A Heartbreaking Loss…
Last night was the trophy winning game breaker for my son’s basketball team. After a crushing 2-point loss last week, they were fired up and ready to win.
They came on strong and played well, leading the game for the first 3 quarters. The other team couldn’t catch up no matter what they did. Unfortunately, our team just couldn’t hold onto the lead. The other team came back bigger and bolder and made their moves.
Again, just like last week, it came down to the final 15 seconds. No score. Foul to us. 4 seconds on the clock—only 1 point behind. We put it in bounds and took the shot. Missed. Buzzer sound. The game was over.
Chaos from the other side—they all ran out and cheered. Our team was devastated, standing there. Even the cheerleaders were upset.
As a parent, you try and remember back to when you were that age. Think about the first time you lost something that you really, really wanted to win; more than anything else in your life. They were trying to win for themselves, the coaches, the principal, their teachers and the school. It was overwhelming.
But only after. They played their butts off and they looked good. It was a real team, with real rules and real consequences. They ran and sweat and got pushed down and got right back up. Not one of them quit or played any less than great. They wanted that trophy bad. The other school has it though. For now. There’s always next year.
Not to get too mushy-gush, my kids hate it, but…
This is fourth and fifth grade, right on the edge of a whole new experience about to come. They are moving into the teens, and every hormone-laden, awkward, moody, mixed-up emotional, physical change that all those years are going to bring down on them. This was good practice because most of the team is moving into the junior high and it is going to be much harder. Disappointment doesn’t get any easier to take the older you get. But I think we’ll save that lesson for another time. Watching from the stands and looking down onto the floor, you can see clearly, they’re still just kids. Let them have this last year. And leave it to the fourth graders to get that trophy back.
Despite the outcome, I am so proud of my son. I swear I felt every emotion that team was going through. It’s exciting for me to see him be so excited about anything. To know how hard they worked in practice, running and jumping and sweating and crying until they wanted to give up but didn’t. It was awesome.
When I was in school I never went to events or games, so I never understood. I am not missing my opportunity this time. My kids love sports and school and all the events that go along with it. And I plan on being right there, encouraging, pushing, and driving them on, until they can stand on their own and do it for themselves.
Last night was crummy, but today is better. There’s another lesson for you. Time heals all wounds. What a cliché, but what the hell.
Here’s another: Things always look better in the morning. Life just keeps moving despite the things that happen to you personally. No one gets a day off.
Things do look better today, although it’s still raining. That’s kind of depressing. Pretty soon that will be over too and it will be just one, long, hot, summer day, after another and we’ll be praying for rain.
So for my boy and his team, and his first, non-romantic heartbreak, the Music List will be all about…Heartbreak. What else?
Grab a tissue and settle in. The “Heartbreakers” Music List. Just below.
Safe For Now
Shew…made it. It is now 11 am. Too late to go to McDonald’s and get those delicious Sausage Breakfast Burritos, with a hash brown on the side and their so-so coffee. Extra packets of Hot Picante sauce…squeeze…bite…squeeze…bite….I know I’ve said it before, but I really love that sauce they give you with those burritos. I have been sitting here, talking myself out of driving over there for 2 hours!
Burning philosophy question of the day: Do I really “want” the burrito or do I just need something to transport the Picante sauce to my stomach? Perhaps a concrete answer can be attained…19 hours from now…whence, I will go to the McDonald’s and put it to the test. For science.
No, no, no. I had yogurt with a bit of granola and some pretzels with a Laughing Cow Cheese Triangle—actually a really product. It is one of those things that you don’t believe will actually taste good, but does. I spend money on them often. Even my kids like them. Can’t fall off the Extreme Fat Smash wagon after one day. That would be weak. The exercise part though…
What? It is rainy. Again. Cold. Again. Ridiculous. I could run around outside but I don’t want to lower my immunity defenses, and the gym is right next door to the McD’s. So you see? Nothing I can do.
After 11 now, ok, forgot. And it looks like the sun is trying to come out and harass me.
I didn’t have anything else to say at this moment, I just wanted to share my struggle with resisting McDonald’s.
