Despite the fascinating comments and links for tips on enlarging this and lengthening that on ones person, it’s time to say goodbye!
Darjeelingirl has come to the end of an era in many ways.
It’s actually a good thing.
Bless you all!
love,
d.girl.
Man, this blog can be depressing! Thankfully, and I mean that, God is constantly right here with me, carrying me through… So I will post some good things today!
The cat is better! About 2 weeks ago, he decided he wanted to eat again and now is more willing to eat his all natural, biologically cat specific food any time - er, all the time 
He’s bright-eyed and bushy-tailed - literally. His coat is coming back in so soft and beautiful and his eyes are clear and bright again. And he’s grooming himself and playing again.
The computer is better! I took the virus protection program off. I had just upgraded and the upgrade was driving it crazy. No thanks to the tech support team - it would be oxymoronic for them to tell me to ditch their product. But the answer still did come from a nice man in India - thanks Nick!
I made Puberty-Girl join karate with her sister and brother. She went kicking and screaming that she didn’t want to. Now she is kicking and screaming for fun.
Her sister and brother each won trophies at their tournament last week. Sister received 4th overall in her division, and Big Brother earned 1st in Forms and 1st in Sparing in his division. Pictures will be up on flickr soon.
I’ve been needing a good cry for a long time. I remember mentioning it to someone last fall but hadn’t let loose until today. As frustrated and overwhelmed as I was, it was the only thing left to do. I still feel like I could cry rivers more - like I need to cry rivers more… Hopefully the tears will come easier and sooner next time than it took this time to get here: still reeling from 3 weeks of a mortally sick cat, a potentially fatal mishap with the dog, 3 emergency pet care visits, over $400 in vet bills, other $$ obligations I’d feel too guilty to bow out of but really should since I’m living off a loan at the moment, the end of the semester, deadlines for new courses starting next week, a major 3 day competition event for one kid, 2 other sick kids, 2 virus laden computers, 7 separate calls to tech support, and the run around from 7 different people who don’t speak English…
Don’t even ask me what the kitchen or laundry room look like…
oiy… where’s the tissue box…
I found this funny on Francis Frangipane’s website. I have not laughed so hard in a long time!
I hope you enjoy it as much as I did:
After every flight, pilots fill out a form which tells mechanics about problems with the aircraft. The mechanics correct the problems, document their repairs on the form, and then pilots review the sheets before the next flight. Never let it be said that ground crews lack a sense of humor. Here are some actual maintenance Problems submitted and the Solutions recorded by maintenance engineers:
P: Left inside main tire almost needs replacement.
S: Almost replaced left inside main tire.
P: Test flight OK, except auto-land very rough.
S: Auto-land not installed on this aircraft.
P: Something loose in cockpit
S: Something tightened in cockpit
P: Dead bugs on windshield.
S: Live bugs on back-order.
P: Autopilot in altitude-hold mode produces a 200 feet per minute descent
S: Cannot reproduce problem on ground.
P: Evidence of leak on right main landing gear.
S: Evidence removed.
P: DME volume unbelievably loud.
S: DME volume set to more believable level.
P: Friction locks cause throttle levers to stick.
S: That’s what friction locks are for.
P: IFF inoperative in OFF mode.
S: IFF always inoperative in OFF mode.
P: Suspected crack in windshield.
S: Suspect you’re right.
P: Number 3 engine missing.
S: Engine found on right wing after brief search.
P: Aircraft handles funny.
S: Aircraft warned to: straighten up, fly right, and be serious.
P: Target radar hums.
S: Reprogrammed target radar with lyrics.
P: Mouse in cockpit.
S: Cat installed.
P: Noise coming from under instrument panel. Sounds like a midget pounding on something with a hammer.
S: Took hammer away from midget.
So, I was walking from the kitchen into the living room and I look up, out the front window, and see 2 neighborhood kids with backpacks on their shoulders running full speed toward home from the bus stop. Just as I was about to look away, I see a dog chasing them. Nay, a beagle chasing them. A tremendously happy beagle. Our beagle. With full glory, tongue joyously whipping in the wind, muscles rippling with the effort… Because he was tethered to a perfectly taut leash… Which was attached to my daughter… Who followed like a Roman charioteer upon her scooter… Which was flying at speeds no scooter has ever seen.
