A Twist of Things to Come

I mean, of course I have a life, and not just within the parameters of clinical definition. I am living, and I have a family. I've done lots of stuff for my family, including moving to a new city where i pretty much didn't know anybody. I've had a great time exploring said city with the family, but I didn't have what I would call a social life. Due to the hubby's job, we got invited to a lot of parties, but that's not the same thing.

Then last night, the kids and I got invited on an outing that would conflict with out regularly scheduled Homeschooling group activities today. I consulted with the family, and we made our choice. Then I had to call three other families -- one to confirm our plans and two others to let them know that the boys would be missing the activity scheduled for today. I needed to let them know because I suspected one boy would be sorely disappointed and wanted to schedule a make-up activity, and another call because I had told another mom I would be there, and since her son (who gets on so well with Wee Boy) has Asperger's, I KNEW advanced notice for a no-show would make her life a LOT easier.

So, for the first time since I've been here, a change in my plans required more than one phone call and a chat with the Family Unit.

I... I think I have... friends? At the very least, a social circle. How did THAT happen?

***

Writing continues. I feel it beset with suck, but I'm getting close to the good part now.



Overall:

We had unexpected plans pop up yesterday, and today we had actual plans that went poof, but in a good way.

It opened up our time for a walk through the park, across St. Charles and up to The Maple Street Book Shop, which is actually two houses, side by side. One sells used and rare books and the other new books. We went in both, and it was lovely. I bought four books (including one for the kiddies) and ordered one. I know where I am going for books from now on. Sure, I might have to order genre titles specially, but Amazon continues to piss me off and this book shop is a dream.

On the way home we passed three nice places with For Rent signs, and hope for larger digs swelled within me. Then, my phone rang and it was my dear friend Andrea (whom some of you know as Jenny Gardener). I haven't seen her in years, though she's still someone I consider a close friend. We talk about once or twice a year, but I'm going to change that. It was so awesome to hear from her. She was the first one to expose me the whole "Follow Your Bliss" thing, which seems to be working out pretty well for both of us.

Seriously, a week doesn't pass that I don't think about her. The giant live oaks in the park remind me of her workshop story tentatively titled "Naked Man Falls from Tree." Which, yeah, maybe you had to be there. But she's awesome - take my word for it.

Then we made chicken for dinner, and Big Boy filmed me cutting up chicken breasts his next short film project, which seems like it should be pretty funny.

***

Got my words in, too:



For a total of:

Woke up this morning to a call from K, a mom from the unschooling group whose son gets on well with my boys, and whom I really enjoy as well. Her daughter takes ballet at NORD, and they often get offered reduced price tickets to dance performances. She was hoping teh boys and I could come to one at the theater near Louis Armstrong Park. Some confused and sleep-slurred conversation later, and it was a done deal. I think that another mother had bought extra tickets thinking someone else would be able to attend, and ended up stuck with three extra tickets.

In any case, the boys and I got to see a performance by the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. It was nothing short of stunning. (I'd had no idea who was performing when I agreed to go, so this was a huge treat. Five dollars a person for $30.00 tickets. SCORE!

if you explore that link, you can see a glimpse or two of the amazing athleticism and gorgeous choreography we witnessed today. Just lovely. A mix of obviously very vigorous multi-discipline dance training that was physically impressive and still quite accessible. It was wonderful to see really gifted male dancers do things that made the audience gasp and applaud spontaneously. It was very strongly rooted in traditional ballet, but they let the men show their stuff instead of just the usual lifts and such.

It started with a tribute to Otis Redding, then an impressive three-man dance set, followed by a series of performances to spirituals called "Revelations. Especially moving for me and for most of the NOLA audience, was "Wade in the Water" with the memorable line "God's gonna trouble the waters." I had flashbacks to Katrina and I wasn't even here back then. It brought tears to my eyes.

So, I had no plans and ended up scoring tickets to the best touring professional dance troupe in the country. Well, okay. One of them. Still, it amazes me that I could start a day with no expectations and be so blessed.

We regrouped at City Park afterward, and i got the hubby to meet K and her husband and kids, so now he can put faces with the names. We're supposed to meet up with S and her boys tomorrow. Her husband comes in from England Tuesday, so I expect we won't see that much of her for the ten days he's visiting.

