Frustration

Our lifesavers right now

See these ice chests? This is how we've been keeping our food from being a total loss since Friday evening. We did lose a lot, but with these four coolers we are able to have milk, juice, Sophie's cottage cheese and yogurt, and the miscellaneous condiments, cheeses, and butter usually found in a refrigerator. We could get a package of sandwich meat for lunch, and keep enough food for cooking one day at a time.

On Saturday morning, since it was too late Friday evening, I started calling appliance repair services in our area. I have high standards I suppose, since my father had his own repair business for many years and was very good at it. In fact, through conversations with him I was sure I knew what was wrong with our refrigerator before anyone looked at it. But I don't think my standards were too high this weekend - we were desperate.

The first business I called advertised 24/7 emergency service, and listed both a business phone and a cell phone. I tried the business phone first, but the recording said to call the cell number. I did, and left a voice mail. After all, it was Saturday morning. Growing up with a father who did this work, I understand that repair people have lives also, but thought I'd get a call back pretty quickly. After an hour, I wasn't so sure any more.
I called someone else, who my father knows, but he warned me this person was very hard to reach because he stayed pretty busy. Another message left. Another hour waited.

I went back to the phone book, and tried another local company. This time, I got an answer when I called. We gave the model number and serial number, and a short time later the repairman called to say that he was on his way. The refrigerator was moved out again, he did the checking, and confirmed the problem. However, he didn't have the part for our particular refrigerator in stock and had to order it. He told us it would be in Tuesday (today) and he'd be back then to finish. If he got it Monday he'd let us know and come then. We weren't thrilled with waiting until today, but relieved that it wasn't a major issue (like the compressor. Yikes!).

Since we didn't know what time he'd be coming, I took the day off work today. I work about 45 minutes from home and didn't want to miss out on our repair. Also, after the refrigerator is working again I'd have to put everything in those coolers back into the refrigerator and freezer, and go to the store to restock our meats (all were lost). Around lunchtime today, I called to get a general time frame of when I could expect him to our house, since I had a few other things to get done today, including picking up E from school. I found out when I called that it would be after lunch - TOMORROW. The part won't be in until lunchtime tomorrow!

Yes, I told him that we were promised Tuesday and that I had taken off work today just for that reason. He repeated that it would be tomorrow, and I asked why we weren't told of the delay. The connection was so bad I couldn't even understand his answer, but it really didn't matter. It wouldn't change the fact that the part isn't here.

So, another evening of one-meal purchases, replacing the ice with fresh ice, and trying to remember which box holds the milk, which has the butter, and where Sophie's food was buried, all the while keeping her from opening the lids and playing in the ice.

I just want our refrigerator back!

Moments of joy

Having a toddler in the house again has reminded me of something: pure joy. The emotions of a little one are so pure and uninhibited! The squeals of delight and shrieks of laughter when she sees one of us, or is tossed into the air, or we blow bubbles, or one of many other simple things, is just precious!

Sophie, hunting Easter eggs for the first time

Silly Sophie!

Both my girls on Easter

E, 7 or 8 years old

E's 10th birthday party. Daddy had just wheeled in a bicycle.

E getting loved on by one of our dogs

Halloween! E in first grade

A dress-up tea party birthday party

E and her Daddy

E (almost 12) and Sophie (during her first week)

Daddy and Sophie

Sophie bit E's nose!

Silly Sophie :)

Now what?

I'm fairly certain everyone on the planet knows the news from last night - Osama Bin Laden is dead. I read the news where I get most of my news now, on Twitter.

Bin Laden (photo from Bing image search)

I was not surprised to read most of the reactions from across the Twitterverse, or those shown on the news this morning.  America as a whole is thrilled at the news. Then came the politicizing.

First of all, I understand the happiness. This is the man responsible for the worst attack on our country ever. Thousands of people were killed instantly, and over the course of the few hours following. But calling for his head or body to be paraded around the country, or at least shown on TV? There is no need. And I find that reaction a bit hypocritical. Every time an enemy's news service showed the bodies of Americans and celebrated their deaths, we threw up a huge outcry of resistance and called it inhuman. It would also be inhuman if we did the same.

