scripture 4/52

Proverbs 17:9Love prospers when a fault is forgiven, but dwelling on it separates close friends. (NLT)

Tuesday 4/52

I have not accomplished anything this week except surviving. I took the girl to the audiologist because she failed her hearing test twice. She can hear fine.

Last night I had to take her to the urgent care because she hurt her wrist. Thankfully it is just a sprain.
It's been a while since I had to go there. It was a bit nostalgic as the whole reason I started this blog was because I was spending so much time at urgent care. Hence the title of this blog.

Saturday night I was at the dining room table on my laptop and the kids were asleep in the living room. About midnight I heard someone get up and head towards the bathroom. Out of the corner of my eye I noticed someone in the kitchen. I got up to ask what they needed and saw it was M. He walked over to the garbage can and stood there. I shouted out "Wait! This isn't the bathroom!" Alas, I was too late. He gave me a weird look and pulled his pants down and peed in the garbage can. I was laughing so hard I couldn;t breathe. He just kept looking at me like I was insane. When he was done he just pulled his pants back up and went back to bed.

I asked him the next morning if he remembered and he said no. Then he said he thought it was a dream. He tried to argue with me that is was really just a dream until I asked how would I know what he had dreamed. He was both amused and embarrassed. I laughed for about an hour every time I thought about it. When I finally went to bed, thinking I had stopped laughing, I lay down and promptly starting giggling, which soon turned to full on laughter. I woke splitcat up laughing then told him what happened.

This is the only highlight of my week. The rest of the week I am choosing to forget ever happened.

Quotes 4/52

“We dream to give ourselves hope. To stop dreaming - well, that’s like saying you can never change your fate.”

― Amy Tan, The Hundred Secret Senses

4/52

4/52, originally uploaded by Fiorinda.

I made my daughter scrambled eggs despite the fact it makes me gag to smell eggs cooking. the rest of my week was not worth photographing. or talking about.

Singing Saturday 3/52

We are back to english speaking non boy bands this week. Are you happy? 

So this week I would like for you to meet Civil Twilight. I actually found them because amazon had their cd for download on Black Friday for $3.99. I looked them up and liked them so I downloaded it. The one thing that hooked me is how much the lead singer sounds like early Bono.  I've listened through it several times now and although I am not going to jump up and down insisting you rush out and buy it, I like it quite a bit. I think they have had some of their songs show up on movie and tv soundtracks. you'd have to ask wikipedia to be sure though.

Nonsense 3/52 Boybands.....suck? Pt. One

or

a brief history of my demise

part one


I promised in my last singing saturday that I would discuss the fact that I now listen to boybands. So here is part one.

Please imagine, if you will, the late eighties. I was in the eighth grade and my family moved from a small town in New Jersey to the middle of nowhere Georgia. We lived in the middle of our town in NJ, and I either walked or rode my bike everywhere, including school. All of my friends were within walking distance. So it was a big shock when we moved and our closest neighbors were cows. Directions to my house included turn left at the goats, then turn left at the cows. The town listed as our address was actually a good 20-30 minute drive away and was in a different area code, which meant it was long distance to call the town we lived in. Weird, yes? I had to call collect from my school to call my parents.

Anyway. Here I was, a new girl at a school where most kids came from families that had founded the county and had known each other since they were in diapers.

Being the totally awesome person I am, I made friends pretty quickly. Unfortunately for me, the girls who befriended me were very much into New Kids on the Block. I liked Pink Floyd. I don't know if they were just being friendly, but I suddenly found out that I could have Danny from nkotb as mine. I felt this was generous, especially considering I had no idea who he was or why I would want him. I eventually figured it out and in any lunchtime conversation I was expected to chip in with my feelings on Danny(of which I had none). Honestly, this is probably one of the few times I ever gave in to peer pressure. I pretended to like a boy band I had zero interest in. But I remained friends with those girls all through high school. Not like close bff's or anything, but just people I could talk to. So I guess it paid off in the end?

My feelings towards boybands like nkotb could probably be best described as contemptuous. The girls that loved them, I mostly just felt sorry for (and yes, I am was a total snob). I liked bands that wrote and played their own music. I have always maintained a safe distance from the people in the bands I liked. I was a huge U2 fan for years before I even knew what Bono's real name was. And there is something inherently fannish about a boyband. It's not about the music, it's about the people in it. I never understood this. I was more interested in the people around me than in people I would never meet.  Music was about music, not the people who made it.

end pt one (because I took a benadryl and now I am falling asleep.)