And FYI for the coffee: Depends on what you like. Here’s my breakdown if it helps: Starting from BLACK. I don’t add stuff so this is pre-whatever you put in:
McDonald’s: Kind of plain, watery, with a slight cardboardy taste that they can’t seem to get rid of despite the “gourmet” label.
Dunkin’: Almost everyone’s fav. But I find it not as strong and actually pretty sweet. It has a light flavor that goes really good on the train.
Starbuck’s: Strong. Can taste groundy at times and really bitter. It prob depends on where you go, but if you want to move then this is the one for you.
7-11: Actually not bad. Nice and smooth. Not too weak or overly flavored. But they have ALOT of pots sitting on their coffee island, and it can be hard to tell which is which. I once accidentally got Irish Coffee Flavor. Smelled weird, but the taste was fine. Still, I prefer the plain.
Burger King: My favorite by far! Seriously. The BK Big Joe. It is the best of all the fast places. It has snappy adverts too. But I would go there above all the places if choice is given. Good price too. It’s strong and bold. With that “coffee” flavor that is not sweet or watery or bitter or cup tasting. It is noticeably different tasting from the others. If you have it once, you’ll want it again. And I swear, every time I have it I always say, “”Their coffee is so good. BK has the best!” But no one in my life cares anymore.
So try them and let me know what you think. Or point out someplace I didn’t put down. The above are the places that I go to. (I didn’t include Caribou because we don’t have one close enough for it to be an issue)
Have a great morning!
Back on the Fat Wagon
And it feels so good…
No, not really. Well, not that bad. Extreme Fat Smash is an awesome plan. Dr. Ian K. Smith is pretty straightforward and the plan is easy to insert into your life. Food planning and exercise. If you don’t exercise already it might be difficult to start but once you do the payoff is tremendous! I’ve talked about it for awhile; Got thru the first 2 weeks but was sidelined by events and fast food. But now is a good time, no distractions until June or so….party wise anyway. Get the book from the library first, then check it out on Amazon where you can buy it for 3 bucks. Worth the money. Give it a go and let me know.
It’s raining here now, but it was nice earlier.
6 am: Stevie and I did an hour of Jillian Michaels (Biggest Loser Trainer) workout—for beginners—but it’s also good for those who can do a little more. You can modify it with weights and more advanced exercise positions. I’m aiming for her arms by July. Then in the spirit of more healthy lifestyle choices, I went out to the forest preserve and ran an easy 4.6 miles. Took less than hour in some pretty high winds. I love how when you get out into the open field areas you can barely move forward. More calories burned! And a double workout! Technically, tomorrow is double day, but what the heck…I was going to do it tomorrow too anyway.
I’m finishing up my coffee right now and trying not to think about all those snack chips we have left over from the business fair. Delicious Frito-Lay Chili Cheese Corn Chips. MMmmm. So tasty. You could say I am a little hungry…but I’m sure the brown rice and beans for dinner will be quite filling. Then I’ll just go to bed.
No. I can tough it out. It’s just food. I went out and bought batteries for the scale and then I crazily weighed myself today. It’s not good. The numbers are wrong or something. I think the scale needs like, a two week waiting period before it weighs correctly again after you put in fresh batteries. I’m pretty sure that’s what it said on the box.
I used my Warrior playlist. Part 1 Part 2 It’s still so good; Even if I have to say so myself. You can find it under Music Lists. Or use my handy calendar widget. It really is a cool little feature. (Click on April 6, 2009 ) But I need a new one for today. Thinking about the last few days and the thoughts I’ve committed to internet.., I’ve already done hungry and sunny and fighting and rainy. I was kind of thinking sad or death. I know that isn’t inspiring so much, but it was on my list of ideas and now seems like as good a time as any. Surprisingly, the songs themselves are not all that literally “depressing”. Sadness and death are two very different subjects.
No fanfare here. List Title: “Death Comes Down“
Sunday Night and I have been slacking off…
No cool words. No quotes. No poetry. No movies. No exercise. No healthy foods. Not even any money! Not even ONE stinking penny!
Although if you count yogurt mixed with granola as healthy then I did do that. I like to let it get kind of mushy and then eat it. It gets a strange doughy texture that I find quite appetizing with the cool, sweet yogurt taste…but whatever.
Everyone is asleep and I want to just re-cap the weekend and put up some words.
