The ramblings of a somewhat bawdy, opinionated, pop-culture-loving thirty-some-year-old woman who feels like sharing her random thoughts with the world.
Why is it so difficult for people to signal when they're going to turn? One little flip of a lever makes all the difference in the world. Are their hands too busy with coffee and cell phones?
Bras - why can't all of them actually fit correctly? I know what size I am. I want to go into the store, pick one off the shelf and have it fit!
Where did logic go?
Why have I never seen this picture before?
Jon Hamm and Clay Matthews...
together...in one picture
Why have people become so politically polarized? Has it always been this bad and I just never noticed it? And how many people now think of me differently because of my political views?
How is it that I can run 3-5 miles 2-3 times a week and not lose a single pound? I eat well, I exercise, yet nothing is happening.
Who decided women had to wear these damn bras anyway? This new one is not comfortable!
How can people have college degrees and be complete morons? I don't have a college degree and seem to out-think some of these people day in and day out.
If we have limits on how many hours can be worked in a week and the breaks we can take, can't there be limits on the number of meetings that one must attend as well?
How is it that I've been summoned for jury duty 3 times since I turned 18 and my husband has never been summoned at all?
Why do some people have to be miserable all of the time? Or angry about something? I have to wonder if they're ever truly happy. It's sad.
Is it really true that at any given time, you're always no more than six feet away from a spider? How did someone measure that?
Is the RealAge test accurate? Am I really two years younger than my numeric age?
Why can't you return a bra to the store that you've only worn once? It's not like I'd be returning panties that my naughty parts have touched.
Ah, the Shedd Aquarium. Chicago's world of exotic marine creatures on the shores of a great lake full of very boring marine creatures.
The family took a trip there over the weekend for a few simple reasons: 1) The kid had never been there. 2) I haven't been there since college and could walk there in my spare time. 3) I wanted a reason to go into the city again. So, we picked a day over Spring Break, but on the weekend so the train fare would be less expensive, and off we went.
Little did we know that it was the day of the annual Shamrock Shuffle downtown. Who would have expected it to be the week after St. Paddy's Day? I mean, really. Luckily for us the race was just finishing up when we got there, but that meant that there were 34,000 sweaty runners (no kidding - I looked it up) and their support people milling about the south loop area...directly between the train station and the aquarium. Lucky us. Roads were blocked off, including to pedestrians, traffic was at a standstill, seas of sweaty people in red shirts and spandex and green tutus created human walls, but we persevered. We got through and made it that 2.5 miles that felt more like 10.
We got there and got and the end of a huge line that wasn't moving. At all. (See the blue awning over the line of people going down the stairs in that first picture? That was just the beginning of the line) Let me throw in tip number one here: Buy your tickets ahead of time. Unless you're going in the middle of the week during the winter school months and not during any break...pay the extra $5 per ticket just to save you the hassle of standing in line for two or more hours. Holy shnikes! An aquarium angel came and saved us not long after we arrived and moved the back section of the line to a secret admission door. We got in after 20 minutes.
And here I throw in tip number one for those who do not purchase tickets online: Know what kind of ticket you're buying ahead of time. This goes for any museum really. There's always the general admission ticket, but then they tack on extra money for the exciting or temporary exhibits. Know what you want to see and purchase your ticket accordingly. Do not do what almost everyone in front of me was doing as they got up to the counter Ummm...so if we want to see the jellies and the movie, but not the dolphin show...could we trade one out for the other? No! Come on people. Don't tell me you don't have the internet at home...or on the 4G smartphone that you just put back in your pocket. Use it for what it's meant for!
We're in! And it is dang crowded! There are so many people, it's hard to stop and read anything about the animals that we're looking at. There's just enough space to take a look, snap a few pictures, and move on so the next people can do the same. Speaking of pictures - here's another tip - The Aquarium is a flash-free zone. This means that if the fish are moving and you don't have the best camera in the world, you will get many blurry pictures of fish in motion. It's best to stick with slow-moving or non-moving creatures.
