COO...L BED!

My boyfriend's bed looks like a park bench. I got him a little friend to keep him company when I'm not there.

Ahh...

Spring has sprung in Boston!

20 Years Today

Today marks 20 years since my mom died. It's sort of unbelievable. I don't know what happens as you get older to make the passage of time go so quickly, but 20 years seems like yesterday. 20 years, are you kidding me???

I say this whenever I talk about my mom, but I'll say it again. I will never get over her death. Never. It's not like I dwell on it and never leave my house or anything, but I think about her every day, and I wish all the time that she was here. When I really think about it, like now, I start to get really sad and cry. Mostly, I am used to the fact that she's not here, but I don't like it one bit.

My mom was so funny and unique. She would be totally unprepared to handle today's technology. I remember when ATMs first came out and she would get so flustered using them. She'd wave her hands and make panicky noises.  To imagine Mom with a cell phone makes me laugh out loud.

Mom liked funky things. She once had some local teenagers carry a defunct fire hydrant up 3 flights of stairs so she could have it as decoration in the entrance of her apartment. She was always paying teenagers to do things for her.

She was a big fan of Reebok sneakers and skirts, down coats, and coral nail polish on her toes.

Here's to you, Mom. I wish you were here. I have a plastic goose lamp and a giant Starbucks mug as decoration in my house. Your influence is evident. I miss you.

Yuk yuk

Working at my preschool is like vaudeville show sometimes, with one liners zinging left and right.

Yesterday, little Oscar comes up to me holding two tennis balls.

Oscar: Alex, I have balls!

Alex: (pauses for effect) Yes, you do, Oscar.

A mom, breezing by: One in each hand!

Ba dum  bum! We're here every day, folks.

Got Glue?

Who can have these foam pieces for an art project? Anyone.

I WON!

My friend Amy and I play Scrabble on Sundays. She is famous for kicking my ass on a regular basis, even when she's doped up on cold medicine. Every once in great while, to Amy's disbelief, I win. I won recently (by one point, but hey, it's still a win), and was so excited I had to document it. And now I will share it (read: flaunt it) with the world. Celebrate with me, won't you?

Beyoncé - Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)

I'm teaching this song to my kids. It has a great beat, and it's so much fun to sing, "Wuh oh oh, uh oh oh oh!" I've got a couple of the kids singing that part already.

Last night I took a one time class to learn the dance. We got through 1/4 of the dance, and I learned about 1/4 of that. It was fun, but I am NOT Beyonce. Not even close. I'm not worthy.

Barack Sings a Love Song

When President Obama was elected, I made a big deal of it at school. I prepped the kids and made sure they knew who he was. Every once in awhile I'll show his picture and ask who it is, just to keep it fresh in their minds.

I was excited when I got a taped call from Barack Obama, asking me to vote for Martha Coakley. I saved the message, and have played it for the kids so they can hear his voice and know that Barack Obama called me!

The other day at school I was playing random songs. "Falling in Love" by Elvis Presley came on, and I told the kids who it was. I played the CD a few times, and when Elvis came on again, I said, "Now, who is this again?"

Lucas replied, "Barack Obama!" Guess I shouldn't quiz the kids too often.

Watch Where You Sit

Yesterday at school I was getting ready to read a story. I had gathered all the children, got them to sit down, and put my little chair in its place so I could sit down and read. A little girl was near my chair, and as I sat down, she pulled the chair out from under me. I fell hard on the floor, totally unexpected. It was that classic pratfall you see in the movies--classic! It would have been funny if I hadn't hit my back. I was okay, she was horrified, and I got some ice and read the story. It was classic, I gotta give her that. What timing! Next time I'll be sure to look carefully before sitting down.

Slippery When Wet

Here's the Wet Floor Guy. We've all seen him slipping, but have you actually seen him after he's fallen?

Merry Christmas, Dear!

My cousin got this stalk of Brussel sprouts from her boyfriend's mother for Christmas. Her boyfriend of nine years. Brussel sprouts. Dripping wet from the sink. A week later I was in Trader Joe's and I saw the same stalk. A woman and her husband walked by and said, "Wow, I've never seen Brussel sprouts on a stalk like that", and I had to chime in, "My cousin got those for Christmas from her boyfriend's mother!" Most unusual (and healthy) present this year.

Happy New Year!

It's 2010, Holy crap. It feels like the future. I spent my New Year's Eve on an airplane coming back from CA. I asked the flight attendant (a little man who resembled Bob Barker, only better looking) if we were gonna celebrate at midnight. He said, "Oh honey, this is gonna be a regular charter plane. We'll all be sleeping." I said, "Oh, come on!"

At first I thought it was gonna be a party. There was a guy next to the window, and an empty seat, then me. This woman from Puerto Rico in the row in front of us told me that she and her family were traveling together, and their seats were all over. She smelled of alcohol, but had an energetic vibe. I moved to the middle seat and let her dad sit in my aisle seat. He didn't speak English that well. I told him I'd practice my Spanish, and said, "Feliz Navidad!"

The woman said she was going to Boston, but it might be risky with her sweatshirt (a Yankees sweatshirt). I said, "I'm a New Yorker!" and we high fived. We made a little noise, and I thought, "Now this is where the party's at!" The dad, whose head looked like a turtle's, smiled politely and had a blank look in his eyes. A minute later, the flight attendant said there were four seats in a row in the back, and the spunky woman said, "Vamanos!" They all got up, Papi very confused, and moved. End of party.

