The many moods of an almost teen.... ugh!

WW...

Turning 43

When you are young, time seems to move so slow. In just a few hours I will be 43; where has the time gone? Each year seems to fly by in a flash, leaving me breathless. I want to slow it down! So, as I count down these last few hours of my 43rd year, I need to set some goals for this next year.

I will ask more questions, take more chances, relax (or at least try to), and enjoy more of what life has to offer. These are my b'day wishes to myself.



Fake Plastic Trees
A green plastic watering can
For a fake chinese rubber plant
In the fake plastic earth

That she bought from a rubber man
In a town full of rubber plans
To get rid of itself

It wears her out, it wears her out
It wears her out, it wears her out

She lives with a broken man
A cracked polystyrene man
Who just crumbles and burns

He used to do surgery
On girls in the eighties
But gravity always wins

And it wears him out, it wears him out
It wears him out, it wears him out

She looks like the real thing
She tastes like the real thing
My fake plastic love

But I can't help the feeling
I could blow through the ceiling
If I just turn and run

And it wears me out, it wears me out
It wears me out, it wears me out

And if I could be who you wanted
If I could be who you wanted
All the time, all the time

A long hot weekend...

While trying to think cool thoughts, I play with my camera. One cannot live pool side 24/7.

Gecko in cooper and silver

Our last project for spring quarter was a cuff bracelet. I made one in honor of our geckos (Fatima, Zaphire, and Sabra). It's a bit too gothic for me, almost Wonder Woman meets the Afghan hills. But it was fun, silly, and labor intensive (lots of sanding due to fire scale). I wonder what the summer quarter will bring?

Wordless Wednesday...

New Camera!

I am so excited! I got a new (old) Canon 20D for my Birthday (a little early). Thanks to Mom and Brother A! It's so amazing. Can you tell I am very excited. I was playing around with it and already I feel like I have my Pentax back but with so many more bells and whistles. Look how rich the colors are. It even takes awesome pictures in the dark. We even got one of Fi's water snail; we took it in total darkness. Wahoooooooooooooo. I'm in digital heaven.

Getting older

I was listening to NPR the other day. They were discussing the up coming democratic convention in Denver, and about a group that wants to bring back the protests in the spirit of the 68' Chicago Convention. It was also mentioned that this might be a challenge given that half the population of the US was born after the 68' Convention. Wow, that fact really gave me pause. I'm really getting old. I don't feel old, except in the morning when getting out of bed. Well, today Dick Martin passed away. I grew-up watching Laugh In with my parents, most likely missing most of the jokes, but enjoying the timing of the humor non-the-less. The show started in 68 and ran until 1973. I still remember many of the skits to this day. Martin was 86, but I still see him as a young guy; ah the magic of television.

Good Night Dick!

Wordless Wednesday...

Wordless Wednesday... left out in the rain!

Playing with texture and light

I never used to like the smell of metal. Counting change was always a chore followed by vigorous hand washing. But, something has changed; I no longer mind the smell. I find the feel of the metal, the smell, somehow comforting. It's solid, not fragile like so much in my life. I'm beginning to understand how it melts and moves with the pressure of my hammer or the squeeze of the rolling mill. I like that it is forgiving to my ineptness, patient to my learning curve.

Saying goodbye to Madison Jones

We said goodbye to our Maddy Mo Jones this afternoon. She was a part of our family for almost 14 years. The next few weeks will be hard for A; he loved her so much. She is at peace now and hopefully playing with Otto and Chelsea somewhere among clouds.

I've been tagged!

Patricia at Classical Ed tagged me. Like I don't have school to do?

Here are the rules:

1. The rules of the game get posted at the beginning.

2. Each player answers the questions about themselves.

3. At the end of the post, the player tags 5 people and posts their name, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know they've been tagged and asking them to read your blog.

What was I doing 10 years ago: Gosh, I was a wash in La Leche League, working on becoming a Leader, taking care of Ms. Mac, two at the time, and enjoying our little house in the big woods.

Five Snacks I enjoy:

1. Chocolate - really good chocolate. Only recently have I been able to eat it again in small amounts. So when I do it's the best I can put my grubby hands on.

2. Patricia got me hooked on Smart Food's White Cheddar Popcorn. We try to be good and get it every once and a while.

3. Sabra Hummus with garlic and pine nuts, scooped with either, fresh squash, cucumbers, or carrots.

4. Blue corn chips and fresh mango salsa

5. Nuts, cashews, almonds, peanuts (I know they are not technically nuts), pistachios, etc

6. Most fresh fruit, Mangos, berries, bananas, apples (with a bit of cashew butter)


In the real world I am:


1. Tired, I need more sleep. Too many late nights checking on Ms. Fi

2. Hopeful, that this will be a great summer and that things will be better, more joy in our lives.

3. Sad, our pup is not doing well. I'm not sure how much longer she will be with us. So we are doing a lot of looking back.

