April 4th on the Today Show! I'll be watching:
New Kids on the Block to appear on Today Show
also check out the vids at:
What's Hot: Block Watch
The 14-year-old girl in me is giddy with anticipation!
Monday, March 31, 2008
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Kisses, the Phillies, and my bod
Matt and I are anniversary-keepers. In addition to our wedding anniversary, we also celebrate the day we started dating, the day we first had sex, the day we found out we were expecting Jacob, etc.
Today is the anniversary of our first kiss. It happened March 27th, 1991. 17 loooonnng years ago, and I was 17 at the time, which means I have been kissing this man for half my life. That makes me feel old, but more than that, it makes me feel very lucky ;)
On another note, here's why the Phillies suck: This year, you could only buy opening day tickets if you bought season tickets, a partial season plan, or at the very least a 6-pack of game day tickets. I haven't missed a home opener since before I got married. Jacob was 5 weeks old at his first home opener, and has never missed one. But this year, because of the Phillies' stupid new policy, we're missing out. I'm thinking about writing a letter, but then, I don't know how much good it will do... obviously they're not interested in tradition, just money.
Now, an update on my bod: I went to see my chiropractor yesterday, and he did an assessment of my injuries from the accident. I have a rib misalignment, the whole left side of my back is in spasm, and my left hip is messed up. I'm going back tomorrow and will likely be seeing him 3x a week for the next few months. He also wants me to wait to go back to the gym for a little while longer, which I understand, but still makes me mad. It's so annoying that someone else's driving mistake is costing me so much.
I also still have the annoying cold, which unlike most colds I've had started in my chest and then worked its way up to my head (usually they go the other way for me). Mucinex is helping with the cough but nothing's helping with the snot situation... bleh. I think I'll have to do Lisa's warm-salt-water-in-every-orifice trick soon. This is always my time of year to be sick.
Today is the anniversary of our first kiss. It happened March 27th, 1991. 17 loooonnng years ago, and I was 17 at the time, which means I have been kissing this man for half my life. That makes me feel old, but more than that, it makes me feel very lucky ;)
On another note, here's why the Phillies suck: This year, you could only buy opening day tickets if you bought season tickets, a partial season plan, or at the very least a 6-pack of game day tickets. I haven't missed a home opener since before I got married. Jacob was 5 weeks old at his first home opener, and has never missed one. But this year, because of the Phillies' stupid new policy, we're missing out. I'm thinking about writing a letter, but then, I don't know how much good it will do... obviously they're not interested in tradition, just money.
Now, an update on my bod: I went to see my chiropractor yesterday, and he did an assessment of my injuries from the accident. I have a rib misalignment, the whole left side of my back is in spasm, and my left hip is messed up. I'm going back tomorrow and will likely be seeing him 3x a week for the next few months. He also wants me to wait to go back to the gym for a little while longer, which I understand, but still makes me mad. It's so annoying that someone else's driving mistake is costing me so much.
I also still have the annoying cold, which unlike most colds I've had started in my chest and then worked its way up to my head (usually they go the other way for me). Mucinex is helping with the cough but nothing's helping with the snot situation... bleh. I think I'll have to do Lisa's warm-salt-water-in-every-orifice trick soon. This is always my time of year to be sick.
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
I'm ready to trade in my 2008
It's only the end of March, and I'm already done with 2008. This year has not gone well! Can I get a refund?
The worst thing about being laid up -- again -- is missing my Tuesday yoga class and trainer session -- again -- while there's all this Chocolate Bunny Sex Day candy in my house. This is worse than the Girl Scout cookies...
And on top of the car accident, Jacob and I now have a chest cold. Bleh. He seems to be recovering (fever's down today) but I'm getting worse...
Any way I can just fast forward to 2009...? Oh wait, I just remembered how old I'll be in 2009! EEK! I'll keep 2008, never mind ;)
The worst thing about being laid up -- again -- is missing my Tuesday yoga class and trainer session -- again -- while there's all this Chocolate Bunny Sex Day candy in my house. This is worse than the Girl Scout cookies...
And on top of the car accident, Jacob and I now have a chest cold. Bleh. He seems to be recovering (fever's down today) but I'm getting worse...
