messy room of the month

This is our messy pre-teen boy's room of the month. Can anyone top this mess??

a couple of knuckleheads

So, I have finally found the camera after months of looking. Who knew it was in our 11-year-old's upper nightstand drawer? Now I will have to take some pics and find something pithy to say.

The boys are doing well over here. Frankie has gotten straight A's for the second quarter in a row - this school here has been an excellent fit for him. I pray we can keep him here in this school until he graduates. He is now in 9th grade. We will see. Naters is responding to our attentive monitoring of his homework. Heh heh. He responds to colorful threats, like Jose hanging a good Cuban machete from his belt and threatening to whop the side of his head with it like a good Cuban papa. I have promised to tie him up, but peanut butter on the bottoms of his feet, sprinkle bacon bits on top of that, and release the dogs.

Work is going well although I keep getting pulled away from my beloved sub acute unit and made to work on the surgery unit with joint replacement patients, fast discharges, where I do little or nothing of any life-affirming, meaningful stuff other than setting up discharge. I'd rather be at the mall, frankly. Although there is alot of social need, much of it I am powerless to change, which makes it less rewarding. Heeh hee, maybe someone from work will actually read this and I'll be relieved of all tasks entirely! Anywhoo...its good. One thing about being financially stable with a working spouse, and not dependent on my income anymore is that I feel more confident and more outspoken. I can be dedicated to my profession but at the same time, a bit sassy about it. It is a good place to be. I feel very blessed and lucky.

Jose, Frankie and I have been watching NCIS as much as possible. We agree that Abby is adorable. I agree with myself that Jethro is hot. Since Special Agent Gibbs works on a wooden boat in his basement, this has reminded Jose that he has projects to work on in the garage, involving sharpening his chisels and building a wooden container to hold his chisels, and putting a nice finish on his chisels. Other than that, I am not sure what he does in there. :)

a couple of scarfs only pink!

Here are a couple of scarfs I made for a Breast Cancer Awareness fundraiser. The buttons on this one are yummy black cherry buttons that I ordered on etsy. The above scarf is not as hideous as it looks in the pic - its very soft pink bamboo. Very pink - would not wear in all likelihood...

i love me some thanksgivin'

It's been such a long time since I last posted. My blog is having an identity crisis. My new job has keep wonderful, but its sometimes occupying my mind on my off time and keeping me awake at night. The old heartburn flares up, and an occasional set of lovely hives on my neck when I get upset about someone's social injustice. My new job is meaningful, stimulating, challenging - everything I wished for when we were living a nice peaceful life in Japan. So, be careful what you wish for!

Basically, I work at a small hospital on a certain small island with a major base on it, which I'll call Shmarp. They are into a certain model of care which involves basically the same building with some minor coats of paint, but added details of some alternative therapies like massage, acupuncture and aromatherapy for the patients. It is very common for a troubled patient to get a bit of lavender lotion or a few soaked cotton balls in the corner of his room. Volunteers bake cookies on each unit, once a week, and the smell wafts through the rooms. It is the spirit of the care. People seem kind, and caring, and dedicated.

I come from experience with several other systems, several trends (google the Disney Model gag and the Eden Alternative Model they tried at a certain hospital for about five minutes, made us all sit through corporate babble and show signs of total buy-in, then abandoned the plan after five minutes). I've been through several sets of layoffs and phases of low census, and I've cultivated a careful, respectfully cynical attitude toward the hospital corporation in general. I will not be impressed by any package of 403 B and pet insurance I can purchase at some discount, or cheaper movie tickets. Yep, I've seen everyone's cafeterias and they are all just ok. Corporate casual and small tasteful stud earrings. Blaaaaah! But yet, I find myself really liking it there.

But it does interfere with my knitting time, and time with my doggies. Oh, yeah, and those kids.

For Thanksgiving we are joining another family that were our very dear neighbors in Ikego, then moved to San Diego several months before us and now are living a couple of miles away. Then, another family jumped into the plans and now it is going to be even more fun. Matthew and Yuri are doing the turkey and a pumpkin cheesecake. I have some cranberry sauce in the fridge that I made last night and a sweet potato casserole guaranteed to clog your last artery. My Gott, the butter. Today I'm going to whip up some stuffing from a mix and doctor it up with celery, onion and some toasted nuts. Then, whip up some potatoes with butter and salt and lots of half and half. Oh, and some fresh green beans. I think someone is bring a salad that no one will eat.

Oh, lord. Does anyone out there in cyberspace have any experience with people in San Diego being in general obsessed with their looks, what kind of house the live in, what neighborhood they live in, and stuff stuff stuff?? Man.

Some people are obsessed with how they look. People here are inundated with images and ads for plastic surgery. There are certain hot neighborhoods that no one can really afford, yet everyone must live in anyway. Shampoo costs more than the whole outfit - no - ensemble - I found at the thrift shop. Maybe it is an American thing and what this is is culture shock. I'd really like to move to an isolated rural area and raise sheep and sell the wool, possible in Minnesota. I'd drive a rusty old truck and really let myself go. I'd let the gray come it where it wants and just go ahead and sag where they will. We'd raise our own veggies and make our own clothes.

