tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-64668932012-02-13T23:13:51.150-07:00Wife,Parent,Student,Teacher,Volunteer,Writer,Cook,Crazy.Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.comBlogger15461100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-24948452923480964022012-02-13T23:13:00.000-07:002012-02-13T23:13:51.159-07:00

Yeah, expecting to hear results after a mere 48 hours was a pipe dream. I still haven't heard anything. On the other hand, I spent all weekend cooking and eating, as DS2 turned 11 and had a sleepover party, necessitating brownies, cupcakes, and fresh-squeezed orange juice, among other things. My neck hurts less than it did last week, but still isn't "right", and I have a headache most days

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-11306978004132710252012-02-09T20:51:00.000-07:002012-02-09T20:51:03.277-07:00

An hour goes by fast when you're talking to, with, and about other people's problems. It went by so quickly today that I didn't get a chance to mention my biopsy, and no one noticed the faint bruising or swelling under my jawline. I did get a chance to talk to my co-facilitator to let her know what's going on. She has her own distractions to deal with. We left it at keeping each other posted

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-24433780223162597942012-02-08T18:57:00.000-07:002012-02-08T18:57:00.717-07:00

Well, as easy as could be expected. I had a very kind and competent ultrasound technician and an equally kind and experienced radiologist for my FNA biopsy today. As these things go, that was the best so far. The doctor used an absolutely tiny needle to administer the anesthetic, so it burned much less than it has in the past. He made four passes at the lymph node, and the sensations of the

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-1549220427326846272012-02-07T23:05:00.000-07:002012-02-07T23:05:53.850-07:00

It took a little more than a week for the shock to wear off. Now I can go entire consecutive hours without thinking about the fact that I have a recurrence (of indeterminate size) and that I am having a biopsy tomorrow. Then I remember. It's surprising how future-focused day-to-day life is. With school, it's planning the next lesson, and the lessons for the next day and the days after that,

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-17572859636977913172012-02-05T23:02:00.000-07:002012-02-05T23:02:33.661-07:00

I'm scheduled for a biopsy on Wednesday. I've said it before and I hope I never have to say it again, but a day that includes the decision to jab needles in my neck is not a good day. There is no way around that. My ENT assured me, several times, that even though I have a recurrence, it won't kill me. Of course he didn't use those words, since he has both tact and charm, but that's what he

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-7644232414852616942012-01-30T20:39:00.001-07:002012-01-30T20:39:46.328-07:00

Saw the endo today. My tumor marker is up, and I have small, but persistent, lymph nodes near my right submandibular salivary gland. More tests coming, and we'll have to see what they find. In reviewing my labs, I see that even my suppressed Tg (that would be the tumor marker) has been slowly creeping up over the past 4 years or so, from undetectable to .1 something to .2 something to now

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-80660865551153351192012-01-29T23:12:00.002-07:002012-01-29T23:22:58.077-07:00

Something loud shook the house at about quarter to 11. DD came down asking about it; it shook her loft bed, which is literally bolted to the walls. We went out to look around in the yard and didn't see anything, but it didn't take long for the sirens to start.Something exploded, a few blocks south of us. We have a view of the smoke and flames from our upstairs window. We think it's one of the

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-51108187569482781762012-01-20T00:11:00.002-07:002012-01-20T00:40:26.583-07:00

I had my post-thyroid ultrasound on Monday morning, ridiculously early for a day off from work. Today, the message from Dr. O's office was waiting when I got home from school: Your ultrasound results are in. The doctor would like to see you.This is the part where I spin my wheels trying to remember what I saw and to figure out what it means. I saw a highly vascularized blob of something, but

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-52653253594360380812012-01-07T13:58:00.004-07:002012-01-08T11:02:12.362-07:00

Linneaus' pet raccoon, Sjupp...Oddly enough, this weekend feels like we're finally on vacation. Last week was project work week: SLE (lupus), hedgehogs, and Linneaus. We all know a lot more about each of them, now....and here are the hedgehogs - European on the left, Four-toed (African) on the right, in their natural habitats

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-3891957862045556212012-01-04T23:28:00.002-07:002012-01-04T23:40:56.054-07:00

Reddish, rusty cinder cone dislodged from the top of Sunset Crater sometime late in its last eruption.It's all a matter of perspective. Sometimes tearing down and building up are happening at the same time.

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-22783478183679013682012-01-03T00:20:00.002-07:002012-01-04T23:28:48.813-07:00

The time is gone when any of my children will spontaneously give me a hug or kiss, so I give them both to make up for it.

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-49546681300146255512012-01-01T17:15:00.006-07:002012-01-01T18:11:56.002-07:00

Sunset at Little America, FlagstaffSomehow all of December passed without a word written here, so again, I resort to an omnibus sort of post, trying to cram all sorts of things in just so they aren't forgotten altogether. School-wise, second semester coasted to a close after the science fair. My students objected vehemently to getting back to "regular" work, but we managed to get back into some

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-21444113294380737662011-11-25T11:31:00.003-07:002011-11-25T12:16:13.148-07:00

Things I learned this week -- from my 2nd science fair, and from Thanksgiving -- that I'm writing down so I won't forget.Science Fair first, since it was something of a debacle. I had one class hour (20 students) in which only one student turned in a project. I'm still struggling with how much responsibility for that lies with me; this page details the entire process. What usually happens is

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-45468389192533106542011-11-12T00:43:00.002-07:002011-11-12T00:56:07.805-07:00

So many times I would've typed "a day, off" -- but not today. Today was a day to count blessings, so I did.

