Things Worth Remembering The three habits that lead to success are: Patience, Application, and Vision.
Take care: The person who will tell others' faults to you - will tell yours to others.
It is always better to be underestimated.
There are three things that are better than riches: Health, Freedom, and Honor.
Think swiftly, speak softly, act wisely.
"The world is neither Scottish, English, nor Irish, neither French, Dutch, nor Chinese, but human, and each nation is only the partial development of a universal humanity." - James Grant on founding the National Association for the Vindication of Scottish Rights, 1862
All from: The Book of Celtic Wisdom
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Obi-Wan: “Captain Typho has more than enough men downstairs. No assassin will try that way. Any activity up here?”
Anakin: “Quiet as a tomb. I don’t like just waiting here for something to happen to her.”
Star Wars II: Attack of the Clones
Please forgive the crazy delay. I popped in today and noticed that my last post was on July 4th. A month and a half. Geez.
So, you see here’s the thing. I got a job. A full-time job. A really full-time, on my feet all day long on a concrete floor job. A this was supposed to be a part-time, up-to-20 hours a week, filler position job, but after six days spread out over two weeks I was offered the position of store manager on July 8. A full-time, at least 40 hours a week job. Well, holy cow. I said yes, took over on July 9, and it’s been a crazy rollercoaster ever since. Have I mentioned that it’s been way too many years since that kind of non-stop on-the-go activity has been a regular part of my life? I have learned a new level of both exhaustion and sore foot pain.
On the up side, I love this job. Love, love, love it. It’s fun, it’s positive, and it’s close enough to walk or bike to. The women I work with are fun and hardworking (a great combo), the challenges are enough to keep my brain pumping along, and the feedback from my employers and customers regarding the changes I’ve been implementing have been uniformly positive.
Many other things have been happening as well these past couple of weeks.
Padawan Learner turned 16 this summer, is driving around town by himself, started back to school at 5 out of the 8 periods (and is picking up a 6th period geometry class starting on Monday) and has been pleased with his newfound freedom. It’s a little weird, but we’re both enjoying the break from each other 24/7. He’s very 16, and I’m definitely a mom. Clashes have ensued. He’s talked about getting a job and working toward becoming independent sooner rather than later. It could be a good idea, but we’ll see how much effort he puts into meeting that goal. As you know quite well, there’s more to being a grownup than earning an income.
PL went to two different camps this summer, a week long half day parkour camp in Boulder. So PL got to participate in one of his most favorite activities ever AND we got to visit with our nephew who just moved into the area a few months earlier. I think he enjoyed our visit too since he was forced to learn first hand about lots of great restaurants in the area. PL also went to a week long overnight camp (his first experience with that type of program) for trampoline and double mini in Michigan, so Dad Windu and I were able to visit some old friends from different parts of Michigan – including some that we hadn’t been able to see for years.
To round the summer out, our niece married, rather unexpectedly but apparently happily, and we were all able to gather once again as an extended family (minus 3) for a long weekend. But it seems that with joy comes pain, and this weekend was no different – DW’s co-worker was in a motorcycle-car accident on the way home the same day we left for MI and was airlifted to a hospital near us. Thankfully he had on his leathers and a helmet (a rarity in Iowa). Still, he has two broken legs, a broken arm, and bleeding in the brain (now stopped), but he survived the first night (a major event) and is on the mend. He is such a sweetheart and such a fighter. I’ve been able to go sit with him in the mornings while his wife gets their four kids off on two different school busses (two hours apart!) so that he doesn’t have to wake up alone. The good drugs are giving us really fun conversations. It’s so nice seeing his bruises go down day after day, but it’s heartbreaking to see the pain that goes along with all the things that will ultimately make him better – multiple surgeries and their subsequent swelling most of all. Send any extra good thoughts along to JerBear.
So there you have it. Sorry for making you wait for an update.
Obi-Wan: “Sorry, Master, the water fried my weapon.”
Qui-Gon: “You forgot to turn your power off again, didn’t you?”
Obi-Wan nods sheepishly.
Qui-Gon: “It won’t take long to recharge, but this is a lesson I hope you’ve learned, my young Padawan.”
