The Sled

Up until we had snow, the sled Elinore got as an early Christmas present has been in the playroom. Everytime I peek in their, she is playing in it. Sometimes she's climbing all over it (she loves to climb), sometimes she's stacked all of her stuffed animals into it, and sometimes she's laying in it staring up at the ceiling. I was almost hesitant to take it outside, but she had just as much fun riding it through the snow. 

The Cooking Group

My roommate Colleen started a cooking group of which she, two of her coworkers, and I are members. This week is my week to cook for the group, and I had chosen Wednesday and Shepherd's Pie. Knowing that Tuesday evening is already booked, and Wednesday I would get home too late to start, I planned to make everything tonight and then just bake it on Wednesday after work. According to schedule, I drove to work today so I could pick up a few groceries on the way home.

I would like to preface the cooking group experience by saying that when I arrived at work this morning after a WONDERFUL Thanksgiving weekend, death was all around. All the potted plants were on their last limb (so to speak), and there was the very pungeant and distinct odor of a critter (probably one of those colossal street rats) who had come to work to die over the weekend. After going through half a bottle of Febreeze, two separate children kicked me today. By 6:00 I was not to be reckoned with.

Little did I know that the entire city of Chicago with a day job does their grocery shopping on Monday nights. And as if the amount of people and grocery carts wasn't enough, the employees decided that tonight during "rush hour" would be a good time to restock shelves! We were in single file lines going both directions down the aisles, and every time I stopped to examine a product, the people behind me sighed, rolled their eyes, and stamped their feet impatiently. I could feel my brow creasing, my eyes narrowing, and my lips pooching out as my face sunk deeper and deeper into an authentic bah-humbug scowl. I finally made a dive for the meat section after circling it 3-4 times only to find that there was no ground beef left on the shelf! I sacrificed for ground turkey and high-tailed it out of there (as fast as you can high-tail when you have to wait in the check-out line for 20 minutes).

Back at the ranch I had to figure out how to quickly thaw the frozen pound of ground beef that I did have. Floating it in luke warm water was not working fast enough, so I ventured the old microwave method. However, being the technical wonder that I am, the microwave didn't heed my 30% power command, and 4 minutes into the defrost, the edges were cooked and the middle was still frozen. Meanwhile I began chopping the onions and actually had to leave the room twice to wash my face because my eyes were stinging so much.

I overcooked the meat, undercooked the onions, and forgot to mix everything in the skillet before putting it in the casserole dish. Suddenly it occurred to me that cooking groups were probably designed for people who are good at cooking. At my lowest point, I called Mom to wonder aloud about what I had been thinking. If it's possible, I may actually be kicked out of the cooking group come Wednesday. Please send me strong vibes of savory filling and fluffy mashed potatoes.

BIRTHDAY BIRTHDAY HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY

Happy birthday Jen!!! And it's a golden one too. I'd put up pictures from Thanksgiving except that once again I brought my camera home and forgot to take pictures...whoops. I hope you're having a magnificant day!!

Elinore turns 1!

Elinore turned one on Saturday, and we all went over to Michigan to help celebrate. Jen made an awesome cow cake in honor of Elinore's favorite animal sound. She sat down to a piece of cake after opening all her presents, and spent a full 3 minutes staring at it, trying to decide whether to give it a go. Finally she dug in, and ended up liking it.

Its hard to imagine that a year ago we were all sitting around marvelling at the tiny baby we were meeting for the first time. Elinore loves to give hugs and kisses. Her kisses however involve leaning in toward an object with her mouth wide open, and a hug means putting something up to her ear. Surely, she'll get it all straightened out someday!


 

Tis the Season...

Last week at work, a 2 yr old and his mom walked into the center. The child approached me with his mother, looked at her, then pointed at me and said, "Santa?" This is a new low.

Yesterday I noticed a new ad on the community board at work. It caught my attention with the title "Tennis, Anyone?" I got excited over the possibility of having someone to play with. I read further.. "..looking for someone to share court and coach fees. We meet twice per week at the blah blah tennis center..." good.. "..My daughter is 5 and a half and an intermediate player. Your child should be between 5 and 7 with tennis experience.." I guess I'd forgotten which Chicago neighborhood I work in.

