Monday, April 13, 2009
Saturday, April 11, 2009
Monday, April 6, 2009
I've been thinking
I've been thinking about doing something "more" with my time. Lots of my friends have work from home jobs or volunteer posts or other things besides tending the house and the kids, full time. Working really isn't an option, until MT is in school full time and even then I'm not sure. There are so many things that go on at school that I want to be part of, that I couldn't if I worked a regular job. Plus, I'm insistent that I be home in the afternoon with the kids. Fortunately, my ECE education lends itself pretty well to that kind of alternative schedule. Still, not the right time for all that yet.
Volunteering would be something to consider but I don't really want all that commitment. Last year, I spent a lot of time in TB's classroom and by the end of the year, I was completely burning out doing it. Going in each week was drudgery and I don't want to feel that way about something that is supposed to be good.
I really want something I can do at home that doesn't require a ton of time. I would like to do some kind of writing or something. Maybe a monthly newsletter or product reviews or something. I write my "Freaky Travels" blog and I really like doing that. However, I just can't afford to travel far and wide enough to make it be what I want it to be. I could expand it to general product reviews or TV show reviews or something but I don't know what kind of readership there is for that.
I read The Full Mommy and want to do something like that. Anyone know of any review sites that are looking for contributers? Or groups that need newsletters written? I promise to proofread and spell check better than I do here :)
Volunteering would be something to consider but I don't really want all that commitment. Last year, I spent a lot of time in TB's classroom and by the end of the year, I was completely burning out doing it. Going in each week was drudgery and I don't want to feel that way about something that is supposed to be good.
I really want something I can do at home that doesn't require a ton of time. I would like to do some kind of writing or something. Maybe a monthly newsletter or product reviews or something. I write my "Freaky Travels" blog and I really like doing that. However, I just can't afford to travel far and wide enough to make it be what I want it to be. I could expand it to general product reviews or TV show reviews or something but I don't know what kind of readership there is for that.
I read The Full Mommy and want to do something like that. Anyone know of any review sites that are looking for contributers? Or groups that need newsletters written? I promise to proofread and spell check better than I do here :)
Saturday, April 4, 2009
Friday, April 3, 2009
Random anger and a few good things
It makes me really angry when people lie about the time they spend working out. RF's work has a gym, it costs 1/10 the amount of most gyms in town to go to so I do. Occasionally, they run contests for gifts cards to various places for participating for a certain amount of time. They aren't competitions since anyone that completes the program gets a gift card. That is what got me back in the gym this time. They are giving away a $30 Best Buy gift card for working out 3 times a week for 30 minutes per time for 8 weeks. I've already spent the gift card in my head so I have to complete the challenge to get get my stuff. I realize that what other people do has no bearing on my progress (which is 6 minutes at 3 miles an hour on the stairs right now) and "they are only hurting themselves", but when they screw around I want to yell at them. A lot of people fudge their in and out time on the log. I will be in there, 10 minutes into my time on the elliptical and someone will come in, sign in, ride the bike for a few minutes, sign out and leave. Their sign in time is almost always listed as before mine and their sign out after. There is a prox card sensor/lock on the door that you have to scan your ID to get in but I don't know how often that log gets compared to the written one. The other thing they do is come in, piddle around reading the fit facts, do a couple of reps on the weight machines, spent 10 minutes sipping water, do a couple more reps, watch some TV, a couple more, chat with the other people, etc. So they may actually be in the room for 90 minutes but they are only working out 20 minutes of that time. Lame. I think in addition to the door being locked, all the machines should have codes on them and you should have to input your code to turn it on. Then it would log the amount of time, under your account, that you worked out that day. Then no cheating. I've been told I'm the only one that cares and as long as people pretend to complete the program, that is all they care about.
Something else that irritates me is book series. This used to be basically a Sci-Fi thing, where books would have 27 books in the same series. Never bothered me until it bled over into mystery. Of course, I love the hold system at the library and have many series on hold but if it isn't a Champaign book, you might get your hold in 2 days, you might get it in 2 weeks, your book might be working on the first solo hike around the world and you might never get it. So I still end up browsing the shelves, looking for something to fill time until my next book comes in. Of course because everything is a series, you can't just wonder down the aisle and pick up something that looks interesting anymore. If you do, you might end up with the 2nd, 10th or 50th book in the series. RF says "research it before you leave and find the first book" I say, "since I pick books that have interesting covers, that doesn't work, besides even if I did, there is no guarantee that the first book would be on the shelf and then I would back in the hold system again". I'm fine with the concept of series because I like getting to know the characters better and I like knowing that I have more to read. I just don't like not knowing where the book is in the series. Name your book whatever cute, funny, punny title you feel the need to call it. Then in large print, somewhere on the cover say "the 3rd book in the Britt Montero" series (the series I'm currently reading) so I don't end up with book 2 and 4, thinking I have 2 and 3 and wondering WTF is going on when I crack open 4 and it is talking about stuff I have no idea about, leaving the book to languish on my counter for over a month while I wait for book 3 to come in (which is what happened to me with the last bunch of books I got)
We got our new fridge yesterday. We have been telling the landlord since we moved in that that thing was on it's way out. It has always made these horrible creaking and groaning noises whenever it kicked on or off. Recently, it has started having different temperature zones in it. Some areas are a little warm, leaving my pop less than pleasant. Other areas are so cold food is freezing. I can't tell you how much stuff I've had to toss because it froze (stuff that isn't supposed to freeze, like tomatoes). They left the old one so the new one had time to get cold and we could take our time switching the stuff over. I left it plugged in all night and started moving food this AM. We are going from a side by side to a top and bottom. The fridge part is about 4 inches wider than our old one, which I great. It has 3 shelves, instead of 2 and it is taller. The freezer, on the other hand, is teeny, tiny. I fit about half the stuff in our freezer in it. A lot of it was stuff that has been in there for ages (some frozen fruit from when I made smoothies for breakfast when I was working, before I got pregnant with MT) so I threw a lot away. But I also knew that this is about the emptiest the freezer is going to be because grocery shopping is Tuesday. I called the landlord and asked if we could keep the old fridge and put it on the porch. She said sure, they couldn't do anything with it. So they are coming sometime early next week to hook up the water line (new fridge has an ice maker in it) and haul the old one to the porch. I'm going to use it for freezer space and for drink and other stuff that temp doesn't matter in the fridge. Now to clear off the porch to make room for it.