After doing a little looking around, we got hungry and decided to head down to get some people food. Now usually when I go to museums alone, I adhere to this tip: Museum/Aquarium food is expensive; eat as little as possible to save money. Unfortunately I was with two hungry men who never stop eating, so our two slices of pizza, chicken tenders, fries, soda and water came to over $25. Following this tip: If there is outside dining, take advantage of it - the city noises will drown out the screaming children, we took lunch outside and enjoyed the sun, scenery and lake breeze.
We hit the special exhibits after that, including the kids' play zone. Now you might think it would be too chaotic and completely geared for tiny tots to scream and act rambunctious, but there are usually some pretty cool things for everyone to do there. So, the next tip would be: Be a kid - go to the play zone! I got to pet a starfish. I mean, how often do you get to do something like that?
We also spent just a little extra to go see their jellies exhibit. A whole room full of jellyfish and you don't have to worry about getting stung. What a treat! They were awesome.
While this wasn't a timed exhibit, they only let people in in groups which brings me to one of my little secrets for special exhibits (and if everyone did this it would be a bad thing): Make your way through the exhibit once with the group, backtrack without going out, then go through it again at your own pace. By doing this, you're less likely to miss anything cool and you can see the things you're really interested in for a longer period of time. Just stay off to the sides so other people can see, but take your time that second time through. Soak it in. And if they allow it Take as many photos as possible. These are things you'll most likely not get to see again. Keep snapping away in between the groups of people and you'll get some amazing shots to help you remember it all.
Having seen everything we paid to see and having two very tired men who aren't used to walking so much, it was time for us to head back to the train. We walked back, taking our time because we had two hours to kill. Of course, we were also anxious to get somewhere and rest our feet, so we didn't dawdle too much - except to make a stop at Millennium Park. It's always good to stop and smell the flowers.
With over an hour to spare, we made it to the train station, got a little more food, and rested our sore feet. Being my little OCD self, I decided to check the departure schedule to make sure all was well and noticed the next train was actually leaving in a half-hour. I had read the schedule wrong (after riding the dang train for over 18 years, you'd think I knew what I was doing). This brings me to my final tip: Always triple-check your train schedule or you'll get left behind.
It is World Poetry Day today! I realized I haven't written any poetry for a very long time. Maybe a little something here and there, but nothing like I did when I was in middle school through college. Sure, the "poems" I wrote when I was 14 or 15 were utter crap, but I certainly improved once I got to college. I just wish I would have saved those somewhere. I think they were so personal that I tossed them instead of running the risk of my parents seeing them. (I am a woman full of secrets)
I think the last poem I wrote was for this lovely blog. And it was about bugs. The one I wrote before that was for facebook and it was about a spider. What the hell?
I've been trying to think of a little verse I could write today to celebrate this all-important holiday, but I'm just not feeling inspired. (I guess I haven't seen any critters lately.) Maybe I should write a lament to the bird that hit my car on the way to work yesterday.
Little robin, starling, or blackbird, I wish I could go back in time And leave for work a mere minute sooner, Sparing your little feathered life....
I don't think I can go on with that one.
Perhaps I should pen a haiku about the burn on my wrist that I got while cooking dinner last night that rubs against the wrist rest on my mouse pad every time I use it.
Burn on my right wrist You're in the worst of places I can't use my mouse.
Um...no.
So the poetry writing is unsuccessful once again. I guess I'll have to keep waiting for someone to write something for me instead.
I was reading a story in our area small-town paper (online) about a practice burn that our local fire department had. You know, instead of tearing an old house down, they burn it and let the local hose-holders get some decent almost-real-life scenario practice. (Being a small town, they don't see a lot of action.) The neighbors come out and watch, chit-chat, say "Hi" to the firefighters who they haven't seen in a while. It's quite the social affair!
Anyway, in this story they were talking about the schedule and, well...let me just quote it:
"To accommodate volunteer fire fighters who work at other jobs during the day, the practice was split into two weeks and run in the evening. 'Most of our people work until 5 p.m.'"
Soooo....if my house decides to set itself ablaze around two in the afternoon, I'm shit outta luck?! Well, that's reassuring.
