Easy reader books

Our library at some point decided that since every publisher has its own ideas about how to rank reading difficulty levels, they would have their own system. So, our easy readers go from yellow to orange to red to light blue. After that, you move to chapter books. Unfortunately, most easy reader books are awful. Just horrible crap. And that is why, my friends, Dr. Seuss made a fortune. His books are entertaining without being too difficult. Most authors are total shit at this. A new contender in the field is Mo Willems, with his wonderful Elephant and Piggie books. Sadly we didn’t discover them and/or they weren’t published yet when they would have been truly appropriate for my kids. But we read them anyway. Good fun.

Nea has finally graduated (third grade, 8.75 years old) to the light blue books. Maybe that’s why the quality is slightly better. The first one at this level that blew my socks off was No More Monsters for Me! by Peggy Parish. 64 pages, and I was gripped by the plot the whole way, as was Nea. You may think I’m overstating the case, but no, really, I swear. So I checked to see what other wonders might await us from Ms. Parish. I had no idea she was responsible for the awful Amelia Bedelia books. I thought they were dated when I was a kid. But she’s got a few others, so we’ll be checking those out.

Any other suggestions? Nea has made great strides in reading, but it’s still hard for her, and a good story helps so much. 

Jewelry

Hey, look at me go with my resolutions! Did some jewelry already. This necklace with matching earrings is for my old buddy old pal Tish, who I've known since 9th grade English class. The last two times Tish and I got together, we were both wearing purple, so I went with that. I'm almost finished with mine, which is very similar but slightly different. For that total Bobbsey Twins look. 

And in case you were wondering, that is a porcelain rubber glove mold, size 5 1/2, purchased at Architectural Artifacts a long long time ago. I think it's one of the coolest things I own. We've been wanting to take the girls to that store again for awhile. In the meantime, feel free to buy me this. Would look stunning in my house. 

2013 resolutions

I know, how cliché. But I have never blogged my resolutions before and generally don’t do any, so indulge me this once. And wish me luck. Sort of a long list, now that I look at it. I’m going to have to print this puppy out.

Eco and volunteer work

• Work on the new school vegetable garden.
• Write one more grant.
• Organize triathlon fundraiser.
• Do fruit and vegetable tasting at school (kiwi and cauliflower).
• Help with local eco book club and seed swap.
• Grow one new vegetable at home.

Hobbies

• Finish jewelry projects.
• Read 45 books. Reread all of Harry Potter. Read at least two books in German.

Travel

• Prioritize travel plans. (N and I did a brain dump on all the places we’d like to go in the next 10 years. Since we can’t possibly do them all, we really need to figure out which ones are the most important. Possibilities include: the Smithsonian, Outer Banks, Memphis, Quebec City, Mackinac Island, Grand Canyon, Yellowstone, Badlands, Switzerland, Sweden, Italy, England, France, New Zealand and Australia, Japan, Aruba, Costa Rice, Virgin Islands, Jamaica, Fiji/Tahiti. Not to mention the places the girls want to go to again: Hawaii, New York, Cape Cod, Michigan, Germany)
• See Kate! (Total cheat resolution. We already have plans to meet up -- so exciting!)
• Go to Europe.

Me Me Me

• Take care of myself. Skin care, flossing, physical exam.
• Pamper myself. Buy me nice things. Buy some new clothing.
• Do sprint triathlon in 1:49 or less. (My time in 2011.)

Household

• Get the kids to help around the house more.
• Clean up my desk.
• Declutter my closet.

Busy busy busy

So, exciting things are underway at our grade school. Our neighbors are landscape architects, and they made up a fantastic, ambitious and wonderful plan to change our school property from a dull wasteland that regularly turns marshy to a vibrant eco-system, with a vegetable garden, butterfly garden, two play areas, a peewee soccer field with a running path around it, native plants in the village-owned floodplain, a better engineered baseball diamond that doesn't flood, an outdoor classroom, etcetera etcetera!

Even better? We got our first grant, which will be used for the veggie garden. Everything else will come in later stages, but let’s face it. This is the best part. And it’s coming this spring! While my kids are still there! So I've been writing grants and making fundraising plans with a bunch of other parents, and it’s all been very exciting. One grant is pretty much my baby, and if we win that one, I’m adding grant writing as a skill on LinkedIn. I’ve always thought that sounded like fun. Whee!

