Darn Technology

Today is Monday. Mondays are going to be our busy days this semester. Aaron has guitar lessons (today was lesson #4...he is progressing well and continues to enjoy it, and continues to practice daily...good job, Aaron!). Sadie has gymnastics. Today is her 1st class for this semester. There is one hour between when Aaron gets out of his lessons and Sadie's class starts, so we went to Barnes and Noble for Aaron to get his reading in for the day (gotta squeeze it in however we can). Since Sadie's gymnastics are on the same campus as my office, Aaron and I are currently in my office so that he can practice his guitar and I can get some work done. This is how I plan on every Monday going.

So, I had big plans for what I wanted to get done for this (almost) hour while Sadie is in gymnastics. But this darn technology. The first thing I was going to do was set up my roster on our testing and scoring software. However, all the info is still listed under the previous instructor, and I am unsure of who's name to put this semester under. I'll have to ask our technology guru tomorrow.

So, I figured I could enter some data about which students had completed a certain assignment. It is just a completion-type thing...no real grade, but I need to check off students as they get it turned in. I worked on it today before I left to pick up the kids. And it worked just fine. It is a Word document (a Word '03 document, not a Word '07 one). IT is saved to my flash drive. So, when I tried to pull it up to update things, it pulls up a message that asks which decoding to use, and it is all garble-dee-goop. What the heck could have happened in the few hours I was gone? Did some evil techno-gnomes sneak into my office, grab my flash drive (or is the problem w/ my computer?) and corrupt my file?

Me being techno-naive, I did not bother backing up this document. Luckily, I did print it off this morning, and can reconstruct it. But that will be a pain in my arse. Perhaps our technology guru can undo whatever those sadistic gnomes did to my flash drive.

Until then, I suppose I will be in limbo w/ work. I guess I could file some stuff, and clean off my desk. But blogging did (and will most likely always) take priority over cleaning...

My Brother Made My Day!!!

Okay, I know that this post is going to reveal (even further) exactly how off I am, but I was so pumped that I had to write about it.

Last night, my brother called me. It was a little late (around 9...) so I was suspicious of why he was calling. "What's wrong now" was running through my head. My brother asks what I'm doing, and when I tell him that I am going over my lecture notes for class the next day, he says, "Good, then you have a pen and paper handy." I didn't, but went a grabbed them. He then said the words that brought a smile to my face...

"Cody has an Algebra problem." He commented that even though he was the original math guru of the family, it had been too long since he had utilized those skills, so he was deferring to me, guru #2. I hoped that my own skills hadn't gotten rusty...haven't taught math in almost 7 years, and the last 2 years of teaching, I taught Geometry, not Algebra.

"Lay it on me," I said.

"It's a system of equations, and the instructions say to solve using elimination. Here are the 2 equations:

3X + 4Y = 18
-2X + 4Y = -7"

Mike knew what to do...he just doubted himself because the answer he got for Y didn't seem right. But he was right. And I got to work an Algebra problem and help him and my nephew.

Thanks, Mike! You put a smile on my face :)

A Buffalo in the Family

Last week, Toby won tickets to a WT basketball game from KGNC-AM. The game was last night, so I took the kids. It was their first experience watching a basketball game (not counting Caden's game that Aaron and I watched last weekend). It was so much fun watching the kids enjoy the game...or enjoy the other entertainment that was going on during the game.

Aaron really liked the band. It was WT's "basketball band" and was made up mostly of brass instruments, plus some saxophones and of course, a drum set. Aaron told me after the game that the drums were his favorite instrument in the band, since there wasn't a guitar. At one point, he tapped me on the shoulder and asked "Mom, how does that drummer drum so fast?" Aaron also enjoyed watching the boys warm up during half-time of the girls' game, because the guys were dunking. He informed me that he plans on being able to "dunk backwards" when he gets bigger. I hope he gets Toby's height...

Sadie liked the cheerleaders. Go figure. She also liked to dance to the music the band was playing. But her favorite part of the game was the buffalo mascot. He was wearing overalls (just like Pawpaw's). The entire game, she would look for that buffalo (or "buff-a-o" as she said it). She got to give him a high-five during the game when he came into the stands by us, and she laughed as he walked away because he had a hole in his overalls for his tail to come out.

On the way home, Sadie said, "I wish we had a buff-a-o in the family."

We only stayed for the first half of the girls' game, but both kids wanted to stay longer. I was glad that they enjoyed it, even though they were more interested in everything BUT the game. I think Aaron might have really liked the men's game. Maybe sometime, we'll load up and go to a weekend game, so that we can stay for the entire game...

