Tuesday, October 31, 2006

Is this Holiday over yet?

More firetruck rides. More candy. More costumes. This time in our little hamlet of Hannawa Falls. There were even real live trick or treaters going to the houses in the village. (I should explain that the village consists of two general stores, a bar and the post office with about 40 houses. Just 3 square blocks. We're about 1/2 mile from that.)

But, for a small town, there were a lot of kids at the fire station after the ride. Cider, donuts and big heaping handfuls of candy. They also had a costume judging contest. Amazingly, Claire was not voted cutest girl. Perhaps the fact that she kept pulling off her crown and messing up her hair counted against her. One of the winners was a Dalmation, with the VFD's name of "Hannawa Hounds" written on his costume. He was a shoe-in for a prize. Also, the boy dressed as an outhouse and the girl dressed as a shower. Biker boy also won.



Here's Nathan, threatening the entire crowd with his sword. We had some more wrangling over his costume today. He told me yesterday that since he'd already been a jedi and a knight, he had to be a pirate today. Then this morning, he decided if he as a pirate, he'd have to fight the other kids dressed as pirates, and he didn't want to do that. So, back to the knight, and I think he was the only knight, but that didn't stop him from fighting. There was still the grim reaper, army guy, witches and, of course, some pirates to duel.

Monday, October 30, 2006

Back to School II

My online classes opened today. It's another week before classes start, but I went in and read the course schedule and updated my profile to share with other students. I'm signed up for

Intro to Accounting - pretty self-explanatory.
Planning and Finalizing the Degree - 2 cr - This is a requirement at Empire. Since all the classes are done online, this is a way to be sure that you have a good relationship with your mentor and are on track to eventually graduate.
Information Literacy - 2 cr - I had a few options for my second Educational planning course. I decided that since I first learned how to research in the 20th century, I needed to re-train myself on education in the internet age.

Since I signed up for the second two classes at the Advanced Level, I'm going to have to write two research papers this term. I think I was smart to pick a term that will be broken up by a long Christmas break, it will give me time to get ahead on the work a little. The idea having to come up with two topics was freaking me out this afternoon, but then I came up with two possibilies while talking to Dan tonight. One paper will be a completely open-ended topic, I'm thinking of exploring the increase of the AMT tax. The other paper is meant to be about my career plans, so I think looking at how the accounting scandals and Sarbannes-Oxley have impacted accounting programs and CPA licenses seems a no-brainer. Alright, do I sound smart just talking about AMT and SOX?

Saturday, October 28, 2006

My Fairy Princess and (Jedi) Knight


Lot's of Halloween pictures. Thursday night was "Fright Night". Nathan was dressed as a knight that day, and the businesses in town had treats and games. Nathan mostly just liked seeing all the other kids in their costumes, but was a little scared of some of the decorations the businesses had put up.

Today was a short parade through town.





Nathan said he couldn't be a knight again, so we got out the Jedi costume from last year. I was looking out the window all morning wondering if the rain would let up long enough. Finally decided to chance it, and the rain stopped just long enough for the parade.

Then came the firetruck ride.


What is crazier, that the town allows this, or that I did. I kept Claire with me while Nathan rode with a friend and his Dad. But there were other mothers who went up there with babies. Unfortunately, they were about halfway through that ride when it did start to rain again, and Nathan didn't have his coat, so he got a bit wet.

Then we braved a walk through more rain and massive puddles to get to the Elk's club. They had some classic games for the kids. Bobbing for apples, eating donuts off a hanging string, pin the nose on the pumpkin. One cute thing I've never seen was the skeleton hands. They took plastic gloves, put candy corn in for the fingernails, then filled it with popcorn.

Now, I'm exhausted. When we first got back, I was actually shaking a bit from the cold, the wet, and the walking. Snuggling under a blanket with Nathan, eating popcorn and watching "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" has revived me a bit. And we get to do it all over again on Tuesday night when Hannawa Fall's VFD does firetruck rides too.

Thursday, October 26, 2006

Couldn't I win some cash instead?

Alright, my favorite game is Monopoly, and the kid's favorite restaurant (and mine when I'm tired, which is always) is McDonald's. So you can guess that I really get into their Monopoly game promotion. Alas, no luck getting Boardwalk yet.

But I did score a prize from their online game. A Mobilegame download for my cellphone. Except, I don't have a cellphone. This is the kind of luck I have. Does anyone want this?

Game on! You just scored a MobileGame download for your cell phone from
feedmyphone.com by playing MONOPOLY(r) at PlayatMcD.com. MobileGames
from
feedmyphone.com will include a choice from great titles such as Block
Breaker
Deluxe, Midnight Pool, Platinum Sudoku and Platinum Solitaire.


Let me know and I'll forward the rest of the e-mail with the authorization code.

Wednesday, October 25, 2006

Agony

Every Red Sox fan remembers this night, twenty years ago. Here it is again, in all it's teeth-gnashing, nail biting, hair pulling glory. Except, in video game version.

Bottom of the Tenth, Sox up 5-3, Game Six of the World Series.

