How could they forget?

I told the lads several times that I was taking a couple of days off, and still they insist on waking me up ahead of the non-existent alarm.  Even with a reminder last night at bedtime, they powered in around 5:30 this morning (just as the birds were realizing the sun was soon to rise) and insisted I wake up and provide them with attention, a tent, food, attention, attention, attention.

I'm thinking midday nap.

What a difference a week makes

I spent last weekend at work. 

Yup, you read that right - "at work"! 

I know, I know.  Who does that, right?  You spend five days in a row getting out of bed, (usually) disappointed at the prospect for the next nine-plus hours - unless you have *a job that brings you joy and satisfaction, and friendships that keep you encouraged throughout your hours and years together.  

Side note: I have actually had *that in two jobs over my lifetime (but if you know me, you would know that this is not a good average, as I have had too many jobs over my lifetime...and pauses in between for life's intrusions and national economic setbacks), so I know it can happen.

At any rate, I am not at work this weekend, even though the enticement of a real hourly wage (read as overtime pay - woohoo!) would've been enough to have me return for another round of labeling. 

No, last week I signed up to help relabel product on Saturday because the advent of 8 hours of OT pay was going to be a welcome boon towards outstanding obligations.  And then [insert ominous musical notes here] we were sent home hours early, but asked if we wanted to work Sunday for five to six hours (AT DOUBLE TIME)!  No idiot turns that down, right?

This idiot didn't.

Sunday, we were once again sent home hours early, so our expectations were not met.  Yes, we had several hours of extra pay - very nice - but when management asks folks to be at the building at 6AM (or even 7AM), for a forecast period of time, and then changes the day and monetary expectations drastically...well, that's not cool.  The whole thing about actually being there early (when you are only just normally getting up to begin with) is one thing - and yes, it was my choice to go in Saturday, but the understanding was the time/pay was for 8 hours.

You think twice about ignoring an extra-early wake-up call for a mere four hours.  Trust me.

Today, Karl and I have dental obligations, and I have an additional medical 'date' (which I rescheduled to help last weekend), and didn't feel like trying to reschedule any of it again, so I avoided rising to an early alarm.  Nope, I just let the two ding-a-lings perform their usual shenanigans at 5AM....BUT, I didn't have to dress and drive - and that's the difference a week makes.

Life goes on

Made it through week 3 with our new 'assistant'. 

Someone asked how it was I could "replace" Booker so easily, and I almost burst into tears at the thought.  I was affronted by their thoughtlessness when I really should have felt sorry for their ignorance (or simpleminded attitude).  We weren't replacing Booker; we found an assistant who could help Odin out of his grief.  Although, perhaps we were replacing Odin's loneliness with companionship.

Be assured there is no way we could ever replace Booker - ever.  But, Odin had a need and that was clear.  We weren't about to shirk our responsibility to him.

Let's face it, humans are OK as slaves to their cats, but we are far from perfect buddies and playmates.  Oh, sure, we supply food, water, doody control, warm laps when required, catnip, new toys, clean linen for their queen-sized beds, good head scrubs and belly rubs, and on and on...but we are not the be all and end all when it comes to the perfect companions. 

Some cats need other cats around to either share every waking moment with or ignore with impunity (whilst following one another around the house all day long).  Aloof?  Absolutely not.  Indifferent at times, sure.  Independent?  Absolutely true, but also dependent and faithful and loving.  But do they pick and choose when or if they are going to favor us with their time and company?  Oh, yeah baby, and I'm OK with that.  But between cats - whether siblings or randomly adopted clowders - they are much happier and healthier when they have companionship. 

Our new little crazy man has been assimilated lock, stock and barrel, and we couldn't be happier with the outcome.  Simon has been inserted into our family dynamic, and Odin is much happier.  He is no longer wondering the house from top to bottom, crying out for Booker for hours on end.  That stress would have taken a horrible toll on his FIV-infected body, and that was not an option I was willing to take chances with.  Simon is the guardian of Odin's well-being now, and he is up to that task.  An older adoptee wouldn't have been the same sort of 'assistant' at this time, but when our next big change takes place, our lives and hearts are open to another lovely soul joining our clowder.

Go figure

Got up this morning and the temperature in the house was a little chilly. It wasn't horrible by a long shot, but decidedly cooler than I would have thought the boys would let it get. Of course, when I wandered down the hallway to turn the fan off I found their bedroom ceiling fans still turning (against house rules), and both of them cuddled under the summer-weight blankets (and anything else they could find) on their respective beds. HA!

Their rooms are right under the attic fan we use to cool down the house, and over the last few days (and throughout this heat wave) we have utilized the lovely old beast to its full potential. Bliss!