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-19358840443518403822011-10-31T19:02:00.004-07:002011-10-31T19:29:54.902-07:00

This is the first year in all the years we've lived in this house, I think -- 13 years -- that we haven't carved pumpkins. It was always my job to rustle up some candles from somewhere so I could light them and put them in the pumpkins out front. And then I had to remember to go out later, much later than the last trick-or-treaters, to blow out the candles and bring in the pumpkins, before they

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-32083507253719699282011-10-19T00:11:00.003-07:002011-10-19T00:24:39.522-07:00

Today I discovered the latest in an ongoing series of minor thefts from my classroom: the toy cars I'd bought last year for the 8th graders to use in our physics unit. So far this year, I've "lost"- Basher Science: Rocks and Minerals: A Gem of a Read- FOR BIG MISTAKES ERASER- a set of 4 fine-tipped dry erase markers... one at a time... from my desk- a lovely brain coral specimen that was given

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-46547949578710200742011-10-16T23:08:00.005-07:002011-10-16T23:22:19.320-07:00

Tomorrow begins the second quarter of school, already... fall break was just a week but seemed like more. DD & I flew into Boston for a quick trip out to see how Mom is recovering. In a word: splendidly.Mom with one brother & his familyWe were very lucky to hit the end of Indian Summer. There's something glorious about swimming in the Atlantic in October, when the water is tolerably cool and

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-49429437159239537532011-10-05T00:32:00.002-07:002011-10-05T00:37:20.565-07:00

I cleaned up some graffiti in a girls' bathroom at work today, and now it seems as if I may catch flak for it.The question keeps arising: what am I doing there?Only two more days of classes until fall break, and a quick trip out to see Mom, who is nicely recovering from all her procedures. Yay!

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-54511327851207653242011-09-17T23:22:00.002-07:002011-09-17T23:48:05.727-07:00

... I have a problem for every solution.That's one of the quotes I heard -- the topic for an Impromptu speech -- at the speech & debate festival I attended with DS1 today. It was a long day, but very satisfying in many ways. I don't get too much intellectual stimulation during my normal routine. Today I remembered how I felt as a college freshman, surrounded by other people who weren't ashamed

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-73040276378437456632011-09-14T00:09:00.002-07:002011-09-14T00:26:09.836-07:00

It's the sixth week of school, and some days are heaven and some are... more like today. Today was one of those days when, in a less-than-ideal situation, you find yourself making less-than-ideal choices. And having started down that path, I found myself pushed along it, prevented from taking another by all of the other people around me. Specifically, in dealing with a particularly needy

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-41112837957250077232011-07-27T00:28:00.003-07:002011-07-27T00:40:28.351-07:00

I'm finally on antibiotics to rid myself of nasty little sinus infection, but that's not the problem. And I'm on a regular dose of NSAIDS to help calm the (likely) tendonitis in my shoulder, but that's not the problem, either. The real problem is this sense of wanting, needing, to be in two places at once. Of having way too much time on my hands while at the same having way too much to do. I

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-30999823975329005562011-06-02T09:40:00.004-07:002011-06-02T10:30:00.554-07:00

I think it's funny that's it's summer again and there's still a post from last summer on the main page. At this time last year I was dealing with intractable headaches and getting my kids ready for summer school. I was still working on my teacher certification courses but in employment limbo. The only thing I knew for sure was that all three kids would be on the same school campus again in the

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-5089119872282066972011-05-01T00:50:00.003-07:002011-05-01T00:54:35.464-07:00

It's May, suddenly -- and I'm just about through with my first year teaching full-time. I would have to write a book about it to avoid understatement, but I'll settle for more blog posts over the summer when I have time. Extraordinary amounts of time were consumed by lesson planning and grading and things I hadn't even imagined I'd have to do, like moving furniture (don't ask). I'm really,

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-11197585541391440562011-02-10T00:36:00.002-07:002011-02-10T00:48:28.522-07:00

Very, very busy -- so busy we still (still!) haven't sent out the Happy New Year cards we had made up, since we were so busy we missed the window for sending out Christmas cards. Perhaps we'll get them out this weekend.We've built castles, researched Roman architecture, investigated dry ice, pretty much completely redone DD's room, and took a family trip to New Orleans. Personally, I finally

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-48597324421843044922010-12-27T22:08:00.002-07:002010-12-27T22:12:05.017-07:00

At times this year it seemed as if we wouldn't even get the tree up.

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-56225381417911471562010-11-16T00:21:00.002-07:002010-11-16T00:28:15.766-07:00

mid-November -- how did we get here?Anything I say will sound like whining, even if it's meant to be a simple factual statement of what's going on. So, briefly: I'm busy to the point of being overwhelmed. I was holding up OK until last week, when Mom went in for emergency surgery and some other things cropped up, too. Nothing to be done but pray, and wait, and manage what I can.

