The state of schools in south Florida

I'm sure that I've made it clear previously that I feel that the school districts down here, well, suck balls.  Let me relay a tale which proves this point.

First, let me say that I know that my child is not perfect.  She's a normal, sometimes forgetful 15 year old.  I'm over that part.  I'm used to reminding her of things a million times.  About a week and a half ago, she told me that she needed $5.  Of course, it's like pulling teeth, so I have to follow up with 'for what?'.  Long story short, the teacher "made" them all take at least one raffle ticket to sell. (it's a computer class and the raffle would benefit some school sports team of which my child is no part)  Needless to say, she didn't sell it.  This, of course, didn't stop the teacher from still wanting. her. five. dollars!

So, I figured that I would send a note asking why I should give up 5 bucks for something that had nothing to do with this class.  What follows is the teacher's response….I have not edited it at all except to remove my last name.

DEAR MRS. MiamiShyner

SORRY I COULD NOT GET BACK TO YOU SOONER, TOO MANY THINGS AT THE SAME TIME.

LET ME EXPLAINED TO YOU WHY CAYTLIN NEEDS TO BRING THE $5.00.
THE TICKET  IN QUESTION WAS A RAFFLE THAT THE SCHOOL WAS GOING TO HAVE TO LIFT THE STUDENT'S SPIRIT BY GIVING THEM SOME PRICES BEFORE THE F-CAT, AND A WAY TO GET AN EXTRA A FOR THE STUDENTS IN THE INDIVIDUAL CLASSES. CAYTLIN COMMITTED HERSELF TO SALE ONE TICKET. I GAVE ALL OF THE STUDENTS THE OPTION OF RETURNING THE UNSOLD TICKET ON THE DAY DETERMINED BY THE ACTIVITIES DIRECTOR, AND SHE AND OTHER STUDENTS DID NOT BRING THEM ON THAT DAY, I HAD TO PAY $160.00 OUT OF MY POCKET TO MAKE UP FOR ALL THE TICKETS THAT WERE NOT RETURNED ON TIME, AMONG THEM CAYTLIN'S.
SINCE THAT MOMENT I HAVE BEEN TRYING TO COLLECT THE MONEY FROM THE STUDENTS THAT DID NOT BRING THE TICKETS, TO MAKE THE ECONOMICAL DEFICIT A LITTLE SMALLER.  AS YOU COULD IMAGINE, THIS WAS THE LAST TIME EVER THAT I WOULD GET INVOLVED IN ANYTHING MONEY RELATED FOR SCHOOL.
I HOPE THAT YOU UNDERSTAND MY SITUATION, AND I THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO EXPLAIN IT.

SINCERELY

MS GARCIA

Ha!  Are you done laughing yet?  Here is my response:

Ms. Garcia,
I appreciate the explanation.  It is my understanding that now you are in possession of the raffle ticket.  If this is correct, and I do believe that it is, despite any misunderstandings I cannot now give you the money for a raffle ticket for which I do not even have in my possession.
I have also been informed that you have now isolated Caitlyn (note spelling) from her friends in the class due to this issue about five dollars.  I find this to be highly unacceptable.  I am sure that, per your own note, there are other children who have not turned in the five dollars, and find it hard to believe that they are all receiving the same treatment from you.  If there is a problem with Caitlyn's classroom behavior, please make me aware of it and I will nip it in the bud from home.  If you feel that you need to discuss something with me, you will find my telephone number located at the bottom of this email.
 
Finally, for your own personal note, typing in all capital letters is equated with yelling.  I will assume that is not the message that you were trying to convey.  I do believe, however, that your means of response should be treated with as much care and consideration as your in-person interactions with parents, and that particularly, as a computer teacher, you would be aware of the social norms of electronic communications.
 
Again, you may feel free to contact me by telephone should you wish to discuss this matter further.
 
Regards,
 
Ms. MiamiShyner

Was I mildly bitchy?  Yes.  But over the top?  Nah.  Did I nearly jump out of my skin and want to slap the living shit out of this woman due to her response below?  HELLZ to the YEAH.