Still, I can't understand (even after several discussions) why neither of them flipped the switch on the fan once they began to shiver sometime during the night; nor why they left their ceiling fans on; nor why they didn't simply slide their windows shut while they lie in bed freezing.

Go figure.

But I'll go you one better. I got up to 'fix' things, and found I needed to turn on the floor fans in the lower level and in the living room despite the lovely 65*F throughout the house. Without the circulation happening from the large attic fan, I was not as comfortable as I would have thought - even with a steady sixty-five degrees!

Go figure....indeed.

My bad

It dawned on me last night that I had forgotten to report Karl's progress in his advanced math class.

Yes - he passed his first test!  Initially, he had a C+ grade, but seemed dissatisfied with that grade.  He was looking forward to averaging the same sort of grades as he had in the first math class, but since this is advanced (and therefore more complicated) algebra, it makes sense that it might not come as easily, or with the same results for the lad.

At any rate, I suggested he take his test and the math notes - and work leading up to it - in to his next tutoring session to see where his issue may lie, to see if Justin (his tutor) can help Karl over his hurdles, thereby making it easier to pass the next test.  You know, get Karl (and keep him) par with what was coming at him in class. 

My thought is if you have working knowledge of the sequence of formulation, factoring and figuring for algebra, then you should be able to move through the more complicated problems.  But, if you have a hiccup early on, then getting the more complicated stuff will be, well....more complicated.

So, Karl went in to tutoring armed to the teeth to review his test and see where he needed a little help grasping whatever it was that had eluded him.

The two boys found two problems which had been answered correctly, but which the instructor had incorrectly marked wrong!  Karl finished his tutoring session having mastered a concept (with Justin's help) that stumped him, AND with the knowledge that he could perhaps raise his grade for the test a little by asking the instructor to review those two problems the boys found to be graded wrong.

Guess what?!  She did see the issues with the two problems in question, and re-graded Karl's test accordingly, which bumped his grade from that C+ to a B- !!!  This made Karl very proud - and rightly so!

Need I say I am proud, too?  Well, I am!
- - - - - - - - - - - -
On to Brian news.  Arrived home the other day to find Bud with an impressive bandage on his left forearm.

"A bandage!", you gasp.

Yes, and here's the story.  He cut his forearm on a poorly stored blade he found "the hard way," while searching for something he had dropped on the floor under his desk.  Yes, he placed the blade (some time ago) into the flap of a cardboard box, then stacked the box with something else, then, well.....you get the picture, right?  He forgot completely about the blade, then made contact with it while prowling around under his desk.

The "contact" made was with his forearm, and the results were a fairly deep sub-q cut (but not to the muscle) which required something in the order of 10 stitches to close.

Wheeee!!  Oh, and yes, I did do the mommy-thing and suggest (strongly) to Brian I thought this might be a good time to clean his room.

So, it's been slightly eventful here.  How's things at your end of the swamp?

April showers bring...

...well, May, anyway.

May follows April, regardless of whether it rains or not.  And May has its own showers, so it's not really dependent upon April's rainfall at all for flower production. 

I'm just sayin'.

This weather warm-up also has the wasps and flying, sting-y things out and about, and that alone is torture for Karl.  The allergies are a nasty extra bit of discomfort for him.  Lousy luck.

Oh, and before I forget, the boy did land the job at a somewhat-local home improvement store - so now he has two part time jobs.  Oddly enough this turn of events makes him happier than the thought of a full-time position with the large chain store.  ?!?

I know, right?

Well, if nothing else, I hope this incentivizes him in some way to do a better job of buckling down and looking for work in a much more determined and meaningful way.  Although-----I know----it won't.

Karl passed his math class with a 95%!  He was telling me he had no need to take the final because of the rest of his work throughout the semester.  If he failed (or receives a low grade on) the final, that'd be the lowest score his instructor would 'throw out' before calculating his final grade. 

It's the little battles won that make it all worthwhile.

Out the door

He's been gone about 15 minutes or so, and I am trying not to wring my hands.

Bud is off to another interview - I wish he had a canoe to get there with all of this rain!

Be careful.  Be confident.  Believe!

Taking the good with the bad

Sometimes it's a lot of fun being in the car with Karl.  He likes a good assortment of classic rock'n'roll, so we usually end up cranking the volume on the stereo and having fun driving to/from school, and appointments, and haircuts, grocery forays, etc.  Sometimes, though, he would rather talk about games (ugh) he enjoys playing online, or those 'one-players' on his PC (yes, there's a difference between the two...and no, I won't explain it).

