October should be spent chasing the Naughty Dingos - Page 7

[kerc]

Originally Posted by 1jooj

the same children who can barely be pulled from bed M-F at 6:45 are somehow able to be dressed and in the kitchen at 6 on Saturday.

Indeed. We have the same issue here.

[Penelope]

Working back...

Bec: Happy B-day!

Jo: I'm sorry that the whole thing is such a hassle, and that they're clearly not. listening. to what you want and need for your kids' full flourishing in school. Or don't want/need, in this case.

Gaye: Damn, I am sorry. Hope that SupahNanny emerges soon from the chaos. (Not Super Nanny - that lady is a little scary - but SupahNanny.)

CFG: I tend to divide a 10k into three 2m runs. So I pick a pace/mood/goal and then shift gears at the 2m mark. I'd be inclined to do a slow/medium/fast plan, but my ability to start out slow is nortoriously underdeveloped. Have a great run!

Real - I tend to get over-invested in holiday cards and have not even begun the last few years. I mean, I've hand-made 100+ cards many, many years and it's stupid to get myself all tied up in knots about it. That said, we are a pretty religious (Christian) household, and I'm offended by overly goopy "the little baby Jesus blessed us with a new SUV!" cards/letters. I tend to send the same ones to all my folks, religious of all stripes and non-religious alike, and it usually involves a kid picture, a short letter updating them on our year, and some religious line in the card that I regard as ecumenical, like "Peace on Earth." A friend sends only New Year's cards, to avoid the religious difficulties.

RR: I got a decent 3m in. Leg/knee a bit twingy, so I decided not to overdo it and am going to be really yoga-focused and do short runs for the next couple of weeks. I'd like to avoid PT and think I can do it if I just stretch and strengthen.

Life R: I'm not totally underwater.

[Nemesis]

When I had sent out holiday cards, I always went with "Happy Holidays".

As a non religious person who doesn't celebrate christmas in the commercial sense either, it is a really hard time of year for me, too. Most of our family is Christian, and that makes it harder. I love family meals (extended family), but there are always some conversations about the how/why/whynot of my lack of religion. (And how they wish I would change)

I'm dressed and just waiting for DH to get me some coffee. Then I'm running! I'm shooting for just 30 minutes of whatever I can get. I need to do it more than I need to worry about run/walk times.

[poppywise]

Originally Posted by Penelope

That said, we are a pretty religious (Christian) household, and I'm offended by overly goopy "the little baby Jesus blessed us with a new SUV!" cards/letters.

oh my word, this made me laugh so hard penelope!

ok, collecting myself to say - i'll probably scrap mrs fox because it needs much more work to make it look decent and it seems the majority, thus far, prefer charlie's angels. (which also needs work, by the way. the arms, etc)

i'll try to come up with another option this weekend if someone would not order a shirt if it has the CA art?

[Plady]

Good morning Dingos!

Mommajb - Shingles! Could that be part of the malaise too? Or is it yet another weight? I hope you start getting taken care of immediately!

Gaye - That is totally lame of the nanny. Could you explain to her that if she could give you two weeks you could give her a recommendation but if not no way? Or is it already too late to try it? for the right one to come along!

Poppy - I love them both, and as much as I prefer the simple 's' I agree that going around with the rebel spelling is not who I want to be!

Jo - Even though there is no Muslim winter equivalent could your kids (and any other muslim kids) maybe offer to recite a prayer for the concert? (And in the process explain that the season has no particular significance to muslims while other times of the year do). On one hand it's a drag to feel your children have to be drafted to educate people but on the other, children have an edge in that arena because people who might otherwise be resistant will presumably be more respectful to sweet little kids and learn something despite themselves. And, it would allow them to be involved in the activity in a constructive way. However it plays out I hope you get some real respect for your decision.

And - I'm never going to get the hang of holiday cards if I have to start thinking about it in October!!!

CFG - Happy racing today!

Today is a day off. DH is training to be a firefighter so he's gone 8-5:30 every weekend this fall (his test is scheduled to be at the same time as my opening night performance) but today the FD is doing its big Safety Fair so we get to go and see him in all his glory. then tonight I'm really excited because it's my Bunco group night. The woman hosting tonight throws these crazy over-the-top parties because she's trying to advertise her party planning genius and tonight is a costume party. I'm going as a corpse bride. I got a totally super-sequined wedding gown and long ass veil from the the theatre's costume shop and I'm going to do skull makeup. I haven't been anything creepy for Halloween in forever so I'm really looking forward to tonight! It's also kind of fun to have such a weddingy wedding dress as my real one was super understated and left much to be desired.