Finally, does it make me a bad mom that I declined to sit upstairs and watch "Bedtime Stories" with my kids because my dad i up there? I did promise TB that I would watch it with him again tomorrow afternoon but I couldn't bring myself to hang out up there all night. Plus, it sounds like they are jumping off things and generally running wild and I'm rather glad I'm not up there right now.
Something else that irritates me is book series. This used to be basically a Sci-Fi thing, where books would have 27 books in the same series. Never bothered me until it bled over into mystery. Of course, I love the hold system at the library and have many series on hold but if it isn't a Champaign book, you might get your hold in 2 days, you might get it in 2 weeks, your book might be working on the first solo hike around the world and you might never get it. So I still end up browsing the shelves, looking for something to fill time until my next book comes in. Of course because everything is a series, you can't just wonder down the aisle and pick up something that looks interesting anymore. If you do, you might end up with the 2nd, 10th or 50th book in the series. RF says "research it before you leave and find the first book" I say, "since I pick books that have interesting covers, that doesn't work, besides even if I did, there is no guarantee that the first book would be on the shelf and then I would back in the hold system again". I'm fine with the concept of series because I like getting to know the characters better and I like knowing that I have more to read. I just don't like not knowing where the book is in the series. Name your book whatever cute, funny, punny title you feel the need to call it. Then in large print, somewhere on the cover say "the 3rd book in the Britt Montero" series (the series I'm currently reading) so I don't end up with book 2 and 4, thinking I have 2 and 3 and wondering WTF is going on when I crack open 4 and it is talking about stuff I have no idea about, leaving the book to languish on my counter for over a month while I wait for book 3 to come in (which is what happened to me with the last bunch of books I got)
We got our new fridge yesterday. We have been telling the landlord since we moved in that that thing was on it's way out. It has always made these horrible creaking and groaning noises whenever it kicked on or off. Recently, it has started having different temperature zones in it. Some areas are a little warm, leaving my pop less than pleasant. Other areas are so cold food is freezing. I can't tell you how much stuff I've had to toss because it froze (stuff that isn't supposed to freeze, like tomatoes). They left the old one so the new one had time to get cold and we could take our time switching the stuff over. I left it plugged in all night and started moving food this AM. We are going from a side by side to a top and bottom. The fridge part is about 4 inches wider than our old one, which I great. It has 3 shelves, instead of 2 and it is taller. The freezer, on the other hand, is teeny, tiny. I fit about half the stuff in our freezer in it. A lot of it was stuff that has been in there for ages (some frozen fruit from when I made smoothies for breakfast when I was working, before I got pregnant with MT) so I threw a lot away. But I also knew that this is about the emptiest the freezer is going to be because grocery shopping is Tuesday. I called the landlord and asked if we could keep the old fridge and put it on the porch. She said sure, they couldn't do anything with it. So they are coming sometime early next week to hook up the water line (new fridge has an ice maker in it) and haul the old one to the porch. I'm going to use it for freezer space and for drink and other stuff that temp doesn't matter in the fridge. Now to clear off the porch to make room for it.
Finally, does it make me a bad mom that I declined to sit upstairs and watch "Bedtime Stories" with my kids because my dad i up there? I did promise TB that I would watch it with him again tomorrow afternoon but I couldn't bring myself to hang out up there all night. Plus, it sounds like they are jumping off things and generally running wild and I'm rather glad I'm not up there right now.
Thursday, April 2, 2009
Time to vote
Back in October I wrote about my support for 1% sales tax increase. Unfortunately, it didn't pass in the fall, probably because of a lack of education about what it involved in the outlying districts (this is county wide so not just our school district).
It has been put on the ballot again this election. Again, I encourage everyone to vote YES for more school funding. This increase is a good way to support our schools because it allows us to take advantage of the huge student population, in a way that property tax just doesn't. In Unit 4, this money means a new school in Savoy, a new building for BTW and a new addition for Garden Hills (which fulfill the consent decree requirements of more strands north of University). In addition, it means a reduction in property taxes and building improvements for most of the other elementary schools in the district.
I don't know the specifics of what other districts are doing, but I do know that many of them are pledging property tax reduction as well.
Just to reiterate, please vote YES for a 1% sales tax increase to support school funding on April 7th!
It has been put on the ballot again this election. Again, I encourage everyone to vote YES for more school funding. This increase is a good way to support our schools because it allows us to take advantage of the huge student population, in a way that property tax just doesn't. In Unit 4, this money means a new school in Savoy, a new building for BTW and a new addition for Garden Hills (which fulfill the consent decree requirements of more strands north of University). In addition, it means a reduction in property taxes and building improvements for most of the other elementary schools in the district.
I don't know the specifics of what other districts are doing, but I do know that many of them are pledging property tax reduction as well.
Just to reiterate, please vote YES for a 1% sales tax increase to support school funding on April 7th!
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