoke weed, I really don't.
Most of my friends do, I used to, the last time I took a hit was December 2005.
But it was my choice, an adult choice.
I don't think pot should be illegal at all.
We bust pot growers and sellers, users, and we throw them in jail over "a plant', when there are far bigger dangers in this world the ATF could be cracking down on, but it's not for kids.
If adults want to toke away, I have no problem with that, but I do have a problem with some asshat pushing drugs onto my kids.
They are kids, they can't make that kinda decision that has serious legal consequences if they get caught.
To teens, it's all fun and games, they don't realize just how fucked they'd be if they got caught with it.
Expulsion from school is just the tip of the iceberg.

And ya know what, if this was a joke like you say, the kid won't have any thing on him when they get the dogs, he won't be in any trouble if he has nothing.
They have the dogs at the school today, they are taking them room to room just like they do every year for the whole 4/20 holiday, and they let the dogs walk amongst the students.
If this kid has it, the dogs will bark, if he doesn't, he's free and in the clear.
The only thing the cops know is that this kid might be holding.

I'm not the one who fucked up this kid's future, he is if he's holding a bag of weed today.
I'm not the one who chose to push on a freshman all year, try to force him to smoke all year.
I'm not the one who said I'm giving you a bag of weed and a pipe to smoke it out of, and I'm putting it in your back pack.
I'm not the one who may be holding that bag of weed today, and neither will my son.

If this kid has it, he will be caught.
He will have made the choice today to bring it to school with him.
He made his choices when he kept trying to push it, insisting, telling my son what he was going to do.
If he has it on him, he made that decision himself.
If the dogs find it, then it's all on him.
He should have thought about his future before pushing all year.

April 21, 2008

The call has been made.

Now I wait and see what happens.

I felt like a horrible mother sending him in to school to face this today, but keeping him home would have resulted in suspicion, and just delay the "package being delivered".
He knows to call me if something goes wrong, so I'm hoping I don't get that call.
The detective said they will do what it takes to handle this, so keep your fingers crossed for Sebastian today.

April 18, 2008

We'll be turning him in.

Sebastian and I talked at lentgh this afternoon over this whole thing, and I gave him the options.
He gave me the name.
I'll be making the call early Monday morning so they can catch this kid however they have to without involving Sebastian at all.

He's still very worried, but he knows something had to be done.
And being the super awesome kid he is, he's even concerned for this kid's future.
He said to me, "Mom, he's a senior. He's applied to colleges, got accepted I think he said, this will ruin his life."
I told him that our turning him is not the thing that is ruining his life, it's the choices that he's made, not ours, that have determined what his future holds for him.
This kid chose to push drugs on to others, he chose to smoke them, he chose to try and force another student to take possession of them, that's all on him, not us.

I hope that all this goes off without any major problems. I'll be worried sick all day Monday and every day after that, but I know it's the right thing to do, and Sebastian knows it is too.

April 18, 2008

We expect a pot problem on Monday ma'am.

I have awesome kids you know.
They come to me with everything, that open door policy I drilled into them as soon as they could speak and understand, has paid off.
They tell me everything about what goes on at school, girls, their bodies.
Very open and trusting relationship.
I consider myself very lucky.

But then stuff like this comes up, and I feel like I have a fractional ownership in exactly what my responsibilities are towards the school.
Do I tell them and risk my kid getting beat up?
Do I tell him to do something else just to save his own neck?

Here's the situation.
All year long, Sebastian has been bothered by another student who wants him to smoke pot.
The whole year, this kid has asked him to smoke during lunch, hang and smoke after school, buy some, take a hit, just try it.
The whole damn year.
And Sebastian is an incredibly awesome kid, he has come up with some kind of excuse the whole year, as to why he can't smoke.
He's hungry, doesn't want to miss lunch, has to get home after school, his mom needs him to do chores and homework, doesn't want to get caught, doesn't want to smoke but hey man, it's cool if you do, not my bag man but have at it.

