Busymom.net

Updates Later

Thu, 17 Jul 2008 13:34:10 -0600

Busy Extortionist

Fri, 11 Jul 2008 10:17:59 -0600

Overheard upstairs at home last night:

Busy Boy (age 11, until tomorrow) to Busy D. (age 6): "NO! I will not give you money to leave me alone!!"

BlogHer Bingo

Thu, 10 Jul 2008 13:40:30 -0600

It's that time of year.

Many blogs are abuzz with one thing - BlogHer.

Some may find it interesting, others may not,

That's not the point here.

With more and more blogs talking about BlogHer, I've noticed a trend.

There are common themes, words, phrases and ideas and I thought, "Hey, why don't we involve everyone?"

Let's play BlogHer Bingo!*

Print your Official BlogHer Bingo Card and cover a square each time you read the word or phrase in that square.

When you get a whole row covered, stand up and yell, "BLOGHER!"

Or not.

It's up to you.

* (disclaimer - I'm going to BlogHer and I'm really looking forward to it.

I went last year and I liked it. I respect that people have lots of different feelings about it, this is a joke.

Batteries not included. Professional driver, closed course. Objects in mirror are closer than they appear.)

Ending an e-mail

Tue, 08 Jul 2008 21:09:37 -0600

I had to send an e-mail last week, and I stewed for the longest time about how to close it.

It was a personal e-mail that needed more than a "See ya" or a, "Thanks" and a little less than "Love" but, not having a closing wasn't right either as I needed to convey the right balance of intimacy and casualness.

Took me forever to decide.

What do you use to close e-mails?

I think "Best" or "Best Regards" is pompous, "Love" gives the wrong idea in certain situations, "Yours truly" sounds like a romance novel.

"Yours 'til Niagra Falls?"

"Smell Ya Later" works, but you know, not always.

Am I the only person who over-thinks this stuff?

My weenie has a first name, it's B-U-S-Y-M-O-M

Mon, 07 Jul 2008 18:24:37 -0600

July 7th, really?

Seems that the globe-hopping lifestyle I lead cuts down on time to write at this here collection of pixels.

Returned home from back to back trips, first to the beach and then to St. Louis for the Fourth of July.

Oh, and I had a lovely dinner with the (lovely) Linsdsay and my new friend, Tori in between trips.

We made plans to paint San Francisco chartreuse during BlogHer next week.

Next week? Um, yeah. Pack. Buy something to pack...

Anyway, our annual visit to (sometimes reader) Fourladsnme's St.Louis home was a blast, as always.

We went to a parade and party-hopped on Friday, eating more than our share of, well, everything.

Saturday brought hurling (the game, not a consequence of Friday, silly) and a trip to Six Flags.

More flags. More fun.

More slaps to that guy in the commercial.

The kids rode themselves silly on Batman, Mr. Freeze and the Ninja.

The adults partook in a few rides, and I was very grateful that there were younger, less puke prone adults (Thank you, Mr. Lange) with us, so Busy Boy and friends weren't all alone on the rides.

Poor Busy D.

We got on a couple of kiddie rides that turned out to be more than I he bargained for, but he was a trooper.

Since I have no ~~sense~~memory, I got on the Evel Knievel roller coaster.

Turns out I forgot I'm the one who gets sick and can't look at the roller coaster thing at the movies that advertises the concessions.

Actually, the log ride drop is enough for me.

I made it through, but damn.

Why does every roller coaster have to be X-treme!!?

Imagine my distress just now when I read it's only classified as "moderate" thrill.

"Moderate", my nauseated ass.

Not a digital camera abuser, really.

Tue, 01 Jul 2008 10:55:28 -0600

Knock on whatever, but our appliances have resisted their annual summer failures.

There's every possibility that it's due to the fact we've had to replace darn nearly everything, but we'll take what we can get.

However, the latest twist on busted stuff is that we've killed 3 digital cameras since last week.

Seriously.

No real explanation for any of them other than digital camera rapture.

It was just their time to go, I suppose.

I gots to have a point and shoot-ish digital camera before BlogHer.

I have my lovely Canon Digital Rebel, but I'm not sure I want to carry that with me every day and I always keep a camera in my purse.

I've taken to entering online contests to win a camera, but what is up with all of them being open to UK residents only?

I don't live in the UK, but I take lots of pictures.

Where for art the "Win a camera!" contests in the US?

We didn't mean to kill them, honest.

Great, now the digital SLR camera police are probably going to investigate me to see if I'm fit to have one, or if there's digital camera abuse going on in my house.

I'm calling you if I need a character reference.

Scene from a long car ride

Mon, 30 Jun 2008 15:21:18 -0600

Busy Boy: (Insert some injustice of life here, I don't remember what the problem was.)

Busy D.: "Busy Boy, stop whining. You sound like me."

Home again, home again

Sun, 29 Jun 2008 20:27:14 -0600

Home from the beach.

Yay.

Despite a few missteps, a good time was had by all.

One of the secrets of grown ups is that a vacation really isn't one when you're the parent, and double that when you're the Sandwich Generation poster child.

The fun doesn't end, though, as the house is crawling with non-native children.

Summer is exhausting for those of us who aren't teachers or students.

Back to work tomorrow, as they are funny about wanting me to you know, be there.

Vacation?

Sat, 21 Jun 2008 21:28:07 -0600

Vacation.

