Seaweed Chronicles

Karma

We're having a "major snow event" here in NJ today.  It was snowing when I left for work this morning, and continued to snow heavily though the morning.  Around 11:00 AM my cell phone rang, and I picked up seeing that the incoming number was my daughter's.

Me:  Hi Em!  What's up?

Em:  Mom?  Where ARE you?

Me:  At work.  Why?

Em:   The weather is horrible! It's really bad . . . are you leaving soon?

Me:  No, not unless they close early which they probably won't.  Why?

Em:  I'm worried about you driving home.  My classes are cancelled.

Me:  I'll be OK, don't worry. 

Same thing the kids always say to me, and that offers me no sense of security.  And I next thought: 

Wow, she's grown up. 

Wow, again. Birthdays and years passed don't measure this kind of progress.  Graduations don't mark the true milestones.  What matters most in measuring whether you've successfully raised a child is their treatment towards others.  Whether they have the ability to be not just unselfish, but self-less.  

I got to see that today, and it was beautiful.   

Band Camp January 2010

OK, so this is totally out of order but I'm getting caught up.  These are pictures from the recent full-day band camp we held. We've got competitions coming up, people.  Including a huge one in Scotland!

Snow Day

OK, so chances are that, since it was a weekend day, I would have been at home most of the day anyway.  But the weather today was indeed frightful.  Sideways-blowing heavy snow most of the day, temps around 25.  There was no chance of going anywhere.  And I very much enjoyed that.  Am still enjoying it.  A few pics from around the house today:

Notes on a Pending Blizzard, February 5, 2010

We're likely to get anywhere from 2 to 22 inches of snow during the next 2 days.  Too much. My thoughts?

- I'm prepared to hibernate.  I'm reading a few books right now, I need to practice piano, and there's cooking to be done.  Turkey meatloaf on Saturday, chili and buffalo chicken dip for Super Bowl Sunday.

- Speaking of Sunday, Go SAINTS.  I have money riding on this game.

- Also on the schedule:  researching more about our Scotland trip this summer.   Plane tickets are purchased and we are in the final stages of booking transport, tours, etc. 

- I am NOT studying this weekend. I have been doing that almost every weekend for a year and this weekend I'm taking a break.  Oooo rah.

- Much as I love my current job, I would prefer to cook for a living.  Just couldn't stand the hours.  

- I've discovered (again) listening to books while I'm driving.  Right now I'm halfway through "The Boleyn Inheritance," sequel to "The Other Boleyn Girl."  It's awesome listening, particularly for a former history scholar. 

- Also in progress:  Breaking Dawn (the last of the Twilight quad), The Road (didn't see the movie), a few books on India, Scotland, Whiskey, Modoc (an elephant love story), a book on penquins, a book on seahorses, and a couple'a poetry books (including the amazing Paul Guest).

- I never had ADD as a kid but, boy, do I have it now.  My attention span is 10 minutes max, and I have to have 25 things going at a time.  Except conversations. And TV.  Noise.  I don't need that very much.

- People around here ask me if I'm REALLY a Saints fan when I'm walking around with my Number 9 jersey on.  Ummmm, nah.  I just decided to spend $50 on a shirt because it has a fleur-de-lis on it.  But here's the real deal:  I had an awesome four-day weekend in March of 2005, right before the summer Katrina hit.  There were some amazing women involved, and it was a beautiful city that I didn't get to see enough of.  I resolved to see more.  And then, five months later, it was destroyed by Katrina.  That's right about when I threw my devotion and football loyalty behind The Saints. Whatever happens, they are the winners!