6:27 PM

The apple doesn't fall far from the tree

I have noticed eerie similarities between myself and my offspring. Poor, poor children.

Emily has inherited my empathy and passion. This is a nice way of saying she freaks out over things and cries when she thinks people are mad at her.

She has also inherited my love of books and artsy things. Today, she won an award at school for her book report entitled "The Lorax". OK, so everyone got an award, but I am still beaming with pride. I am truly amazed at how much she has learned this year. Ethan is also a whole lot like his mama. I would like to draw your attention to the fact that Ethan is destined to be a rock star. I believe he inherited this quality from me, as I would have been a rock star had I not been stifled by my inability to sing. Just look at him...definitely rock star material. Seriously, how can someone look so cool while standing next to a primary colored bike with a handle on the back?He is also likes to do art projects, and is especially good at gluing things. I am not so great with glue, but I excel at finding things for him to glue. As you can imagine, we are pretty good team. Just look at how nicely he pasted the leaves on the tree. He didn't even lick them this time.

1:00 PM

Tagged!

I have been tagged by Lex the mom ! This means that I am kind of popular and somebody out there wants to learn more about me. Yay!

The Rules:

~Each player answers the questions about themselves.

~At the end of the post, the player tags other people and posts their name, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know they've been tagged and asking them to read your blog.

~What was I doing 10 years ago?

I was graduating from high school and getting ready for college. I was flipping ecstatic to be on my own, in a completely-dependent-on-your-parents kind of way.

Five snacks I enjoy-

- cereal (quite possibly the world's perfect food)
- anything involving peanut butter and chocolate
- Cashews
-Glazed Pecans
- cheese and crackers

Five Things On My to do list Today-

~Put away laundry
~Disassemble and disinfect carseat
~Explain to Ethan that he is no longer allowed to read in the car
~Watch Idol
~Take the dog for a walk

Things I would do if I were a billionaire-

~Move
~Buy a house for someone who needs one (I heart Extreme Home Makeover)
~Give to family and friends
~Start a literacy foundation (rich ladies always have foundations, right?)
~Once and for all, buy the perfect pair of jeans

Five Jobs that I have had -
In chronological order:
1. Snack bar at drive-in movie theater
2. Day Care
3. Grocery store, deli and cashier
4. Teacher
5. Instructional Coordinator


Five of my bad habits-
I have way more than five, but here goes:

1.Drinking beer while I cook dinner.
2. Not eating breakfast, and eating bad snacks
3. Pretending to shop online. I put things in my basket and never proceed to checkout. What is up with that?
4. Biting my nails
5. Tuning out my husband when I am pretending to shop online.


Five Places I have lived-

1. I have really only lived in one place, which shall remain nameless


Five people I Want to Get to Know Better:
A nice way of saying “Tag. You’re it!”
-
1. Cheri
2. TheMama
3. Danielle
4.
6 Random things:

1. Glazed pecans are surprisingly filling.
2. I have never missed an episode of Survivor.
3. I have been dyeing my hair the same color for 10 years.
4. I don't like fruit. At all. It's weird.
5. My husband is a foot taller than I am.
6. I like going to the dentist.

7:09 PM

Fun Field Trips

When I was little, I loved being around teenagers. Mostly because I admired their really big bangs and pastel sparkly lip gloss. However, there was one young and hip chick that I especially idolized, and it wasn't because she had blue eyeshadow. In fact, to my recollection, she never wore any makeup. She had her ears pierced a WHOLE bunch of times, and she was just super cool. My aunt Romy wore mostly black clothing and, at one point, had a white stripe in her jet black hair. She was gutsy and smart. One Christmas dinner, she declared to her Catholic parents that she no longer prayed because she had converted to Zen Buddhism. If you don't already understand the extreme coolness I am describing here, you never will. So, I will just move on.

Well, Romy turned out to be a super intelligent PhD. A research scientist. Brilliant, strong, and still remarkably hip. Love her. She is also tons of fun and fortunately lives close by in a really fun city with tons to do. So, we decided to take the kids to two fun and educational places last month. I am hoping both her coolness and smartness will rub off on my kids. Keep your fingers crossed, folks.

