Storms – Near and Far

Matzo balls? No. Hail? Yes.

Nearly two weeks ago an 80 mph storm with tennis ball size hail passed over my house. We went to safety in our basement. My kids were scared and I played the part of the brave mom while my heart pounded. After the storm, we walked around the neighborhood to assess the damage. There was an aftermath of damaged siding, roofs, some broken windows and large divots in my lawn. It took 2 hours for some of the pieces of hail to melt! Our home, with its less than a year old siding and gutters faired pretty well. 

"Dalmation House"

Hail still melting in the ground 2 hours later.

Within 24 hours my neighborhood was crawling with contractors from neighboring states looking for work, I mean to help. I began to think about what it must have looked like after Hurricane Katrina and other mammoth storms. Were there people coming out of the woodwork to help? At first I was angry that no contractors were local. Storm chasers is what we began calling them. We have hired someone not local, but they have ties to the community and its not like they’re Wal-Mart trying to take down the Mom and Pop shops. The truth is that I decided there’s enough work for everyone.

 Yesterday, Tuscaloosa, Alabama was hit with a historical tornado. Tuscaloosa aka T’town was my home for 4½ years of college plus a year and a half. I have six years of memories in that city and although some do include tornadoes, it was never anything like what hit there yesterday. I remember the sky being an eerie greenish-gray. I remember watching meteorologist James Spann pinpoint the exact minute the tornado would be at my house, as if arriving for dinner. Thankfully none ever touched down closer than 10 miles from where I was and never affected me directly. I never lived anywhere with a basement, in fact one apartment (and this was common) was on top of the parking lot garage. I recall one tornado we took coverage in the basement/tornado shelter of an engineering building on campus my then boyfriend, now husband had a key to. I remember sitting in a lab with walls so thick we couldn’t get a radio to work. We played a board game and after some time snuck up the stairs preparing ourselves to see everything around us leveled. Fortunately wasn’t the case.

You know it's bad when the meteorologist is flustered:

Tuscaloosa tornado caught on tape wreaking havoc

It’s been 6 years since I’ve been to Tuscaloosa and as I watch the images online and on TV my heart aches for all the residents of the town, especially the students who are not fro the southeast. Students like I was, who learned what to do in case of a tornado as one was quickly approaching. In college they don’t do tornado drills.

To all my friends, former colleagues, their families, UA’s faculty and student body and to my former home of Tuscaloosa I send you a heartfelt “Roll Tide”.

The Aftermath -- just 1-2 miles from where i used to live.

TV Viewing

I watch TV to relax, laugh and forget about the cruel realities of life. I do not want to spend my free time watching violence; no murders, rapes, or creepy people for me, thanks. Even the dramas I choose make me laugh or at least cry therapeutic tears. Maybe this is a result of working in the field of domestic violence and abuse. I have heard enough unbelievable stories to fill all my free time thinking about and they all come with faces I have met, no actors. Watching people violently dying or hearing about a serial killer or rapist on the loose is not my idea of settling down before bed.

Reason for Running

I used to run to prevent breast cancer. 

Now I run so I can continue to eat the cookies, chocolate, and ice cream that my lack of will power is unable to keep me away from.

The two are yet to be balanced.

What is Matzah?

What is matzah?

Hopefully this link works.

Matzo Meets Wisconsin

On the first day of Passover I had a taste test of matzo/matzah toppings. Butter with jelly, honey butter or just plain butter. I concluded that matzah/matzo with just plain butter was the best, followed by honey butter. After my taste test and two meals of matzah/matzo brei I was back at the store to buy more matzah/matzo. Where in the world do they only sell single boxes of matzah/matzo that only have 10 sheets of matzah? Wisconsin, that’s where. Where the local synagogue’s congregation, according to its website is comprised of 45 families that span a 40-mile radius.

Back to the store I went. I couldn’t find any matzo. Was it because it was the third day of Passover? NO, it was because I was in Wisconsin. At the register when the kind, most likely Norwegian, cashier asked if I had found everything alright, I said, “No.” After saying what I was unable to find she called over a manager to assist and I don’t believe it was because her nametag said, “I’m new, please be patient with me.” The manager looked puzzled and to my surprise the cashier in the next aisle asked, “Is it like matzo ball soup, because I helped someone find that the other day?” At that moment I was hopeful. The manager went away and came back with a proud smile on his face and a box too small to hold matzo in it and said, “Is this what you were looking for?” It’s difficult to butter matzo ball soup mix so I was forced to say, “No, what I’m looking for looks like a large cracker.” He huddled with another manager, seemed to ignore me, and I figured they had given up.

