Contagious

I've had a pretty negative outlook towards my job this year, but it's not about the kids.  The kids are awesome.  And as I was running a couple minutes late this morning, which is rare for me, I could hear a couple of my kids around the corner and down by my room waiting out in the hall.  I heard "Mrs. Schaeffer" being said among the mumbling.  As I turned the corner, I was taken aback by the huge smiles and "There she is!" and "Hi, Mrs. Schaeffer!"  And oh the smiles.  They were so big and so genuine.  I couldn't help but break out into a huge smile myself.  What an awesome way to start the day.  If I decide to do something else one day, it's the kids that will bring me back to teaching.  And okay, those long summer breaks aren't bad either.

Update

Daddy began chemotherapy two days ago, and so far the most significant symptom is being very tired and weak.  No signs of nausea, and he'll know in a couple of weeks if he can expect hair loss. 

I've always considered my dad to be a strong man, but mostly in physical size and strength.  I recall many trips to the lake where DeeBee and I stood up on those shoulders and used him as a human diving board.  Or being hoisted up on those same shoulders to get a bird's eye view of the world that seemed so far below.

The past several years I've realized how strong he is on the inside as well.  All the more reason why he's going to win this battle.

Duke Solution #23

That's how many solutions I think I've tried to keep him from destroying the backyard.  All I know to do is put everything up high or in big pots.  If this doesn't work, and he has been known to dig out plants from pots, then maybe I'll resort to cactus.  I hate cactus.

Notice I have planted rocks in my flower beds.

H-town

The weekend to Houston was fun and over too quickly.  Got to see good friends, ate a lot of good food, got my art fix, and got a steal on a pair of suede knee-high boots.  $120 boots for $30!  Yes, that's a trip highlight.

Ate at this tapas bar (gotta enunciate that clearly when talking to someone on the phone) called Mi Luna.  It was heaven (your voice is supposed to go up two octaves when you say that, like Will Farrell in "Elf" when he's demonstrating to Jovie that anyone can sing).  Alan and I have decided we'll be watching our weight when we move somewhere that has so many dining options.  Actually Alan will never have to watch his weight.  Grrr.  Anyway, I snapped these photos:

 Holy Mama, that was some good food.

I just want to reach out and pick up that glass of wine.  We were sitting outside in a shopping/dining area called Rice Village, next to Rice University.  Alan and I often poke fun at people who like to hang out and be seen in these trendy areas, and there we are right along with them thinking we're so different.  The difference is we didn't drive up in our Mercedes or Lexus, and my shoes were probably from Target.

Okay, doesn't that look like I totally staged and perfectly positioned that little work of art?!  I couldn't reproduce that if I tried.  Just plopped it on the bread and there it was.  I love food.  Food is gorgeous and yummy, and I love every last calorie.

We went to the Museum of Fine Arts because they were having an Impressionists exhibit.  I am no artist, am not able to spout off names and titles of works of art like some, but I did take an awful lot of art and art history courses in college for someone who was not an art major.  So I LOVE ME SOME ART.  And this was the piece I was most excited to see:

That's a crummy image, but I had some difficulty finding an online picture that I could copy.  I'm a Van Gogh fan.  What a strange life he had.  He died just a few months after painting this self portrait.  But here was the painting I most wanted to see, and they had glass on it.  Put a rope or barrier or whatever you have to do to keep people from touching it, but don't put glass on it!  Geez.  Anyway...in case you're thinking I'm sounding too artsy-fartsy, let me assure you we were completely immature during our museum visit.  I had as much maturity as a 12-year old boy every time I saw the token boob sticking out of any biblical woman's garment, and Alan was finding random celebrity likenesses in the portraits.  I don't think you're supposed to burst out laughing in a museum.

It was a simple trip, but always fun when you're with the person you're supposed to be with.  Alan always tells me how much he enjoys being with me, no matter where we are.  I hope a lot of wives hear that. 

Livestrong

Today was a whirlwind day.  Up at 5:00 to leave the hotel by 5:30, driving around searching for parking, and then hurrying up and waiting for the race to start. Most of the photos were taken with my cell phone, so they're not the greatest quality: 

I've never seen so many people in one place in my life.  20,000 runners plus at least one spectator for almost every runner...it got crazy.  It took 25 minutes just to get every runner across the start line.  Our capitol is beautiful, by the way.  The stone is a pinkish hue, so it looks like a rosy replica of the U.S. Capitol.

