Cootie Update

Normally when I take Alex to the doctor, she (whoever it is) makes me feel like I’m a big doofus who’s wasting her time.  She usually tells me I’m overreacting and he’ll be just fine.  So today I seriously considered skipping the doctor visit, but I’m glad I didn’t.  Turns out he has strep throat and an ear infection.  She gave him Keflex which was over $60 and struck me as expensive for an antibiotic. (Hell, for $60 you’d think it was a pill to cure ugly.)

Anywhoo, we’re over at Chris’s house. Alex was instructed to rest, hang out on the couch and watch tv.  Chris has cable so we came here.  His fever is gone, he seems to feel better so I think he’ll go to school tomorrow.  I have to go today to pick up his homework and his basketball.

Get this, after school the kids were standing in the hallway waiting for the daycare vans.  Some little snot knocks Alex’s ball out of his hands and another, greener snot rolls it down the hall to the Principal.  The Principal, not seeing any of that transpire, took my son’s ball away and is holding it until I go pick it up.  Here’s my question, ""How are the other parents being inconvenienced?""  Two children misbehaved.  I didn’t give birth to either of them.  Why am I being punished?  I plan on giving him an earful.  A polite earful, but an earful nonetheless. 

Mama told me to buy some oral rinse/gargle that foams and makes you look like a mad dog.  That was $10.  Whatever happened to salt water?  I better get going.  If anyone knows any cheap ways of making him feel better, drop me a line.

Cooties for Alex

We didn’t go to Six Flags yesterday cuz the weather was supposed to be nicer today.  BUT, Alex woke up with an earache and a fever.  He’s been medicated and fed and he’s somewhat better.  The fever is still 100.5 two hours after ibuprofen and cold meds.  He insists he’s well enough to go to Six Flags, but we’ll be chillin around the house today.  He gave me a look that told me how unfair and cruel I am and how terrible his life is.  Yup.  World’s Worst Mother right here.

I offered to rent him a new game, but he’d not interested.  It’s probably for the best, I don’t want him getting too exited and heating up anymore.  I’m not sure why his fevers get so high and refuse to come down.  He’s always been that way.  I’d give him ibuprofen and a bath and we’d still end up at the E.R. in the middle of the night cuz I couldn’t get his fever under 103.  I don’t think I ever fully recovered from watching him have a febrile seizure, of which he has absolutely no memory.  The pharmacist told me to give him Tylenol, which I give him for normal stuff.  However, it is my experinence that it does not work as well on Alex’s fevers and only lasts about 2  hours. 

I made rice patties, but he only ate one cuz his throat hurts.  You know he’s sick when he won’t eat.  I also took a shot at making tortillas for the first time.  Alex gave them a 5 on a 25 point scale.  I don’t think they were quite that bad.  Chris at them.  We have popsicles in the freezer and those seem to be okay.  (Hey Juana, remember, "Alex want a popsicle? Noooo.")   I have to go check on my little booger.

a bunch of stuff

I don’t know where to start.  My mind has been busy being busy with incoherent nonsense.  I don’t know why.  I don’t have any definite source of stress.  Life is good.  It’s like the stain in the TideStick commercial is in my head. abooolah yah dala gaba gaba fobb.  I really need to find the source.  Today something pissed me off so bad I was shaking and it wasn’t a shake-worthy kind of thing.  Maybe it was.  It’s hard knowing that I’m a little crazy.  I have to stop and evaluate my reactions and weigh them against that.  It’s probably a lot easier to be wholly crazy and not care, but there are far too many people like that out there already.

New Topic:
We went to a new thrift store last week. It really rocks.  I got stuff.  We almost got some furniture, but someone else bought it by the time we thought to look twice. 

New Topic:
We need to to pick out invitations to the wedding.  We finally sent out all, but one of the Save the Date magnets.  Those were cute and I think most people checked out the website and know when the wedding is.  And yet, I’m still playing with wording and designs.  I’m considering buying the kind you get at Office Max and printing them myself.  It’s not hard.  The work is all in deciding what we want.  I’m not sure how I manage to be so opinionated and indecisive at the same time.

