Thursday, July 31, 2003
Someone recently introduced me to the concept of the "buttamid". Apparently this is something that people occasionally do when they get together in groups and alcohol has been consumed. I'm trying to understand how that thought process works:
"That was a nice wedding. Good beer, too. Hey, let's drop our pants and form a mooning human pyramid!"
I, for one, have never gotten together with my friends, piled on top of one another, and mooned anyone, much less allowed others to photograph me doing this. (And the world breathes a sigh of relief to know that.) It's fairly rare that I attend a social event where nekkid butts figure prominently in the entertainment.
Having seen the photographic evidence of the buttamid, laughed heartily, and succumbed to the temptation to attempt to identify the butt belonging to my Buttamid Guru, I'm thinking that this must surely be a guy thing.
# posted by Amanda at 11:50 AM |
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Tuesday, July 29, 2003
So many little bitties of news and thoughts, where to begin?
 Obsession: The note-writing and list-making is out of control. This was pulled from my Little Black Bag on Friday---odd scraps of paper, receipts, brochures and business cards bearing scribbled notes dating as far back as July 2002 (the Latin name for some species of butterfly), most of which became irrelevant shortly after being jotted down and stuffed into my purse.
Paranoia: I flew to Ohio and back over the weekend, and finally figured out why I've never been bothered by a weirdo while on an airplane. Turns out that I'm the irrationally panicked passenger that all other passengers wish to avoid. I did fairly well this time, meaning that I did not try to escape through a window during the flight. However, I did follow the safety recommendations to wear clothing with melt-resistant fiber content and thoroughly read the emergency exit instructions on each flight. Not bloody likely that either of these things would really be helpful in the event of an actual air disaster, but it makes me feel better.
Disbelief: Every time I've flown in the past two years, I've been pulled aside for special security scrutiny due to wearing (1) shoes with teensy silver buckles or (2) wiry undergarments. Apparently both of these items contain enough metal to register on the security system. Would you believe that this time the Security Goons didn't even pause the conveyer belt to take a closer look at the x-ray of my bag containing 40 3-inch metal cookie cutters? It was a bit anti-climatic... (By the way, the cookie cutters were baby shower favors. Foot shaped, filled with milk and dark chocolate, topped with a layer of pink or blue chocolate, and wrapped in cellophane and ribbons. Pretty darn cute, if I may say so.)
 Excitement: The purpose of the trip was to attend the shower for Baby Wiz. Traci was at 34 weeks last weekend, which in pregnancy terms translates to "soon but not soon enough." All things considered, she's doing very well, and didn't seem nearly as surly as would be expected in the 8th month. (Jeff might disagree. Then again, he might know better than to voice that opinion. Pregnant women have mood swings, ya know.)
This shower was without a doubt the nicest one I've ever attended. (Check out the really adorable farm-themed cake.) One of the gifts I gave Baby Wiz is the pictured pink sleeper...wishful thinking, mostly, since the wee one refused to cooperate during the sonograms and the gender is still unknown. It was fun to buy tiny baby girl clothes again...*sniffle*...Sophie has long since outgrown the "tiny" stage.
Homecoming: Speaking of Sophie, she survived her first weekend without Mommy. More to the point, Mommy survived her first overnight away from her Baby Girl. Sean was visibly relieved when I arrived home and literally took the baby off his hands. He even made a special homecoming dinner for me: samosas, pulav and chicken korma.
Gee, I should travel more often!
# posted by Amanda at 9:21 PM |
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Tuesday, July 22, 2003
Having long since accepted the fact that the freaks always manage to find me, it did not surprise me when a scuzzy-looking couple (both of them with grey teeth) got behind us in the checkout line and wanted to chitchat about our baby. In a matter of less than 3 minutes, the standard questions that strangers always ask ("How old is she? What's her name?") gave way to a disturbingly invasive inquiry:
"Was she planned?"
A question like that - especially posed by total strangers - really doesn't deserve a real response or even a polite sidestep. I had always intended to answer that one by smiling vacantly, murmuring "It was in accordance with the prophecy," and perhaps adding something about bags of weasels falling from the sky as a sign of the apocalypse.