Any way I can just fast forward to 2009...? Oh wait, I just remembered how old I'll be in 2009! EEK! I'll keep 2008, never mind ;)
Sunday, March 23, 2008
Another day, another trip to the ER...
Yesterday I went back to the ER again because my back was hurting so bad, I thought maybe I had a broken rib. I had x-rays done and my ribs are okay, but the doctor (same one I saw 2 days earlier) thought my lungs may have been compromised due to trauma to my chest wall. So, now I have this interesting-looking apparatus that I have to breathe through ten times an hour to make sure my lung doesn't collapse (eek).
On the way home from the ER in our rental, we were almost sideswiped. I think maybe I'm never getting in a car again...
On the way home from the ER in our rental, we were almost sideswiped. I think maybe I'm never getting in a car again...
Friday, March 21, 2008
Crash!
My life is never uneventful. Always something happening to keep me on my toes... or, in this case, flat on my back, strapped to a board, in the back of an ambulance.
Yesterday I left for the gym a bit early, hoping to stop at Target to pick up a few essentials for Jacob's chocolate bunny day basket. Long story short, I had stopped before turning right to let a handicapped woman and a child finish crossing the street, some idiot slammed into me, and I was rushed to the hospital. As you can see, I'm alive, but my back and neck hurt like a motherbitch...
Blah.
Yesterday I left for the gym a bit early, hoping to stop at Target to pick up a few essentials for Jacob's chocolate bunny day basket. Long story short, I had stopped before turning right to let a handicapped woman and a child finish crossing the street, some idiot slammed into me, and I was rushed to the hospital. As you can see, I'm alive, but my back and neck hurt like a motherbitch...
Blah.
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Uninsured
I've known my husband, Matt, since I was in the seventh grade. (For those keeping score, that's about 21 years ago.) We were friends for a long time before we became a couple, and I've known much of his family for almost as long as I've known my own.
At this time of year, my thoughts always turn to Matt's godmother, whom we affectionately referred to as "Aunt Purple." Not a relative by blood, as his parents' best friend she was nevertheless his favorite aunt and they were very close. I first met her at Matt's brother's wedding, and she and I hit it off immediately and spent the reception dancing together and having a blast -- she was one of the most fun people I'd ever met.
One year, almost half my life ago, she and Matt and I began a tradition of getting together every year for St. Patrick's Day. We would dress all in green, including green false eyelashes, temporary tattoos, mardi gras beads, glow sticks, etc, and we'd go out to eat, drink, dance and laugh, usually at our local Bennigan's. Every year I looked forward to our get-together. It was my favorite holiday tradition, and the only one that truly felt like my own -- no obligations, just fun.
Over the years, I got to know Aunt Purple better, and we became very close. One of the things I loved and admired most about her was her ability to truly be herself in every situation. She knew who she was and she never compromised herself in order to fit in -- and you couldn't help but love her. She adopted me as her goddaughter, and when I had Jacob, she couldn't have loved him more if he'd been her own grandson.
Her early life had been quite difficult. Her birth mother died while Aunt P was still a baby, and her father remarried, then he died a few years later. She was raised by her stepmother and older stepsisters, who never truly accepted her as their sister. Like me, she married young, and also like me, struggled with infertility before finally becoming a mother (she and her husband adopted a baby boy.) Like me, she made the decision to forgo outside work and make her home and family the center of her world.
But unlike me, Aunt Purple had an abusive husband who eventually broke her heart and left her emotionally and financially devastated. For many years she struggled to find a steady job that would pay her bills, but her lack of education and a changing economy made that very difficult. She was frequently out of work, and the jobs that she was able to find didn't pay well and had little or no benefits. Her ex-husband gained sole custody of their son and, without his mother's influence, he became as abusive and self-serving as his father, only calling his mother when he wanted something from her. One day, she tripped and fell on her front step and shattered both of her feet. It took a long time to heal from the injuries, and she missed a lot of work as her medical bills piled up. Eventually, she lost her home and had to move into a cramped one-bedroom apartment.
