Vacation Daydreams

As I wait out the last few teacher-days of school (we have to work through Friday, but our last student day was Monday), I find myself daydreaming about summer vacation trips.

Next year I have a trip in July to Orlando, so maybe we visit Mickey and Harry Potter and then venture down to the Everglades and Key West? I'm also researching costs and ideas for a dream vacation touring France.

But we have a dream vacation planned for this August, already. I'm terribly excited about it while also feeling like it's this unreal, amorphous thing that's out there on the horizon, never to actually be achieved. Since a picture is worth a thousand words, here you go:


That's the plan.

Three weeks of tent-camping road-trip including eight state parks and numerous National Parks and Monuments (Gateway Arch, Rocky Mountain, Grand Tetons, Yellowstone, Devil's Tower, Badlands, Mount Rushmore). Over 5,000 miles of driving.

I hope we get to see a grizzly bear or a mountain goat/sheep. I expect to see antelope, mule deer, prairie dogs, buffalo.

It's a trip of a lifetime, folks. Expect to be inundated with pictures, Forsquare checkins, anecdotes, Instagrams, etc.

Now to relax and enjoy the hunk of summer leading up to the trip.

Ready to Be Finished

I am so very ready for this school year to end. It's hard to concentrate on anything else. I feel as though I have been running and running since last September.

We have plans this summer that will keep us rather steadily busy ... but (by-and-large) in activities of a more relaxing and recharging nature than during the academic year.

This weekend is our performance in the local Fantasy/Ren Faire. After school lets out (the 27th is my last day), I'm traveling to Denver for a week with the NJEA. Then we host friends for several days. Then we ramp up into Spamalot. Then we travel out west for three weeks.

Then we go back to school.

*sigh*

--End--

Week in Review

So .... let's see. Busy week.

We recovered from our housewarming party and basically did no chores, laundry or home improvement projects all week. Yeah, now we really need to pick up our slack.

We hosted friends for a yummy fried dinner -- wings and doughnuts.

I spent almost every night at the theatre preparing for the Kids Club end-of-the-year "Really Big Show" on June 14, and Spamalot, which opens in July. I also met with the Play-Reading Committee for our 2015 season, and chaired the Public Relations Committee meeting.

I joined my trivia team at Applebee's for our collective ass-whoopin' (this time we got whooped, which is unusual ... way too many sports-related questions this time around).

Joe made an amazing Chicago-style deep dish pizaa and an equally impressive lasagna.

We failed to remember Emily's orthodontist appointment on Friday.

We swam in our increasingly-warm-and-lovely pool. The dog is not amused by our attempts to get her into the water.

Emily marched in a parade on the Wildwood Boardwalk, ate lunch on the beach and then rode rides until she dropped. (Her Sunday was spent vegging on the couch binge-watching ST:TNG. She also read four chapters of A Farewell to Arms.

Matthew vegged out on Saturday and on Sunday accompanied Joe and I to the NJ Ren Faire. We frolicked and garbed and ate and were entertained most pleasantly. It was a joy to hang out with friends there all weekend (Joe and I went sans-kiddos on Saturday, as well). We worked the Mystic Realms tent, but had plenty of time to gambol about, enjoying the faire.

Upcoming this week: more rehearsals, the kids' end-of-the-year piano recital, the aforementioned "Really Big Show," several more delicious dinners by Joe, hopefully some more pool time, another Play Reading Committee meeting, and at some point I have to review my script for the upcoming local Fantasy Faire. I also need to do some sewing/crafting of costumey bits prior to the Faire. We also have our first CSA pickup of the season. (Wooo!)

Warmed

We had over 60 people at our housewarming party on Saturday. The weather was glorious, the food delicious and the company delightful. Joe gave tours of the house again and again and I flitted around, refilling chips bowls and veggie trays and keeping drinks well stocked. The kids splashed around in the pool with all the other kids.