MRS. MiamiShyner

LET ME START BY SAYING THAT THE REASON WHY CAYTLIN HAS BEEN "ISOLATED" FROM HER FRIEND, IS BECAUSE SHE IS NO LONGER WORKING ON HER PROJECTS, SINCE SHE SPENDS ALL THE TIME TALKING TO THE GIRL THAT I MOVED AWAY FROM HER.
REGARDLESS OF WHAT SHE MIGHT THINK, MY PURPOSE IN SCHOOL IS TO HAVE STUDENTS WORKING AND LEARNING, GRANTED THAT THEY HAVE THE CHOICE NOT TO WORK, BUT NOT IF I CAN HELP IT.

ABOUT THE MONEY, THE TICKET THAT WAS RETURNED TO ME IS USELESS BECAUSE THE RAFFLE WAS OVER A MONTH AGO , AND AS I SAID, CAYTLIN TOOK UPON HERSELF THE RESPONSIBILITY OF SALLING THE TICKET BY THE DUE DATE, AND SHE DIDN'T, THE TICKET COULD HAVE BEEN THROWN AWAY BECAUSE IT IS WORTHLESS.
CAYTLIN HAS MADE ME ASK HER FOR THE MONEY FOR A MONTH, AND I DON'T THINK THAT IT IS FAIR FROM YOUR PART TO MAKE ME PAY FOR HER LACK OF RESPONSIBILITY, BUT IF YOU WANT TO DO SO, THEN SO BE IT.

WITH CAPITAL LETTERS IS HOW I WRITE ALL EMAILS TO EVERYBODY, I CAN READ BETTER WHAT I WRITE.

I HOPE THAT CAYTLIN'S COMPLAINTS HAVE BEEN CLARIFIED, AND MINE TOO.

AT YOUR SERVICE

MS GARCIA

Seriously?!?!

• I corrected you that it is MS not MRS if you paid attention.
• Kiddo has been in your class for nearly 27 weeks now and you still cannot spell her name right even though I pointed that out to you too?
• I'm sorry, but I don't care if English isn't your first language.  You need to get some classes under your belt about basic grammar.
• You type in caps because "you can read better what you write"?!?!?!  Are you fucking kidding me?!?!  Are we both professionals here?  Wait, it is obvious that one of us is not.

So, I think I'm just going to post this here and let it go.  Why, you might ask?  Because the person who supervises the teachers, whom I've had the pleasure  opportunity to meet, Dr. Diaz, is going to stick up for Ms. Garcia.  I still might respond though if I'm feeling especially bitchy.

Oh, and why don't you get on your bicycle and ride down the K-12 and see if your five dollars is at the bottom.

"Two faculty… One speaks no English, the other learned English from watching "The Wide World of Sports." So you tell me… Which is better, speaking no English at all, or speaking Howard Cosell?"

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Pre-dinner conversations

Kiddo: I never get enough sleep.  I wake up and I just want to go right back to sleep.

Me: Time to get you some vitamins.

Kiddo: I wish I could just, like, sleep forever.

Me: That's called death.

Kiddo: <jaw drop>

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Just stuff

I have a standing rule at home for Kiddo: If neither Lovey or I are there, no one is allowed in the house.  Normal rule that I'm sure you may have had growing up too.  Then again, maybe not since times have changed.

This past Friday, one of Kiddo's friends stopped by after school, let's call her E.  No big deal, they were sitting out front just chatting.  Later, Kiddo told me that E had said that the house smelled amazing: like cookies and candy and Christmas. (I hadn't taken the tree down at that time.)  I have a thing about the house smelling nice, so I was happy with that comment.  Apparently, E also asked Kiddo if she could come live with us.  I laughed that one off at first.  BUT.  Later, Kiddo told me E's entire storoy.

<break out your hankies>

Her dad is just MIA.  Kiddo asked where he was, but apparently, he's a non-entity, similar to Kiddo's own sperm donor.  E said when Kiddo asked, "I ate him."  Funny, but sad.  On top of that, if I can totally take their word for it, E is currently living with her brother and step-sister who are in their early 20s because E's mom ditched her and left the state. 