Moments in History

Today was a great, historical moment for our nation. That got me thinking about all the historical events that I have lived through and can remember on my own (without having to have learned it in history or from my history-genius husband). So, here are a few...

The Challenger. This is probably the first historical event that I can remember hearing about on the day it happened. I was in the 4th grade, and was overwhelmed. Also in the 4th grade, I remember hearing about the AIDS epidemic and wondered if I might have it...

Magic Johnson announcing he was HIV positive. I was in the 9th grade, and when my older brother told me, I thought he was lying. But then, we turned the TV to ESPN Sports Center, and I heard it for myself. This was the first time that I realized that superstars don't always make great role models.

The Iran Contra scandal. I don't remember really understanding much about this, but do remember hearing about it and Oliver North, and it being a big deal, at the time.

The Oklahoma City Bombing. I was in college, and I was worried because one of my co-workers had a lot of family in and around OKC. Luckily, all her family was okay...

Columbine. Again, I don't remember when exactly this occurred, or where I was when I heard about it.

The Fall of the Soviet Union. I don't know that I remember hearing Reagan saying "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall," when it actually happened, but I now know how truly powerful that statement was, and how important Reagan's standing up to the Soviets was.

The World Trade Center. I remember the 2nd attack much more so than the 1st bombing. I remember where I was (I was teaching, and had gone to the office to get something from my box...a student was watching the news in the counselor's office and told me about it) and I remember being glued to Fox News Channel in all my spare time in the days to follow.

My Wedding. Okay, so not such an important moment in the history of most people's lives, but very important in my personal history.

And now, today. I am proud that our nation has overcome a past that was so horribly racist. I hope that finally, we can put that darkness in our past. I am sure that there will always be a few narrow-minded people, but as a whole, I think we have grown.

I am sure that there are tons of other historical moments that should have been included in this list, and I'm sure that as soon as I publish this post, that one or two more will pop right into my head. And I'm sure my husband will have a few suggestions, as well. But I'm going to leave this post as it is. These are the moments that first came to me. What would you add?

Particulars

Are there certain things that you are particular about that in the reality of the grand scheme of things, really doesn't matter? You know, that small stuff that you shouldn't sweat, but you still do because your a bit anal about it?

Well, I am not really an anal person...about most things. However, last night as I was working on the laundry, I realized that there are indeed a few things that I am very particular about. Below are a few of my "Laundry Particulars."

1. Hangers. You know there are hangers out there that have the notch on the top. I think they do have a purpose for things that tend to slip off of hangers, such as camis and tank-tops and wide-necked shirts. However, for regular shirts, I hate this notch. Shirts tend to get stuck in a notch when I try to pull them off the hangers. Therefore, for any shirts I hang up, I have to find a hanger that is straight across on the top...notch-free. I don't have a lot of tops that need the notch, so notched hangers are pretty useless here. So my notched hangers typically have pants hanging on them. Walmart only has the notched hangers in the cheap-version I go for, but I did find some notchless hangers at Target recently. YAY!

2. The way things hang. I don't know why this is something I am particular about, but in my world, all shirts should hang facing the same way. And regardless of how hard he tries, Toby always manages to hang them up the wrong way. We've been married now for over 11 years. You'd think he would have figured out which way things hang here. I do not have a preference for which way pants hang. I wonder why?

3. Folding. I fold the kids' shirts differently than I fold Toby's. Toby wants his shirts folded much the same way as you find shirts folded in stores...2 vertical folds just to the inside of each sleeve, and then fold it in half horizontally at the middle. Toby folds this kids' shirts this way, too, and it drives me crazy. That method of folding didn't work well when they were little, and it still doesn't work well for shirts like sweaters or sweatshirts.

So I guess I am anal about a few things...a few small things that try as I might, still cause me to sweat when Toby does it wrong. I guess that's why he so rarely helps with the laundry...

Guitar Lesson #2

Yesterday was Aaron's 2nd guitar lesson. This time, I dropped him off and Sadie and I went to United to buy a few things that Walmart didn't have that we needed for supper (don't go shopping at Walmart at 9 pm...the shelves are bare). When we returned to pick Aaron up, I asked how the lesson went. His teacher said that he could tell that Aaron had practiced (good), and that he had learned a few notes to "Sweet Home Alabama." When I said great, that I would have to have Aaron teach me, his teacher told me he'd show me real quick. That way, in case Aaron didn't understand something, I could help him, or correct him if he was doing something wrong. He said that Aaron had told him that he understood how to read the music, but that it was more difficult that what he had learned the week before, and just wanted him to have help if he needed it. What a great instructor Aaron has!