Everyone seemed to have a good time, but we look forward to a future more intimate gathering wherein we can actually sit and socialize with people a bit more.

The result of the wonderfulness and busy-ness ... no pictures at all. Ah, well, memories still count.

Looking forward to many, many more gatherings at our Alleghator Den.

Finally Some Payoff

We bought a new house about a month ago. Anyone who knows us already knows this.

In the sale of our old house and purchase of this new one, there have been some roadblocks, some disappointments and some rude awakenings. I accept that this is undoubtedly true in any such transaction, but it hit me rather hard that what we thought was our dream home has turned out to have some rather substantial flaws, requiring repairs and compromises.

We've been able to have a few people over since moving in, but finally this weekend -- some payoff. We hosted two families for Memorial Day. The weather was glorious. We grilled various meats (as one does), hung out in the yard and the kids all splashed in the pool. The menfolks played some pool and the kids played Xbox. We all had a terrific time. The other families had fun, too.

Finally, the house has paid off -- just what we thought we were buying -- a great place to hang out with friends, entertain everyone, have a relaxing and wonderful time together. This is what we wanted.

And, despite its flaws, despite the extra money we're spending -- this house is going to be wonderful after all.

Spring has Sprung

In fact, based on how stuffy and humid our bedroom has been the last few nights ... we may be into early summer before we know it!

Yesterday I counted ten different kinds of flowers blooming in the new yard. I don't even know what they all are.

At the very least, I have lilacs, some later-blooming dogwood, two different varieties of columbine, irises, wisteria, blue-eyed grass,* something that may or may not be a viburnum,** clematis, vinca and one or two others that I don't even have good enough pictures of to try to look up.

I love that the yard has a series of perennials with staggered blooming seasons. We should have plenty of flowers throughout the summer.

The front yard is the land of annuals, however. Yesterday I got just what I wanted for Mother's Day -- the family planted all the impatiens and begonias I bought on Saturday. Sidewalks and driveway are lined. Window boxes are planted (except for a few that need some repair work). Drip lines are operational. Looks like it's going to be a gorgeously floral summer!

I only hope some of the flowers turn out to be appropriate for cutting and bringing into the house.

*I had to look that one up.
** This one, too, but much less successfully.

Weekend in Atlantic City

Let me splain. No, there is too much. Let me sum up.

On Sunday and Monday I competed with my team, Mac N Cheese, in the World Tavern Trivia National Championships in Atlantic City. Love and hugs to Bryan Irrera, Paul "Pab" Sungenis and Michelle Andrews.

We entered the competition ranked 13th in the nation and wound up coming in 11th in the championships. We were as high as 4th for awhile, but kind of tanked in the last two rounds. Ah, well.

Some highlights of this much-needed vacation include:

Walking the Boardwalk dressed in full-on historically accurate pirate regalia
Singing "It's a Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood" in front of a casino ballroom full of people
Meeting Stephen of the team "Where the F%#@ is Ted?"
Possessing several answers  for my team -- felt like I held up my end of the bargain
The gorgeous ocean view from our 24th floor room
Winning $65+ on the Avatar slot machine game (pretty good return for a fifty-cent game)

Not so much a highlight, but certainly memorable is the apparent presence of an (invisible to me) "Please Hit On Me, Drunk Men" sign I must have been wearing.

A good time all around, and I'm already looking forward to next year's event.

Happy Birthday, Grandma

Four generations: myself, mom, G-ma and Emily, 1999

Today my grandma turns 95.

95.

Just let that sink in for a few.

She was born in 1919. To put that in perspective, here are some facts that year:

• Prohibition begins
• The League of Nations is founded
• UPS is formed
• Mussolini creates the Fascist Party in Italy
• US air passenger service begins
• First transatlantic flight
• Pop-up toaster patented
• Treaty of Versailles signed
• NY Daily News begins publication
• "Gasoline Alley" and "Barney Google" comics premiere
• RCA is created
• The average house cost $7,385 ($93,402 in today's money), and a car cost $525 ($6,640 today) 

Basically, my grandma was born so long ago that this world was basically another planet altogether.

