Susan Kunz
A Year in the Day of My Life
en-er-vat-ed
Mar 22nd
That’s how I feel right now. enervated. Don’t even have the energy to capitalize it. It means, according to dictionary.com, to be without vigor, strength or force: languid. Languid means lacking in vigor or vitality; slack or slow. Can you picture me now? Slumped in my chair, laptop on my lap, legs propped up and too monday lazy to do much of anything.
enervated. Its a funny word. You’d almost think it should have something to do with having energy. If you say it a little differently its like being inner vetted as in empty of energy. Inner vetted reminds me of intervention. Hmmmm….I could use some intervention (which means “interposition or interference of one state in the affairs of another”).
Interference of one state…in the affairs….of another. Does that mean if I’m alone I can interfere in my own affairs? So in my enervated state I could interfere with….wait, maybe my enervation is the affair that needs a state to interfere with it…
Really, if I weren’t so enervated I bet I could answer that. As it stands, it keeps raining so I think my best bet is to interfere with my enervated affair by stating that I will discontinue my musings, have some hot chocolate, watch a Korean show and then go to bed.
I’ll raise my mug (slightly) to all of you suffering from enervation, in need of intervention, and hope that you too, will find some comfort among the marshmallows. Don’t forget to wipe that mustache off your upper lip before you fall asleep. Sweet interventions!
I was hoping for chicken…fried chicken…
Jun 10th
This was said in a wistful tone, without much hope since I already had frozen fish sticks in the oven with shoe string french fries on the side. I was wishing for chicken…fried chicken too.
But when the main cook (my husband) is too tired, the fry cook (me) steps in and whips up whatever’s fastest. Last night it was burritos, tonight fish sticks and french fries.
The girls spent the afternoon swimming at our neighbor’s so they were sunburned, tired and starving! Needless to say there were no leftovers and no complaints when it came time for bed.
Peace in the house. And, hopefully, peace in the morning. The two youngest are in summer school which starts at 730 am so we can have some grouchy mornings.
This is the first year we’ve voluntarily opted to register for summer school. I’ve decided that academics are going to be a goal to work for instead of a its okay to do okay attitude.
So, someday when Kea is looking over her college choices she won’t be thinking I was hoping for chicken…fried chicken…and having to settle for fish sticks.
V-8 at the Movies
Jun 9th
Tonight we were talking about “healthy” drinks that are good for you. My youngest, with burrito in her mouth and in an ewww, that’s yuck voice, says, “Yeah, Mom–like that 85 stuff you like”.
85? Oh you mean V-8? Yeah, she laughs. That stuff.
Just for the record V-8 is the best vegetable drink there is. I’m talking about the original, not those “cool” versions of V-8 that really do taste bad. I like my red stuff straight up out of the can. Speaking of best, there was a conversation today about best movies.
Star Trek, this latest movie is my favorite. I was reminded by another fan of action movies of Kevin Costner’s Robin Hood, which is also on my all time favorite list. Under the Same Moon is a movie I recommend to anyone. Its a Spanish language film with English sub-titles. Rent it from Netflix–you’ll be glad you did. Avatar, of course. Ever After. The Sand Lot. The Goonies. Titan A.E. Princess Bride. Field of Dreams. Lord of the Rings–all three.
Most of these I’ve seen multiple times and am sure I will watch again. Some movies creeping on to the list would be Iron Man, Prince of Persia (so much fun! already saw it twice.) Hmmmm, what else? As soon as I post this I’ll think of more. No horror, nothing too sad–they may be really good but I have trouble watching those more than once, no rated R.
I like good sword fights, lots of fun action. I was very disappointed with Clash of the Titans. That movie was just an excuse for great CGI. I’ll stick with the original.
If I can’t watch movies I can always read books. Can hardly pick favorites there–just have to go with the latest read. The Timekeeper’s Moon by Joni Sensei. 2nd in a series–the first is Farwalker. Good read and my girls can read it too! Second to the youngest daughter just finished The Search for Delicious by Natalie Babbit. I recommend this one to everyone–good for all ages.