Even photographs - there is a question now of whether or  not the pictures should be released to the media. I say no. We don't need to see it. Sure, there are many people who instantly said this was fake, he's been dead for three years and this was all staged, how can we be sure it is really him, things like that. They want proof. But these same people who are so strongly rooted in conspiracy theories will not believe the pictures anyway! They could see an unedited, uncensored picture of the dead body and claim it was faked to further the illusion. The rest of us don't want to see it. There is no need.

Then the burial at sea - oh my goodness I can't believe the controversy already! People questioning why. When it was explained that it was done in accordance with Islamic law, someone I follow on Twitter actually asked how they know it is Islamic law! There are several million followers of Islam in the US alone. I'm sure someone knows the proper way to bury a body. Also a theory was offered that a burial at sea both fulfills the religious requirement and also deprives his followers of a physical gravesite. And do we really want to further enrage those fighting against us by blatantly defying their religious customs? It would only add fuel to the fire and possibly incite retaliation.

I don't even want to get into the aspect of who should take credit. President Obama's supporters will support him, his detractors will say the credit should lie elsewhere. The fact is, though, that the sitting president gets the credit and blame for anything that happens during his (or her, hopefully one day) term in office, even if the events were set in place long before (the economy is a great example).

I'm not even sure (and I don't think anyone is) of what Bin Laden's death means for us yet. Will his supporters lose enthusiasm? Or will this lead to more attacks on Americans worldwide? Saddam Hussein's death did not end our fighting in Iraq, so I am sure this will not end our fighting in Pakistan and Afghanistan. Only time will tell where we go from here.

We did have a storm casualty, after all!

In my previous post about the storms Wednesday night, I wrote that we had no damage at our house. It turns out I was wrong. Thursday morning our power went out again. When it came back on, I heard a pop from the kitchen, like a light bulb blowing out. I went in to check, and all the lights were fine. I didn't think any more about it.

That evening, my husband came home from his trip. I had cooked dinner for myself and the girls earlier, but didn't notice anything wrong. When we were getting ready for bed, my husband had a glass of milk and commented that it seemed warmer than usual, but I figured it was because the glass had been sitting out for a few minutes (although no longer than usual and it's fine every other time). Then on Friday evening, he made it home from work before we did. He called to let me know that everything in our freezer and refrigerator were warm.

Oh joy.

After a dinner of delivered pizza and taking E to meet her grandparents to spend the night with them, I stopped at a grocery store for coolers and bags of ice, and we were able to save a few things. All the meats from the freezer were lost, and the little bit of milk we had left, but nothing irreplaceable. Saturday after calling three different places we finally got a repairman to come check it out (after also some calls back and forth with my father so we were pretty sure of what the problem was before he came). Thankfully, it was not the compressor, just a relay switch. The problem? Didn't have one in stock. So we are refrigeratorless until Tuesday.

After the repairman left, I found our larger coolers in the storage building and we went to the grocery store to get ice and non-perishables. Luckily I didn't stop at the grocery store on my way home from work Friday afternoon! The condiments, produce, cheeses, and butter that could be saved are in coolers, and we're only buying one gallon of milk at a time and enough food to cook that day only. We are lucky, though. It could have been VERY expensive instead of something minor.

On a happy note, though - or refrigerator and freezer haven't been this clean inside since we got it!

"A dark & stormy night" has a new meaning

Let me begin by saying that we were extremely fortunate last night. Our house had no damage, nor did my car, or even my plants outside. Our garbage cans were blown over, but that was it. I know how lucky we were at our house.

The storms that moved through the South last night were terrible. The devastation in Alabama is just heartbreaking! I see the coverage and realize how blessed we were last night to be spared. Sure, we were nervous and frightened and anxious, but today we are ALIVE. We have electricity, we could cook our meals and take showers. Our home is intact, we are all safe.

Driving to work today I could see signs of the storm. There were many tornadoes in the area; one is suspected to have touched down near Sophie's babysitter's house.  This morning, one lane of a road on the way to her house was closed because of flooding. I could see where other sections of the road had been flooded. I couldn't stop in traffic to take pictures, but some areas were pretty bad.