Mom met me downtown yesterday to kill some time in the Loop before catching the train to Michigan for Elinore's birthday. We decided to go to the former Marshall Field's (now Macy's) to check out the animated Christmas windows. The story this year is Mary Poppins, and unfortunately they were a bit of a disappointment. Not sure if this is a product of the new ownership or just an off year, but the first window really set the tone for the lot of them. The scene showed the two children peeking down the stairs as the front door blew open and Mary Poppins with her umbrella appeared behind the open door flying through the air. Note to the animators: Next year, connect the rope to Mary's waist rather than her neck to maximize that holiday cheer.

No me gusta!

Last week was my week from hell. I had so many projects, papers, and exams. To give you an idea:
Monday: Spanish exam (somehow I got a 91), meet with my spanish group for our presentation
Tuesday: Bio collection and working on group presentation again
Wednesday: Bio collection due, Spanish group presentation, Spanish essay due
Thursday: Developmental psych exam, riding lesson, spanish tutorial
Friday: Neuroscience final paper due, Spanish composition re-write due, Biology exam

I made it through the week alive, however, last night my throat started to hurt and later I woke up with a fever. So after going to my 9 oclock class, I have an exam Friday, I went to health services and they said well we think it's the flu. This was not the end to stressful week I was hoping for.

City Life

Friday I woke up early and decided I had to buy milk before doing anything. On my way to the standard Jewel, I passed a smaller grocery store that I'd been meaning to try. Some of you may be familiar with Aldi's, but I was not. I parked at 8:45 and walked up to the doors which were still locked (until 9:00). There, I struck up conversation with the 70 yr old woman with no teeth and a mustache who was also waiting for the store to open. I marvelled at the baskets all chained together, and thought they must be to keep the carts together during the night when there is wind. (What a quaint suburban thought!) I studied them trying to figure out how to un-chain them, when another 70 yr old man came up and fed the box a quarter. Immediately the chain released and I looked away as if I'd known that was going to happen all along.

Finally the door opened, and we filed in to what looked like a Latin American convenience store. Everything was in boxes and cans, with lots of cardboard containers holding it all together. When I got to the milk section, there was one little grocery freezer section devoted to my only 2 choices. Whole. or. 2%. I picked one, and made my way to the checkout where you have to pay for a bag if you want one. What a unique experience, thought I, until I talked with Jennifer in Holland, MI who knew all about Aldi's. So much for my insights into big city culture.I have to admit that I did find it refreshing to have half of my choices eliminated for me. As a product of the obsessively indecisive culture caused by spending 20 minutes in the toothpaste aisle debating about whitening vs. tartar control vs. contains baking soda vs. sensitive teeth vs. mint vs. cinnamon vs. cheap vs. expensive vs. crest vs. colgate etc, etc, etc, I enjoyed the freedom to make an authoritative decision without question. There was no buyer's remorse after the milk.

Later that day I saw my first city rats scuttling around near the dumpsters at work. They were smaller than the reputation that preceded them. I was expecting rats the size of house cats who attacked pets and small children that were left out overnight. The signs posted on the telephone poles in my neighborhood informing the public about the rat extermination in July depict a rodent with huge ears poised for attack and baring its fangs. It wasn't exactly the "welcome to the neighborhood" that I was expecting. 

Snugglesuit

We've had a few nice days here in Michigan lately. I think it is supposed to get to 62 degrees today. We always look forward to a chance to get outside. Kevin always thinks I have Elinore bundled too warmly. I think that is one of the greatest concerns of parenting young children. How do I know if they're too cold or too warm? Is she wearing enough layers? Should I take her sweater off? Should I put a hat on? And not only are you making the choice, but then everyone who sees your baby at the grocery store or on a walk is judging you on whether your baby is warm enough. Anyway, we call this the snugglesuit. (Sometimes I call it the supersuit). It is nice and snuggly warm, but not so thick that she can't move. It has been great this fall. She certainly is cute in it! 

Stuck

I have taught/am teaching Elinore to say "mama" when she needs help instead of frantically whining. I was working on the computer yesterday while she was crawling around the dining room. I suddenly heard her saying, "Mama, mama, mama, mama,..." I looked over and saw this. She had been scavenging for food under her high chair and was stuck! 

After shock

And today, my stylist walked into work. I braced myself for the worst, as she disappointingly realized that I had re-cut my hair, but beyond all of my wildest hopes, she bounded over and said, "I just LOVE your hair!! Do you like it? But tell me the truth." And I could honestly reply, "Yes! I love it! And I've gotten so many compliments!"