He understands that I have no understanding of the games he goes on about, but that doesn't stop him.  Nope, it actually serves to expand the conversation to include all precursor information so that I will understand all that I did not prior to the beginning of the conversation.

"Save me," I mouth to a passing motorist. 

I will listen, I will nod, I will 'hmm' and 'huh' at appropriate moments, and I will concentrate on my driving so as not to glaze over and send us both into a ditch or guard rail.  I am considerate that way.

Sometimes I can steer the conversation away from game mania and find another topic he can relate to enough to make it worth both our whiles.  Not always, but something in the line of 60-65% of the time I am successful.  Pretty good, I'd say.

The radio is my friend.

I especially like when a tune plays that stumps him.  He can pretty well narrow the groups down to an accurate assortment of two or three, and his choices are thoughtful and reasonable given the sound of the music, the instruments, a certain beat or confluence that can sound familiar to him.  Karl makes me proud in this regard.  He likes the musical sound, listens to the lyrics for the sake of the song (and the possible story they tell), and has learned an appreciation for music that was still musical - before the late eighties and disco developed into Prince and rap and ugh [shudder].

Karl has even introduced me to a new genre music that I love to listen to - and oddly, it's an 'electric' version of big band-sounding music. We both like the big band sound, but his addition to my music repertoire is a welcome one. 

Thank goodness for iPods and CDs, that's all I have to say!

Enjoy your drive time.

Whoooo boy!

After having just spent more than 4.5 hours helping Bud re-write his resume, I need a drink!

I don't think tea is going to cut it.

Bartender!

Good news, bad news

It has been a l-o-n-g weekend. 
It began last week, Wednesday, when Brian developed a monster headache.  Just coming off of a nearly two-week-long combo respiratory/head thing (he still harbors the cough and stuffy nose), this headache crept in to stay.

Severe vomiting followed at a rate of two-to-three hours between each episode.  The headache intensified over the next couple of days, and his biggest concern (for him) was lack of poo.

[amused exasperation] Kids.

OK, kids and 101-year-old ladies.

Finally, on Saturday afternoon, his appetite began to rear it's ugly head, so Bud ate a little here and a little there throughout the remainder of the day.  Eventually, his relaxed upset stomach said "no thanks" in a very profound and noisy fashion.

That was 4:30AM Sunday.

Then the headache became aggressively painful, so we drove to an urgent care facility in town (which wasn't McClaren - they are the gov snydley of healthcare).  For $90 this clinic gave him a shot of pain medication and two prescriptions to fill....oh, and a prescription for a CT.

Brian managed to sleep throughout a better portion of the night, waking less frequently then he had been, and no vomiting (thank you, God).  He still required elevation to sleep, but his grade 8 headache is now a purring 3 classification (per his opinion), but it is now painful to have contact with the right side of his head.  ?

Re: the CT - Once it's done, how long before someone reads the CT results and gets back with an answer, solution, opinion, diagnosis do you think?

[disgusted sigh] What a ride.

More later.

I love my sons

The best thing about coming home last evening, after having instructed a slow class of two kids, was finding that my sons had taken it upon themselves to wash the sinkful of dishes!

Yes!  Most of the dishes had been washed and were stacked in boy-ordered chaos in the strainer. It was WONDERFUL!  Sure, there's a bit to go before it's all done, but the fact that they thought to do it at all was a gift worth cherishing!

Thank you, boys.  You made me smile.

Happy Birthday!

My handsome son, Brian, turns 26 years old in just under six-and-one-half hours!

Karl's visitors

Every so often Karl has an itch which needs scratching. Whether he knows it or not, he desires company. A day with activity and camaraderie. Time spent face-to-face with humans who are not bent solely on destroying another civilization and stealing their 'life points'.

We all do from time to time.

It's just that he chats and yaks and grumbles at people online so often that he doesn't realize he really does want some human interaction, too - and needs it.

Yesterday, he had been on the phone with Tony (a friend of his) for quite a while, when one of them decided it would be a good idea to ask if I thought it would be a good idea if Tony came over to our place, or for Karl to go over to Tony's.

My simple answer was that they should figure out if one of those choices would be to their liking. After all, did they want to get together? If yes, then that was pretty much the question answered. Of course, that decision then created another choice to tackle; which option should they choose? Karl there or Tony here?

Two Autistic youths making decisions is fun to watch unfold. Sort of like origami in reverse.

I won't go into all of the particulars, suffice it to say they eventually came to the obvious choice, and we drove over to Tony's to pick him up for the afternoon. Given the hour of the day, I figured there would be dinner to make once they became hungry enough, so I prepped for that.

