Suzanne Calling

This week, I finally got a copy of my textbook for Issues In Music, the class I am taking to fulfill my ALAMEA requirement for my degree (basically, different cultures) As the professor indicated in the first announcement and syllabus that he didn't care when the assignments were done, so long as everything was completed by 5pm on July 15th, I didn't really look at the assignments. However, since the book was taking so long from first the college bookstore, then I finally ordered via Amazon, I sent him an email. "There is a substantial amount of the coursework available on Blackboard. You could get a start on those items, then take the tests after the book arrives and you can review the chapters in question." This made sense, so the night I submitted my Art History assignments, I started viewing the online program and reviewing the supplements to the text. If you'd never taken a music lesson or picked up an instrument, none of it would make sense. However, th...

Chef Jr and I went to the drive in tonight to see Up. Some pointers for those not familiar with drive ins, of which I am still a novice. 1. Check your radio's ability to tune in the FM band before leaving the house. If it doesn't work, choose a row that has speakers. Ed has been telling me for months my radio doesn't work. I can get the three stations I listen to, so I thought he was pulling my leg. He wasn't. If not for the van next to me and the SUV behind me, I would not have been able to hear the movie. 2. If you need to use the speakers/have windows open to listen to the movie, bring bug spray. I am covered in mosquito bites. Chef? Not a one. 3. If you have them, bring a blanket or camp chairs if you want front row viewing. If we had known about 1 and 2 ahead of time, I think this one would have made the movie even better. 4. Get there early to ensure a good spot. Our first attempt to visit the Silver Moon two years ago for another Disney movie resulted ...

This evening, we dropped Game Teen off to go on his first camping trip with the new Scout Troop. A troop of 20 boys and 18 are attending this weekend. (One is sick and the other had a prior commitment.) It's so cool to see boys who already impressed me start anew and step up their game even more. They're geared up for the weekend and are ready for rain and a ten mile hike. With the new troop, 'boy led' is still infused with a lot of adult input. The goal is for all the boys to have a merit badge by the end of the weekend. An Eagle required one, ka chow! Our first activity post departure was a dinner for three. It seems weird to only have one kid, but sometimes it's good. Heck, next year, we'll be sending both boys on these camping weekends. That, my friends, will be very strange. I think Chef liked having just the two of us for dinner, kibbitzing about the food, and getting all the attention. Like I didn't miss his misreading of a sign on the wall ...

I'm going off on a political rant today. If you're not in the mood for that, since I rarely tread this ground, feel free to wander off and read a funny blog or two or three. By virtue of my Mom's line of work and the friends she associated with, from my earliest memory, there always has been a gay friend or two involved in my life. From Mom or Dad's coworkers and friends Bruce and Hockey, to classmates who were definitely gay (but closeted), to the elementary school music teacher who channeled Liberace's ring wardrobe, there were those who walked a different path. My parents were very matter of fact if a question came up, but we rarely asked. Men who loved men were accepted as being equal as the married couples we encountered. To us, it was like having friends who were Christian and others who were Jewish. Each had valid reasons for who they were and what they believed. As I grew older, I realized that my parents point of view was not the norm. Being gay w...

Last week, I shared one of my crowd pleaser recipes over at MomDot . It's been featured on WFDW before, but when I visited Ed in the hospital last week, mention of this favorite had him hankering for Kebabs. If you were a frequent dinner guest, at some time or another, I made these for you. So you won't mind that I didn't take pictures, right? You've seen them before, right? Will it make it up to you that I shared my Awesome marinade recipe and instructions for making Chicken Kabobs on Tasty Thursdays ? Pictures to return next week.

I am a procrastinator. All week, I knew the two biggest assignments loomed in front of me for Art History. One was a 900 word essay about my visit to the Dali Museum, covering eight points the professor wanted us to note, compare and contrast. It counted for one fourth of the grade, more than even the final exam. The other assignment was to view two works in progress videos, then write an essay addressing the methods each artist used. One is a performance artist, the other a muralist. The essay needed to be a minimum of 500 words and had to answer several questions posed by my professor. I was intimidated by these assignments. Do I have the chops to write college essays? It's been 15 years since I last had to submit assignments for grades. Doubt about my abilities dogged me. There was a big monkey dogging me, perhaps even a gorilla perched on my back. This afternoon, I viewed the videos and organized my thoughts around the questions the teacher posed. As I prepared to wr...