I think they just invented an urban asphalt Iditarod.
First, after 3 months without, I gave in a gave a repairman another shot at the leaky dishwasher instead of using it as a storage cupboard. Do you know how many times a day you have to hand wash dishes with 4 people in the house??? He could not find the source of the leak either, but at least he secured the dw so it quit sliding around which is more than the first guy did. The first guy (different company) just complained it wasn’t leaking, despite the warped floor at the dw base, and took $160 from me. At least the second guy didn’t charge me a full fee.
Sure enough, it leaked after he left.
Second, the cat quit eating. Actually, as I look back now, the cat hasn’t been eating for probably a month. I’ve been cajoling him with catnip, cheese, hot dogs, anything - even his old kibble, but it wasn’t enough. Then one day, he was not interested in moving around much. Took him into the vet. Everything is fine (which is good) except his liver - hepatic lipido$is$ they call it (which is very bad). It means that somewhere along the line, Cuthbert’s body said, “Hey, I’m starving! Let’s move all the fat outta here - through the liver everyone!” And the liver gets overloaded with 9 years of crappy, toxic kibble residue and shuts down which can kill a cat in a matter of days.
Now we have to tube feed him pureed pure food every 2 hours round the clock until his appetite comes back which could take 6 or 7 weeks, they say.
Updating PC-cillin on my home computer screwed everything up. After 2 hours with a nice fellow from India, it’s still glitchy. Applications won’t open, and when they do, I just get an empty frame. Shut down button doesn’t shut down. Virus scan says everything is hunky dory. I went to uninstall it so I could reinstall it, and the compy said it wasn’t there to uninstall anyway. That’s funny, the icon is still in the icon tray. I hate computer problems! Guess I get to talk to another nice man from India as soon as I can find 2 hours of free time.
I think I have a schedule opening sometime in June.
On top of all that, my 12yod’s hormones are raging at everyone and everything.
Why, hello, Puberty. It is nice to meet you.
Nay. It takes 2 to stay married.
I just wanted to help Ame poke a bigger hole in that lie. Thanks Ame for putting my heart into words - every post makes my heart reverberate with “oh, someone out there understands!”
My sister sent this to me. I have to pass it on…
During a visit to the mental asylum, a visitor asked the Director how do
you determine whether or not a patient should be institutionalized.
“Well,” said the Director, “we fill up a bathtub, then we offer a teaspoon, a teacup and a bucket to the patient and ask him or her to empty the bathtub.”
“Oh, I understand,” said the visitor. “A normal person would use the
bucket because it’s bigger than the spoon or the teacup.”
“No,” said the Director, “a normal person would pull the plug.
Do you want a bed near the window?”
Anyone want to join me? The view from here is quite lovely
For the first time in 13 years…
No cavities 
I guess it’s my genes - not my impeccable oral hygiene. I won’t argue.
Had a moisturizing hand wax treatment during the appointment, too. Finally, a dentist that offers a pleasant amenity for every dental misery… aaahhhhh…
It’s been two years…
That is the question…
im sthick.
sore troat.
rubby nose.
stubby nose, depending on the elevation of my heb.
ears ache. can’t hearb.
heb aches.
wholbe body aches.
justh shoot meeb.
or bring meeb a bobble of wine from Olib Garben…
and den shoot meeb.
dank youb.
It’s that hairball time of year again…
The second search was actually prompted by Z who fell out of the pine tree and acquired a 1″ wide swath from her waist to her chest. A and M cried and prayed for her in the kitchen while Z screamed bloody murder as I tended her in the bedroom. They all thought it was a mortal wound. Grand as it may be, tis but a scratch.
Nonetheless, the search may still come in handy regarding Snickers’ impending doom.
Last spring was kind of hairy in every sense of the pun so I made the third search for options. Doesn’t sound too safe - barfed up hairballs or accidental cat death? Hmmmm. That’s debatable.