Sunday is 4-20.
That's the international pot smoking holiday, for those of you unaware.

So this drug pushing kid has been planning how to get Sebastian to smoke, and seeing as Monday is the day after the biggie holiday, he plans on giving Sebastian a bag of weed and something to smoke it out of during 7th period, the last class of the day.
He plans on just putting it in Sebastian's back pack if Sebastian won't willingly take it.
Which he won't.
He's said no about 200 times this year, he doesn't want it.

But here's where we have a major dilemma.
Does Sebastian turn this kid in, he won't tell me the kid's name because he knows I'll make the call, or does he take it and get off school campus asap, just to save his own ass?
He's terrified that if he turns this kid in, he'll get beat up.
The kid and his "friends", are not nice people. They live in the ghetto portion of our city, they are always in trouble at school for one thing or another, and Sebastian wants no part of any beating that could come his way as a result of ratting this kid out.
Or, does he just let it get in his back pack, get off school grounds without being busted by the school po-po himself, and I flush it down the toilet?

I called the school anyway.
I spoke to the school officer, I gave him no information at all.
Not my name, not Sebastian's, nothing that could identify my son as the rat.
I explained what's happened all year and this kid's plan to slip it in the back pack during 7th period.
The officer was very understanding, he understood my need for anonymity, and Sebastian's.
He said there are two and only two things we can do.
I can try to get the name out of Sebastian this weekend, and because the school is already planning on having a "pot problem" on Monday, the day after the pot holiday, they (the school po-po) can simply walk the halls with their dogs and sort of casually and accidentally, come upon the kid holding the weed.
Or, Sebastian upon receiving the weed, when the bell rings to let class out, go straight to the office, ask for an officer, and turn the weed over to them.
They will not punish him if he turns it in, I was promised that they would do nothing to Sebastian if he turns it in.
The officer said that students find drugs all the time and they turn them in.
They are only asked where it was found, and then they are let go with a word of thanks for being honest.
He said if Sebastian walks off campus knowing it's on him, if it's found out later that he held it, he will then face trouble, suspension or expulsion is likely.

I asked the officer 3 times for his word, that if my kid turns this in, he will not be asked to rat out the kid, and he will not face punishment.
My kid doesn't want it, has said no in every possible way all year, and the big day is now coming and he's absolutely terrified.
Could I keep him home Monday?
Yes, but the kid has said he will give it to him whenever he returns to school.
One way or another, Sebastian is getting this bag of weed.
This kid is intent on giving Sebastian pot no matter what.

I am going to try talking to Sebastian all weekend, try to assure him that he will be safe, and I will leave the decision to him. I can't force him to rat this kid out knowing how much he fears this other student who is by the way, a senior.
The only reason they are in this class together is because it's an elective in computer and digital design, the field Sebastian is interested in, and a lot of seniors take it for the extra graduating credit.
I will leave it up to him but I will make him understand he can't leave campus with it, he'll be in major trouble if it's found out later he had it on school grounds, he either has to tell the kid's name, or turn it over when the bell rings.

It sucks people.
It truly sucks that Sebastian has been under this kind of pressure all year, but I am so so proud of him for coming home and telling me everything all year.
He's honest with me, he tells me what's going on, his thoughts, his fears, and he asks me for my help.
I knew he was under this kind of stress, and I did attribute some of the big fight he and I had to this situation, and I always make time for him when he wants to discuss it, and we do.
He usually drops it after a few minutes, says it's so hard to deal with, not sure what to do, but I also know he has many other stressors.
Being a freshman isn't that easy, the work is harder, there's far more students than middle school, puberty, everything, and it all builds up.
I'm trying here, I really am, but even with all the back and forth the teens and I go through, I am so greatful they come to me with this stuff.
I am lucky beyond words that they trust me to talk about this kind of stuff.
I can't even imagine going through this and not being able to talk openly with your parents for fear of being punished for even "associating with those kinds of people".
He's doing his very best to survive public high school, and I'm doing the very best I can, to help them survive.
I wish this was easier for all of of us, but it makes my heart swell when they come to me with this kind of stuff.
I'm doing something right here, I know I am.
Being a single mom is tough work, but times like this lets me know I'm doing ok.
My kids trust me to talk about anything, even super bad ass stuff like this.

