Commentary

1. The people who drive near UW are morons and should not be allowed on the roads. I have places to go and I like to get there by driving at least a little over the speed limit.

2. I refer to my arms as gorilla arms because I think they are way too long. I have trouble finding shirts that have sleeves that reach my hand. Why doesn't Eddie Bauer make a small tall shirt? Their tall line starts at medium. I think that is retarded.

3. Every time I sit down to write an email (or a post) someone in my family, or two or three someone's decide that would be a great time to ask me questions or try to carry on a conversation with me. That's why #1 and #2 aren't that funny, I couldn't complete my thought process on those with this guy interupting me all the time.

3. I am so immensly tired right now I can't even think straight. I spent a total of 35 minutes at home between the hours of 8:30am and 7:45 pm. It was a long day with many trips, I even got to drive on one street in Kirkland 3 different times. I had 2 take out meals, and now I feel gross.

4. I am so sad for different people in my life who are going through tough times. It just hurts. It isn't even the economy, that's a whole other world of anxiety and hurt for some people we know. I am thankful we have our health and our jobs, but now I am starting to worry. Even Isabelle told me today she thinks we are on the brink of another depression. Great, now she is worried about it too.

5. I had a senior moment today. It was so lame. I had to put this badge into a return box and I was thinking there would be a slot on the top, or in the front that you just dropped it into. I was pushing the badge on the top, then on the front, but I really didn't see any open slot. Isabelle walks back to me and say "Mom, PUUUUUUSH" and pushes in the huge flap that says "PUSH" in black letters. I think she may have even rolled her eyes.

I am going to bed now, I shouldn't even be up. It's past 9:00 and I'm not allowed to operate heavy machinery after a certain time.

Brrr....

Somtimes I like to know what is going to happen weather wise, so I can decide between 2 layers and 4 layers of clothes for any particular day. I hardly ever watch the news on TV, so I check out the newspaper or look up Jeff Renner's predictions on the web. Lately however, there seems to be some discrepancy between what he thinks will happen and what really does happen. A few degrees here and there I can understand, but how long has this guy been a meteorologist???

When we had the snow storm, he lamely said 3 inches here, 2 inches there...I still don't know how my yard ended up with 18 inches. He never said anything about that. He didn't even apologize for the gross error the next day - and I was watching the news, waiting for some display of shame.

Lately it seems like my house is on a different planet than the one he lives on. The newspaper said the low for lastnight was 25 in Seattle and 22 in Bellevue. It was 15 flippin degrees when I got up this morning. The highs lately say 40 something and it's been 32 at my house. Do I live in the Twilight Zone? Maybe. Regardless, I should have a better idea of what to expect. Do I need to warm up the car for 4 minutes, or are we talking a 30 minute thaw here? My hands were stuck to the steering wheel a few days ago, which means I can only go straight, and that really doesn't get us very far beyond the driveway. So if any of you have a better source of weather reporting, please share it with me, I've had it up to HERE with Jeff.

Cuties

These are pretty good lookin' kids if I do say so myself. I just die a little bit each time I look at pictures of them as toddlers, Morrie can hardly stand to go through old pictures. We just miss that time and find it hard to remember them in all their adorable glory. So I am trying to live in the moment NOW and know that these pictures will make me miss them when they are really OLD - like say- 20! What's with kids and growing up anyway??

Still Here!

Well, it's been ahrd to keep up lately. Just wanted you allt o know that I am still here, playing the game of Life. Spinning to wheel and hoping to make some more money. No really, I am looking at some job opportunities and hopefully I can post soon some new and exciting news.

The kids love to play Life. However, last time we played, Isabelle told Maria that after her first spin she had to go to college and proceeded to count out the spaces for her. Maria was not happy with someone taking over her turn and just to spite her sister, took the non college route and proceeded to win the lottery shortly there after.

The Life lesson in that one was a little hard to teach...Morrie and I quickly moved on and pretended nothing happened. That's generally the safest route when faced with guiding your children around really important issues.

Three Dog Night

Because we are a bunch of idiots, we thought it would be great to let Annie have a playdate with 2 other dachshunds. Maria's friend Megan eagerly provided her 2 dogs for the fun, Cody and Cassie.

Cody and Annie are perfectly matched, they love to play at crazy high speeds with one another. Annie is even a tad more energetic than Cody and wanted to play every minute of the 2 hours, while Cody really looked like he wanted a break (hence the panting?).

Cassie is a delicate little girl who looks just like Annie, but is smaller and has a very quiet and demure personality. That kind of dog sounds neat!!!! Here is Isabelle holding Cassie while the other dogs played "Chase Me" and "Grab Me". Cassie was not fond of those games and would bark at them and run to somebody's lap.


Annie has on her Gentle Leader, and no it's not a muzzle! She can still bite you with it on!! It just helps her relax. Actually, it's not relaxing so much as it is distracting her as she rubs all over everything to get it off, and she's not QUITE as crazy as she is without it. Alos, it makes us the boss of her, and we like that. Notice Annie's tail in the picture above, it is straight out and wagging. That means "This is AWESOME!". Cassie' tail is down and between her legs and she is standing very rigidly. That means "This is AWFUL!".