Obi-Wan : “Yes, Master.”
Star Wars I: The Phantom Menace
Still alive and still in the middle of the moving drama. Here’s the situation in a nutshell:
- House was put up on the market in mid-March
- Come to find out, the realtor’s assistant works for the devil, the Galactic Empire or some other evil monstrosity like Sprawl-Mart and did a major f*ck-up on the listing – 4 days late, crappy pictures, pathetic blurb, etc.
- Realtor’s assistant apparently does not know how to use voicemail as messages were never returned before 48 hours, if at all.
- Realtor did not check assistant’s “work” until after week two of the listing when we had not gotten a single showing.
- Realtor assistant has now been fired/’quit’.
- Price on house was dropped twice.
- House finally sold last Thursday – yeah – but we’re taking a major bath on the price – boo. I’m walking away getting less than I paid for the place 12 years ago – after spending 40K on home improvements these past couple of years. Double boo. I spent most of the 29th in tears.
- BUT it is sold and we’re finally going to be together again. Quadruple yeah!
- I’ve shed about 1/2 of our furniture and all of our yard/garden/garage items. House and garage look like they’ve been robbed. Apartment will still look like a furniture store exploded inside it. It’s all about perspective.
- We’re hoping to close by the end of the month.
- I told Padawan Learner tonight, as we had a Mom’s dinner out, that he has given me the best Mother’s Day present ever in the way he has been handling this topsy-turvy, split household, back and forth to see Dad Windu, emotional roller-coaster of a move.
If all goes well, I’ll be able to write again in complete sentences and whole paragraphs soon.
“Offhand, I’d say this mission is past the negotiation stage.” – Obi-Wan Kenobi, Star Wars I: The Phantom Menace
Because I know that you’ve all been losing sleep over the drama of my very exciting life, I’m happy to report that Dad Windu has received a job offer from a very good firm and will be starting within the month. Sadly, it will require a relocation several states away. Padawan Learner is, of course, taking this hardest as this is the only home he has ever known, but he is also being very understanding of the reason for this move. He has watched his dad do everything in his power to work a job search and keep us in the area, but he’s also aware that Michigan is just in a terrible state right now for DW’s line of work.
We’re trying to find all the different ways possible to keep PL in touch with his friends, and we have committed to traveling back to MI as often as practicable to see our friends and family. On FireFly Mom’s recommendation, we have given the task of hunting out interesting things to do and see in our new town to PL. I know he’ll do a wonderful job of it and is sure to find things that I would have never even thought twice about.
Initially, we’re going to be moving from a 3 bedroom, 2.5 bath, 1800 sq ft home to an 865 sq ft apartment. Have you stopped laughing yet? While DW works these last two weeks (he’s currently a contract employee for his old firm) getting things re-allocated to other staff members, tying up loose ends, and doing some last-minute training (and then coming home to do last minute home improvement projects), I’ve been culling the house for things that are not absolutely, positively necessary. Anyone interested in a 4-piece, king-size sleigh bed set with matching night stand, armoire, and dresser with tri-fold mirror? What’s that? Why, yes, they are all gigantic pieces! If only I could go back and have a talk with my younger self…
Han Solo: Hey, Your Worship, I’m only trying to help.
Princess Leia: Would you please stop calling me that?
Han Solo: Sure, Leia.
Princess Leia: You make it so difficult sometimes.
Han Solo: I do, I really do. You could be a little nicer, though. Come on, admit it. Sometimes you think I’m all right.
Princess Leia: Occasionally, maybe… when you aren’t acting like a scoundrel.
Han Solo: Scoundrel? Scoundrel? I like the sound of that.
Star Wars V: The Empire Strikes Back
My scoundrel is in his 4th hour of interviews, as I type. I – obviously – have the better end of the deal here.
- Vanilla latte. Check.
- Squishy chair. Check.
- Chocolate croissant. Check.
- Scrolling around the internet. Check.
- Free lunch with Dad Windu and corporate representative. Check.
- Not having to answer hard, uncomfortable, or annoying questions that will dictate my future bread-buying power. Double check.