Does Kiddo get on my nerves every once in a while?  Sure, what 15 year old doesn't?  But to ditch your child and move across the country and leave her so unceremoniously in the care of your other child who isn't that much older? OMG, I think my heart just broke.

I haven't been able to get this out of my mind.  Lovey asked if I wanted to adopt another 15 year old.  No, I don't.  I honestly don't even know how E is managing to escape Children and Family Services, but I am happy that she is at least still going to school.  I feel terrible about this and I don't know what to do.

I think that the least I can do is allow E to come over on Saturdays and probably Sundays to hang out with Kiddo.  Not that we're "normal", but at least for a couple days a week we can pretend to be so E can have somewhere where her life can seem normal.  Ugh, the sadness!

And on a completely different note…….

Last night on my way to yoga, it was wonderfully cool and crisp outside.  And maybe you'll understand this if you've lived far enough from a big city.  The air tasted good.  Like fall and leaves and, well, winter too I guess.

And one more completely different note……..

It takes a lot bring the sports world to a standstill, but there was no ignoring the magnitude of the moment. Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin pushed back his first pre-Super Bowl news conference one hour so it wouldn't conflict with the inauguration.

"What we're doing here today pales with what's going on in our nation's capital," Tomlin said.

Steelers principal owner Dan Rooney and his son Jim hand-delivered a game ball from the team's AFC Championship win to Obama on Monday, at a dinner Obama hosted for Arizona Sen. John McCain, the man he defeated for the presidency. Dan Rooney campaigned for Obama in Pennsylvania and surrounding states.

"He's a [Chicago] Bears fan first, he admits that," Dan Rooney said Tuesday, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. "But he's a Steelers' fan. He's said it, and all his staff, they're rooting for us [in the Super Bowl]."

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2/30 – Daylight Savings Time

My recent problem which is getting worse is that I no longer know when I am hungry.  I eat at work at specific times, but not because I'm hungry.  On weekends, I just kind of forget to eat.  The only way I realize that I'm probably hungry is the nasty headache and a bit of an upset stomach.  I don't know if this is a symptom of something, but I'm trying not to let WebMD rule my life.

Last night I told Kiddo before bed that we would be going to Denny's this morning for breakfast so to be ready to go at 10.  At 8:30 I woke up to a viciously pounding headache along with a good bit of nausea.  I trucked off to the bathroom and noticed that her door was cracked and the light and TV were on.  I knocked and peeked in to find her sitting on the floor, fully dressed, watching TV.  She looked at me slightly confused (since I was still in my bathrobe) and all I could say was "Forgot to turn your clock back, huh?"  The look was priceless.

We ended up leaving a little earlier than 10 because I really needed to get some food in me.  Over to Denny's we went, since we all know that I hate IHOP.  It was about a 15 minute wait, which I can deal with.  Every time we've gone in there, the same guy is at the host stand taking names and getting asses in seats.  Today, he was MIA.  Insert train wreck here.

We finally got a seat and watched 4 different waitresses walk past us and not a one said a word to us.  I'm hungry and therefore pretty annoyed.  After 5 minutes, I was past annoyed.  We agreed that if we didn't have someone at least speaking to us in the next 5, we were gonna give up the fight.  Right then, I also called Sergio's, the most rockin' Cuban restaurant EVER!  They just don't speak a lot of English.  Someone picked up and I tried to ask them how long the wait was.  I got put on hold as I could hear the girl who answered the phone yelling "ENGLISH!!"  Not funny then, very funny now.  Someone finally came on and I asked how long for a table of three.  He said that he had three people on the list right now and he would put me on but I had to PROMISE that I would be there in five minutes.  I told him we'd be there in three.

Still never having seen a waitress to get as much as some silverware or a glass of water, we walked out.  I have never done that before in my life.  Sergio's in only a few blocks away from Denny's and Kiddo and I got out while Lovey parked the car.  We had barely walked in the place when they were calling us for our table.  Less than 2 minutes and we had water.  Another minute and we had silverware.  We had barely finished looking at the menu when our waitress was there to take our order.  Oh how I love you cafe con leche.  Less than 2 minutes and we had our coffee.  I am not exaggerating when I say it was less than 5 minutes before we had all of our food.  That's right.  In less time than it took to get seated an aggravated at Denny's, we had been seated, served, and were almost finished eating.

