Sunday, November 8, 2009
update on Mac's new duds
Jimmy just skyped and asked if Mac's outfit matches. The answer is no. He's not supposed to wear all that stuff together. The coat and the shirt go together, but the tie most certainly does not. It's intended to be worn separately, which is why Mac won't be allowed to dress himself unsupervised for a very long time because he thinks it looks sensational all thrown together like that. That ensemble won't see the light of day unless we want him to play the part of doddering old British professor when we visit Oxford over Christmas.
start polishing the crown; I'm back in the running
In my quest for Mother of the Year, I took Mac to see Star Wars in Concert. In our house (when everybody is present and accounted for), 2/3 of us are Star Wars freaks. I am the other 1/3. I have watched the movies and really have no obsession, or even mild interest, in the Millenium Falcon, the Death Star, or Darth Vader's return to the light.
BUT I do like the idea of being crowned Mother of the Year, so I took Mac to this Star Wars production. I bought the cheapest tickets they had because the man at the box office said we'd be able to see fine from up high. What he didn't tell me was that I should bring my own oxygen tank because by the time we climbed up to the top of the Coliseum, I would need some breathing assistance. We were WAY up high, but Mac only asked once why we couldn't sit in those seats on the floor right in front of the stage.
If Star Wars in Concert hasn't come to a coliseum near you, let me tell you what you've missed. The whole thing is very nicely narrated by the guy who played C3PO. He doesn't tell the story chronologically, but rather he discusses different themes and relationships. There's a 100-foot wide, 3-story tall high-definition screen at the back of the stage. At the front of the stage is the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra backed by a 100-member chorus. When the C3PO guy finishes narrating a segment, the orchestra plays that big John Williams music and the chorus sings while clips from the movie supporting the narration are played on this enormous screen. Throw in cool lasers that are beaming all over the coliseum with the beat of the music and some pyrotechnics and you've got yourself a pretty great show.
So I was pleasantly surprised that I actually enjoyed the show as much as I did.
I was also surprised - and not pleasantly - by the number of adults who were in attendance without children. Who would attend this type of thing if you didn't have to bring your kid? I was REALLY surprised, though, by the number of people we saw in full costume. I'm not talking children who wore their Halloween costume from last week, although there were plenty of them. I'm talking adults, without children, who had on full regalia. It's kind of like a Star Trek convention: wildly freaky for those who don't get "it".
The outing wouldn't have been complete without a mandatory stop at the gift shop. Mac really wanted the program guide. I thought that would be a nice souvenir. He could practice his reading, it was educational, etc. UNTIL I FOUND OUT THE BOOK COST $30. That is highway robbery, my friends. So I talked him down to the $10 flashlight thing. See photo below.
Well the flashlight died BEFORE the show ended. So I marched us right back to the gift shop to demand another flashlight, where we promptly got sucked into buying a $35 t-shirt. I don't pay $35 for t-shirts for myself, but this was a run for Mother of the Year, right? The family next to us had FOUR children and they were each getting t-shirts. How could I not buy one for my one child?
As for me, I'm just waiting for somebody to call to get my head measurements for the tiara. I don't want it to be too tight since I'll have to wear it for a whole year.
BUT I do like the idea of being crowned Mother of the Year, so I took Mac to this Star Wars production. I bought the cheapest tickets they had because the man at the box office said we'd be able to see fine from up high. What he didn't tell me was that I should bring my own oxygen tank because by the time we climbed up to the top of the Coliseum, I would need some breathing assistance. We were WAY up high, but Mac only asked once why we couldn't sit in those seats on the floor right in front of the stage.
If Star Wars in Concert hasn't come to a coliseum near you, let me tell you what you've missed. The whole thing is very nicely narrated by the guy who played C3PO. He doesn't tell the story chronologically, but rather he discusses different themes and relationships. There's a 100-foot wide, 3-story tall high-definition screen at the back of the stage. At the front of the stage is the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra backed by a 100-member chorus. When the C3PO guy finishes narrating a segment, the orchestra plays that big John Williams music and the chorus sings while clips from the movie supporting the narration are played on this enormous screen. Throw in cool lasers that are beaming all over the coliseum with the beat of the music and some pyrotechnics and you've got yourself a pretty great show.