These folks didn't look like they'd be put off by a response like that. In fact, they appeared to be more of the type that 1) would be very interested in hearing about any hallucinogenic properties of the weasels, and 2) would want to share their own apocalyptic predictions.
I ended up stammering out a shocked response, to which the couple replied that they are trying to start a family. Trust me, the result of the merging of their gene pools will be one tremendous UberFreak.
# posted by Amanda at 8:01 PM |
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Sunday, July 20, 2003
Finding a nice birthday card for "Daddy" from a small child turned out to be a hell of a lot more complicated than expected. Now, I understand that there might not be a huge demand for birthday cards designed to be given by 6-month-old babies, but even at a Hallmark store in an affluent area where presumably the traditional two-parent (read: two-income) family is the norm, the selection was pathetic. Of the five cards I found, one was an incredibly stupid Tweety Bird card and three were meant to be given by multiple kids and/or boy children. The card with the best fit showed a bear daddy and bear cub playing with sailboats.
Oddly, there were many more options for birthday cards for grandfathers of small children. Hmm.
# posted by Amanda at 11:43 AM |
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Wednesday, July 16, 2003
It continues to not be my week.
I'm sick with something that feels remarkably similar to the food poisoning (a.k.a. the Three Bad Crabs Diet) I had two years ago. That episode was responsible for taking me from a size 8 to a size 6. Judging by how things have been going today, I should be a size 4 in no time.
Also, one of the cars is still in the shop. It seems that while I was on maternity leave this winter, a mouse took advantage of the unused vehicle and built a nest in the engine. For reasons unknown, the critter chewed through the fuel line (and drunk on gasoline, perished elsewhere in the garage - ew). Rodent damage might be covered by insurance, so while that is being sorted out, we are waiting for a rental vehicle to become available somewhere in a 30 mile radius from home. We'd probably have better luck finding a rental yacht.
# posted by Amanda at 2:32 PM |
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Tuesday, July 15, 2003
I thought it was pretty funny when Sean reported yesterday that Sophie had squeegeed the contents of her diaper onto the floor as she scooted around on her back. (Admittedy, I would have found it much less amusing if I had to clean up the baby and the carpet.)
I did not find it at all funny that Sophie had two diaper blowouts today, both times in outfits that she was wearing for the first time.
Now that I'm thinking about it, this is Day Three in a row of the Very Leaky Baby, and a grand total of four brand new outfits have had the ol' bleach treatment.
Nope, not funny at all.
# posted by Amanda at 8:32 PM |
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Monday, July 14, 2003
Ongoing Company X angst: although I quit over a month ago, I still have not received my final paycheck, nor have I gotten a full explanation of why it is delayed.
# posted by Amanda at 7:54 PM |
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Endings are never easy. It's not just that they're hard on the spirit, it's also that they require a special set of operational skills. There are the matters of what to say, how to feel about it and above all, finding the best time - the right time - for it to happen.
As it turned out, the timing was not perfect, but we had run out of weekends and had therefore missed all the opportunities for a well-planned farewell. Neither one of us actually said "goodbye" (at least not that I can recall), just made promises to stay in touch and get together when possible.
Of course we intend to visit, but it's the "when possible" part that makes everything so uncertain.
# posted by Amanda at 1:01 PM |
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Friday, July 11, 2003
Emails come in, but responses aren't being generated. I'm not ignoring people, really. Lately it has been difficult for me to remember to do ANYTHING if it's been delayed even a few hours, which means that I'm operating in the immediate or not at all.
To all those who are owed an email: this weekend, I promise.
# posted by Amanda at 11:45 AM |
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Tuesday, July 08, 2003
Joy! Today I received part of my next project: 40 pieces of tin, direct from a Pennsylvania tinsmith. More than enough to keep me busy until the end of July!