Yesterday after the plane landed, we covered all the basics – rental car, hotel, and office building reconnoiter. After stalking finding the company’s location, we checked into a nearby apartment building – extremely cool and 3 times as expensive as my current mortage payment – and then got a very late lunch. May I just take a moment and tell you how much I love, love, love a plate of Pesto Chicken Pasta done well? Holy distended stomach, Bat Man, that stuff was divine!
Oops, running out of battery. Time to go retrieve the charging cord.
“Oh, excuse me. So sorry.” – TC-14, Star Wars I: The Phantom Menace
I’ve been riding the job search and homeschooling-in-the-midst-of-the-unknown rollar coaster with Dad Windu and Padawan Learner these past couple of months, and, while it’s been going pretty well, it’s had its ups and downs. That’s the biggest reason this place has been so quiet. I’m driving 6 white horses, coming around the mountain, and – what the song doesn’t mention - there’s this cliff on the other side of the path that’s making me hug the mountain more than I’m used to. So homeschooling is keeping on, keeping on and going well. Marriage is going well. Blogging (my release and often-times entertainment), not so much.
At one point we thought we were going to be moving to almost the very northern-most tip of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. In case you don’t know where that is, it’s waaaay the h*ll up there (technical term) and surrounded by Lake Superior on three sides. Average high of 78 F (25C) in July and 16 F (-9C) in January. 208 inches (528 cm) of snow a year on average. I know! There are two seasons up there, if you ask a local - ”winter’s here and winter’s coming.”
Yes, we were pretty sure we were going to be moving there after DW met with the group leader in the company’s Detroit-area office. Couldn’t have asked for a more encouraging guy. The group leader in the UP though, not so encouraging. Not being ‘a local’ was apparently a big point against DW; the two interviewers spent most of the meeting basically trying to talk him OUT of wanting the job. “No shopping to speak of up here.” “Winters are long and hard, so you can’t try to just wait them out.” “Everything’s a long way from here, so traveling other places doesn’t happen very often.” “We don’t have furniture stores to speak of.” You get the picture.
Meanwhile, while he’s in his interview, I was scraping the local librarian’s brain clean about local homeschooling resources and groups and variety. I was getting more and more excited about the homeschooling opportunities in the immediate area. Oh, and have I mentioned that we found the cutest little house – with a cast-iron circular staircase connecting the main and upper floors – for $27,700? No, I didn’t leave a zero out. For approximately the same price of a new car, we could have owned a 2 bedroom, 2 bath home that was as cute as a button. (Just shoot me now). I was getting geared up and ready to go.
Just to make things interesting, of course, the reality of an impending move really hit Padawan Learner up there and … well, it wasn’t pretty. I’ll just leave it at that.
In the end, DW got a FOAD letter in the mail from the UP leader – as vague as can be, of course. The Detroit guy is disgusted. DW is confused and thinking, “WTF was that all about?” PL is feeling bad for DW but also guilty about feeling relieved that we’re not moving – yet. I’m exhausted about putting so much mental effort into finding ways to make sure this transition goes smoothly – for naught.
*deep breathing*
And now we’re hopping back on the maybe this is it train. Dad Windu and I are headed out into the heart of the great frozen midwest this weekend. (PL is staying with friends.) We’re quietly optimistic, but (truthbetold) we’re afraid to get our hopes up too high. There’s been a lot of “Oh, I’m just doing a little Internet surfing” digging by me. It’s what I do. The job appears to be a good fit for DW and the city looks like we’d be comfortable there.
So, happy thoughts everyone. *fairy dust, fairy dust* We’re going to need them.
“How woood!” – Jar Jar Binks, Star Wars I: The Phantom Menace
You know it’s bad when I use a Jar Jar Binks quote.
Dad Windu had his wallet and keys stolen last night so after closing down all of our credit cards, his bank card, his cell phone, his office entry card, and etc. last night and beginning to rebuild his financial and legal life this morning – we went to the local hardware store this afternoon to have our locks re-keyed. You know, because some a**hole, scuzz-bucket thief has our home address and the keys to open it up wide in his hot little hands.
