The Web-Betty Blog

Public school, here we come!

melissa — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 16:26:42 +0000

The main job of a parent is to make sure you prepare your kids to one day survive on their own (mostly), without completely screwing them up in the process¹. This means making a zillion little daily decisions on their behalf, as well as making some pretty big decisions for them, too. We made one of those “big” decisions this year, and decided to take The Goose out of private school and send him to public school. Meaning this morning Zachary started 2nd grade, in a new school.

Zachary gets to work

Chris and I went back and forth, and while money wasn’t the issue (we had a generous benefactor the past two years), we decided we wanted Zachary to attend the school that was just down the street and has earned a great reputation over the past few years, instead of shuttling him 30-40 minutes each way, every day. We also want The Goose to start creating the kind of friendships that span elementary school, middle school, high school, and beyond. He would not be able to do that if we kept him at FLEC–once he hit high school we would either have to move to keep him in a high school with his friends, or we would have to pull him away from all of the friends he’d made over the years. We’d rather pull him away now.

Of course, that’s not to say that we won’t move before he’s out of school–in fact it would be really odd if we were still on Lake Alden for the next 10 years, but you never know. I like my home. We also have to consider Jonah. There’s no way to afford FLEC for both of them, when Jonah starts kindergarten in a few years, so he will likely start Apopka, where Zachary is now.

There are a few other, personal reasons, for the switch, but this post isn’t about me.

As for totally screwing Zachary up before he moves out on his own some day, only time will tell. I have plenty of other opportunities to mess him up major decisions to make on his behalf between now and then.

Brotherly Love

melissa — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 22:58:18 +0000

And so it begins, the start of the bumps, bruises, scrapes, and other various physical evidence of “brotherly love”.

The afternoon’s love fest started with Zachary trying to watch the cartoon that Jonah was watching and Jonah blocking Zachary’s view. After a few renditions of “get out of my way!” followed by grunting and heavy breathing, I was not surprised when the high-pitched shrieking reached my ears.

When I got to the living room I found Zachary looking contrite and trying to console a wailing Jonah. Okay, he was really trying to talk him into not squealing on him. Which of course, Jonah promptly did. It seems that Jonah had been standing on the couch, and when he wouldn’t get out of Zachary’s way, Zachary pushed him. Off the couch.

From these pics it’s hard to see how big and dark the bruise was (the little bugger won’t stand sill!), but it’s several days later and he still has his “trophy”.

I’m sure this is just the first of many brother-inflicted wounds to come. I think it’s time to invest in a first aid kit. Or a stand-by EMT.

You are an obsession…

melissa — Sun, 06 Jun 2010 02:57:54 +0000

This should be a post about Zachary’s 7th birthday, but since he still has his bowling party tomorrow this is going to be about my new obsession: Vinylmation. When I first saw these little 3″ figures in the Orlando airport in April I remember looking at them and wondering what in the hell they were. Needless to say I did not purchase any.

Fast forward a few months and a trip to Downtown Disney for the Goose’s 7th birthday. We’d already spent time building his RC car and were just wandering around when we went in to the Vinylmation store. While Zachary colored his VM coloring page to look like the VM he liked, I walked around. I decided to take the plunge and bought three boxes from the Urban 3 series. Now the intriguing thing about this whole VM craze is that you buy the boxes “blind” and don’t know what you’re getting until you actually buy them and open them up. Of course this is a brilliant marketing scheme by Disney but we won’t get into that here. I actually chose well and the first two I opened were vinyls I wanted. The third, not so much. But the nice thing about buying these in the store is that you can exchange ones that you don’t like. With the guidance of the nice sales man I ended up with the Palm Trees vinyl that Zachary had colored. Yay for me!

Unfortunately now I’m hooked. It turns out these things can turn into collector’s items after a while since the collections are discontinued after awhile. And they’re pretty damn cute. In addition to the three I purchased at Downtown Disney yesterday, I managed to pick up a few on eBay as well. Not the coveted Balloon “chaser” which is going for over $300 these days (yes, 3-0-0), but a few cute ones I will enjoy.

