Fresh, Hot Wastes of Time

Went to see the surgeon today. He doesn’t know what’s wrong wtih me. He’s pawning me off to a dermatologist. Fine.

I’m tired and grouchy and the kids have been terrorizing me all week. I’m sure they’re tired of being cooped up, but that doesn’t mean they get to sleep with us and damn near break my nose. Seriously.

Anyway, I’m going to look into Mother’s Day Out programs for them, maybe twice a week, and start planning more outdoor activities as well as going-out activities, like the children’s museum and storytime at the bookstore. I think it will do us all some good to get out, even though my first urge lately has been to hide under the covers and pretend I’m not there.

Also, I miss my cat.

Fred McFeely Rogers (1928-2003)

In memory of Fred Rogers, who brought such goodness to the children of the world. May angels wing you home, Mr. Rogers.

For those of you up north who are looking at the pictures of the ice and giggling to yourselves about how lame our “ice storm” was, you have to understand that the 1/4″ of ice you see completely shut down the city for the past 2 days, school was canceled, doctors’ offices closed, car wrecks were abundant, interstate highways were closed down, the airport was closed, and 9 people have died as a result of exposure to the elements or wrecks blamed on the road conditions.

Those of you who don’t believe we got ice, think again. You know who you are, and so do we. (Thanks to Recreational Chemistry for help with the image stuff!)

There are people in the world, stupid people, who just don’t get it and never will. They will never bother to read directions, and they will always be perplexed as to why things don’t go right for them.

Trust me on this.

This week has completely extinguished any faith I had in weathercasters. Even when it was apparent that it was sleeting outside, the forecasters insisted that it was dry. When it was in the 20s, they told us the lows would be in the 30s. Jim Spencer started to get with the program and hop around like a little demented, hyperactive frog, proclaiming our wintry doom. He’s always good for the entertainment factor, if not his forecasting skills. Fox, in a laughable attempt to take the high road (come on, it’s Fox), ran commercials claiming they’d have sedate weather updates and would be our eye in the storm. Every day we’ve been promised highs in the 40s. Last night it was supposed to warm up and melt by 10 pm.

Needless to say it’s still frozen outside, although very slowly melting. It’s 35 degrees, not the promised 45. I shouldn’t be surprised if there’s a tornado or something tomorrow, and the weather people in Austin completely miss it (although once Jim Spencer hears of it he’ll start his insane frog-jumping and frothing again).

There’s this cold white stuff all over the ground and cars and trees and stuff!

Ok, people – it’s 2003 already and nobody can seem to decide what to call the decade. Is it the “Oh-ties”? The “Aughties”? What are they going to call the seriously dumb television show in 30 years based on this time, a la That Seventies Show?