As soon as we got home (after a quick...or not-so quick stop at Tara's store), the first thing Aaron did was get out his guitar and new music and proceeded to show me how to play those few notes. I was very proud of him. He did it just like his teacher said. Way to go, Aaron! I hope he keeps practising and getting better.

Back to the Grindstone

Today was my first day back at work. I really didn't want to go back, and wish I had a few more weeks at home. I didn't get all the stuff done over the break that I had planned to, but I did get to spend lots of time with family.

Today at the office, things were pretty casual. Students don't come back until next Tuesday (we're off for MLK day). Then, things will be full swing, balls-to-the-wall, can't wait until May crazy. It's only 4 months, and I know a lot of you are thinking "I wish I only had to work 4 months and then get off for 3." But let me tell you...this is the most stressful job I've had. If I only had to get up and teach in the classroom, things would be pretty cool. But the clinicals and all the grading that goes along with those clinicals and all the stress of figuring out how to get my kids to school on clinical days...that's the part that makes the job stressful. Not to mention the 40-some-odd thousand different committees and sub-committees and task forces.

Oh well. I will survive. Mainly because there is Spring Break in the middle to let me come up for a gasp of sanity before being pulled back down. So if you don't hear from me in the next few months, it's not because I'm mad at you. It's just because I barely have time to breathe.

See you in the summer (hopefully sooner, but I'm not guaranteeing anything).

The End

For those of you not in my family, my Grandma passed away on Wednesday, January 7. Thank you to all of you who have expressed your sympathy. It was a peaceful death, which was my wish, and she wasn't alone, which was her wish. She had also told my aunt that she didn't want to die during the Holidays because she didn't want to inconvenience anyone, but the day after would be fine with her. January 6th was the official end to the Christmas season in the Catholic church (it was the Epiphany). So again, she got her wish there, too.

As I sat with her late into the night on the 6th, I couldn't help but wonder what must be going on with her. I watched her lay there breathing, surrounded by family, and knew she would not belong to this world much longer. She had slipped into a coma earlier that day, her last words being spoken around lunch. My mind kept running through the song "I Can Only Imagine" and I wondered if she was already seeing Jesus. Here is how I imagined that meeting going:

Grandma was in darkness, but could see a light. She made her way toward the light, but then paused when she arrived at that point where the light met the darkness. I know she didn't hesitate out of fear of dying. She had been ready to die for a while. But she did pause, and look back.

"Come Home, Louise," she heard her Savior say.

"But who will tend my garden?" Grandma asked.

"Look at this garden you have planted and toiled over. See here the 5 seeds you planted, and they have bloomed and been fruitful. These plants in this garden of yours have had to endure the bitterness of winter and the pain of drought. They have rejoiced through many springs and summers. And through it all, you have tended your garden, sustaining it with water and protecting it by weeding. Your diligent work has made a beautifully strong and fruitful garden. Your work here is done; your garden is now self-sustaining. You have earned your rest. Come Home."

And then Grandma took one final look back, and saw that what Jesus had said was true. Although the garden will definitely miss her, she could see that her garden could survive without her. And as Grandma entered Heaven, Jesus told her that many family members and friends were waiting to greet her.

"Are you ready to be reunited with your loved ones?" He asked.

"Yes, but can I first see a copy of the rules? I have a message to deliver, if it is permitted."

I love you Grandma! You were a great example of a Christian Mother, and I know I have big shoes to fill. Please watch over guide me. You will be missed.

I am Mu (μ)

Last night, I was invited to join my aunts and cousins for supper. The co-workers of Aunt Evelyn graciously provided a wonderful meal, and I am glad and grateful that they thought to invite me and the kids. While we were there, the oldest cousin and the youngest cousin began talking about how they were the Alpha and Omega grandchildren of Grandma. I told them that I was the 11th grandchild, and we quickly figured that Tara was the 14th. I wondered out load how many Greek letters there where, and which letter I would be. Uncle Alan, who was in a fraternity at Texas Tech back in the day, began reciting and counting the Greek alphabet, and there were 24 letters. The Omega grandchild quickly pointed out that although there were only 23 living grandchildren, that there was one baby born still, so Grandma actually did have 24 grandchildren. That led to all of us figuring out our Greek letter. Including the King baby, I was actually the 12 grandchild (right smack in the middle), Tara was the 15th, and Adam was the 22. That makes me the Greek letter Mu. Mu is okay...not one of my favorite Greek letters. If I could pick, I'd probably pick pi, but Mu is still an important symbol in math and physics.

So, today I looked on Wikipedia to learn more about the Greek letter Mu. Here is what I found interesting:

This is what the lowercase Mu looks like (the uppercase looks just like an uppercase M, so it is rarely used)...μ

Mu is the water symbol and has a value of 40.