'Round about 11PM I let them know it was time to wrap it up and get Tony home.

By midnight (egads!) they were ready to roll.

LOL

All of this to say, as Karl and I approached the house last night, after taking Tony home, my headlights illuminated I shape on the lawn. It was most definitely NOT cat. It was much too late for a squirrel. Possums tails are not bushy or upright (as this one was), and it wasn't moving appropriately for a racoon. I slowed my speed and got a great look as the critter turned to face us with a bit of posturing.

It was a skunk! I haven't seen one of those in a long time, but I was delighted to watch him size us up as we watched his movements.

Karl was not thrilled in the least as his mind raced quickly to the "oh-my-gawd-how-do-we-get-to-the-front-door-without-being-sprayed?" question.

Not to worry. He moved to the shadow at the backside of the large tree in our front yard, and I turned into the driveway to size up our options - and watch our little visitor a little more closely.

Somehow, he slipped away in an unknown direction, and we neither smelled nor saw him again as we dashed from the car to the door....and safety of the house.

Visitors are always welcome.

Big news! Karl turns 23!!

My little sapling now has twenty-three rings.

Happy birthday, K-dub! Glad you're here on the planet with me.

Life lessons

Who teaches that course?

Brian very recently learned a valuable lesson in lost time/wasting time/bearing grudges/growing up and letting go, [YEA!] and even he admitted 'it was about time.'

I am very proud of him. [hearts and stars and happiness]

It's a tough lesson to learn, but a necessary step in growing up and moving forward. And I think we can all agree that moving forward is so very important - so very necessary.

At the same time I hate to think it is one of those skills which, once learned, is something one will have to keep utilizing as people come and go into and out of your life. It can be heartbreaking

I suppose it is ultimately better to filter your friends and acquaintances right from the get-go; to evaluate their worthiness for inclusion into your circle (trusted, inner, outer, cursory) on a continual basis, and then feel free to heave-ho the foul ones without guilt or remorse the minute they act against you or your family or friends, your sense of decency, etc.

That isn't to say that everyone you know (and like) should be your exact equal in morals and values, in intelligence and talent, in drive and determination, in status....no! But I am getting off the point.

What's new, right?

My delight in Bud finally letting go of his anger and letting this person move back into his life as a friend, to move past the pain of break up status and determine his life would be better having her in it in whatever capacity they figure out (other than sweethearts) is going to make him a better and happier person. That particular chip on his shoulder has been removed.

[sigh of deep happiness]

Passed my mid-terms

All is right with the world; mid-term tests are done and I made it through with room to spare (and then some)!

[sigh of relief]

Brian is suffering through another work funk and I am having a difficult time not 'gaaagghhh-ing' at him to look for something else. Step outside your comfort zone and try! See what options exist and learn something about yourself!! Try...at least try!!! [pant, pant, pant]

Even though he hears me say that it is far easier to find another job when you are already working, I am not sure he is taking that to heart.

Long pause [heavy sigh]

Ah, well.

On another page: Beautiful sunshine this morning, just like yesterday. So many things on my "want to do" list, but many more things on my "need to do" list, and I am combing through them looking for cross-referenced items to make the biggest impact.

And I'm combing, combing, combing....

This may take a while, so I will meet you back here in the near future. Have a great day!

Oh, my goodness

We are getting snow, but not in the way the prognosticators were hyping it. And quite frankly, with the lack of 'winter' we've experienced this winter, I am quite alright with this whole messy weekend.

I will, of course, have 'mommy worry syndrome' when Bud heads in to work on icy highways and back roads tomorrow, but until then...let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!

Cleo seems out of sorts today, and it is oddly enough coinciding with Brian's latest kidney stone.

He began to see blood in his stream and experience the pain in his side yesterday, which heralds a new kidney stone. From this point it can be a few quick days or a week to ten days before it passes. Typically, his time frame runs about five to seven days from start to finish. I will keep you posted on this story.

Karl is well and helping out around the house - sometimes reluctantly (oh, who am I kidding? It's mostly accomplished with reluctance and mooing). But he had a measure of pride mid-week in stripping down his bed, washing the entire lot, flipping and turning the mattress, then re-making it with fresh laundry. He was very pleased upon crawling into bed that night!

Score!

Earlier in the week he nearly single handedly made dinner for us all, and that was another coup. I will take them where I can get them.

Spent this morning sorting through the online bookstore listings, pulling things that have too much 'competition' (from other sellers) and bundling two and three books into bonus listings. Sadly, this means people will actually have to read the descriptions to see they get quite a good deal for their money, but I truly wonder who reads anything any more. Most folks just go into an online sight looking at the prices, and not realizing that I sometimes sell two or three books with one title. [forehead smacking]

A seller is very limited in the way things can be listed, and therefore drawing attention to the bonuses is difficult unless the buyers read (the descriptions)!

