WanderingAmylessly 2.0

10 of my very worst ideas 1. Dating someone I met on the Internet. It might work for some people. For me, 't'was a nightmare. 2. Taking a job in the corporate world, a 50-minute-one-way commute, when my baby was barely a toddler and only seeing him 30 minutes to an hour a day -- because I thought more money could fix everything. 3. Moving into an apartment with my best friend in college. We no longer speak. 4. Thinking I had no way out and wishing for death. 5. Majoring in print journalism. That's a sure path to nowhere these days. 6. Going with whats-his-name to junior prom. Sh**, I don't even remember his name. 7. Leaving K-State after only one semester. 8. Crushing on any of a number of men who turned out -- not surprisingly, looking back -- to be gay. 9. Driving to that city council meeting in the ice storm. Ford Tempo, meet Tractor Trailer Rig. 10. Thinking that my mental illness was "just a character fault" and not getting help sooner.

What are your hobbies? Why do you like them? I try a lot of things. I don't stick with much. And I'm not incredibly outstanding at anything. But I love being able to say, "Oh...I did that!" In my early years, I played T-ball (one season, horrible memories, sorry I even mentioned it), took piano lessons, played clarinet in band, read obsessively, watched too much TV, loved stationery and wrote many letters, and played an insane amount of Yahtzee with my grandmother. Along the way, I've also cross-stitched, scrapbooked, started writing several stories and books, occasionally become fixated with crossword puzzles and games of Scrabble, sewed and quilted, cooked and baked, revisited the clarinet, volunteered sporadically, gardened (halfheartedly...I lose interest when the temps reach 90 or so). At the moment, I'm putting all my efforts into knitting. I can do it while I'm doing another of my favorite activities -- watching TV and/or listening to podcasts. I st

Write about a question that looms large in your mind right now. I don’t know how large it looms, but it’s kind of hanging upside down like a vampire bat in the belfry of my aching head, ready to suck any excess energy I might have. The question: Is my kid sick? I swear, my fears have nothing whatsoever to do with swine flu. And I’m not being a hypochondriac. Honest. Nevermind that I did the one thing doctors tell you never to do. I googled. So sue me. I typed in Henry’s symptoms...and my imagination ran wild. It all started with his rosy cheeks. He gets them now and again, bright red spots on each side of his cherubic face. Usually, it’s a sign he’s overheated himself, running and screaming and jumping off high furniture. But Sunday it was accompanied by splotchy red spots all over his forearms. He said they didn’t itch or hurt. He didn’t have a fever (I checked, despite his insistence that he was FINE, MOM). Several sites on Google diagnosed him: Fifth Disease. I’d never even heard of

Name one thing you're thankful for today. Our friend Lois got married yesterday -- and she made the front page of the paper . We're so happy for her! It's too bad that it took 23 years for the state of Iowa to recognize her loving, committed family relationship, though. She and her partner, Karen, have been together THAT long. Over two decades and two beautiful daughters later, Iowa finally started legally recognizing same-sex marriages yesterday. Just this morning, I have found out that several other friends picked up marriage licenses and/or actually got married yesterday, too! Congratulations to all! I'm so proud to be an Iowan. I'm thankful that my son is being raised in a community that values human rights (as well as lots of other admirable notions, such as environmental advocacy, organic farming, quality health care, outstanding educational opportunities, and so on). And on day 2 of official "marriage equality" in Iowa, I take a moment to be thankfu

List five things you want. And yeah, I don't want to have to think about it. So these will be amazingly shallow. No world peace for me this round. 1. Sundance Spa 780 Series - Hamilton 2. Kindle 2 3. Wii Fit 4. A massage every month 5. To fit in those size 6 jeans again

Right now you should be doing ______ instead of being on the computer. Most days my fill-in-the-blank answer would be "just about anything." I occasionally find myself ignoring my kid or my hubby or my dog or my bundle of house chores to take a "Which powerful woman in history are you?" quiz on Facebook or to update my FB status with some completely banal rundown of my lame existence. However, I have to admit I've done a whole lot of somethings this weekend that make my occasional cop-a-squat on the couch with my laptop a lot less pathetic. In the past two days I've: -- Knit several inches on a sock. -- Started a sewing project (I'm making a patchwork tote-ish bag). -- Visited Tim's aunt, who is rehabbing a severely broken leg. -- Gone to spinning for 80 minutes. -- Went on a short outside bike ride. -- Walked the dog. -- Cooked and cleaned and laundered (sans snotty towels, thank you very much). -- Read a book. -- Snuggled on the couch with my honey