The day I registered for Issues in Music, I ordered the textbook from the college bookstore. It was back ordered, and the professor said this is a common situation with his course. Fortunately, there aren't weekly deadlines for assignments, like my Art History class. As long as all the work is turned in by July 15th, it's fine. So, I wasn't sweating it too much. Last Thursday, I was getting a little antsy, so I looked on eBay and found a few copies of the text-for one quarter the price for a new book. This appealed to me, especially since Ed won't be working for another couple weeks. I got outbid, but Ed to the rescue. "Did you try Amazon?" Actually, I hadn't thought of it. There was the book-no bidding, same great price. I've purchased from one of the sellers in the past, so that made my decision for me. Of course, the book is paid for and should show up on Wednesday or Thursday. What shows up in my email this morning? A message that my b...

Today, we all vegged and relaxed around the house. We need it. I've got the cough that won't go away and Ed needs to get that leg healed up before returning to work. I think the kids are going a little stir crazy, but it's important for Ed to take it easy. Funny thing is that I got him a little ottoman to use to keep his leg propped up. If he is not in the living room, they are all over that sucker, carrying it all over the place. Last night, I soaked my aching back in the tub and watched Bride Wars at the same time. (I did something to the back but I'm not sure what. It's not pleasant.) It was a cute movie. Watching while soaking was pleasant. I wonder how many people with more money than me have installed flat screens within view of the garden tubs. Back to the grindstone. These assignments don't complete themselves, you know!

Today I had chauffeur duty. I'll also have it again next week. That means that my life is *supposed* to calm down. Instead, it means that someone is going to assume that I will drive hither, thither and yon to whatever doctor's appointments she may have. I'm sure it does, because the discharging nurse told her that she had to follow up with no less than four doctors. Small problem-she's on painkillers. She will fall asleep at the wheel when she is on pain medication (and may or may not have done so already). Soooo, this means that no one in that household is currently able to drive or holds a driver's license. Other than Mom asking me to take her for an outpatient procedure tomorrow, I was not asked if I was free to be chauffeur. It was assumed that I would do it. This has happened before. Each time, she calls the doctor last minute to cancel. If that were you or me, we'd incur a 25 dollar charge for not giving 24 hour notice. Last month, i started c...

One quarter of my grade in Art History is a report on one of three area museums. One choice was underwhelming, but two are museums that I've wanted to visit. The question was, would I head down to Sarasota to the Ringling or St. Pete for the Dali? The Ringling's website made it sound more suited towards a family outing, so I chose to visit the Salvador Dali Museum instead. It was tough to go alone, because Ed has said many time that he wanted to visit. However, with my student ID admission was free, so I'll go back with him someday soon. What an impressive collection of Dali's works, starting from when the artist was 13 to works that were completed in the late 1970's. The museum houses seven of Dali's 13 Masterworks. Alas, they do not have the most famous Dali work, The Persistence of Memory. (It's housed at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City.) Still, what IS there is just mind blowing. I've frequented many museums in my life, and enjoyed ...

Some updates: The laptop: We have a Toshiba authorized repair center right here in Lakeland. I dropped up my laptop Tuesday afternoon, they ordered a keyboard, and called me at 11am yesterday to tell me it was fixed. Yes, it's definitely a new keyboard-the old one had a shiny spot on the space bar because I rest my thumb there. The bronchitis: I caught this thing very early. The tightness in the chest that is a hallmark of the sickness hadn't even set in when I saw the doctor. No, that happened a day later. It's slowly improving, as I no longer have the feeling that I will cough up a lung. The neti pot is getting much more gunk out of my nose. My earlier C has been upgraded to a B. The husband: The best update of all-HE IS OUT OF THE HOSPITAL!!!!! A week of Levoquil and probably two weeks at home. The sucky part is the sister in law who has the same infections and didn't bother to tell us, and the worry we have on how we'll pay things without a paycheck...