Btw, if you're ever in Miami and you go to Sergio's (and I suggest it), be aware that when they say you're getting two scrambled eggs, you're really getting somewhere in the neighborhood of five.  All full of cheese with a side of bacon and the hugest piece of toasty, buttery Cuban bread ever.  Artery clogging?  Yes,  Delicious and well worth it?  Hell yes.

My boys don't play till tomorrow so I went to do a little shopping today.  Hi Macy's.  I love when the things I want are 40% off and on top of that you let me use my coupon for another 30% off.  I think I got 4 tops and 2 skirts for about a C-note.

Lovey's aunt made some delicioso chicken with onions and peppers.  I love peppers.  I can't wait to eat it.  Sometimes I think she's trying to fatten me up since they're always telling me (and Lovey) that I'm too skinny.  Ah well.  I don't have that badonkadonk butt, but I can deal with that. 🙂

Oh yeah, last thing.  Today was the last day of early voting.  On my way to the mall, I drove by the place we voted.  The line was wrapped all the way around the library.  I'm thinking it had to have been at least a five hour wait.  People are serious about some voting down here!  I think I'm gonna need to do some volunteering in these last couple of days.

That's all I've got for you today…as if I didn't ramble enough.  I hope that you've all enjoyed your weekend.  See you again tomorrow for more misadventures of the house of Shyne.  MWAH!

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The week in review, btw ROCO

Hiya loyal readers <snicker> and those who just stumble upon.  On with all the nothing that happened in my world this week.

• I think that we're all growing increasingly tired of politics.  I'll skip over all that jazz, except for one little photo to be posted a little later.
• It's been a quiet week in la casa de MiamiShyner.  Lots of exercise going on and I've managed to get down to 125.  I am still shooting for 120, but hey, I just don't think my body is interested. 
• There are officially 2 weeks until I go under the knife. (Double S, if you're reading this, yes, I know how you feel, but I also know you'll still love me 😛 )  I shall be looking fantastic for my 35th birthday as per the plan.
• I got to see a really cool Cirque du Soleil demo since Corteo will be in town soon.
• 

 

• I thought I was cute the other day….
  

  Me

• I have the worst case of raccoon eyes EVER.  I guess they've always been like that.  I'm working on fixing it though.  Do love that my hair is finally getting long.  Let's see if I have something with which to compare from a few years ago.
• 

  Me

  There.  It's actually laying down and dare I say cascading over my shoulders now.  HA!  Oh, yeah, and I actually had makeup on in the picture on the left.

• Pretty stoked that I'll officially be smart in another 51 days.  Completion of an Associates degree that really doesn't mean much.  Especially in south Florida where no one pays pretty much no matter what/who you know.
• Can I go back to bartending now please?  Pretty please?  No?  Ok fine. Well, not fine, but I'll deal with it for a while longer.
• Ooooh, big, BIG excitement is that we've reached the two-digit number countdown until vacation.  We've got a big group going this year so it should be mega-fun.  Park City again since we enjoyed it so much last year.  I'll be daily blogging from there like last year, but without any big announcements like an engagement. :-) 
• We got this house for this year at last year's price, so we're pretty happy about that part too.
• Our previous moving destination was Salt Lake City.  We're shying away from that now and leaning more towards the Boulder area.  I've seen some fantastic houses out there and they are reasonably priced.  With yards!
• Oh, Saturday night Lovey and I went over to Octobeerfest.  $25 for all you can drink.  There was beer from all over, rum and vodka.  A whole bunch of people, mostly college kids, watching football and putting away booze.  Good times.  We still fit in as far as looking the age of the college kids unlike some of the old farts who were there trying to pick up younguns.
• Yesterday, driving home, I saw this bumper sticker:
  

  Bumper Sticker

Not sure if it was a joke or what since we have a lot of young Republicans in our area.  I just found it amusing.  And mildly disturbing.

SO yeah, that's the week in review.  It is Friday as well, so let the congregation say….

ROCO!!

Peace out and have a great weekend everyone!!