My grandma taught me how to play pinochle, Monopoly, Life, Careers, Scrabble, Rummikub and dozens of other games. She instilled a love of games in me. My grandma bought me my first Big Mac.* My grandma taught me how to clean a room quickly and efficiently (her part-time evening job was to clean the local bank ... I always thought it felt super-cool and a little illicit to be in a bank after-hours). My grandma told the best bedtime stories ever. She'd make up endless tales of silliness and adventure and would custom-tailor them to whatever we told her we wanted to hear, improv-comedy style. My grandma introduced me to Swedish food and Tummetott.**She taught me how to bowl and sort of compensate for the vicious hook I have.

My mental image of my grandma is of a shorter-than-average, pleasantly-plump woman with kindly ice-blue eyes and dark set-and-styled curls. She was generally soft-spoken, but with a ready laugh and plenty of cheek when she needed it. On a Pittsburgh Pirates spring training vacation to Florida one year, she wanted to meet the team's then-manager Chuck Tanner. As the team loaded onto the bus and Mr. Tanner was just closing the door, she hollered, "Hey, Chuck!" He came back off the bus and chatted with my grandparents and signed autographs. My grandpa used to call her "Hat" for the over-sized gardening hat she used to wear in the yard.

Though I grew up only twenty minutes from my grandparents, in Northwestern PA, my grandma has lived for some time now in a nursing home in Texas. I only see her once every three or four years. She still watches baseball several nights a week in season, does crossword puzzles and calls her grandchildren and great-grandchildren on their birthdays. Every year on my birthday she tells me how thrilled she was to meet me when I was born (I'm privileged to be the first grandchild on that side). She's always treated me like a completely special, treasured person and I've always felt the same about her.

She's an amazing lady and I hope I get back down to visit her soon.

Happy birthday, G-ma! I love you and miss you every day.

*Chris and I lied and said that our mom bought them for us all the time. I'm fairly certain she knew the truth.
**The Swedish "This little piggy" game, but played with fingers instead of toes.

Comfortably Homeless

Email, text, etc and I'll send along our new address.

Our home-buying/home-selling deal has been a bit of a roller coaster.

First, I found our dream home, but we weren't even in the market to buy. And the house cost too much, anyway. Then they dropped the price a couple of times and we went to see it. Fell in love. Then we put our house on the market after a stressful week of packing, painting minor repairs, and surgery (for me, not the house). Seven showings and four offers later, we had a deal. Then there were some rather stressful home inspection issues with the house we are buying. Then there were some minor home inspection issues with our house. Then the major set-back of a septic failure. Then termite damage. Our April 18 settlement date loomed ever nearer, and at our agent's urging, I worked and scrambled and called and Joe met with contractors and negotiated bids. Last Tuesday we found out that a Friday closing wasn't happening. We tried for Monday. On Thursday we found out Monday wasn't possible, either.

At this point we were told that Closing would be on Tuesday and that our buyers were "this close" to pulling out of the deal because of their stress and frustration.

Hello?!

We'd done EVERYTHING they'd asked. The refused to chip in on the $12K septic repairs. They refused to even renegotiate the deal in any way.

Well, you know what? We couldn't close on Tuesday. Joe is unavailable all day. (but no one had checked that with us) So, we scrambled again and tried to make it work. Mid-way through this scrambling, on Friday morning, our agent informs us that the only day our buyers are available is actually Wednesday. So ... not Tuesday, then, right?

Wednesday is one of those ships-that-pass-in-the-night sorts of days for us. We barely see each other long enough to kiss good-night. So more scrambling ... this time to complete a limited Power of Attorney so I can sign for Joe on all the home-selling and home-buying paperwork. The "upside" through this is that our dream house will be available for us to move things into on Monday.