Our family, my dad AND my MIL.

Started out with a flat tire on the Interstate.

Beach house sort of not as expected.

Send ~~help~~ alcohol.

Need your help

Fri, 20 Jun 2008 17:26:18 -0600

Hey, I need your help.

I have to write a description of what my blog is about, and it dawned on me that I have no idea.

How would you describe it?

A little something for your trouble:

Tiny Prints Discount Coupon Code: BUSYMOMREADER gets you 10% off your order

Wedding Paper Divas Discount Coupon Code: BUSYMOM gets you 10% off your order

Can we get a napkin, please?

Thu, 19 Jun 2008 12:29:27 -0600

I love Improv Everywhere.

That's what I want to be when I grow up.

What's the vector, Victor?

Wed, 18 Jun 2008 11:32:37 -0600

I love flying, even though I don't get to do it too often.

But, really, do you ever wonder why we put up with the stuff we do in the name of air travel?

Herded about like cattle, walking around barefoot with our shoes clutched in our hands, looking for a place to get dressed again, the huddled masses crowding each gate waiting to be told that they're not really leaving at 7:13 after all?

I did my part to ensure national see-cure-it-ee by dutifully placing my liquids in a quart sized Zip-loc bag.

But, do you ever wonder if we are going to look back at this practice and laugh loud and long one day that we thought this would prevent whatever it's supposed to prevent?

Then there's the whole baggage issue.

Airlines charging for the first checked bag, geez.

I was worried that it would cause even more idiots to try to bring all their luggage onto the plane with them, but I was glad to see that the carry-on limit was enforced pretty strictly at American.

I also have to wonder about my own behavior when I fly, too.

When I'm at the airport, I talk to myself like I'm an idiot.

I have a great fear of leaving something somewhere, so my self talk goes something like this:

"OK, stand up. Purse, computer, ticket. Can you see and touch all of these?

Walk to the bathroom. Purse? Computer? Ticket? Check.

Now, leave the bathroom with your purse, your computer and your ticket.

Whew, this is exhausting. I need to sit down after I throw this away.

Walk to the trashcan, throw the paper in there, don't throw your ticket in there, don't throw your ticket in there..."

I also suffer from "boarding bladder", the feeling that you might have to go even when you just went because the plane is getting ready to board.

But, I'm learning to get this particular neurosis under control.

Flying the friendly skies sure has changed.

Wrapped up like a deuce

Mon, 16 Jun 2008 23:15:13 -0600

Hidee ho from Chicagoland.

No, no, I'm not calling you a "ho".

However? You over there?

If the shoe fits...

Apologies to any Heidi out there who's offended by the making of this post.

I'm sure you are a very nice girl, it's just a saying.

Anyway...

I'm here in Naperville and I'll tell you more about why later, but, for the moment let it suffice to say that I just enjoyed a delicious dinner at Rosebud with my new friends Wisconsin Mommy and The Bachelor Guy and Patrick.

Ooh, weird, I'm having a deja vu here.

No, not Deja Vu the strip club, the deja vu that means I feel like I've done this before.

Actually, it may just be the Chocolate Diabetes Bomb cake we had for dessert getting to me.

We laughed, we spoke of Chuck E. Cheese, NASCAR, Dennis Rodman and song lyrics.

(Confidential to Patrick's bosses: we talked business stuff, too.)

Now I can't think of anything to write because The Bachelor Guy's room is right next to mine and I'm distracted by wondering if he can hear me in the bathroom and stuff.

And Leon is getting laaaaarrrrrger

Sat, 14 Jun 2008 10:24:19 -0600

I was watching The Weather Channel (MTV for old people. Yes, I'll be eating dinner at 4pm before you know it.) and a young, very animated anchor was gesturing wildly about the possibility of a hurricane somewhere in the Atlantic.

She was sitting at the anchor desk and the background behind her was open, showing the hustle and bustle of the busy news room.

She was getting ready to go to break and excitedly said, "What are the possibilities?! Will there be a hurricane?!"

At that moment, a guy was walking across the background behind her, looked at the camera with an exaggerated skeptical look, shook his head "no" and walked on, a la Johnny the Office Boy.

Tim Russert's death

Fri, 13 Jun 2008 21:51:20 -0600

I am all kinds of broken up watching the coverage of (American journalist) Tim Russert's death, I'm not even sure why.

One reason, is that I simply cannot imagine what it's like for these NBC people to have to immediately begin national television coverage of your friend's death right after it happened in front of you.

From what I read, NBC let themselves get scooped by other networks in order to make sure that his family was contacted first.

Tom Brokaw is killing me.

I just can't stop watching it, though.

I'm not a very political person, but if there was something I needed to know, I could understand what Tim Russert was talking about.

But, man the things I've learned about him today.

While people generally don't speak ill of the dead, today you can just feel that everyone who had come forward from all over the world really means what they say about him.

I know a little about him because he spoke at an organization I'm involved with (I didn't get to see him).

He had so much pride for his son who just graduated college and two books about his dad who he had to move to a nursing home just last week.

He loved kids and the stories over and over again tonight about how he was always the first one to acknowledge anything that happened with his friends and coworkers families.

He was a devoted Catholic and had so much pride for where he came from and passion for what he did.

And I have to love a Bruce Springsteen fan.

I can't help but wonder though, if this moment might make everyone take a deep breath politically and proceed a little more humanely the rest of this election year.