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Breaking the bank

This week has been rough on my bank accounts, not to mention my sanity.

Part I:

On Tuesday afternoon, Kiddo sent me a text message saying that her stomach hurt.  Because I'm that kind of mom, I asked her if she had to poop.  No go.  She wasn't at home yet so I instructed her to take two Pepto and have a few sips of Sprite when she got home.  I was really leaning towards gas.

I asked her where it hurt and she said that it was in the middle over her bellybutton.  Anywhere else?  Nope.  Okay then, we'll play doctor when I get home.

She was napping when I got there.  She awoke a short time later and we chatted.  The pain wasn't there as long as she, well, didn't move.  Not normal.  She did manage, however, to make it downstairs for dinner. (The girl doesn't miss meals and she's stick skinny!  Ah, to be 15 again.)

I'd say about 15 minutes after we finished dinner, she saw it again.  This is very bad.  I did a little research on the internet to see what might be the cause.  Of course, appendicitis was tops on the list.  They say that one of the symtoms is when you make a quick press and release on the stomach area, it hurts more than if you press and hold it.  Unfortunately, this is what was going on with her.  I wasn't 100% on what to do at this point.

<sidebar: At this point, we were catching feeder bands from Ike, meaning it was windy as all get out and rainy.>

So, for lack of a better option, I called the hospital to ask what they thought.  I mean, hell, they're medical professionals!  I explained the situation and they suggested that I bring her in.  And then the power went out.  Seriously, the dog farts and our power goes out.  Well, there you go.  Even the powers that be said I should take her.

We brave the wind and rain and hop in the car where immediately my dashboard lights start to flicker.  Hooray, one more thing to deal with.

Upon arrival to the ER, it is IMPOSSIBLE to find a place to park.  Thank goodness she wasn't dying.  Finally found parking and got her in and registered.

We got called in but then bumped because a lady was hysterical and complaining that she couldn't breathe.  Now.  I'm no doctor, but it would seem to me that if you can scream and cry, then you can breathe, but whatever.  We waited.

The triage nurse asks me "You're related to her how?"  I love looking young.

Back to the lobby to wait for the intake lady.  Intake lady asks me "And you are her….?"  I still love looking young.

Transferred over to the blood lab.  The phlebotomist says "This is your sister?" Hahaha, awesome, but now mildly annoying.

Finally into a room where the doctor will see her.  The nurse, Adam, comes in and asks some questions including "How are you related to her?"

At this point, it's after 11pm and I'm tired and I'm tired of asking the same question.  My response: "Oh, I don't know her.  I picked her up off the street.  I have a soft spot for homeless kids."  Kiddo laughed immediately so I couldn't pull the wool over his eyes.  (she doesn't so much look like me, at least I don't think so)

Another Brian gem included Kiddo threatening to leave if they stuck her with another needle.  Me telling her she couldn't because I have the car keys.  Her responding oh yeah and saying that she didn't know where she was.  Brian, shocked, asks "you don't know where you are?!?!"  Kiddo explains that she only means that she wouldn't know how to get home from the hospital.

The doctor finally came back with the verdict.  No appendicitis, only gastritis.  Gave her some IV fluids and meds along with some Maalox and a prescription for Prilosec.  Kiddo got YET ANOTHER warning to not have any more energy drinks with the promise that if found out, she will live in her room under her bed until the next school year.

I suppose a $75 co-pay is much better than the bill I racked up (and am still paying) from the same hospital where I went before I had insurance.

My poorness continues in Part 2.

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Ike’s got nothing on me

There are things in this life that I love, things I like, things I tolerate, and things that, to steal a line from Peter Griffin, grind my gears.  The following grinds my gears:

Kiddo is in the big high school now.  Eight classes broken into blocks of four classes a day.  Remember when you were in high school?  Could you not go to all of your classes every day?  I digress.

She has Honors English.  Now, what they are trying to feed me is that if you have HE, you must take this class called Inquiry Skills. (Apparently this is because "the county" has been told that their graduates are lacking in writing skills.  This would have nothing to do with the fact that many, many children in the county are ESOL but that's neither here nor there.)