April 11, 2008

Late night tv for the insomniacs.

And the people in serious pain.
I've been up all night, here it is almost 5:30am, and I'm up watching tv.
Roseanne repeats, infomercials for yoga dvds and other exercise programs, religion, news programs etc etc.

It's late at night when you're bored and you can't sleep, that you start watching all these infomercials and think how awesome they all are.
Cooking gadgets, weight training gloves, health supplements, money making programs and on and on.
It all looks good when you can't sleep.
It's all a must have item when you can't sleep.

Here I am in absolute agony, watching an infomercial for a super fun workout program that targets the upper body, lower body and legs, and the core, with every single move you do because the creator developed 11 elite moves that you can learn in dvd 1, and there's bonuses!
Yes!
There's 5 extra dvds that you can have right now if you just call in the next 17 minutes!
I'm watching going wow, it does look fun, it does look like it's easy, it does look like it would help me lose weight and work my core, and then I turn my body and wince in terrible pain, covering my mouth to muffle the screams of pain so as not to wake the teens.
Yes, of course I could do this program! /sarcasm>

I'll be waking the teens up in about 15 minutes for school, and maybe after they leave I'll be so exhausted that I'll sleep for maybe an hour or 2.
Later days.

April 9, 2008

Let it pass quickly and not be contagious.

I went back to sleep on the couch after the teens left for school, and at about 8:30am, the school nurse called.
Sebastian has a fever, a headache, and is complaining or sore limbs, can he come home?
I said of course he can, and waited for him to come back.
He walked in looking like death warmed over, I gave him 2 Tylenol, a huge glass of cold water, and sent him back to bed.
He's still sleeping.
Poor kiddo.
I just hope whatever he has is not contagious, I don't want to be sick again, I catch everything.
If Mark comes home feeling like that too, I'll probably catch whatever it is.

April 7, 2008

I forgot how much fun a school bus can be.

We went down to Marina Jacks and did a tour of all of the art pieces that border the park.
First, we walked around the diversity panels, because they are all done in photoshop, that's what part of this class is currently studying.
The students weren't even remotely interested, and it was hot out.
Like way hot.
They all just wanted to sit down.
Then we went and looked at the statues.
These are the art pieces I have talked about before, costing the city millions of dollars, but the class we were in is art and digital design, not local politics, so I kept it to myself.
Here's a pic of one of the pieces, it's called Andy.
It's by far one of the more interesting pieces there.

After that, we ate at O'Leary's, and then hopped back on the bus to the Hollywood 20 for the film fest films for the schools to see.
They were really great shorts, I liked them all, but my faves were Dear Lemon Lima, One Rat Short, and Snakebite.
Snakebite was so adorably cute, a great and classic little kid story.
Dear Lemon Lima was weird but funny and poignant.
One Rat Short was a love story for rats with a not so happy ending, but done brilliantly.
Fabulous animation in it, and a good story with no talking at all, just visuals.
I wasn't crazy about Gandhi at bat, I just didn't find it all that humorous.

We were shown a commercial before the shorts started, and this one was just so wrong on so many levels.
You know I'm all about kids not starting to smoke, but this commercial for the tobacco free Florida you care contest, is slightly offensive.
I just don't think the part about sounding like a transformer, was necessary.
There are people out there who have to use that little machine to talk for reasons other than throat cancer, and so yeah, wrong, but funny all at the same time.
Instead of taking it seriously, the students laughed out loud.

Then we hopped the bus back to school, and man, teens these days, wow.
I think at times they forgot there was another adult on the bus besides the teacher, and I was sitting back there with them, and they just talked the way they always do.
Sex, prison sex, drugs, more sex.
I was like whoa.
The girls don't look like teenage girls, they look like 20 somethings, and the boys all look like teenage boys.
The girls were by far the worst talkers if you catch my drift.

