- our washer and dryer are currently unhooked so work can proceed in the laundry room. I don't know how other people spend their Friday nights but I took three garbage bags full of dirty clothes to a laundromat on Bank St. and spend a fun-filled few hours doing my loads. I forgot my book and the only thing to read was the Ottawa Sun. Brutal.
- Jackson arrived home from school with 3 new assignments. Memorize and perform a poem. Complete 5 spelling worksheets. And - here's the grandaddy - construct a toy that has moving parts, using found objects and materials from home, that must make use of at least two simple machines. Oh, and complete the 7-page booklet that goes along with it. My heart sank as I took stock of this new sh**load of homework. Is the teacher aware it's now the middle of June?? Apparently not.
- still mired in the basement reno - now there's a whole other topic - despite having the services of an excellent handyman, work may stall out as bathroom tiles have not arrived. Tiles were ordered 5 weeks ago. Deposit made as required. Store estimated 3 weeks to get tiles in. Checked back a few days ago. Tiles, for some inexplicable reason, had not yet been ordered. Bit of an oops. I have been trying mightily not to freak out. I figure this is just good practice for staying calm when crises happen on the road, as they surely will from time to time. Like my mom says, "whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger". She's also fond of saying "low aim is worse than failure". My aim right now is just to keep my head from exploding.
2 comments:
Kathi...ouch...it's painful to even read what you are going through right now. How's Ted holding up? Have you thought about IV meds to carry you through? :) I think I would surely have to take to my bed. I am nervous for you and I can feel my stomach knotting as I type this. However, having only added to your "exploding head" syndrome I will leave you with these cheery thoughts. Hang on girl! One step at a time. You can do it! I couldn't...but YOU and God can!! Love you.
Terry
Oh my. Well, Kathi, you may have forgotten, but I suspect you were in a similar head-detonating space as you counted down to depart for a 2-year stay in Saudi Arabia when Mitchell was a baby. The moral of the story is that it WILL all get done, and you WILL forget all this once you are in the sky.
We are three days into our Arctic Adventure, flying in tandem with our friends Rick and Sue Ulmer. Had two wonderful days of weather through Watson Lake, YK, doing cruising loops over Nahanni National Park and Virginia Falls, and are now weather-grounded in Fort Simpson, NWT . . . which is why I have time to look at your blog.
I read it out to Sue, a retired elementary school teacher and, when I got to the bit about Jackson’s June assignments, without missing a beat she said, “Ah, the keep-them-busy-in-June assignments.” Yes, the teacher is very aware it’s the middle of June and she’s just marking time. Sue says the marks are all in by now, the report cards are done, and her advice is to let Jackson fend for himself, especially with the parent-input-demanding toy assignment. It’s very likely the teacher will never look at the 7 page booklet. So you might as well get on with laundromat reading and laptop re-loading.
Lastly, I don’t see this as whining in any way, Kathi; you are reporting . . . and it’s a very therapeutic pyrotechnic-diffusion technique.
Now we will walk down the one main street in Fort Simpson, choose one of the two restaurants for dinner, and hope for better weather tomorrow to get to Tuktoyaktuk.
Love & hugs,
Susan
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