Bridgewater Soccer Mom's view of the world

Central Park at 72nd Street Spent a few hours roaming NYC with my sis-in-law. I hadn't seen her in 3 years but it felt like 3 weeks. It was soooooooooooooo nice. She is so easy going and pleasant. As the "local" I lead her around. We had no agenda, just pleasant conversation and no stress. Kind of like this picture. New York wasn't awash with tourists. Or, if it was, we didn't see them. No crowds anywhere. We window shopped, and ate lunch.

Sometimes you say things you wish you hadn't. Othertimes your thoughts change over time. Flip flop, flip flop. Sometimes it's not really a flip flop, just a nuance. Sometimes you just aren't sure what you mean. Lying at the chiropractor's I pondered the morning's blog. I remembered several of my kids' teachers. They go way beyond their contract. Some of them LOVE my kids. How do you compensate that? The truth is that you can't. Caring teachers - the kind my kids will remember far into their adulthood - are a goldmine. My blog below doesn't take into account two things. Many teachers teach more than HS teachers mentioned below. My kids' teachers regularly e-mail me at all hours of the week and weekend. They have met with me before school, during and after school and recently a teacher called for an impromptu 8pm teleconference that lasted about 45 minutes. Far beyond her contract! No matter where I bump into a teacher, they always ask about my kid...

"It's been a stressful week in Lake Woebegone , my hometown..." Or so Garrison Keillor might say if he were to describe my life on his radio show. Not only have I been juggling falling balls, my nose hasn't stopped running (and I haven't been running enough to prepare for my half marathon next month, so I'm stressed about that too). One of the "falling balls" are my allergies. I've tried it all: multiple medicines, nose spray, eye drops, a  neti pot , extra sleep, spicy food and even wine. I've tried staying indoors, I've tried fresh air. I've tried walking, and running, and extra showers. Extra sleep seems to help my state of mind, but hasn't done much for my sinuses. Now I'm at the acceptance stage of this battle: pollen is the stronger force. I'm just going to have to grin and bear it. I'm also knitting. Life reflected in a dress I've started to knit for myself. I keep starting, ripping out what I'...

Beyond the beautiful day.... I am loving this weather. Really loving it. High 60s/Low 70s and sun here in Bridgewater. Yesterday I ran (alone) for more than an hour in 70F and sun. Today I walked with a friend, and wished we could have walked for hours. Now I feel it. My eyes are burning, my nose vacillates between burning and itching. Like Hansel and Gretel's breadcrumbs you can find where I am by following used tissues. Both C and I awoke convinced we'd both contracted pink eye. Nope. Diagnosis: "Allergy eyes".  $25 co-pay for the visit, and $50 co-pay for eye drops (I think a $50 bottle of wine would work better for me). At those prices and with those results I didn't bother checking my doctor. At $50 for the teeniest, tiniest bottle of drops - I can't imagine what they put in them at these prices- I think C and I can risk co-contamination and share the drops. I'll wash my hands and roll the dice. I feel like the entire day has been half-finish...

I have a lot on my plate - who doesn't on this Monday? List day. Today I look over what needs to "get done" this week. It's always a combination of actual tasks with "other things". Some weeks I'm focused on work. Some weeks I am focused on district issues. Last week I spent a lot of time putting together and organizing my new office. This week I will have to continue clearing out the parts of the house that the new office is supposed to relieve from paperwork, and focus on work. View from the lift. The snow is fake but the air is fresh. But it's the "I wants" that I am drawn to now. I don't want to think about the business right now. I don't want to think about the laundry or sorting closets. I don't want to think about groceries. And I definitely don't want to think about taxes. I don't want to bathe the dog. Yesterday I spent six blissful hours on the slopes of Big Boulder . I didn't mind the slushy cond...

(Written Thursday, published Friday) Til alle mine fantastisk flotte kvinnelige fjesbogvenner - HIPP HURRA FOR OSS PÅ KVINNEDAGEN! (To all my fantastic female facebook friends - HURRAH FOR US ON WOMEN'S DAY) Gratulerer til alle medsøstre med dagen i dag, 8. mars! ♥ (Best wishes to my sisters on our day, March 8th) Gratulerer med dagen til alle jenter/damer/kvinner! :-) (Happy Int'l Women's Day to all girls/ladies/women!) Ihanaa päivää teille rakkaat ihanat naiset! ♥ Olkoon päiväsi täynnä iloa, onnea ja rakkau tta! ♥ (Happy day to all the dear, lovely women May your day be filled with joy, happiness and love!) And my mother-in-law sent me a message with a quote from Pippi Longstocking: "I haven't tried that before, so I know I can do it!" This morning my facebook page was filled with many such wishes from my friends in Europe.  While it may be a day to celebrate around the world, here in America I don't feel like c...

Just heard an interesting Webinar about adding volunteerism to your resume. Very interesting stuff. So many of us do professional tasks in our unpaid and/or non-profit ventures and, as I learned, it certainly has a place on the paper used to market yourself. I've had the chance to try many different things by volunteering, both in and out of the school district. It's also a great way to network and get to know your community. Most of it I never even considered "relevant experience" but of course it is! Last fall I organized a book fair that sold over $11K of books in 6 days.... (organizational skills, managing people, finances and (minor) marketing). That's just one example. I'm sure you have many. For now, however, the shining sun beckons, and I am about to "get to know my community" in a different way... by going for a long run. Whatever you do, or where ever you are, if your weather is as nice as in Bridgewater I encourage you to turn off th...

When I'm done with this, I'm off to Amazon dot com to order Virginia Woolf's A Room of One's Own.  After 18 years of co-habitation with my darling husband, I have a room of my own. Many people falsely assume that the entire house is mine, or perhaps that the kitchen is mine, or the master bedroom. But not here. I have many friends who decorate at whim - the only pre-purchase consult being their bank account. Not me. My husband is actually very aware of how we decorate, and with a few exceptions he and I have equal say. The basement is his man-cave, nicer than most grown-up's apartments. And now I have an office. My hope is to make it 50% office, 50% refuge. A work space surrounded by things I love. Although there is a bit more work to be done this morning I moved myself in and after I hit publish, I'll put together an invoice. Great way to use the space, I'd say! I have a new-found sense of self. New vigor to take on my start-up company's challenge...

Bread is done! I love to bake bread. If it didn't leave the kitchen such a mess I'd bake bread every day. Bread requires patience. It takes time, and it needs someone who is willing to clean the mess. That doesn't sound like me. Yes, I sound about 100 years old. Who knew when I was 17 that I'd actually enjoy domestic tasks like baking and knitting. There is something visceral in kneading dough. Turning four boring ingredients (flour, water, salt and yeast) into something that rises, warming the senses and filling the house with a tempting aroma, makes me feel a sense of accomplishment like little else. Who doesn't love fresh bread? But bread-making isn't in my nature - I hate the clean up. Flour and water = sticky mess. It finds its way everywhere. In every crevice of my hand. Underneath my finger nails, then in my hair. The mess diminishes the enjoyment. It's been a long week in Lake Woebegone-Bridgewater. School shootings in other states don'...