At midnight, most everyone was sleeping, but I looked over at my aislemate, who had his eyes open. I said, "It's midnight. Happy New Year!" Then I went to the bathroom and said to the flight attendants, "Happy New Year!" They said, "Oh, is it midnight? Oh yeah!" I asked why there were no streamers and hats, and one of them said, "Yeah, I did that once during a flight. We didn't want to wake anyone up."

LAME!!! Oh well, it's 2010. The future is here.

Under Attack in the Snow!

So last night was supposed to be the Blizzard of '09. And it happened, all right.  I had a bit of deja vu in the midst of it. This happened to me the last time we had a big storm, but at the time, I didn't remember it. I've even written a blog post about it. If you've read it, it's just the same story. If you haven't, here's what happened.

I kept hearing this loud noise, half asleep, and I was thinking, "I've seen the Stealth Bomber before, I know what it sounds like. I wonder why it's flying right now?"

5 minutes later:

"It's the Stealth Bomber again. What's going on? Is there some winter show?"

10 minutes later, the "Stealth Bomber" "flew overhead" again, but this time, there was a big boom sound right in front of my house. That's what woke me up at 3 AM. I thought, "There's the Stealth Bomber, and...Oh my god, we're being bombed!"

I freaked out, and woke up, and looked outside to see...a snowplow. I don't know what it kept hitting, but right in front of my house there was a pothole, or a manhole cover, or something, so that you'd hear the loud roar of the snowplow (which sounds exactly like the Stealth Bomber, by the way), and then a huge boom, as it went over the hole right in front of my house. And a snowplow went by every 5 minutes--I timed it. I should be happy that my town is so vigilant about keeping the streets cleared, but my god, it was a pain in the ass at 3 AM. I had a hard time falling asleep again, but eventually I did.

And that's the story of how we got bombed in Brookline in the snow.

Shelby's Sleeping Lean

This is Shelby, leaning on a pillow made by my friend Amy. Watching Shelby sleep is one of my favorite pastimes. How cute is she? No, really, I'm asking. I want to tell you that I hope you have someone in your life that makes you feel giddy inside when you look at her/him, like I feel when I look at Shelby sleeping. Warm fuzzies.

Pure Love

  One of the last times I went to New York City, I had this for lunch. I've done this post before, with a different burger and shake. I said it then, and I'll say it now. Ain't nothing like a cheeseburger and chocolate shake from a coffee shop (aka, a diner) in New York City. You can't get a meal like this anywhere else. It brings tears to my eyes, and saliva to my mouth.

I Love When Stuff Like This Happens

The other day at school, a parent came in with his baby in the baby carrier. He had to take his older child to the bathroom, so he said to me, "I'll just put the baby here in the corner.", and he put her down. And that's right, Dirty Dancing fans, I said it:

"No one puts baby in a corner!" Thank you, Jennifer Grey.

Things Kids Say in Preschool

Vic: Mama says, "Touch your own winky!"

Saoirse to me: Do you know how to say "hi" in African?

Me: No.

Saoirse: Me neither.

Letter to Dad

Dear Dad,

Recently, I've come into a little bit of money. I can now afford to pay for you to come to Boston and stay in a nice hotel for the weekend. I'm going to the opera tonight, and I'd like you to go with me. It's Carmen, my favorite. I think I've seen it with you twice. You know how you always tell me the plot of the opera on the way over to the Met, in the cab? Even though I've seen it twice, I want you to tell me again. You're a good plot teller.

I'll pay for you to take the Acela train over here. It's comfortable, especially in business class. I've made a bunch of trips back and forth to NYC over the past two years.

So, whaddaya say? Want to come to Boston? I have the money. Oh shit. I just remembered something. I have the money because you died. Fuck.

Quotes of the Day

I was at the Science Museum, and a volunteer was showing a kid, about 8 years old, a model of the human skeleton.

Volunteer: Now, look at this...

Kid: You kill people?!

***************************************************

Kaden, 4, was telling me about sports teams his dad liked:

The football team that my dad votes for is The Patriots.

***************************************************

Madeline, almost 4, told me about a new member of the family for one of her friends:

My friends rented a baby.

Alex: What's that?

Madeline: It's when someone else had a baby in her tummy, and had the baby, and gave it to them.

Halloween NIght 09

Last night was one of the best Trick or Treat nights we've ever had at our house. We got lots of big groups of kids, and lots of older kids (i.e. high school), which I don't mind at all. They're fun to mess with. My three favorite costumes are pictured above. First, there's Obama, with his Obama mask and blue Oxford shirt. I said to the kid, "Oh, you're Obama?", he nodded, and without missing a beat, the kid in the Jason mask said, "I'm a Republican." Oh god, gotta love those liberal parents!

The Facebook page needs no explanation. Love it!

I had some 12 year olds come to our porch with cell phones, digging into our candy bowls while on the phone. I put a stop to that. I said, "You better say 'hold on' and say 'Trick or Treat to me!'" They did, and I emphasized the rudeness of being on a call while taking candy from strangers.

Seems like people really got into the Halloween spirit this year, maybe because it was Saturday night? While running around during the day, I saw a lot of adults in costume on the subway. Saw a couple of Willy Wonkas, some really great Oompah Loompahs, a Mad Hatter, and my favorite on the subway: The Man with the Yellow Hat and Curious George.

Happy post Halloween, everyone! No candy left, and an extra hour of sleep. Things are lookin' good.