Below are the 20 most recent journal entries recorded in laurastuff's LiveJournal:

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Monday, June 30th, 2008
1:23 pm	It's been a fun summer so far. Alex and I are just hanging out. I like teaching for this reason, if nothing else. I get the summer to play and re-bond with my kiddo. I'm not rushed (unless it's self-imposed rushing, never "we have to get there NOW or I'll get FIRED!!") and we can just play and be silly and lazy and do puzzles or go to the zoo or swim whenever we want. It's terrific. I think this is perfect, because I totally respect and can see how hard being a stay at home mom is. I couldn't do it forever. That first 9 months was stressful enough (although that had to do with relationship issues and moving as much as with new motherhood) and I am not sure I could do this day in and day out. But having a few months to revel in it is perfect. Just enough to appreciate him, not enough to start ripping out my hair! For more details (sanitized and mostly cheerful because my parents and in-laws read it): www.babyboyg.blogspot.com I'm also working hard on my garden. We had millions of tomatoes over the past few months. I tried to grow plants staggered so we didn't get a million at once. Well, it kind of worked. We only had 900 at a time. But it was fun to give away little bundles every time we went anywhere. Now there are cucumbers in the ground and some spinach and bell peppers in a pots. I have to start things in pots until I know what their little shoots look like. I am always paranoid about killing the little sprouts that I have faithfully and lovingly tended more than a few weeds, until I realized they looked nothing like what I googled or like the package. Hopefully the spinach gets a little bigger and I'll put it in the ground soon. I also worry about the little bitty sprouts because when it rains, it can rain really hard and I don't want the little sprouts washed away. Why does it seem like the rain will wash away all my plants but only strengthens the weeds? Is that just cynical? (3 Comments |Comment on this)
Wednesday, May 28th, 2008
3:24 pm	I accepted a job offer a couple of weeks ago. It's still teaching, but at a different school. The upsides are great--2 blocks from my house, pay increase, free tuition for Alex someday (this is major, tuition this year was $16,000), it has the best sports program in the nation, according to Sports Illustrated's May issue (if you care about things like that), and it's the school Barak Obama went to. Oh yeah, major liberal cred for that one, eh? :-) The downsides are....um.....well....the only downside so far is the decision of where to put Alex for preschool for the next year, b/c we missed deadlines for all the really great schools in that area (due to the fact that I didn't know I had the job until 2 weeks ago) and the only school close by that has an opening is not the greatest place in the world, but it would mean that I wouldn't even drive on a daily basis--work, A's school and our house are all less than 5 blocks apart, versus fighting rushour traffic to get him to his current, albeit wonderful preschool that he is at now. So, there is still a choice, for about a week, and part of me says that it's just preschool and that if we are doing a great job as parents, then it doesn't matter, but the other part of me feels guilty for working at all when my kiddo is young, and feels even guiltier leaving him in a place that is not the very best that we can do/afford/make work. KIDS!! So stressful, and he's not even 3 yet. Uhhh...there's more on this, but I gotta go now. (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Sunday, February 3rd, 2008
7:57 pm	I am feeling overwhelmed. The last time I was in school, it was all so easy. I had to plan "school work time" around things like "talking to friends" and "playing around" and the very important "drinking." My calendar was not really full and I was focused enough and a quick enough learner/reader/writer that I had a pretty easy time getting good enough grades that college was basically 4.5 years of fun and games with a good GPA to show for it all. Now, however, the things I have to plan around are important and rather immobile---work, a child, family dinner time...the little things like grocery shopping are suddenly this enormous drain on me because I SHOULD BE RESEARCHING SOMETHING RIGHT NOW BECAUSE THERE IS A PAPER OR SOME ENORMOUS-SEEMING ASSIGNMENT DUE EVERY WEEK!!!!! The other small tasks like eating a healthy breakfast and lunch (dinner is usually pretty good because I don't want to feed my son crap just because I'm too busy) or exercising, or even sleeping enough are all kind of falling by the wayside. I didn't think this would be so hard. Looks like I was wrong.... (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Wednesday, January 9th, 2008