4. Laughing at the thought that it is cold somewhere in the US? It will be in the lower 80's today. But then again, I don't live near the OCEAN!!!!

5. Stressed.... Yes, this is a normal everyday feeling. Just wish it would go away!

6. Planning, always writing down lists of things to do, w/o, do school, go food shopping, more ideas for fall curriculum, etc

Things I would do if I were a billionaire:

1. Buy all members of my family the one thing the desired most (if it could be bought)

2. Allow A to retire and find his life's passion

3. Travel the world with my family

4. Invest and give most of the profits to different charities (like this one... so I stole it, LOL)

5. Have an amazing studio, so when we were not traveling, I could make jewelry, do hand building, and edit my photos taking on our travels. Of course Fi would have a studio too and Mac her own drama troop/theater.


Five jobs that I have had:

1. Babysitter through high school

2. Worked at B' Dalton while in college (from part-time up to Asst. Manager) almost 10 years! Ugh...

3. Worked at Chapter 11 Books. I think I see a pattern

4. Became a mom, very hard job, for which I am still employed. Oh and add homeschool teacher (about six years now)

5. LLL Leader (Breastfeeding support) for almost eight years. Held a number of positions within the organization. It's so sad that they are a mess.

Three of my habits:

1. I am an internet junkie.... Is this like a 10 step program?

2. I just talk too much... so since I often has no one around to talk to, I post too much.

3. I worry too much, about everything. I'm really trying to work on this.


Five places I have lived:


1. Manhattan (NY, NY)
2. Riverdale (Bronx), NY
3. Larchmont, NY
4. Dunwoody, GA (just north of Atl)
5. Woodstock, GA (just a little farther north of Atl) and now Roswell (moving back closer to Atl). Next might be to the city! Or near the OCEAN!!!!!


What do you want others to get from your blog:

Share with family, friends and cyber friends what we are up to. To be a bit of diversity in the home school community.


SO now I tag....

Lorna at Socks and Books
Audrey at A Small Corner of Nowhere
Jenn at Captain Blackfoot
Parabola at Schola of Liber Sententia
Lori at The Von Kekel Academy


And whoever else wants to join the fun. Leave a comment so I can check out your responses!

WW... a Grandmother missed

What Your Taste in Chocolate Says About You

You are sophisticated, modern, and high class. Your taste is refined, but you are not picky. You are often the first to try something new. You are down to earth and lovable. A true friend, you're very tolerant and understanding. In fact, your friends' biggest problem is that they don't like each other! You love being around people. Friendships are important to you. You feel lost when you're by yourself... so you tend to avoid being alone.

The Chocolate Oracle

As I come to the end of another "school" year, I'm amazed at how much Mac has grown-up. Something has changed; my little girl is not little anymore. I'm busy gathering our curriculum for the fall with high school breathing down my neck. She wants to go... do I let her? Fi is in her own world, growing fast too, but thankfully still lost in little girl things, her animals, nature, rocks, and now bks. She loves to read and is reading me out of house and home. Planning for her is so much easier, yet I love the challenge that teaching Mac brings as we move away from the basics towards the grey, the more abstract. I still have at least one good year before I will need to decide. I just wish I had more time.

Wordless Wednesday

A family bed

Living in the now...

I wish I could be more like my dog. She lives for now, not yesterday, nor tomorrow but now. She does not fret over bills, her health, world politics, or even the weather. She just is.

Wordless Wednesday

Not fine but fun art Friday

Lisa asked me to post some more of my silver and copper project. I firmly believe you are never to old to learn a new trade, take up a new hobby, or find joy in just trying something you never thought you would.

I saw this on Lisa's page and thought I would give the test a try.. not surprised at the result, as I own a couple pairs.

You Are Clogs

You are a solid and down to earth person. You seek – and almost always achieve – a really sound balance in your life. You are stylish yet comfortable. Mellow but driven. Excited yet calm. You are the perfect mesh of contradictions. No matter what happens, you have the ability to stay well grounded in your life. People know that they can truly depend on you. You should live: In Europe You should work: At a company dedicated to helping the world

What Kind of Shoe Are You?

WW... looking back

WW...

Got meal worms?

My World Science

Fi is enjoying My World Science so much this year. She took a break for a while to complete her sister's Plato's CyberEd Earth Science course. Yes, a seven year-old did indeed finish and test well using a middle school curriculum. This kid loves science! Anyway, I had hoped we could finish this last unit about the Ocean and Coral Reefs at the beach, but it was just not in the cards. Maybe next year. So, next best thing, she made her own small section of the beach. I will miss this time when she, like her sister, grows weary of subject related crafts, or maybe I will be lucky and she won't.

WW...