Some stories do have happy endings after all.

Disaster Relief

After a $55 crisis intervention, I feel much better about my hair. Unfortunately the salon I went to did not offer counseling. I have to figure out what to tell me coworker who did the first cut for me. If anyone has suggestions, I'm open. 

Chernobyl, I mean, my new haircut

 

Concert

Tonight the head of the music department at Albion invited a guest pianist to put on show. The guy who came played 3 pieces by Beethoven on a re-made 1780's fortepiano. It was amazing. I've never heard anyone play on anything other than a grand and the fortepiano had such a light airy tone to it. Mike has really gotten in to classical music so he really wanted to go and I agreed to go. I wasn't quite sure what to expect but I really enjoyed it...that is except for one thing. Every artist has his/her little quirk, and this guy had a tendency to groan and sigh really deeply when playing any intense part of the piece. I have never been so distracted at a performance before. I love music, but I much prefer it is coming from the instrument or being sung. The groaning concerto is not quite what I had anticipated. Had this guy been playing on a grand I don't think it would've been a problem because it is so much louder than the piano he was playing on. Oh well, it was still a wonderful performance.

Caitlyn, I know you have friends I hear you talk about them all the time. I have been feeling the same way about mom and dad. I keep thinking of things I want to call mom to talk about but I can't so we're in the same boat. I like the second quote, it really got me thinking about how I cook meat.

Jen and Kevin, Mike and are totally excited to come to little miss ella's numero uno birthday!!!!

Alone

I didn't realize that Mom and Dad were my only friends. And now they are out of the country with 6 days left until they're back. And every evening I get home from work to a dark, empty apartment, and I think.. and I can't even call Mom and Dad. And every morning I walk my 4 blocks to the train station in the now-cold, and I think.. and I can't even call Mom and Dad. And Sunday came and went, and I was a hermit because there was no one to talk to.

I went to the movie store to distract myself from the void and rented 2 movies (and spent $9!!!! horrific) to watch alone. I popped popcorn alone and when my artsy French film came on, I realized the subtitles were defective. There were none. I understood the first 30 seconds (because there was no dialogue) and then I had to turn it off. And in my grief I stopped watering my plants. Because if I have to suffer, so do they.

They forgot to mention at graduation that in addition to setting forth and changing the world and getting jobs etc, that we would also have no friends. So take note, Laura. Unless you stay in your college town, living with a college roommate, surrounded by your college friends, you, too, will have none. You will end up like me--a bitter and cranky old lady who mutters obscenities at foreign films and behaves masochistically towards plants.

However, I've found that when there is nothing else, one becomes quite creative. I've taken up refrigerator poetry. Because after all, every great poet had to start somewhere, and when I've gotten home, cooked, and eaten, and it's 8:30, and I say to myself.. well, Caitlyn, you can go to bed or write refrigerator poetry. The choice is clear. I will leave you with my two latest compositions. I hope they inspire you to think critically and reflectively about this thing we call life.

"Beauty is when I smell the whispering sky in a dream
I am drunk on purple music of the sea
I swim through the chocolate winter in bare feet
Singing into a thousand shadows
Lying abreast of essentiality
A day behind eternity
In death
Life"

"Never cook meat with drool."

The weekend in review

What a cultural weekend! THIS is what I moved to the city for. Friday, after being rejected from the Chicago Public Library (because the mail I brought to prove my address did not have a postmark), my roommate, and I and 2 friends went to have sushi. Now, mind you, I like to think of myself as slightly cultured, but I am not very adventurous where seafood is concerned. I have had the rolls before but always vegetarian ones because I've been too chicken to try anything else. But the spirit was upon us, and we laughed and chatted over the caviar, raw salmon, raw tuna, and it was ok!

When we were full we left and made our way downtown to the Chicago Theater to hear Ani DiFranco perform. While I am not very familiar with any of Ani's songs, I have admired her art and the way she uses it. She is a folk artist in the most authentic sense of the word. Original music with provocative poetry, weaving in her ideas about peace, the environment, our society, and feminism, all the while using her voice as an instrument, experimenting with words and sounds to create various effects. It was the first concert that I've been to in a while where one could actually listen to and enjoy the music without the threat of being moshed or losing your hearing. (don't get me wrong, those have their place as well). There were moments when the entire theater, holding hundreds of people, was silent hanging on Ani's every word as she recited a poem. And then on a whole different level, I was amazed that she stood up on stage, jamming on the guitar, singing, and dancing around for 2 hours while 5-6 months pregnant!