Then there was dinner at Corky's Barbecue, which was cheap and tasty, followed by a trip to the grocer store and laundry. Whee! I got my words in, too. So a good day all around!

Great day yesterday. Went to the library and the zoo and out to eat. Nice long walks through the neighborhood for most of it. Temp was in the 60s and sunny. So nice.

Watched A Night at the Opera with the boys. Ah, the Marx Brothers. Quite fun.

***

Also, I realized that the thing I was complaining about missing out on for the boys would actually have prevented Big Boy from interviewing to be a Junior Zookeeper (a volunteer program at the zoo that he has been angling to get in since we got here). They would have required him to be there all day on the day of the interviews, and that is something I know he's really passionate about. He got the application and filled it out himself, and delivered it by hand.

So, it was a lucky break I didn't commit him to something else. He would have been so mad at me. :)

***


Writing stats for this morning:



And overall:



I could have done more, but the family is waiting on me. Maybe more tonight. :)

Mardi Gras was fun for me, though I did not stay downtown for much of the parades and drinking. It was terribly cold downtown and very windy. I was surprised to find that Uptown is actually warmer than the French Quarter. I don not know what that is, but downtown I could not stop shivering and slowly could not feel my feet, but Uptown I found it a lovely day.

My Beloved and my boys and I bought some bread and went to our favorite duck-feeding spot in teh park, and it was utterly lovely. Not what most would consider a typical Mardi Gras experience, but for me it was utterly lovely. Besides, not being Catholic I have no need to give up anything for Lent. So, I have no drive to over-indulge in anything Fat Tuesday.

But watching part of the Zulu parade from a giant fifth floor window was nice, though it was still very cold.

***

Now to the lame part. I've essentially had nothing to put up for several days, and so I've been posting wee articles about random things that interest me, and probably only me, which is bad. Still , I'm happy to share "Fear of the Boom and Bust" a Hayek vs Keynes rap anthem, a video that is a lot more fun than it has any right to be.

***

My stats for this morning on the writing front:


It came pretty well. Still needs refinement, but first drafts usually do, I reckon. (Maybe the folksy thing doesn't work for me so well. heh.)

Total progress:

So, what with all the moving and stuff, we were all way over due for check ups. Since our pre-tax medical savings account is use it or lose it, we all had dental appointments today. We all did very well with the exception of Wee Boy. Like myself and his big brother before him, he has very porous baby teeth, but his permanent teeth, like mine and his big brother's, are quite strong.



I have a tiny little chip on my front tooth, right where the orthodontist decided to file mine down years ago. See, my front teeth naturally had a bit of a serrated look along the edge of the incisors. He ground them off smooth, then for some reason, ground in a slight serration (I have no idea what the right word is for that type of thing, but 'serration' will do) on each near the mid line. He didn't ask, he just did it.

Anyhoo, the kids both have my giant, carnivorous front teeth. Big Boy was even teased about them once upon a time, because when they first came in they were huge compared to his little six-year-old's head.

But anyway, I am grateful for my huge, strong teeth, and pledge to take good care of them. Wee Boy will need fillings in a couple of his baby teeth, because they're due to hang around a couple more years, but keeping the teeth could save us on braces down the road. Also, maybe some hours in the dental chair will make him more careful about flossing (he thinks if the floss goes straight down, he's done - despite careful coaching from both parents). Oy!

Didn't do my usual GC post this morning, on account of an early appointment with our tutor. It was a much chillier walk today than it had been yesterday, when the temp was in the 70s. Then, we had the afternoon park day, which was fabulous. We still managed to the school work, too.

The tutor really gets on with my boys - I think we'll keep visiting him even when the current crisis is over.

***

On GC today, we had a controversial article by Pearce, Behold: ECOGATE! It's her take on the quick sweeping-under-the-rug of leaked emails by climatologists. I found the content of emails to be scandalous and upsetting, because scientists are supposed to follow the data, not change or destroy it so that no one can question their conclusions. I'm not saying human-affected climate change isn't possible (or even happening, for all I know), but some of it's proponents bear closer resemblance to zealots than I am personally comfortable with in a scientists. Circling the wagons and talking of boycotting reputable, peer-reviewed journals that dare to publish anything not supporting the hard party line -- that's not science, that's CYA career protection. Scientists follow the data. Period. They don't tell the only guy who is out there in the field actually counting polar bears that his data is unreliable because his numbers suggest that polar bear populations are higher than estimated. Because the drowning polar bears may be drowning because of competition for resources, not dangerously melting ice.