[tjsmama]

I have no idea what is happening right now. I have one applicant for the job, who (whom? I never know which one to use ) I'm not overly thrilled with. MIL may not be able to fly out until at least Monday, which does NOT help for Monday morning. I have a friend who offered on FB that she's available MWF, but I had to leave her a voicemail to see if she's actually available for THIS Monday, and XH's cousin (who lives here) may have lost her job and be available, but have no idea. XH apparently sent her a message. So now we wait, I guess. And he's being kind of weird, like sounding like he may not even fly back tonight like he's supposed to because "something happened this week that put him on edge and it's comforting being at home". Oh well. Just gotta keep the faith that something will work out.

On the bright side, the 5k this morning was awesome! Super low-key and laid back, and SMALL. Maybe 50 people? 75 tops! And I smoked it...sub-30 pushing the stroller! Official time was 29:45, I think. Garmin said 29:41 for 3.25 miles, not too shabby! I was way behind the fast people, but significantly faster than the group behind me. I have no idea if we get placements or anything for it, so I have no idea if I'll ever find out how I actually did comparatively. I mean, I never filled anything out or anything. The guy had my name because I emailed him, but I just showed up, gave him my $20, and he gave me my bib and my shirt. Like I said, super low-key!

And now, planted on the couch, probably for the majority of the day, to watch IM Kona! I'm kind of disappointed that Chrissie Wellington dropped out (apparently she's sick), but still psyched to watch my friend Sonja kick some a$$!

[JayGee]

Great race, Gaye! I just saw that about Chrissie Wellington. Bummer. Hope your friend Sonja kicks some Kona butt! I don't know anyone racing this year, unfortunately.

I rode about 18 miles this morning on empty backcountry roads, with beautiful fall leaves and the most perfect blue sky. Perfect .

[loftmama]

plady, love that corpse bride idea! and i'm also laughing between the lines about your dh firefighting. Love y'all so much!!

Poppy, talk to me about the Charlie's Angels and pretend I'm as slow as that sounds. The left is a woman catching a baby and the right is a woman with a stethoscope???? The middle one has weights. You asked about the right hand. I don't know. Something to do with swimming? Bicycling? Yoga? Maybe that's over-reaching...
Big thanks to you for working it up, though! Wish I could watch you work. I bet that would be fun!

Jooj, sorry about the whole holiday thing. I was raised as a Christian who did not practice Christmas (because Jesus didn't and there's no Biblical precedent.) How weird is that? I had to explain why I couldn't be in a Christmas play or sing Christmas songs, too. Just putting children in those awkward positions is so tough! This was another reason why I loved teaching ESL. We celebrated EVERY holiday tradition - Tet, Hannukah, Ramadan, Dia de Los Muertos, Easter... Without a doubt, every single kid loved knowing about other's practics and not feeling in the dark or ignorant and also loved having their moment to share and shine!

Still stretching my stupid groin and trying to not overcompensate in other places. We are working on numerous outdoor small projects today: railing on treehouse, door on pumphouse, new hammock, boys' clubhouse, etc. We are having such a bad drought that dust is everywhere indoors. I'm going mad trying to keep it out while hanging clothes on the line. For some reason, all I can think about is the Oklahoma dustbowl depression days.

[loftmama]

Tjsmama, on your race today!!

Go Cornflake girl!!!

[poppywise]

Lofty- ha! Ok here goes...
Lefty - sure, she's catching a baby (should I draw one? ) and she's a barefoot runner
Middle- weights
Righty- she's holding a race medal! That looks like a stethoscope - ha! I was going to make that better along with her other hand ..maybe she should be looking at her garmin? She also wears running shoes.


So....other ideas? I'm raring to go but am somehow tapped for ideas at the moment. Not a great combo

[loftmama]

She's holding a medal, of course!! That should tell you how long it's been since I've held one! It all makes sense, now. I think someone (MAMABETH?) said she liked the Amazing to come last and... maybe bigger???? How would that look? Ms. Fox is still very cool! Thank you again for working on these! I haven't bought one in years, and I miss them.

[loftmama]

Serial posting...