Spoooooky.

We're going to be pretty busy with Halloween the next few days. Tomorrow is "Fright Night" downtown. The shops are handing out candy and doing facepainting, tattoos, games etc. Then on Saturday we've got the Ragamuffin parade, followed by more candy at the Elks club. I don't know if Halloween itself will be celebrated, I can't imagine anyone on our dead-end road will be out. But at least we'll make cupcakes, since the cookies I'm making today will probably be eaten before then.

Dan just finished carving four pumpkins, I think his hand will be cramped for the rest of the day. I found this computer program for doing jack 'o lanterns. Great for those of us who are a bit artistically challenged. You enter in your pumpkins dimensions, pick out eyes, nose and mouths, and then print the pattern. You have to buy the program to get the printable templates, but you can play with the ideas and faces without paying for it first.

Here's Nathan with his pumpkin. In case you're wondering, the pumpkin is also named Nathan.

Friday, October 20, 2006

Thursday, October 19, 2006

Didn't I say in my cover letter that I showed attention to detail?

Almost had a disaster at a job interview yesterday. It was in Canton, so we went over a few hours early to spend time with the Family. I'd packed up my shoes and make-up, and grabbed the hanger with my shirt and jacket. Even remembered to stuff nylons in the jacket pocket.

Do you notice the flaw yet? NO SKIRT. Eeeekkk. Discovered this with only 20 minutes to the interview, which is not enough time to go to Hannawa Falls and back. But Janet had a stretchy black skirt, size medium, that I could squeeze into. If I'd been wearing a sweater, it would have looked hideous. But with the jacket covering my mid-section, it actually looked pretty sleek.

Hopefully they won't keep me hanging as long as P, M & W et al.

Sunday, October 15, 2006

Finished!

I finally finished the shawl that I've been wanting to make for 10 years. See....




The story behind this is that way back in the olden days, or at least the pretend olden days, when I was working at Sturbridge Village, I made a shawl. It took a very long time, it was a pretty shade of blue/grey, and a loved, loved, loved wearing it around the village. And occasionally around the house. But it was part of my uniform, made with village yarn on village time, so I had to return it with the rest of my costume. And I mourned it, almost as much as I mourned the straw bonnet with silk forsythias that I wore in the summer.

Time has passed. We moved to Vermont and New York, but I never had any spare money to spend on something this frivolous. Then in Georgia, with the 90 degree heat, there wasn't much call for wool shawls. After that, I had to get going on baby blankets. But finally, I've done the shawl. Even though a sweater for Claire and four Christmas stockings were supposed to be next in the queue.

I cheated a little though. The original edging was a complicated lace pattern, so complicated that you only could see it if you were wearing it, anyone a foot away couldn't tell what it was. This was much easier, and faster.

I'm so happy that I've been wearing it the last few nights with all the loose ends poking out, because I didn't want to take the time to weave them in. I'm cold, and I wanted my wooly shawl. Yay!

Saturday, October 14, 2006

Visitors

I forgot about Gym class again. Arrgh! Dan is driving up to Ottawa this morning with his Dad to pick up his half-brother and wife at the airport, and those plans completely drove the thought of Gym out of my head.

Dan's taking some vacation time this week so he can spend time with Andrew and Lisa. They lived in Texas, we went to visit on our honeymoon, but I've only met them once or twice. I don't think Dan's father handled being a divorced dad well, so there wasn't much of a relationship with Andrew (or his sister Laura in Seattle) when Dan was young. But George and Janet have gotten closer to them over the last few years, and try to visit when they can. Lisa was a big-wig at Motorola, so they have a slightly cushy life. They just sold their small Texas ranch, and are preparing to retire to Montana. At the moment, they're homeless, so they're visitig for about two weeks. And they may come back in a few months if their Montana home isn't finished yet.

Too bad all the wind and rain has knocked the leaves down already, things are not nearly as scenic as they were when I took the photos earlier this week. At least we didn't get two feet of snow yet. The weather report is calling for snow mixed with rain tonight, but it will melt as fast as it falls.

Friday, October 13, 2006

They called

Rejected. Very, very sad. Although she gave me the "you were a finalist" "we may get in touch if something else opens up" speech, so I guess I was pretty close.

At least now I don't have to worry about going clothes shopping for awhile.

Nothing yet

Well, I called them today. The woman I interviewed with was at their other office, so I left a message. I just don't want this to drag out over the weekend. And I'm getting frustrated because there are no jobs posted right now. I use a good website where stuff gets posted from the local Jobs Office and classifieds, and it's all truck drivers and nurses these days. There's no point in knocking on doors, unless I get desperate and want to do retail for the Holidays. I've got an appnt to take the County Civil Service accounting exam, but that's a looooong process with no guarantee a job will even be available. Grrr arrrgh.

In other news the kids have noses that a running like faucets. I can't wait to get them in daycare so they'll be sick every day. Yay!