A little back story: We’ve been remodeling our house, slowly but surely, for the decade that we’ve lived here. The exterior doors are some of the things we’ve replaced. Getting new doors, we also got new locks since the old ones were nasty-looking, cheap quality, and falling apart to boot. The locks we picked out are commercial grade and bought at Home Depot – KwikSet brand with SmartKey technology (so you can match the lock to any other KwikSet lock you have on your house – so long as you have the current key).
We explained the situation to the owner of the local hardware store, offered to leave our name and telephone number (he declined to take it down), and left the locks to be re-worked. When we returned an hour later to pick up the locks, the owner of the store accused my husband and me – rudely, frequently, and to our faces – of “obviously doing something illegal” because the locks we chose were “too good” to have on a house. That’s right, people. Apparently home owners are only allowed to buy standard locks for their houses. Anything else means that you’re up to no good – something along the lines of running a bordello, opium den, or printing un-official NCAA merchandise in your basement or third bedroom.
He greeted us with this warm welcome. “You’ve got some explaining to do.” The he took us down into the basement, where the lock was all torn to shit and spread out across his desk. He asked about what kind of doors we have on our house. (Insulated fiberglass.) Where we bought our lock. (Home Depot.) He said, “Only someone with something to hide would have this good of a lock on their house.” Hello. It’s $40 at The Home Depot. And ”This is something the government would use.” Um, no. It’s not. And, for the record, the government doesn’t pay as little as $40 for a bottle of aspirin. So the big question he kept asking, “Why would you need such a strong lock?” How about: I have a child that I’ve grown rather fond of, one that I’d like to keep safe and sound. OR I’m the proud owner of a VAGINA and am sometimes home alone over-night when Dad Windu is away on business. OR Remember, there was a rash of break-ins last summer? For an extra $20, why wouldn’t I pick a high quality lock?
Dad Windu just kept answering his questions, looking at him like he didn’t understand what the guy was trying to say. I finally blurted out, “He thinks we’re doing something illegal.” Without even a pause, he answered, “Yes, I do.” Well, that put me over the edge.
In the end, we got new (commercial quality) locks from the Home Depot. thank.you.very.much. I will never shop there again. I am absolutely disgusted with the owner’s attitude, behavior and accusation. I’m all for shopping local; but I’ll be picking up my furnace filters, light bulbs, smoke detectors, and etc. at the next closest locally, owned hardware store.
Oh, and this place has had Dad Windu’s mini-sledge hammer (in for a handle replacement) for over two years now. “No, we haven’t gotten to that yet,” is what I hear every time I’ve inquired about it. How’s that for service?
****Here’s the nefarious deadbolt and keyed doorknob set. Oooo, aren’t we scary. Since we also have the matching, decorative keyed handle-set for the front door (freakishly similar to this one), we’re obviously up to no good.
opening title crawl
A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away…
Turmoil has engulfed the Galactic Republic. The
taxation of trade routes to outlying star systems
is in dispute. Hoping to resolve the matter with a
blockade of deadly battleships, the greedy Trade
Federation has stopped all shipping to the small
planet of Naboo. While the Congress of the Republic
endlessly debates this alarming chain of events, the
Supreme Chancellor has secretly dispatched two Jedi
Knights, the guardians of peace and justice in the galaxy,
to settle the conflict…
Star Wars I: The Phantom Menace
There is an international art contest setting up in downtown Grand Rapids, already a hotspot for sculpture for the uninitiated, that looks to be mind-boggling in scale. Over 1,200 pieces are scheduled to be up for public review and voting when it officially starts later this month. Dad Windu, Padawan Learner and I headed into GR last weekend to see the hands-on Leonardo da Vinci: Machines in Motion exhibit (very cool) and to catch a sneak preview of some of the sculptures that have already been installed.
There’s a number of pictures involved in this post, so I thought I better give you the option to click through (rather than steal all your bandwidth if you just don’t care about Leonardo and/or sculpture). Click on a picture to see a its full-size image.
Continue reading The Supreme Chancellor has secretly dispatched two Jedi Knights, the guardians of peace and justice in the galaxy, to settle the conflict…
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