This sounds like a postsecret blurb

I tell myself I'm buying these for the kids. But, really, I'm buying them for myself.

silver rides again

a tour, a new album, A SHOW IN ILLINOIS.

school's out!!

well my friends, this week marks the end of my first year down here. and i. am. excited. i'll be hitting the road on sunday morning, heading circuitously toward omaha and stopping to see a few of you on the way. and hopefully i'll be seeing the rest of you when i get back. in celebration of my ensuing freedom, i'm making a little playlist for my drive. and so far, she's a rowdy one. tracks include:

--alice cooper: school's out

--led zeppelin: bron-y-aur stomp

--led zeppelin: dancing days

--the allman bros: jessica

--the white stripes: i fought piranhas

any suggestions? what do you listen to when you're feelin' free and lively? caron, you got a shameless list in the works?

attn: omahunnies!

The Farmer's Market starts this Saturday, for any who are interested. On the harvest calendar: asparagus, strawberries, rhubarb, spinach, lettuce, herbs, turnips, radishes. Plus all that other stuff like good bread, fresh eggs, Old Market atmosphere, etc. I'm bringing my shopping bag, and maybe I'll see some of you down there!

LOST

it's america.  it's england.  i can't stop thinking about it.  my thoughts are too random to be coherent.  there's a kate & jack.  a rousseau.  a desmond (tutu?  hehe...just kidding).  then you have ben (american) & charles (english).  you have the island they're competing over (that could be_____?  freedom?  bliss?  escape?  a clean slate?).  

who's penelope, if this historical allegory is right-o?  i'm crazy. i love LOST.  i can't stop myself. and since this blog's got my last name on it...i'm showing my fanaticism.  CHIME IN!!!

you've reached the winter of my discontent

Since you asked for it, Daphne, here's one of my bad hair days. Washed but not styled (as is my usual custom if I'm home all day), my hair is Ethan Hawke, circa Reality Bites. Thanks to Michael for pointing that out for me. See the similarity? I couldn't find a checkered polo for the shot, but you get the picture. Let's see some more bad-hair-day (or heck, good hair day) comparisons! This is therapy for the bad-hair year I'm embarking on. Anyway, laugh away!

grr....

somebody help a sister out!  recommend a brush that is gentle on a VERY sensitive almost 5 yr. old's hair.  brush hair around here is enough of a hassle that i'm thinking about a buzz cut for all the little ones.

junk in the box

i don't know about you, but we get several catalogs a day from companies we've never even heard of. it drives me crazy. i hate all the paper waste, hate junk in the mailbox, hate being tempted to buy things i don't want or need. thus, i was delighted to find catalogchoice.org, a website that lets you remove your name from catalog mailing lists. you have to set up an account, but it's free. now you can finally remove yourself from the victoria's secret mailing list.

Flight of the Conchords- Business Time

I might be the last one to hear of these guys, but someone just filled me in on these hilarious men this weekend. I warn ya'll ahead of time, this one is a bit crass, but so stinking funny... Also, once you see their collection of videos on you tube, I suggest that the clips of them on stage together are far superior to the dramatization videos of the same songs. Their chemistry on stage is what makes them the funniest to me.

shakin' & quakin'

i imagine you've heard about the earthquake we had in illinois this morning.  jay & i slept through it.  also, i think i've been getting used to rumbling & loud noise lately--no, this isn't another bathroom joke.  for the past several days there's been an air show nearby & we've had an insane amount of "noisy tricks" happenings over our home.  

illinois is exciting.  earthquakes.  sheesh.

okay, fashionistas...

So. I'm growing my hair out and currently hate it. Cheryl suggested scarves/bandanas/headwraps/doo-rags, since she tied them around her hair when she grew it out. Anybody have any ideas as to where I could find some cool/eclectic/stylish versions of these? I have a few of the cowboy-ish, standard bandana variety, but was thinking of something more fun. Taking your suggestions! My Princess-Diana-circa-1987 hairdo just isn't going to fly.

23rd and F

i was driving around last week, to pass some time, and on the corner of 23rd and F there is a really sweet brick house. in the driveway of this house, on 23rd, there is a giant bus, with one of those destination signs in the front at the top... and it said

'who cares'

and i thought of all of you. and wanted to take a picture, but never got around to it. check it out if you're in the neighborhood.

rules

i can hear my girls suffering in their room.  they have a new rule: no getting up until 7am.  that might seem early to you, but at our house, we could eat breakfast, read 10 books, & watch 1/2 an episode of the little einsteins before our new constitution.  

thought i'd ask the experts...

i need a bean recommendation. i'm passionately devoted to the beans roasted at a coffee shop here in iowa city, called capanna, but they cost 12.95 for 3/4 of a pound. you know how fast a person can go through 3/4 of a pound. it's getting pricey. cheaper than crack, but not by much. i need to know what grocery store brands you like. and for the record, i'm through with starbuck's brewed coffee. i can't take the scorched flavor any more. i know caron's preference for chock-full-o-nuts. anyone else have a good, relatively inexpensive suggestion?

spoiling the bride....