So I was pleasantly surprised that I actually enjoyed the show as much as I did.
I was also surprised - and not pleasantly - by the number of adults who were in attendance without children. Who would attend this type of thing if you didn't have to bring your kid? I was REALLY surprised, though, by the number of people we saw in full costume. I'm not talking children who wore their Halloween costume from last week, although there were plenty of them. I'm talking adults, without children, who had on full regalia. It's kind of like a Star Trek convention: wildly freaky for those who don't get "it".
The outing wouldn't have been complete without a mandatory stop at the gift shop. Mac really wanted the program guide. I thought that would be a nice souvenir. He could practice his reading, it was educational, etc. UNTIL I FOUND OUT THE BOOK COST $30. That is highway robbery, my friends. So I talked him down to the $10 flashlight thing. See photo below.
Well the flashlight died BEFORE the show ended. So I marched us right back to the gift shop to demand another flashlight, where we promptly got sucked into buying a $35 t-shirt. I don't pay $35 for t-shirts for myself, but this was a run for Mother of the Year, right? The family next to us had FOUR children and they were each getting t-shirts. How could I not buy one for my one child?
As for me, I'm just waiting for somebody to call to get my head measurements for the tiara. I don't want it to be too tight since I'll have to wear it for a whole year.
Saturday, November 7, 2009
as ZZ Top sang, "every girl crazy about a sharp dressed man"
Mac and I are spending Thanksgiving in NYC with some of my family and we'll meet Jimmy in England for Christmas. Yesterday I told Mac that we had to work on his wardrobe some and that he needed one dressy outfit for these trips. He immediately asked if that meant he got a tuxedo.
No. Not that dressy.
Then he said he'd like to dress like Daddy does when he goes to work, with black pants, a tie, a button-down shirt and a sports coat. I'm telling you, this kid is destined for Project Runway.
We had 30 minutes to kill before the Star Wars show last night, so we went to the outlet mall to run into Children's Place. We found THE LOOK. We didn't try anything on because we didn't have time, so this morning while I slept in, Mac got dressed up in his new duds to see if they fit. What do you think?
No. Not that dressy.
Then he said he'd like to dress like Daddy does when he goes to work, with black pants, a tie, a button-down shirt and a sports coat. I'm telling you, this kid is destined for Project Runway.
We had 30 minutes to kill before the Star Wars show last night, so we went to the outlet mall to run into Children's Place. We found THE LOOK. We didn't try anything on because we didn't have time, so this morning while I slept in, Mac got dressed up in his new duds to see if they fit. What do you think?
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
I've cracked the safe
A couple months ago, I locked the combination for our little home safe that we've had for 11 years inside the home safe. This safe holds nothing valuable in terms of money, but it does have our important documents like passports, original birth certificates, vaccination records, etc.
How I locked the combination inside the safe was vintage dingdong Susan. The time before I opened the safe before the dingdong opening, I decided to leave the key in the lock and not turn the combination dial. That way, I could just open the door up next time I needed something. Even if somebody broke into our house, they wouldn't get anything except our passports, so what did it matter if it wasn't really locked?
Well that brilliant plan worked great. I turned the key and the door opened without my having to do that pesky dial turning. I always overshoot the mark and have to start over with those combination dials. It was great in theory.
So I got out whatever I needed, gathered up everything that I'd pulled out and put on the floor, put it all back in the safe, turned the key in the lock, twisted the dial and bam, it was locked.
Then I looked around for the piece of paper that had the combination written on it. I had the paper handy because I keep it in a zip-loc bag with the safe key.
Where was it?
Oh my. Did I gather it up with all those papers and put it in the safe, which was now locked?
Did I do this without having looked at the numbers at all since I'd so brilliantly left the safe last time so I didn't have to bother with that pesky combination? There was no recent recall from which to remember the numbers.
Oh my.