1:23 pm	I had a good, relaxing Christmas break. Three weeks off is just wonderful...it's the (probably ONLY) reason I keep teaching :-) We went to CA, my dad was fine. It turns out that he doesn't even need any chemo or other treatment at this time. Interesting little side note, though, is that he had a VA doctor tell him that the type of tumor he had has been linked to Agent Orange exposure in Vietnam. He did some research and has filed a diability claim with the VA. He would gain a pretty big monthly disability check each month if it's approved. He already gets something (he was shot twice in Vietnam, spent 18 months in Walter Reed doing physical therapy) but this would really be a "great boost to my retirement" as he put it. So, worry over. Dad seems like he's gonna be just fine. I'm back at school now, and have my first masters class tonight. I'm all nervous and stuff. I don't have any idea what it's going to be like, but I have these vauge memories of studying, writing papers, etc. from college, and I just hope that it all comes back enough that I don't 1) embarras myself and 2) have to drop out because I have lost all my student mojo. I was pretty good at being a student at one time. Not a lot of work for pretty good results. I'm hoping that is still close to the case. (3 Comments |Comment on this)
Wednesday, December 19th, 2007
4:10 pm	Cleaning is overrated. I was doing a great job. A couple of bags of trash, and two bags for GW. Then I reached behind the couch for a sippy cup that hasn't been seen in a few days (I should have known that no good could come from an MIA sippy cup) and I pulled my neck funny. Like in that I-can-almost-reach-it-just-another-inch-I-almost-have-it......OOOUUUUCCCCHHHHH-kind of way. Seriously. I am sitting here about 5 minutes later and it still hurts. Has anyone else ever gotten hurt doing housework? Not cooking. I have about 100 stories in which I star as the dumbass who forgot that something on the STOVE would be HOT and therefore burned myself. But other housework injuries? Anyone? (13 Comments |Comment on this)
2:17 pm	My word of the day is "ruthless." I am going to to pick through the toy regions of this house ruthlessly. I am going to go through my closet ruthlessly. I am going to look at the random assortment of stuff that found its way onto our shelves on that first day that we moved into this house and hasn't been moved since, but really should be moved, preferably back OUT of the house...RUTHLESSLY. If I have enough energy, I will tackle the plastic containers with no lids. (That little clique has been pissing me off recently. All sitting there together, lidless but tempting. I grab one and fill it with leftovers, only to find out that there is no lid. I think I hear them giggling at me together when this happens. Where do the damn lids go? I do this purge often, it seems. WHERE DO THOSE LIDS GO???????) And then I will ruthlessly drop loads upon loads of stuff at Goodwill or in the trash and ruthlessly tell it to stay away and to send the message to all of its cluttery friends that they are not welcome. And then, because the LJ world cares, I will probably come back here and list all the stuff I got rid of! (I have to admit, though, that I found Cat and Monica's lists interesting, so maybe someone out there will be interested in my list as well.) (4 Comments |Comment on this)
Thursday, December 13th, 2007
8:41 am	My dad has his kidney removed yesterday. Apparently there is a big tumor on it. Looks cancerous, so I don't know where he will go from here. We are meeting in CA for Christmas. He was supposed to come on 22 Dec, but he's going to be late. My mom and brother will go ahead, and he's not allowed to fly until the 25 or 26. I hope that it all works out and he can come at all. The dr.'s say that he'll need two weeks to recover before he can fly. I feel like we should change plans and all decide to go to TX instead. Money and all that aside, or all change our arrival dates to make sure that he's able to come. I would feel like a total ass to be in CA whlie my dad is in TX, not having the dr.'s approval to fly, over Christmas, realizing that he is facing cancer. I feel like we should be taking some kind of dramatic action, but at the same time I feel like it makes everyone feel so much better to just keep our plans and go to CA and say that it's all OK and he'll meet us soon, because it's all OK. Because if we change plans that is saying that it's not OK because he is really sick and now we need to plan around the really sick guy and we don't want to miss this chance because he might not get better or something like that. I'm rambling.... I feel like I should have more to say right now, sharing feelings or things like that but right now that is all I can muster. (5 Comments |Comment on this)
