Sunday Night Six-Pack

Okay, Sunday nights aren't normally for Six-Packs, but after this week in particular, and the fact that I'm woefully out of bloggy routine, what the hell.  There's a full moon, too, so why not? 

1.  I really, really miss blogging on a regular basis.  So many of my vents and rants take place here, that when I don't get them off my chest, it comes to meltdown status.  Not weepy, sobby meltdowns, but gripey, bitchy radioactive snarkiness that could bubble over at any point.  Right now that's directed at family members.  We have always been somewhat squabbly and quirky, I'll give you that, but since Edna's death, we put the FUN in dysfunction.  Actually, I continually have to remind myself that things aren't worse since her death--the things that are screwed up were that way long before she was even sick...but it's her absence that makes it seem worse.  I won't go into details, but there are members of my immediate family that need a swift kick in the ass reminder that family isn't just about traditions and holidays, but also about the nitty gritty and about being there for the not-so-pleasant stuff.  And yes, sometimes it involves inconvenience and changing one's plans, but SO WHAT?  It's coming from both sides right now, too, which doesn't help. 

2.  I'm in love with several household appliances...my Scentsy warmer and the Nook.  Well, let me clarify...I'm in love with one Scentsy warmer and one Better Homes warmer (read that, cheap Walmart knockoff).  My house smells like oatmeal cookies and gingerbread, and it's certainly not because I'm baking.  And it smells like that DAILY, not just when company's coming over and I light the candles.  It's no small feat in a house like this, either...when you combine 200 year-old house smells with a crotchety old cat who can no longer consistently aim into the litterbox and the fact that I'm a laissez-faire housekeeper, it's a small miracle. 

3.  The Nook Tablet we got for Christmas is my new favorite thing, but like all things--when I do something, I sort of do it obsessively.  So, I've downloaded about 76 books since Christmas Day, and I take personal pride in the fact that I've only paid about ten dollars total for books.  I'm on a quest for every free Nook book there is...so I not only check out Cheap e-Reads, NookJr, and NookTeen on Facebook for the new finds, but I personally search daily for the freebies.  I already have more books than I can possibly read (and even some that I know I'll never read, but I grabbed them "just in case.")  It's a family Nook, but we might have to add a little brother or sister to the family just so we can read the books we have and also play Angry Birds and update Twitter.  I'm really just waiting for the implants into our brains/eyes so that we can be connected 24/7.  Kidding, I think.

4.  College basketball season is in full swing...but unfortunately, our team is not.  I need a win soon, because even though I'll keep watching and cheering, my optimism is waning.  In the past, I could go to games just to go, and have fun, and be pleasantly surprised when we won...but I got used to winning MOST of the time, and that's not happening now.  My Dukes are struggling, and although I'm not calling for the coach's head on a plate like some other "loyal" fans, I really, really want something to turn around.  I'm too emotional about it to be a good fan, though, because I worry too much about players' feelings being hurt, or whether they're discouraged by the losses.  Okay, maybe I'm too much of a GIRL about it.  :-P

5.  I have had bronchitis/laryngitis/sinusitis for what seems like forever.  It actually dates back to before Thanksgiving when I had strep throat and tonsillitis.  I'm sick of being hoarse and coughing, and I should probably go back to the doctor, but there just isn't time.  Between basketball games, Andrew's karate classes, afterschool homework club, faculty meetings, sick and post-surgical parents, a house that's too flipping big and doesn't clean itself, and...oh yeah, and SLEEP...I just can't make the time appear.  So I suffer, and sound terrible, and uggggh.

6.  Andrew spontaneously requested going to his grammy's for a sleepover next weekend, so we're planning a (gasp) night out.  We'll start, of course, by watching our team get pummeled win at home, then hopefully we'll head out on the town, if we can manage to stay awake past 10 p.m.  It's really sad, and probably a sign of old age, when it sounds like too much effort to go out and I'd just rather come home, snuggle up with the  Nook and a snack, and get a solid twelve hours of night's sleep.   

With the college basketball season around the corner, I decided to take a more recent trip in the WayBack Machine. This shot is from November, 2005. Andrew is a wee pup - just three months old. We are at the JMU Convocation Center for an exhibition game. A tradition that continues to this day begins with this shot of Andrew with Duke Dog. I was flipping through all the Duke Dog shots at work this week. It is hard to believe it has been three years. It goes without saying that Duke Dog and Mommy look pretty much the same. Daddy has been losing hair - not Duke Dog's fault!!

