Dear Friends & Family,
This year I will not be sending out a Christmas card or letter.
No, none of us has become hideously disfigured making us a photographic nightmare.
No, nothing horrible or shameful has happened in our lives that we are hiding.
Yes, we have done and accomplished things professionally, musically, and academically...but we are not going brag. (My daughter's marching band went to the Competetive Marching Band State Finals this year...little brag)
We, (and by "we" I mean, "me", Allie) have decided to not go nutty this holiday season. Let us be honest, there are a lot of details that go into the holidays. Let's be even more honest and admit most of those details get placed upon moms. That is right, the majority of the frenzy is placed upon the ladies. Or at least that is how I see (and feel) it.
This is my act of rebellion. (I need to get out more, or at least read a book about how to be properly rebellious)
I am taking a page from Queen Elsa's book and "Letting It Go". (Yes, I saw FROZEN a couple times this year).
I love my friends & family.
I wish everyone well.
I will not be sitting up until 2am addressing envelopes to prove my love. Trust me. I still love and care for you, whether or not the postperson drops a card & letter in your mailbox.
The only thing I was going to miss was writing the letter. Lucky for me, I have a blog. So I can write and send this to whomever likes to read it. AND I can be editorially sarcastic and not overly sentimental & sweet. (We all know I struggle with sweetness)
Take some time during this bustling time of year to enjoy your friends, family, and sanity. Pick what you love to do, and do it with joy. And leave the tedious stuff off your list.
Happy Holidays!
Showing posts with label rebellion. Show all posts
Showing posts with label rebellion. Show all posts
Saturday, December 13, 2014
Friday, June 13, 2014
Walking on the Wildside
We had a deer in our fenced, suburban backyard this morning. It was the strangest thing that has happened all week month. I am not completely surprised that the deer found its way into our yard. Deer are good jumpers. I also saw a deer wandering the neighborhood last week. It was walking in the street (which I did think was odd. Deer should not walk on pavement). Anyway, at 6:15am I went to let Ninja (the greyhound) outside and she immediately took off toward the pine tree. Any other day, a rabbit springs out from under the tree, the dog chases the rabbit around the yard, snatches the rabbit in her mouth, snaps its neck, drops the rabbit, and proceeds to go potty before returning to the house for her breakfast of kibble. Honestly, this is what happens. I pick up and dispose of dead rabbits on the regular. I used to get upset and plead with Ninja to not chase and kill rabbits. First of all, dogs are a lot of great things, but reasonable listeners...not a strength. If it moves, Ninja will chase it. So I let her follow her natural urge to kill at the expense of the rabbit population, which seems to be doing well in spite of Ninja's frequent reduction efforts.
Now the deer, which is considerably larger that Ninja, was a different story. Yes, she chased it. However, the deer stopped. Ninja did not. She plowed into the side of the deer. This scared my sweet little rabbit murderess. So much that she returned to the house, not stopping to potty. Nope, she ran into the house, and curled up into a dog ball and did not move for 15 minutes. She who kills rabbits on the regular, was reduced to a quivering dog ball by a deer. So much for being the apex predator of the backyard. It seem now the local hoofed herbivores own the place.
Not being one to over react, I called 911 and clearly said, "I am not sure if this qualifies as a real emergency".
The dispatcher did not even ask me anything, she just said, "I am transferring you to the non-emergency line."
It would have been nice if she could have helped me sort it out, just a little. I had a traumatized dog in my house, and a deer in my fenced in backyard. That felt like an emergency to me. If not a full blown emergency, it is at least an extreme oddity for this suburban community. None the less, I was transferred to a desk police officer. I explained my extraordinary circumstances. He was unimpressed. Or should I say the tone in his voice said he was unimpressed. Honestly, I am not sure what is going on in this town that makes deer hanging out in backyards seem "normal". It is not. I live a well-populated, developed neighborhood. The extent of creatures, up until one week ago (the initial deer sighting) are as follows: birds, squirrels, chipmunks, skunks, rabbits, occasional ducks & Canadian geese, toads, snakes, and bugs. Some evidence of raccoons has been noted, but I have never actually seen the offending raccoon, it could just be some over zealous skunks. Deer, no. Not normal. Very out of the ordinary. However the local law enforcement, unimpressed.