Friday, November 23rd, 2007
11:13 pm	Back to school time I just got my acceptance letter for grad school. I start in January, working on an M.Ed. in Curriculum and Instruction. I'm a little bit overwhelmed by the idea, as I still feel overwhelmed at least once a week just with my current obligations, but what the hell, if I don't start sometime, I'll always have a reason not to do it--work and family are not going away anytime soon, so I guess I'll have to just go for it. There is a part of me that is kind of nostalgic for the good old days of college--wearing pajama pants to class, staying up late, drinking a lot, still making it to class the next day, having no responsibility, having my parents paying all my bills. Damn, those were the days. Why was I in a hurry to leave college? Of course, it's going to be nothing like that this time around. But I can fantasize... (Comment on this)
Thursday, October 11th, 2007
2:08 pm	So, I got that new bike. Well, it's an old bike, really, but NEW TO ME! It was a Craigslist bike that was in decent condition and I figured that for the price, if this was just a passing fad for me, I wouldn't have to feel TOO bad about it sitting in my carport collecting dust. I do plan to take it to the bike shop soon and get a little tune-up check-over to make sure everything is in good condition. My first bike ride in Hawaii was today. Dan forgot his laptop at home, so I hopped on the new bike and rode it downtown. Google maps said it was only 3.7 miles each way, but I have to remember that there are HILLS here, damnit. I actually got off and walked the last block, as our house is up a hill, but my pride kept me huffing and puffing on the bike for the rest of the hills I encountered. I like the bike. Think it was a good purchase. Still working on the amenities to carry the little monkey around, but I probably need more practice myself first anyway...it's been a while since I've ridden a lot and this is a new city, so I found every last pothole, uneven area, all those hills, and all the other hazards that I'm glad I found alone first. And now I feel great. It's like I ran an errand and went to the gym at the same time :-) (Comment on this)
Thursday, October 4th, 2007
11:45 am	I could get used to this free time thing. Yesterday I ruthlessly took 3 bags of stuff to Goodwill, did a ton of laundry and started to put together the frame for the garden. I didn't finish because using the saw kind of frightens me. I'm not actually afraid of the saw, I just wanted someone to hold the wood while I cut. I didn't want to mess up the wood or my hands :-) I also listened to this great local show on NPR about bicycling and it made me want to get a new bike. Back in the day, I used to ride my bike quite a bit. Not as much as the coolest housemate/landlord ever Chris F. used to, but I tried. I really liked the whole experience-exercise and transportation in one, plus I didn't have to look for parking or get gas as often. Excellent. But then that whole baby thing. And once we moved here, I didn't feel as adventurous to explore new routes with an extra 20...now 30! pounds on the back of my bike. But I feel like I ought to try. I have been really thinking about and working on the sustainability thing recently. We already have a solar water heater, Dan installed solar attic fans (that have really made a difference in our house's temperature--we have no AC and it can get a little warm and stuffy during the day) and we will be installing solar panels to provide the majority of our house's electricity early next year, if all goes well (it makes sense, we have that "economies of scale" thing with our 7 renters plus us). In a place that is this sunny, there's no excuse for not taking advantage of it. I'm working on expanding the garden, and Alex and I have been running more and more errands via the jogging stroller (although it's been a little rainy the past couple of days, so the stroller has had a little vacation as well). So last night I was looking at baby seats for bikes. I saw a few that had the seat in front of the "driver." They looked awkward or like you'd bump them with your legs all the time, but reviews said they were fine, and that they actually kept the center of gravity better since that is where the driver's body is leaning anyway. I also looked at bike trailers, but they just seem more difficult. I am not very good at spacial reasoning anyway, so I can just imagine going between a lamp post and a newspaper stand and thinking I had plenty of room until the trailer got wedged in between them, or going up a ramp and having the trailer slip off the side because I wasn't centered or something. Sally, I think you might have some insight about this, and maybe Chrissy, too? Anyone else is welcome to chime in as well. Since we only have one car, it just seems like even more reason to expand our transportation options. (8 Comments |Comment on this)