Scripture 3/52

Psalm 34:18The LORD is close to the brokenhearted; he rescues those whose spirits are crushed. (NLT)

So this is my crafty for the week. E got a rainbow loom for Christmas so I have been learning how to use it so I can help her learn. It's really a pretty fascinating thing. You need very good spatial and visual skills to do this, especially if you want to create your own patterns. These are ones I made following the directions on the website. I went and bought some more rubber bands the other day and they had just put out some glow in the dark ones. I love glow in the dark anything, so of course I bought them. They glow really well.

There are only a few kids at E's school wearing these, so she has had lots of requests for some. She definitely likes the attention and I hope it helps her make some friends. All the girls she usually hangs out with are in different classes this year, and unfortunately, this is the year where girls start being obnoxious. I told her that sadly, it only gets worse from here.

Quotes 3/52

“I like flaws. I think they make things interesting.”
― Sarah Dessen, The Truth About Forever

3/52

We love popcorn at my house. It's been a crazy week so I haven't had much time to think about what I wanted to take a picture of. Splitcat is back so hopefully next week I can use the better camera and do a nicer picture. This will have to do for now.

bonus post

poor baby. he got hit in the eye with some kid's head earlier this week in p.e. and then today he got whacked in the nose with a doorknob. His eye doesn't look so dramatic in real life, but his nose looks worse.

here's a bonus pic because he is cute.

Singing Saturday 2/52

So, be patient with me for this one. I am going to stretch your sensibilities and your language skills. I will also try to explain. Most of you are aware that I now enjoy watching Korean dramas. I then discovered Variety shows, which then led me to Kpop. Most of the Variety shows that get eng subs are done because there are idols on them and the fans sub them to share with international fans. So it was thusly that I first discovered the group Super Junior. They tend to show up a lot on variety shows as they are considered for the most part to be "entertainment" idols. Technically they are a boy band. I will discuss me and the fact that I now listen to boybands another day. They were originally supposed to rotate members as each of them had differing specialties. They are actors, comedians, singers, and dancers. For some reason they clicked and after the addition of one more member(to make a total of 13(yes, it's ridiculous, right?)) they officially became a group. There have been a few changes since the beginning and their current line up would be 11, but they currently have 2 members(soon to be 3) serving their mandatory military service. (they also have an additional 2 chinese members who only perform with one of their subgoups). super junior is really hard to explain

So, after I finally figured out who was who and who did what I had pretty much picked out my favorite members. The one I am about to share with you goes by the stage name of Yesung.  He is the lead singer. This video was taken at their Tokyo Dome concert this past spring. You will notice the crowd is all waving blue light sticks. Every kpop group has a color that identifies them and their fans have matching lightsticks/balloons at concerts. Super Junior is Pearl Sapphire Blue. It's pretty amazing to see the 55,000 fans waving their lights. So, sorry for the quick course in Super Junior  but you will probably be subjected to more of them, so sorry, not sorry really, it is my blog after all in advance.

This song is called The More I Love and was originally sung by a korean rock band called Boohwal. if I remember correctly, it's about unrequited love.

Family Friday 2/52

Splitcat is back! bearing chocolate! also, a scarf for me, because that is what I asked for. He did good, it matches the hat his mother got me.

Have I mentioned where he went? I can't remember. He went to Italy on a school trip. As soon as he has pics up on flickr I will link some here.

it's nice to have him home. It's probably a good thing he has Monday off, though.

In other family news. the boy had his 12th birthday last weekend! Since his dad was out of town we didn;t really have a party, but I took everyone out to McD's for dinner then the next morning we went to dunkin donuts. yummm.

It's been a rough year for him, starting middle school and all. We've finally settled into a manageable routine, but some mornings I have to literally shove him out the front door. And he finally gets to learn an instrument! He has always wanted to play the violin, so this year he joined orchestra.

blogger is not letting me upload pictures. :(

M has had a rough time with his dad out of town. He had a stomache ache all week.

They all took turns sleeping in my bed with me. I'm not sure why. Last night it was just M and when I woke up this morning, I had just barely enough bed to lay on. he was all the way to my side and over half the bed was empty. I'd rather him be a blanket hog than a bed hog. It does not make for a good nights sleep.

W is just his cute little self. He made his dad a top out of Lego to welcome him home. He did an exellent job.

That's pretty much it for this week. It's nice to know splitcat is back safe and sound.

Nonsense 2/52

So it's time for me to talk about something. What should I talk about?

Not much going on right now. I may have murdered my vacuum cleaner last night when I accidentally sucked up a sock and didn't realize it until gray smoke began spewing from every available crevice.

splitcat will be back tomorrow. He doesn't know I caught him a pet in the basement. He'll be soooooo excited.