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-58934080113774051062010-09-25T20:13:00.002-07:002010-09-25T20:23:24.035-07:00

Last week was the seventh week of the school year. It amazes me that much time has gone by already -- much of it was a blur. But it was a turning-the-corner week. Even though I don't know why, I won't question it.I think even though I didn't admit it to myself that the thyroid cancer panel was making me nervous. I had no need to be, Thursday evening was just a very good event. The three

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-34061315042370796932010-09-08T20:28:00.002-07:002010-09-08T20:35:31.633-07:00

So, in addition to teaching full time now (!), volunteering in my church's religious ed dept, and co-facilitating a monthly thyroid cancer support meeting, I'm on tap later this month to get the patient's perspective on living with thyroid cancer as part of a panel discussion. (whew!) Here are the details, from the official flyer produced by The Cancer Center at Chandler Regional Medical Center

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-14304754115958663962010-08-02T22:26:00.009-07:002010-08-03T00:00:21.983-07:00

Poof! It's over, faster than I could have believed -- I have a job (!!!) and it starts tomorrow. So, before I forget it all, here's the recap of vacation that was, picking up where the last post left off.Definitely too much sugar.We went for ice cream at Smitty's Homemade Ice Cream in East Falmouth several times. Their ginger ice cream was fantastic, I only lamented they were out of peach so I

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-65055402490834692032010-07-11T14:02:00.003-07:002010-07-11T14:18:06.761-07:00

Arrived Wednesday, had ridiculously delicious fried seafood at McMenamy's. Put the screen door in the kitchen door and marginally improved the air flow upstairs -- the house was like a hot box. No air conditioning! Yikes. We all slept down in the basement that night, it was too hot to sleep upstairs.Thursday was getting settled in, and beach in the afternoon. Friday was spider patrol (

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-36939468262419147132010-07-06T17:54:00.008-07:002010-07-06T19:00:12.224-07:00

Absolutely breathtaking -- second place winnerBlue Ascension, Robert Noreika, Rocky Hill, CtWe just got in from an after-dinner trip for ice cream to Bloom Hill Farm, where a small (small?!) dish of Reese's Madness more than satisfied the chocolate/peanut butter lover in me. We're heading to the Cape tomorrow, and the kids noted that "we've only been there once this year," so of course we

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-78511178403145844592010-06-26T13:28:00.003-07:002010-06-26T14:01:45.701-07:00

I set myself a task of "getting the word out" about ThyCa East Valley while the kids spent their mornings at school. I admit to some procrastination about it, but finally this week I put together folders with samples of the patient pamphlets we provide, the Low Iodine diet guidelines, the resource list, plus ThyCa cards and several of my own business cards. I used MapQuest, Google Maps, and my

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-88168635013288012602010-06-10T21:47:00.003-07:002010-06-10T21:50:17.902-07:00

Amitriptyline helped the headache, but put me in a permanently pissed-off state. Plus, my throat is absolutely killing me -- the drug intensified my relatively mild dry mouth problems to the point where I have no saliva to swallow. Ick.Very pleased, though, with the neuro's office. I called at 10AM and explained the situation, got a call back at 1PM with orders to discontinue, and a new

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-2624137509065568852010-06-03T14:08:00.002-07:002010-06-03T14:15:12.667-07:00

Every test came back normal. That's good news, of course, but frustrating since I don't feel well. Today is my first day on amitriptyline. It's supposed to prevent the headaches, which the neuro is convinced are migraines. It's main use is as an anti-depressant, but off-label use as a migraine preventive goes back at least 10 years. Main side effects: drowsiness and dry mouth -- check and

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-53939389985462716922010-06-02T00:53:00.001-07:002010-06-02T00:54:28.480-07:00

Later today, actually.If it were something really serious, they would have contacted me already.That's my theory and I'm sticking with it.(Still no word from the gyn, but working on the same theory there, too.)

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-54418777390832298142010-05-27T20:59:00.003-07:002010-05-28T00:03:00.819-07:00

Lunch at Joe's Farm Grill today -- absolutely fantastic, again, and now I've figured out how to order so we only get twice as much food as we need (it's unavoidable), as opposed to 3x.Life is like a bag o' peaches? If only.After lunch, went over to the Farm Stand and bought some peaches. They don't look like much, but they are absolutely incredible. The best peaches I've had in years, possibly

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-5771557248255453772010-05-27T20:54:00.002-07:002010-05-27T20:59:12.696-07:00

Things heard at the gynecologists today:"Well, your uterus is still gone." "I'm not feeling anything, but I'm sending you for an ultrasound to make sure there's no mass there..."???"... your symptoms are the kind of thing that could be caused by a mass."Undecided on the use of the euphemism. Not looking forward to chugging 44 ounces of water tomorrow, either.