What is the grossest thing you've seen today? I must be truthful. This was not what came up on the random blog idea generator. But I was so ick'ed out at the gym this morning, I had to express my disgust. The guy next to me in spin class seemed like a perfectly normal, reasonable guy. He said hello, joked a bit, then got down to business riding. But about halfway through the 80-minute class, he started doing something that made me want to simultaneously vomit and bean him with my water bottle. Repeatedly. He blew his nose. Into the gym towel. Again and again and again. Now, I have no problem with those whose sinuses are profoundly affected by athletic endeavors. But blowing your germ-laden snot all over a towel that you're, at the end of the class, going to chuck into a laundry bin and walk away from without a care is... Just. Plain. Revolting. You realize that the fluff-and-fold-fairies aren't going to magically appear and whisk the sweat towels off to be miraculously

I'm taking a break from my blog-a-day pattern...rather, giving you a bonus blog (I know you're all a-flutter). I want to introduce you to an online educational video game site called Poptropica . It was invented by the brilliant minds at the company I work for, Pearson. Folks in my part of the company first heard about it last week when CEO Marjorie Scardino came for a visit and made a presentation about the state of the company (we're doing well, despite the pathetic economy!). I plunked around on it this afternoon and have decided it must be more mind stimulating than PlayhouseDisney.com, so I think I'll let Henry have a whirl. Players get to create an avatar to represent themselves, based on their age and gender. I was an odd, froggy-looking redhead. Can't remember her name. She looked like some creature from A Bug's Life. Also, the players' ages can only go up to 15, so she has a bored teenage girl expression on her face and occasionally looks as though

10 things I really like about my parents 1. They never gave me a curfew. Of course, I had no social life to speak of in high school, so I'm pretty sure I didn't need one. 2. They love being grandparents and never seem to get tired of playing and hanging out with little ones. (Nevermind that most of the kids call my dad "Grumpa"...it's a term of endearment. Really.) 3. They always believe in me, even when I don't believe in myself. 4. They willingly make the 8-9 hour drive on a fairly frequent basis to come visit. 5. Dad's extraordinary baking talents/Mom's incredible gift of quilting 6. They bought me a puppy in 8th grade and took terrific care of her for many years after I moved away. In essence, they adopted her and I'll always be so grateful. 7. They're excruciatingly liberal! Despite all the odds! My mom is Keith Olbermann's biggest fan. 8. They're kind and thoughtful and generous, to a fault, probably. 9. They've been senior ci

Write a haiku about what you see out the window. Coy green leaves emerge Conspiring with the spring sun And my nose drips on

If you could be any person in the world, who would you be, and why? I thought about this for half an hour this morning and came up with several scenarios. They are: the shallow-ish pop culture answer, the save-the-world answer, the wow-she's-amazing answer, and the honest answer. 1. Shallow-ish pop culture answer is...Ellen Degeneres. I've thought she was the funniest woman around since I saw her on an HBO special in the mid '80s. I read her books. I watched her TV shows. I cackle every time I watch her interview anyone. She's smart, adored by millions, wealthy, married to a beautiful person she loves with her whole heart, dedicated to several worthy causes, has a quirky, fun wardrobe, and isn't afraid to be herself. 2. Save-the-World answer is...Steve Jobs. Yeah, so he's dying of pancreatic cancer. Not so fun. But what an incredible story. He's responsible for creating an awesome company, Apple, that has changed the way we live and communicate and connect(

The last time you... I can't remember the last time I wrote poetry. It's something I used to do in my angst-filled, melodramatic, hormonal teenaged years. I actually had a poem published in a quite insignificant teen-writer anthology in the late '80s, about my high school crush on a drummer named Paul who used to carry his sticks in his back pocket and smelled of leather and cigarettes and Polo cologne (and probably hair product, too, although I didn't note it at the time because dippity-do gel didn't set the right mood). But somewhere along the way, I got lazy. If I needed just the right mix of sentiment and meter, I'd read someone else's poems. Or copy down the lyrics to a Nirvana song and embed myself in the mind of Kurt Cobain. Funny thing about writing poetry. I can't seem to do it at the extremes. When I'm in my deepest despair, it's simply too much effort to pick up a pen or sit at my computer and slash open my festering wounds. And when I

What things in life give you pain? - Thinking about junior high - Thinking about my son having to endure junior high - Unmet expectations - Narrow-minded, hateful people - Death - Taxes - Cheap flip-flops - My lack of willpower combined with procrastination - Knowing that there's no cure for mental illness - Realizing there are hungry children in America - People who don't like dogs - Mathematics - Skinny jeans - Those who get all the credit yet deserve none - Mariah Carey - Trying to spin to country music - The first day back at work after vacay - Temps below 40 degrees - PCs - Running on uneven sidewalks - Whining - The fact I don't have Tivo anymore - My lower back - Canker sores - A sick kiddo - The heartbreak of psoriasis - Making mistakes - Being unable to forgive myself - Dealing with those who value career over everything else - Acknowledging that I'm not a fabulous mom - Change - Decaf coffee - The great American novel I have yet to write - Know-it-alls - Missi