At this point on Friday I'd made eleventy-nine phone calls, about half of which were to or from my parents. They decide it's time to pull the plug and begin driving from their home near Erie, PA -- nine hours away. I've also secured a handful of loading and unloading volunteers and reserved two UHaul trucks.

Yesterday we picked up the trucks as scheduled and loaded them with almost everything from the house. (Thanks and love to MJ Atkinson, John Dugan and Brad Marcus!) Today we loaded our mattresses and a few other final boxes onto the trucks and moved into a hotel for a few nights, hence the Title.* Tomorrow we unload everything at the new house (and it's my birthday). At last. Tuesday we clean the old house and veg a bit (Joe has to go back to work after Easter break). Wednesday, I go back to work, too**, and the buyers walk through our old house. I then go to sign papers to grant us ownership and occupancy of the new house. Joe will meet us there when he gets out of work. We unpack and settle in for as long as it takes after that.

I'm tired. And I have a headache. But the end is (somewhat more) in sight.

Stay tuned for an epic Housewarming Party to come as soon as possible. I promise.



*We're all comfortably homeless, except for Joe ... he's staying at the house with dogs, cat and trucks, and our soon-to-arrive-from-PA friend, Brian. In a house without furniture, save for one twin mattress on the floor.

**Thank you, Snow Days.....this was to have been a week-plus long spring break and I was going to have everything pretty settled in that time.

Climate Change

I am not a climate change scientist, nor do I play one on TV.

However, I'm concerned. According to many sources*, we are rapidly approaching the climatic point-of-no-return. Some estimates say my kids' generation will suffer significantly, some put it off until my grandchildren's prime years.

Most experts agree that weather will become increasingly erratic and violent, animal species will die out and or migrate significantly to compensate for environmental changes, tropical diseases will spread further into previously-temperate latitudes, already-overtapped-fossil fuels reserves will be exhausted at increasingly rapid speeds as we attempt to compensate with climate control in our homes and businesses. Pretty much everyone who seems to know what they're talking about agrees that our lives, routines, comfort, food supplies as we've come to know them are going to change for the worse.

And it will be worse even faster for the poor of the planet.

Please don't misunderstand me ... this is not the world coming to an end. On the contrary, the world will be just damn fine, thankyouverymuch. It is us who will suffer. Animal and plant species will evolve, die off, adapt. We will have to do the same. Period.

We are, as a species, relatively helpless without shelter. We don't adjust well to changes in our environment. Instead, we use our massive brains and opposable thumbs to adapt our environment to suit our narrow criteria of comfort. Where there's a will, there's a way, and all that.

Until the environment becomes simply too extreme for us to continue compensating. Until our financial resources are exhausted with no end to rising seas, rising temperatures, and extreme weather systems in sight. Our food resources will become increasingly scarce. We will run out of options.

According to numerous scientific sources (I heard it from Niel deGrasse Tyson), but this quote is from the British Natural History Museum "More than 99% of all species that have ever lived on Earth are now extinct. The vast majority (over 95%) died out because they couldn’t compete successfully for food or other resources. Or they failed to adapt to changes in their local environment over tens or even hundreds of millions of years."

The planet will be just damn fine. We don't need to worry about the end of the world. The only thing we have to fear is that our own complacency and the lack of action on a national and global scale by our leaders ... will lead to our own extinction.

That's all.

--End--

PS: Climate change can be slowed, stopped and/or reversed if enough people care. Every individual counts. Your habits make a difference. Even more so, the leaders you select can make a difference on a regional or national level ... so choose wisely and communicate the importance of this issues (one might argue the importance of this issue over any other issues). We may differ politically or philosophically on a variety of issues, but saving our species from extinction and choosing the "greenest" leadership we can seems like a pretty no-brainer thing to do.

* See the latest report from the UN Climate Change Working Group, here. If you look at the PDF, scroll through to the nifty and easy-to-grasp graphics and tables at the end.