I paid for my other groceries and left. In the car my kids learned the meaning of minority. Thanks to my daughter who was slowly (and I mean, slowly, like a sloth) fastening her seatbelt I saw the matzo ball soup mix carrying manager roaming the parking lot with a box large enough to carry “large crackers”. He was looking for me, the sole Jewish person in the parking lot! I watched him walk up to a Lutheran mom or maybe she was Catholic (combined they comprise 98% of my town’s population) who shook her head in confusion. I pulled up next to him, rolled down my window and thanked him, and right there in the parking lot I bought two boxes of matzo. At least it wasn’t in a dark alley of shame.

Why does matzo always fall butter side down?

Signed,

The Mom who went shopping for Easter basket fillings on a “full” stomach of matzo.

** Video to come at a later time. **

I Never

A few days ago I was listening to a favorite morning show (Bob and Sheri) and the topic was things “you” have never done that would surprise people. Here’s my “comes to mind first and fast” list.

I never drank/drink coffee, soda or beer.

I never smoked cigarettes. (and I pray my children never do)

I don’t drink. (often)

I never eat salad dressing on salad. (unless I’m at Olive Garden)

I have never eaten seafood. I have, however, been known to tell people I’m allergic to it, out of convenience.

I have never texted.

I’ve never been fired.

I’ll never think of them all.

Change is good, yet so intimidating...

April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month.

A few years ago in grad school I had to write a paper on all the roles in my life. Mom and community volunteer/activist were, and still are quite frankly, my two largest, most time consuming and rewarding roles. In my paper I went into greater detail of course, it was grad school after all. The theme of kids jumped right off the paper and hit me square in my heart. Now I knew that children played a huge part in my soul and life, both directly and indirectly, but when it was down on paper it became obvious just how much.

Some things don’t change. I’m still surrounded by and focused on kids. In addition to my own two, I volunteer at a middle school twice a week, serve on a Board of Director’s of a child care center, am active on a child abuse prevention task force, and am involved on a parent advisory committee for a great local non-profit agency that is also focused on kids.

Enough about my resume.

I haven’t “worked” since my daughter was born. After my son was born not working wasn’t an option for me I was ecstatic to be a mom, but also loved my job as the children’s advocate at the domestic violence shelter. As with all things, time changed my path. So, for four and a half years I have either been a full-time volunteer (not necessarily 40 hours/week) and/or a full-time grad student (absolutely more than 40 hours/week).

I graduated in December and am now looking head on at applying for jobs that would start in August/September. I am energized to work as a school counselor and meet, help, and advocate for hundreds of kids, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous. For the most part, my family is very supportive, but let’s look at this with a microscope for just a minute. My daughter has NO IDEA what me working full-time means. My son, a first grader, wishes I could work at his school and where change is concerned he adjusts best when it’s s-l-o-w. Every new semester meant change for my family.

I am nervous about missing out on my children’s school events. Then again 3½ years in grad school pulled me away from many things too and we all pulled through it as the strong family we are. My daughter will be in preschool next year. I loved bringing and picking up my son during that stage, no wrap around care was needed.  That won’t be the case with my daughter if I get a job.

Maybe I should wait until she’s in kindergarten? Oh how I miss having a paycheck with my name on it. I am fortunate to have learned very early on that it’s not about the money. The truth is that it’s the students that drive me and my passion that surrounds them.

Oh wait, reality just hit me square in the head…….there’s always the possibility I won’t even get hired this year. Heck, for that matter I may not work full-time again until my daughter is a freshman in college. Oooo college, yep better get to work so we can pay for college.

I'm practicing adding photos.

Laughter Needed

Tonight I am in need of a laugh, an all out child-like giggle, the kind that brings tears to my eyes and ends in a sprint to the bathroom. Instead I am frustrated at things that I cannot change, and annoyed by other people’s behavior. Again, something I cannot change.

So, as I sit here and think of something funny to write the only thing that comes to my mind is an awful joke, that I laugh at every time. I’m terrible at remembering and reciting jokes, needing to quietly run through them out loud before sharing just to make sure I don’t say the punch line too early and ruin the entire setup. When I was in junior high a friend told me the following joke. We laughed like it was the funniest thing we had ever heard. Right now I’m smiling just thinking about it.

Why do seagulls live by the sea and not by the bay?

            Because then they’d be called baygulls/bagels!

I warned you it was bad, but to this day I love it. It reminds me of a time when it was easier to laugh on demand. Or maybe it’s simply because I love bagels so much.

Would you believe I have even said this joke wrong before, causing me to laugh even harder.

Is there anything that can't be found on Google?
(unmario.wikia.com)