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-22030318980899491942010-05-26T23:46:00.002-07:002010-05-27T00:04:13.353-07:00

* Relpax helped yesterday, but I suspect getting more than 5 hours of sleep helped more, today.* Brain mri: not a bad experience at all. The longest pass was only 5 minutes, which is quite tolerable. Plus, there was a constant gentle flow of cool air through the machine so I didn't feel enclosed at all. If it weren't for the ticking, humming, and thumping, it would've been restful. About 30

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-37689006734319985242010-05-25T10:32:00.003-07:002010-05-25T10:38:07.657-07:00

Trying the Relpax today. For the last 3 days the headache has wobbled at around a 2-3 on the 10-point pain scale, but today it ratcheted up -- I may have found my trigger: stress -- suffice it to say, extended family worries, pending exams, and a bit of fussing with the kids this morning are not a good combination, so at 9AM I took my first pill. Now, an hour and a half later, it does feel

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-37170417302101405982010-05-24T11:30:00.002-07:002010-05-24T11:37:03.838-07:00

Headache (mid-March), rheumatoid arthritis (April 6), UTI/UTI-like symptoms (5/3)Seems like longer for the UTI stuff, glad I checked the dates.

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-27267779771153001962010-05-21T11:07:00.003-07:002010-05-21T11:38:36.943-07:00

Continuing my impersonation of a healthy person, even while all this stupid health stuff continues in the background:- I had a wonderful student teaching experience for my Adolescent Behavior class. Really, it could not have been better. It was a little crazy, since I took on a lot more responsibility than was required for the class, but my mentor teacher was very encouraging and I valued the

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-24909442923942948792010-05-17T20:26:00.000-07:002010-05-17T20:27:47.432-07:00

Migrating to a new platform is going to take a while, and it seems as if the first step to do that would be converting my ftp-published blog to a Blogger-published blog anyways, so here I am. How odd. We'll see how it goes.

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-21688938631245325162010-04-20T00:05:00.002-07:002010-04-20T00:17:17.274-07:00

Marginally better. I had to over-hydrate myself this morning for a blood draw (6 tubes - whoa), and found my eyes didn't burn so much. Of course, it's cloudy and cool today, and the pollen count has fallen from its insane peak, so that's probably helping, too. It's not as if my eyes aren't dry, they're just not completely parched and painful. My RA was only bad in waves today, or maybe

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-45279530427135049332010-04-15T13:19:00.002-07:002010-04-15T13:29:02.743-07:00

Hope springs eternal.barely an inch longNo, not olives!If they survive the heat of the summer and we get enough of a cold snap in the fall, we might just have a little peach crop this year.

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-61075273175694550482010-04-15T07:51:00.003-07:002010-04-15T08:18:41.461-07:00

I've been taking Arthrotec since Saturday, and haven't really noticed much improvement. Sometimes my hands are better, but they still bother me throughout the day. Although they don't appear as swollen, they still hurt. Some days (yesterday, for example), my eyes are fine; this morning, I could barely open them, they were so dry. That's what I get for neglecting to put drops in before I went

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-51515019535346806112010-04-08T14:41:00.002-07:002010-04-08T15:00:28.825-07:00

The shooting pains in my hip this morning convinced me to call my rheumatologist. I had perfect timing in calling, because they just had a cancellation so I'm getting to see her tomorrow afternoon. That's practically a miracle. It has been quite a while since I've been in (12/08), so they've sent me a new patient information packet to fill out -- I'm not looking forward to doing the pain

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-8010077982822956302010-04-07T00:35:00.002-07:002010-04-07T00:56:13.588-07:00

A couple of things I need to keep track of...I have an eye/sinus thing that's well into its third week. I let it go for a while but then it became painful -- I thought it was just a temporarily blocked tear duct, but then it moved into my face and is not fun. I broke down and went to the doctor last week, he started me on anti-biotic eye drops on the theory that whatever it is started in the

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-73089311226889178802010-03-29T13:12:00.003-07:002010-03-29T14:38:05.654-07:00

March 16th: cooked a bunch of new stuff, ate way too much, felt sick all night.March 17th: diet!Wait, how could I start a diet on St. Patrick's Day? Honestly, it wasn't a problem. I didn't want to eat anything on St. Patrick's Day. I felt so miserable I was compelled to do something. A huge internet search led me to a new gastroparesis blog with some good suggestions. Since the 17th, I've had

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-29159654692092977092010-03-24T19:49:00.002-07:002010-03-24T19:54:43.791-07:00

The neighborhood turtle comes out to bask in the warm afternoon sun.And (finally!) blossoms appear on my peach tree.

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-15964419760432825742010-03-24T10:10:00.003-07:002010-03-24T10:20:40.444-07:00

DS2 (9yo) gets the hiccups all the time. If he laughs for more than 10 seconds, he gets the hiccups. Sometimes he'll just get the hiccups for no reason. He used to get very frustrated because often it would take a while for them to go away -- the usual tricks of drinking water and holding his breath were useless.Both boys had their well visits with the pediatrician last week, and the only issue

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-59834840992967821702010-03-05T18:06:00.003-07:002010-03-05T18:36:03.146-07:00

About six months ago, I got a contract with LeapForce to work at home as a search engine evaluator. I've written about this before, and consequently I've received a handful of emails from people asking me how it worked out. I don't mind answering LeapForce-related questions because I had a lot of questions before going ahead with the contract, and I found other people's comments to be very

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com37tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-10056494042269565532010-02-28T18:12:00.004-07:002010-02-28T19:39:05.482-07:00

Recently I checked my gMail inbox to find a message from Google: they will no longer be supporting FTP-published blogs. Originally the day of execution was set at March 26, but apparently there were enough screams from the FTP-publishing crowd that they pushed it back to May 1.You may not know or care about blog publishing, FTP-based or otherwise, but I did when I set up this blog, and I still do

