I'm Right!

I'm not the only one that feels that some classes on "real life" may have been useful, granted my previous post was about cooking, but I think the broader point is that we should be better prepared for real life.
1) On Oprah, Mark Consuelos and Alli Wentworth, while discussing the economy, made that point that maybe a "money" class may be more useful than say, Algebra or Trig.
2) Our economy is in the shitter right now, because far too many people didn't know what they were doing with their money, according to the President of the United States (take it with a grain of salt, but there's evidence to back it up)

My friend Joanne and I suggest that there be a required course, maybe a year or two after graduating from college, where you have to go back and learn about mortgages, insurance, 401K, and all the other adult stuff. It's really hard to care about it until it matters to you, so learning it while you're in school, with no real-life experience probably won't help. But at least some curriculum in school about budgeting, balancing your checkbook, etc. would be a start. I know more than one person who fell prey to the offer of a free t-shirt to apply for a credit card, and years down the road are still trying to dig out.

Home Economics....Not a Waste of Time

If memory serves, I was not allowed to take Home Ec. class in high school because it was just a "filler" and wasn't really necessary. Well, fast forward to 30-year-old single mother me, and I think it might have been a little more useful than chorus.

In a feeble attempt to make homemade pizza the other night (in order to save money), I made a sort of, semi-edible, pizza that my son would NOT eat. The first problem: it said to spread the dough with floured fingers. After figuring out what that meant, I realized I do not own flour (why would I, I have NEVER made anything from scratch). Second problem: the pan was supposed to be greased. My question is, with what? I sprayed a little PAM and that seemed to do the trick. Problem three: it said to put a cup of sauce. Well, that was way too much. Every bite of pizza squirted out piping hot sauce. Last problem: I got distracted watching TV and didn't hear the oven beeper going off, so the cheese was totally burnt and crusted over. So when William wouldn't eat it, I said, "I'm sorry I screw everything up!" and instead of saying something like, "No you don't mom!" he said, "That's OK" and walked away with his replacement dinner, a plate of flat turkey (sandwich turkey as opposed to pieces of a whole turkey- 'cause we eat that so often (not) that we have to distinguish the two types of turkey).

Earlier the same morning, I had attempted pancakes. William suggested I not try pancakes again.

The point is, maybe I would have benefited from Home Ec. Perhaps learning how to sew a button or make pancakes would not have been a waste of my time. I'm sure they learned other things in that class, like how to balance a check book or do laundry. I've learned all of these things from the "School of Hard Knocks" which has one hell of a grading curve.

I Know, I Deserve It

On a recent trip to the quad cities, I received a speeding ticket for going 70 in a 55 (he knocked it down from 80). In my defense, I didn't know what the speed limit was and I thought I was lost. I was not paying attention, at all, to how fast I was going. Being that I make it a rule to 15 over the speed limit, I was not mad about the ticket. I'm sure I've deserved every ticket I've gotten and haven't gotten. I've been pulled over so many times, too numerous to count, it was bound to happen. And, I got off easy. 80 in a 55 is totally unacceptable and I could have had some serious restrictions on my license.

All that being said....I'm not sure I really deserved the ticket. I mean, earlier in the day, I was going 5 mph due to a wide load that covered both lanes. Later that day, I was going 15 in a 25. Couldn't we just average out our speed?

And another thing. I'm a law abiding, tax paying citizen. I don't do drugs, steal, drunk drive, or do anything illegal. Couldn't I just get a pass? I mean, really?

I'll pay my ticket, and go on about my merry day. But, none the less, it sucks.

Oh, and later in the day I fell. In a parking lot. No one around.

MIA

Sorry, it's been a really long time since I've posted anything. I haven't felt creative, I haven't felt like writing, and nothing too interesting has happened. Sorry.


How I Know I've Gotten Old...
Since I turned 30 - there have been a lot of signs that I'm getting-on in years. I remember being in college and thinking "I can't imagine just staying home on a Saturday night, that would suck!" Well, college me was right. But current me can't seem to muster the energy to drink all night long anymore, so what's the point of going out? Most people make that "not going out" change when they get married. Not me, I've made it because I simply don't want to any more. I wish college me would have warned future me that this would happen.