Here is how the call went down:
(I was standing on my deck staring at the deer the entire call. Why? I am not completely sure.)
Officer: Police. How can I help?
Me: There is a deer in my fenced in backyard. It has terrified my dog. How can get it out?
Officer: Is the deer alive.
Me: Very much so.
Officer: Is the deer injured? Does it appear it has been struck by a car?
Me: Not at all. It seems quite healthy.
Officer: Well, then it will jump the fence and leave when it feels like it.
Me: My dog is terrified.
Officer: Ma'am, keep the dog in the house until the deer exits your yard.
Me: That is all???
Officer: Yes. Have a good day.
Me: Uhhh. Thanks? Good-bye.
Now I can not be sure what types of calls that the local fuzz generally receive, but clearly wildlife emergencies are not cause for great alarm. Perhaps he wakes up to herds of deer in his yard. I have never experienced such a thing in the metro area. Who knows, maybe my slightly panicked call this morning is now station house fodder. Maybe I am the crazy lady that called before 7am with a non-emergency emergency. I honestly do not care. I find the cavalier attitude towards large woodland creatures in fenced backyards disturbing. And the lack of caring toward my traumatized dog? Well that is just plain insensitive.
Here is to living in the Wild West(ern) Suburbs!
Note: The deer jumped into the neighbors yard after I started taking pictures. I was hoping it would neatly eat the grass over there to a respectable length, and perhaps trim up around the trees and fence line. That did not happen.
Now the deer, which is considerably larger that Ninja, was a different story. Yes, she chased it. However, the deer stopped. Ninja did not. She plowed into the side of the deer. This scared my sweet little rabbit murderess. So much that she returned to the house, not stopping to potty. Nope, she ran into the house, and curled up into a dog ball and did not move for 15 minutes. She who kills rabbits on the regular, was reduced to a quivering dog ball by a deer. So much for being the apex predator of the backyard. It seem now the local hoofed herbivores own the place.
Not being one to over react, I called 911 and clearly said, "I am not sure if this qualifies as a real emergency".
The dispatcher did not even ask me anything, she just said, "I am transferring you to the non-emergency line."
It would have been nice if she could have helped me sort it out, just a little. I had a traumatized dog in my house, and a deer in my fenced in backyard. That felt like an emergency to me. If not a full blown emergency, it is at least an extreme oddity for this suburban community. None the less, I was transferred to a desk police officer. I explained my extraordinary circumstances. He was unimpressed. Or should I say the tone in his voice said he was unimpressed. Honestly, I am not sure what is going on in this town that makes deer hanging out in backyards seem "normal". It is not. I live a well-populated, developed neighborhood. The extent of creatures, up until one week ago (the initial deer sighting) are as follows: birds, squirrels, chipmunks, skunks, rabbits, occasional ducks & Canadian geese, toads, snakes, and bugs. Some evidence of raccoons has been noted, but I have never actually seen the offending raccoon, it could just be some over zealous skunks. Deer, no. Not normal. Very out of the ordinary. However the local law enforcement, unimpressed.
Here is how the call went down:
(I was standing on my deck staring at the deer the entire call. Why? I am not completely sure.)
Officer: Police. How can I help?
Me: There is a deer in my fenced in backyard. It has terrified my dog. How can get it out?
Officer: Is the deer alive.
Me: Very much so.
Officer: Is the deer injured? Does it appear it has been struck by a car?
Me: Not at all. It seems quite healthy.
Officer: Well, then it will jump the fence and leave when it feels like it.
Me: My dog is terrified.