So that thing I did, with the fruit and vegetable tasting during school lunches? That’s being heavily touted in these grants as something we are doing to fight obesity and promote wellness in the community. I’m happy that all worked out so well! Plus it's listed on the back of the school phone book as something the PTA offers to the students. Which is too bad, really, as I was sort of tired of doing it. Now I'm thinking kiwis and cauliflower for next time. Need to set up some dates.

So, because I don’t know how to do things in small doses, I said I’d put together one of the fundraisers. I thought I’d do something that fits in with my role as the PTA Wellness chair, so I said, how about  we participate in local races and raise money for the playground? Get some parents exercising, maybe do a little community building in that direction. I’m hoping for 20 people, at several hundred raised per person. The current plan is to offer training runs and bike rides this spring to get interested people ready for a 5K run and/or sprint triathlon.

NOTE: I've set up a new email account for this blog. If you've emailed me in the last few months, um, I didn't get it. I got locked out of that account. So embarrassing to admit. 

Community

Hi! This is a quick post to prove I'm still alive. It's been crazy busy around here, so just a little graphic I found. (from here) 

Books books books

If you've wondered what business consultants do, here is an excellent summary: (from http://www.projectcartoon.com/cartoon/1. Follow link to view larger.)

Much though I sometimes complain about work, I do realize I'm part of a company on the FORTUNE 100 Best Companies to Work For list. Flexible hours, telecommuting, all the comforts of home while getting paid. Throw in some laundry while on a conference call. Only go downtown to the office a few times a year. It’s madness to complain. Plus they realize that they need to help bring a sense of belonging to the remote worker bees. Enter another book club. One I am paid to co-lead.

Yes, I’m cheating on Book Club. Yes, we gave Jean-Marie no ends of shit when she joined another one awhile back. This one is different, though! All via VOIP and no wine! That I know of! And I have a little blog on the internal company site as well, so, really, I’m cheating on all of you. I swear less on that one, though, how predictable of me. But all I say there is, this is our book. Come talk about it. Thanks, cheers, xoxoxoxo. So far we have discussed Gretchen Rubin’s The Happiness Project.

Our take-aways from that book, which is sort of a self-help book, is to be sure to be born to rich parents, so you can take a year to write a book about how to increase your happiness quotient. And live in NYC, hire a nanny to watch your kids (but don’t mention her!), and generally obsess about happiness.

She has a blog with some nice quick ideas, like 13 Tips for Dealing with a Really Lousy Day. And this The Years are Short video is sweet.

In conclusion, splurge a little! Buy something to pamper yourself. And use your nice things. Don’t save them for a rainy day. There. That's probably all you need to know.

In January we will take a little time to ponder Gift from the Sea by Anne Morrow Lindbergh. Wife of Charles. She wrote it awhile back, so she didn't know that she was supposed to call it The Pilot’s Wife. (See also The Senator’s Wife, The Time Traveler’s Wife, The Shoemaker's Wife, The Tiger’s Wife, … I’m sensing a trend.)

And in Real Book Club news, recent picks were: 

• October: The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster
• November: Machine of Death edited by Ryan North, Matthew Bennardo, and David Malki
• December: The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian by Sherman Alexie

Democracy

I enjoy voting. I believe I've voted in every election since I turned 18. Maybe missed the occasional primary. I know I missed the one for Illinois governor when it was between Blago, Vallas, and Burris, because I didn't like any of them. 

I only voted early once, four years ago, and it took much longer than it does at my usual place, where I’m in-and-out in ten minutes. I like being part of the process on the official day, anyway. I like wearing my sticker and being a good example for my kids. Today I was the 454^th voter, at 11:30 a.m. Sounds like a good turnout.

However, I am annoyed that my polling place is in a church. My last place (same house, different polling place) was also a church. That one was of the Giant Wooden Cross on the lawn type. The current one is the Big White Pillars in front type.  Either way, annoying. Separation of church and state, anyone? I know they don’t generally get paid for the inconvenience, and there "aren't enough public locations" otherwise, or whatever, blah blah blah. But it’s crap, and I don’t like it.

Back in the olden days, I voted in an elementary school, across the street from my condo. It was great: leave the house, vote, get into car, drive to work. Then they moved it to the middle school 2 blocks away. Grumble.

One of my friends in Chicago voted in a car dealership several times. I think that’s hysterical. Plenty of room, not particularly crowded on a Tuesday. Works great. No, I'm not sure whether it was for an American company.

So. Here’s hoping the disenfranchisement, ballot fraud (Really, Ohio. I hope someone goes to jail for that.), and other assorted bullshit don’t make this country an embarrassment. Because despite the electoral college, voting is still my favorite civic duty.