Always Remember That

My children, both of them, are seemingly incapable of turning over in bed without bonking their heads against the headboard or the wall. Several times a night I hear the rustle-rustle of a child shifting position, and then a big CLONK. I always tense up, waiting for the wail, but they never wake up or cry. I do supply them with pillows, and their beds are sufficiently roomy, so I'm not sure what's with all the skull-bashing. I suppose it does prove that I have extremely hard-headed daughters; something that I've already figured out the hard way anyway.

So we moved to the new office building last Friday. The new office is very nice; the floors are shiny, the walls are not marked up, everything has that new-car smell (which probably means I’m inhaling all sorts of off-gassed chemicals, yay!). It took me seven fewer minutes to drive to this office this morning, hooray! It’s embarrassing to admit, but I was actually feeling a bit sad about leaving the old building. Not devastatingly sad, of course; I just felt a little twinge. I’ve worked in that building for twelve years, after all, so I’ve probably spent more time there than in any other building in my lifetime. Okay, now I am devastatingly sad. Twelve years. At a job that I never particularly wanted in the first place. And that I cannot – despite my desires to do something else, anything else – justify leaving. I’ve applied for two different jobs in the past 18 months, both of which I was eminently qualified for. Both places loved me! Loved my resume! And told me they couldn’t afford ...

This was in our CSA box this week: I have mixed feelings about the CSA experience. For ten bucks a week, we get a box of fresh, organic fruits and veggies, grown on a farm just down the road from us. I love that we're supporting a local farmer. I love that the produce is grown without pesticides. I love the strawberries we've gotten, and the cucumbers, and the specialty lettuces, and the tomatoes, and the broccoli. I do not, however, love the cabbage. Or the kale. Or the zucchini. Or the onions (because I don't like onions). I do love how this cauliflower looks. I didn't know that cauliflower could be purple, much less such a vivid, gorgeous shade of purple. But I have absolutely no desire to eat it.

If you're lucky, you may have a few people in your life with whom you always feel at home, no matter how much time may pass between visits. My college roommate Janaki, who came to visit two weeks ago, is one of those people for me. On paper, we didn't have much in common, so I'm not sure how we were "matched" as roommates our first year at Trinity. Me -- small-town girl, daughter of a cattle farmer, with aspirations of becoming a novelist; her -- Hindu from Dallas, ambitions to become a doctor. But apart from a slight awkwardness when I told her what my father did for a living, we clicked right away, and lived together for two years (until I went to England and she became an RA), mostly in harmony. We were both studious, both a little naive, both more interested in talking about the crazy things that college kids tend to do than in doing those crazy things ourselves. She was pre-med, I was an English major. While I read my way through Norton's Anthology, and s...

Stolen from another blog... What were you doing 5 years ago? More or less what I'm doing now, except with one 1.5 year old instead of a 6.5 year old and an almost-3 year old. Yay for progress. What are five things on your to-do list for today? 1. Make a to-do list. 2. Transfer money for bill-paying purposes. 3. Write something on the blog. (Check!) 4. Vacuum living room rug (won't get done). 5. Avoid pan of brownies in kitchen. What are five snacks you enjoy? 1. Grapes 2. Pineapple 3. Cashews or pecans 4. Baby carrots 5. Cheetos. (Who am I kidding with 1-4?) What are five of your bad habits? 1. Mindless eating. 2. Avoiding housework. 3. Procrastination. 4. Mindless spending. 5. Too much blog reading. What are five places where you have lived? 1. Panhandle of Texas 2. San Antonio 3. Norwich, England 4. Carrboro, NC 5. Present Town, NC What are five jobs you've had? 1. Babysitter 2. Library assistant 3. Insurance company receptionist 4. Data entry 5. Wed Editor

So, Mallory almost fainted today during Mass (her school has Mass every Friday morning). She's fine now, but I'm taking her to the doctor this afternoon. I'm sure there will be no easily identifiable reason for her almost fainting, so I'll just have to continue worrying and wondering. She claims, incidentally, that it was the incense in the church that did it. I kind of suspect this is a ploy to avoid going to church in the future. I'll keep you posted, if there is anything post-worthy.

1. I don't know whether to be proud of, or embarrassed by, the fact that the shirt I'm wearing today is at least ten years old. 2. Fresh pineapple is the most delicious food on earth. 3. My company is moving to a new office building in two weeks. This means a shorter commute for me -- yay! However, it also means that I have to find a new dentist and a new eyebrow waxer (waxist?) -- boo. 4. My college roommate visited last week. Will write more about this soon. Have not felt much like writing lately. 5. There is nothing cuter than a two-year-old girl who suddenly turns to you and says, "Mommy, I love you! And I hope all your wishes come true!" 6. I like this blog layout, but I wish the content area were a bit wider. I wonder if I am brave enough to tweak it a bit. If you come back and everything's all kaflooey, you'll know why. 7. Only sixteen more days of school! 8. I wish I had all summer off. 9. If it's wrong to hide the fresh (expensive) pineapple from ...

Wednesday, 8:15 p.m. I observe: "You know, Phoebe has never thrown up, not even once!" Friday, 12:30 a.m. You can fill this part in on your own.

"Mommy, there's a baby bird on the ground!" Mallory called. I sighed. This wasn't going to end well, I was afraid. I remembered the baby birds I came across as a child, that I would gaze at with a mixture of revulsion and sorrow -- featherless, purply, clearly dead. I went over to where Mallory was and saw a little lump, reddish instead of purple, with the downy beginnigs of feathers and a bright yellow beak, lying in an awkward heap under the pear tree. And breathing. "What do we do?" Mallory asked. I was about to answer and then I saw another one. And another. And another. I took a step back and surveyed the area -- four little lumps of birds, all still alive, all raising their beaks to the air. Their nest was over to the side, blown out of the tree by the heavy winds that had gusted that morning. Clearly we had to do something to save them, but what? "I'm calling Mimi," Mallory declared, running to the house. An excellent idea -- my sister-i...

What are you to think when someone says this to you: "Did you get a haircut?" and you say, "Yes, I did," and the person says, "Oh!" and that's it. I mean, if you're going to go so far as to ask the question, and acknowledge the snippage, isn't it polite to just go all the way and say, "Well it sure looks nice!" instead of just, "Oh!" And if you're not going to compliment the haircut, then just keep your mouth shut to begin with. A few years ago (three and half, to be precise) I was at the drugstore buying a pregnancy test (her name is Phoebe). Mallory was with me; when we got to the checkout stand the clerk said, "Wow, your daughter looks just like you!" "You think so?" I asked, because this is something I rarely hear. "Yes!" he said. Then he added, "And I mean that as a comment!" To this day I still wonder -- did he get his words mixed up? Did he actually mean "compliment...