Things to be very very thankful for:

*the family, friends, pups, the gorgeous weather, the mountains, trees

fresh water!

*the way the cranberries look when they are sparkling with water after being rinsed

*Jose and the boys

*the way the Rug Doctor filled up with very dark water from the carpet last weekend, and now we can enjoy the new sense of clean

*the smell of beeswax candles

*they way Miss Peach sheds in little soft tufts, you can tug at one and it comes out in one piece. She lets me do it. Is is weird that I enjoy this?

*the look and feel of a certain silk-wool worsted velvety grape hand dyed yarn from Uruguay feels whilst making a little pressie for my sister in law. Pure heaven!

*the way that being forced by our stupid Homeowners Association to hire someone to work on our front yard has enabled us to meet a very nice family business. And adorable old Dad, who speaks mostly Spanish, wished me a happy Thanks-holiday

*the boys and I having persisted in the idea that one doesn't need to match their socks on a weekend day, which has simplified our lives tremendously

Well, I'm going to go surf the net now. Cause that's how I roll.

everyday life over here...

It's been awhile since I last posted. I had been feeling so tired, so worn out, even though I wasn't depressed at all and in fact liking like here in San Diego and the prospect of a new job even. the boys were doing great, the weather is great here all the time. So why so droopy and craving the naps?

Well I didn't ponder too much on it, but then happened on an appointment for a physical and found out my iron was pretty low. Not tragically, but enough that I started on an iron supplement and you know, that pale looking, shadow under my eyes thing I haven't thought too much about this summer is pretty much going away also, and my energy is coming back. So, cool beans!! Female trouble, don't you know. Otherwise known by doctors as "God's Curse."

But enough about that, no one wants to know about that stuff, for gosh sakes!!

My new job pretty much rocks so far, but I know we are in the honeymoon phase of working. It feels so good to be back at something and feeling like I can make a difference and getting paid for it. The hours could not be better: part time, 9-2, four days a week. I can drive Frankie home from school and be back by the time Nate gets off the bus. They are hoping I get the CA license but hired me anyway. The pay would be what I was getting last time I worked, plus 3 years of cost of living. Sooo awesome. And, every morning I drive clutching my coffee and cruising over the long rollercoaster known as the Coronado bridge. Or whatever.

Knitting projects on the needles:

The Boneyard Shawl (free on ravelry, cool pattern, practical and warm)
The Sparkle Shawl (making with SWTC yarn, yin and yang the sequined yarn)
The Malvie Wrap (a Berrocco pattern, cannot say too much about this one...hee hee)

There are many many seeds of projects and balls of beautiful yarns that are just holding a spot in the closet. Lately I have been obsessed with shawls and wraps. I have decided that they are not just for old ladies anymore, at all. they are great for the beach when the sun goes down and it gets cooler, or something to throw on when walking the pups.

Must make:

The Little Colonnade (ravelry)
Ishbel (Isolda Teague)
the garter stitch cardi (on ravelry, a pattern on sale from $5 to $2.99

So that is my domestic life over here. Knitting, working, kids, dogs. And oh, yeah, that guy that goes in the fridge and eats stuff. Thank you so much Tara, Emily and the other Oakleaf girls for turning me on to knitting!! :)

Frankie update

I have told and told Frankie not to put Miss Peach in a headlock.

Frankie is doing great lately, grandma. He loves school, and has a whole scoop of new friends over there which is a great relief to me knowing he has adjusted to another move and a new school. Half way between school and our house is a Krispy Kreme, which has his donuts and my fabulous iced coffee. Nuff said. He is actually getting straight A's so far in school. Cool Beans!!

He spends most of his time camped out in the living room where he has made a nest of controllers, papers, books, more papers, wrappers and have drained glasses and plastic bottles, and balled up dirtly socks. Yes, this is in the common living area.

Since I am the maid, I usually pick up all of that myself. I find it very rewarding to clean up after the boy. Grrrr....

Frankie has announced to the family that he is going by Francisco now at school, but we can call him Frank still if we want. But I like to call him Mama's little Frankie-Bear. It is nice to still have options.

lil Tater

Here is little Tater wrestling with the Akita girl. They are like two puppies together. First, a pillow fight which includes one of the (smaller one) couch pillows that I made with my friend Yuri for our sofa. (You might notice that Cricket has the good sense to take his toy and hide under the coffee table) These is one of our little pillows that have already seen some hard times. We had the good sense to chose a machine washable cotton with batik-print dirt color for two of them, and a dark reddish-brown print for the other one, both envelope backs. Anyway, the dogs and boys really like these pillows. Grrr....

Nate has recently announced the household that he is expecting to commence puberty at any moment, being about eleven and a half. He has found a small red bump on his stomach and showed me, Jose, and my friend Yuri, what he declares to be his first pimple. He asked my if I would buy him some Axe deodorant spray, please, the next time I go to the store. He is getting some armpit odor, you see, since he is a big teenage boy now. Hee hee....not....but he wants to be :) I do wish he wouldn't grow up so fast!