If a picture says a thousand words, I really don't want to know any of them about this picture.

Annie as she tried to rub off her leash on Cody's back.

Annie poops out as Cody and Cassie drive away. She was exhausted (read: quiet) the rest of the day. I think we'll do this again next week!

Gymnast Extradonaire

Maria had her practice gymnastic meet in preparation for her first real one next month. The girls were sooo excited to be wearing their team leotard and performing with nobody else in the gym. They started with warm up and moved on to each apparatus where each of the 18 girls performed their routine. Maria is at the top of these group pictures.

Introducing the level three girls!

Maria watching a teammate perform.
I had to make several adjustments to my camera to even make these pictures work in all the flouresent glory that is a gym. Even though these aren't great, I really tried, and I hope to pick some minds and do better next time. I just can't imagine what the parents got who were using their phones to take pictures!

Flying on the bars!

The floor routines were done in groups of 2, they were so fun to watch!

Maria looks like she is giddy with relief as she sits down with her partner after the floor routine.

Beam time!

The girls crowd around Nancy, their coach, for some love. I can't tell you who loves more, the girls loving Nancy, or Nancy loving the girls! She is the most encouraging and patient coach I have ever seen, in any sport! That does say a lot, because as some of you know, Isabelle's coach is VERY patient and calm compared to every other coach I have seen! But Nancy acts like she would love to take home these girls every week! Godd job Maria!

Will Work for Food

Okay, so my short term assignment is coming to an end with Nintendo, and I need some sort of administrative job to replace it until people decide to go back to throwing their money out the door, I mean paying for massage again. I have found several jobs that seem like a perfect fit, and I thought I would share them with you, and you can give me your opinion. These are taken from today's Craigslist postings, so I still have time to apply:

IT Manager - (Morrie can fill the gaps when I have a question)

Sterilization Person - (Northgate) hmmm...

Chaplain - (West Seattle) God really speaks to me sometimes..."Yes Andrea, go get a latte, you deserve it!"

Swim Instructor - (Lake Union) The Lake? In January?

Russian Instructors - (Bellevue) I'm always rushin' to pick up the kids, rushin' to get them to practice, and well, I'm quite good at it if I do say so myself.

PT / FT Great Pay - APPLY TODAY - (Kent & Federal Ways) Well, I do love great pay, but I thought there was just ONE Federal Way

Hairstylist position - with clientelle - (Ballard) The girls are always saying how great I can do their hair. Except when they are having a mature day and don't want me anywhere near it. I'm really good at 2 ponies, and a single high pony.

Tall blonde Egg Donor Needed Locally - (Seattle/Eastside/South/Bellingham) Hello! They need to look NO further!

Women's Lacrosse Coach - Athletics - Boo Yah!

The best way to make a GREAT living from home! - (Anywhere) If it really was, wouldn't we all be doing it?

Independent Online Fitness Coaches Wanted - (Washington) "You can DO IT!!"

Controller - (Fremont) I DO like to be in control, how did they know?

Men's Locker Room Attendant - (Bellevue) ooohhh...

Skilled Phlebotomist Needed - (Seattle) If I can say it, I think I should be allowed to do it.

On-Call Birth Center Cleaner - (Totem Lake, Kirkland) Really, this is one person't JOB? That's all they do? Ewww...

JAVA GIRLS - Has immediate openings. - (Auburn & Tacoma) Work on my tan before Vegas?

I am so sorry to the 3 people that read this regularly. I have been really busy working and very tired as of late. I also have a ton of pictures on my camera that I would love to download, but I keep forgetting. I don't even have anything funny to say. Can someone please make dinner for me?

Oh Dad!

Apples to Apples is the game here. Have you ever played it? One green card is picked and it gives an adjective. Then all the players throw one red card from their hand to whoever is "it" and that person picks, in their opinion, what word best matches the green card adjective. It was my Dad's turn. My Dad is a roof engineer, he designs roofs, he consults on roof leaks, roofs are his life. That in turn makes climbing ladders his life as well becasue he spends his days either on a ladder taking pictures of roofs, or on the computer writing reports on what he found. These are the red cards that Morrie, myself and my mom had that we threw to him. We were all SURE our card was the winner for the adjective "Loveable".

What are the odds? It was so amazing that we took a picture of his hand, and I am proud to say that my card "cameras" won! I think he just about passed out when he saw the cards!

Love at the Holidays

I was looking over the last of the holiday photos and decided these were too cute to pass up. Kim and my brother Brian before they headed to Florida to see Kim's family and Loren (Morrie's brother) with the girls on Christmas day. I think Loren AND the girls are pretty excited to open presents in this picture!