All I wanted to do on my lunch break today was soak in the sunshine, get 25-minutes-worth of fresh air, feel the breeze blowing through my hair, and read a book written by a great Buddhist lama about living to the best of my abilities while being a benefit to others. (I had just finished my book about the great Zombie War the night before.) That wasn't too much to ask, was it?
I did get to experience that in snippets, but for a good chunk of the time all I could hear was the corporate jargon flying from the mouth of some frustrated middle-aged white man in a polo shirt and khakis on the other side of the block. He was talking on his cell phone to someone who apparently works with him and had some bad news because this guy meant business...all business. "We'll have to wipe the slate and revisit the issue when it becomes more lucrative to move forward!" In other words, "We'll forget about it until the time is right!" "Unless the CFO gives the signoff by COB tomorrow, we lose the positive momentum and we'll have to table the issue." Seriously?
What prevents people from using common everyday language when talking to other people at work? I'm bombarded with this non-speak at work all of the time. I work in an office in a very small town at a place that employs maybe 150 people during the winter months, only 20 of whom have contact with the "suits" Do we really need to hear that crap when 20 people (at the most) are listening and don't want to hear it anyway. I'm sick to death with hearing terms like thinking outside the box, in the year for the year, moving forward, benchmark, comp set, and on and on and on... Do people think it makes them sound smarter? More educated? I can tell you for a fact it's not true. Trust me.
Do these people speak like this at home too? "While I appreciate the initiative you've shown in putting on that lacy negligee in order to facilitate a night of romantic pursuits, I'm afraid that we'll have to table that idea until I've gotten through my copy of Trump's latest book. Let's touch base again SOD tomorrow to see where we stand."
It's gotten so monotonous, all I can hear when they talk is the sound of an adult talking in a Charlie Brown cartoon.
Come on people, let's use regular old words like good idea, bad idea, thank you, let's talk about it later, and my favorite - You've done such a great job around here, how about an extra week of vacation and a $2.00 an hour raise?! Okay, I guess I shouldn't dream too big.
(Forgive the blah-ness of this post. I started it when I was in a very left-brained frame of mind and no matter how much tweaking I try to do to it today, it's still very dry. Please read on and don't hold it against me. It's too important of a topic for me to leave in my draft folder.)
I think almost all of us were bullied at some point in our childhoods. Whether it be name-calling in grade school, pushing in middle school, or getting beat up in high school, most of us have been there. If you weren't bullied at some point, there's a good chance you were the one doing the bullying.
Me - well, I was mainly picked on in middle school. Face it, middle school sucks for everyone. Hormones, puberty, new people to deal with, trying to figure out who you are and who you want to be. It's rough! There were only a couple of people who picked on me, but it was frequent...and predictable. One of the popular girls in our class would always come up with some way to make fun of whatever clothing I was wearing that day. I'd hear a new nickname for each new outfit. (Sorry, my parents couldn't afford the Guess jeans and t-shirts (remember the Guess nerd?) that were popular at the time. I didn't care, but apparently she did...go figure.) I remember wearing a sweatshirt with a zebra on it one day (I was into animals and the safari look was in at the time), getting in line to play four square, and there she was...all decked out in her Guess, perfect hair, makeup to the hilt, and her attitude. I sighed. I knew what was coming. As soon as she saw me, she started, "Oh look - here comes..." and then I interrupted her.
..."Zebra girl, right?"
She didn't know what to say at first and then giggled. "You're so lame." It's exactly what she was going to say - what she had just called lame was what was going to come out of her mouth.
The outright name-calling stopped after that, but her tactics changed. She enlisted help in the strangest of places. In 7th grade, I joined the basketball team. I was pretty good at it, was great at defense, started in almost every game. It was the practices that I despised. Not only was miss popular on the team, but the coach - our PE teacher - had a habit of laughing at me. The popular chick would make some comment about me and the coach would back her up on it. I distinctly remember the two of them standing there, the girl's arm around the shoulder of the coach, laughing at some greatly exaggerated thing that I had supposedly done. It continued into 8th grade when I decided to be the manager instead of playing. Nothing I did was right. Unfortunately, I was happy for the season to be over.