That makes me just as mad as the Fox News Producers who work up the crowds at rallies before interviewing people in front of cheering masses. That's not journalism, and if-your-data-doesn't-agree-with-mine-then-you're-a-fraud is not science, either.

That's a bee in my bonnet, if you can't tell. ;)

I'm getting comment notices on LJ either very, very late or not at all, but I will catch up. :)

Big Boy's orthodontist had good news - He won't be in braces for as long as we had feared, and it won't even be very expensive (we DID win $2,000.00 worth of orthodontia for $10.00 at a silent auction, so our final cost is ridiculously reasonable).

Also, we found him a good math tutor, whom we will meet with today. I am relieved.

I'm still not physically up to speed, and it's beginning to wear on me. I'm so tired of being sickly, even though it isn't very bad. We had temps in the 70s yesterday, and I wanted to be able to enjoy it! Plus, I've let things at the website slip, which I should not have done. *grump*

***

Today at GC, we have a chance to geek out with the lovely Amalia the Savage again, with A Geeky Norse Mythology Moment. I've always loved Norse Mythology, so I found it quite fun.

***

I let the boys watch The Hound of the Baskervilles last night (Jeremy Brett). It was enjoyable, though I don't think they got it quite as well as I had hoped. Wee Boy has been reading the novel for Reading, and decided after he started that it was 'boring'. *sniffle* The again, he's only ten. I might well be the only English Classics - loving aberration in my family, which makes me a little sad.

I paused it to explain the phrenology references at the beginning, so when they got to that bit they found it properly amusing - laughed out loud, in fact. If they hadn't, I'd have had to consider the prospect of having more children. They have generally good geeky taste, but if they couldn't appreciate Jeremy Brett's performance, I might've had to start fresh with a new litter. ;)g

We hit a NOLA Christmas Parade (well, actually there were two) on Saturday. The boys snagged a bunch of beads and I caught a little gold box with a New Orleans/ French Market commemorative ornament in it.

Which is awesome. The French market is the oldest town market still in existence in the U.S. Right around 300 years. Hey! No yawning you Europeans! That's a big deal for us in the colonies.

Last night we went out to see Christmas lights, which was fun. I'm still not 100% but I have hopes. :) I need to contact Big Boy's favorite teacher to see if she can send me some letters of recommendation for him - One for the arts magnet school, and one for his volunteer applications at the zoo and the aquarium (the latter were HIS idea).

***

In GeekaChicas news, I couldn't help myself. On Friday I posted the Neutra Face video I snagged from inyadreams, now also posted below because ROFLMAO:



Bearded, nerdly men dancing for my pleasure. Heh!

And today we have Pearce's wonderful I'm Gonna Sing the Doom Song Now, a humorous debunking of the OMG! We're all gonna die! The Mayans said so! thing. That was totally not what the Mayans meant, and she tells you all about it.

I love that girl!

Oh, and this is totally something my eldest would do:

http://www.foxtrot.com/2009/12/12062009/

Because, as Beatrice Blythe tells us, Resistance is Futile: I Belong to Muse.

I myself do not belong to Muse, probably because my life has a profound lack of music, these days. From what I've listened to online, though, I really like them.

***

My sister called to say that she's severely anemic and there is blood in her urine. That is really, really not good. She called me feeling rather horrible and I couldn't talk because the kids were bickering. I called her back, but she was about to go help her daughter pick out a class ring.

***

I'm still going around and around about the school stuff. I think there is a good chance that my eldest has not been doing the assignments set by the teachers in the group sessions. Fortunately, those have only been happening for two weeks, so maybe there won't be much to catch up on. I sent an email to his teacher to find out, but haven't heard back.

***

I've managed to get a surprising amount of writing done recently, so that's good. It's just taken me time to get the hang of keeping all the balls in the air.