I was carrying on an IM conversation with my brother in law, Joe, yesterday morning. He was doing what he does best, cracking me up. It was too good not to share, so I told him I was cutting and pasting it into a blog post. I did, then set about typing explanations of what the non sequitirs of our conversation were about. At 7am, I got up from the computer and woke Chef from his slumber. And promptly forgot that it was in draft mode. So, gentle readers. It is time stamped in my Dashboard as originating on Tuesday. Does it count as a Tuesday post? When it goes up in a few minutes, it will enter the blog on the date of origin, not the date posted. Is the streak unbroken? You decide.

I thought I posted about the Bronchitis diagnosis after midnight Monday, thus making it a Tuesday post. Did I check it? No. Here I was, popping in and out of the blog all day yesterday, but I didn't post, thinking the day's duties were fulfilled. Wrong. I could go back and fix the time, but that would be wrong. My almost 19 month streak of posting every day has ended. Waaaaaaahhhhhhhh. Guess this is post one of the next streak.

A Glimpse into the humor that you'll find early in the morning when you find both me and my brother in law checking out Facebook. Joe was in the mood for some pancakes, fixated on them, even. The wife and kids were asleep. This is what transpires: 6:58amJoseph Any precaution needed. I'm back, pored my coffee. 3 sleepin' slackers, 2 spoons of suger, and a hubbie that wants to go to ihop and im not in a pear tree At 6 in the morning my brother in law said to me 12 days of xmas....hunger is setting in 7:00amSuzanne lol 7:01amJoseph I should just go. It's called Ihop not wehop or theyhop,or wait til they wake up hop. 7:02amSuzanne LOL 7:03amJoseph IHOP should hire peter cottontail and hop the f&#* over here with some pancakes 7:03amSuzanne that I'd pay to see! 7:04amJoseph Had a great burger sun. and awesome Calamari yesterday 7:04amSuzanne shhh, Chef will nag me for some if he knows you had it [editor's note-Chef and Uncle Big Joe will conspire on what seafo...

It was caught very early, before it settled in, but definitely Bronchitis. Hell, even Joyce, Donna and Kathi were saying it was yesterday-they've heard me with it enough times, the lovely Kathleen Turner raspy voice and all. Antibiotics, codeine cough medicine and an albuterol inhaler and I should be on the mend in about 48 hours. Yesterday, since I couldn't get to the doctor, I bought two unusual things: Tissues and a Neti Pot. My feeling is that TP and Tissues are the same stuff, so I usually use the stuff that wipes my butt to wipe my nose (but not both, folks-one or the other. You people are GROSS!) When I used a half a roll of TP on my nose yesterday alone, I figured it was time to get a box of Kleenex instead. The Neti Pot was interesting. It's a concept I could get behind, with my constantly blocked upper sinuses and all. A Neti pot is filled with a luke warm saline solution and inserted in one of your nostrils. Then, you tilt your head to allow the warm water...

My laptop is screwed up. Big time screwed up. Like in, half the keys won't work screwed up. The thing is FOUR months old. I noticed something wonky as I was typing up my notes as I was listening to my Art History lecture, in that it wouldn't let my highlight and delete text. Then, the M wasn't showing up. Try explaining to Monet why he's known as 'onet' in my notes, because I can't right now. The backspace button stopped working. And delete, and the l and oh, most of the letters in my password. That's a big problem when you've password protected you laptop so that the 13 year old Game Teen doesn't infect the darn thing with a virus. Oh, and I'll shut it down (as in shut down, not reboot), but it restarts itself. I get the impression, from everything I've heard about Best Buy, is that they'll tell me 'too bad, so sad, you should have bought our highway robbery protection plan', even though the thing is still under warra...

The Music of Sisters As one of eight kids, each sibling had their own musical identity. For the most part, there weren't too many issues when someone had control of the stereo, but everyone had their distinct contributions. Giggles was no exception. As the youngest, I think she suffered the most of not having time to spin her own records, but she definitely had her opinions. Her first favorite was Barry. One Christmas, she was very happy to get not one, but TWO Barry Manilow double albums from Dad. Later on, it was Duran Duran. She was definitely the changeling, preferring Z-100 to the rock stations. Car trips with her and my Dad after I'd moved out were interesting-they'd alternate between my Dad's jazz standards and her Top 40 choices. We took a trip to visit another sister in Pennsylvania one holiday, and it was funny to see the banter between them, ribbing each other about their musical tastes. Today, though, there's another song to associate with Giggle...