It often appears with Alpha and Omega to signify the beginning (Alpha), the middle (Mu), and the end (Omega).

Mu is used in mathematics as the symbol for the population mean or expected value and in physics as the symbol for the coefficient of friction and the reduced mass of two bodies.

In pharmacology, Mu is an important opioid receptor.


So, I am Mu. On a side note, Tara was very excited to find out that she is Omicron. Here is what Omicron looks like: uppercase Ο, lowercase ο

Grandma

The "little by little" that I have been writing about has changed. She is no longer gradually fading, but is now quickly advancing through the stages of dying. The nurse says she's now in Stage IV and told my sister that her life can now be measured in hours, maybe a day. Over the past few days, my mind has frequently drifted off to those precious memories of times spent with her and on the farm. They are good memories, and even though I thought that her desire to meet Jesus would make this a less painful loss, my heart aches.

Here is a picture of her from her 90th birthday party. That was a good day...one of those precious memories that I will cherish forever...

Aaron's 1st Guitar Lesson

The last several posts have been a bit on the down side. I needed to write about something more upbeat, so you guys will get to read about Aaron's 1st guitar lesson. He has been very excited about this, and very anxious to get started taking lessons. So yesterday, right after school (and a quick snack), we headed off to lessons. Of course, we arrived about 10 minutes early and then had to wait. It seemed like those 10 minutes were an eternity for my little guy. When it was finally his turn, his teacher came out and greeted us, showed us where he could sit and wait if we got their early, and showed us the "studio" where Aaron's lessons would be. Not much of a studio...more like a closet. Seriously, I think Aaron's closet is about the same size as this studio. There were 2 chairs, a music stand, an amp, and a small desk w/ a computer. And of course, his teacher's guitar.

Aaron asked me to stay for this first lesson, so Sadie and I sat outside of the studio and listened. He was taught the basics...these are strings, there are 6, this is the 1st string, this is the 2nd string, etc, and this is tabliture (sp?), these are frets. He was then taught 2 scales...I'm not sure what the 1st one was, but the 2nd scale was G major. He was taught which finger to use with each fret. His teacher was wonderfully patient and encouraging. Aaron, on the other hand, was not too impressed. You see, our neighbor taught him how to play "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" and I think Aaron expected to just start learning songs. His teacher explained that the scales were very important to strengthen his finger muscles that he wasn't used to using, and to teach those muscles where to go to make the different notes. He finished up by teaching Aaron "The Flintstones." Aaron had no clue what the song was, but I immediately smiled as I recalled hours of watching all those episodes years ago.

After the lessons, his teacher encouraged him to practice everyday, and that the more he practiced, the quicker he would learn. He then looked at me and told me that he has always taught "The Flintstones" as the 1st song for beginners, and that it has just been in the past 3 or 4 years that kids haven't recognized the tune. I told him maybe he should learn the theme to "SpongeBob SquarePants" instead.

Overall, Aaron enjoyed the lesson and was very proud of himself. So now, we'll see how much he practices...

Crappy Start to '09

So far, 2009 has been pretty crappy. On the first day of the New Year, my Grandma was taken to the ER via ambulance, and then later admitted to ICU where the family was told that they did expect any treatment to make her better. We were told that if their IV Lasix therapy did not improve my Grandma's condition in 24 hours, that we should consider hospice.

On the 2nd day of '09, my Grandma was moved to hospice. She's still there, and little by little, she is fading. Why isn't there a timer, or a count down? After 90 years of life, you'd expect there to be a count down or something...

On the 3rd day of '09, we celebrated Aaron's b-day and our anniversary. We spent time with family. That night, my 14 year old nephew went to the ER with abdominal pain.

On the 4th day of '09, my nephew had his appendix out. Everything went well. We spent more time with family, gathered around the Matriarch of our family, keeping vigil as we watch her fade, little by little. That night, after we put the kids to bed, I checked the blogs that I follow, only to find out that fellow blogger and friend Travis Erwin's house had burned down. They lost everything. Travis was Aaron's flag football coach this fall, and his wife, Jennifer, was Sadie's Montessori teacher last year. Travis and Jennifer, I am so sorry for this devastating loss. Please let us know if there is anything that we can do...

So today is the 5th day of '09. So far, there haven't been any major events (except for returning to school for the kids, and Aaron's first guitar lesson). I keep waiting for something bad to happen. We've made it until now, but the day isn't over yet.

I hope that the first 4 days of the year are not an indication of what '09 has in store for us...and I hope that everyone else out there is having a better start to their New Year.

