Attempting Life as an Empty Nester

For years, this blog has been about raising kids, working with kids, and sharing my life with many kids.  When I started the blog, my kids were in the throes of Middle School - and writing to an unknown audience in the great "out there" was cathartic.  I wrote for me.  I wrote about my life.  I wrote about things that make me laugh and while attempting to deal with the very real, very frustrating realities of having three kids who were born within 4 years of each other.  Their birthdays are all in the same week in January, for God's sake.  Not planned to be that way - it just was that way.  So when I say it was a challenge having pre-teen or early teen kids, by God, it really was.  The kids are all polar opposites of each other - if you can imagine that of three children.

Time inevitably marches onward, and my kids grew up.  First one, then another, and finally the last of the kids have moved on.  Oldest son is in graduate school in Pennsylvania.  Middle child is in Kansas, and daughter is in her last year of college, and she decided to move in with friends and be closer to campus rather than continue the commute back and forth to school every day.

We are still the parents to two cats - Hobbes and Luna.  Daughter wanted to take them with her, but the lease said no.  Somehow, the cats are easier to parent than the children were.  (Go figure...)

I can't really post about the kids.  They've  all moved out.  It's just me and the husband at home now.  Posting about how to save money on groceries seems a little insulting when I'm only cooking for 2. 

For now, I'm going to put the Blog on hold.  Enjoy looking back at our past memories!

 

Kindergarten Readiness

This post contains an Affiliate Link to Lulu.com - links to books that I have self-published.  Your purchase from this site goes to support this blog.  Thank you!

So, I've done a thing.  I self-published a set of 3 books aimed at pre-schoolers.  These books are called Building Blocks to School Success, and they are grouped by season: Fall, Winter, and Spring.  Each book contains activities, finger plays, recipes, crafts, and explanations of key literacy concepts that will help you understand why these concepts are so vitally important for your child to master.

Hey Look!  It's my book!

Most importantly, I emphasize again and again that every child learns at a different pace, and every child can succeed - but that the time that they acquire these skills will differ greatly.

I've had them available on Lulu for quite some time, but thought I would actually mention them on here.  If you want to visit my Lulu Author Site, you can find these three books, as well as another wild little memoir that's mostly true that I wrote about my childhood.

You can find my Lulu Site here:

For a limited time, all items are 10% off. 

I've got several more in the works... I'll let you know as I get them published.

Thank you! 

Monty Python Retirement Party

Our branch manager retires today.  I am really going to miss her.  She is an inspired leader who brings out the best in all of her employees without micromanaging.  That's a difficult balance to achieve.

We had her retirement party earlier this week.  It was just a drop by and say good luck event, but it was unexpectedly fun.  She is a huge Monty Python fan, so we themed the party around Monty Python - even going so far as to sing The Lumberjack Song, rewritten to read "I'm a Librarian".

I have a few pictures to share!

Do you remember the scene in Monty Python and the Holy Grail with the Bloody Rabbit?  Well, we made a mock up of the bloody rabbit into a photo booth...

This rabbit was the product of my very twisted imagination.  As you can see from the picture below, cutting out the mouth and adding red paint around the mouth made a huge difference in the overall effect.

 

 

It was a once in a lifetime retirement party!  I wish her the very best in her retirement!

It's What to Read!

I've read a lot - and I mean A LOT of excellent books this summer.  I wanted to share them with you!  In no particular order, here are my favorite reads of the summer!


Hope Never Dies
by Andrew Shaffer
In this amazing book written in the style of a Carolyn Keene Nancy Drew novel, Former Vice President Joe Biden is lamenting the end of 8 grade years and the dissolution of his wonderful Bromance with Barack Obama.  The suspicious demise of his favorite Amtrak conductor leads Joe to find out more.  As he begins to investigate the circumstances of Finn's death, he finds an unexpected partner in Barack Obama and his Secret Service guard, Steve.  The jokes roll nonstop, the plot is solid, and the Bromance continues unabated.  It's a great read for those who appreciate satire.




The Parker Inheritance
by Varian Johnson

This children's book is appropriate for children of all ages.

In 2007, a mysterious letter is sent to 4 people in the city of Lambert, South Carolina.  The letter gives clues to a hidden treasure that will help the people of Lambert.  There's just one catch - the letter is written with a bunch of clues, and the recipients must unscramble the clues in order to find the treasure.  After the City Manager digs up the tennis courts, the hunt is called off, the letters are destroyed, and all is forgotten.  Or is it?