Vinylmation Penny Machine Park #2

Cast Member Mickey

It won’t affect anything, but I’m banning BP

melissa — Sun, 30 May 2010 13:02:09 +0000

I’ve done a really good job of burying my head in sand, so to speak, regarding the horrific BP incident in the gulf. Of course the media is doing a great job of helping me in this regard. I honestly believe we have not seen half of what is really going on. Notice how it’s always the same video shot from BP, or the same isolated beach shots? I’m guessing that like myself, most people want to stay blissfully ignorant as to the oil leak in the gulf. With ‘top kill’ failing miserably, however, that is increasingly unlikely.

I drive past a BP station everyday and have never given it much thought until (obviously) recently. I don’t recall ever getting gas at a BP, mainly because RaceTrac and 7-Eleven are on the routes I take in my everyday routine. When I drive past BP now, however, I get a sick feeling in my stomach that lasts until I get home, and the same thoughts run through my head: I may be a hypocrite, but I have to drive (especially in central FL). I refuse to stop at BP, however. As I was thinking this the other day I was surprised to see how many people were still getting gas at BP. I would think that with this oil disaster people would be shunning BP gas stations like the plague. I was disheartened to see this isn’t the case.

I know my personal ban on BP won’t change a single thing but it gives me some sense of action. I can’t say I’m driving less, because I really don’t drive that much to begin with. Mass transit, which is all but nonexistent in the area I live in, is also not an option. I guess I’ll have to take my small victories and in the meantime, pray that God, or Buddha, or Allah or someone is looking over the Gulf and will intervene to protect what is left to protect. BP certainly can’t be counted on to do it.

We’ve lost a tooth!

melissa — Tue, 04 May 2010 22:19:45 +0000

It looks like the tooth fairy will be visiting the Johnson’s house for the first time tonight–Zachary lost his first tooth! It’s been loose for about a week now and just as human nature intended he’s been wiggling and jiggling it all that time. I decided that before it walked out of his mouth on its own I’d better yank it out of there–it came out with one little pull.

Sigh. Another rite of passage over. Next thing I know he’ll be asking for the car keys.

Open yer wallets and give me some coin!

melissa — Tue, 20 Apr 2010 12:24:45 +0000

I’m excited at the prospect of lacing up my sneakers (once I find them) and walking 3 miles this Saturday for a great cause: the March for Babies. Hopefully I’ll actually make it the full three miles.

This is such an important and worthwhile cause that I’m having Zachary walk with me. I’m so looking forward to Zachary meeting my friend’s son, Will, who was born premature (at 25 weeks) and has his own share of challenges. From what Janey has said, Will is a funny, precocious, lively and dear kid and I think he and The Goose will get along famously. I hope The Goose can keep up with him!

I need some help, though.
As you can see if you look over there ————————————>
I’m a little short of my goal. Every little bit helps. $10, $15, $25, etc. Please open your hearts and your wallets and donate a little coin to this wonderful organization. Help me and Zachary help babies in need. Just click on the badge.

If you’re interested in learning more about Will, Janey is always too happy to talk about her wonderful son. Check out Confessions of a Middle-Aged Suburban Diva.

Where did March go?

melissa — Thu, 01 Apr 2010 01:50:11 +0000

I can’t believe it’s April Fool’s day. Seriously, where in the hell did March go? Life does seem to move faster the older I get. Meh. We definitely had a busy March between cruising, baseball, Rock Band, and life in general, and everything in between. Here’s a little rundown of our month.

March started on the water, with Chris and I still out on our cruise which you should have read all about by now. The first few weeks of the month were pretty normal. Then came the week of 3/21. Aunt Carol and Uncle Dick came to FL to visit. We didn’t get to see nearly as much of them as we would have liked but they did see Zachary and all the cousins participate in the Mirriam Kitrell 5K run for FLEC. Bless his heart, he ran the entire thing (not the whole 5K, the first graders run half that).

The cousins ran the race

Carol and Dick even went to one of the Goose’s baseball games, and then treated us to a fun day at Joker Marchant stadium, home of the Detroit Tigers spring training. It was a glorious day and everyone had a lot of fun. That was also the weekend our refrigerator decided to go kaputz. I’d be lying if I said I was sad about that, because I had a sweet little number delivered the Saturday we were at the baseball game. It’s awesome with a capital awesome, and only cost us $560 of our own cash.

My new best friend

The rest of March was spent working, cleaning up crap (literally–Jonah just can’t seem to get his shit together, so to speak ), going to baseball practice and games, and in general living the dream.

