Things Worth Remembering The three habits that lead to success are: Patience, Application, and Vision.
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.
All from: The Book of Celtic Wisdom
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“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…
Obi-Wan Kenobi: “Just relax, concentrate.”
Anakin Skywalker: ”What about Padme?”
Obi-Wan Kenobi: “She seems to be on top of things.”
Star Wars II: Attack of the Clones
Ah, recharged batteries. Not only are they a beautiful thing in a camera, they’re also a beautiful thing in life.
I spent the last week pretty much unplugged, save reading a few blogs, and I enjoyed it very much. Sometimes I forget I can do things other than type. With Padawan Learner’s birthday and our first week off of the summer’s morning lessons, it was a good time to step back and do a few things I had been putting off like laundry reading and crafting and petting cats for more than a moment and hanging out with my two favorite men – add a long holiday weekend into that and so much the better.
Yesterday, I finished my week of pure relaxation with a trip out to The Lake to see Qui-Gon Jinn, Endicott and C-3PO at their cottage. We had a great time trying out the kayaks (well, the guys did – the moms chatted), sitting on the beach, soaking up the sun, having a yummy dinner together and relaxing some more later.
At all times, Indy, Head of Cottage Security, was available to protect us and eat our red licorice. He was prepared, on-guard and in control of the situation at all times, even when it looked like he wasn’t.
“Watch that cross fire boys.” – Luke, Star Wars V: The Empire Strikes Back
What a wacky 24 hours the universe has tossed at us.
Dad Windu was pretty sure he was getting laid-off yesterday afternoon, but he’s still employed thankfully. The entire firm is taking a 10-20% pay cut indefinitely (higher ups getting the higher amounts) which – ouch! – sure is going to hurt. We’re happy to share the burden though if it means no one else has to get let go. Conveniently, I had black beans and rice soup planned for dinner tonight. A frugal meal for tight times.
Uncle Owen called last night to tell us that he ruptured his achilles tendon. Poor thing! An MRI and possible surgery (with a multiple week month recovery period) are being ladled onto his plate now. What could be worse? Well, he does have to figure out how he and his pregnant wife are going to move all their stuff into their new house next week. I wish they didn’t live on the complete other end of the country and we could help out!
And apparently Padawan Learner was a little too slow passing by Dad Windu last week. After working on lessons for the bulk of the day, he voluntarily took a nap from 4pm – 6:30 pm. He actually said, “I think I’m going to go lay down now” and quickly fell asleep. He’s been feeling the same blah symptoms DW had since he got up, but was able to eat some dinner and has been happily watching TV in the basement with Dad Windu so here’s to hoping that he just had a weird little “thing” that has passed or will pass quickly.
“How do you get so big eating food of this kind?” – Yoda, Star Wars V: The Empire Strikes Back
Padawan Learner started a new trampoline class — the pre-competition class, oh la la — tonight from 4:30 to 6pm which made me run late on making dinner so I did the (for me) unthinkable. I — slow-food, local-food, seasonal-food, sustainable-food promoting Obi-Mom Kenobi — made Hamburger Helper Stroganoff. Dad Windu almost died and went to heaven. He actually clapped when I showed him the box that I picked up at big ol’ multinational Target (what am I turning into??) on the way home. At least I used locally-raised, grass-fed ground beef, right? Right!?
This is what he and his roommate of 2 years ate at least once a week in university. I made some frozen peas to go along with it and asked the nutritional gods to forgive me. With a long, heavy, contented sigh, Dad Windu said, “It would have been perfect with some frozen corn. We always ate it with frozen corn.” I don’t think he’s eaten Hamburger Helper in the past 15 years, and maybe not the 17 years that we’ve been married. I guess I know what to make him for his birthday dinner…
“Dangerous and disturbing this puzzle is. Only a Jedi could have erased those files. But who, and why, harder to answer. Meditate on this I will.” – Yoda, Star Wars II: Attack of the Clones
Dangerous. Disturbing. Mind-numbingly confusing. That’s sudoku puzzles to me. I’m a fairly clever girl when it comes to puzzles and mind-twisters, but sudoku has me stumped. It’s so simple: put the numbers 1 through 9 in each column, row and 3×3 box. Yet simple only describes my brain cells when they’re around that type of puzzle. Dad Windu, on the other hand, is a sudoku junkie. He carries a little pad of them around the house, taking every free second he gets to pop another number into the grid. This morning he explained the process for completing a sudoku to me again. I understand the concept, I really do. What I don’t understand is why my brain can’t see the patterns that Dad Windu sees so easily. After about 8 minutes, I had to stop. My brain hurt, literally; I was getting a headache from staring so intently at the page. DW, on the other hand, runs through the Medium level ones (like I was working on) in two minutes or so…while holding a conversation nonetheless. ARGH! He completes the one in the Sunday paper every week; he even looks forward to it! I don’t get it.
And that’s probably a good thing. It’s good for me to remember that the things that come easily to me are not necessarily easy. And there are days that I forget that. Where’s my book of word searches? Now that’s a puzzle I can get into. (In fact, I’m a bit of a junkie about them.)
My Super Bowl commentary will be limited to the dumbest thing I heard during the pre-game show and the best use of air-time during the Half-Time Show.
- “F. Scotts Fitzgerald once wrote…” F. Scotts? I just couldn’t listen past that. She might have solved the problem of world hunger, but I’ll never know because I instinctively shut her out.
- Switching the channel over to the Puppy Bowl on Animal Planet. Mrs. Sunday Morning Doughnut Buddy announced that it was cute overload. Mr. Sunday Morning Doughnut Buddy said that it redefined pointless but acknowledged that the actual half-time show would have as well.
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