Abigail Caldwell, the former City Manager leaves the letter in a box in her attic for her granddaughter, Candice, to find when she gets older.  Ten years later, in 2017, Candice discovers the letter and begins the hunt to find the treasure.  While on the hunt, Candice and her friend Brandon discover the tense racial history of Lambert. 

As the hunt continues, Candice discovers more about her life, the world around her, and her family.  But will she and Brandon find the treasure before time runs out?

*Remember this book.  I think it's going to be an award winner.

The Invisible Library 
by Genevive Cogman
There exists an interdimensional library.  The great authors exist across all dimensions.  But, not all works exist in every dimension.  The library collects manuscripts and books that are unique to each dimension.  The librarians are the individuals charged with collecting these books and bringing them back to the library.  Complicating their tasks are Dragons and Fey, who exist across all dimensions and work towards their own purposes - sometimes working with the Librarians, and sometimes actively working against them.

Irene and her assistant Kai have been sent to this particular dimension to retrieve a copy of a book that exists only in this dimension.  Unexpected obstacles are thrown in their way by the Fey and another, unknown entity.  As Kai and Irene race against time, can they find the missing text before their unknown adversary?



The Feather Thief: Beauty, Obsession, and the Natural History Heist of the Century
by Kirk Johnson



This true crime novel was NOT what I was expecting when I picked up the book.  In 2007, Edwin Rist, a Flautist with a promising concert career ahead of him broke into the Tring Museum in Great Britain and stole priceless birds - many of these specimens are not extinct - that were collected by Alfred Russell Wallace in the late 19th and early 20th century.

Edwin then very carefully dissected his stolen birds and sold them on the internet to Classic Fly Tiers - people who were desperate for authentic feathers to make their Victorian Fishing Lures more appealing.

Johnson carefully traces the history of the birds, and of the theft of the birds and the recovery of some of the priceless treasure.  I found myself using all of my sluthing skills, garnered after hours of watching NCIS.  The resolution of this story will haunt you.  You will find yourself going back again and again, attempting to figure out what, if anything, you missed.  This book is a must read.

Fascism: A Warning

by Madeline Albright
This book should be required reading for every human on the planet.  Albright takes a look at Facism in the 20th Century.  How it developed in different countries throughout the last hundred years.  No political commentary whatsoever.  Just a historic look back in time.






Children of Blood and Bone
by Tomi Adeyemi

I don't even know where to start this review.  This was a phenomenal book.  From one end to another, one of the best Fantasy Stories I have read in a very long time.  The world building!  The characters!  The character development!  The plots within plots within plots!  I want to put it right up there with Lord of the Rings and the Dragon Lance Chronicles.  WAIT!!!!  THIS IS MY BLOG, I CAN PUT IT WHEREVER I WANT!!!  So, I'm putting this book up there in the same hallowed grounds as my other favorite icons of the Fantasy World. 

Zelie Adebola lives in a world where she must keep her magic hidden.  There was a time when Tiders called the waves, Burners ignited waves, and Reapers called forth souls.  Zelie comes from a long line of magicians.  These magicians were killed by the king's men the night the magic disappeared.

As Zelie's own magic begins to surge, she is forced to hide it, and herself more and more.  The King's men are constantly searching for magicians to purge, and taxing the rest of the citizenry to the breaking point.

The breaking point for Zellie comes when she is forced to go into the city to sell a prize fish her grandfather caught in order to pay the latest levies from the King.  An unexpected series of events leads Zellie and her brother to the place they least want to be: harboring the daughter of the King.

As Zellie attempts to control her magic and growing feelings for the one person she can't afford to love, the story grows only deeper and more gripping.

*Tomi, how long must we wait for the sequel? I am pining away here, waiting for the next book.  Literally wasting away, worrying about Zellie, worrying about Orisha, wanting to know what happens next..... All other books are just a little less bright while I anxiously await the next book.

Fiery Starburst

Have you tried these yet??  They're a wicked combination of sweet and heat.  One of the flavors is watermelon pepper.  They're a disturbing combination of tastes that I really wanted to try.  But I didn't want to buy an entire bag, eat one or two, and then throw the bag out.  Or even worse, buy a bag and then eat the entire thing.  So, I bought a bag and took it to work. 