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-21112179397034688792010-01-20T16:20:00.006-07:002010-01-20T20:17:29.243-07:00

(Spoilers, in case you didn't know it)10. Continued abuse of the "events occur in real time" conceit. Apparently, everything in New York City occurs within five or ten minutes of everything else. This is less egregious than it was when CTU was in L.A., but it's still laughable.9. Letting CTU be redesigned by rejects from Top Design. Glass walls everywhere, again? Orange? Humongous room-sized

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-10405845786552701192010-01-20T10:57:00.003-07:002010-01-20T11:06:48.351-07:00

Anniversary Roses -- 15 years!Lots of stuff going on, mostly good, some minor irritations. Top of the list: Sonora Quest did not send my blood work out to CA for testing after my Thyrogen trial, so I don't have my results yet. Oh, they ran the test themselves and everything came back negative, but their tests aren't as sensitive and are not comparable to my previous results. And the order

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-60204324453572063882009-12-21T01:39:00.002-07:002009-12-21T02:04:33.558-07:00

I managed to schedule my Thyrogen administration just before Christmas -- having already met my health insurance deductible this year, it was rather important to do it now rather than in January.First shot (right arm) was on Thursday, second shot (left arm) was on Friday. Fortunately this time I have only a tiny bit of soreness around the injection site. The preliminary bloodwork drawn on

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-49059384028221748822009-12-21T01:30:00.002-07:002009-12-21T01:39:40.020-07:00

I have a problem with staying up too late when I know the next day won't be too demanding, and that describes most of my days lately. I fall asleep in front of the tv (or computer) and then wake up and stay up, instead of hauling myself off to bed. How late? Late enough to not want to admit how late, because it's embarrassing.Even more embarrassing is why I stay up late. If I were doing

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-69619869230994067472009-12-07T02:10:00.002-07:002009-12-07T02:39:59.589-07:00

We saw the Trans Siberian Orchestra with the kids this afternoon. The first part of the concert was an extended song/story, interspersed with Christmas classics and original pieces, that told the story of an angel, a lonely man, and his daughter far from home on Christmas Eve. Through the intervention of the angel and the kindness of strangers, she's able to go home on Christmas Day. TSO is

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-23604291160572858802009-12-07T01:48:00.003-07:002009-12-07T01:56:54.275-07:00

Thanksgiving was perfect, except I made too many pies.Since then, we have been inordinately busy. It is much easier for me to be in school when the children are not, and trying to put in even a couple of hours of day at my job proved difficult to impossible for most of November. I have to go fold laundry or else no one will have socks for tomorrow, but I did want to put up a post to remind me to

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-65899699196897506432009-11-24T01:00:00.002-07:002009-11-24T01:06:06.406-07:00

School work and paying work have been sadly neglected this month. It's not that nothing is getting done, it's just that all sorts of things -- more interesting things -- keep interrupting, like dates with my husband and outings with the kids. And moving DS2 into his own room, which necessitated cleaning out the playroom and purging 5 years worth of toys the children never even look at. It's

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-5230573770089428662009-11-10T01:03:00.003-07:002009-11-10T01:31:12.790-07:00

Chocolate peppermint birthday cake, with chocolate mint buttercream frosting, mint (green) glaze, and chocolate chips.DD turned eleven last week, and it feels as if we've been celebrating her birthday for a month now. It started with the purchase of the netbook last Sunday at the Microsoft store, and it continued on her actual birthday straight through to the weekend. The bday itself was full

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-76420038250904535922009-11-03T20:17:00.002-07:002009-11-03T20:17:35.360-07:00

Mammogram came back normal. *whew*

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-52309189282906340422009-11-03T00:54:00.002-07:002009-11-03T01:22:01.172-07:00

Sunday we all trooped up to Scottsdale Fashion Center to go to the first ever anywhere Microsoft Store. We wanted to talk to them about Windows 7 and see what they were offering.We ended up buying DD's birthday-Christmas computer, an Asus Eee. It's pink! And it came with Windows 7 Starter as its OS. Win7 Starter doesn't let you customize the desktop or change colors, but that wasn't important

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-79142580227387739332009-11-03T00:45:00.002-07:002009-11-03T00:52:54.103-07:00

Patience is not my strong point. I'm waiting for mammogram results. I don't have any particular reason to suspect that something will be wrong, other than my general, persistent belief that I will get breast cancer someday. I have many risk factors (family history, left-handedness, thyroid cancer, melanoma) but also some protective factors: my three children, all of whom nursed for about a year

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-613775981546500662009-10-27T08:29:00.002-07:002009-10-27T08:49:50.087-07:00

The tail end of the cold I picked up in Tucson is still hanging on, and I often feel as if my brain has turned to oatmeal. The cold has dwindled into nothing more than an annoying post-nasal drip, and eventually that will be gone, too. Patience is required.I finally got my blood work back from USC and it shows my Tg, my tumor marker, has further decreased to 0.21 from 0.23 last time. One of

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-7209376522572407062009-10-18T17:16:00.002-07:002009-10-18T20:11:28.849-07:00