Remember how crappy I felt Thursday night? It's back. At least we got 24 hours camping, experienced a scavenger hunt that took us all over Fort Wilderness and spent some time in the pool. Unfortunately, the van is still in the driveway, waiting to be unpacked. I do NOT have the strength right now. I also had words with Chef. At the mention of "We need to go home", he became a little ogre-and would not listen to the rest of the story telling WHY we needed to go. I was fading fast and there is no way I would have been able to sleep flat on my back tonight. Add to that the fact that Disney is hosting an Iron Man triathlon event in the morning and the road to exit the campsite would be closed until 1pm. If I happened to be worse in the morning, I would be trapped on a campsite and feeling even crappier than I do right now. Let's just say that at first, the child wasn't getting the concept that there is nobody left to take care of Mommy or the two boys if I got ...

Your husband is in the hospital, and you're beyond stressed, what are you going to do? If you're me, you will be taking the kids camping with the scouts for the weekend. This is the big camping trip, the one we paid for back in September. It's a campsite we've been to before, but the scout pack has not. Some have scoffed that it is 'cushy camping', but hey, I like the idea of immaculate shower stalls, a real sink to wash my dishes and a pool to enjoy. Why am I going? Ed has insisted we go, and I have to go with it. As it stands right now, he's in the hospital through the weekend. If anyone else needs us, too bad. I cannot be all things to all people. Right now, I'm going to be making the kids happy. And doing all the school work I haven't touched this week because of all the crap that we've been dealing with. I don't know how much will get done, but I suspect that I'll be reading the text by lantern light tonight after the kids ar...

Ed had a surgical consult tonight. Wounds are not necrotic, but he has staph. Still waiting on whether it's MRSA. He had a room change because some moron thought they could sneak off to the bathroom in the hall and get a cigarette smoked. Wrong. Instead, the smoke detectors caught it and the bathroom and hall got flooded. Everyone on the same floor/wing as Ed got moved to the other side of the floor. Meanwhile, I've got the hacking cough that makes me want to puke and a nasty headache. I am beat-and I'm going to bed. At 10:06. I don't think I've gone to bed that early since elementary school. Too bad I've got a to do list a mile long that needs to be done before 3pm. It'll have to wait until tomorrow.

Ed was admitted to the hospital. They are awaiting results on some cultures, and those will take another 48 hours. He has a massive infection, and as such, is being dosed with plenty of IV antibiotics. Yes, he's in the hospital and will be for 3 to 5 more days. For some reason, his sister with the OPEN venous stasis ulcers thought it was a good idea to bring her scooter up to his room, like "Oh goody, I've got someone to visit and play with now." Wrong. He's got an INFECTION and you've got open wounds. The two should not be mixed. I made a decision today that I waffled over all along. I knew I'd be toast at my on campus class tonight (less than 2 hours sleep last night), and I emailed the instructor to see what his opinion was, if missing the first night would be impossible to catch up on the course work. At 4pm, I still had not received an answer, but in my heart, I knew there was plenty on my plate with Ed, Jane, Mom, my kids and the two classes...

Some serious crap, too. Since last year, I've not written about a certain family member because she was giving Ed grief that I wasn't sensitive to her health issues. More like, I don't raise the white flag at whatever life throws at me, and my personal need to find out everything about a health issue that pertains to me or a loved one goes directly against her nature. She'd rather give up than try. Right now, I'm scared, angry and don't know what to do. The silence here about someone was okay-until it hit MY household. Last Thursday, I received a phone call at 5:05 to 'come look at Jane's leg'. She's had venous stasis ulcers for about two months. That may sound familiar, because I had two of them that were detailed here on the blog. Why I was called, and not her doctor, I don't know. Long and the short of it, I spent seven hours in the ER with her Thursday night. A crowded ER, full of germs. Friday morning, when I went back over, she...