New Topic:
If the weather stays clear, we’re going to Six Flags this Saturday.  We may take some people although I’m not sure who.  Chris actually got Alex to ride a couple of the small coasters when they went last Monday.  I’m sure he’ll get braver as time goes by.  I don’t think I’ll be getting on any spinning things though.  I get dizzy so easily.  I used to be able to ride anything, but I get all queasy now.  Chris will ride anything with anyone.  He’s good to go.

New Topic:
I don’t get the whole ""organic"" food thing.  I’m not paying $8 for a gallon of organic milk.  I’ll stick to the inorganic kind.

New Topic:
I’ve been outbid on my Bon Jovi tickets and I just can’t justify spending more than I originally bid.  Don’t let me find the person who won.  I don’t know what I’d do.  It would probably involve crying and begging.

New Topic:
I’ve got a weird feeling like I’m missing something somewhere.  Usually, I’m rather perceptive, but I really feel like I’m not quite on the ball right now.  It’s all mixed up with dreams.  I have future-telling dreams.  Not Nostradamus stuff.  I have dreams of stuff that actually happens to me.  I never know when stuff will happen. I get this swirly feeling like I’m about to jump to the Territorries when dream-stuff actually happens.  Some of you may be thinking I sound like a total nut and I’m talking out of my ass.  You’re about half right...you can pick which half.

I miss Carol

Ah Carol... I used to work with her at the lawfirm.  She was Mort's secretary, still is, I understand.  We were night and day.  She was in her 60s...the kind of lady that went to the beauty shop once a week to get her hair and nails done.  I wore a bun most days and bit my nails compulsively.  When I first started working there, we didn't talk much and I got the feeling she didn't like me.  One day, I guess I'd been there for a year by then, they nervously asked me how I would feel about working closely with her.  I told them the God's honest truth: I can work with anyone as long as said person is willing to keep it professional. 

She and I are both strong personalities, but I think we both reconized that and we were very careful with each other at first.  But the more we worked together, the more we relaxed around each other.  There were days I exasperated her and days I had to bite my lip hard.   BUT!  I really enjoyed working with that woman.  She and I worked well together.  We got our work done, quickly and efficiently, without a lot of discussion or ego.  We both understood that getting the work done for the good of the company was the most important thing.  

When she'd go on vacation, Mort would ask me to do things he'd normally ask Carol to do and he'd ask other people to do the things that I didn't know how to do.  I don't know how Caro got it all done.  I remember the Tuesday after she had been gone only one day, I started marking a post-it not with strikes everytime Mort would annoy me.  By that Friday, I had filled up two post-it notes with about 50 marks.  I gave it to her that Monday and explained that I put a mark each time I thought, "I miss Carol".

Occassionally we'd disagree and look at each other with a look that said, "I can't believe this woman is so stubborn", but it didn't slow our overall progress.  Together we took collection files from less than $1,000 a month to over $30,000 a month when I left there.  Please understand, we didn't work on commission.  We worked because that's what we were supposed to do.  I loved her work ethic and dedication.  We never hung out socially.  I don't send her Christmas cards, but I respect her to this day. 

Six Flags is open

Yesterday was opening day at Six Flags over Texas.  Being season pass holders, we thought it a good a day as any to get out there.  The weather was sunny and in the 70s.  There were hardly any people there at all.  I'd recommend going now before the big crowds and three-digit temperatures arrive.

Alex played games with his money; he won a Superman cape, a miniature guitar, a pillow that looks like $100 bill and a blue frog that accidentally got left behind somewhere.  We rode a lot of rides... I had to trick my son into riding a couple, but he enjoyed them.  I think it's going to take someone at his level to talk him into roller coasters.  I think I was 13 before I got on one so it's not a big deal.  He patiently waited as we rode the Batman and the Titan.  FYI, there are no longer storage areas to cram your stuff when you get to the coasters.  Security won't let you take a drink, toy or anything you can't shove in your pocket as you get in line for the ride.  I wonder what caused that. 

I think my spine was snapped into correct positioning by the Miner train and undone by the Viper. Ah well. 

Chris added parking to his season pass so we can pretty much go whenever we want and not spend a whole lot of money.  We even got two souvenir cups so we get $ .99 refills all year.  Of course the cups were $12.99 each, but we had coupons to get $3 off each.  It's cheaper than $3 a pop for each of us everytime we go.  We've got coupons to take people for free when we go on holidays and discount coupons for other days.  We don't often plan ahead so if anyone wants to go, let us know.