Saturday: Final week of bowling for the kids! Yeah! They got 4th place for team rank. Not bad for only having 3 bowlers out of five that actually show up, and only playing half the season! I forgot to take the pics of the trophies but I’ll do that tomorrow. They got free pizza and soda and played cosmic bowling for 1½ hours. What more could you want in a league??
After that we drove straight to their very best friends in the world where they were spending the night. Daycare buds from back in the day. Primary school. A brother-sister-sister combo. Picked mine up Sunday afternoon. We see them every few months. Switch off houses to spend the night. Every time they separate at the end of the weekend, it’s like a break-up.
For the adults left behind: myself and the boyfriend, this is what we did:
He went to play racquetball and eat sushi with his friends. I took the kids to bowling and their friends house.
He came home and put floor trim/ base board up around my kitchen! I watched! Finally. 10 years living in this house with the memory of trim…and it took like, 2 hours, tops. It looks so good. Tomorrow I’ll throw some paint on the angle cuts and kitchen complete! You know, for now. Still needs a counter top that fits correctly and new windows and new paint…but one decade at a time people!
Then we went out and got food.
Back home again and watched a movie.
Netflix is nice to have but those red envelopes are like small pieces of movie pressure. You want to get the most for your money–the most movie turnover per month, but you feel obligated to actually watch one to return one. And sometimes there just isn’t time. But that red envelope sits there, accusing, making you feel like you aren’t using your free time wisely enough. We tried to add movies to our list that we have missed over the past 30 years. Or even last year. Like good movies, not just comedy fluff or mindless entertainment. Serious movies. Drama.
But that means when they come in the mail you HAVE to watch them.
So, break out the alcohol. Vodka with Mike’s Pomegranate. Last one though, so I have to plan ahead. I take Stevie’s leftover Strawberry Fruitista Freeze (from Taco Bell) and some of her leftover popsicles from the business fair, out of the freezer. If I am going to add them to vodka they are going to have to melt a little. The strawberry is fine, but which pops to use? I settle on 2 pinks, a purple and a blue. That flavor combo shouldn’t be too gross. But what does that say about me? Problem, anyone?; that I would melt down a slush drink and popsicles because I don’t have anything else to mix with? Drinking straight vodka is just tacky.
Anyway. The movie is No Country For Old Men. Now I know people are going to disagree with me, but I thought the ending was sucky. Unfinished business. It was like Raising Arizona. Except Raising Arizona was good. That dreamy-dream-telling ending felt like the best solution in a discussion on how to end the movie because no one could figure out how to actually end the movie. I checked too. Both movies: Coen Brothers.
Now I’m sure I missed some symbolism or bigger message about life and all that, but still…the movie was intense and well done. I was holding my breath alot. I like the way everyone talked so easy, southern and country. Tommy Lee Jones is always good. Scary concept being chased by someone who will never stop and who will kill anybody in his path and your loved ones just to make a point. But the end. After Woody showed up I was getting a little nervous. Everybody dead in the end–presumably–except Javier and Tommy. Maybe. One walks off, one retires. Is it just a slice of a certain kind of life and that’s all it is? Smarter folks than me can argue that. Maybe I should get the book.
Next up: Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead. Not sure when…soon. Got to get it back so we can get something lighthearted like Bolt!
After movie time, it was back to TV. Charlie Harper and family. Season 3. Got my vodka mixed with Fruitista and pink popsicle juice (not as disgusting as you would think) and it’s time to play: We drink when Charlie drinks! (See post last weekend–April 19) I am going to be so sad when we are all caught up on this series.
Watched a few episodes. Finished my vodpop. Found a Diet Coke in the back corner, bottom shelf of the fridge. Holy Harper! Back in Bizness. Luckily the boyfriend can drink straight rum so I don’t have to share. Pro. I like vodka though so…Poured it up with the Coke. Watched more. Drank more. Fell off the couch and into bed. An hour later I was asleep. I think I am in love with Charlie Harper. (I am also simultaneously in love with Denis Leary, but that’s a whole other series.)
Sunday: Boyfriend goes to play racquetball. I stay home and drink coffee. Shower. De-hair-ify. Need to stay smooth for the summer. 80+ on Saturday. 70+ today. Need to break out the short pants. Need to stay stubble free.