My first inclination was to have the door welded off. But that meant lugging a heavy safe out of the closet, down the stairs, out the back door, to the car and to a welder. Better just to order new passports.
My second inclination was to try to remember the combination. I knew I had 3 of the 4 numbers, but it was that pesky 4th number that I couldn't exactly remember. I tried every variation of the numbers that I could think of. All to no avail.
There had to be a way to get the combination back, right? A couple years ago, the brand label was coming off. I went ahead and pulled it off because I figured why would you ever need to know the brand name? ONLY IF YOU NEED A NEW COMBINATION AND NEED A STARTING POINT FOR THE KIND OF SAFE THAT YOU OWN?
So then I went to WalMart where we'd purchased the safe a decade ago to see what brand of safes they sell. They were Sentry brand and they were, of course, all fancy and digital now - not a dial safe in sight.
I went to the Sentry website, found a way to contact them about a combination and sent an email. A bit later, I heard from a woman there who said it was a Brinks safe based on the model number.
Well then the corn maze got into full swing and thoughts of the safe only surfaced in the middle of the night when I woke up in a cold sweat worrying about needing a a passport to go to England at Christmas.
So today I called Brinks. While on hold, I listened to this message that said you could only get the combination by sending a notarized letter stating you're the owner of the safe, etc. I was prepared to send the letter but wanted to make sure I had a real Brinks safe.
This nice lady helped me and after giving her the model number, key number, and serial number (minus one number that was partially scratched off after a decade of use), she asked if I knew the numbers of the combination. I told her the four numbers that thankfully I'd written down right after the unfortunately locking. I wasn't sure they were right since I had not been able to get into the safe with them but they're what I remembered from 11 years of using them. And guess what? I had the numbers right, but the number that I thought was 4th was actually 1st.
The safe has been opened and the passports are ready for the trip to England!
How I locked the combination inside the safe was vintage dingdong Susan. The time before I opened the safe before the dingdong opening, I decided to leave the key in the lock and not turn the combination dial. That way, I could just open the door up next time I needed something. Even if somebody broke into our house, they wouldn't get anything except our passports, so what did it matter if it wasn't really locked?
Well that brilliant plan worked great. I turned the key and the door opened without my having to do that pesky dial turning. I always overshoot the mark and have to start over with those combination dials. It was great in theory.
So I got out whatever I needed, gathered up everything that I'd pulled out and put on the floor, put it all back in the safe, turned the key in the lock, twisted the dial and bam, it was locked.
Then I looked around for the piece of paper that had the combination written on it. I had the paper handy because I keep it in a zip-loc bag with the safe key.
Where was it?
Oh my. Did I gather it up with all those papers and put it in the safe, which was now locked?
Did I do this without having looked at the numbers at all since I'd so brilliantly left the safe last time so I didn't have to bother with that pesky combination? There was no recent recall from which to remember the numbers.
Oh my.
My first inclination was to have the door welded off. But that meant lugging a heavy safe out of the closet, down the stairs, out the back door, to the car and to a welder. Better just to order new passports.
My second inclination was to try to remember the combination. I knew I had 3 of the 4 numbers, but it was that pesky 4th number that I couldn't exactly remember. I tried every variation of the numbers that I could think of. All to no avail.
There had to be a way to get the combination back, right? A couple years ago, the brand label was coming off. I went ahead and pulled it off because I figured why would you ever need to know the brand name? ONLY IF YOU NEED A NEW COMBINATION AND NEED A STARTING POINT FOR THE KIND OF SAFE THAT YOU OWN?
So then I went to WalMart where we'd purchased the safe a decade ago to see what brand of safes they sell. They were Sentry brand and they were, of course, all fancy and digital now - not a dial safe in sight.
I went to the Sentry website, found a way to contact them about a combination and sent an email. A bit later, I heard from a woman there who said it was a Brinks safe based on the model number.
Well then the corn maze got into full swing and thoughts of the safe only surfaced in the middle of the night when I woke up in a cold sweat worrying about needing a a passport to go to England at Christmas.