Here Comes the Sun

And ... thank God. Literally. I thank God for ending the rain, the snow, the sleet.

I have mild self-diagnosed Seasonal Affective Disorder. It's hardly debilitating, but I'm feeling it. I'm really feeling it.

Don't get me wrong -- winter is my favorite season. I adore snowy days, and hot chocolate and sweaters. But, I've really come to love the South Jersey version of spring. Winter fades slowly where I grew up and where I went to college. Snow and slush and endless, endless mud and rain hang on for weeks. I'd rarely enjoyed Easter of my April birthday, weather-wise, at least until I moved to South Jersey.

Here, generally speaking, winter ends and spring begins. The days lengthen and it's warm enough on the commute home to put the windows down or open the sunroof. Trees bloom and bulbs sprout up. My substantially-wooded yard is pleasantly floral in the spring. I've planted daffodils, crocuses, hyacinths and tulips. My neighbors have forsythia, dogwoods, magnolias. Usually by Emily's March 24th birthday, we're well along the spring-bulb-path-of-hope-springs-eternal.

But this year, it's all terribly late coming. And it's been terribly wet and cold going. And I'm really feeling it.

(granted, the stress of work observations, converting to a new form of state standardized testing, fixing up a house to sell, slogging through the process of replacing/repairing large hunks of our septic system, packing (and more packing) are seriously not helping my mood, stress levels, energy)

Here's to a pleasant, sunny spring ... quick and simple repairs and a simple move. Do I get to have all of that all put together?

--End--

Happy Birthday, Emily!

I didn't take your picture yet, today ... but, don't worry, I will. You know I'm never one to let a special moment go by without an (over) abundance of pics.

We love you more each day, my beautiful, clever, funny, introspective, friendly, enthusiastic, kooky, amazing daughter. Keep being independent, individual and being your best you!

Your first day home with us. Pittsburgh, 1999

Your first birthday, Boyds Bear lion from Uncle Chris, McKean, 2000

Just turned two, Millville, NJ, 2001

3-year old portraits, The Picture People, Deptford, 2002

Kids always prefer the wrapping, Millville, 2003

Ready for Easter Sunday services, Millville, 2004

5th birthday Pirate Party, Millville, 2005

One of my favorite pictures of you, ever; Lake Erie, PA, 2006

Birthday trip to DC, 2007

Back in DC (I think) at the Botanical Gardens, 2008

Your first time skiing, Poconos, 2009

Excited for shrimp, Carnival Cruise Lines, 2010

Your own bucket of mussells, Somewhere in Scotland, 2011

BFFs, Buffalo Wild Wings, Millville, 2012

8th grade semi-formal, Millville, 2013

High schooler! Millville, 2013

Miscellany

• I'm terribly proud of Joe and Emily for getting the parts they wanted in Cumberland Players' production of "Holka Polka."
• It looks as though getting another septic inspection might be worth the $800 gamble that it turns up different results.
• Another Snow Day is not another day of fun. It instead means the loss of another day of Spring Break. This makes me sad.
• Our new mortgage was approved, but if we have substantial septic repairs to pay for out of the proceeds from our home, we will have to go back and get reapproved for a new, smaller-downpayment amount.
•  I revisit my surgeon today for more sinus scraping and poking. It's exactly as un-fun as it sounds.
• I need to scrape up $350 to have a weird lump removed from above Sasha's eye. The vet assures me that it's non-threatening, but I'm anxious about it.
• I liked it when my parents were around twice in February. I miss them.
• Inverse to logic, it seems like the more I pack, the more there is left to pack.
• I'm already looking forward to my teacher's union-based trip to Denver in July and my family trip "Out West" in August. Like, a lot.
• In order to not be sad all the time about leaving our home of 13 years, I've mentally checked out of it and I'm trying to focus on our new house being our home. This has the opposite-of-intended effect when any obstacles to a smooth settlement rear their ugly heads.
• It's been nice to cook more at home, rather than eating out. Other than one McDonald's meal, we've not dined out since Ash Wednesday. This is a big deal for us.
• I could really use a massage on or about my birthday (April 21).