I picked up my books today. Three classes down-my Issues in Music text is backordered, as are the text for two of the fall classes. In a case of "yes, we want you, no we don't. Oh wait, we changed we minds again!", I go back to work tomorrow. For one week. I'll take whatever comes my way right now, but I did see a job prospect in an unlikely place. Flexible schedule, too. The shuttle went up today. I'm sure if you're a space geek, you were watching TV or NASA's website. I was outside, looking towards the east coast. Alas, there were lots of clouds keeping me from seeing this launch. Bummer. I had a meeting with a social worker about Game Teen today, basically to update some of the standardized psych profiles. What should have taken an hour took three and a half. She was really nice, but overly locquatious. As a result, I got to the college to pick up my books at 1:10-and the book pickup hours were 9-1 and 4-7. I took advantage of being on t...

The music of Mom. If you're the average person, certain songs are flashbacks to certain times and events in your life. Other songs remind you of friends you've lost touch with years before, the summer hanging out at the pool or hours spent assembling/disassembling sets from one college production after another. Meanwhile, there are songs that are stamped indelibly with loved ones that years later, you can't help but smile when you hear them, no matter hokey they may be. And so it is with my Mom. Mom loved music. If you came into our house and Mom was there, the radio was on. Sometimes, it was 'Beautiful Music' or 'The Music of Your Life', AKA the elevator music stations (WHLI and WKJY, if my memory serves me well). Those were typically on when Mom wanted music, but was probably thinking through stuff or needed to concentrate on a sewing project or tax return for a friend. More often than not, it'd be tuned to an easy listening station and you'd...

I think I've slept more in the past week than I had in the previous month. Today, for instance, I got up around 9am, rolled over, woke at 10:30, rolled over again, woke at 1pm, lather, rinse, repeat. Conversely, I've eaten very little all week, because it hurt like hell to swallow anything. Ice water has been my friend. Sipping some every 1/2 hour or so kept the throat from having a dinosaur egg stuck in it, rather, I only had a goose egg. If I woke in the middle of the night, the routine had been to take a sip of the water. When I got up at 6, we decided I wasn't cooking and I grabbed a fast food dinner a little after 7pm. Now, I'm hungry again. Oh, and that goose egg has been downgraded to a robin's egg. Maybe I'll feel like normal tomorrow? I hope, because I have to head over to the college on Monday, as well as participate in a volunteer event I signed up for months ago. I hope no one else gets stuck with this darn thing. It was NOT fun.

"So, should I worry if those enrollment numbers for this class are low? Is it at risk of being canceled?" In a word, YES. I won't be learning about China Today. Instead, I've got a web course, Issues in Music. Sounds good to me. Now, I just have to send back the books when they arrive on Monday.

It's official. I start college next week. Three classes, one web based, two that meet on campus ONCE a week. (What's up with that? I thought we had to meet more than that!) In addition, when a certain class in my major is added to the schedule tomorrow or Monday, I can register for the fall session, too. By December, I'll have 22 credits in. Possibly 26, if during the first week of the fall session I think I can handle one more class in the schedule. The books for four of those classes totalled more than 500 bucks, and that's for used texts, no math or sciences in the mix. Am I going for buybacks when the semester is over? Heck, yeah! It's an interesting mix of classes. There were two that fulfilled the requirements that really tweaked me, but they met on Monday nights. So much for that, we've got Scouts. Internet Ethics sounded REALLY interesting, perhaps I can get that in before I graduate. Instead, I've got China Today, Intro to Art History, C...

Last Monday, I dropped off my immunization forms at USF and tried to schedule my appointment with my advisor. She was booked solid, but I was given her number to see when I can get in to see her. I called her as I was leaving the campus Monday morning. She called back Wednesday, and repeated that she was booked up, but that walk ins began on Monday. I asked when the best time to come in would be. Monday was no good because of commencement, Tuesday was full of meetings. "Come in Wednesday". Okay, works for me. I dragged my butt out of bed and got over to the campus at 11:15. The secretary informed me that she'd just gone back with a student, there was another waiting there and that would take her right up to lunch time. Can you come back at 1:30? At least I could go pick up my ID, which I did. Then I tried to sack out in the car, because I was whipped. I spent twenty minutes debating whether I should drive up to CVS for something to take the rock out of my thro...