We left Wednesday after piano lessons, arriving at the Casa Grande National Monument just about a half hour before it closed at 5PM. The ride to Case Grande was easy, and the monument itself is very cool, and the little museum accompanying it is charming as well.The Big House, a 4-story building made entirely of caliche, about 600-700 years old.Leaving Case Grande, I realized that somehow the

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-45456039508229971822009-10-09T17:47:00.003-07:002009-10-10T01:54:26.742-07:00

© 1970 Mark A. Dimmitt / ASDM Sonoran Desert Digital LibraryGrowing up on the East Coast, I never had a fall break, because school didn't start until the Wednesday after Labor Day. Sure, we had a long weekend in October for Columbus Day, and an extra-long weekend in November for Thanksgiving, but our first vacation was over Christmas.This year, the kids started school on August 10, and it's a

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-996146089363912472009-10-03T02:36:00.005-07:002009-10-03T03:07:44.752-07:00

One of the reasons I wanted that job was to provide an external motivator to get to bed at a reasonable hour.Of course, napping for an hour after dinner isn't exactly conducive to going to bed early.

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-20603766006999685262009-10-02T23:11:00.005-07:002009-10-03T03:13:48.949-07:00

I didn't get the job I interviewed for on Monday.On balance, this is probably a good thing. It would have been very stressful, working a full school day and then having to dash to pick up the kids at their schools. In truth, I think my schedule requirements counted against me, which is not unreasonable.I will continue to plug away at my at-home job, which isn't much but it is something, and

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-82124988613827182132009-10-01T07:35:00.002-07:002009-10-01T07:41:28.725-07:00

I just sent off my first invoice to my employers, LeapForce At Home.As a contractor (they have a 1099 form on file for me, along with a signed contract), I send them a monthly invoice using the invoice creation system they have implemented. It's not the slickest user interface, but it works, allowing me to enter my daily hours -- to the minute -- as required by the agreement. Their payment

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-36766657827475792752009-10-01T00:07:00.006-07:002009-10-03T03:18:30.215-07:00

I wrote a book last weekend.The Holy Rosary: A coloring book with illustrations, explanations, and scripture passages for each mystery. I've always wanted a book for children that had illustrations for each mystery, and I've also always wanted a simple scriptural rosary that gave the basic texts aligning with them, also. The illustrations I found at St. John the Baptist's RE Page, and the

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-41368960819491361682009-09-30T23:53:00.003-07:002009-10-01T00:57:51.988-07:00

A brief recounting:- Working online, which is pretty much OK, except when there's no work when I want to work, when it's frustrating. The way it works is, I log in and "acquire a task." Sometimes there are no tasks to acquire. Sometimes after I've been logged in for a few minutes, tasks will start popping up, but it's pretty random. I'll have stretches where I can work for 3 or 4 hours (rare,

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-22741395238465312002009-09-14T00:49:00.002-07:002009-09-14T01:13:34.877-07:00

The quote is not applicable to anything happening in my life -- I was watching Deadwood on DirecTV's 101 Channel this evening, and the quote leaped out at me. What a great show, once your ear gets tuned to ignore the profanity.In my life, the most recent "wrong" was the death of the 14-year-old dryer, long anticipated. DH and I spent a good deal of time this week discussing the options and

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-73822030567517299432009-09-02T12:35:00.002-07:002009-09-02T13:14:20.627-07:00

I had my audition for Kaplan last night, and just got my rejection via email.Yesterday I settled on the topic, "How to Look for a Job," and practiced several times during the day, making sure I could cover the material in 5 minutes.I arrived at Kaplan and was directed to a small classroom where there were 5 or 6 guys seated conspicuously at the back of the room. I was immediately sensitive to

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-75905451834775082422009-09-01T00:36:00.002-07:002009-09-01T00:57:17.750-07:00

I'm spending far more time looking for a job than I am doing anything else, including all the stuff around the house that needs doing. I think I need to get a job simply to get myself off this hamster wheel.On that positive note, I've decided what to do for my "how to" presentation: how to look for a job online! Hey, I can boil it down to 5 minutes and just hit the high points.We appear to have

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-23256668100274816382009-08-28T00:49:00.003-07:002009-08-28T01:06:47.391-07:00

Turns out I wasn't passed over for that "ideal" job -- I had an interview today that went spectacularly well. There were four of them and they tag-teamed their questions, but it was completely stress-free. This was stuff I knew inside and out, and I didn't even feel nervous.There are two problems: the distance, and the pay. It's at least a 30-minute drive away. I drive a 2000 Honda Odyssey,

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-39695697303807106532009-08-25T00:14:00.002-07:002009-08-25T00:26:03.798-07:00

I saw my endocrinologist today, and was looking forward to getting my numbers -- the blood test results that would tell me if my cancer was acting up or, possibly, had finally gone away. The lab screwed up and did not send it out to USC to Carole Spencer's lab as they were supposed to, so I don't know. I'll go back into my endo's office if a few weeks and they'll do another draw and this time,

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-5596604921865172502009-08-22T22:07:00.005-07:002009-08-23T00:59:49.906-07:00