Jo, I think about WWOOFers all the time. I think if we decide to expand, we'll have to do something like that. Is there a WWOOF farm near you where you can visit and see how it works? I accidentally came across a WWOOF site when going to a presentation at a sustainable farm about a year ago. I met some workers who took me back to their quarters. Whoah, talk about humble!!! Sorta blew my mind. It was basically a row of platform bunks on one wall and, I think, only screen around the whole thing with maybe a tin roof. I'm pretty sure I took a picture but I'm not sure how to dig it of the old file that's on a back-up drive. I wonder if the website has pix of it. We sat long into the night around a campfire with a group of maybe a dozen WWOOFers and it was so fun, so cool. Made me want to be young again. These kids (students mostly) just basically travel around the country doing farmwork in exchange for a place to stay and something to put on their resumes. Many had also traveled to other countries. When I first read the description of WWOOFers, I thought: no way. Who's going to do that? But I was surprised. Pretty cool, actually. There's a farm in upstate NY that also uses them in order to run their CSA.

We are having such a bad drought that my uncle, who owns/runs a nursery as his sole livelihood, hasn't even done his fall planting yet b/c he can't keep everything alive. He's got a bunch of peach trees that he will have to throw out, so we're going to try to rescue them. I knew it was bad, but I didn't know it was THAT bad.

[bec]

Thanks for the birthday wishes, ladies! It was a nice day.

Today, however, I tried to go out for a 30 minute run. I mean, 30 minutes used to be my warm up! Anyway, it is about 90 degrees here, and I was running in the sun, and nearly ran myself into heat stroke in less than 10 minutes. My leg was cramping, I was hot and thirsty, and I was starting to get nauseous. I ambled home, am icing, have downed a couple of gatorades, and am feeling better, but for a headache now.

Tomorrow, we leave early to get the puppy!

[Nickarolaberry]

Bec, Happy Birthday!

Mommajb, Hope you feel better! Shingles, wow...ouch. Sending you good healing vibes.

Jo, right there with ya mama. This is the second year I'm confronted with this issue and still very uncomfortable how to deal with it, last year I was highly unsuccessful at it and my kids participated and belted out the Xmas songs . At least they also did the Chanukah choir, which is an anomaly since Chanukah is actually not a major holiday, but there was a festival downtown and our synagogue did a children's choir...so... Now that I also work at the same school it's a real issue from both directions. Sigh. Wanting more and more to quit and homeschool...so many reasons.

Poppy, you are awesome. Artwork is

Gaye, great race and bummer about the nanny. Hope you get someone you like soon. I eventually gave up on a nanny after the last one (three in 2 months) was caught forging checks from our accounts. At the time ds was just 2 so he started going to longer hours at preschool the days I taught.

Had a good long run this morning 12 miles in 2:10 so not too terrible. Having some weird aches and pains, I think I need to start icing and ... gasp ... buy a foam roller. Ouch.

[Geofizz]

Happy October!!!

I know you all think it's the middle of the month, but I have a huge deadline October 1, and I just finished, so yay! Welcome October! Wow, you guys post a lot in one day.

Time to begin a technology detox. I'm staying away from all buggy and infuriating software for several days now. This mama might even go for a run. I did just go spend an hour getting my hair cut. By myself. Someplace that charged more than $20 and didn't take coupons. Decent start.

The week's count: 1 dead mother board, 2 dead hard drives, 1 deadish laptop, 1 dead car, and one faculty meeting. Each accounting for several hours spent doing something other than fighting the software program to generate the document needed for me to have a job next year.

Speaking of, I love all the shirt ideas. Just no E in Dingos and we're all good. :

Cards traditionally sent around the end of one year or beginning of the next are well received as "Happy New Years" or "Peace on Earth" of "With Love, Dingo Family." Or Happy Groundhog Day I also roll my eyes at the The Good Lord Blessed Me with New Boobs letters (not far off from what we've gotten), but it never bothers me to read about someone's own personal religious sentiments. It does bother me to read opinions about how I should feel. Telling me to have a Happy Jesus Filled Holiday bothers me. Telling me you have Jesus in your heart is fine with me.

lofty, loving seeing you back

mommajb, shingles is about the last thing you need right now. I hope you find yourself a great doctor who can help the immediate and long term concerns.

Gaye, you are living my nanny nightmare. Silver lining: she gave you the weekend and told you she quit. I've seen worse. (Not that what she did was appropriate...) So far so good here, though we do find that things we consider obvious are not to her. I feel like I'm teaching her to be an adult at times... The kids love her, and she seems to show up daily.