The Bad Mom That I Am...

Yesterday was Aaron's 7th birthday. And I didn't post a happy birthday to him. I even made him spend several hours of his birthday up at hospice with "nothing to do."

So, here's a belated "Happy Birthday, Aaron" right here on my blog. I love you, and I can't believe you are already 7. Time is really flying.

Yesterday wasn't all bad for Aaron. He did get breakfast in bed. A breakfast that he got to pick out. I didn't get to choose what I got for my breakfast in bed on my birthday a few weeks ago...

He also got to eat out at Abuelo's with 3 of his aunts, a cousin, and 1 uncle, plus me and Sadie. He got a birthday-nacho-type thing, w/ chips (sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar) topped w/ whipped cream, ice cream, chocolate sauce, caramel sauce, chopped nuts, and a cherry. He shared with everybody (except Russell...sorry Russell, but good job at refusing).

He also got to have his cousin spend the night. Turns out to be a good thing, because my brother and sister-in-law ended up in the ER with their oldest son, who ended up with an appendectomy this morning.

So again, I wish you a very happy birthday, and I pray for many many more to come.

Oh yeah...it was also Toby's and mine 11th anniversary. That's right...Aaron was born on our 4th anniversary. Love you, Toby, and I pray for many many more years of you stuck with me :)

Update on Grandma

So in my last post, I mentioned that my Grandma was in the hospital and would likely be placed in hospice. Well, that happened yesterday...

When I first went to the hospital on the 1st, I joked with one of my uncles and a few cousins that these doctors don't know Grandma, and that she will very likely live several more years. She is not the typical patient.

Yesterday, the ICU nurses told us as they were making the preparations for transfer to hospice that she may not survive the ambulance trip to the hospice facility. They told us that once in hospice, they would take her off the bi-pap machine that was forcing oxygen into her lungs, and she would no longer be receiving the IV drip of Lasix that was helping her body to remove the excess fluid that goes along with CHF.

Sometime around 4 or 5 (I really lost track of time once I got to hospice, so who knows when it really was), Grandma was settled in at hospice and had received some morphine and versed to ensure that she would be relaxed when they took her off the bi-pap. They took it off, and put her on a nasal cannula. A simple nasal cannula, the least invasive (because this is hospice, after all) and least effective means of delivering oxygen to a patient who can't breath well on their own.

I expected to see her deteriorate very rapidly after they changed her to a nasal cannula. However, after having that mask for the bi-pap removed, Grandma perked right up and look like she did before she went to the hospital. The nurse in me (and also in my sister-in-law) wanted her on monitors...oxygen saturation, blood pressure, heart rate...we wanted to be able to see exactly what was going on, because that is the way things are in the hospital. That is the way things are where we work. But not in hospice.

I just got home from visiting Grandma today. She was awake, and visiting, and doing well. She did seem to get a little winded if she talked for too long. Perhaps she is beginning to weaken. Little by little...

For those of you who may read this blog who do not know my Grandma...She is ready to die. For years, she has been commenting that she has had a good life and as soon as the Good Lord is ready to take her, she is ready. She lost one of her sons last year, and was really too much to bear. She is ready to go to heaven, to be reunited with my Grandpa, and my uncle, and so many other friends and loved ones.

So please pray for her. Pray that she can have peaceful, painless, dignified death that hospice tries to give each of their patients.

Happy New Year

Happy New Year to everybody. I hope that everybody has a better '09 than '08. With bringing in another year, I have spent some time reflecting, and these are some of the things I have figured out...

I am a very analytical, practical, rational, logical person. Somewhat of a Vulcan, I suppose, although I do actually have emotions, too. I used to get upset when someone would call me analytical, but now I have just accepted that it is indeed who I am, and it isn't all bad. Live long and prosper.

I am not a warm and fuzzy kind of person, and I come by it naturally. It's in my genes, apparently. It took a comment by my aunt to make me realize that my lack of fuzziness is just like my dad and uncles. It is also just like my Grandma. I am working on improving this side of me, and am getting better at giving and receiving hugs.

My Grandma is in the hospital, and will most likely be moved to Hospice today. She is 90 years old. I realized yesterday on my way to the hospital to visit her that when she dies, I will no longer have any living grandparents. That is strange to think about.

I am not always right, and my way is not always the only way. Toby likes to point this out often.

I miss math. I think this was listed on another post a few months ago when I was *tagged* but it is worthy of mentioning again.

I'm not good at resolutions. But I will try...again. I'm trying to lose some weight, so we'll see what happens...


So, now we begin a new year. Who knows what this year will hold in store for us. Do you have resolutions? Are you good at them? Any advice?