I was so glad to get home.
All that walking around the park in new sandals?
Not a good idea at all.
I have blisters and torn skin, and now my feet are all swollen.
But all in all it was a good and interesting day.

April 7, 2008

This is way way too early.

Ha!
Wow, I haven't been up and ready to go at this hour in like forever.
Sebastian and I will be at the film festival all day with the school.
I hope it's fun and I that have some interesting stories to tell when I get back.

Later days!

April 3, 2008

Bloa-ted.

I very rarely eat out at restaurants, we do get take out, but eating "in restaurant" is different.
Anyway, we went to The Olive Garden for lunch, it was me, the teens, my friend and her son.
The food was excellent, but I ate way too much.
I just love their bread sticks and alfredo sauce, omg yum.

I hadn't been up their in quite awhile, so a lot of things have changed in that plaza.
There's a ton of new stores for clothing, diners, a mailing type store, another craft place, and just a whole bunch of stuff that wasn't there the last time I really had a chance to look at everything.
They must have added on to the strip mall too, because there were noticeable changes in the end of the building structure, and one of them appears to have a completely different column style in front of it than all the others. They didn't look like cement, they looked more like fiberglass columns, they were a different shape, different color.
It doesn't look bad, just doesn't "fit" with every other storefront there now.

Tomorrow, Jo and I and the teens, will be going out for lunch somewhere, then we're dropping the teens back off here with her laptop so they can play Wow, while her and I go do some shopping.
She needs some new shoes, and I need some sort of school field trip appropriate clothing.
I can wear my standard black, but I think t-shirts and shorts won't be ok, so I'm off to find and purchase an outfit I'll wear once.
I'm not much into fashion, I could care less "what's in", and I have no desire to look like or fit in, with every Sarasota PTA soccer mom.

I can't believe how bloated I still am from lunch though.
When you don't eat out often, your body, ok my body, just isn't used to that kind of rich food, and I end up feeling sluggish and bloated for hours afterward.
4 Tums later, and I still feel like I'm bulging at the seams.

March 28, 2008

And so begins spring beak.

Today was one of those days where I spent almost the entire day, just lounging around on my furniture, watching tv shows, occasionally surfing the net, watching movie trailers etc.
I just felt super blah, bored, and didn't want to have to do anything.
I need to snap outta this funk that has taken over.
I'm not sure exactly what's going on, I do know I am having a bout of mild depression, but I need to get out of it.
I have things to do.

The teens are officially on spring break now, they don't go back to school until April 7th.
Oy.
It's going to be non-stop video gaming, sleeping in late, and eating me out of house and home.
I guess I can be glad my income taxes came back early so I can pay for all that food they are going to eat.
And speaking of food, I went to Blingo to look up Pizza Hut, and yes I know, it's just a .com, but I like winning stuff on Blingo, and I noticed this,
you can click for bigger.

See all that?
Sponsored listings.
Since when the hell did Blingo start doing that?
I hate sponsored listings.
I know they are owned by Google, so it was only a matter of time, but before if I went and typed in Pizza Hut or Papa Johns, their sites would be first, not some sponsored listing for Tampa Yellow Pages or Discount Pronto.
They are now using Yahoo, Windows live search, and Ask.com, to pull up search results, and they are pulling up ads first, not the real sites.
[Found on Ads by Yahoo!]
That really sucks.
I prefer to find what I'm looking for first, not an ad, not the yellow pages, not a discount coupon place.
If I wanted the yellow pages, I would have looked in my phone book ya know?

Maybe I'm just in a bad mood, so I'll go now.
Later days.

March 25, 2008

I woke up thinking it was Saturday.

I woke up at 5:45am to get the teens off to school, then I went back to bed for a little bit more sleep, and when I woke up the second time, I thought it was Saturday.
I really did.
I came out of my room, expecting to find Mark still sleeping, and Sebastian already awake and playing video games.
I even had plans for "today", I was going to take the boys to the movies, to either see Shutter or 10,000 B.C.
The teens want to see the latter, and of course, I want to see the scary one.