A professional pet groomer will probably be the best route depending on the $$$. Otherwise, I may have to risk the benadryl and first aid approach. But then again, resuscitating a comatose cat may cost more - not to mention a visit from the spca…
This one is worth forwarding.
Thanks Captain Mom!
I hate politics. I hate conflict. Therefore I find it hard to participate in political discussions these days. It’s a very complicated game. It seems like no one can just simply do the right thing for others – there’s just so much vying for personal attention, praise, and glory. Out of two to four years in office, politicians spend half of that convincing people to vote for them again and not their opponents. Maybe Harriet Miers wasn’t qualified for the job, but it didn’t seem like anyone on either side could just come out and say it – they had to personally attack her and each other instead. I just don’t get it. Where are the grown ups in this line of work?
This is not an example I want to pass on to my kids. That is why the book Help! Mom! There are Liberals Under my Bed by Katharine DeBrecht troubles me. On the one hand, I appreciate that someone has simplified and clarified a bit of the disagreements between the major political views, but that’s from my aversion to look at the warring parties to figure it out for myself. I do think that people should have the freedom to take care of themselves. I think they should be encouraged and taught how to do so if they have grown up in adverse circumstances. And I don’t think the government should become the surrogate parent. I’d even like to have a bumper sticker that reads “The government is not your mother” or “The government is not God” on my car. But when I read this book, I get the feeling of two divorced parents using the kids to fight against each other.
My 12yob and 10yog read the book and they think it’s curiously funny, like watching two adults wrestle in the mud. I’m not sure I want to promote such images in their eyes. Although the author doesn’t call anyone in the book by their real names, my kids knew who was who. The characters in the books are caricatures of real people and the major parties in the political arena. I used the book to tell the kids that labeling ourselves Liberal or Conservative these days is not what matters. Neither extreme is perfect. I’ve read enough history to know that many times Liberals have served to be the champion of the people. They have done much good for our country. But recently it seems just the opposite – almost inside out. Like the ones in power just use what echos of honorable compassion are left to accuse and blame the other party and co-dependently try to fix everything themselves for their own glory. It only furthers their resentment. And the pendulum will only continue to swing like this. By the time my kids are grown, the Conservatives may be the moon bats.
The two extremes used to hold each other in check which provided a middle road for the nation where the original spirit of the Constitution served as a sort of monorail track through history. These days, the two factions continue to polarize our nation. I feel like it’s splitting our country. There’s no more stable center for either side to cling to. This book made me aware that I’d like to see the political system dismantled and restored to its solid objective foundation. But I don’t think training our children to ridicule the other side will accomplish that.
Note: This book was given to me free of charge by the publisher through Mind and Media for the purpose of this review.
Mom: Hey, J!
J: Yeah?
Mom: If you are in an art museum, and you want to get rid of the gum in your mouth, where do you put it?
J: Umm, in a garbage can?
Mom: Ok, just checking.
I was just thinking that maybe one or two thousand years from now, someone will find your iPod and analyze everything on it to find out what kind of person you were.
Well, they are new to me, anyway. I’m not sure exactly how long they’ve been blogging. I bumped into them through the 5th Carnival of Homeschooling.
With a godly heart, a sense of humor, and a way with words, Steve at Dad’s Corner offers his thoughts on homeschooling, parenting and relationship with God. Right now he has a cold, but I’m wondering if he hasn’t tried a little of the Captain’s recipe what with the fish floating through his office and plants eyeing him and all…
Speaking of the Captain, I love the way this woman thinks and writes. This post had me in stitches with its familiar tones and now she’s talking wine - a favorite subject in a certain circle around here lately. Vegans and non alike will be delighted to know that there is a respectable wine to complement burgers and fries!
Give them a visit. You will enjoy it.
I found out that there is a cable that will connect my laptop to my Yamaha stereo speakers… 
Personally, I’m rooting for iPod.
You know what we did for history today? We listened to…
Just to have a laugh, and sing a song.