Barack Obama in Harrisonburg

I should just let the pictures speak for themselves. Andrew is in bed sound asleep, and that's where I want to be, too. But, I dragged myself off of his bed, where I was cozily surrounded by 8 million stuffed animals, to write this post--it shouldn't wait until tomorrow.

We ended up venturing into Harrisonburg today for the Obama Rally. James had taken the day off and stayed home with Andrew, and I left school at 11:30 so we could go up early enough to get in, knowing that JMU students were planning to start lining up early this morning and that there was a chance we'd be out of luck. All went as planned--our luck even allowed us to cross paths with our friend Sue, who hitched a ride with us onto campus after her preschool field trip to the pumpkin patch with son Jackson. James dumped Sue and me out in front of the convocation center after seeing that there were TONS of people already there at 12:15. Sue and I got in line, and James and Andrew went to pick up Leigh Ann and McD's and park the car. It was a long afternoon of waiting in the cold---we were even graced with a few snow flurries and some hellacious wind, but it was tolerable waiting on the cushiony astro-turf of the soccer field, where our line coiled around and around...and around.

We ended up not getting in to the convocation center--they filled up around 4:15. But our timing was good--just as we found out they weren't letting anyone else inside, we found ourselves at the corner of the soccer field where an impromptu "stump" had been set up--a small, square platform, surrounded by metal crowd-control fencing. Rumor got around that Senator Obama was going to stop there before going inside--a consolation prize for the unlucky thousands who didn't get in, us included. By that time, there was also a line to get inside the metal fencing in front of the platform, so we just positioned ourselves behind the last barrier to wait the last few minutes before Senator Obama's appearance. He made a short speech, came down in the crowd to shake some hands, then went on his way. Well worth the wait--we had better, closer, contact than we would have inside, and we were able to get away before the throngs of people left after the rally.

After escaping Harrisonburg, we decided to swing past the airport to check it out and were able to get in to wait for Senator Obama's arrival, with a small crowd where we saw many familiar local faces. We couldn't get close enough for a look, although the motorcade arrived while we were there and drove right past us. We walked around for a little while waiting for the plane to take off (we could see it, but the pictures are crappy), but Andrew finally said, "I'm cold, and I want to go home." He had been a trooper the whole day, never complaining about being bored just holding onto my coat strings, standing in line, or freezing his little butt off, so we took him at his word and came home to a late, store-bought dinner and some hot chocolate--tired, cold, but happy to have had this experience as a family and with people close to us.

No matter what your politics are, the chance to see the man who might be president in a few months is something you shouldn't pass up. Would I have gone as far for McCain? No way in hell, but that's just me. When deciding whether to go or not, to take Andrew or not, etc...the thought that kept at me was, "This is history in the making. This is a story you'll be able to tell Andrew and that he'll be able to someday tell his own children." So the fact that I've personally been just about disowned over this election is trivial--my father will get over himself eventually, stop sending me text messages that say, "Marxist Socialist!" and getting mad at me when I ask him to stop costing me money to send asinine crap he heard on "the news" he watches. In seven days, the future will be decided, today will be history, and we will have been part of it. It's worth getting a little cold. --T

Who is coming to Harrisonburg?

Yes, that is right...Barack Obama is coming to Harrisonburg to rally support in the waning days of the campaign. Tam and I are already trying to work out logistics. Knowing that the JMU Convocation Center only seats 7,000, it means having to be in the Burg and be on line fairly early. So, do we go or do we go to the airport and try to run into him there? If you had told me that either presidential candidate would be traveling to the Valley six months ago, I would have told you to jump in a lake. This area is a Republican stronghold. I still look at this graphic and can't believe it says Harrisonburg. We got the e-mail from the campaign and it befuddled me. The Convo...where we used to have basketball season tickets, where I first saw Jimmy Buffett (April 1987), where the quietest men's room is the one next to the ticket office...OUR CONVO!?!?!?!

As for what else has been up with us, I hope to do some heavy blogging to get everyone caught up on our last trip to SML for the season and anything else that is rolling around our heads. Once again, we apologize to our loyal readers for not keeping the blog timely. We are working on it.

Really....Obama is coming HERE?

For more information, click the Obama-Biden logo on the right sidebar. Also, thanks to the O-B campaign for not hunting me for lifting the graphic - I never thought I'd see those words together!
---J