But it turns out it's only Tuesday.
*sigh*
The teens are at school, it really is Tuesday, not Saturday.
Bummer.

After I finish my breakfast, I'll be hopping on my elliptical for 20 minutes, and then I'll get cracking on the housework I didn't do all weekend.

But I wanted to leave you with this video about "B.C." tours through a natural history museum.
The B.C. stands for biblically correct.
It absolutely blows my mind.
Radiometric dating is completely ignored, they claim that the T-Rex, with his claws and giant teeth, was actually a fruit and leaf eater, and only started killing other animals for meat after Eve ate the forbidden fruit.
At 7:29, at least they admit that there are several problems for the creationists.
This type of stuff makes me feel so sad for these children.
They are all home schooled, they are only taught what their parents and churches want them to know, and the facts about evolution are completely ignored.
They call the dioramas of how some dinosaurs lived, "artwork", not science.
It kills me when the tour guide says to the kids, "It's a great fairy tale, but it's not good science."
Really? All those bones are just a fairy tale, yet they have absolutely nothing to show the proof for their theory of creationism.
Baffling.

March 24, 2008

Today isn't half bad.

I spent most of the weekend dealing with pain issues due to the weather, but today the sun is shining, and my body feels good.
The teens went off to school, I sat and chatted with a neighbor out on their lanai for awhile in the cool breeze, took a walk up to the store to get my much needed money out of the ATM so I can pay a bill that I only pay in cash, and came back.
I'm just sitting here chilling for a few before I go help another neighbor with her computer.
She's such a sweet lady, but she has absolutely no idea how to make things work right.

One of the things I really like about Amscot, is that even though they say that money transfers will take 3-4 business days, it's usually a whole lot faster than that.
I transferred the money out of my paypal account on Friday morning, around 11am-ish, and wasn't expecting to be able to access it until at least Tuesday or Wednesday, but I woke up this morning to see it there.
I do need to call them or go in to talk with them about my card though.
It expires in a few months, so I need to find out if I'll just be sent a new one, or if I'll need to apply for one again.
I just have no idea how that works with them.

After the boys get home, I need to go to the grocery store and pick up some stuff we need, and then I can relax for the rest of the day.
But today has been a good day so far.
I'm not in any intolerable pain like I was this weekend, I feel good, and things are just going good for me.
I do have a lot of things I have to do, the house is a tad on the messy side, but I'm just not going to worry about it right this minute.
I'm having a good day, and cleaning would totally ruin that for me. Hahaha

I sent my Netflix movies back and need to go set up my queue for my next two movies, but their site is under maintenance right now.
Bugger.
I hate it when I forget to check my queue, and then I end up with a movie I didn't want right now.
I know they are all in my queue because I put them there, but there are certain ones I want first.
I'm totally anal like that.

Anyway, I guess I blathered on for long enough, I hope you are all having a good Monday too, or if it sucks, I hope it turns around for you.
Later days!

Oh! Before I forget, I lost another 2 pounds!
I absolutely love love LOVE, my NordicTrack elliptical!
On painful days like this weekend, I didn't get on it at all, but on most days even when I have a little pain, I hop on and do as much time as I can.
After I got back from my walk, I was feeling really pumped, so I hopped on and did 20 minutes.
Then just for giggles, I stepped on my scale.
I'm really trying hard not to obsess over the numbers, but it's an awesome feeling seeing them go down.
I'm now down to 182.5.
Not bad, not bad at all.

March 23, 2008

Long weekend boredom.

The teens went and spent last night and most of today at my sisters house, helped her hide eggs for the nieces, play with them etc.
They had fun, got to play WoW, and had McDonald's.

