Eighteen

more Mondays and Tuesdays. I revised my count. I forgot about the Memorial Day holiday and I'm not counting the day I will be going on a field trip with the pregnant and parenting girls. They needed a second nurse for the trip, and I was happy to accept the invitation. It should be a fun day as long as no one goes into labor. They are taking the juniors and seniors to Brookhaven College to try to encourage them to stay in school and set their sights on college. I cannot imagine trying to pursue a degree with a small child, but it can be done. I really admire the PEP (that's Pregnancy, Education and Parenting, I think) nurse at TJ. She really works hard for those kids.

Out of the Mouths of Babes

When I started my job last August I had a photo ID made which I wear anytime I am at the school. This was before I decided to "go natural" or to let my grey hair grow out. So today I was taking care of a small boy who looked at my ID and looked at me and asked "Is this a picture of you when you were YOUNG???"

Max's Wedding

It was the first wedding I have attended at the Arboretum. It was lovely and the weather and the flowers were beautiful! Max and Brooke wrote their own vows and he got all choked up when he was saying them. I was tearing up too. So nice to see them both so happy. So wonderful to see all the support from family and friends. So sad that James was not able to be there. Here is a picture of the happy couple. Don't they look great! Bill and I had fun rediscovering some old friends and connecting with some people with whom we had just one or 2 degrees of separation - not six!

Max's dad did the catering and I decided not to be a vegetarian for the night. I have not had steak for at least 2 or 3 years, but this was a steak worth waiting for! It was delicious as was the rest of the meal. Maybe I'll have Max's dad cater for Stephen or Emma... but that is a way down the road. Then again, maybe I will have a buffet catered by the Spiral Diner people. They serve an excellent vegan BBQ sandwich! And they now have a location in Oak Cliff - just across the river!

There was once an old sailor my grandfather knew

Who had so many things which he wanted to do
That, whenever he thought it was time to begin,
He couldn't because of the state he was in.

And the rest of the poem is Here .

My dad used to read me the poems of A.A. Milne when I was a small child. This has been one of my favorites for years. I identify with the old sailor. Some people call it the "But First Syndrome"; I call it the "Old Sailor Syndrome." It's why I never get anything done. There is always so much to do that I don't know where to begin and of course I can't do A until I've done B which is dependant on my finishing C etc. So like the old sailor, I end up doing nothing at all... Shameful!! Who will save me??!

Then there is the more productive "One More Thing" syndrome that kicks in now and then. Usually it happens as I am getting ready to go somewhere that I don't really want to go to. I decide to finish the laundry before I leave and while it is drying I surely have time to make the bed and wash the dishes and make myself a spectacular lunch to take to work. And before I know it I am late... but look what I've accomplished by trying to fit in one more thing! What I need to do is figure out how to trigger the "One More Thing" state when I have a few hours of time, not a few minutes.

I'm Back

Call it shell shock or PTSD. It took me a while to recover from my terrible, horrible etc. day, but things are pretty much back to normal now. I am enjoying my job from Wednesday - Friday and am counting Mondays and Tuesdays - 22 to go!

Carrie O referred me to mamasource which is an interesting resource. It's mainly for mothers of young children and mine are grown, but I have enjoyed browsing the site. I chimed in on two recent discussions there, if you want to read my responses.

Max is getting married today at the Arboretum. James wanted to come to Dallas from Idaho for the occasion, but was unable to get on a plane out of SLC. D3 standby can be frustrating and James had a very frustrating and disappointing day yesterday. He ended up giving up and going home and will miss his best friend's wedding. I hate it when that happens to my kids. I feel for him... but we will be there to represent the family.

Look for a post soon about the Old Sailor Syndrome. I've been meaning to write about that for some time, but I have so many things to do that I just haven't gotten around to it! HA!