I am currently watching 2 kdramas. They are currently airing so I get 2 episodes/week to cry and laugh over. The first one is called School 2013 and is about the harshness of the Korean school system and college entrance exams. there are two main storylines-The relationship of an idealistic teacher with a cynical teacher as well as her relationship with her troubled students, and the other side story is about 2 boys who were best friends and then weren't and how they make up and then there are a bunch of other side stories about the other students. One of the things I like most about this show is that sometime during the first few episodes they decided to do away with the "love-line" and focus on the platonic relationships. It was an excellent decision. I don't think the show has suffered for it at all. There are still hints here and there, but with only 3 or 4 episodes left, I don't see it changing. This is going on my fav drama list. Here's a recap of ep 1-8.




The other drama I am watching is called The Flower Boy Next Door. It's about a girl who doesn't really leave her apartment but peeps across the alley and has an unrequited love for a neighbor. Chaos, of course, ensues and she is forced to start interacting with her neighbors. There are 4 episodes so far and it is shaping up to be both fun and thoughtful.

 This is the third "flower boy" show from this cable network and they have all been really really good. (a flower boy is a boy/man who is very stylish and very  pretty good-looking). The first was Flower Boy Ramyun Shop-it was a mostly light hearted romantic comedy about a young woman who falls for a high school student who also happens to be the son of a really rich man-and a student where she is student teaching. It dealt well with the obviously touchy subject. It took all the elements of a classic korean melodrama and used them in a fresh new way, often poking fun at the conventions while using them to its advantage. The second was called Shut Up! Flower Boy Band and it was more drama than comedy. It's about a group of boys who are in a band and how they deal with a tragic loss and sudden fame. The main focus is the friendships between the boys. One of the main themes of these 3 dramas is friendship and family, and I think that is part of why I like them so much.

All of these shows (and many more) can currently be seen(legally!) at dramafever.com. (hulu also has a big selection of dramas).

So, I guess that's it for my nonsense this week. I won't bore you with more dramas for a while. I promise. I just have a headache and couldn't think of anything else to talk about.

scripture 2/52

2 Corinthians 4:16-18 Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. (NIV)

I'm a little of schedule here since it's technically wednesday but we'll pretend it's tuesday since I haven't gone to bed yet.

Tuesday is supposed to be about what I have accomplished or made this week.

I caught a palmetto bug in the basement.

here's the problem, though.

splitcat is in another country.

I have a ginormous roach trapped under a plastic container in my laundry room. it's quite alive. I usually try to poison them before I trap them so splitcat just needs to dispose of the carcass.

 I didn't poison it because it started out in P's room so I didn't want to spray it in there. Roaches cause me extremely high levels of anxiety if I have to deal with them. My over active imagination takes over and just even trying to write this is giving me the heebie-jeebies. blech.



It's been raining for like the past 3 days and the weather refuses to get cold and kill off all the creepy crawlies for a while. winter is supposed to be my respite from things with multiple legs.


So. splitcat is out of the country so I am in survival mode, so no extra projects. nothing fun. And last week work went well, this week it has left me tired. But it was nice to see more numbers on my paycheck. The 4 yr olds are fun and the day goes by really quickly. I had to sub in the baby room today and I thought the day would never end.

So I am alive. there is a roach trapped in my laundry room. my children haven't been sent to boarding school(but one of them is close). I call this an accomplishment.

Quotes 2/52

“One of the advantages of being disorganized is that one is always having surprising discoveries.”
― A.A. Milne

2/52

2/52, originally uploaded by Fiorinda.

The weather has been unseasonably warm and I noticed the other day that the camelia bushes in my backyard were blooming. It's nice to look out my kitchen window and see a spot of red amongst the mostly grey winter landscape.

It's been a while since I did a Singing Saturday, no?  I've come across a lot of new bands I really like the past year or so from scrounging around youtube and following random suggestions.

For the first Singing Saturday this year I would like to introduce you to Dry the River. Splitcat heard about them from NPR and gave me their cd and I fell in love. The following video is of my favorite song from their album Shallow Bed. There is an official video for this song, but I love this live version recorded as they gave a concert while on the canals in Amsterdam. I think you will agree that their live performance is pretty amazing. The entire concert is here

Family Fun 1/52

So today is the day I am supposed to blog about my family. And since we just completed the holidays, I suppose I should speak of them.

Two weeks before the break, the three youngest children and splitcat came down with the flu(or a flu-like virus). It was quite possibly one of the saddest sights I have seen. Splitcat took one day off work, but then was feeling and then went in anyway. The children missed an entire week of school. The first few days they did not move, speak, cry, nothing. They only moved when nature called. Poor M had it worst. His fever stayed in the 101-103 range for 4 days. It was a little scary at times when they medication didn't seem to be helping his fever subside. Somehow P and I managed to not get it. I was sick a bit, but not to the extent the others were. So we ended up not ever getting our big christmas tree down from the attic. I mostly didn't mind since I am the one who has to set it up and decorate it. I had a couple of small trees that weren't in the attic so I put mine up in my bedroom and the other small one up in the living room.