I guess we'll see if the work and restructuring pays off. I would still like to list another one hundred or so titles, but I am currently out of space in the library to shelve them while they would be listed for sale.

Maybe today would be a good day to clean out my old script supervisor logs and get stuff moved out to the garage and into short term storage. Hmmm. Perhaps I could begin moving a piece or two (or three) of furniture in the lower level, and get that ordeal begun. Reconfiguring that space would be a boon, and would allow me to really shake things up upstairs!

Oh, to be moving forward again.

What are you all up to?

Nice surprises

Sometimes good news comes in a phone call.

The boys heard from their father last night, and it seems "the family" has decided the grand kids will receive a stipend from the granddad's estate. The man had a lot of money saved - never parted with a penny if he didn't have to - and believe you me, he found a myriad ways to hang on to every cent.

I always felt horrible for my (ex)mother-in-law, because there wasn't any reason for her to live the way she had all those years, except because of the whim of her husband. But that was her life and her way, and now that both parents are gone, their children are dealing with the final bits and pieces.

Since the demise of my (ex)father-in-law, I always wondered why nothing ever fell to my sons. He and his wife both intimated the kids would benefit a little once they passed.

I never ghoulishly sat on the fence and waited for that day, I (we) never had a need; the kids were fine and life was proceeding as life should. A few lumps here and there that maybe could have been less rocky...but that's life, and the boys are the better for those knocks and lessons.

As there were only three grandchildren between the five siblings, it seemed the grand kids would have some sort of nest egg to inherit and have tucked away in a back pocket for 'some day.'

Well, it's taken a while, but the boys are each now receiving a nice sum of investible, save-able money.

As Bud has lately experienced the feeling of achievement in saving a portion of his paychecks (and the grief at having to use some of that savings when "life happens"), he has cleverly decided how to portion and save the total amount to his best advantage, and for that I am very proud.

Karl is still weighing his options, but is receiving advice in a considered - and considerate - manner, and will be investing or saving the lion's share as well.

Thank you, Lord, for sublime miracles and Your loving favor.

Sometimes we go visiting

Forget a "nice" photo at a time like this. I was lucky to get this one! Ah, proof.

Every so often I get lucky - let's say once every two months or so - and can manage to get my sons out of the house at the same time, and into my car (again, at the same time).

Heck! We may even manage a pleasant time the entire duration of the ordeal, err....I meant 'outing.'

The evening of December 30th was one of those times, and while it was a wet - amazingly crowded affair - it was actually fun for all of us.

For several weeks we had tried to sync up Brian's time not at work with available hours at the Detroit Institute of Arts and plan a trip to the DIA, and it just never seemed to work in our favor. But on the last possible evening of the year (and before my three free passes expired) we climbed into the car and traveled to the city for a pleasant evening of traversing most of the DIA.

Yes, even Karl. His autism makes leaving the house a dreaded fight, and a very infrequent happening (which is why I try so hard to get him into a class at least once a semester).

Once we got our bearings (coordinating with the map provided) Karl navigated our way through the building, and Brian chose most of the stops once we left the lower floor.

Sure there were things we wanted to see and just couldn't, but all in all we did see a good deal of exhibits of interest to us - and I really think it whetted Karl's appetite to return another time and take a better look at things when there is no loud concert in the Rivera Court or holiday crowds to scoot around.

Happiness in small packages

Half.com online store still on "vacation" setting, due to help desk errors and poor (to NO) customer service.

Cats are fed and burping, purring, cleaning, happy (for the moment).

Boys are still fast asleep. Brian is mostly over his bug; coughing much less, and returning to work after two days off. Karl has taken his final exam and is relieved to be done with class for the time being.

We pulled/pushed/rocked and cajoled the beautiful new stove (time is relative since it's been standing, crated up, in the garage for the last 5-6 years) into the house and ultimately into it's spot in the kitchen yesterday. I did do the happy dance for about 45 seconds! Next steps are whenever they can be arranged.

Cleaned a bunch of stuff out of the garage before the trash collection, too, making a nice chunk of open room for possible car parking this winter. Very cool! Will continue to chip away at it, but the quilting comes first, despite deep desires to walk out to a totally snow-free vehicle in the dead of winter.

Daylight is brighter so I will be off for the time being. Need to utilize the sun for important things like completing the creation of stencils and getting first quilting tracks onto the project.

Have a good day.