This picture is not so great.  I can tell you those are forced smiles.  Alan was tired and I was developing one of the worst migraines I can remember.  Alan finished the race in 3:40:42 chip time.  He's not thrilled with the time, but this was yet another hilly marathon.  I think he's awesome.

You probably can't see him, but Alan's on the other side of that green wall about to finish.  That's as close as I could get.  I saw some crazy stuff at this finish line today, including people collapsing and whose bodies were contorting and failing on them.  It was disturbing and scary.  A runner that we know from Midland sacrificed being able to qualify for Boston by staying back with a runner who was in serious trouble the last four miles.  No one else was helping this guy.  They ended up putting him in a wheelchair the last few yards, but still gave him a finishing medal.

We were mere blocks away from the University of Texas, so it was surprising how many comments and cheers Alan got for his TCU shirt.  Go Frogs!

The weekend wasn't all about running.  We ate well.  This french toast is as tall as it looks.

I wasn't a good photographer this weekend, especially on race day.  I should have stayed at the finish to get a picture of Lance Armstrong finishing the half.  I should have made my way to the marathon side of the finish line to get a good picture of Alan.  I could have taken photos of the craziness around me.  But that stupid headache was such that I was almost crying in the car as we left town.  Alan says I did cry, but I think my eyes were just a little moist. :-)

We didn't want to come home yet, no matter how weird Austin really is.

Like the tides

I try not to post anything if I don't have much good to say.  It's been a strange couple weeks of ups and downs.  My dad got very disheartening news from the doctor, followed by uplifting news a week later, leading to what will ultimately mean chemotherapy but much better than the original prognosis.  Amazing news that we weren't expecting.

A friend for many years and one of the most kind-hearted, loving people I've ever known lost her husband last week.  I'm so sad for her.  I simply can't imagine.

I know a teenager who is pregnant.  They weren't careful, it was stupid, and my heart still goes out to her.  And to her parents who are surely suffering an ache that is hard to explain.

We had a fun day-trip to Lubbock for a Tech/A&M basketball game and dinner courtesy of Alan's team lead.  One thing Texas is really good at is steakhouses.  It was crazy good.  And we had a lot of fun with everyone there.

We're taking another weekend/marathon trip this weekend.  We always have fun getting away.  Doesn't it feel weird sometimes though, when you're having a good time and you think of someone you know who is going through something difficult?

Signs of Aggression

Junior has a follow-up at the vet tomorrow for what we hope is the third and final visit in the past two weeks.  $400 later, we're hoping for a clean bill of health.  $400 is a hard pill to swallow considering the abuse we take from this cat, but he's ours and our responsibility.  I've talked a lot about the abuse, but here are the aggressive behaviors that warrant such abuse:

Putting socks and shoes on.  Unacceptable.
Using a hair dryer.  The nerve.
Sitting in his computer chair.
Petting him longer than approved.
Doing a manicure/pedicure.
Brushing one's teeth.
Sleeping.
Walking.
Breathing.

I think that covers it.

What's good for the goose ain't always good for the gander.

I posted on Facebook about how everyone should go to a marathon at some point in their lives and cheer someone on.  You don't have to know the participants, but it helps.  I've been to five marathons now, because Alan ran his 5th yesterday in Waco, Texas.  Alan discovered that Waco is quite hilly.  Like REALLY friggin hilly he said, but he might not have said "friggin."

Here are a couple things I like about marathons.  Every runner crossing that line has gone through strenuous, ridiculous, difficult training to get where they are.  (I think they're all crazy, but it's a kind of crazy I can respect.)  So as each person finishes, most spectators are cheering and clapping for perfect strangers.  See the guy sitting down to the left?

But I also like to watch the spectators that are there cheering for someone in particular - they're so excited and probably relieved that their loved one made it, and sometimes they're emotional.  They make signs, they take pictures, they video the event, and many times they run the last 100 yards or so with their runner.  And fellow runners are great cheerleaders for each other.  Look at these guys:

Look at those faces!  Awesome.

I'm usually by myself at these events, so I have sat and watched a lot of this.  It's cool.  But nothing as cool as when you see YOUR runner coming.  So go find you a marathon friend to experience this with!  Yell loud and take pictures and brag about them relentlessly.

See that little speck about to come under the bridge?  That's my runner.  Seems like a lonely sport, doesn't it?

