Santa was pleased with Henry this year!

Many households have a festive Christmas Eve tradition that involves leaving some liquid refreshment by the fireplace for Santa to enjoy when he visits during the night. But domestic goddess that I am not-so-much... I didn't make any cookies this year and as usual I was out of milk... so we left carrots and a beer.
Santa, jolly, grateful fella that he is.. rewarded Henry with a gift that made him run with scissors to open the box.




You see, Henry emailed me about 3 weeks before Christmas with a link to the only thing he wanted this year. A Lego Death Star with all the characters. And he kept checking the Lego website everyday until a few days before Christmas when he sadly saw that they had SOLD OUT. We looked on eBay and Amazon and Googled everywhere to find one, but we could only find sellers who were gouging little kids for $500 bucks apiece, so we gave up. ;-)

And then a box appeared under the tree...





Henry thinks we should leave Santa a beer or two next year and ask for an Xbox 360, a plasma TV for his room and Hellboy the video game. What do you think?

Henry's 1st Piano Recital

I sure do love you Henry.
Thanks for the video Cheri!

"So I be written in the Book of Love."

FULL TEXT. READ THIS. LISTEN TO THIS. DO SOMETHING ABOUT THIS.

Finally tonight as promised, a Special Comment on the passage, last week, of Proposition Eight in California, which rescinded the right of same-sex couples to marry, and tilted the balance on this issue, from coast to coast.

Some parameters, as preface. This isn't about yelling, and this isn't about politics, and this isn't really just about Prop-8. And I don't have a personal investment in this: I'm not gay, I had to strain to think of one member of even my very extended family who is, I have no personal stories of close friends or colleagues fighting the prejudice that still pervades their lives.

And yet to me this vote is horrible. Horrible. Because this isn't about yelling, and this isn't about politics.
This is about the... human heart, and if that sounds corny, so be it.

If you voted for this Proposition or support those who did or the sentiment they expressed, I have some questions, because, truly, I do not... understand. Why does this matter to you? What is it to you? In a time of impermanence and fly-by-night relationships, these people over here want the same chance at permanence and happiness that is your option. They don't want to deny you yours. They don't want to take anything away from you. They want what you want -- a chance to be a little less alone in the world.

Only now you are saying to them -- no. You can't have it on these terms. Maybe something similar. If they behave. If they don't cause too much trouble. You'll even give them all the same legal rights -- even as you're taking away the legal right, which they already had. A world around them, still anchored in love and marriage, and you are saying, no, you can't marry. What if somebody passed a law that said you couldn't marry?

I keep hearing this term "re-defining" marriage.

If this country hadn't re-defined marriage, black people still couldn't marry white people. Sixteen states had laws on the books which made that illegal... in 1967. 1967.

The parents of the President-Elect of the United States couldn't have married in nearly one third of the states of the country their son grew up to lead. But it's worse than that. If this country had not "re-defined" marriage, some black people still couldn't marry...black people. It is one of the most overlooked and cruelest parts of our sad story of slavery. Marriages were not legally recognized, if the people were slaves. Since slaves were property, they could not legally be husband and wife, or mother and child. Their marriage vows were different: not "Until Death, Do You Part," but "Until Death or Distance, Do You Part." Marriages among slaves were not legally recognized.

You know, just like marriages today in California are not legally recognized, if the people are... gay.

And uncountable in our history are the number of men and women, forced by society into marrying the opposite sex, in sham marriages, or marriages of convenience, or just marriages of not knowing -- centuries of men and women who have lived their lives in shame and unhappiness, and who have, through a lie to themselves or others, broken countless other lives, of spouses and children... All because we said a man couldn't marry another man, or a woman couldn't marry another woman. The sanctity of marriage. How many marriages like that have there been and how on earth do they increase the "sanctity" of marriage rather than render the term, meaningless?

What is this, to you? Nobody is asking you to embrace their expression of love. But don't you, as human beings, have to embrace... that love? The world is barren enough.

It is stacked against love, and against hope, and against those very few and precious emotions that enable us to go forward. Your marriage only stands a 50-50 chance of lasting, no matter how much you feel and how hard you work.

