丑男照片_窦娥奇冤_《和搜子居同的日子》在线观看

A Book Done; a Book Beginning

So after “Us” ended this Thursday, I immediate put in my next audio book, which is, “Are You Afraid of the Dark?”, by Sidney Sheldon. As always, the first few paragraphs lead me to believe I wouldn’t like this book, but it’s becoming quite interesting.

It’s a book about several Think Tank members who are being murdered. Not only do you hear the slight details about the murders, but the reader is spun into the character’s lives by describing how those grieving depended on the people who died, and why. Some of it was hard to hear, and shocking.

Looks like another good read, or “listen”, as the case may be.

A Week Off

I would like to formally announce (to whomever cares) that I have next week off. School is out for a week, and I took the week off to coincide with that. It will be a week to spend some quality time with my daughter.

I haven’t had a week off since June of last year. I plan to sleep in a little, and spend a lot of time outside, since it will be in the 70’s next week.

Work has been insane this week, as well. Wednesday, I didn’t have time to sit down and think, let alone take on any more tasks. That didn’t mean the tasks didn’t come, mind you.

Yesterday, we had new heating and air installed in our home. Not because we wanted to, but because some “thing” in the heater was beginning to rust. The rusting thing could have lead to carbon monoxide poisoning, which would have been bad, to say the least. Our system was 22 years old. It was overdue.

I think I am missing my financial calling in heating and air installation, however.

Today, we’re finally catching up with my parents, who’ve been vacationing in sunny Kansas City for the last week. We managed to arrange for a few hours to meet for dinner. It’s unfortunate that it’s only a couple of hours, but on the bright side, it’s something, at least. We missed our 1/2 day visit last week due to a major cold affecting my brother’s entire house.

Almost at the end

I have almost reached the end of “Us“, just having started listening to CD 9 0f 9. I’ll be sad to see it go, the book I thought I wouldn’t like.

I’ll miss the sound of the British voices and the talk about Oxford and all of the deciphering of the British words into their American counterparts. Eventually, I may begin speaking with a British access, just because I love the sound of it.

Were I to move to London, I imagine I would have to be jobless, perhaps in my pensioner days, where I could sit in a park or hang around a circus in order to only listen to the sound of the accent that would eventually become an everyday sound.

I also found a site where you could rent unlimited audiobooks for $11.95 a month. I would only get through one or two, depending on the length of the book, so it’s hardly worth it to me. But you… you might benefit from it.

The Joy of Child Rearing

I had to post this. Had to. It’s because it’s what I think most mothers go through to an extent, but their child never realises it. I call it “Chronic I’m-Not-As-Good-A-Mother-As-I-Thought-I-Would-Be”. What I hope Heather realises is that there are other mothers in the world, including me, who would love to be a perfect mother, or at least live up to their own expectations.

Heather writes:

And here’s the part of the newsletter where I usually fail miserably at trying to rein in the urge to get gushy about the extent to which you change my world every hour, except this month I’m not going to do that because I feel instead that I should apologize, that I owe you that more than anything else. Sometimes I worry that the most vivid memory you are going to have of me from this time is the scowl on my face. Often I am ashamed that I am not the mother I thought I was going to be.

Mothers fail, here and there, just like everyone else. It’s hard for us, because inside we want to love and nurture, and we worry that the few times when we are not the parents we want to be, is going to be what’s remembered the most.

I think part of it is that we haven’t learned to appreciate our own parents enough. I give my parents credit for being able to deal with 3 children and all their eccentricities, our curfew jumping, the occasional car rolling (not me!)..everything. Kids can be a handful, and I think we were a big handful at times. I do give them credit, but there were things about child-rearing I just didn’t get until I had my own.

I just have one child. Sometimes she is the one helping me, instead of the other way around. But every day, I love her no matter what, and sometimes I wonder, “How will she think of me” tomorrow or next year or 30 years from now. It’s the thing that keeps me trying to meet my own expectations. That, and that face that says, “Good God… where did THAT come from?” 🙂

Funny Ads

Do you think the guys will ever show up for work, or do they drive around all day?