My husband has been away all week. I was worried about being alone with the girls in case of an emergency, he was worried about being a couple states away from us while it was going on. Emma spoke with her best friend during a break in the storm, and learned the hail had broken a window of their house. But they were all ok. That is the important part - everyone we talked to is ok.

When the second wave of storm cells hit (instead of one big storm, there were several small, fast-moving supercells, one after the other), Emma started gathering an emergency kit. She had blankets, books, her Nintendo DS, nail polish. I took the chance to teach her what to gather in case of tornado, and to put it in the bathroom in the center of the house. She loaded it up with diapers for Sophie, wipes, and ointment, our purses and the diaper bag, insulin and a needle for the cat, cat food and dog food, a Bible, and a framed picture of her Daddy.

Since we were more concerned about staying safe in the storm (and I was wondering why our town does not have tornado sirens?) I did not think to take pictures during the storm itself. Thankfully, many others did. I leave you with some of those pictures.

(All photos taken from either knoxnews.com or wate.com)

This was a house, in the town where I grew up and my parents still live. It was blown ACROSS the road.

Hail

This is part of an Alabama phone book, storm debris found in East Tennessee

This intersection leads to a hospital. Scary thought.

Near the same area.

One of the storm cells

Hail! It's a miracle my car was not damaged at all.

Great picture of downtown Knoxville

I've read many tales like this on Facebook and Twitter today.

Here is an article from the Knoxville News Sentinel about last night's storms. Both the town where I grew up and where I now live are mentioned by name. Oddly enough, in 1993 we had a storm move through and tornadoes hit both towns then, too.

A day of blessings

Some days, it is easy to see our blessings.

The morning began with a brief visit with our next-door neighbors. With our busy schedules, they hadn't seen Sophie since she started walking. They happened to be outside as S and I were leaving for the day, and we chatted for a few minutes. We reminisced about how our other children were so small when we moved in (their youngest son is E's age, and we bought  our houses the same summer). In fact, S is now the age E was when we bought the house! Time goes so quickly. They were doing yard work before it got too hot, and I mentioned I was planning to finish mowing our yard when I got home from work, since my husband was not able to finish it all over the weekend. It was a holiday, after all, and we weren't home much.

E was at home, since she was out of school for Easter. She called me about 15 minutes later to let me know that the husband from next door was finishing our yard for us! He knew my husband was out of town this week from our earlier conversation and wanted to help out! E told me she had taken him a glass of lemonade and thanked him, and later she made cupcakes and took half of them next door as another thank you. We truly do have wonderful neighbors.

Then on the evening commute home yesterday, the skies suddenly changed from bright and sunny with a few fluffy white clouds to dark and windy and then a torrential downpour! We had thunder and lightning and even hail on the way home. It was a fast-moving storm, though, and was over by the time S and I made it home. As I turned a corner on the way home, though, I saw such a large, bright rainbow against the gray sky. It was beautiful! So many people had major damage, from the wind or the hail, and over 40,000 people lost power for hours, but we were very lucky. No damage and E said power was only out for a few minutes.

E and I ended our evening by working out for a while. She has been having back pain lately, so we're trying to strengthen her back and abdominal muscles to see if that helps; if not, she already has a doctor's appointment next week for her checkup and we will discuss it with her doctor then. She was a bit amazed that I seem to be in better shape than she is! We are trying again tonight. I think she wants to redeem herself.

"Don't say gay" bill passed the Senate - I wish this was a joke

Last week, our relatively quiet state made national news when the Senate passed SB49, commonly referred to the "Don't say gay" bill. Senator Stacy Campfield of Knoxville introduced the bill, after failing six times as a member of the House of Representatives. This bill makes it illegal for any mention of anything other than heterosexuality to be mentioned in public schools in grades K-8.

On the surface, this doesn't seem like such a big deal. Who wants teachers to talk to kindergartners about sexuality period? Well, they don't. My oldest daughter attends a Tennessee public school, and they didn't have any discussions of sexual health until sixth grade. When I attended a Tennessee public school, it was seventh grade. Boys and girls are divided up, and the health teachers (women with girls, men with boys) discussed the basics of reproduction, what happens, things like that. Actually, nothing about "sex" or sexuality at all. I think the only mention was something along the lines of 'the sperm is introduced into the vagina.' The details are left up to the parents. My daughter informed me her class didn't even get that far along in the discussion.