And here are people overjoyed at the prospect of just that chance, and that work, just for the hope of having that feeling. With so much hate in the world, with so much meaningless division, and people pitted against people for no good reason, this is what your religion tells you to do? With your experience of life and this world and all its sadnesses, this is what your conscience tells you to do?

With your knowledge that life, with endless vigor, seems to tilt the playing field on which we all live, in favor of unhappiness and hate... this is what your heart tells you to do? You want to sanctify marriage? You want to honor your God and the universal love you believe he represents? Then Spread happiness -- this tiny, symbolic, semantical grain of happiness -- share it with all those who seek it. Quote me anything from your religious leader or book of choice telling you to stand against this. And then tell me how you can believe both that statement and another statement, another one which reads only "do unto others as you would have them do unto you."

You are asked now, by your country, and perhaps by your creator, to stand on one side or another. You are asked now to stand, not on a question of politics, not on a question of religion, not on a question of gay or straight. You are asked now to stand, on a question of...love. All you need do is stand, and let the tiny ember of love meet its own fate. You don't have to help it, you don't have it applaud it, you don't have to fight for it. Just don't put it out. Just don't extinguish it. Because while it may at first look like that love is between two people you don't know and you don't understand and maybe you don't even want to know...It is, in fact, the ember of your love, for your fellow **person...

Just because this is the only world we have. And the other guy counts, too.

This is the second time in ten days I find myself concluding by turning to, of all things, the closing plea for mercy by Clarence Darrow in a murder trial.

But what he said, fits what is really at the heart of this:

"I was reading last night of the aspiration of the old Persian poet, Omar-Khayyam," he told the judge.

"It appealed to me as the highest that I can vision. I wish it was in my heart, and I wish it was in the hearts of all:

"So I be written in the Book of Love;

"I do not care about that Book above.

"Erase my name, or write it as you will,

"So I be written in the Book of Love."

Good night, and good luck.

Putting the scale of our American Consumerism into perspective

I recently ran across an art project called Running the Numbers, by Chris Jordan, which visually examines the vast measures of consumerism in our society, in large intricately detailed photographs. For me, who does not have a natural math brain, statistics feel abstract and anesthetizing, making them difficult to connect with. These large photographs are joined together from thousands of smaller photographs, putting our wasteful consumerism into visual perspective.

Collectively we are committing a massive act of destruction, but in our individual anonymity, no one is accountable for the consequences. I am appalled by these scenes, and yet also drawn into them. I am not finger wagging either because I am guilty as sin of being wasteful.

Depicts two million plastic beverage bottles, the number used in the US every five minutes.


Partial zoom:


Detail:


Depicts 426,000 cell phones, equal to the number of cell phones retired in the US every DAY.


Partial zoom:


Detail:



Depicts 1.14 million brown paper supermarket bags, the number used in the US every hour.


Partial zoom:


Detail:


Depicts 106,000 aluminum cans, the number used in the US every thirty seconds.


Partial zoom:


Detail:


Depicts 60,000 plastic bags, the number used in the US every five seconds.


Partial zoom:


Detail at actual size:

Where there's a smoker... there's a fire.

Remember that old lover I found a few months ago on Google?
You know, the one that said my middle of the night phone call that night "re-lit the pilot light in his basement?" Well I had no idea that furnace burned THIS hot.
Click to watch the video.
He is the guy firefighters refer to as "someone."
Sigh.

Trish's Deal of the Week!

Rather than Wordless Wednesday I am starting Pimping Wednesday, which will also be known as Trish's Deal of the Week. Since this is my 1st one, I will pimp myself. New plugs will be added weekly so if you have a product you make or something think your fellow bloggers will like, email me the details and I will post it.

Trish's 1st Deal of the Week!
I have opened up 2 Cafe Press Shops for fellow blog-addicts and their subjects.
One shop is here with items such as this :


and this:

and this:


or even this:


I opened also opened a shop here with clothing that say's this:


Requested by Jenn and inspired by Cheri (and all the smart subjects of your blogs)

Part 2 - Deal of the Week
While I am pimping myself, let me say that I will also custom design any slogan on any shirt, bumper sticker, mouse pad, you name it. I will open up a store and post your items and when they sell, I will share profits with you. Let's face it we all could use a way to make a couple extra bucks.