Boyfriend comes back home. We discuss my hair removal techniques up close and personal, then pack it in and go get the kids.
To distract from the extraction, we are taking them to the pet store to buy some feeder fish. That’s goldfish of varying sizes that you purchase with the express intent to feed them to other bigger fish. 24 smalls were purchased and let loose in a tank with 4 Oscars (had 2 tigers/ bought 2 albinos today to replace the deceased ones from a few weeks back). Time of release was approx. 5 pm.
Kids showered, got re-dressed, took them to Applebees, and came home. Goldfish left in tank upon arrival at 9:30 pm: exactly…one. By morning, probably none. Those Oscar bellies are fat. Just like my kids bellies. They ate everything. stuffed to the grill, so they say. This was our last night of out eating. Back to the strict program in the morning. Modified for them, Hell for us. I am going to be SO hungry. And I have to run too. Exercise anyway—something. I forgot I have a 5K in May. Then the Warrior Dash. And possibly the Half-Marathon. Possibly. I’m going to see if I can run every day for distance and decide later in the month. 13 minute pace MUST be maintained or you have to get off the track. Picked up by the truck that picks up the ones who can’t keep up. I don’t want it to be me. 13 minute miles sounds easy until you have to keep running them over and over again. And I am NOT a professional athlete. I just do it for fun and to fit in the cup. (See post on April 10/Good Morning Weekenders, for explanation).
So that’s it for tonight. Boyfriend just strolled thru to get some water and maybe I better go to sleep myself. I’ll have words and quotes and playlists galore in a few short hours. Back on track at 5am.
Sleep sweet.
Business Fair Blast!
Fun and surprisingly tiring.
We worked off the booty for 2 hours.
And this is selling to middle schoolers. Those marketplace folks are EARNING their money!
Stevie even turned a profit. We won’t have any official numbers until next week, but she did good.
The kids are so funny. At the end, they started trading product for product for personal profit. Everyone wanted a snack but no one wanted to use those hard earned dollars. They made good trades too. Very fair. I guess that’s what kids are really good at. They have nothing but their stuff and their friends and everyone wants to go home happy.
(Extra BONUS feature! Lucky!)
I found a penny, laying in the parking lot, walking out of the school!
(Check the Street Money Page for our total for the year.)
Neil Patrick Harris has the Fresh Mouth!
On Regis and Kelly. He was filling in for Regis. They have a guest host every Friday!
I know. I know. I started watching after the news and now I’m hooked. I swear I turn the tv off right after. So let’s just leave it at that and not keep going on…
I have to say. Man. NPH. So hot. Way too good looking for 9 am. Very handsome. Very sexy. I know the status. He plays for the other team. That’s fine. A lady can look.
On the show, he was doing some trashy talk and got time delayed. It’s live and it’s early and its family fare so we can’t have any of the bad words leaking out into the homes of the straights. It was funny though. He said porn. Just once. Everybody gave him the side eye and chuckled and there you go: time delay.
Then wouldn’t you know it, they call a woman who used to work for the phone company and she was telling them how they come up on caller ID and how the phone rang in her house before they dialed on the tv, accusing them of using props…and they had to fess up to the time delay for the saucy talk.
Anyway. I like him. I liked him on Doogie, even though I only watched a few times. The one episode I was lucky to see was when he kissed the girl, a girl, some girl. Unfortunately I don’t know who it was or what it was about. But what I do remember is the kiss. It was one of the best kisses I had ever seen on tv. Seriously. I tell people about it all the time. It looked so real and strong confident. Passionate, I guess. I don’t really like that word but I’m not sure what else and I had to be younger–teenage maybe…early adult…and I don’t know if I had enough vocabulary to describe it. I’m going to look it up and see if I can find it. AND post it! I see lots of other sites that put cool stuff in. I want to be cool!
UPDATE: I will not be cool, I guess. I couldn’t find any video of the show with a kiss. But I did find alot of “Best Kiss Ever” Videos. I guess there are alot. It’s prob better anyway. Don’t want to spoil my memory. I’ll just include my list…first ones that jump to mind.
Other kisses, in my opinion, that are good:
Desperado. Obvious. Salma and Antonio on the roof. I think every one says that.
