Were you in it just for me?

Very distracted during Palin's speech. All I could think about was how much she looked and sounded like Tina Fey.






She had me for a few minutes with her baby, and her "Hockey Mom" line. But I'd be really bummed if the first female president was a Republican. And I'd be furious if it was a woman who was anti-choice, pro-creationism, anti-gay and a lifetime NRA member.

I'm also a bit disgusted about the media playing up the fact that she has a down syndrome child as "proof" of her Pro-life credentials. I'm not sure where to direct my anger about that, because I don't know if it's really her promoting the connection or just the media.

Just tell me that the men and women of this country who were excited about Hillary's run aren't gullible enough to think that Palin's a good second choice. She and McCain are against everything that Hillary stands for.

Frozen River

I don't get to the movies much. But I'm intrigued by the fact that the Sundance Grand Jury winner for drama was set near where I live. So if anyone does decide to see Frozen River, you'll get a pretty good glimpse of the snow and cold that's waiting for me this winter.

What Have I DONE!!!

Good? Bad? Horrible different at first but I'll get used to it?

It was really necessary after the haircut she gave herself. And Dan doesn't like her screaming fits when he has to comb her hair and put elastics in. Now I just have to deal with screaming fits at the hairdressers every few weeks.

Any suggestions for different styles that aren't so "page-boy"? It's hard to think of what would work with her straight, fine hair.

Turn me Off

Got our electric bill from Jul 10 to Aug 11. Tankless hot water heater was installed Jul 3. Our usage dropped from about 1050kWH in June to 575kWH in current billing cycle. Turning off the computer more, changing lightbulbs and generally being smarter has helped drop us from 1165 last August to this low. Our Dec & Jan totals were almost 1500 kWH, I don't know how much of that was water, and how much was just the need to have more lights on in winter, but we should see an improvement there too.

I should update when I figure out the propane costs, but right now I'm looking at bills for the delivery of a bigger tank, installation, and a credit for the old tank. Can't quite figure out how that translates into how much was in the tank or how much we use each month for cooking and water.

Bullwinkle!

I know, I know, you can't see anything. But the brown smudge on the tree line (just to the left of the white post) is a moose. He's been hanging around this field for about a week. I kept forgetting to stop by and see, so a co-worker called me on her way home to say he was there.

Unfortunately, he wasn't being very photogenic. We could see his ears wiggling a bit, but he hadn't moved from the spot for at least an hour and a half before we came, and he decided to stretch it out by another half hour after we got there. I was just getting to the point of leaving when he finally stood up. And in the time it took me to get the kids back out of the car and across the street, he'd already disappeared into the trees. We got a brief glimpse of his tail (or booty, as Nathan has taken to saying) before he was gone.

I'm posting about it anyway, because HEY I saw a Moose!!!

(Much better picture of the Moose here.)

You gotta have Friends

I'm not particularly good at making friends. I put too many barriers in the way. "We work different shifts" "We live too far away" "She's not married" "She doesn't have kids" "Her kids are different ages" on and on and on.

And then, even if I meet someone who I can't find any objections to, I still have to cultivate the friendships somehow. It can take me a year to work up to trading e-mail or phone numbers. I'm not someone who chats on the phone, very un-girly of me, so I don't know how to move easily from acquaintance to friend. Our habit of moving every 2-3 years has not helped this process.

When we first moved here, I was only expecting to stay for a year or two as well, before moving back to Saranac Lake. So I wasn't stressing too much about the need to put down roots and make friends. But a few months after moving, I met Allison, and not only did she meet all my stupid, random qualifications, she was nice too. It still took me months to get around to calling her to make plans. And we've seen less and less of eachother since I starting working. But we also had many good talks at the beach, playground and skating rink while keeping one eye and ear on the kids.

This time, instead of me leaving, she has. To Atlanta. Very, very far away. Sigh.

So now I'm back to square one. It's like dating, something I have even less experience with. The only other woman who I'd gotten beyond calling "so & so's Mom" is also moving this summer. I have to hang out at the playground, or find time to make small talk during daycare pick-up. Now that Dan works Sundays, I may try the U-U Church again. This really sucks.

Beauty School Drop Out

Okay. There are two things wrong with this picture, can you spot them?

See the hair next to her ear. It's supposed to be about an inch longer. But my darling, angel of a daughter decided to practice her beautician skills and gave herself a haircut last night. At least most of her work was confined to the end of the pony tail, so a visit to the hairdresser should even all that out tomorrow. But there were also a few suspiciously short hairs right on the crown of her head too, that I discovered when I removed the elastics. She may be sporting a spiky Alfalfa do later this month.


Here are the remains.