Tuesday, October 2nd, 2007
10:20 am	I have two weeks off! This is the wonderful thing about our school schedule. It starts and ends so early, but just when you are sooooo ready for it, there is a break. Ahhhh.... And the best part is that I am off, but Alex is NOT. So, although it's just toddler preschool and I could take him out whenever I want without worrying about 'make-up work', I also can feel good about leaving him there and getting other things done, because it's school, right? Last year, I felt bad for leaving him at the babysitter's whenever I had time off. This year, however, I am enjoying dropping him off late, picking him up early, and still having all this glorious time to get stuff done. I have dug up more area in the yard and plan to plant some more veggies this week. I also have two boxes that I plan to FILL and drop off at Goodwill. Seriously, the toy situation is out of control here. There is no reason to still have rattles and things with gooshy ends for gumming while teething. NO REASON. So, those things need to either go to GW or the trash. There are other things that will find their way into those boxes as well, but Alex's 10 or so little toy boxes/piles/stashes are the first victims. I guess I'd better get to all that stuff. It always seems at the beginning of vacations that they days of virtuous productivity stretch ahead and then at the end I always wonder where all the time went, and how come I didn't get even MORE done. LJ might be one reason.... (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Tuesday, September 25th, 2007
2:54 pm	I ran my second 5K race on Sunday. My first was right before school started here...28th or 29th of July. That one I was kinda talked into by my friend who owns and teaches Stroller Strides. (This is a mommy's fitness group. The classes consist of strength exercises with resistance bands and then cardio stretches where we run from one point in the park to another to continue with those strength exercises. And we do it while pushing strollers, hence the name.) SS was sponsoring part of that race and there was a stroller division. At first I signed up for that, thinking I could always "blame it on the stroller" when it took me 3 hours to finish. But, at the last minute, I decided to really go for it and see what I could do. I ran it in 32ish minutes. Well, a month and a half later, I finished in exactly the same time, give or take some seconds, of course. So, this is actually more motivating than having "improved" my time. I didn't really "train" at all for the first one. Just those classes and then the daily life of chasing 6 year olds all day and a 2 year old all night. This time, I actually made an effort, ran a couple of times a week by myself (sans stroller), read a couple of books for some tips and ideas about endurance, mindset, etc. I skipped the part about running "training intervals" with faster little bursts in the overall running experience. Thought that sounded like a recipe for running out of energy and having to walk. I'm a slow-and-steady-makes-it-to-the-end kinda person. And yet, with that effort, I was exactly the same this go-around. So, I now feel like I have a goal. Somewhere in the 31-minute range next time. The Komen Race for the Cure is mid-October, so I plan to do that one and see how it goes. I have a month. I'm really not competitive. Really. But it seems that if you are going to do something again and again, something that takes practice and that you *can* get better at, why not *try* to get better? I think I have caught some kind of bug. For anyone who's interested, you can go to this website and actually SEE my results :-) http://www.pacificsportevents.com/Races/Nike%20Town%205k/Niketown5k.htm Once you get there, you will need to scroll down. And scroll down. And scroll down some more. I'm #805. Yes. 805. Only 17 minutes and 46 seconds behind the winner, Mr. 15:01. Now, please don't laugh when you see that I was beat both by kids in the 7-8 year old division and at least one woman in the 75-78 year old division. It's not about beating them...at least not right now. Now it's about beating 32 minutes... (3 Comments |Comment on this)