Officer: Ma'am, keep the dog in the house until the deer exits your yard.
Me: That is all???
Officer: Yes. Have a good day.
Me: Uhhh. Thanks? Good-bye.
Now I can not be sure what types of calls that the local fuzz generally receive, but clearly wildlife emergencies are not cause for great alarm. Perhaps he wakes up to herds of deer in his yard. I have never experienced such a thing in the metro area. Who knows, maybe my slightly panicked call this morning is now station house fodder. Maybe I am the crazy lady that called before 7am with a non-emergency emergency. I honestly do not care. I find the cavalier attitude towards large woodland creatures in fenced backyards disturbing. And the lack of caring toward my traumatized dog? Well that is just plain insensitive.
Here is to living in the Wild West(ern) Suburbs!
Note: The deer jumped into the neighbors yard after I started taking pictures. I was hoping it would neatly eat the grass over there to a respectable length, and perhaps trim up around the trees and fence line. That did not happen.
Thursday, July 25, 2013
Paperwork
Caution: This post is a rant. If you are here to be inspired or uplifted in anyway, click away now. I am going to rant and complain and generally rally against the forces that be. No good will come of it, but I will feel lighter after laying down this burden upon my lovely readers. Again, click away from this page if you are looking for happy, joyful, and uplifting. She does not live here today.
Okay...I think the Pollyanna Lolly-pop Guild has left the page.
(Rant on)
Paperwork. I hate it. The kind of paperwork I am referring to is the permission slips, camper liability, health forms (especially if they need a doctor's signature), registration for activity forms...all of them. Forms. I hate forms. I HATE FORMS. The information is repetitive, tedious, and annoying. I hate copying the front and back of insurance card to attach to forms. The immunization records that have to be copied and attached, OR even worse, transcribed onto a health form (this is the worst). The older my kids get the more numerous the forms become, the more sheets of paper that get included. It is torture. I have never been water-boarded, but I think if given a choice between filling out forms and the water-board...I might just choose the water-board. Seriously.
My daughter, who is lovely, sweet, and talented has generated a lot of paperwork for me this summer. In fact, I am in the middle of filling out the third set of camp related forms this summer. I stopped filling in forms to write this post. The annoyance was festering. I was about to become crabby with her, but decided to take it out on the keyboard instead. The problem is, there is no real solution to this problem. The camps, schools, and organizations NEED the information in case there is a problem. I get it. I certainly would not send my kid to a camp or activity with just a backpack and a hug good-bye. I really want to be contacted if there is a problem. I certainly want medical attention sought if they are sick or injured. I just am sick of filling out the same information on slightly different forms for each camp or activity. What I really want is universal forms. I want all camps, schools, and activities to have ONE set of forms that satisfies all the groups. Once a year I want to sit down and update the forms, save it to my computer, and then print out the same packet of forms for each organization. Honestly, all camps ask the same questions. A health form is rather standard. Even the waivers for High Ropes Courses are rather standard. No it will not include the school or camp logo letterhead, who cares? I know what I am signing them up to attend. I want and need UNIVERSAL FORMS!!!! Do not tell me it can not be done.
It can be done.
It is possible.
It is my dream.
My beautiful, simple, dream.
A world with less paperwork.
(Rant off)
Okay...I think the Pollyanna Lolly-pop Guild has left the page.
(Rant on)
Paperwork. I hate it. The kind of paperwork I am referring to is the permission slips, camper liability, health forms (especially if they need a doctor's signature), registration for activity forms...all of them. Forms. I hate forms. I HATE FORMS. The information is repetitive, tedious, and annoying. I hate copying the front and back of insurance card to attach to forms. The immunization records that have to be copied and attached, OR even worse, transcribed onto a health form (this is the worst). The older my kids get the more numerous the forms become, the more sheets of paper that get included. It is torture. I have never been water-boarded, but I think if given a choice between filling out forms and the water-board...I might just choose the water-board. Seriously.