Now my son is in middle school. He's going through the same sorts of things, but a bit harsher. Kids these days are harsher. (My gosh, it's amazing how many kids his age are being expelled these days!) He gets called names, has been pushed a couple of times. Nothing terribly extreme, but it wears on a kid. And he's had it. Now, the kid doesn't have a very thick skin, that comes with time and maturity. He's eleven. Not there yet. Mind you, he's one step away from being a black belt in Tae Kwon Do, but he won't use it. Not unless he absolutely has to.
Why does he get picked on? Because he's an introvert the same way that I was? He wears clothes from Wal-Mart and Old Navy? He wears glasses? He likes to draw and play the trumpet? He doesn't hang out with a big clique? Any of these could be the reasons, but who knows how a bully picks his/her target.
He's not just sitting and taking it though. He's reported incidents to his teachers and his guidance counsellor. Fortunately the school that he attends, the same one that I went to, is now very aware of bullying issues and basically has a no-tolerance policy towards it. Whenever anything comes up, I am contacted as well as the parents of the kids who are doing the bullying. I sometimes fear that my son will be known as a tattle-tale and weak, but his teachers and counsellor applaud him for having the strength and courage to actually say something as so few kids do. I know I never did. (A small part of me hopes that some day he will just snap and kick a little butt, but there's no way I'd say that to him.) They're hoping he joins the anti-bullying group and peer facilitators next year. Hopefully his experiences will help other kids going through the same issues.
Bullying has really become a hot topic in recent years. I suppose it's because of the extremes that some kids have taken when they get to that breaking point. School shootings, suicides. Where we had anti-drug groups in middle school, they now have anti-bullying groups. Songs written, videos all over YouTube. Kids certainly shouldn't feel alone in their pain any more. That's a very helpful thing.
This is my son's new favorite song. I'm not fond of the line, "No one's gonna crie on the very day you die" as I think many kids who were bullies at one point grow out of it with maturity, but nonetheless...
A movie is just about to be released nationwide called Bully. This looks like an amazing documentary that could really do some good if kids are allowed to see it, but unfortunately the MPAA has slapped it with an "R" rating because of language. (Really? Have you seen what they can get away with in PG-13 movies these days?) They're in the process of appealing the decision. Hopefully kids all over will be able to see this and learn from it. Watch the trailer for the movie below.
I have to say, the only issue I have with the recent movement is how centered it is on the gay and lesbian kids who get picked on. Now, I know that they get terribly picked on and I'm not trying to diminish the pain they go through, but they're not the only ones. Let's not forget those kids who are just the unfortunate targets of bullies just because they don't fit into some mold that the person thinks is the "norm."
Looking back on the bullying from an adult perspective, I know that it made me a bit stronger in some respects, but it also gave me extremely low self-esteem for a long time. I'm hoping that because my son and others like him are able to voice their feelings, they won't be as hurt by it all in the long run. In the meantime, it's hard to be a parent watching it all and not being able to do anything but encourage and support him for who he is.
Do you have any strategies on how to deal with bullies? Are you still bullied as an adult? Do you have a bully at work that you have to deal with? What ever happened to the people who bullied you as a kid? What's your story?
Let me sum up a typical Milwaukee newscast on a snowy night like tonight. You won't have to go through the trouble of watching it...
It snowed! It snowed in Milwaukee, it snowed in the western suburbs, it snowed in the southern suburbs, it even snowed waaaaay down in Kenosha. (Watch news people stand in the snow and the wind and measure the snow that fell while talking about how it started as rain, then sleet, then snow. Throw in pictures from the DOT highway cameras.) Let people know the plows are out and exactly how much salt they're using.
Commercial.
Danger! Snowstorms can kill you! Don't drive, shovel, push a snowblower or even step foot outside because there's a chance that YOU WILL DIE!!
Commercial.
Rush is a douche.
Commercial.
Weather report: It snowed! The snow is basically over.
Commercial.
Sports report: AJ Hawk cut his hair. (On a side note, thank god it wasn't Clay Matthews.)