It doesn’t look to be letting up, either. April is already shaping up to be as busy as March. Oy Vey!

View the insanity below.

Created with Admarket’s flickrSLiDR.

It’s the remix/remake showdown!

melissa — Thu, 25 Mar 2010 02:07:39 +0000

Imitation is at least 50 percent of the creative process.

I’m often surprised by how much media gets remade. Movies, music, television—at some point everything old is new again. This isn’t always a bad thing, except in the case of Tupperware in those lovely shades of avocado green, washed-out tangerine orange, and baby diarrhea yellow. I don’t want those to be new again.

But I digress. One of the things I’ve noticed over the past year is the number or duplicate songs that come up when I do a search for something in my iTunes. I’m not talking duplicates in the sense of the same song by the same artist twice; I’m talking about the same song remade. I have a lot of these in my music library and every time I hear a remake it’s natural that I compare it to the original—or the one that is the most well known. Because let’s face it, there are a lot of songs out there that were remade and the original is not the one you know. Respect, by Aretha Franklin, is a perfect example. Otis Redding actually performed it first making Franklin’s female anthem the remake.

That brings us back to the point: the remix/remake. I’ve decided to make note of my duplicate songs when I think of them or see them in iTunes, for the sole purpose of sharing them with you. Along with my thoughts on which one is superior. What would be the point if there wasn’t a debate, eh?

So let’s get this party started. This version of remix/remake features the song Superstar. The first version that I’m aware of is by The Carpenters (1971). I’m a sappy gal, and I actually love The Carpenters. So does my mother which explains why I’m aware of this song in the first place. I have always liked this song and would consider it one of my favorite Carpenters’s singles. I’m actually listening to it right now for this post and have goosebumps. Karen Carpenter. Wow. Listen for yourself.

Moving, isn’t she?

Then along comes Juno. One of my all-time favorite movies. While getting really creeped out by Jason Bateman, I couldn’t help but be pulled into the scene where he shared with Juno a remake of Superstar done by Sonic Youth. I was totally taken aback by the intensity and the grittiness of the Sonic Youth version. This whispery, sing-song version doesn’t compare to The Carpenter’s soft and flowing version. The Sonic Youth version is naughty, creepy, and feral. And I love it. While Karen is singing about Lancelot, her night in shining armor, Sonic Youth is singing about his one night stand who made him feel dirty and took all his money. What do you think?

I can’t really pick a fave between the two of these. They are both rated 5 stars in my iTunes and I love both versions for different reasons. They are, naturally, in very different playlists.

So what do you think? Which one rocks you and why?

Just Cruisin’

melissa — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 01:18:07 +0000

Our first cruise. It was the best of times, it was the worst of times. Okay, that’s a little dramatic, but our cruise was definitely a tale of two experiences. Overall Chris and I had a great time; unfortunately for both of us we discovered that Melissa gets motion sick when there are 20+ foot swells and the boat moves as if it were a wineglass that was being used to sample a taste of wine. Round and round and round we go…whee!

The good news is that when I wasn’t sleeping in the cabin (thank God for bonine!) I was out having fun. There really is a lot to do on a cruise ship and even though I did see too much of the cabin I did manage to do a little gambling, eat a ton of great food, and win a painting. (I’m really excited about this painting, even if it is the one Chris didn’t want. )

The highlight of the cruise was, however, off the boat–our day excursion to Cozumel was awesome. Chris and I spent a week there several years ago and decided we wanted to take a little walk and find JT’s house where we had stayed. Of course, we were led on a merry chase each time we asked someone where the mini putt-putt was (JT’s house is across from it), but we didn’t mind. We wandered up and down the streets stopping in little shops here and there, drinking cerveza, and soaking up the sun.

In our search for the elusive house we did stumble upon an Irish bar called Kelley’s, and Kelley was from CO! What a small world. Even better was that Kelley’s was only a few blocks from our goal. So a quick tequila and we were off. We did find the house exactly where I remembered it to be across from putt-putt and the pharmacy, with the crazy pharmacy character still out front waving at people.

The door we were searching for!

On our way back to meet our friends we stopped at a local hole-in-the-wall (literally) and ate a scrumptious lunch of carne asada tacos and chicken tostadas–Mexicon style, not an Americanized version. All for $5!

