Aren't dogs great!

When I got home from work today, I was greeted by Alma. She is always happy to see me, she grabs her toy and runs around. So, of course, I let her out. She knows how to get what she wants. She never asks for much, and she gives so much back. Now she is busy guarding the house. Aren't dogs great!

Yoga Mama?

I saw an article in yesterday's Chicago Tribune that compared soccer moms with the new and trendy YOGA MAMAS. It really didn't apply to me, since my soccer mom days are long over and my husband usually handled that stuff. I was however a music mom. The part that I found humorous was that YOGA MAMAS have blogs. So am I a YOGA MAMA? I do go to yoga classes and have been doing so for several years. I am a mom. I do have a blog. I do volunteer.
Well, enough on that subject.
I spent part of lst Sat. shopping, or actually looking at fashions at the local mall with my son's friend Caitlyn. Can't say that there was anything I wanted to try on or acutally buy. I guess I will have to stick with the boring and slightly worn stuff in my closet.
After my husband and I dropped Caitlyn off at the train, we went to Taylor Street, an old Chicago neighborhood for some Italian food. We tried Francesca's on Taylor. We sat in the bar, next to the window, which is fun to do. Food was good and we had a nice time. Then we drove home the long way on Ashland Ave. There was new building in almost every neighborhood that we drove through. Chicago is undergoing a renaissance. Nice.

Left Behind

Today is a lovely winter day. It is sunny and cold. I really don't mind days like today, its the damp and cloudy days that bother me. On those days I just want to stay in the house and sit in my chair and look out the window.
We went out to breakfast with Caitlyn, one of my son's friends who is here for auditions. The Ridgeview was packed--every table was filled. Maybe people wanted to go out because the sun was shining. Later I will be going out to lunch with my Mother and Lucy, and old friend who is here from Boston.
I am almost finished with tutoring the kids for the ISAT test. I will be at school until March 24, but I will be working on testing. The month of March is devoted to testing in Illinois public schools. Everybody is frantic. These tests run everything. If the school doesn't pass, all kind of horrible things will happen. I am afraid that many of my kids will not pass the test--about half will by my guess. They read so slowly, but hopefully they will read the passages. I found out that their strategy for taking a standardized test was to read the questions, then look for the answers in the text. They didn't read the passages. Didn't work for them, since very few of them had passed tests in the past. Hopefully I have gotten them to read the materials. Unfortunetly, that takes them forever. This is what they will have to do: read two passages, answer about 30 questions, and write an extended response of about 1 page. I gave them a sample test session and this took them about 70 minutes. Too bad that the test allows them 55 minutes. The extended response is 15% of the score. The reading test is made up of 3 sessions like this. I am afraid that many of them will blow the extended response off. This is why my header today is " left behind. " These children will be left behind, and maybe the school will be too. So much for the Leave No Child Behind Act.

American Idol is back.

I said that I will comment on everything.
Idol is back and I'm enjoying it. Too bad I missed most of yesterday's performance. I'm listening to the guys today. They are more polished performers than last year's crew. I am surprised by the numbers that these guys are singing--a lot of older stuff. One even sang James Brown's Shout--one of my all time favorites. Idol is beathing the Olympics in ratings, and I can see why.

Taxes again. Purses too.

Its that time of year. Tax time. I don't mind doing them, since I use Turbo Tax. I usually do 3 returns, mine, my son's and my parent's. This year, I will not be doing my parents since it will be too complicated--I'm sending it to an accountant. But, I'll still have to get it organized, and that will be complex.
I worked on my taxes, since I am also doing my son's fafsa. Aren't I a good mother!
I was in Nordstroms again yesterday. A lot of spring fashion is in. I can't get over how ugly the handbags are. Now I like purses, but I didn't see anything at all that I would want to buy. The bags are too big, too decorated, too gathered, too sparkly, too heavy. What happened to a slick, plain bag? Maybe I am getting too old and stodgy, but I can't see spending $200 and over for a hideous purse. So, my old tried and true bags will have to do.
My most recent purchase is a Issac Mizrahi from Target. It is plain, even though it is partly plastic, it does the job.
Please purse people, change your ways. Design some nice classic bags. PLEASE.

A fine Saturday

This has been a fine Saturday. I went out to breakfast with my husband, then I drove to a nearby garden center for a presentation on orchids and their care. I have several orchids in my care for the past few years, and they actually bloom! The presentation confirmed that I am doing the right thing by my plants.
I got home and popped some sheets into the machine--remember that I am a housewife--and went out to lunch with my oldest girlfriend.
We had a wonderful lunch at Convito Italiano, and then we did what many women love more than anything--we went shopping. I didn't buy anything, my role was fashion adviser. My friend found some nice shoes and an outfit for a trip she is taking soon.
I don't know why, but shopping when you don't need to buy anything is fun. You look at everything, check out the new styles, look at the jewelry and purses, and think about what you may want to try on later. I love to look at Chico's, the store is spacious and has nice fitting rooms. I just got a new catalog today, and there is some nice stuff in it, but I didn't see much of it in the store yet. Oh well, maybe another trip.
It was good to spend time with my friend--we have known each other since we were in second grade--that's a long time.

Where should we go?