Kiddo showed me some of the homework that she has gotten in this class.  Sentence structure.  Compound sentences.  Basic 5th grade stuff.  Yes, I know that those are not sentences.  This is 9th grade, people!  If you do not know these things yet, then maybe you should not be placed in HE?!?!

As a concerned parent, I called the school to speak with Kiddo's counselor.  Here's what grinds my gears.

HOW DARE YOU SPEAK TO ME LIKE THAT!  When speaking with a parent whose taxes pay your salary, one should not immediately adapt an attitude.  One should not speak over the parent and do their best not to let a parent get a word in edgewise.  One should not flat out disrespect me because you do not know me, you have no knowledge of my life, you do not know my child, and I will smack a bitch. 

Part of me wanted to reach through the phone and throttle this man, but I refrained because some people will not listen no matter what you are saying.  Said conselor is one of those people.  After I vented to innocent co-workers, I proceeded to call the school and asked to speak to the person in charge.  Of course, she was not in but oh did she get a message.  That message also went to the assistant principal.  To steal a line from South Park:

DON'T. FUCK. WITH. MIAMI. SHYNER.

I am not even joking when I say that if I do not get a phone call tomorrow, there will be hell to pay.  They may think that they can speak to me in that manner, but they are about to get schooled in their own school.  If I have to go into that school, they will wish that hurricane Ike had hit them rather than hurricane Black Girl.

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thngs n tsdy – jly 8, 2008

>.<  stuff

• Up until last night, a serious lack of good sleep
• I miss my Kiddo although I know she's in good hands and is having a blast
• Dude.  Work.  Seriously.  I'm smarter than this.
• Almost finished with Duma Key already

:-D  stuff

• 4th of July weekend was totally fun
• A mere four days remain until vacation for real
• Two melatonin let me sleep through one hell of a storm
• I'll be an iPhone whore in a couple days
• The second bathroom will function within the next month!
• Hooray book club
• BruddaShyner may go check out Kiddo at camp
• The end of accounting is in sight
• OMG, last night's hamburgers were freaking delicious
• EDAMAME!
• It's 2 for Tuesday.  Hoo HA!

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It’s the first Monday of summer!

And sure, Mondays suck in general, but it's summer!  Nothing like a bulleted list to chat about all the stuff that's fit to print.

• Sunday morning, bright and early, Kiddo and I drove up to Fort Lauderdale International because it's time to go to camp!  Let me say that I am highly jealous of her getting to go to camp.  I want to go and hang out and get to do all kinds of cool stuff for a month!  Ah, to be a kid again.
• After checking and re-checking and asking and re-asking, do you have everything with affirmative responses, we got to the airport and are at the gate when Kiddo says…I forgot my pillow.  Silly Kiddo.  But, she says, I remembered Tauram, so I'll sleep on him.  Who is this Tauram (pronounced tar-ram) you may ask? Tauram is a stuffed ram that I gave her approximately 6 years ago on a Club Med trip.  That thing is beat to death and she still takes it with her.  🙂
• We were sitting at terminal waiting for her to board when she sees another girl that is wearing the same wristband that she has.  I tell her that maybe she should go say hello and maybe she's going to camp too.  She spouts off with some stuff about being shy.  She and I are quite similar in that way.  We're kind of quiet and reserved unless you know us, then all bets are off.  We were all kinds of stupid in the airport upon her departure although the other passengers found it amusing.  Stupid in the "ARRGH, I'm gonna miss you so much", overly melodramatic way.
• Several hours later, I got a call from an unknown number, but not knowing if it might be Kiddo, I picked it up, and lo and behold, it was her.  She told me about her flight (uneventful) and that the girl in the airport was going to camp and that she's really cool and it was her phone that she was using.  So, she made a friend before she even got to camp.
• A little while later, another call from another number.  Again I pick up and there she is again.  She's met another person from our area who is going to camp.  So she's rocked out two friends before she even makes it to camp.  If you're interested, the camp site is here.  She lucked out and got in a bunk that's close to all of the main activities that she's interested in, but kinda far from the cafeteria.
• I ate like an absolute pig yesterday, proabably putting a negative dent in my weight loss goal.  Oh well, back to the routine this week.  I need to work out also but I'm sooooo lazy.
• Today's horoscope says:

Communications with family members and others should be clear, honest, and loving. Though your physical passions may be surging beneath the surface today, MiamiShyner, they're still very much present, and you're likely to be feeling particularly romantic. You might want to read racy novels or go to a romantic movie. This is definitely the night to be alone with that special person in your life. Make sure you look your best, and have fun.