Heathcliff, tormentedIf you're feeling flush, you can buy a copy with the original Eichenberg engravings for a measly $1,895.Wuthering Heights, finished today. Grim and tumultuous, and affecting.(Sorry, reading seven or eight hundred pages of Brontë has influenced my thinking, and my writing.)In the meantime, looking for a job. I stopped at a school this week to put in an application, and it

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-2385576852162435342009-08-16T00:21:00.002-07:002009-08-16T00:27:41.882-07:00

Made it through the first week of school, with piano lessons and work-outs at the Y, plus a support group meeting on Thursday. I also finished Jane Eyre, slept from 8:30am to 1pm one day, and fretted about the curriculums at the kids' new schools. I was notified today that I won't get an interview at the junior high, and so am coming to terms with applying to substitute in the various school

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-17302152316377077322009-08-10T23:36:00.002-07:002009-08-10T23:49:57.836-07:00

It was the first day of school. This required getting the kids up much earlier than ever -- 6:30AM! -- making breakfasts and lunches and getting them out the door. It all went rather well, but I'm not making any assumptions about the future based on this, the first day. I made them all get out of the car so I could take this picture. They were rather good-natured about it. They indulge

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-33494917559050022972009-08-07T00:16:00.002-07:002009-08-07T00:27:22.394-07:00

It's officially the last day of summer vacation: the weekend doesn't count.We've spent this week lounging, mostly -- other than the baking and birthday activities I've already described, we haven't really done much of anything --Except school visits to meet teachers, and returning to piano lessons.After a lovely three years with all three children in the same school, we're back again to two

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-29224422280550962882009-08-04T22:27:00.002-07:002009-08-04T23:00:52.641-07:00

I had a wonderful birthday.The house is quiet now, finally -- inspiring me to goof around with the camera for a birthday self-portrait:Not much different from last year. (From this angle, you can't see all my new gray hairs.)I spent a good part of the day cooking, although I did manage to get us all out to the Y for our circuit class. Before lunch, I made the lady fingers and brewed the espresso

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-72667213643700851262009-08-03T22:17:00.004-07:002009-08-03T22:44:33.708-07:00

DD, restless, has taken to leafing through The Fannie Farmer Baking Book looking for inspiration. Since we got home from our vacation she returned again and again to the Classic Angel Food Cake with White Mountain Icing "basic master recipe." Last weekend, I finally yielded.Q: Is it possible to bake an angel food cake in a bundt pan?A: Yes. Don't grease the pan.The cake rose above the top of

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-26037045950581956182009-07-28T02:32:00.002-07:002009-07-28T02:45:00.558-07:00

We come home from vacation and I feel odd for a while, usually until the kids start back at school. We're in a holding pattern, and nothing seems quite real. Sure, there's laundry and grocery shopping and cooking and cleaning, not to mention occupying the offspring somewhat productively from time to time, but none of it feels real.Silly.One thing, this year: much more true vacation time at home

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-86151511841022113892009-07-23T16:59:00.002-07:002009-07-23T17:56:41.244-07:00

Thank God I took pictures most days, otherwise I wouldn't remember what we did.Sunday, we went to the New England Air Museum, which is enormous and requires multiple visits to really appreciate. The history of aviation amazes me, people willing to throw themselves up into the atmosphere in the flimsiest contraptions. The vast majority of the collection is war-related. It's frankly overwhelming

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-5709355809130687662009-07-10T20:31:00.003-07:002009-07-23T16:58:57.827-07:00

Computer access is limited, and I have no way to upload photos, yet. I should work on this for next year. For now, I'm making do with random access to my in-laws PC.It's Friday evening now, and the past days have been very busy. Tree Climbing 101Sunday, we hiked Beebe Woods out to the Punch Bowl. We didn't see any frogs but we did see a bird in its nest, and had a nice lunch at the 99

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-13356786039791318132009-07-04T20:02:00.002-07:002009-07-04T20:22:08.720-07:00

Wednesday the weather was lousy again, and I thought we'd go up to Boston, but nobody was up for it. At 11:30AM it was as dark as 8PM, and the rain poured down. It's just as well we stayed home. We did go out for Chinese food for lunch, though, to my Mom's favorite buffet, so it's not as if we didn't do anything all day.Thursday was another one of those days that starts dreary and ends up

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-42177243227850020542009-06-30T20:50:00.003-07:002009-06-30T20:52:14.697-07:00

Sprucing up the flower beds I replanted last year -- raking out the leaves and dealing with the volunteers. I think I tweaked my neck, though. Ow. And it was feeling so much better, too.