Good books and good movies are like V-8 straight out of the can. Rich, delicious, satisfying and you never get tired of it. Ahhhhh…..
Girls, Monsters and Graduation
May 20th
You know, writing a blog seemed like such a good idea. Until I ran into writer’s block. What do I write about? Let’s see….I am down to four kids in the house–all girls. Our grocery bill is smaller, there is less fighting and the house is slightly (very slightly) cleaner.
Um…what else…Oh! Kimbrell had to create a small business for her second grade class. She is a candy/sweets junkie so had to have an edible product. We came up with Mallow Moonsters (the original name was Monster but that typo looks so cute I’m going to leave it). They were a big hit and she sold them for three classroom dollars a piece. Wow!
Here’s a picture — slightly fuzzy but I’m very proud of the fact that there is even a picture in this post.
Okay, so I have four girls at home–one made monsters, one wants to cut bangs to hide her peeling forehead (sunburn over the weekend. “But I did put sunscreen on Mom! We were only out in the sun for seven (!!!) hours.”), one is spending the night on the USS Missouri tomorrow night and oh yeah, one is graduating.
Child number five is graduating from Kahuku High School. 2010 seemed so far away when she was two years old. How did it get here so fast? She says she can’t wait to be out on her own. Sometimes I can’t wait either! But mostly I’m already missing her.
Stay home or leave, once she comes home from Project Grad Friday afternoon she is no longer ours. Its a funny type of shift in perception–she’s done being a child and each step she takes now will be as an adult. I never truly understood bittersweet until I became a mom.
Four girls, 28 monsters, one graduation. Guess I had a few things to write about after all.
Faith is a funny thing–especially when it comes to haircuts
May 13th
My husband likes to have me cut his hair.
And? you say.
And, I say, I am not a very good hair cutter. I can’t even be in the same sentence with the word stylist. “Hair cutter” is a perfect description for what I attempt to do.
It has taken me years to get to the point where his haircut looks okay and pretty close to the same every time. But he knows not to ask me if I’m tired, sick or cranky. Chances of rat bite skyrocket.
Why does he have me cut his hair again? I don’t think I said but I think, or at least I like to think, it is because he has faith in me. However, that faith is based on me being the lesser of two evils. He considers going to a Supercuts or something similar where he gets someone different every time as too traumatic.
So he has faith that most of the time I’ll get it right. It does make me feel good–even if I’m the lesser of two evils. I am doing something good and it makes my husband happy. (He is very careful to be very complimentary–even when I screw up. I love this guy!)
Wish me luck–I’m off to make another attempt at “hair cutting”!
Rocky Road Ice Cream Can Set You Free (Works for Me)
May 11th
Freedom is something I like.
I like being able to choose what I do, what I wear, what I eat, who my friends are, where I live, what my attitude will be. I like freedom. Maybe its because I am a true blue American.
Both of my parents can trace their lineage back to the early 1600′s in America. We’re getting close to having been here for 400 years. I have, at last count, a dozen direct great grandfathers who fought as Americans in the Revolutionary War. I have ancestors that have been a part of just about every historical event in this country.
My parents have been teaching my brothers and sisters and I that we have the freedom to choose from the time we were born. Two things about those lessons in freedom.
#1–there is always a choice.
#2–there is always a consequence.
I sometimes think we forget that in our daily lives. We allow ourselves to be trapped by our choices and our circumstances. In our minds we give up our freedom to choose how we live our lives. The consequence of giving up those choices is unhappiness.
After a long day, like today, I can choose to bemoan the fact that I’m too tired or don’t have enough time to do some of the things I wanted to do after work. Consequence–nothing gets done and I’m cranky. OR I can choose to accept that it was a long day, that I’m tired and won’t have the energy to do everything I want to do but I can do something. Consequence–maybe that something is to do nothing and just rest. So, nothing still gets done but now I’m happy!
And maybe I like freedom because the ability to make a choice is mine. Within my mind I will always have that freedom. Even when I make choices that curtail my freedoms (i.e. using a credit card for immediate gratification instead of saving up) being able to acknowledge that poor choice, accept the consequences and take action to learn from those choices still affords me a measure of freedom.