Action Item. Tag. Meme.
Consider yourself tagged. Please submit your ideas for next week's Deal of the Week. It can be something you sell or something you found on the web that you love. Just let us know and we will pimp it!
Starting next week.

Amazing Grace on the black keys

Mutha of the Year?

Seriously? I heard that Lindsey Lohan's Mom Dina, got a Mother of the Year award from The Long Island Mothers of Celebrities. Umm seriously? Is somebody on that committee smoking crack? snorting crack? shooting it? about to re-enter re-hab? I guess it could have been worse. Lynn Spears? Joan Crawford? Andrea Yates? (inside joke: evilina? the hairless cat?)

Let's vote for a REAL 2008 Mother of the Year.
I vote for Jamie at Choosing my Own. I will award blog-bling to whomever gets the most votes.

Come on, let's start a mutha love-fest complete with stories. Please tell yours.

You can help even if you don't know Nate Berkus...

This family needs attention. Click here to read why. Then please post the story on your blog or email it to friends. The Universe thanks you.

Winner Wednesday

Henry and I ran 22 names through our Daniel Boone model random name picking transmogrifier and the lucky WINNER of Trish's T-Shirt Giveaway...Drum Roll Please...

is Jenn@Juggling Life.

I will be posting more after her custom Mommy Blogger t-shirt is designed.

Congratulations Jenn!

To Sleep: Perchance to Dream

Most nights I find myself wound up so tight that I have a hard time sleeping. A nice cocktail or glass of wine (or 3) is just what the doctor ordered to let some air out of my tires before I go to bed. A little liquid yoga. But then the sugar metabolizes (or whatever) and I am wide awake at 3AM. I've tried the OTC sleeping aides but then I can't get myself awake for 3 days afterwards. I've used melatonin once (or, more accurately, misused it), and it gave me horrid dreams about tornados and axes (so I gave the bottle to my ex-husband.)

I am asking the question.... How do YOU unwind after a long day of wife-ing, working and mommy-ing?

Do you do resort to this?
Or this?

Or this?

Or this?

or something else? What works for you?

(Jamie feel free to answer even though we already know on especially rough days you have confessed your cure is liquid yoga. I guess the grape doesn't fall far from the vine.)

Then and Now.

I thought I would post a couple pictures from the weekend with the kids.
Some from then, and some from now. The kids and their Dad.
For more pictures if you haven't already been there, go here.

Job Market 2008

For Wordless Wednesday.

Embarrasing I think.

I've been suffering from a bit of an inferiority complex lately about my lack of blogging. I browse, lurk on, read so many smart, witty blogs these days that reading has become my lazy way of keeping up in the blog world more exciting for me than writing.

Then I found this test on PhD with Nine Kids blog, that confirms WHY I have a this complex.

This was my daughters score: (not surprisingly)

Then I ran the test on my 8 year old son's poem post and got this.

This was mine. (Embarassingly I think)

The test only reads the most recent post in your blog unless you paste links from specific posts. I can get better scores by putting in some of my more interesting past posts. *sigh*

Trish's T-shirt Giveaway!

How do you become the lucky winner?
Comment on this post with your t-shirt slogan idea. On May 31st, sorry that is too long to wait! APRIL 30th Henry and I will use our tech skills to run you through our random number generating transmogrifier to pick which comment wins! (NOTE: You are automatically entered if you comment - in case you don't hear back from me before May 31st, APRIL 30th I will blog about/interview the winner after the drawing.)

What's the prize?
The lucky winner will get his or her idea put on a t-shirt (size, style, color) of their choice and shipped for FREE!

For Extra Credit:
Post about this and link to my blog or this Mommy Blogger Shop, and you are awarded this Genuine Certified Blog Bling. (Just take it right off this site with my thanks!)


>>Click here to go to the Mommy Blogger Shop



For the testimonial of 2 satisfied customers, click here.

I've become a virtual shopkeeper.

I am a stay-home single mom who makes a living doing design work.

I have just opened a Cafe Press shop specifically with you Blogging Moms (and your kids) in mind.

Now available My Mom is blogging this, and I am so going to blog this apparel and gifts.