And in other, other news, I'm switching drugs again. The miracle drug Enbrel doesn't seem to be working very well for me. And, after this month, my insurance won't be paying for it. So, I'm switching to Rituximab(sp?), which will be injected through a saline I.V. at the hospital. Takes a few hours, but once it's done, it should be good for six months. Cross your fingers, knock on wood.

Wednesday, October 11, 2006

NOW

Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call Call

Tuesday, October 10, 2006

Waiting by the f*ing phone

I want P, M & W, P.C. to F*ing CALL ME. CALL ME. CALL ME. CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.CALL ME.

And give me a f*ing JOB!!!

Saturday, October 07, 2006

It should be clear by now that I don't live near a Gymboree. However, the local SUNY college has a lot of community classes, including kids gymnastics. I had my doubts about signing up Nathan for one. One issue is that Sunny (son of hippie, British Mum) absolutely hated it last year. He and Nathan are a lot alike, especially in their love of climbing and jumping, so that worried me. Also, it costs $64, and the playground is free. But the biggest concern was that it was at 8:00 am, altough I tried to put a positive spin on that, since it was early enough that Claire could stay home with Dan.

I do not get up at 8:00. I certainly don't get up at 7:00, Dan does. And lately the kids have been sleeping late, so there have been mornings we've all still been snoozing at 8:30. It should not surprise anyone when I admit that we slept through the first class. I didn't even remember there was a first class until about 10:00 am that day. And last week Dad was coming Saturday morning, plus I wanted to go to the Harvest festival, so we skipped the second class too.

But I was determined to get my money's worth and make it there today. Set the alarm last night, and managed to wake up at 7:00, which is a bit of a miracle since I had the AM/PM wrong on my clock. Rousted Nathan out of bed and ignored his "But I'm too tired for Gym class" whining. Got in the car with my campus map, concerned that I was supposed to go to Merrit Gym, when I knew for a fact that the main gym is called Maxcy. More concern when I pulled into what I thought was the nearest parking lot, and not only were there no minivans, there were no cars at all. Uh-oh. Did they move the class, am I in the completely wrong place, did I waste $64. Went inside and followed the "Kids and Movement" signs to the Merritt Gym, which was completely dark and definately lacking cushions for little kids.

Frak.(In honor of the return of BSG last night) Went back to the car with vague plans to circle the campus looking for people with strollers. Luckily, another minivan pulled up, someone who'd realized too late that there wouldn't be classes because it's Columbus day weekend.

What did I learn from this? Nothin. But at least we were up early enough that Dunkin Donuts hadn't run out of Boston Creme yet.

Friday, October 06, 2006

These are for Joy

I was looking for photo ops on my way home today, but then decided that I could do pretty well just in our own backyard. Here's fall!




Thursday, October 05, 2006

Chilly



Getting cold. I've spent the last few weeks putting the storm windows up and down as we've swung from 40 degree nights to 70 degree days. But I think after tonight's frost, we'll be keeping the storms down permanently. Finally took the AC out of the window too, after using it about 3 nights all summer. I got some plastic wrap to put on some of the windows. I really hate that stuff, but the main part of the house is fairly old and not well insulated. It was probably a 3 room summer camp when it was built, and then was retro-fitted to a year-round home.

I think I finished the triangular wool shawl I'm making, haven't quite decided yet. It's really a bit too long in the back, but doesn't cover my front very well. I'm thinking of putting in a chunky button to keep it clasped in the front, and maybe adding some more trim to the front. Pictures eventually.

Wednesday, October 04, 2006

Luckily, they didn't notice the black eye

The job interview went very well. I think I was more relaxed than the interviewers. Threw in some talk about the AMT tax and the CPA exam, so I think that may have helped show off my intelligence. They were also very impressed with my cover letter, so I think I'm off to a good start.

I had to take an hour long test on spelling, math, etc. I think it was written in the 1920's and has been given to every employee since the firm was founded. Since I always use spellcheck and calculators, I was a little stressed at having to use a pencil and do it all in my head. I'll find out in a few days if I have the job, and make some calls tomorrow to see if the daycares I've talked to have openings. I should also start doing some online shopping to see if I can expand my wardrobe a bit.

Tuesday, October 03, 2006

Help!!!!!!!!!!

It was very liberating to clean out my closet in Germantown and throw away or give away all of my suits. They were worn out and badly fitting anyway. But now I have a job interview tomorrow and I have NOTHING TO WEAR. These are the only two things in the closet that are workable, and I don't really like either of them. How I wish Stacy and Clinton would show up at my door with a $5000 shopping spree.

Option one: Even the Queen of England would think this was too matronly.


Option two: A little more casual, actually too casual. Polka dots!! WTF!! This would be one of my desparate to have something, anything, that fit in the ninth month. And even it's a bit tight against the bust.



I want to race over to the store where I got the shirt I wore to Joy's reception, because I think they had coordinating jackets and skirts in a rosy tweed. Plus, do I need new shoes? I have two pair of black flats, but I feel I need heels for the interview. Except then I might end up limping through the office. BTW, this is for a CPA office, so we're not talking high fashion. But I really don't want to look like Ugly Betty either.