Last night after working all day, I met up with some friends from work for my Moroccan friend's birthday celebration. We walked to an Arabic bar called Souk where we enjoyed hummus, pita, and all sorts of middle eastern appetizers while patrons smoked hookah around us, the musicians pounded out the girating beat, and people danced on the floor in a large circle, holding hands, and slowly turning in time with the music. At the stroke of midnight, the dance floor cleared, the music changed, and like an apparition, a woman came through the tables wearing a golden headpiece, with a lit candelabra balanced on top of her head. Her entire being was grace, and as she stepped onto the dance floor, her hips began to shimmy and shake, her abs rolled, her hands beckoned and she swept across the floor all the while with the flames balanced on her head. She belly danced for an hour, and we were mesmerized. Every once in a while, a waitor would accept a tip from the crowd, convert it into singles, and then thumb them into the air one after another so they floated down around her as she danced. It was AMAZING. Now I have a reason to practice. I want to dance like HER! I'm still getting tangled up in my veil, and becoming wooden the moment I try to combine any of the isolated things I've learned. --moving my hands at the same time as my hips, or walking at the same time as shimmying. -- I, my friends, am entertainment of a different kind.

Mom and Dad just called from Italy to say that they arrived and just spent the day hiking through the towns of Cinque Terre. Remember that, Jen? Que nostalgia!

Hmmm

For fall break, Mom, Dad, Jen and Elinore came out for the football game. We destroyed Wisconsin Lutheran and poor Ella got stung by a bee. On sunday I drove out to Holland and went sailing with Mom and Dad and then on Monday Mike surprised me with a picnic at the Nature Center. I was a glorious day for it. Classes started again yesterday and today we had two mini-blizzards...odd? Yes, yes it is for it is only Oct. 12 as Caitlyn has pointed out as well. There is something fishy going on around here

It's snowing in Chicago. Hard. And it's October 12.

Reality Check

The most bizarre thing happened to me today and it didn't even include fowl! I don't even think a story could do justice so I'm just going to relate the phone conversation in dialogue form (with my thoughts in parentheses)

Monday, October 9th, 2006, 3:45 PM. Location: my desk.

Telephone: Ring, ring...

Caitlyn: L-- Stars, this is Caitlyn.

Caller: Hi.

pause

Caitlyn: Hello.

Caller: Yeah, Caitlyn, I need your help.

Caitlyn: Ok.

Caller: Well... let me give you a bit of background because you don't know the whole first episode.

Caitlyn: Ok. (Crap, this is going to be some mom calling to complain about something.)

Caller: So. (pause) My friend is a foreign exchange student from England and she like has this British accent all the time, and all the men are just wild about her and it is really gettin me down. (Speaking really fast so I can almost not understand).

Caitlyn: Ok. (Hesitantly, because what the heck does this have to do with me? Maybe its not a mom?)

Caller: So I need an accent.

pause

Caitlyn: I'm sorry?

Caller: You know I need an accent.

pause

Caitlyn: Well, ....we don't teach accents, we teach LANGUAGES. ....And we only work with children.

Caller: Oh. ...So which accent do you think is the sexiest?

pause

Caitlyn: Who is this? (WHAT?!)

Caller: My name is Allie.

Caitlyn: Ok. (Do I know any Allies??)

Caller: Maybe Italian? I could try an Italian accent.

Caitlyn: Sure.

Caller: So could you say something in Italian?

Caitlyn: Er, I don't speak Italian.

pause

Caller: Well what do you speak?

Caitlyn: English... and Spanish.

Caller: Oh, Spanish could be cool, kind of like a Selma Hayek kind of thing.

Caitlyn: Uh huh. (Oh my God, who IS this? Any second someone is going to start laughing about the good one they pulled on me)

Caller: So.. say something in Spanish. ...Say, "Hi boys, how are you doing today?"

pause

Caitlyn: You want me to say that in Spanish?

Caller: Yeah.

pause (Oh my God.)