I really don't think there is a widespread problem of teachers in our schools discussing sex, whether it's heterosexuality, homosexuality, or anything else, with their students. This bill is simply another example of Mr Campfield trying to make a name for himself and endear himself to his ultra-conservative supporters who, in my mind, would prefer to live in a time where dancing was immoral and women were not allowed out without an escort - and if they happened to be stuck outside after dark with a man, were forced to marry him out of "propriety."

We have a different reality, though. What about children of gay parents? Or who are themselves gay? If the legislation does somehow make it into law, what will happen to them? Many children who are dealing with the confusion turn to trusted teachers for help - but what will happen when the teachers are forbidden to tell them they are ok, and point them in the direction of organizations who can help them? And the children with two moms or two dads, who are perfectly healthy and happy and well-cared for - this just sends a not-so-subtle message that their families are wrong somehow.

Do we really want our state to draw attention for this? We, as a whole, have been bashed for a week now, and are made to look like backwards idiots, just because this one man and five others (it passed with a 6-3 vote) are putting their own careers ahead of the greater good. As one celebrity pointed out (validly) on Twitter, in Tennessee it is perfectly acceptable to bully a gay teen and call him or her derogatory names and slurs, but it would be illegal to show a gay teen where to get support and help.

And what is really ironic, when you consider that? The last line of the bill, which makes up the entirety of Section 2:

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law, the public welfare requiring it.

Oh, please.

You can read an article about this bill in the Knoxville News Sentinel here.

Happy Easter from our family!

It's coloriffic!

*sigh* Yes, I know, another meme... I have a "serious" post brewing, but it's not ready to come out and play yet. And this was interesting! Apparently different colors represent different aspects of our personalities. Or not, either way it was fun.

Angry Red

1. Are you currently mad at someone?
Nope.

2. Which of your family members has the worst temper?
That is a tough one. Probably my husband, although we all have tempers.

3. Have you ever thrown something at anyone?
Yes

4. Is anyone mad at you?
Not that I know of!

5. Are you usually mad?
No. It really takes a lot to get me mad, then I don't stay that way for long.

6. When you're mad do you prefer to stare angrily or yell?
I don't like confrontation.

Exciting Orange

1. Has anyone ever thrown a surprise party for you?
Yes, and it was fabulous!

2. What event is coming up that you're most excited about?
I can't think of one right now! Nothing coming up soon anyway

3. If you won a million dollars, what would be your first thought?
Shock

4. If you could have anything right now what would it be?
A nice nap. I'm so tired today!

Yellow Belly Self

1. Name: Christine

2. Birthday: September

3. What's your main goal in life?
To have mattered.

4. Do you want to have children?
I have two, that is enough.

5. When do you want to die?
When I am too old to go on any more

Opinionated Green

1. Are you against gay marriage?
NO.

2. Lower the drinking age?
Yes

3. Capital Punishment?
Yes.

4. Abortion?
Choice.

Lovely Blue

1. Do you love someone?
Yes.

2. Do you believe in love at first sight?
No.

3. Do you believe in love?
Yes.

Purple Query

Q: How glasses of water did you have today?
A: None yet

Q: What color are your socks?
A: I'm not wearing any

Q: Name one thing that you do everyday?
A: Breathe

Q: How much cash do you have on you right now?
A: Six dollars I think.

Q: Are you for or against Hillary?
A: Indifferent.

Q: Look to your left. What's there?
A: a wall

Q: What's the last piece of clothing you borrowed?
A: My daughter's shoes.

Q: What website(s) do you visit the most?
A: Facebook

Q: Do you have plants in your room?
A: Not in my room, but outside my house on the steps

Q: Does anything hurt on your body right now?
A: Not at the moment, which is a small miracle!

Q: Do you own a picture phone?
A: Yes

Last but not Least, Pink

1. Person you saw: Random people in the halls

2. Person you sent a text message to: Dana

3. Movie watched in cinema: You Again

4. Song you listened to: I can't remember. It was yesterday

5. Person you talked on the phone with: Coworker

6. What are you doing right now?
Typing.

7. What are you doing tonight?
The usual - make dinner, feed baby, clean up, bathe baby, watch a little TV and hope to stay awake!