Describe a perfect spring day and activities on that day. I'm not sure this automatic blog idea generator is such a great thing. This was my first option? Can I reshuffle and try again? I'll tell you one thing, today is gray and a bit chilly, muddy from yesterday's rain, and my kid is in a timeout because he's throwing a holy fit. That right there would be close to the opposite of a perfect spring day. Going for a bike ride in the warm sun, on a trail next to some sparkling water, would be a nice start. Or walking Mags and listening to a newly created iPod playlist filled with Avril and Alanis. Or sitting in a lounge chair on the deck, reading some fun, escapist fiction, sipping an iced latte. Or catching up on podcasts of the Mike O'Meara radio show while mindlessly knitting with soft, luscious fibers, sitting in the sunshine streaming through our guest room window, screens open and a warm breeze stroking my skin. Since none of that's happening today, I guess I

I've been neglecting my blog. Mostly, I've felt like I didn't have much of anything to say. In a funk, I guess. I came back from vacation and have been questioning my place in the universe ever since. What's my purpose? What's my motivation? These are questions I'm not delving into on my blog. At least not right now. I don't have the time to get into it. And there must be some sort of character limit for how much you can write in one post. I would exceed it by tens of thousands, I'm sure. So what to write about? Some days it hurts my head to think. I've decided that I'll let someone else do the thinking for me, at least from the idea-generating standpoint. I discovered "The Imagination Prompt Generator" -- a site that automatically generates writing prompts for bloggers like me with topic-block. I'll still have to come up with semi-coherent thoughts, but I'll be more directed. I plan to start tomorrow. And I have promised mysel

Iowa took a giant step forward last week when its Supreme Court ruled that the ban on same-sex marriages was unconstitutional. However, our newfound status as a progressive place -- oh so much more than pigs and corn and redneck hicks -- may be short lived. A group in Iowa City is petitioning the city council in an effort to change a city ordinance. What do these fine folks want? They want to raise chickens in the city limits. I can almost hear it now... Why did the chicken cross the road? To buy organic whole grains at New-Pi! The group actually gives some quazi-legitimate reasons for wanting this local legislation. They say it will help encourage self-sustaining practices and be educational for youngsters. Someone even suggested that the fowl droppings can be used as fertilizer. I understand recycling pop bottles. I get using canvas bags for groceries. But eggs? That I can buy at the store for a mere $1.20 a dozen? To each his own. I'm sure there'll be a few enterprising hipp

I shared these photos with my Facebook buds, so I think I'll post them here, too. Tim recently ran across these pics of H-man, circa 2005(?), and seeing them made me realize what a grown-up little boy he's getting to be (nevermind the royal tantrum he threw that sent him to bed an hour early).

I have an odd twist to share: two completely unrelated stories in today's Eastern Iowa newspaper that seem to contradict each other. The first is a lovely little article about a new survey by MainStreet.com that has Iowa ranked as the second happiest state in the Union. The site rated states on their financial health, such as unemployment and foreclosure rates. So this survey apparently equates happiness with financial security? I question that. Maybe it's the Midwestern air, since the No. 1 state was Nebraska, the No. 3 was Kansas. But I wonder. I've lived in the Midwest most of my life, haven't had a load of financial problems, and still find myself on a cocktail of meds and an insane amount of therapy to keep myself on the path to some semblance of "happy." So we Iowans are happy. Hoo-ray! Many of us were on Friday, with the Supreme Court's ruling. Iowa once used for its tourism campaign the slogan, "Iowa, you make me smile." Could be that th

I've been wanting to do this for a while...make my picks for the next DWTS cast. There's a fine balance. You have to make sure to include the right mix of actors, musicians, pretty people, athletes, odd ducks, and such. I'm not sure I have it just right. And I'm probably too light on the young folks. I'm out of touch, what can I say? I didn't even bother choosing any ultra famous people, like Tim's suggestion of Steve Carell, who'd be terrific and slapsticky, but who has more money and fame (and projects) than he knows what to do with and simply wouldn't have the time or inclination to join in. I didn't include a pro football player this time, but if I thought about it more, I'd pick one of those big guys with the braids/dreadlocks. It'd be fun to see them sashay-ing around the dance floor, whapping their hair into their professional partner. (As a complete digression...how many times a game do you think they get not-so-playful yanks fro

Iowa has just become the fourth state in the union -- and the first in the Midwest -- to allow same-sex couples to marry. I'm giddy with the news! This just in from the Des Moines Register: The Iowa Supreme Court this morning unanimously upheld gays’ right to marry. “The Iowa statute limiting civil marriage to a union between a man and a woman violates the equal protection clause of the Iowa Constitution,” the justices said in a summary of their decision. The court affirmed a Polk County District Court decision that would allow six gay couples to marry. The ruling is viewed as a victory for the gay rights movement in Iowa and elsewhere, and a setback for social conservatives who wanted to protect traditional families. The decision makes Iowa the first Midwestern state, and the fourth nationwide, to allow same-sex marriages. Lawyers for Lambda Legal, a gay rights group that financed the court battle and represented the couples, had hoped to use a court victory to demonstrate accepta