Since this year, 2006 is my 60th birthday year, my son's graduation from college and my husband's and my 25th anniversary, I suggested that we take a trip to someplace wonderful. We had several ideas on the table, but nothing was decided, so now time is running out and still not trip in the works.
I was talking to a travel agent and she gave me the idea that I have to plan 6-12 months in advance, so going someplace in 2006 is not practical. I am beginning to feel that my trip may never happen.
Where should we go? When should we go? Should we go at all?

I would like to go back to New Zealand for a visit. I lived there for a year 30 years ago. I would like to see it again and see my friends. My husband isn't very excited about the idea.
Anybody have any suggestions?

Valentine's day revisited

Valentine's day is over. I saw in the comic strip Cathy, that revisiting Valentine's is pretty common, at least in Cathy's world.
In my world, at work the flowers were still on display in several classrooms, and there was a big thank you to the male teachers for the breakfast in the office. This was the biggest valentine's day I have experienced for a long time. I stopped over at my mother's apartment community and they had quite an elaborate party-- roses, pasteries, champagne, fancy tortes and lots of ballons. The dining room was beautifully decorated and the ladies all got dressed up with a touch of red or pink.
I even recieved a handmade valentine, lovingly made by my mother.
Happy day after Valentine's day everybody.

High Maintenanceor low?

A young man recently told me how frustrating Valentine's day was to him. It didn't matter what he did for his girlfriend--a card, candy, flowers, a homecooked dinner, it was never enough. Needless to say, the lady in question is now an exgirlfriend.
I started to think about high or low maintenance relationships. I did a quick and very informal survey at school--most of the women considered themselves to be low maintance. One said that her valentine gift was a new car seat. Others said that they had told their husbands not to waste the money. But I did notice that there were several bouquets delivered to work today.
So why do some women need all the stuff--flowers, especially delivered at work? Candy, gifts? Why do others need or want nothing?
My own sweetie asked me last week if it was ok for him to go out of town on a business trip on valentines day. I told him to go ahead. Does that make me low maintance? I feel quite secure about our relationship. I don't need candy, flowers die, and a nice dinner can be had this weekend. I know that he loves me because he got tickets to the opera--something in which he hasn't shown much interest. If he is willing to spend almost four hours watching an opera in a foreign language, just because I want to see it, makes me feel very loved.
So am I really low maintence, or am I high?
My husband cooks every night, he does a lot of things around the house, he had been very helpful to my mother. He doesn't spend a lot of money on things. Valentines day isn't a big deal to him, but his birthday is huge.
So, maintaining a relationship really can't be catagorized as high or low. I guess that what works is keeping a balance--then everyone is happy.

Things begin, things end, but life goes on.

Things begin and things end. But life goes on.
2005 and into 2006 has been a huge year for me. I retired from teaching in 2004, and looked forward to doing nothing for a while. So I immediately started to look for a job. I found one--tutoring in the No Child Left Behind program at Gale School in Chicago. I also started to volunteer at the Chicago Botanic Garden--working with kids, of course. I took the Master Gardeners course and passed it. I am now an official University of Illinois Extension Master Gardener.
This is what I thought retirement was going to be--a part time job, going out to lunch, volunteering.
My mother sold her house in Sept of 2005. That was a job that was almost impossible. First of all, she didn't want to sell at all. The house was too big and too expensive for her, but she didn't want to leave it. We had to clean out 50 years of stuff. I hired a shredding service to shred 50 years of canceled checks--30 boxes of various papers that couldn't be put into the trash. I had a garage sale. We put over 300 books on consignment on e-bay. We still had huge piles of stuff on garbage day.
Mom sold the house in July, much to her dismay. On the day of the realtors open house, people were lined up in front. There was an offer tendered before the open house was over. She recieved 8 offers and sold the house for $40 thousand over asking.
We found her a nice apartment in a continuing care community. She was scheduled to move on Sept 15. On the 11th, I took her to the emergency room since she wasn't feeling well. She had surgery for apendicidis, which turned out to be colon cancer. Her furniture moved, she didn't. She moved into her apartment late in Sept. She has made a remarkable recovery.
In November, my dad passed away from Parkinson's disease. In the Jewish faith, it is believed that peoples names are written in the book of life on Yom Kipper. Some will live, some will die. It was my dad's time. He was in a nursing home for 3 years, fighting the disease all the way. As the pastor told us, he is in a better place now.
Things begin, things end, but life goes on.

An early baby boomer turns 60

January 30 was my 6oth birthday.
I really can't be considered a baby-boomer since the official first boomers were born in April of 1946, but since I was born in 1946, I do consider myself to be one the the first boomers. As my class--high school class of 1964-- traveled through school, everything was noted. There was a huge article on Look magazine about my graduating class at Evanston High School. When I graduated from college, there was a feature article in Time Magazine about my class. Funny, it featured Robert Reich on the cover--he became a member of Bill Clinton's cabinet. Both Presidents Bush and Clinton graduated from high school in 1964--the first baby boomer presidents!
I wasn't afraid of turning 60--my 30th birthday was much more daunting. 40 was nothing big--I had a 2 year old baby, so I really didn't think much about it. 50 was fine--my husband through a big party. 60, well I want to take a big trip with my family.
2006 is a big year for us. I turn 60, Alan--my husband and I will be married for 25 years, and our son will graduate from college. I think that we deserve to celebrate.