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-23182527321536173992009-06-30T19:31:00.003-07:002009-06-30T19:41:02.922-07:00

The forecast was for scattered thunderstorms, highs in the low 70s.The reality was a clear blue sky and 75 degrees by 10AM.A beach day!On the plus side: blue sky, warm tempsOn the minus side: no waves, freezing water. It hasn't been sunny enough for it to warm up much at all.Solution? Dig a hole.DD's project, brothers helping outThe boys quickly got bored.For once, peace between themDD did not,

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-12993050536978257152009-06-29T20:14:00.002-07:002009-06-29T21:00:10.463-07:00

We woke late to a light, steady rain. Nobody felt like hustling to do anything; breakfast was late, and lunch was, too. But just before 2PM the clouds parted and we saw blue sky. With the temperature hovering in that sweet spot between too cold and too warm, we headed south to the Zooquarium. We've been going there for ages, and the kids are really too old for it now, but still, DD wanted to

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-89288916118036531032009-06-28T21:50:00.003-07:002009-06-28T22:39:25.238-07:00

Friday was "new tv day". Mom's television died early last week and my best efforts to find the magic "screen" control were to no avail, so Friday was spent getting the new set. After a ridiculous amount of waiting around, we abandoned the local Wal-Mart (really the only option in Falmouth proper) for the Best Buy down in Hyannis, where I ended up getting a 42-inch Panasonic, based on two main

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-22707295453448193032009-06-25T21:13:00.004-07:002009-06-26T06:40:49.686-07:00

Almost forgot what it looked like. Here, the Old Mill at the Heritage Gardens.We finally saw some sun this afternoon. I dragged the kids out to The Heritage Museums and Gardens, a quick half-hour drive away in Sandwich.Wandering around the labrynthIt was gorgeous, but we really needed bug repellant; the mosquitos interfered greatly with our enjoyment of the beautiful gardens. We spent most of

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-49110868491752616612009-06-25T20:44:00.002-07:002009-06-25T21:09:24.279-07:00

I saw Dr. C, my TMD/headache doctor just before we left AZ. He was interested to hear that the neck issues I had been having were caused by cervical radiculitis, and when he heard that I'd been taking ibuprofen to keep the head and neck pain under control, he recommended a therapeutic dose of 600 mg, three times a day. I checked it out with Dr. S, my spine doctor, who OK'd it, and I've been on

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-61776072440939730572009-06-24T21:29:00.003-07:002009-06-24T22:00:31.478-07:00

We took a vacation from our vacation.Our first destination, Boston's Museum of ScienceTuesday morning, not as early as I would have liked, we hit the road for Boston, to visit The Museum of Science. It originally opened in 1972, and my Mom joined as soon as possible -- maybe even before it opened. We met my sister and her grandson there, and four hours flew by. We saw the show in the Theater

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-52301776661175213942009-06-22T21:03:00.004-07:002009-06-22T21:38:44.865-07:00

You gotta have faith.It's raining. It rained all day, and it will be raining for the foreseeable future. So, there goes the rationale for being here during summer vacation, as opposed to being at home -- here, supposedly, we can go to the beach. It's fun, it's outdoors, it's free... it's cold, windy, and enveloped in fog, even when it's not being pelted by rain. So, we're trying to make the

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-28527164742664029202009-06-21T21:03:00.007-07:002009-06-21T21:26:37.726-07:00

I had lots of reminders of my father today. This morning at Mass we met a friend of my mother's; she didn't recognize me as my mother's daughter so much as she recognized my brother as my mother's son -- "I look more like my father," I said, and it's true. Later, I noticed the word "Dad" prominently labeling the really nice wooden hanger on which my blouse had hung, warning acquisitive children

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-5610217610333787162009-06-20T21:11:00.002-07:002009-06-20T21:41:50.038-07:00

They don't make 'em like this in Arizona.Today, I had the day off. My brother took over planning and driving duties and took us all (me, my 3 kids, himself and his son) up to the Blue Hills where we climbed to the top of Big Blue, the highest free-standing point on the eastern shoreline, or something like that. It was a beautiful hike, and there's a cool old army fort and an awesome working

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-49934648140699324252009-06-18T23:18:00.003-07:002009-06-18T23:32:01.047-07:00

That's what summer has become. I don't recall my mom, God bless her, ever concerning herself too much with what we did over the summer. We all went to the beach or hung out or played in the woods or something. It was fine.Now, it's reading-math-writing-piano every morning -- not a lot of each, just enough to keep their brain cells from dying off -- and then casting around for something to do

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-49981513088869639482009-06-18T18:06:00.003-07:002009-06-18T19:29:59.868-07:00

Another cool, cloudy day. The forecast called for rain late in the day, so I decreed we'd go to the Cape Cod Museum of Natural History. If it were up to the kids, they'd spend all day playing video games and building forts with blankets and chairs, or playing video games inside their forts. And eating. Brewster is a bit of a haul from East Falmouth, but it was an easy drive today, before

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-1248729890366804702009-06-17T19:56:00.006-07:002009-06-17T20:44:04.459-07:00

A sunny, cool day. We ventured out in the afternoon to Spohr Gardens. I can't believe I've never been there before! We missed the profusion of rhododendrons and other spring flowers, and it was too early for all but the most precocious peonies, but the gardens were still gorgeous.A portion of Charles Spohr's nautical collection, including an anchor from H.M.S. BountyRed maples provide relief

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6466893.post-11373661841435731572009-06-16T17:15:00.002-07:002009-06-16T17:23:56.675-07:00

Wood Neck Beach, FalmouthTemperatures here in Falmouth are hovering in the mid-60s, and at times the clouds blot out the sun. Still, I couldn't let the kids, my brother, and his son loll around the house all afternoon. It wasn't too cold to search for sea glass...A rare alignment of cousinsand it was perfect strawberry picking weather.At Tony Andrew's FarmIt didn't take long to pick four quart

Joanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06093453920666892035noreply@blogger.com0