Tremors. Don’t laugh. Kevin Bacon and co-star, at the end. He just swoops her into his arm so naturally its lovely.
Tin Cup. Just remembered. Kevin Costner and Rene Russo. Outside by the tree and the truck. Sexy.
Whatever. I stand by my life-long kiss choices.
So, since I stink at internet downloading or whatever…but I included a link to see NPH in the Old Spice commercial. Better than nothing.
Too “Mutch” (clap-clap) Time On My Hands….Tuesday
This is for my little boy today. We were finishing up homework early this morning, before school; two paragraphs on two words that are spelled the same but mean something different, and trying to work out a playlist for today.
Misspelled words? Time? Too much of something? of anything? Produce (fruits/vegs)? Produce (to make something)? Like my silly site that doesn’t offer any useful information?
“Hard boiled eggs? Really? That’s so stupid mom” That is a direct quote. Please check the previous post and enjoy the next helpful “Tip To Live”. Use it for your child’s next school lunch! My children. Always my inspiration for everything that I do!
Sunday PM: Kids came home and it’s a swirl of dirty laundry, leftover food and non-stop talking. A quick tour of the house to see if anything is new and a hug for the fishtank that my son loves more than his mom, and it’s time for bed. Spring Break is over. Back to school on Monday.
I forgot to mention the fish. (Or did I?) We have one large tank (125 gal.) Two smaller tanks (36 and 20) A brand new 3 gallon for the boy, a 1.5 gallon (?) and 2 fish bowls that the girl watches over. The smaller tanks have Betta’s–fighting fish. The 20 is goldfish that my son has collected over the last few years. The 36 is breeder fish. Messy and poopy but they do multiply! The big tank is cycling thru it’s second round of fish. The first set were killed in an unholy attack of Ich that wiped them all out before Christmas last year. Terrible.
Oscars, Sharks, Gourami’s, Silver Dollars, and an Electric Blue Crawfish. These are the new residents replacing pretty much the same thing…so far so good. Mason’s new tank is undecided. Set up is today and fish later on. I’ll keep all the waiting fans updated as it happens!
Monday: It was take-your-mom-to-the-doctor day over here. I took mine and the BF took his! Then we met up for dinner with the kids and some fishtank shopping! (Hence the brand new 3 for the boy and rocks for the girl) Stevie loves her tank too. She is moving her Betta out of its current home and into a smaller apartment and then putting in something yet-to-be-picked-out-until-later in the bigger tank. It’s like a cheap version of The Aquarium around here.
Tuesday: Me alone for the day. Catching up. It’s garbage day plus Recycling so I like to get as much in the can as I can so I can put more in for the next time. Every two weeks. (Three “cans” in a row–that’s funny). I have been cleaning my bedroom as I have been for the last 6 months. It is almost done. Boxes, shelves, papers, books, mags, all sorts of stuff off the surfaces and filed away. Last up: the actual dresser DRAWERS (yikes), kids artwork, report cards, school papers, etc., and…dum dum dum…PICTURES. The bane of almost everyone’s life if they have been taking them for 30 years and putting them in a box instead of an album. Like I have. Or haven’t been. I have taken countless pictures–thousands– I have been sorting thru these last few days…and why? Why have I never albumized earlier? Lazy? Housework? Yeah right. I am near the end though. Alot of memories. Alot of junk. Why do we save blurry pictures?
Here’s a tip: Take those out right away. You’ll never want them. You might not even know what they are. Save time and space upfront.
I was up until 2 am finishing the last visible box (I have more in drawers—you see how this goes?) I have them separated by garbage, mine and my ex-husband. The kids collected a few too, and my next goal is to put everything into albums over the summer. Eventually it all goes to them anyway…might as well give them some nice organized books they can pitch out all at once…save them ALOT of time!
It is funny though about those pictures. I had a life before right now…I mean, we all have a life, but the pictures of when I was in school, jobs, family, ex, kids, boyfriends, house, vacations, dogs, events, cars, birds…whatever. “Of-the-past.” What do you save? What do you give away? What do you want posted on the evening news after you become super famous and get caught in a scandal? (I’m keeping those pictures, separate and labeled, so that won’t be a problem.) All my “new” stuff is downloaded on the computer and I carry it around with me everywhere on my Ipod. I guess that’s how you can tell these days. Past from present. Digitally scanned. (I like the way that sounds.)