Caitlyn: Hola chicos, como estan? (This is ridiculous)

Caller: Hola.. chicos.. como.. estan.

Caitlyn: That's it.

Caller: Cool. ...Now can you say it like you were a 900 number?

Telephone Line 2: Ring ring ring...

Caitlyn: (ARE YOU KIDDING ME??) I'm so sorry, I have to go get the other line. Thank you so much for calling. Goodbye.

CLICK.

I was sure that any second the phone would ring with somebody laughing telling me what a moron I had been, falling for that. Nobody called. I called other offices to find out if anyone had just called me. Nobody claimed it. I actually think it was real.

Wake Up Call

We've started the wishy-washy season where you need your coat on when you wake up but need short-sleeves by lunch. Thursday morning it was COLD in my apartment, and before leaving for work I pulled on my jacket and even dug my scarf out of the bottom of the drawer. When I got to the train station I looked around, and there wasn't anyone else wearing a scarf. In fact, there were a few men without coats at all, and women with open-toed shoes! I started to feel like a wimp and discreetly disrobed my neck, tucking the scarf into my bag. I thought that would be the most interesting part of my day, and I started imagining how I would relate it on the blog.

But, wait! I'm ME! Of course there were more interesting things in store! I arrived at work at the usual time. The teachers' bewitching hour came and went, and we were still down two teachers with no word. Both the director and I called one of them, and the moment we hung up with voicemail, one of the missing teachers walked in the door. Carrying. a. bird.

Yes. A bird. A wild sparrow she had picked up off the street because it was a baby and had clearly fallen out of its nest. I looked at her, incredulous. The children would be arriving in 15 minutes and what the heck where we going to do with the thing? Don't get me wrong, I have as bleeding a heart as the next person, but I also work in an environment where we have our NO NUT (or nut by-products, or anything processed on equipment with nuts) policy posted on every door to the building, and a hand sanitizer dispenser in the lobby to ward off lingering germs. I don't think a wild bird was going to pass the sterile test. She told us she wanted to call animal control to have someone put it back in the nest, and I urged her to take care of that immediately.

As I puttered around in those next 15 minutes helping teachers prepare their classes and passing out their hand-outs for the day, I went into this teacher's classroom and noticed a strange, fluttering sound coming from the cabinet. I opened it to find a concocted cage with the little bird inside hopping around. No, nooo, nooooo, absolutely not. I confronted the teacher to inform her that we absolutely could not have the bird in the building when the families got there. We came to a compromise that she would take the bird and its cage outside, and I would call animal control. The next thing I knew, it was five minutes until 9, families were on the verge of arriving, and a teacher approached me asking for the ladder. I pressed a little because I couldn't imagine why anyone would need the ladder right THEN and found out that the little wounded, baby bird had escaped during the transferring process and was now perched on top of the exposed ventillation ducts in the classroom. Great.

By this time, there was no hiding anything from the families. They arrived and eyed me suspiciously as I hauled the ladder from one end of the building to the other, setting it up, climbing up, poking around with the inflatable hockey stick I'd attached to the light bulb changer only to have the bird take off and start the process over. 45 minutes later when we had completed the preparations of our final strategy--attaching a trashbag with rubberbands to the broom handle like a butterfly net from a horror flick--, the bird (tired, I'm sure) landed on a window sill where I tackled it to the ground with my BARE HANDS! (Maybe not so much of a tackle as a gentle closing of my cupped hands, followed by the mild panic of having a wild bird entrapped in my cupped hands) I raced--without jiggling--out the door and to the park where I opened my hands to let the traumatized bird free under a tree. And the stupid thing didn't even touch the ground, it flew straight to a tree on the other side of the city! Baby bird who can't fly, I grumbled to myself as I stomped back into work to my to-do list now 45 minutes behind schedule. Some can't wake up without a cup of coffee. I never seem to have that problem.

Apple Deliciousness

Laura and Mike came to visit this weekend. We had a rather relaxing weekend, and made it out to pick apples. Elinore loves "helping". Hopefully she didn't eat too many leaves! Laura, I hope you got some good apples at Crane's!! I'm sorry we didn't get to eat at Pietro's while you were here. We'll make sure to do it next time: long wait or not. It was great to see you both and get to know the "healthy" Mike a little better!

Elinore's new word is "Tickle, tickle, tickle,..."