Since Today is Tuesday the 6th, it MUST mean everyone is back to their normal schedules. It must also meant that the kids are HALF WAY done with the year, yay! I am thrilled because that means warmer weather MUST be getting that much closer each day and I am TIRED of being cold. I think we should vacation somewhere HOT in June and pretend it is summer, unlike here where June is mild and luke warm. If you have any ideas about where to vacation, please share!!

Article for Winter Storm '08

By Ron Judd, Seattle Times columnist

OK, we know this is about a week late. Somewhere during our move from one section of the paper to the other, the following memo about winter weather ramifications for the Puget Sound region was temporarily misplaced.This stuff happens.But it looks so amazingly prescient now that it's tough to keep it under wraps. So we feel compelled to offer it up today, in the true holiday spirit of we-told-you-so-ism.

Clip and save:To: Western Washington.

From: Salt, Sand and Ceaseless Whining Division, Public Works Department, Escrow Heights.

Re: Winter storm watch.

Residents should be advised that a large weather system, alternately named "Arctic Plunge," "December Blast" and "Holiday Armageddon" by local television stations, is approaching Western Washington.When it arrives, a foot or more of snow throughout the Puget Sound lowlands is possible. Please be prepared for the following likely developments:
1. In an apparent early bid for the 2018 Winter Olympics, the City of Seattle (motto: No, We Can't) will swiftly turn most hilly city streets into bobsled/luge runs by refusing to apply salt to streets, citing concerns about the salt eventually mixing with the saltwater of Puget Sound. It's the first phase of an innovative green-city plan that eventually will preclude the use of piped water to fight fires, out of concern that it might eventually mix with groundwater.
2. Hopes of Seattle residents that streets are finally about to be cleared will be summarily dashed when they realize the city's giant plow trucks are actually fitted with plow blades made of environmentally sensitive hemp lace doilies.
3. Mayor Greg Nickels, D-Sodium Free/Carbon Neutral, will schedule a news conference to declare Seattle's response to the Arctic Plunge an "unqualified success."
4. The U.S. Mail will stop. Cold. Dead. Completely. That package you were expecting with gifts for the kids? Fuggedaboutit. Did you fail to see the asterisk chiseled into that "Neither snow nor rain nor ... " inscription on that NYC post office back in 1992? It's too dangerous to deliver the mail on slippery streets. Never mind if yours is bare, dry, completely sanded and lined with aromatic candy canes. You're not getting your stuff. Understand?.
5. Garbage will pile up for so long that it eventually will compost itself.
6. Successful United Parcel Service deliveries will occur in inverse proportion to how badly you need the stuff being delivered. Customers clicking on tracking numbers will see lots of verbiage about "natural disasters." What can brown do for you? In December, not a helluva lot.
7. Computer network servers hosting the "Where's My Stuff?" data for Amazon.com will heat up, begin to smoke and burst into flames. The company will quickly install a helpful new customer-service Web site feature, "Where the $(#@&! is My !@*$#% Stuff?" to take its place.
8. Hundreds of articulated Metro buses will jackknife in the middle of local streets, where they shall lie in state, like rotting whale carcasses, until skunk cabbages begin to grow out of their wheel wells in the spring. The short buses will run only on routes far, far from your neighborhood and place of work.
9. Alaska Airlines, apparently unaccustomed to flying in places where it's cold, will run out of de-icer when the entire month's supply — contained in a dented stainless steel Thermos bottle carried into work by a nonunion contractor — is exhausted within the first five minutes of the snowstorm. Customers will be urged to rebook flights online, where they will be directed to call an 800 number, which will tell them to book online.
10. Greyhound, taking customer service to a level rarely seen outside North Korea, will shut down all its buses, citing the danger to drivers and passengers. Several dozen passengers stranded in the downtown Seattle bus station will be shoved out into the snow at terminal closing time, then jeered and pelted with iceballs by Greyhound employees going home to their warm houses at night. No refunds will be issued.Passengers eventually will get out of town by chartering their own buses, which will employ innovative, newfangled devices known as tire chains.
11. Gas stations throughout the region will quickly run out of gas, but will remain open to serve you a delightful 48-hour-rotary-wheeled Jumbo Dog, or a pack of gum to chew as a means to keep warm as you spend three nights in your Suburban.
12. You might not get your newspaper on time. Hey, if it's too scary for the Post Office to swiftly complete its appointed rounds, it's too scary for us.Which means some of you won't see this until it's really, really too late. Which makes us wonder if it's even worth bothering.Nevertheless, to all you folks online and elsewhere: Merry Christmas.And pray for rain.
-Ron Judd

Happy New Year!!

2009 ALREADY??? Well, lastnight we really partied. Maria unearthed a coupon book we gave them 2 years ago (I can't believe they haven't used more of them) and used the "Stay Up All Night" coupon. Isabelle, not to be outdone, ran to get hers and used the "Family Game Night" coupon (she already tried staying up all night). So we played "Life", and Maria stayed up until 3am. I bet she would have fallen asleep faster if Morrie hadn't been playing Mario Kart with her so much! That and I do believe she has a stubborn streak in there that kept her up! Cheers everyone!