Over the weekend, Chef Jr was showing signs of a nasty cold. It didn't slow him down at all, and I'm of the mind of letting the kids do whatever they're up to doing. Last night, I started feeling a little stuffy. Crap. Sleep was sporadic and I finally had settled down into some Z's when Ed nudged me and asked if I'd set the alarm-8 minutes before it was to go off. I woke Game Teen up, he got himself ready for school and I told him I was feeling pretty crappy and wouldn't be driving him up to the bus stop. (It's really up the block and he's fine, but I do it more for my comfort than his.) I set my alarm for 7am to get Chef up for school. At 7, I woke him up and told him I feel yucky and was going back to bed. Chef honestly has been self sufficient in the morning for well over a year-he just needs someone to wake him. I pulled a comforter out of the laundry room and went back to sleep on the couch. When Ed got up for work, I stirred for a moment, ...

When you own a Beetle, you witness a phenomenon fairly frequently, that of the "Punchbuggy". You know it, right? It's the game where the first person to see a Beetle (new or classic) punches the person close to them and says "Punchbuggy (color of beetle), no punch backs." It's common with the under 12 set, but I have seen adults do it, too. I don't need to hear them to tell what they're saying. Seeing this makes me chuckle. My kids, because they usually are ferried around in a Beetle, never really knew of the game. Until recently, that is. Chef Jr has been in the car a couple of times lately with his best friend, and his best friend's family is big on playing punchbuggy. Tonight, we're driving to scouts and a block from our house, Chef punches me in the arm and says "Yellow punchbuggy, no punch backs." He did not listen to my argument that the owner/driver of a Beetle is immune to Punchbuggys. He told me that I was not im...

Living in this house, one hears a ton of video game music. Good, bad and everything in between. From the Tetris melody coming out of my laptop, to the dreadful Pokemon music and for a time, whatever 'channel' was chosen on Grand Theft Auto. Once in a while, there is video game music that is so good that it easily can stand on its own merits. Jill told me a while back that I should pick up Endless Ocean for the Wii. She explained that not only was the game good, the music was fantastic. In fact, she'd gone out and picked up more discs from Hayley Westenra because she and her boyfriend had enjoyed them so much. At the time, I headed over to You Tube and found a song from Endless Ocean: Then, a favorite Kate Bush song, Wuthering Heights: This is a song that I consider impossible to cover without sounding shrill in the higher registers, but Hayley does a good job. (just a little fast, IMO.) There's another game that Ed has been playing lately, and instead of insipid...

Would you like to win $25 in Dole Coupons? Head over to New Sue Review for your chance to win in the Dole "Make Me a Chef" giveaway. Contest ends at NOON tomorrow, and there are only 10 entries as I write this. Good luck! (Winner will be drawn using random.org)

There are few things I don't put in the blog. I don't blog about some people, because when I do, my husband gets a lot of grief about it and told to make me stop. He tells them the same thing every time "I have no control over what she does or says." It's true, just as I don't control what he does or says. Suffice to say, the parties I do not write about are the cause for a lot of concern and worry right now. Some of it is preventable bullshit, some of it is the aftermath of previous stress on another person. A meal out with this person last night just drove home the point that thinks are not okay, nor will they ever be again. After 36 hours of extreme stress, today was almost a normal day for us. We went to Bed Bath and Beyond to find the 60 cup Keurig K cup sampler (it only has 3 varieties we haven't tried and several we have tons of already), out for mexican for lunch, then did grocery shopping and did some housecleaning. A funny story-Chef made...

The phone rang at 8:15am. "Suzanne, they changed their mind. The project isn't happening." I went and turned in my stuff and I'll look for other employment/cross my fingers on the SSDI appeal/hope they call for the next phase sooner. What did I do with my day off? Much the same as the night before, spending time at our local hospital. No, not me, the kids or Ed. All I'll say is that I'm normally empathetic, but in this case, I've no patience to deal with the situation. Unfortunately, I think we'll be dealing with it for a while. Please tell me that all this bad karma will result in something good happening soon. Please?