Fun Field Trip Number One: The Children's Museum

Our next field trip was to the Franklin Institute.


Now, doesn't that look like fun?

6:21 PM

Relief

Rumor has it, somebody else got the job. Whew! That was a close one.

The woman who got the job is a fabulous teacher and all around great lady. She has been teaching there for 15 years. I am genuinely happy for her.

This is good news, I decided. Really. This was the universe's way of telling me to stay put.

5:14 PM

Hazing

When I was in college, I was a member of Phi Sigma Pi National Honors Fraternity. AKA the Nerd Herd. It was more fun than it sounds, really; smart people are extremely entertaining when they are drunk. To this day, I am not really sure why they let me in. This organization followed rules to a T. One of my best friends, Kristy, was the president of Phi Sigma Pi. Under the Kristy regime, every rule was meticulously followed. This chick ran a seriously tight ship. Our meetings were efficiently run according to Robert's Rules of Order. Nobody spoke out of turn, people attended events, and there was ABSOLUTELY no hazing. Kristy is now the vice president of a company. She is under 30, and she is a vice freaking president! I can just imagine her little worker bees scurrying around the office when they hear her coming.

I often ask Kristy's advice on business related things. Those of you who know me in real life, you are aware of my inability to make decisions. Without direction, I ponder options that don't even exist. I fight for things I am not even sure I want. This is particularly troubling when it comes to career related issues. I am in constant turmoil between my desire to stay home with my kids and my drive to become rich and famous. Well, not exactly rich and famous...more like comfortable and respected.

So far, I have managed to have the best of both worlds. I work from home and also teach part time at a college. A lot of people would kill for this situation. I am able to be home with my little ones while having some outside interaction and a reason to get a shower. What more can a mom ask for? No, seriously...this is not a rhetorical question. It seems as though this is not enough for me. I decided to apply for a full time teaching position at the college where I am currently an adjunct. Everybody seemed to think this was a wonderful opportunity for meaningful, stable employment that has relatively flexible hours. I was not so sure if I wanted this job, as I already have a job that I like that allows me to work from home. In my PJs. While pretending to be a barnyard animal with my son. I decided to give it a whirl nevertheless. What's the harm in trying, right? Wrong.

I had my interview a couple weeks back. Now, I understand I am completely in the minority on this, but I LOVE job interviews. I love everything about interviewing: smiling at people, wearing my really cute interview outfit, spouting off shit that I have read, and dazzling them with my sparkling personality. I have always been really comfortable in interviews, and usually manage to turn them into wonderful conversations, at the end of which the interviewer not only wants to offer me the job, but also hand over the keys to their vacation property. Boy was I in for a surprise.

My interview for a tenured track assistant professor position was anything but a nice conversation. I met with 15 different people over an 8 hour time frame. They GRILLED me with question after question. They kept their heads down and furiously scribbled down every single word that came out of my mouth. They made me eat lunch with two men who 1. did not even notice my ass, and 2. spent the whole time discussing Modernism in American Literature. I don't even know what the hell that is, and I didn't even care enough to google it when I got home.

They kept me in a small room with no windows and poor circulation. They kept giving me water and coffee and only let me out for short 5 minute pee breaks. It was torturous! I was hazed! I kept glancing at the door, waiting for Kristy to swoop in and save me. "Objection!", she would scream, "Hazing: Article 4565.97! ". Unfortunately, this didn't happen. She must have been too busy with all that Vice President bullshit. Whatever.

So, I haven't heard yet whether or not I have gotten this job. I will probably be getting a call soon, so clear your schedule Kristy. If they offer me the job (which I doubt), I may be stopping into your office unannounced so you can help me make a list of pros and cons. And have your assistant type it up for me, complete with clipart...I really like clipart.

6:07 PM

The Town that Time Forgot: The Verdict is In

I am delighted to report that Poppop was indeed victorious. Justice has prevailed! The PoppopMobile will be restored to its original state, courtesy of the Kid. But Melt, perspiring due to synthetic fibers, reportedly hung his head while leaving the courtroom.

Stay tuned for the next episode of...The Town that Time Forgot