1jooj, honestly, I'm appalled. In our school, it 97% white, and it seems like half go to the same church, and the other half go to one of three others. Our winter music program was just that: a music program with songs and poems about winter. It was great. I even enjoyed it. (Helped along by the fact that it was done in under an hour.) And no harder to put on than a program full of Christmas stuff.

[sparkletruck]

Jo - sorry about the religious stuff. i remember feeling like an outsider in the midwest because we are not christian. here, our kids' school does a winter program like Geo's, where they have a song about all the holidays; divali, eid, christmas, etc. i wish this was the standard

mamajb - im so sorry! you do not need this right now. I hope it leads to not only lots of self care but lots of care from others. sad that the main caregiver needs to get sick for the people around them to realize how much they do and how much they appreciate them

Geo - happy October!

penelope - who knew you were a sistah!

Plady - enjoy the party

tjsmama - im so sorry about the nanny. I hope you find a solution for the coming week and then you are able to find a new person soon. Cingrats too on the 5k .... and since you mentioned it ....

Yes, I am a member of the grammar police, or as David Foster Wallace so wonderfully described it, a SNOOT (see "Tense Present:..." paragraph 3). The misuse of who/whom is one of my top three peeves. The other two are the him/he, as in "him and I went to...", and the winner is; ending a sentence with "at", which seems to have come to denote down-home colloquial familiarity, hence its heavy usage during the campaign by Hillary Clinton who surely knows better But I am retired

I am pretty low, holding my mental state together with dental floss and duct tape.... I want to run away to a cabin in the woods and sleep for a long long time

[Penelope]

Oh, sparkle, I heart you. I miss DFW so much. I have a stockpile of his books, some of which remain unread, since I know when I'm done, I'm done, yk?

Ok: back to work for me. :frazzled

[tjsmama]

geo~I am about your technology issues. And continuing to keep my that your nanny situation does not devolve into the mess that mine has. I mean, it can't happen to TWO dingo(e)s, right?

sparkle~ at the grammar police. I'm the spelling police. And to a much lesser extent, the grammar police, I can just never remember who/whom! Sending you some ...

I'm in the "Happy Holidays" camp. I grew up pretty religious, but am not so much now, and especially now that my circle of friends includes those of non-Christian religions (), I prefer to keep it pretty neutral.

Some good news, and some hopeful news...XH's cousin IS out of work at the moment (I mean, not good news in the sense that it sucks she's unemployed, but ykwim), so she's able to help us out until we find someone permanent. AND I got an application today from a woman who sounds like freaking Mary Poppins. I mean, I hesitate to get too excited about it, but she's got a strong education philosophy, is early 40's (i.e. hopefully more stable), meshes with my discipline/activity philosophies, does not have kids of her own, etc. Will hopefully interview her Monday or Wednesday. I also had another application that sounds pretty good that I hope to interview. MIL had some wise advice. She recommended that I really just take some time to make sure I find the absolute right person this time around. I have at least the next week of childcare taken care of, and either X's cousin or MIL can do the week after as well, if necessary. So, I will take my time, interview several candidates, check references profusely, etc.

Meanwhile, I feel slightly guilty. In my panicked state last night, I sent a message to the girl who was my second choice the last time around. When she didn't reply pretty quickly, I (obviously) moved forward with the search. Then I got a message that she's still looking for a job and is interested. And while she was fine, she's another single mom, which I just kind of feel burned on, kwim? And I feel horrible about that, because duh, I AM a single mom. Gah. I replied and explained that I had temporary childcare and was going to take my time to find exactly the right person and that I have interviews set up, but that I am still interested in her. I just don't want to piss her off or feel like I'm playing games, ya know? Blech.

And meanwhile, Sonja is doing awesome!!! Currently over 10 miles into the marathon, and in 18th place in AG and moving up. She did the bike in 5:30(!!!) and her pace for the last split was 7:40. Unbelievable!

[cornflake girl]

sparkle - I need a refresher about who/whom because it always gets me too, but I couldn't find where in the article it was at?

Gaye - that is a great time and you were pushing a stoller, no less! And I'm so glad to hear that you have temp. childcare arranged. Yay!

rr: my 10k went well! The course was long so I just barely squeezed in under 50 minutes but I'm happy with that. Now that I've finally raced every distance, I'm pretty sure I've decided that 5ks suck the most. It's just so much more pleasant to run a bunch of slow miles than a few completely painful ones.

[tjsmama]

Sonja finished in 10:17:53. 15th in her AG. 20 minute PR, and a 3:30 marathon. IN KONA. Where it was 120 degrees on the pavement for the bike today!