My daughter, who is lovely, sweet, and talented has generated a lot of paperwork for me this summer. In fact, I am in the middle of filling out the third set of camp related forms this summer. I stopped filling in forms to write this post. The annoyance was festering. I was about to become crabby with her, but decided to take it out on the keyboard instead. The problem is, there is no real solution to this problem. The camps, schools, and organizations NEED the information in case there is a problem. I get it. I certainly would not send my kid to a camp or activity with just a backpack and a hug good-bye. I really want to be contacted if there is a problem. I certainly want medical attention sought if they are sick or injured. I just am sick of filling out the same information on slightly different forms for each camp or activity. What I really want is universal forms. I want all camps, schools, and activities to have ONE set of forms that satisfies all the groups. Once a year I want to sit down and update the forms, save it to my computer, and then print out the same packet of forms for each organization. Honestly, all camps ask the same questions. A health form is rather standard. Even the waivers for High Ropes Courses are rather standard. No it will not include the school or camp logo letterhead, who cares? I know what I am signing them up to attend. I want and need UNIVERSAL FORMS!!!! Do not tell me it can not be done.
It can be done.
It is possible.
It is my dream.
My beautiful, simple, dream.
A world with less paperwork.
(Rant off)
Thursday, February 14, 2013
Busy Rebelling
This week I have been too busy, not that I like it, or I am proud of it. I am not. Busy is like a disease sometimes. If you do not do anything to stop it, it just gets worse. The more you do, the more people ask you to do, the more you agree to do, and if you are highly competent you can plan on having plans everyday for eternity (okay, I exaggerate a bit). In general Americans seem very proud to be overly busy. I have friends (and I love them dearly) that will open up their calendar or their calendar app, and show how insanely packed their days and weekends are for the next month or two months. At times I feel as if they are challenging me to a "busy off". I am not taking the bait. I am not proud when my time is double and triple booked. I do not like to have to serve my family convenience foods, with crappy nutrition because I have spent my day running about, in meetings, or other busy tasks. I want to enjoy my life. I want to enjoy my kids. I want to enjoy my husband. And I do not want to schedule time to enjoy them. How hurtful it must be to have your beloved say, "Get out your calendar and let us schedule time for a date night".
How about just spending time together, and paring down on all the extra stuff? How about asking yourself what your priorities are, and being honest about it? If something is a priority YOU WILL MAKE TIME FOR IT. Your partner should not be made to feel like a dentist appointment that needs to be scheduled. Being busy is just a very good excuse. It is socially acceptable to be insanely busy. The chronically busy are lauded as great, productive, and helpful people. Yes, they are. However, let us ask ourselves, at what cost? Probably at the cost of their family, and their own inner peace.
I am not claiming to have it all figured out, but I am telling you, I am no longer proud to be busy. "Busy-Bee" is not a badge of honor I want to wear. I would rather be known for how many games I played with my kids, how many books I have read, how many lunches I have had with friends, how many inside jokes my beloved and I have, and a thousand other things that really matter. I am starting my rebellion against being busy.
How about just spending time together, and paring down on all the extra stuff? How about asking yourself what your priorities are, and being honest about it? If something is a priority YOU WILL MAKE TIME FOR IT. Your partner should not be made to feel like a dentist appointment that needs to be scheduled. Being busy is just a very good excuse. It is socially acceptable to be insanely busy. The chronically busy are lauded as great, productive, and helpful people. Yes, they are. However, let us ask ourselves, at what cost? Probably at the cost of their family, and their own inner peace.
I am not claiming to have it all figured out, but I am telling you, I am no longer proud to be busy. "Busy-Bee" is not a badge of honor I want to wear. I would rather be known for how many games I played with my kids, how many books I have read, how many lunches I have had with friends, how many inside jokes my beloved and I have, and a thousand other things that really matter. I am starting my rebellion against being busy.
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