On Friday though, we watched Beowulf.
It was really good, at times, you forget it's a cartoon.
I watched it again last night during one of my couldn't sleep periods.
I slept off and on last night, and today, and now I probably won't be able to sleep tonight.
I found it interesting that neither son had even heard of the story before.
Back in 8th grade, we covered all of the classic stories like this one, Romeo and Juliet, Othello, and Hamlet.
Here's my kids, a freshman and a junior in high school, and they haven't read any of these stories yet.
They don't even know if they will be covering these.

At some point, I'll blog about the latest school budget cuts.
It's a lot to take in, but I do know they are planning on cutting out coaches, some of the arts programs, and other stuff.
The county is having major budget issues, and they are taking the money from the schools again.

Sebastian just came home from being out with a friend and his friend's mom, and he brought me McDonald's.
A cheeseburger and a chocolate shake.
Yum.
Off to eat and see what's on tv.
Later days.

March 20, 2008

Attempting to get moving.

I need to get my body un-stiff, and get off to the store.
I have to pick up a few things I forgot, and a few things the bagger at Publix forgot to put in my bags.
I hate that.
I don't buy groceries so the bagger can forget to put them in the bag.
2 packages of shredded cheddar, and a 4 pack of tuna.
They are on my receipt, but not in my fridge and cupboards.
I wish I had noticed it on Saturday when I actually went shopping, but I didn't notice till last night when I had the enchiladas already rolled and in the pan, and went to grab the cheese.
Oh well.

Mark is a funny kid. He's always bringing pens home for me that he finds at school. He knows I like a really nice pen to write with, the heavier the better.
But yesterday he came home with a bunch of marketing pens from a local retailer.
How many is a bunch?
15.
They aren't bad pens, they write good, but just not heavy enough for my hand.
And how he got them all, I have no idea.
I like the pen he brought home the other day though.
It's this wicked heavy silver pen, octagon shape, and it has a heavy ink.
It's way nice.
Me likey.

I got Rick rolled this morning.
You know what Rick rolling is?
It's this really stupid internet fad where someone posts a link, and says it's one thing, but it's usually the youtube video for Rick Astley's never gonna give you up.
So anyway, they posted a link, said it was a list, and it was the Rick Astley video, but the browser window, was flying all over the place. You couldn't close it down.
I had to ctrl + alt + dlete, to end it.
I have never found the funny with the whole Rick rolling thing at all.
It's really stupid actually.

March 14, 2008

They should make up their minds.

The school that is.
Today was supposed to be another half day, and what time is it, and where are my sons?
Not here, and when I called the school, they said the students were being held for the full day, the principal thought it was best, sorry they didn't notify the parents.
That's it, sorry.
Grrr.

I went up to the corner store this morning, and spent some time chatting with the store owner about the crazies in our neighborhood.
The crazy lady who flipped out on me over some plastic light sabers 2 years ago, went in his store, and was flipping out on him because he has a guard dog in a fenced in area in the back.
She said having it caged up like that was abusive, and she heard that he beat his dog to make it meaner.
He asked me if I knew her, and I relayed the light saber story.
He said she told him she worked for animal control, and she was going to get his dog taken away from him.

I've seen him with his dog, he does not abuse it at all.
That dog is protective and loving to his family, but strangers who get too close to the fence, yeah, he barks and growls like he's supposed to do.
The lady is freaking nuts.

Then we talked about the crazy French lady who wears a winter hat and gloves in the middle of summer, and how she steals from stores.
He was pissed at her because she knocked over a bottle of wine, and when he went to get the mop to clean it up, she swiped another bottle and left the store.
He knows she did because he has security cameras, and it caught the whole thing on tape.
I told him, yeah, she's been baned from Sweetbay, Publix, and 7-eleven, and the previous owner of his store, Pete, banned her for the same stuff as well.
He (new owner) was worried about baning her because he's the new store on the block, and doesn't want to get a bad rep.
I'm all man, every store around here has banner her, trust me, nobody would blink if you said she was banned, they all know her very well.
He said thanks, that was good to know, and I got my purchases and came home.