Friday, June 15th, 2007
5:33 pm	House update.... Got the keys today! Big, empty, echo-y almost. Can't wait to fill it up and make it ours! (3 Comments |Comment on this)
Monday, June 11th, 2007
1:06 pm	Cleaning I've been cleaning now for about two weeks....all of last week was spent cleaning my classroom, papers and art projects sent home, old playdough and random CRAP thrown out. It was interesting. Good to feel "done" with that, but at the same time overwhelming in that I found several things that I didn't get to or started but didn't finish or things I had the kids start and didn't finish, etc. It was a reminder of just how much MORE I wanted to do over the year but never felt like I had time for. Oh, well, that's what next year is for, I guess. I'm still perfecting this teaching thing. This week it's my body and my house. I'm on a cleanse. Not a full-speed-ahead cleanse like the Master Cleanse, but a more moderate-speed cleanse. It involves some shakes and a magic-potion to add to my water, with 2 2-day chunks of no food rather than an all-out TEN days which make you start to think you'll never eat again. I can handle this. It's actually almost easier in the food-planning department. I just get up, have a shake or mix up some potion-water, and I'm ready for breakfast. I'm not after weightloss here, I am working on getting rid of the Diet Coke habit. I'm a serious addict and I know, know, know, that it's not good for me, so it's time to quit. But I'm just not a cold-turkey type person. I need something like a "cleanse" to make it seem important enough to give it up. So, here I am, cleansing.... About the house...we close on Friday. So, Alex is still going to the sitter's so that I can have time for Livejournaling...no, wait, so I can get some packing/cleaning done. There is so much STUFF in this house and it NEEDS TO GO. I felt like I was doing a good job of clearing out the baby clothes as soon as they were too small, but the toys haven't been picked through since we moved here. And it's not that we haven't gotten any new ones, I just haven't gotten rid of any old ones. The problem is that it's easy to pack up a box of stuff I think it too "young" for him, but the last few times I did that, Alex grabbed the box as it sat next to the door, dumped everything out and played with those toys exclusively for the rest of the day. "How can I get rid of those toys?" I'd ask myself. "He obviously LOVES them!" And back to too many toys. Usually, the only time to go through stuff is when we are all home together, since when I'm home, Alex is usually home too. But now, Alex is away. And Goodwill is on the way to the sitter's. So, if I can get my butt off of LJ, I can get some of this STUFF out of here and be ready to pack! (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Monday, December 18th, 2006
3:33 pm	Miss Y'all I miss y'all. I guess the holidays are when it hits that you've moved far away from friends and family, and that the loooong plane ride with a 15 month old would kill you, so you are not going to get to see those friends and family any time soon. My family has decided not to visit, so it's a real bummer. Dan's mom and sister will be here soon, so there will be familyness around, but not *my* family. Alex is more fun about Christmas this year than last year (obviously, he was a lumpy lump last year at this time). He'll even be able to help open his own presents. I had to do it all for him last year, and, as the first grandbaby on both sides of the family, he had his and several other kids' fair share of presents. He has seen and enjoyed lots of lights and music, and has even had a run-in with a Santa dressed in red shorts, an aloha shirt (that's a "Hawaiian" shirt for you mainlanders), and a lei. It's a different world here, I tell ya. Ummm....yeah....just wanted to get that out. I have to keep cleaning. Those aforementioned relatives are coming and the house still looks like a 15 month old tazmanian devil lives here, so I have a bit of work to do. *hugs* to all. (6 Comments |Comment on this)
Tuesday, November 28th, 2006