# posted by Amanda at 7:41 PM |
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The Weekend in Review, Part II
After a couple of days of rest, rest, rest for Sophie, we were able to salvage Sunday and venture out. In the morning we stolled the North Beach boardwalk (with a sleepy Sophie and a scorching hot Toby-poodle), admired the beach houses and poked through a few pooch-friendly shops. I'm becoming increasingly enamoured of the waterfront lifestyle and the town itself. The residents are an odd mix, and I'm considering the growing alternative population to be a sign of cultural infusion in this good ol' boy county. Now, if someone would just open a vegetarian cafe...
In the afternoon we went to a family cookout, caught up on news and passed around the "babies". As always, Sophie enjoyed being the center of attention, much to Mitzi's (a papillon) dismay. Too short a visit, but good to see the folks who were able to be there.
# posted by Amanda at 11:36 AM |
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Monday, July 07, 2003
I've found the portal to Hell, it is in my office.
Company Y (a.k.a. The New Job) is having a more efficient air conditioning system installed. The installation crew assured us that we'd be without air conditioning for two, maybe three days.
That was two, maybe three weeks ago. Meanwhile, my office could double as an easy-bake oven. The office dog didn't even report to work today, which demonstrates more intelligence than the rest of us have shown.
# posted by Amanda at 11:48 AM |
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Saturday, July 05, 2003
The Weekend in Review, Part I
Thus far this holiday weekend, we've had to back out of four invitations due to a sick baby. Poor Sophie has spent the past two days sleeping and is still feeling miserable. I'd like to go knock some heads together at her daycare, namely those of the Daycare Mommies who insisted that their sniffling, hacking kids had "just allergies" last week. Now Sophie has like-HELL-it's-just-allergies coughing, fever and runny nose. (The runny nose still icks me to no end.)
I baked a cake for one of the barbecues we missed on July 4th. Triple layer chocolate stout cake (made with Guinness!) with ganache frosting. Dark velvety chocolate goodness at a thousand calories a slice. Sean delivered the cake to the barbecue and returned with a consolation plate of party food, including a solid blue cupcake. Smurf blue. With red, white and blue sprinkles on a thick layer of blue icing. Kids probably really go for that stuff, although Sophie will never be allowed to consume anything that color.
Speaking of things that aren't good for the body, today I encountered a black widow spider while gardening. By "encountered", I mean that I actually touched it before seeing/feeling it. Fortunately, it didn't get a chance to bite me, but it was quickly dispatched all the same. Ugh.
Tomorrow's fun: photographing the snakeskin that we found in the shed.
# posted by Amanda at 9:18 PM |
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Thursday, July 03, 2003
Suddenly Sophie has become a little person instead of a tiny baby. She has grown so much lately that I worry I'll miss some new development if I look away even for a second.
Pictures from last night: Sophie with assorted loveys.
# posted by Amanda at 1:20 PM |
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Tuesday, July 01, 2003
 Have I mentioned how much I love having houseguests? It's a great excuse to experiment with menus...and remodel/redecorate the house...and visit the nearby areas of interest.
My cousin and her husband visited us this past weekend. Traci and I are about 2 months apart in age, and our first babies will also share a birthyear since Little Wiz is due September 11th. Still no confirmation on whether it's to be a She- or He-Wiz, but the old wives' tales indicate a girl baby! Either way, we're thrilled for Traci and Jeff, and know that they will be great parents. Sophie really enjoyed having two more people around to fuss over her and provide soft laps.
The theme of the weekend was "water". We live in a beach town on the West Shore of the East Coast, what else would you expect? The weather cooperated, for a change.
Saturday's Annapolis excursion featured lunch at the Ram's Head Tavern, then a stroll around the dock (lots of wedding parties happening there, plenty of peach bridesmaid dresses) and through the Naval Academy grounds before ending up downtown for ice cream.
On Sunday, we went to Old Town Alexandria and enjoyed the shops and waterfront. (Next time, Toby goes with us. Sooo many doggies playing in the park and walking the streets!)
When the visit ended, it was hard to say goodbye. Sophie cried. (Okay, she was probably crying because she was hungry, but I think she misses her special visitors, too.) I'm hoping that we're able to visit Traci and Jeff at least a couple more times this year, and meet the new addition to their family.
# posted by Amanda at 11:53 AM |
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