On my recent vacation to Arizona to one of my best friend's weddings, my girlfriends and I dedicated more time discussing bowel movements than men. Times have changed.

But, the kicker, when my son was gone to my sister's house for a week, did I go out every night? Nope I went to the movies (twice) with my boss and my mom. And I wouldn't have changed it for the world.

Back Off--He's MY Man

I am sooooooooooooo in love with James Clement, first of Survivor China and now Survivor Micronesia:
http://www.cbs.com/primetime/survivor15/survivors/james.shtm

There are several reasons I love him:

1. When William first saw him, he said, "I think that's the strongest man I've EVER seen!"
2. He's so level headed! If you've ever watch the show, he is a voice of reason and doesn't play games.
3. The other night when William and I were going over his spelling words, I told him to spell 'kissing' and he said, "Wait....mama and James sitting in a tree..." Out of the mouths of babes, I say!!
4. I haven't had the best luck finding honest, good men, and CBS has already done an extensive background check on James. If he's been in trouble, I'd know about it.

For all of these reasons, you, my friends, need to help me find James. I'm sure he has a MySpace or something (but I don't).

The Simon Cowell of Our Family

Do you ever notice on American Idol how when Simon says something negative, most of the time, people are like "Well, that's your opinion!" or the crowd boo's him? But, when he says something positive, they all take it to heart? That's because he doesn't compliment people unnecessarily and he means what he says (unlike crazy Paula - who isn't as crazy as I'd like her to be this season). To me, if you're going to bask in the good, you've got to accept the negative as well. Even though we'd all like to live in the good and ignore the negative, that's just not the way it works.

I'd say my dad is the Simon Cowell of our family. He's pleasant, funny, and usually fun to be around. But he's not going to blow smoke up your ass or tell you everything is rainbows and butterflies. When he says something, he means it. So, when he told me the other night that he's impressed by the way I keep in touch with my old friends, it meant something. He doesn't compliment me often, so I'll take it where I can get it!

Do you have a "Simon Cowell" in your life? I'm sure you do.

Lazy Saturday

For as long as I can remember, I've loved Lazy Saturday/Sunday. For those of you not familiar with this concept, it involves laying in bed and watching TV...all...day and ordering food in. In college we used to rent several movies (such as all movies starring James Spader) or we'd watch animal shows (one on sea horses sticks out in my memory). Once my son was born, forget about it. I was way too busy taking care of him all day. And even as a 30-year-old adult, it's a little harder to find time for a day like this, let alone justify it. This past weekend, however, I found a way to justify it financially (one of my strengths is justifying my behavior):

-I completely save electricity. I like to spend my Lazy Saturday in the dark cove that is my bedroom. No lights, just the glow of the TV. If I'm not cleaning (which uses electricity), I'm saving myself some coin.
-You can't shower on Lazy Saturday (it's in the rules) so again, I'm saving money with the water and electricity, but I'm also saving money because there are only so many places you can go if you haven't showered (meaning the drive thru).
-This past weekend, we had to run to the mall for a couple things. You know how that goes, so we ended up spending way too much money. So, if I stay in bed all day, I won't spend money frivolously.

As if I haven't given enough reasons, I can justify it several other ways:
-I'm teaching my son to be independent and play on his own. When I have a Lazy Saturday coma, he goes to his play room and spends the whole day just playing away. He comes to get me when he needs something to eat or anything important, but other than that, he fends for himself.
-I learn ALOT on Lazy Saturday. Last Lazy Saturday, I watched the HBO miniseries John Adams. If you haven't seen this, it's awesome. It's a history lesson on TV. I've always maintained that TV is educational and an all around great way to get information, Planet Earth on Discovery teaches you about, you guessed it, the earth. Top Chef teaches you about food you don't know how to cook and probably wouldn't like to eat. Rock of Love teaches you about STD's. Need I say more?

If you're not already convinced, try it some time. Some of you don't have the patience to do it, and that's OK. I've found it hard to just sit there, but in the end, you'll find it's worth it.