10:16 am	Our Thanksgiving was low-key. No relatives made the trek out, so it was just our little familia. I made a facsimile of a Turkey Day Feast--cassarole dish of stuffing with some chicken pieces on top, and a pumpkin pie (made from a real pumpkin, though, which made up for the lack of any other work!). We then trooped out to Makapu'u lighthouse for a beautiful view and to enjoy our little feast. The walk proved to be longer than we thought it would be, but it just hyped our appetites. We enjoyed a blah Friday, just rearranged a bit of furniture, did some laundry. Nothing exciting at all. Then, the fun part--both Saturday and Sunday we dropped Alex off at the sitter's way too early in the morning and headed out to the west side of the island to SCUBA. Dan and I are 4/5 of the way through our Advanced certification now. We'll probably have to put off the last dive for a few weeks, until Dan's mom and sister are in town and can (happily, readily, excitedly) babysit. I really enjoy this SCUBA thing. Dan is thinking of continuing on to get a specialty in wreck diving and deep diving, as he is really interested in underwater archaeology type stuff. I think I might continue on the instructor path. I feel like I have become this sort of convert. I want to evangelize to the world how wonderful it is to drop off a boat and into the ocean, to commune with the fishes, to breath underwater, flip and spin, and do all the other things that are so unnatural yet perfectly natural in SCUBA diving. I can't wait to get back in the water again! If only it wasn't such an expesive habit... (9 Comments |Comment on this)
Tuesday, October 10th, 2006
12:54 pm	Oh! The Guilt.... I owe this entry to some long-distance guilt tripping by Sally :-) So....2 weeks off. What a great idea, indeed. So far Alex and I have had some fun, and I have been able to get a *ton* of stuff done, updating LJ not one of those things...until today. A girlfriend of mine here owns a franchise of Stroller Strides, an excercise class that you do, as the name implies, with your baby along for the ride. It is actually a really great workout, as well as getting my day off to a good start--we meet at 8:45 am. If I have to be out of the house by then, I am more likely to get a lot done, as opposed to sitting around until noon, doing nothing. So, that has been my Mon-Wed-Fri morning event. Then, Alex and I do something fun...the classes are in Waikiki, so we sometimes go dip in the ocean, grab some lunch, and then, I have to admit, I have been droppping him off at daycare. Yeah...I am not working....I should spend the whole day sucking up all the baby-love there is...but by the time he has had lunch, it is nap time anyway, so I drop him off and go get stuff done!! I have done major cleaning--like stuff that has not been done probably since we moved in--as well as grocery shopping BY MYSELF. The feeling of being able to stand in an aisle and debate with myself which item I want to buy is actually a luxury I did not know I had lost. Usually, if I stop the cart for more than a few seconds, Alex starts to wiggle, and squirm and grab at the shelf, and if he cannot reach the shelf, he starts to screech. So, debating, deliberating, even just walking slowly, are all no-no's in my current shopping repetoire. "You don't know what you've got til it's gone..." runs through my head often now that I am a mom :-) In more baby-centered news...we bought a little potty chair yesterday. According to all current conventional wisdom, kids should not start potty training until 2-3, and boys will all train later than girls. I have read a lot on this subject. I am not a fan of diapers. Cloth, disposable, whatever. I hate changing them. Yuck. And it just grosses me out to have my kiddo sitting in...well...you know. So,that conventional wisdom says that kids need to "show signs" of being "ready" to potty train. They need to "show interest" in the potty, be able to "communicate" their need to go, and other such things. A book I read recently, which I am clinging to with all the force of optimism I have, says that only one generation ago, most kids potty trained by 18 months, and all by 2 years. In many countries, kids are trained by a year. So waiting for a child to walk over to the toilet and say "I want to use the toilet now instead of diapers" seems very kind and child-centered, but if they are capable before that, why wait so long? I have also read some stuff that sounds pretty looney. Like the "Elimination Communication" crowd. I'm not against whatever works for you, but the premise of EC, as it's called, is that you should be able to see the signs that your child needs to use the bathroom and respond to that, therefore not needing diapers at all. Great idea, but they advocate starting this *from birth.* So, here you have a one-month old that you are staring at, waiting for the "signs" so you can rush them to the toilet and have them pee in it. I was not attentive enough or bored enough for that. Instead, the method described in the book I read says that if you place the child on the potty at the times he "usually" goes, or at times that seem "natural" or "likely," (i.e. a little after meal time, right after he wakes up) he will start to use the potty and start to understand the feeling, the natural need for breaks during the day (i.e. before we leave the house, or before nap time) for this activity, and the pleasure of not sitting in a wet/stinky diaper. I am not explaining a 200 page book very well, but there ya go, I'm starting potty training...sort of. (6 Comments |Comment on this)