Things That Stink

Today, we were supposed to go to Kansas City to meet my new nephew, see my brother’s family and my parents, who are visiting from Virginia. My dad called last night to tell us that everyone in KC is sick. I talked to my brother, and he was unsure if it’s the flu or colds. After 2 hours this morning of going back and forth, “should we go, or not?”, I spoke with my mom who said, “I wouldn’t want TLK to get this.”

Sniffle.

I haven’t seen my parents since Thanksgiving, or my brother and his family, for that matter. So far, both of my brothers have been able to see my parents this year. Somehow, that doesn’t seem fair. :**(

Books on CD

To entertain myself on the way to work, I’ve started listening to spoken books on CD. These are easily obtained for free from the libraray.

This week, I am reading, “Us” by Richard Mason. What I enjoy about this book is that it involves 3 characters: Julian, Jake and Adrienne, and the book begins by dedicating each chapter to a specific character. Once the characters meet, the names of the chapters involve 2 – 3 people.

All three of these people have landed in different circumstances in life. Julian is a teacher, whose father believes he is a waste of space. Jake is a famous artist turned alcoholic. Adrienne is married to an older man and pregnant, fullfilling her mother’s expectations of social status and wealth.

Julian began as a middle class English boy who ends up in Oxford after 5 years of boarding school. His practice is to keep his head low and avoid trouble. Essentially, he plays along with the crowd, right or wrong, in order to not draw attention to himself. In his second year, he meets an American girl, Andreinne and falls in love with her.

Adrienne comes from a wealthy family in the US. Adrienne’s mother is overbearing and the antithesis of what a mother should be. As Adrienne leaves for college, she shouts after her that when she became pregnant with Adrienne, she came “that close” to having an abortion. Can you imagine? Adrienne chooses Oxford in order to get away from her mother.

Jake is a lower class English boy who lands in boarding school via a monetary gift. The boys catch on that he is from a poor family, and ride him hopelessly. He falls in love with Julian’s sister. I have not gotten to the part where he goes to Oxford, but I’m betting he is landing there soon.

I always start a new book by thinking, “This book is going to stink”, but I become quickly attached to it, and can’t wait to get into my car and drive awhile so I can hear what happens next.

Questions and Answers

What would YOU do? In August, I submitted an application to a company which turned out to sound like the company of my dreams, if one does actually exist. I was called to an interview within a matter of days.

“We’ll get back to you within a week and a half.”

So, it’s 滚床单无遮挡免费视频 now, far past the week and a half. The manager of the area I was applying to was on leave. Excuse enough. “Sorry for the delay,” she said, “Shouldn’t be much longer.”

However, last Monday I enquired as to whether the position was still open. A week and a day later, “Yes, I’ve already filled that position, but I’m expecting expansion during 2007. Would you like to come in and talk about the position?”

Would YOU?

Knee Replacement Needed

My husband needs new knees (try to say that fast 3 times). Anyone who has a spouse or loved one knows that the prospect of major surgery is nothing to smile about. At least the need is not immediate. He’s started with cortisone shots in his knees, and they get him by enough so that he can walk with very little pain.

As soon as he described the x-rays to me, I started feeling awful, in an “I can just imagine” way, about what he must have gone through for years. There are bone spurs and very little synovial fluid to cushion his joint movement. I haven’t been oblivious to the pain, but the description of how the knee looked helped to picture the pain a little more. I’ve been after him for ages to get the knees looked at, but he knew what was coming, and preferred not to go to the doctor.

Life does this. You work, you play, things happen. Parts of your body fail, because, well.. people are just human.

So even though the prospect of surgery is not something I’d like to wish on anyone, in the end, the prognosis is quite good. I asked my husband if he could imagine walking with no pain, or walking without fear that his knees were going to “give out”. He smiled and said, “no”, anticipating that some day, the new knees will be an excellent thing.

So, I’m going to learn to drive a motorcycle

Really. My husband signed me up to take a class next year, and they had a couple of cancellations, so I’m in. I was surprised to hear how intensive the training was, really. It involves 3 hours of classroom training on two days during the week, then 8 – 5 riding on both days of the weekend.

I’ll be taking a written and a riding test, then I can go to the county and get my license, if I want.

My mom is probably going to kick my butt.