And here's the finish:

 Medals are big in Texas:

Okay, so there are a couple things I don't like about running events.  Some runners are uber showy about how great they are.  I guess you have that in any sport though.  I also don't like waiting and waiting and waiting.  I know when Alan should be showing up, and when that time gets closer I tend to get antsy.  And lastly, I don't like sitting there feeling envious.  I want to be that healthy and fit and achieve an amazing goal like that, but I just can't.  My body has let me know repeatedly that I'm not cut out for being an athlete.  I ran my little 5K on Saturday with what appears to be a strained calf muscle.  If it's not that, it's tendonitis or shin splints, or whatever.

So I think this is an area where I need to remain the spectator, although I might attempt a 10K when I'm all healed up.  I'll never make it as far as Alan and some of our friends, but I can be a great cheerleader on the sidelines. :-)

On the other hand...

Duke is loving life.

About my cat...

I knew Junior was one tough hombre, but I didn't realize how tough until our recent vet visit.  He'd been having some bathroom issues, and it was time to do the unthinkable and take him to the vet.  It has to be pretty serious before we take him, both because it's hard on him and the vet staff.  Turns out this cat has been in extreme pain, peeing "crystals" of urine.  The vet says in his 20 years of practice, it's the worst case of urine crystallization he's ever seen.  He said he doesn't know how Junior's withstood the pain and has probably been wishing his penis would fall off.

So the treatment is bottled water for the rest of his life and canned cat food - prescription cat food for now.  Junior hates canned food, so I guess we'll see how hungry he gets.  And I get to give him a dropper of antibiotics for the next several days.  That's always fun.  He's been confined to the garage to keep any accidents from happening in the house as well as keeping him from going outside and getting his boy part dirty.

He's pretty tired of the garage, although Alan has taken every measure to make it comfortable.  So Alan went out there earlier to "visit" Junior and coax him into eating the cat food.  Here's what Junior thought of his visit:

He's such a brat, but he's my little brat.  :-)

No need to visit The Alamo

I've been to San Antonio so many times, I couldn't count.  My grandmother lived here before she died, so a lot of memories are of sitting around being bored in a tiny retirement village apartment.  Eating banana bread, probably.  And for a real treat we'd go down to the "dining room" where other old people gathered and kind of creeped me out.  I'm better around old people now, by the way.

As an adult I've had some good trips here and some so-so trips.  I have a fond memory of when Matt and I brought the girls to the zoo and Sea World when they were pretty little.  I still laugh about some moments from that trip.  Alan and I have been to San Antonio together a few times now - with friends, seeing family, and this time by ourselves.  No offense friends and family, but this has by far been my favorite trip.

It has been cold and rainy since we arrived.  We smiled at the rain driving in and have loved it and appreciated it the entire time.  Funny thing when you haven't seen rain in a while - YOU MISS IT.  We came prepared with coats, gloves, and toboggans (yes, that's what I call them).  The humidity has not been kind to my naturally curly hair, but stuffing it under a knit cap solves that problem.  We'd be back out in it right now at a running park if I could wake Alan up.  The guy gets a hangover after two drinks.  By the way, I have a new favorite drink - the Mexican Martini.  But I digress...

We still have a full day and night left, so I'm going to head back up to the room and get Alan moving.  When we get back home I'll post a picture of why I now love the city of San Antonio based on one simple act of kindness to animals.  :-)

Update:  Here's the photo.

This was along the River Walk.

Somewhere out there...

Back in the early 90s I read a book by Betty Eadie called Embraced by the Light.  Books are often trendy, and therefore there were a number of books on out-of-body experiences, after-life, or psychic topics during this time.  I read a few.  I like that sort of stuff.  And I'll watch most any show about the paranormal as well.  Growing up I was taught by the Church I guess, that believing in anything like that was NAUGHTY.  Whatever.  I never thought it made sense for a religious group to denounce things of a spiritual nature.

Anyway, there's a new show on the Bio channel (I think) called "I Survived...From Beyond and Back" or something like that.  It tells of people who died and were then revived and what they experienced during the being dead part.  Like the previous books I read, they all talk about the love and warmth they felt during their experiences, and how the message received was "love is all that matters and all we should be focusing on."