Honestly, I found it kind of nice. I am not the hugest fan of all the Christmas hoopla. But splitcat is, so I usually try to do things up for him and the kids, but no one really seemed to mind. P was the only one who kept asking when we were putting the tree up. Everyone still got presents to open and they were all happy with what they received. I feel like the older I get the more minimalist I become about the holidays.

The funniest thing that happened was on Christmas Eve. The kids get to open a present at my in-laws. When W got his present everyone started reminiscing about how last year he opened up a movie and loudly proclaimed it was stupid. Well, true to form, it happened again. P opened up his gift which was a huge LOTR Lego set. So when W opened his and just saw what looked like a piece of paper he said really loudly, "This is SO LAME," and then proceeded to cry. You gotta love a kid with zero filters. Thankfully, once I explained to him what everything was (some art stuff) he was happy. Splitcat got a great picture of his reaction, but he has it set to private so I don't think I can show it here.

Everyone has gotten along pretty well for the duration. P and M have been the worst. When M gets tired he gets cranky and starts bugging the crap out of his siblings and P rises to the bait every. single. time.

New Years I spent home alone while the kids and splitcat went to his sister's house for playing games and hanging out. The kids thought it was fun to get to stay up so late. they were cranky the next day, though.

And so now the break is over and life is ready to go back to it's routine.

Thoughts

You may have noticed a lot of updates this week. Are you suprised? Do you feel special? Do you think I've finally lost it? If you answered yes to all those questions you win a very nice prize that will be donated by my sponsors. oh. wait. I no haz sponserz.

anywho

So why, Debbie, why?

Because I love you? At least those of you who are still reading after all this time and so few updates. And when I started thinking about the whole 52 week project idea I thought about how I could do more with that. So, here I am. There you are.

This is my tentative schedule. I plan on scheduling a week or so's worth of posts on Sunday's when I upload my pic for the week. I may schedule further ahead sometimes. So I apologize if you are offended that I won't be personally attending my blog on a daily basis. But, realistically, that will never happen. The schedule button is my new best friend :).

Sunday-My pic of the week
Monday-a quote I like-this may or may not(probably not) be followed by commentary
Tuesday-Crafty-something I have made or accomplished for the week.
Wednesday- A Scripture
Thursday-Thoughts-me generally spouting nonsense about whatever I want
Friday-Family-updates on the kids and life in general.
Saturday-Singing Saturday! Yes, it will be resurrected.

So, stay tuned.

In other news. I have returned to work. But I have graduated from babies to 4 yr olds. woohoo? I needed a job and my sister needed help. so. We work really well together and my mom works just below us with the 2 yr olds, so it will be nice to see them more often again.

So, here's to me trying to actually blog again!

Scripture 1/52

Isaiah 40:31But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint. kjv

Crafty Fun times

So, a few months ago my dishwasher broke. It was not a good week. My cat had just died and P was having a really really hard time adjusting to middle school. I really didn't need my dishwasher to break. So I have been washing all the dishes since then and since I might be mildly horribly OCD when it comes to washing dishes by hand, I have gone through a lot of sponges. So I was chatting with my mom and looking through Ravelry and had the brilliant idea to make my own. So I did a quick search and found a few patterns and commenced to crochet.

I picked this pattern because it is double-sided, sponge shaped, and it worked up really fast once I got in the groove. I am going to try adding some tulle to one side of the next one I make to give it some "scrub" power. I am hoping to make between 5-7 of these to have on hand.  The one in the pics is wet because I have been using it. I just used cotton yarn.

  

“Do not let your fire go out, spark by irreplaceable spark in the hopeless swamps of the not-quite, the not-yet, and the not-at-all. Do not let the hero in your soul perish in lonely frustration for the life you deserved and have never been able to reach. The world you desire can be won. It exists.. it is real.. it is possible.. it's yours.”
―    Ayn Rand, Atlas Shrugged

1/52

1/52, originally uploaded by Fiorinda.

So, splitcat decided to do the 365 challenge, and well, since I spectacularly failed that one already I thought I'd go for the 52 project. I think I can handle one photo a week. maybe.

I made a list of things I like to use as ideas. I will probably mostly be using our old canon powershot, which I am out of practice using. hence the blur.

the plan is to upload on sundays. because me and plans work so well. but you never know. i just might succeed for once.