I will add other items, sizes, colors as requested. Please visit my shop and pass the word on to other Mommy Bloggers you know. I do custom items too. Just let me know what you need.

And if your husbands object to the amount of time you spend reading and writing blogs, send him to the store to buy a mouse pad or clock that says: My Wife is a Blogger
errr... (Professional Clock Eater.)

>>Click here to go to the Mommy Blogger Shop


I guarantee they will come in handy for YOUR blogging photo ops.

Thank you.

Little Lord Fauntleroy has returned

I don't feel quite right when Henry is gone, although he reminded me this is his eighth trip to England and I should be used to it by now. He has been gone 16 days this time, but it felt like months.

The first thing he wanted to do was take a shower and wash the "English dirt" off of him. He showered, brushed and flossed, then he made a list of the top 10 things/people he missed while he was gone. It included family, teachers, school friends, pets and American food.

I guess he didn't eat very well while he was gone. He got that NARO (Norwalk?) virus and had to go the hospital in London, but he seems ok now. The peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and brownies are going down just fine.

He came home, got into my bed with a new blanket to have a sleep for 2 days. It usually takes him a long weekend to get over his jet lag, but he seems to have adjusted well this time.

While he was napping, I emptied his backpack and found the funniest things in there. I will be photographing and blogging the contents as a future assignment to you all, so get ready to be tagged.

Right now, I am going to go bed myself, knowing that Henry is safe, healthy and in his bed, at home where he belongs. :-) I know you Mom's know that feeling.

I don't write 'em...But I AM a giver.

A man walks into a bar and orders a drink. The bar has a robot bartender.

The robot serves him a perfectly prepared cocktail, and then asks him, "What's your IQ?"

The man replies "150" and the robot proceeds to make conversation about global warming factors, quantum physics and spirituality, bio mimicry, environmental interconnectedness, string theory, nano-technology, and sexual proclivities.

The customer is very impressed and thinks, "This is really cool." He decides to test the robot.

He walks out of the bar, turns around, and comes back in for another drink. Again, the robot serves him the perfectly prepared drink and asks him, "What's your IQ?"

The man responds, "about a 100."

Immediately the robot starts talking, but this time, about football, NASCAR, baseball, super models, favorite fast foods, guns, and women's breasts.

Really impressed, the man leaves the bar and decides to give the robot one more test.

He heads out and returns, the robot serves him and asks, "What's your IQ?"

The man replies, "Er, 50, I think."

And the robot says...real slowly,

"So... ya gonna vote Republican again?"

Crank Dat Soulja Boy

A little entertainment while I am gone.

On Spring Break...

I am off to this place for Spring Break. To see Old Lover. Google. Wow.
I bet I will have lots to report in a week or so. :-)
Stay tuned.

Merlin or Moses?

I was talking to Cheri the other day about how much I crave, hoard and need INFORMATION. I have a very strong investigational nature. I love learning stuff. I am constantly Googling people, looking up things, being nosy. I found both sides of my entire biological family with my relentless researching. Even the ones who were not named on any official document and may not have wanted to be found (but were wonderful when they were.)

Cheri being the (Merlin or Moses) distiller of wisdom that she is, said, "It's no wonder you crave information. Do you suppose that is because you had your CORE information taken away at birth?" I had never thought of it that way and it certainly explains a lot. I probably am who I am a lot because of that.

On that note, here is one of my favorite quotes/excerpts from: - The Once and Future King, by T.H. White

Merlin, an unusual teacher, tries to help young Wart/Arthur cope with frustration and sadness, one of Merlyn's responsibilities for raising the boy who is destined to become the future King of England.

"The best thing for being sad," replied Merlin, beginning to puff and blow, "is to learn something. That's the only thing that never fails. You may grow old and trembling in your anatomies, you may lie awake at night listening to the disorder of your veins, you may miss your only love, you may see the world about you devastated by evil lunatics, or know your honour trampled in the sewers of baser minds. There is only one thing for it then - to learn. Learn why the world wags and what wags it. That is the only thing which the mind can never exhaust, never alienate, never be tortured by, never fear or distrust, and never dream of regretting. Learning is the only thing for you. Look what a lot of things there are to learn."

I ask you dear readers, who or what made you who you are today?