8. What are you going to eat?
Spaghetti tonight.

Alphabet soup

I read this on a Twitter friend's new blog (read it here) and thought it was a fun and informative read, and of course I had to try it, too.
Enjoy :)

A – Age: 32
B – Bed size:Queen. I'd like a larger one, but we'd need a larger room first.
C – Chore you hate: Mopping, putting away laundry (I'm sure my husband is shocked by this one).
D – Dogs: We have two. Tucker is a Pointer mix, Daisy is a Corgi mix
E – Essential start to your day item: snooze button (only partially kidding) Chocolate milk, breakfast at some point
F – Favorite color: red
G – Gold or Silver: Gold
H – Height: 5’11″
I – Instruments you play: I took piano lessons for a long time, but I'd need a LOT of practice before I played again!
J – Job Title: Hospital Transport Liaison. Sounds fancy, huh?
K – Kid(s): Two beautiful redheads, Emma and Sophie
L – Live: Beautiful East Tennessee
M – Mom’s name: Martha
N – Nicknames: Mommy
O – Overnight hospital stay other than birth:  none
P – Pet Peeve: intolerance, bigotry, small-mindedness, stupidity, slow drivers
Q – Quote from a movie:I can't pick one, so here is a whole page of quotes from my favourite movie. They all make me laugh so hard.
R – Right or left handed: Right
S – Siblings: No biological siblings, but I have "sisters of the heart"
T – Time you wake up: too early
U- Underwear: What about it? Must be more specific there ;)
V – Vegetable you dislike: tomatoes! Icky, smelly things... and peppers
W – What makes me run late: procrastination
X – X-rays: so many! teeth, wrist, elbow, lungs, many of my insides
Y – Yummy food you make: Apparently Crack Roast is delicious (obviously I don't use actual crack, but they say it's so yummy and addictive I must put crack in the sauce, which we now call crack sauce). It's a teriyaki pork roast
Z – Zoo animals: I love the otters.

Why I love our town

We bought our house nearly 12 years ago. When we picked this town, I didn't know much about it, but the location was ideal. I quickly fell in love with the area and am still happy we live here.

This is why:

One of our parks

THIS is a big snow

Love this lake!

In another park

Autumn is gorgeous here

Ok, so this isn't our town, but I drive by this every day going to work.

Where else can you see Columbus's ships when you go to lunch?

 

Yet another park, also beside the lake

Dexter vs Dexter, a review of sorts

(Warning: this WILL contain spoilers about the first book and possibly the series, if you haven't seen it and plan on watching.)

 
I love Dexter.

I was a bit late to the show, I admit. But one day I began watching the first season on my iPhone (Netflix instant viewing - love it!) out of curiosity and boredom, and was hooked. Line and sinker. I quickly went through the first two seasons (not being confined to my home was a boost to the speed factor) then bumped the discs for seasons 3 and 4 to the top of our queue, set the DVR to record season 5, which was starting soon. Of course, all that insta-Dexter makes it SO hard to wait until the next season comes out.

I learned early on that the series was based on a book, Darkly Dreaming Dexter by Jeff Lindsay, which is the first in a series of books about the character. For Christmas, my husband gave me two of the books. I was so excited, since I love reading. He didn't give me the first book, though, but the second and third. I had read earlier (I think on Twitter) that the first book and the first season of the show were extremely similar, so I didn't worry about it and picked up the second book and dove in.

On the second page, I find out how different they are - LaGuerta was killed in the first book! She is in all seasons of the show! So I did what any sane person would do - closed the book again, and bought the first book.

I read the book this week, and there are HUGE differences! Granted, a lot had to be added to stretch one novel into an entire season of a show, but I almost feel like the book left some things out! I still loved it, though, and between the story differences and the time since I watched the first season of the show, it was not at all like rereading anything. It was more like reading a new story about familiar characters.