--End--

More New House News

Has "Dugan New House News" Fatigue set in yet?

Not for me! Hee-hee!

Over the weekend we posted some items on Craiglist. Over the past week or so, we've been assessing our furniture, to decide what moves with us and what has worn out its welcome. Or just plain worn out.

Our exercise bike has to go. Ditto with our sleeper-sectional and a large entertainment armoire we rarely use (as well as the giant CRT tv inside it). We've also been browsing to replace our dining set. When we bought our first house (1997), the sellers offered to leave it in the house for us for $300. I've always hated the style of the set, but at the time it was a deal and we had nothing else to eat on.

Luckily, I found a great table, chairs, hutch and server set on Craiglist and it was both our style and our price range. The sellers even delivered it for us! So, we listed our old set and it sold right away. It's already gone and out of the house.

Anyway, long story short ... we've managed to mentally at least partially furnish most of the new house. We have nothing for the sunroom, and the spare room is winding up with quite a few weird odds and ends pieces. And the finished basement looks much better in my mind than our furniture will allow in real-life.

Right now we're just waiting for the mortgage paperwork to be finalized. Then I begin my next to-do list: changing our address with utilities, schools, jobs, magazines, Amazon, etc.

--End--

More News

Well, we've settled things with the sellers of the house. So, it's pretty solid that we will be moving in April. This is our new home:

It's only a couple of miles from here. Two master suites, two additional bedrooms, 2-1/2 baths, screened-in porch, eat-in-kitchen, great room, finished basement, awesome backyard:

Our room:

More pictures (all these were taken back in September) are in the various online listings, such as this one.

In the next few days, the buyers will schedule the inspection of our current house (yikes! I don't expect any major issues, but even minor issues can add up). We will continue to pack. A lot of stuff is already boxed up, but since we're still living here, there is a certain amount of stuff we have to have daily access to. We're assessing what furniture we may get rid of and so forth. Lots of purging.

Joe's spring break is next week, and I think we plan to tackle the storage shed, garage and attic...clearing out a bunch of stuff and organizing what's left into move-able units.

In other news, today was supposed to have been the day I'd return to work following my surgery. I'm feeling pretty good, but I won't lie -- it's been nice having some time off. Having a snow day today was an unexpected bonus day off. Tomorrow it's back to teaching computer skills to the kiddos.

--End--

Still Busy, Just Checking In

Well, my surgery seems to have gone well. I am very much still recovering. There is still occasional pain, particularly at the incision site. I get tired easily and don't feel like doing much.

Also, in four days we showed our house seven times. We received FOUR offers to buy the house. This is amazing and wonderful and exciting. And scary.

We've also gone through a home inspection on the house we'd like to buy. We'd considered it our dream house. But, due to some issues found in the inspection, I'm no longer sure if we will be buying the house. We're in limbo right now with that.

And we've sold our current home.

So ... not sure what's going to happen. Or where we will be living after mid-April.

I don't process uncertainty well. It kind of rocks me, bone-deep. So, this will be a struggle for me until it is resolved. Hopefully very soon.

--End--

Life Happens

So, I've had sinus surgery (from which I'm currently recovering). It's going to change my life, but right now I feel grody and tired and grumpy.

We're also selling our house. We have a signed sales agreement on a house nearby that can best be described as our dream house. But, we have to sell this one first.

These two things are keeping me busy and not-too-much on the computer.

--End--

Buffy/Angel

I know how very late to the game I am, but I'm really enjoying Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel.

I've been binge-watching on Amazon Instant Video. So far, I'm on Buffy season six, episode 9 and Angel 3:10.

That's all for now.

--End--