Monday, September 4th, 2006
11:18 am	A good friend and long-time covenant group buddy sparked my interest in SCUBA diving a few years ago. By the time I left Austin, Effie had her Dive Instructor Certificate and was officially teaching SCUBA classes. There was a mild rumbling of interest from the other cov. group members that we'd all like to hire her to teach us all to dive. But then I left, so I don't know if that ever developed. Anyway...I finally took the plunge-yeah, pun inteded-and as of yesterday, I am offically a PADI Open Water SCUBA Diver. Yeah me. There were a few moments of panic, as they try to prepare you for all kinds of circumstances--losing a mask, your air running out, having to share one regulator between two people, etc, etc, etc, but I feel pretty good about what I've learned, and think that I'm ready to go out and enjoy the underwater world. In fact, I liked it so much, I am thinking about continuing with the classes, and maybe even trying to become an instructor myself...we'll see about that. Just thoughts right now.... In other news...Alex will turn a year old in less than 2 weeks! We are having a littel b-day party shindig here next Saturday, and all of his little toddlin' buddies are invited. Dan's mom is here, and she's been helping with the preparations, as well as taking care of Alex. For the past week and a half, I hardly even knew I had a baby. (This is the reason for the diving lessons finally happening...free babysitting!) (11 Comments |Comment on this)
Monday, August 7th, 2006
10:41 pm	It's been a while...is that how I start all my posts now? I have started my new job. I am a teacher at a Catholic school. OK...I'll wait while you stop laughing. Go ahead. It's rather funny. So far, it's OK. I teach 1st grade, so the curriculum is "love your neighbor" and "you are a unique and special person." All good stuff I can agree with. There's a little of the "God loves you" sutff that I kind of gloss over. I think they get it enough in other places that I don't have to reinforce any of that jazz. The only sticking point is that I have to say the "Our Father" with them every morning. But, it's what I signed up for, right? And I have hope. I went to Catholic school, and I turned out....well...like this. Allrighty, gotta go. It's late. (3 Comments |Comment on this)
Wednesday, July 19th, 2006
11:24 pm	I've been having fun for the past couple of weeks communicating with an old friend. We went to high school together, attended the same church and were both active in the youth group there. We went on to the same little college and were sort of pals there (drove home together for holidays, ate in the dining hall together sometimes), although he graduated at the end of my freshman year. The thing I remember Chad for the most was that he was hilarious. Just really damn funny. I appreciated that back then and still do. Chad was also a genuine, caring person. Back in high school that was hard to come by, as we were all running around trying to impress each other with something, and it wasn't necessarily our genuine niceness. And he's only gotten better. Or maybe I was just not mature enough to appreciate him as much back in the olden days. Today we had a strange experience. We'd sent several e-mails a day for a couple of weeks. I took the bold step of sending him my phone number. When he called, I got so flustered, I actually walked right off the sidewalk, in front of one of the maintenance people at school. Didn't hurt anything except my ego :-) Then came this kind of akward conversation. It was odd, cuz we have this history of great times together, and now we have had this fun back and forth via e-mail, but it was just a bit too...um....silent. He admitted that he had a list started of things he wanted to talk to me about, things he'd think of that he wanted to include in his next e-mail or whatnot, but now that he was on the phone, none of those things seemed appropriate to talk about. So we talked about work and Alex and his sister and some mutual friends from the past...and then it was over. Maybe it's best to keep him in cyber land a bit longer. Hmmmm.... (11 Comments |Comment on this)