i don't know about you, but i am SO excited about daphne getting married. i have thoroughly enjoyed having occasions to toast, shower and spoil her! click here to see some of my (terrible!) pictures of daphne being celebrated thus far. the first page of photos are from her small engagement celebration at our house in feb, and the second page are from the small kitchen shower thrown for her by her lovely friend laura alley. my pictures didn't turn out that great, and i didn't get pictures of everyone that was there. i didn't want to be annoying! ha ha. anyway, i can't wait to see the snapshots that come from her personal shower! hubba hubba! i won't be there, so please someone get pics!

so much past inside my present, inside my present...

when jay & i were dating, i had to learn how to enjoy late nights -and- early mornings.  we'd stay up late (you know: talking, praying, hugging) and i'd never get my homework done.  so i started getting up at 4:30 or 5 as my study time.  yes, a very wise student.  this is where my love for coffee, not looking in the mirror, cat naps, & cold showers came into being.

this week i'm cramming, and it's the same feeling with completely different tasks.  tagging clothes for a consignment sale (we have a ton of baby girl clothes! jeez), restoring the basement from last week's seepage, and trying to get myself back up to running 3 miles before a race next weekend.  (cramming for a race is a ridiculous notion, but i'm doing it)

when i was running this morning i listened to feist's "past in present" almost on repeat.  and i remembered this quote (think it's zora neale hurston's words):

"there are years that ask questions and years that answer."

make travel plans

Caron, Corrie, Kate & Ali - make plans now to be back in Omaha for July 12th. See here who the mayor's picked for the free show at Memorial Park this year! I'm going, Lord willing and the creek don't rise. Maybe even if the creek does rise!

i changed the locks, part 2

and, if you're feeling exceptionally tired & crabby...and you finally get your kids down for a nap & you head down to do some laundry...don't be surprised if you step into a basement with lots of water seeping in.  your laundry room mat may be soaked.  you may have to move everything that you own into your attic.  it's okay.  it's just stuff.  remember?  you really do think that way.

i'm going to go iron my jumper & get ready for my first homeschool convention.  hehe.  pardon me if the humor is particularly wry.

i changed the locks

if you're feeling exceptionally tired & crabby, here's a tip from a professional in the department:

--don't let one of your children (that is prone to destruction) listen to your ipod just because you allow the older one to have a go while doing copy work.  the child that is prone to destruction will figure out a way to pull your earphones apart & disconnect the wires.  then, of course, you'll hear, "it's not workin'!  it's not workin'."

skip to the lou...

ever have a cd playing, and it gets stuck in one spot, skipping, playing the same 7 seconds or so over and over... and NOT notice it!
i just noticed i have been listening to the same 7 seconds for near 30 minutes. it is a nice 7 seconds, i will say.

stayed up too late, woke up too early. rainy + chilly. perhaps 2 pots of coffee today.

some links i've been enjoying:

-got this one in an email (subject: oprah)

it's kind of interesting to hear oprah talk (the narrator is annoying & sensational)

-i did see stars, print

-eight by eight (their march project is cool)

-andy goldsworthy, really interesting sculpture & land art (pictured above). here's a clip from a documentary about him (who knew?).

-all and sundry, arctic paintings

announcement...

hi everyone! so i guess this is my first who cares post. i just wanted to let you in on our little announcement, so hop on over to my blog to be in the know. ;)

i'll post other thoughts soon. that is, when i get some thoughts.

makeup, grownup

My head is spinning - I just saw a little segment on the Today show about kids & makeup. I saw these 5-year-olds at a mani/pedi party...at a SALON. They got makeup applications, extensions, dress-up, etc. I could just puke.

I'm not a tomboy by any means, but I distinctly remember not being able to wear makeup til I was a freshman. I had to buy my makeup myself. I never got my hair highlighted til I was a senior. I never went to a tanning salon til I was getting married and even there I was surrounded by high schoolers tanning for prom. I keep thinking that girls are growing up too fast these days, and I wonder: how am I gonna keep Reese from following the same trend, without her feeling like she's missing something?

How do I foster that self-confidence that doesn't need to follow every trendy whim and can find a unique place for herself? I know my daughter will want to mimic the girls she sees in school, and want to dress up & 'get ready' like me. I'm not opposed to her playing around with my makeup (when she's a bit older!), and pretending to be 'like mommy', but I really want something different for my kid than what I'm seeing on TV: a generation growing up with a distorted image.

I'm not sure how to tackle this. Thoughts?

oh-i'm sorry, but -

what does this look like to you?

ben got this little toy as a present.

worse yet, between each of the "lips" (or "cheeks," depending on what you see), a little stuffed animal emerges. i couldn't bear to post a picture of that.

know anyone...

who would want to live in our house until it sells, for free? all they have to do is keep it looking nice for house showings, and get out when the house is shown. if you can think of any ideas, let me know! probably starting mid- april- ish...

you can email me - easleyjustin@hotmail.com

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save the last tab for me

i've recently started this new collection: colored plastic tabs that hold your bread/english muffins/bagged potatoes closed.  

here's my begging notion: save yours for me.  i dunno what i'm going to do with 'em yet, but...just save 'em.

lookey what we have here

i was image-searching "strep throat" because i think my kids have infected me....and look what picture came up!!  keeping it local!

two forty one am

anyone else awake? i have only slept for about 30 minutes tonight and can't fall back asleep.this has been a frequent occurence as of late. i am annoyed. mostly because lack of sleep usually = migraine the next day. can't figure out what i am doing wrong... time to research on google. sweet dreams everyone....