After lunch we all meet back up, hopped in our taxi, and made our way to the beach. We ended up at a really nice resort-style place with a great pool, tons of beach chairs (that we didn’t have to pay for–even better), and a nice open-air bar. Unfortunately, the water was so rough and the waves were so big that we couldn’t do any snorkeling. This was a big bummer for the kids. I, however, chose to take advantage of the massage table. I can now say from experience that there is not much that can compare to a massage on the beach, with the sound of the surf, a nice breeze, and Mexican music playing in the background. H-E-A-V-E-N!

There’s so much more I could write about, but then this post would go on for days. So, here’s a little more of the good and the bad:

This was great too

Mojitos and moonlight while chatting with the nice couple from Minneapolis, on the Serenity deck.
The comedians were, well, funny.
Shrimp, shrimp, and more shrimp. Fresh shrimp every dinner. YUM!
Fruity umbrella drinks–rum, fruit, and umbrellas.

Not so much

I lost my favorite pair of sunglasses.
The water was so rough. Next time I have to have one of those little patches behind my ear.
Grand Cayman. Sure, it was nice hanging with everyone at the beach for a few hours but the shopping was overrated and the prices were inflated.
The casino sucked. No energy, no enthusiasm, and it took my money.
The price of all those fruity umbrella drinks. You definitely pay for the rum, the fruit, and the umbrellas.

All in all, it was a great way to spend Chris’s 40th birthday. Thank you Dave and Ivonne, for inviting us to cruise with you and for footing part of the bill.

A picture is worth a thousand words

Created with Admarket’s flickrSLiDR.

Reaching out, part 2

melissa — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 16:01:01 +0000

Let’s see, where were we? Ah yes, a sunny lunch date back in Denver. If you haven’t read it yet, you might want to check out Reaching out, part 1, which ended like this:

True friendship is like sound health; the value of it is seldom known until it be lost.

…one sunny September day I received a Facebook message from another old, dear friend that I thought I had lost long ago (we have reconnected via Facebook) asking if I wanted to get together when I was visiting Denver. I was thrilled, and we set a date for lunch. Little did I know how much that lunch would turn out to mean to me.

Coincidence? I think not.

So MM and I met for lunch. It was great seeing him and the hour flew by. During that time we did a lot of catching up, and our conversation inevitably led to ST. There were a few of us that had been trying to reconnect with her, but up to this time no one knew what had happened to her. At lunch he shocked me by telling me that only a few days earlier she walked into his best friend’s work (who also was a super-dear friend of mine), totally out of the blue. Not only that but ST got MM’s number and had called him, while he was driving to meet me for lunch! Coincidence? I don’t believe in coincidence.

I didn’t want to put MM in an uncomfortable position by asking for ST’s number so I asked him if he would give her my number when they met next week. He said of course he would, and we had to wrap up lunch so I could go back to work. Of course the first few days I couldn’t check my phone fast enough when it rang to see who was calling, or to see if I hand any missed calls when I was away. After a few weeks, however, I stopped waiting for ST to call. While MM had given ST my number, she obviously didn’t want to use it. This made me sad, but I understood. Afterall, we’re talking over 10 years with not so much as a single word. And as I’ve mentioned. I wasn’t always the greatest friend.

Fast forward five months. I’m going about my everyday business when I get a text message from MM asking me for my email address. I quickly sent it to him, but didn’t dare hope he was asking on behalf of someone else. Why set myself up for that again? So it came as a complete shock when only a day or so later, I get an email from ST stating that she heard I wanted to get in touch with her, and asking me how I was doing. I guess patience really is a virtue!

Since then we’ve passed a few emails back and forth. They’re tentative and kind of awkward which is, of course, understandable. ST asked right away if I was trying to reconnect, or if I was just curious about what had happened to her. I felt it was a test question and I didn’t have the right answer. Which answer did she want? Did she want to reconnect? I know she was probably just reaching out to satisfy her curiosity–what happened to that selfish girl? Did she end up in prison? Divorced for a second time? A street walker? I’m pretty sure that’s all she wanted and then she’d be on her way again. I’m trying to make sure that doesn’t happen. I do want to reconnect. I know we’ll never be as close as we were all of those years ago, but ST was the most important person in my life for many years and I’m still selfish enough to want to hold on to that.

I’m hoping there will be a part 3 to this little story. There have been several more emails since I wrote this, and with each email we both seem to be loosening up a bit. Stay tuned.