So today I called Brinks. While on hold, I listened to this message that said you could only get the combination by sending a notarized letter stating you're the owner of the safe, etc. I was prepared to send the letter but wanted to make sure I had a real Brinks safe.
This nice lady helped me and after giving her the model number, key number, and serial number (minus one number that was partially scratched off after a decade of use), she asked if I knew the numbers of the combination. I told her the four numbers that thankfully I'd written down right after the unfortunately locking. I wasn't sure they were right since I had not been able to get into the safe with them but they're what I remembered from 11 years of using them. And guess what? I had the numbers right, but the number that I thought was 4th was actually 1st.
The safe has been opened and the passports are ready for the trip to England!
sorry ladies. he's taken!
My wonderful husband sent me the most beautiful flowers and the nicest note today on his birthday. How lucky am I?
learning new things everyday
Today I made a trip to Sam's Club to return unused concessions that we didn't need at the corn maze. I had 32 items on my flatbed cart. When I got to the returns counter, the assistant asked for my club card and the receipts from which the sales were originally made. I gave them to her and she started going through the receipts to pick out the items on the list. I thought this was a waste of time because she could just scan everything, but I played the part of the nearly patient customer.
Once she finished with that, she started ringing things up. She would scan down the receipt until she'd found something she had marked earlier and then she'd key in the item number and click enter for the number of returns of that particular item. Well after a couple items, she made a mistake and keyed in Diet Pepsi instead of Dr. Pepper. (It was an easy mistake, I guess - the receipt said Dt Pep and I guess Dt could stand for Doctor instead of Dr.)
So then she had to void out the return with the assistance of a manager and start all over again. At that point, I asked if it would be more helpful if I lifted things off of the flatbed so she could scan them. She said no, that wasn't necessary because she was "quantitating". Huh?
I didn't really have a response to that, so I let her continue with her method. When she was all done, we went over everything again and I told her there should be 32 items listed. She let me count the items on the return receipt and I only got 26. I said we had missed something. She said it was all there, that she'd "quantitated" and punched in 6 cases of water at one time instead of individually entering them as she'd done all the others.
Well I thought there was no such word as "quantitate". I looked it up online and found the following definition:
To measure the quantity of, esp. with high accuracy and including measurement
uncertainty, as in quantitative analysis
I stand corrected. The definition sounds a little high-fallutin' for what went on at Sam's today, but apparently we were quantitating!
Once she finished with that, she started ringing things up. She would scan down the receipt until she'd found something she had marked earlier and then she'd key in the item number and click enter for the number of returns of that particular item. Well after a couple items, she made a mistake and keyed in Diet Pepsi instead of Dr. Pepper. (It was an easy mistake, I guess - the receipt said Dt Pep and I guess Dt could stand for Doctor instead of Dr.)
So then she had to void out the return with the assistance of a manager and start all over again. At that point, I asked if it would be more helpful if I lifted things off of the flatbed so she could scan them. She said no, that wasn't necessary because she was "quantitating". Huh?
I didn't really have a response to that, so I let her continue with her method. When she was all done, we went over everything again and I told her there should be 32 items listed. She let me count the items on the return receipt and I only got 26. I said we had missed something. She said it was all there, that she'd "quantitated" and punched in 6 cases of water at one time instead of individually entering them as she'd done all the others.
Well I thought there was no such word as "quantitate". I looked it up online and found the following definition:
To measure the quantity of, esp. with high accuracy and including measurement
uncertainty, as in quantitative analysis
I stand corrected. The definition sounds a little high-fallutin' for what went on at Sam's today, but apparently we were quantitating!
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
songs that stick in your head
This morning on the way to school, Mac informed me he didn't want to listen to talk radio and that I should find music. So I found a country music station that was playing songs. In the approximately 5-minute ride from home to school, we heard maybe 1.5 songs. I heard Mac singing one of them in the shower tonight. Sadly, it was Big and Rich's "Save a Horse, Ride a Cowboy." Clearly I need to screen the radio more carefully because things are sticking in that little brain!!
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