Now I'm just waiting for the teens to get home, and whether or not it's going to rain.
I can feel it, felt it last night, and the sky just got a little darker.
Hopefully it won't downpour until after the boys get home.

March 13, 2008

They'll be home soon.

This week was FCAT testing at school, and today and tomorrow are half days.
Tomorrow they have the NRT (Norm Referenced Tests), which determine if students move to the next grade level.
The teens should be home pretty soon, and then we need to go grocery shopping and stuff.

I really feel like sometimes, I need to wear my back brace again.
I have caught myself sitting hunched over my keyboard a few times, and then wonder why later in the day my back is hurting so much.
I need to keep my back against the chair back, and my feet up.
This is the best position for me to sit in at the computer for so many hours.

Oh, and with a bit of antenna tweaking, the converter box is working much, much better.
I filled out the stuff over at antenna web, and they have this handy dandy street level map, which tells you which way you should face your antenna to get in all the digital signals.
Once I messed around with that and the antenna, it's working a whole lot better.
The wind blowing still does have an effect, and certain channels need to have the antenna direction switched to make them come in, like the higher up numbers, but for the most part, I think I got it now.

March 12, 2008

Did you say you needed chaperones?!

I'm on it!
Sebastian came home from school yesterday with a permission slip for the Sarasota Film Festival in April, and another form asking for parents to chaperon.
I signed his slip and gladly filled out to go help.
It's an all day trip to the film festival, we get in free, we get to be there during the interviews with directors and actors, take pics, see a film and more, according to the permission slip.

He came home today and said I was the only parent who returned the paper to chaperon.
All the parents signed the slip, but none wanted to go help.
I am loving the idea of going!
Why wouldn't someone want to go hang out at the film festival all day?
Is it because you'd be with students?
They are all freshman and I think, 1 senior, I will only be in charge of 5 kids.
Piece of cake.
It's going to be really interesting I think.
I've been wanting to go to it for a few years now.

March 9, 2008

The time change has screwed up my day.

I cannot believe it's after 5pm already!
Where did my day go?!
I woke up at 9am, watched my usual Sunday morning Degrassi TNG-a-thon, got dressed, went to Publix for bread, milk, eggs, soda, (probably should have gotten some sort of chocolate) and girly things, (stupid girly things showing up unannounced!) came home, ate a tuna sandwich, and now it's almost time to make dinner.
The time change totally threw off my day, and made it appear to go by faster.

We decided to have breakfast for dinner tonight.
I rattled off what we had in the house that I could make for dinner, and they mentioned the pound of bacon in the fridge.
I said "So yeah, it's a little late to be making bacon and eggs, you guys shoulda asked me to make it for breakfast".
They both said, "But mom, we can have breakfast for dinner, there's no law that says you can't".
I said "But what if there is? You want me going to jail?! Huh? HUH?!"
They said I was being stupid, but if there was a law, they wouldn't tell on me because my bacon, egg, and cheese sandwiches are "teh awesome".
Flattery will get you breakfast for dinner.

I have to do some dishes, the laundry is in the dryer, and I'll have to fold it up before bed tonight so they can have clothes for school tomorrow.
The FCATs start Tuesday, the teens are not looking forward to that at all.
I personally hate the test, but whatever, there's no getting around it.
And there's nothing at all on tv tonight that I'm interested in watching, so I guess it'll be another night of xbox battles.
Either some GH or RS, not sure which, maybe both, either game is really fun.

Ok, off to do dishes and get stuff situated for breakfast.
Later days!

March 5, 2008

The school is retarded.

Ok, so Easter is March 23, most schools are taking spring break then.
Not ours, oh no.
We have a professional day on March 21st, so no school.
Then they go to school for a week, then they have from March 31st through April 6th, for spring break.

That's a very late spring break.
It should be over the Easter holiday, not in April like that.
Our last day of school for the year is May 30th.
I will never understand why they plan the school calendar this way.

February 22, 2008

Sick and drained.