So I had to teach after-school tutorials yesterday, and I'll just tell you I really don't look forward to tutorials.  But all day I kept thinking about what those people said about how we're not here for just ourselves, but rather here to help our fellow man.  I had a different attitude during my tutorials, and we had a pretty good session.  Will that feeling stick with me?  Very probably, most undoubtedly not!  But you can bet I have my DVR set to record the next episode.

I have to wonder how different things might be one year from today.  I'm not sure which is more exciting or unsettling: how much could change or how much could not change over the next 12 months.  We could have moved from Midland.  I might not be teaching.  The girls could be doing who knows what, and both my "kids" will no longer be kids.

Whatever happens, I think 2011 has a nice ring to it.

Some favorites from 2010:

Finishing this:

 When little Betsey came along:

Crossing something off the bucket list:

Beautiful San Diego:

Camping with Duke and my favorite person:

Florida in October with the guys:

And any moment spent with them...I've learned far too late to treasure these times:

Peace

A rare moment when all the animals are napping together rather than chasing each other:

What to do with all the photo cards?

I've decided someone crafty needs to come up with a way to display all the Christmas photo cards that people send these days, since they don't stand up on their own.  Until then, here's my makeshift answer.  Problem is, we get so many photo cards now that it's hard to find room on this thing.  So here's what I think it should look like:  it should be Christmas tree shaped, with lots of those roach clip things to hold the photos, and should be either for hanging on the wall or should come with a stand for a table or mantel.

Or how about everyone starts sending their photo cards digitally, and then they can be downloaded and displayed on a digital photo frame.  You watch, someone will create it and it'll be all the rage next Christmas season. ;-)

Update:  So Addison and I go to Pier One today and what would you guess was on display?  A metal Christmas tree-shaped photo card holder. 

"Rerry Rismas!"

Alan and I found the Christmas wish lists written by the four-legged family members.

Duke's
More playtime with skinny guy.
More playtime with Junior.
More playtime with Betsey.
New can of tennis balls.
The squirrel to GET IN MAH BELLY!
Bacon.  Not fake bacon.
Anything Betsey has.

Betsey's
Anything Duke has.

Junior's
Death to the red dog.
Less playtime with Betsey.
Humans to check food bowl every hour on the hour.
Front claws.

A Sunday to remember

You know you've neglected your blog for a while when the web address doesn't display on your history list.  Anyhow.

Ever buy someone a Christmas gift, get it wrapped, and then later get that de ja vu feeling that you bought them that same gift a few years ago?  I hate that.

But this has been a good holidayish type day.  The girls and Alan and I finally got together for some family portraits and some Christmas card shots.  The results aren't professional, but the process was fun.  It was cold, although you wouldn't know it from mine and Bailey's flip-flops and sandals, but that's how we do fall and winter in West Texas!  Here's one that won't make it in a frame but will be a classic nonetheless:

Alan made hot chocolate when we got back to the house, and getting to use my Christmas mugs makes me happy.

He then went to the grocery store so that I could stay home and watch the Cowboys.  So I'm watching the Cowboys, playing with the photos, and ignoring lesson plans.  Who needs 'em?  And oh my lord the Cowboys just won, so this day is awesome!

Ready or not

Signs of the holidays are starting to creep in around here.  Pies for tomorrow, done.

Turkey fryer, assembled.

Mantel, done.

And last but not least:  dysfunctional family, you betcha.  Yes, it's definitely the holiday season!

Ended the way it began

I didn't sleep well last night, which is quite the norm lately, but nothing that remembering to take a swig of Nyquil won't remedy.  I needed to get up really early to get to school and take care of a million things I hadn't done the day before.  But by the time the alarm was supposed to sound, I couldn't get myself to budge.  Needless to say, I was running late, didn't have time to pack my breakfast, my lunch, or get there in time to meet a paperwork deadline.  So I had school food - a gingerbread thing for breakfast and some interesting turkey and dressing for lunch.

I spent the day being one step behind, although it was a great day with the kids.  Funny how sometimes when you are "winging it," you have some of your best moments.

And then as the dismissal bell rang this afternoon at 3:45, I happened to look down at my sleeve.  My shirt was inside out and had been ALL DAY LONG.  All the stitching was exposed.  Lovely.

I'm now going to get the coffee ready and programmed for the morning, so that I don't experience de ja vu tomorrow morning.

His softer side

If I didn't know any better, I'd say Junior likes another fellow animal.  Another living being, for that matter.

(Excuse Betsey's diaper.  She's having some girl issues.)