Elvis has left the building
It’s been a rough week around here. First we said goodbye and now Elvis is gone. She came to live with us in May of 2006 and lived a pretty long and good life in my bedroom.
Elvis has left the building Read More »
Family Funk
Santa Claus: Blame the Patriarchy
I know, it’s Easter and here I am blogging about Santa Claus. That’s just the way this family rolls. Also, this is sort of related to the Easter Bunny so just be patient while I explain.
Yesterday when TW picked up the kids from school there was a discussion about what the Easter Bunny might bring. This led to RJ saying that she is pretty sure the Easter Bunny is a girl. She is also very, very sure that Santa Claus is a woman.
TW questioned this because, ya know, Santa Claus is a dude. Everybody knows this.
RJ does not agree because what everybody really knows is men do not know enough about children to be able to provide the perfect, high quality gifts delivered by Santa Claus. Only a woman would have the insight into gifting and into children to be able to pull of a great gift giving season – year after year after year.
TW asked her how she reconciles that with the long, long history we have of Santa Claus being a man.
RJ says, duh. Santa is a woman dressed like a man. History proves that women have often had to pretend to be men in order to accomplish great things. And, that they have had to allow men to take credit for their work because women aren’t allowed to do great things.
Needless to say, I love that kid.
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Chanel Belle
I tagged this picture as “Chanel’s last Christmas” but it wasn’t. She held on for another 15 months or so. She had some pretty rough days and we probably should have let her go a lot sooner than we did. But man, it was tough to take her to the vet today and say goodbye. A lot tougher than I thought it would be.
And as tough as it was to say goodbye, it’s been just as tough going about our day without her. Who knew a tiny little old smelly mostly incontinent cocker who spent 23 hours of the day on a blanket could leave such a hole when she was gone. But she has.
When we take Jake outside, we instinctively look toward the dining room to see if she’s going to consider getting up and following us outside.
We keep leaving the garage door open, because that’s what we did when she was here – because it could take her ages to make her way from the dining room to the backdoor, even when she didn’t forget what she was doing and stop in the middle of the kitchen to figure it out.
When we’re outside with Jake, and it’s time to go in, we look for her to see how long we will have to stand there with the door open so she can make her way inside.
There are two bowls full of dog food in the kitchen. She didn’t get up off of her bed today until we forced her out at 9am and then she laid back down until we carried her to the car at 9:30. Jake hasn’t touched either bowl, and who knows whether that’s his old age or his confusion over not having Chanel around. Hard to say.
It’s weird to work all day and not have that geriatric mostly incontinent dog smell under your feet as she wanders from underneath TW’s desk to underneath mine and then back to her bed in the dining room.
TW had trouble cooking tonight without her. She’s used to having to do a weird dog dance to avoid stepping on the mostly deaf, mostly blind dog who wasn’t able to avoid getting stepped on. TW doing the dog dance without the dog… just wrong.
If Chanel’s first family (the family who lost a child while living at McGuire AFB NJ in 2000) happens to do a google search for Chanel or Big Jake… we did take good care of her, and we miss her.
A Gainesville PSA
I drop Michelle off at this spot, several times a week. OK, not this exact spot – this is the parking lot exit and I tend to drop her off at the parking lot entrance which is like 30 yards back – and every time I drop her off I say “Damn, I really need to bring my camera.” And today. I did.
Michelle works at the place that has such great burritos that people risk being towed to grab a bag full of them. You see, parking is almost non-existent in downtown Gainesville and it’s extra non-existent directly across from campus so that tiny little Target Copy parking lot is prime parking space for burrito hungry people.
Anyway. I love the sign. Both of them because there’s one at both the entrance and the exit and they both make me smile, every time. Even when the drop off time is 5:10am on a Sunday morning.
Because it has a cut
This is the kind of thing I find in kids’ bedrooms when I de-clutter. This is a peach. A real peach. With a bandaid. It is Liz’s friend “Peachy” and it has a bandaid because it has a cut. It’s also in the trash now.
Kids. Are. Nuts.
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Thinking deep thoughts
This is what teenage boys (and middle aged women) do at synchronized swimming meets. We stare blankly and think deep thoughts so as not to hear “We are family” played on a loudspeaker over… and over… and over… and overrrrrr… again.
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Gun on campus – email isn’t enough especially if it doesn’t arrive
Michelle wasn’t at SFCC yesterday, she was at work. She did however hear all about the gun on campus from friends. She did not hear about it from administrators of SFCC.
She did not get an email in either her SFCC account or her personal account.
She did not get a phone call on her cell phone or on her home phone.
The emergency text message service was not used.
A friend of hers was at school, attending classes and roaming the campus, and she didn’t hear about the gunman until she got home from school…
I’ll be interested in hearing what was discussed at the meeting that occurred today, at 11:30am and at the Student Government meeting going on right about now.
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Some stuff to know about Tallahassee
First important thing to note about Tallahassee, the really awesome espresso bar, Cool Grindz, has closed. Both locations, as far as we could tell. Very disappointing discovery on a Sunday morning when you really wanted a great Cuban coffee.
Next important thing to know, the Publix at Ocala Corners is fascinating. It’s totally not like any Publix I’ve been too. I’m not sure I can describe what makes it different, trust me – it just is.
Also, the round Holiday Inn is possibly not the best hotel in town. I know, you’re shocked. It certainly wasn’t the worst hotel I’ve ever stayed in. I’ve paid more for considerably worse hotels. There were problems with room keys not working, we never did manage to get more than one working key. There were problems with room service not making up rooms, the hotel not having staff to bring up towels that housekeeping never provided and problems with housekeeping knocking on the door before 9am on a Sunday – and then again an hour later. On the other hand, the wifi was good, it’s in a decent location, there’s parking and it’s inexpensive.
One last noteworthy thing about Tallahassee, Canopy Road Cafe is not a half bad place for breakfast on a Sunday morning. It’s a little crowded but the food was good. (I had a California omelet without the bacon – excellent.)
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