I am interested to see how the big differences play out in the future novels, though. For one thing, the Ice Truck Killer (Dexter's brother) escapes at the end of the novel. The second season dealt a lot with Dexter's guilt over killing his brother, finding out about his family before he was adopted, and Harry's keeping it from him.  Another huge difference? Deb (his adoptive sister) learns his secret at the end of the book and accepts it. Since that was literally the last pages, I cannot WAIT to get into the second book and see what direction that takes.

As I mentioned earlier, LaGuerta was killed at the end of this book. It is she, and not Doakes, who follows Dexter to the shipping container, and Brian was there with Deb, not at their old house. There is no engagement to Deb, he is not portraying a doctor named Rudy, as yet no mystery biological father leaving Dexter a house in his will. Also, no dramatic breakdown at the chainsaw crime scene; in fact, that particular crime only gets a couple lines in the book and does not relate at all to what happened to their mother!

I really think the series handled the whole "Surprise, you have a brother and he's a serial killer also" angle MUCH better than the book, but I suppose that is because the series had so much more time to work with. The relationship between Dexter and Deb is the same, though, and for that I'm glad. It is such a huge part of the series to me.

Another surprise? The book is shockingly NOT graphic at all. Each murder act, crime scene, and the two sexual acts (remember, this was the beginning of his relationship with Rita) are glossed over pretty quickly.  Actually, the sex scenes are just implied. No graphic description of the kills. And since it's the Ice Truck Killer, there isn't any blood. Network TV is more graphic than this book.

I really enjoyed it, though, and am looking forward to reading the next one.

When the teacher is the bully

Imagine this:
Your five year old is at school, in his kindergarten class. His desk is a bit messy. The teacher decides to teach him a lesson by telling his classmates to circle him, calling him a pig, oinking at him, and taunting him as he stood there crying. Can you imagine the humiliation that would cause him?

And that exact scenario happened to a child in a neighboring county last month. (Story here) The teacher, who had 38 years experience, claimed she was tired of his messiness and instructed the children to torment their classmate. Luckily, another teacher walked into the room while it was going on and immediately reported it to the principal. The teacher's punishment? A one-day suspension.

That's all - one day off, an apology to her class, and then back to work.

As someone who was bullied as a child, my heart goes out to that poor boy. No five year old deserves that kind of treatment, especially under the leadership of someone he is told he can trust to look out for him! How will this incident affect his school career? Will he now see teachers as the enemy? Will he become a target for future bullying? (Not a stretch - think back to how elementary kids behave. I can just imagine his classmates using this incident to keep tormenting him.) Will this overshadow any anti-bullying lessons the kids will be taught later?

I truly believe that children pick up cues from their teacher on how to treat other children. I had a teacher that for some reason didn't like me (not in the "she doesn't like me" excuse for bad grades, etc, but documented incidents toward me in her file). She would single me out for the silliest of reasons - I had to write sentences (punishment of the time) because my gum popped as I was chewing. I was sent to the principal because my handwriting was messy (she also tried to change the way I held a pencil, forcing me to write differently). She would ridicule my questions in front of the class. And guess what grade the bullying from my classmates started? That year. I have no doubt the two are related.

I truly hope for the best for this child. Maybe now that this is out in the open something good will come out of it.

How is this not prostitution?

The afternoon radio show I listen to was discussing online dating sites this evening. One of the sites they mentioned was WhatsYourPrice.com - a site where men bid on dates with women. The tagline is "Everyone has a price." Men log in as "the generous" and women log in as "the attractive."

For the Generous
DATE BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE® GUARANTEED

You have high standards and you won't settle for less. You're willing to pay to date beautiful, gorgeous or sexy people. For the right price, WhatsYourPrice.com is the only dating website that guarantees you will date more attractive people than you can handle.

Sounds like chick shopping to me.

For the Attractive
GET PAID FOR DATING® GUARANTEED

No matter what you're seeking, finding that perfect relationship takes time. However, dating doesn't have to be a waste of time. If you're beautiful, we are the only dating site that guarantees you will get paid while you spend time meeting fun and generous people.

Ummm... yeah.

On the home page, there are profile pictures on each side - the generous and the attractive. Care to guess how many on the "attractive" side are naked? Several.

So how is this NOT prostitution? I guess they cover themselves (so to speak) the same way escort businesses do - the women are paid for "companionship" and not necessarily for sex.

But it sure is implied.