The teens are home from school again today, been sick all week pretty much.
I hope they are well by Monday, it's been a very long week having them home a lot.
They are still really tired, they have been sleeping like 16 hours a day since coming down sick.

I've been up for hours, playing around on line, looking stuff up, having some interesting conversations with folks.
I still have things to do like file my taxes.
Yes, I was going to file this past week, but I had to switch things around because of sick kids and doc appointments.
I wish I could go do it today.
I have started a box for 2008 receipts though.
All those medical charges, medicine receipts, blogging stuff, etc.
I know I lost some stuff for 2007 tax filing, but I don't know where.
I went on a cleaning spree a few weeks ago, and I think I may have tossed a few big receipts out.
Damn it.
Oh well, I'll still get some decent deductions.

Ok, off to do some cleaning and other things around here that I need to do.
Later days.

February 20, 2008

I need a bubble.

Like a big bubble for me to live in.
Why?
Both the teens went to school, and both the teens came right back home.
Ok, not right away, Mark made it to about 8:30am, and Sebastian made it until about 10am.
They are both coughing, sneezing, feverish, and miserable.
Time to dose them up with Nyquil and Tylenol, and keep them the hell away from me.
Maybe stick them on some Branson lots out in the middle of nowhere so I don't catch it.
They can live in the bubble, I have stuff to do.
I swear, if I get sick again, I'm gonna be super pissed.
I can't stand getting sick all the time, and having to deal with new sickness aches and pains, along with my already have aches and pains.

Damn it.
I was really hoping this thing wasn't going to spread around amongst us.

February 20, 2008

That's my kind of watch.

So yeah, I'm still up because the AC whirring is making me kind of nutty, I'm like too tense to sleep, afraid it might blow up or something.
I know, totally unrealistic fear, but hey, that's me.

So I'm surfing the net and I come across the perfect watch for me.
I don't wear a watch everyday, I don't think the watches I own currently, fits well with my oh so casual style of dress.
But I came across this site for Technomarine watch styles, and found this one.
I love it!
I like the design of the numbers, the nautical look, the blue and the black together.
It's perfect.

I should try to get to bed soon though.
I'm a bit shaky, need to rest.
Mark will be attempting to make it to school tomorrow.
We'll have to see how he's doing in the AM I guess.

February 19, 2008

Well guess who stayed home from school today?

If you guessed Mark, you'd be correct.
I gave him some Nyquil last night so he could sleep instead of couch all night long, and he woke up with a raging hot fever like he had last night.
I gave him some more Nyquil this morning, and am letting him sleep.
He's tired he tells me, so he can sleep all day if he feels the need to.

Sebastian wasn't too thrilled about having to go to school alone, but he's healthy, he can go to school.
I know it's still kinda scary for him being a freshman and walking by himself at such an early hour of the day, but he won't always have big brother Mark by his side in life, he can manage for just one day while Mark gets better.

I've been up most of the night, I just couldn't sleep.
Stress, lots of thinking about things and people, home, finances etc.
I drive myself crazy over thinking everything I tell ya.
I think a lot of my stress last night, had to do with the medication screw ups this past month, and the weekend feeling like crap, and then allowing people to get under my skin.
I need to not do that, I know.
But I vented, I thought, I over thought, and I calmed myself down.
I cannot control the actions of other people, I can only control my reactions to those actions.
But as a Pisces, I am a deeply emotional person, I take on the weight of the world, attempt to do everything and be everything, to every single person who I come in contact with.
It's a zodiac curse to be under this sign.

So I've resolved for today, (one day at a time if need be) to only take control of my reactions to others actions.
To not allow the petty and negative influence they are attempting to place on me, onto me.
Today will be a good day.
That is how I am starting it, and I will not end it on a bad note.
If a bad thing happens, I will react to it as best I can, and continue to strive for a better day.

So let's all try to have a good Tuesday, let's only take on what we place onto ourselves, and not allow others negative ideas and desires, into our happy place.
'Om'

February 18, 2008

Whatever he's got, I don't want it.

Mark is sick with something.
He