• I've spoken to just about everyone in the family in the last two days and maybe that physical passion will go nutty since we have the house to ourselves.  Ha, I'm a bad girl.
• There are only 19 days left until vacation.  Excitement!  And you can count on regular updates, as if you care, lol, because I will blog from my brand spanking new iPhone.  Yeah, I'm a sucker.  No, the reality is that Kiddo broke her phone and needs a new one but she's just not very responsible so I'm going to give her my phone which is fairly new (remember the DHL nightmare?) so if she breaks this one too, I won't be terribly upset.  Besides, does a 14 year old really need an iPhone?  I think not.
• Almost forgot, concert coming on August 20, it's the Stone Temple Pilots.  We'll be going along with Mr. and Mrs. T.  The fun never ends!

Well, then, I think that's enough for now.  I have to get moving on this day.  I still have to post in other places, check twitter, plurk and a million other time wasters.  Happy summer! Happy Monday!

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Mount up Monday v5.12.08

Welcome back to the reality known as Monday.  Bad for some, worse for others, but for me, I just take them as they come.

So, let's just get the bad news out of the way first.  Last MUM, I set three goals for myself.  Let's see how I did.

1. Finish homework by Friday – She shoots, she SCORES!  I actually had it all done.  I plan to do the same this week.
2. Stretch for an hour daily – That slapshot missed WAY wide.  Not only did I not stretch for an hour daily, I didn't stretch at all.  Bad Shyner.  That just means I'll be in super pain tomorrow after class tonight.
3. Read 20 pages of PHP tutorial – I just got shutout.  Yeah, I didn't do any of the reading.  I am such a mess, but I will do better this week.

So, if I didn't do any of that, then what DID I do last week?  Let's see.  Weekdays are spent at work and then basically collapsing after work from the mental trauma (NOT!).  Really, I'm just lazy and when I get home I don't want to do much.  Saturday I spent basically the entire day fixing up the living room.  Let's just say that before, it was pretty yuck, and seeing as how it's the first thing you see when you walk in our front door, I got tired of wanting to jump off a bridge if I saw it one more time like that.  It was cluttered and full of junk and dark and, well, yuck.  I wanted to get some slipcovers for the couches but after a wild goose chase at Macys, then Target, then Bed, Bath and Beyond, I gave up on them.  I did, however, end up with a decent bookshelf (that Kiddo helped me put together) and a couple of nice plants. 

I should have taken a before picture so you could see what was really done, but I didn't.  If my brother stops by, he'll let you know how much it's changed.

 

Yeah, that wall is pink.  I still have to paint, but let me tell you, it's a million times better than it was.  My Stephen King collection finally has a home, as do all of my computer books.  Which is awesome in and of itself because it cleared off space on the bookshelf in my office/the gym for some of my other books.  Both Lovey's aunt and our former roommate were awestruck by the transformation and I am quite happy with it.  That was an all day job.

Saturday night was date night and I even managed to stay awake after all day cleaning.  Lovey and I stepped out for a frozen cocktail since it was just under 8000 degrees.  We walked around but there were way too many people out for me so we called it a little early and went home to sit on the balcony.  Good times.

Sunday we met Lovey's mom, step-dad, sister and aunt for lunch in a fantabulous Mexican restaurant.  Super good stuff.  We returned to la casa de doce trienta with full bellies where I cleaned some more and then played some online poker.

The weekend would not have been complete, however, without some sports.  That's right.  Penguins 2, Flyers 0.  Pens in 5 is the way I'm calling it.  Let's go PENS!

Before I ramble on too much further, let me set this week's goals.

• Finish the friggin homework before Friday
• Read 20 pages of the PHP tutorial
• Clean the office/gym
• Create a schedule

With that, I'm out!  REGULATORS, Mount Up!

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