Look what tonight’s choices brought me. I didn’t get any laundry done but we did have family night, the kids were in bed at a reasonable time and I posted to my blog. Consequence: a sense of accomplishment and I’m happy. (The rocky road ice cream we had for dessert may have contributed to that sense of well being. Maybe.)
I like freedom. Learning the discipline to enjoy that freedom a little more fully is still a challenge but, hey, I’ll choose to start on that tomorrow.
Holmes on the Range (That’s right–HoLmes)
May 7th
As in Sherlock–although he’s not actually, personally in the story. Yes, this is a book review–maybe more of a book highlight. Maybe more of an excerpt highlight because I so enjoyed this author’s turn of phrase.
The book is Holmes on the Range by Steve Hockensmith. It is his first novel although he has received a lot of attention for his short stories, some of which featured the heroes of Holmes.
“It was like waking up at the sound of a train whistle–and remembering you’d fallen asleep on the tracks.
‘Damn it, Brother,’ I said. ‘You’re a cowboy, not a detective.’
Old Red didn’t answer with words. He just turned and showed me that little wisp of a grin he slips under his mustache when he thinks he’s being clever.
Oh? his smile said. A feller can’t be both?”
And so we meet the Amlingmeyer brothers, Old Red and Big Red, followers of Sherlock Holmes and hard working cowboys. And that’s all you get–read the book . I sure enjoyed it.
Here are some of my favorite phrases.
“The Swede’s accent was molasses-thick even under the best of circumstances, but now it was as if someone had left the jug outside on a cold day. I was still trying to strain some meaning from the syrup when …
‘So I em going always to de oothoose when I am to be making with the plop, yes?’…”
(Heehee. Had my whole family laughing at that one and they didn’t even know what was going on, well, in the story. Its pretty obvious what’s going on with the Swede.)
“Thinking of Pinky got me heated up to quite a blaze again, and I was just about to singe Old Red’s eyebrows with some hot talk, spy be damned, when Anytime put out a shout that rescued my brother from the barbecue.”
“I smacked into its mangy hide like a snowball dashed against the side of a barn, coming down hard on my saddle warmer with my legs splayed out in a wishbone U.”
Ahhhh…love it! All the good stuff here–cowboys, mystery, humor, story, little bit of blood and guts, wisp of romance. Spent most of the time grinning while I was reading. Yes, I’m easily satisfied–don’t usually need anything deep, just a goooooood story….
Found anything you found kept you smiling through the whole story? Let me know–I like the happy stuff.
Who said blogging was easy?!
May 4th
I like to read other people’s blogs. A glimpse of someone’s thoughts and ideas is fascinating. People are amazing. Smart, funny, creative, inspiring and yes, sometimes even a little stupid. But aren’t we all? (Come on–just nod your head and move on.)
Anyway, so my daughter says to me one day, Mom–you should write a blog. Hey, I thought, I should! It will be lots of fun. Of course that was before I found out what was involved.
Step One: After doing some blog research I came to the conclusion that having my own dedicated page would give me the freedom to branch out and be creatively myself without the content restrictions that come with a free blog option. (Not that you ever have to worry about my content, hopefully, but freedom is very important to me–more on that in a future blog.)
Step Two: Found a host, blogging platform and registered my domain name. (Bluehost and WordPress.org respectively, in case you were wondering–if not, skip to step three.)
Step Three: Managed to figure out how to set up a theme, drag widgets to my sidebars, upload…argghhh! Upload, schmutload…is this supposed to be easy?
Alright I’m not getting this so go to my favorite button–HELP. Let’s see…FTP…upload into xyz folder…drag and drop…easy as pie…what’s wrong with you…maybe you should get a free blog…what? Last time I looked the button said “Help” not “Insult”.
Step Four: Heck it all–ignore the sidebars, ignore the widgets, plugins, bells and whistles–and just write. Isn’t that what a blog is all about? I’m sure I’ll figure it out eventually.
In the meantime, if you’re really good at leading someone by the hand I could really use your help. It’ll be fun!
Life is good…
May 4th
and I am grateful for my life–even if it does feel like its moving faster than I can keep up with it.