The good part is that I get to see how I looked–So Bad!!—some of those clothes and glasses!?! Ugh! WTF was I thinking?
And the good part is that I also get to see HOW I looked—really. Not that bad. The mirror of the past—it’s true. I hated how I looked pregnant. Hated it. But I am so grateful now for the pictures. Because 10 years later, it’s still terrible, and now I have PROOF.
Anyway, it’s all just illusion, smoke and mirrors, and this is getting way too long. It’s like a game after all these years. Trying to fit the pictures into the order of a particular life and doing it so that other people can understand. The pictures just capture the moment, but not the time. So it’s been fun and gruesome and funny and horrible and…fun. Like Monopoly or Risk is fun. Playing with your cheating family…heh, heh, heh…
So the music is about games. (And having way too much time.) Mason actually came up with it while he was half-listening to me ramble on the way I do. “Like a game, mom, ‘Poker-face, Jeopardy…’ get it??” Oh yeah I got it. And here it is, for you:
The “Game Play“ List. Play it now!
Hair Of The Dog
Sunday morning. Raining in Chicago. Grey and chill.
Coffee. Bailey’s. Pancakes.
Watch TV. Wait for the kids to come home!
That’s it.
We Drink When Charlie Drinks
This post might be a bit scandalous based on the previous, but like Beth says…stream of consciousness…
Saturday. No kids. No plans. Went to visit the BF Mom with the BF brother and gal pal…that sounds kind of dirty…it wasn’t. Then off to the library, where I may be a wanted criminal. Living dangerously. Finally returned the Booky Wook. Funny stuff. I’ll miss being in his head. But when the library sends you a letter in the mail telling you to get that book back, ya better do it. I owed $2.90 and it was worth every penny. Zoomed over to Jimmy John’s and had a sub and some chips. We have them all over downtown but none at home. Recently a shop made it out to the edges of Cook County and now there is one right near the house! Sadly, I have been thinking about these sammy’s for a week and only made it there today. Too lazy to drive and spend 5 dollars. I guess my son is right, to mutch (on purpose misspell) free time.
Went home and watched Sidewalks of New York. Took a few words from there AND spotted the NYCC! See below! But then what? Dinner? Not really hungry yet and nothing to drink—or nothing to add TO a drink…but hey! Idea!
Let’s watch 2½ Men, and when Charlie drinks, we drink! The rules are simple, when Charlie takes a drink of anything alcohol we take a drink of whatever we have. Which, at the time of this brilliant Saturday night party idea, was nothing. Do we do shots? And of what? Or just make a drink and have that? Let’s see, put in the new disc (Season 2 already–Disc 2) watch the first one…oh crap…3 drinks BEFORE the opening theme song. Doing shots we’ll be bombed before we finish one episode. So let’s modify. Make a drink with a few shots in it, then take a drink of that when he does. That works. Let’s go get some stuff!
First to our favorite dive-y restaurant for a quick dinner—pad the belly–and then over to the liquor store. Uh oh. Can’t go. Kids are home early, and Dad and the whole family are sitting inside! See the truck, see the people. Those darn kids of mine like that place too, dragging their other family over there! Oh well, get back in the car and drive to the highway. Our second favorite dive-y place is over there.
Now back to the plan. Get Vodka and Mike’s Hard Pomegranite Lemonade–I know it seems cheesy, but if you put the vodka in the Mike’s with ice it’s pretty good. Gives a flavor and kicks it up without tearing the throat…and we picked up some Bailey’s for the coffee…for the NEXT day! We plan ahead!
Back home and we got the drinks ready to go. Sitting. Watching. Waiting. No drinking at all in the next episode! What?? Now what? Do we just drink? It’s not like these are hard rules here…Maybe shots are the way to go? Next episode please….oh yeah! It’s good. Charlie Harper back in business. I think we ended up watching 4 more, maybe, 5, don’t know, because I was gone….
Needless to say, the night ended well. Pulled it thru until 2.
3 am to 6 was a bit of a touch, but pulled it again round about 9. (Winky man right?) ; )
But that’s another story. : )
just shy of pretty 