We had a great time.  Everyone tried one of each flavor, and then we went on about our business.  Someone put the candy in the jar by the coffee pot.  And we promptly forgot about it.

Enter Anna, who was off the day that we brought in the Starbursts.  She grabbed a handful, put one in her mouth, and after a minute started screaming "What is wrong with these things?  Why is my mouth on fire?  What is happening?" 

We told her.

We apologized profusely.

She complained some more.

She drank a lot of water and then complained some more.

10 minutes later, she was back by the coffee pot, digging in the candy jar.  "Well now that I know what the pink one tastes like, I need to see what the yellow one tastes like..."

It's human nature.  It makes you wonder how we've managed to survive for this long, doesn't it?

Chief Security Officer's Report

 It's been an interesting time here in the Mid-Atlantic sector.  I am new to the post and have many things to relate in this, my first security report back to the Federation.

I have been playing with something called "yarn".  It's green and blue, and Mom is making it into a shrug.  Or so she says.  I think it is alive.  When she works on it, the yarn moves!  I do my best to kill it so it won't hurt her, but all I hear is "No Hobbes, don't do that!" and then she puts all of the yarn away, just killing my fun.

We had strangers come into the Station two weeks ago.  They removed a freezer from the basement.  Dad (the hairy human) said that they were from the electric company, and were going to remove an old appliance for us.  In exchange, they would give us money to get an old appliance off the grid.  (What is this "grid"?)  I subjected them to a thorough Screening before allowing them into the Station.  While I smelled many new and intriguing smells, none seemed threatening.  The strangers smiled at me and attempted to scratch my ears!  Can you believe the unmitigated gall of them!  I kept a close eye on them, watching their every move from the top of the stairs as well as from the top of the kitchen refrigerator.  As they were leaving the house, I gave them a final hiss to let them know that they were no longer welcome in the Station.  

 These "flowers" came into the house last week.  They smell very nice, but they don't taste all that great.  I ate one, but then the girl started yelling at me "No, Hobbes!  Don't eat that!  My BF gave them to me!  Stop it!"  She then pulled the "flowers" away from me.  After further investigation, I discovered that these flowers are called "Roses" and that the girl's special friend gave them to her. 

I keep hearing this word "NO".  I still don't know what it means, but I hear it a LOT.  I have been investigating it, and I have discovered that I hear it more when I do things that are really fun - like taking salmon off of a plate when somebody gets up from the table, pulling a wallet out of a purse, sitting on the kitchen counter and eating chicken off the cutting board, or untying shoelaces.  I really don't like this word.

Commander Luna is slowly getting adjusted to her new Command Position.  She doesn't respond to being called "Hey You", or even "Miss", but she does love to be called Commander.  I am having a hard time calling her Commander, but I am getting used to it.  She didn't care for me much at first, but she has accepted me.  We now touch noses, nuzzle against each other, play chase around the house, and every once in a while, we even play footsie.  I think I'm going to like this assignment. 

The humans in the house found a new and interesting way to torment the felines in the house.  This torture device houses food and treats.  Mom calls it a "stimulation" toy.  It's supposed to enrich our lives and keep us challenged and interested.  We were considering calling this cruel and unusual, but they are putting the really good chicken treats in here, so we are holding off on invoking the Geneva Catventions.

 

Lieutenant Hobbes
Chief Security Officer
Station #1
Mid-Atlantic Sector

John Cleese

We celebrated our anniversary last month.  Husband and I went to see Monty Python and the Holy Grail, which was followed by a Q & A Session with John Cleese.  We went to the Lyric Theater in Baltimore to see him.  Long story short, we had a fantastic time!  If you ever get a chance to see him, it is worth your time. 

He spoke about many things, answered audience questions, showed some of his favorite clips from his movies, and joked about so many things.  He is funny and compelling, a captivating speaker.

I think the favorite story he told was about how George Harrison funded Life of Brian.  No movie studio would touch it.  They didn't think it was funny or worth their time.  (At this point, Cleese reiterated that Life of Brian has been named one of the top 10 funniest films of all time.)  The movie was funded when George Harrison read the script.  He laughed so hard while he was reading it that he fell out of bed.  He funded the movie because he wanted to actually see it on the screen.

John Cleese, right.

Husband and I have been married for 28 years.  I hope we get at least 28 more!