In the spring of 2002, Aunt P was out of work once again and receiving unemployment, which was barely enough to scrape by. One day, she had what she believed to be a heart attack. A friend took her to the ER, and was admitted for tests, but a few days later they sent her home and told her that she hadn't had a heart attack. The hospital bills began coming in immediately, and she decided to try to apply for medical assistance. They told her she made too much money (with unemployment) to qualify. "How much is too much?" she asked. She made $20 a month over the limit for medical assistance. Aunt P reached into her wallet, pulled out a $20 bill, and laid it on the table. "Now, do I qualify?" The answer was no.
In the days that followed, she had dizzy spells and trouble breathing, and she went to yet another ER. She was admitted to this hospital and seen by a doctor who blamed her problems on her excess weight, and once again she was sent home, where she continued to have dizzy spells and trouble breathing. She drew up a living will and named Matt her executor, although he and I both told her we were sure she would be just fine.
A few weeks later, one of Aunt P's close friends, panicked by the fact that she hadn't answered her phone all day, went over to the apartment, let herself in with her key, and found Aunt P's body on the floor. She immediately called Matt, and he and I were both shocked and completely devastated. We requested that an autopsy be done, and when we got the coroner's report, it said that the cause of death was suffocation due to scar tissue that had been caused by a heart attack. Yes, the very same heart attack she'd supposedly never had. She was only 54 years old.
Whenever I hear anyone dismissing the idea of universal health coverage, I wonder if they've ever had the opportunity to watch a person that they loved die due to a lack of health care, simply because they didn't have or couldn't afford coverage. After all, it's not an uncommon thing in the USA -- the only wealthy, industrialized nation which refuses to provide its citizens with this most basic of human needs: across the country in 2006, twice as many people died from lack of health insurance as died from homicide. 11.3% of Pennsylvanians are uninsured, and an average of two working-age Pennsylvanians die every day because they lack coverage. Uninsured people have to forgo routine health screenings, and they wait longer to see a doctor, and so they are more likely to be diagnosed with diseases in their advanced stages. Uninsured people have a 25% higher rate of premature death than those with private insurance, and lack of insurance is the third-leading cause of death for people aged 55-64. Uninsured people also pay more for care, because they don't have insurance companies negotiating lower costs for them. (These statistics are from familiesusa.org).
I'm very fortunate, as a full-time mom who chooses not to work outside the home, that I have excellent coverage through Matt's job. Still, a roll of the dice and I could have easily been in Aunt P's shoes (and to be honest, so could any of us.) She was a wonderful, vibrant human being who was taken far too soon, and her death was completely preventable. For me, the national health care debate will always be deeply, profoundly personal.
At this time of year, my thoughts always turn to Matt's godmother, whom we affectionately referred to as "Aunt Purple." Not a relative by blood, as his parents' best friend she was nevertheless his favorite aunt and they were very close. I first met her at Matt's brother's wedding, and she and I hit it off immediately and spent the reception dancing together and having a blast -- she was one of the most fun people I'd ever met.
One year, almost half my life ago, she and Matt and I began a tradition of getting together every year for St. Patrick's Day. We would dress all in green, including green false eyelashes, temporary tattoos, mardi gras beads, glow sticks, etc, and we'd go out to eat, drink, dance and laugh, usually at our local Bennigan's. Every year I looked forward to our get-together. It was my favorite holiday tradition, and the only one that truly felt like my own -- no obligations, just fun.
Over the years, I got to know Aunt Purple better, and we became very close. One of the things I loved and admired most about her was her ability to truly be herself in every situation. She knew who she was and she never compromised herself in order to fit in -- and you couldn't help but love her. She adopted me as her goddaughter, and when I had Jacob, she couldn't have loved him more if he'd been her own grandson.
Her early life had been quite difficult. Her birth mother died while Aunt P was still a baby, and her father remarried, then he died a few years later. She was raised by her stepmother and older stepsisters, who never truly accepted her as their sister. Like me, she married young, and also like me, struggled with infertility before finally becoming a mother (she and her husband adopted a baby boy.) Like me, she made the decision to forgo outside work and make her home and family the center of her world.
But unlike me, Aunt Purple had an abusive husband who eventually broke her heart and left her emotionally and financially devastated. For many years she struggled to find a steady job that would pay her bills, but her lack of education and a changing economy made that very difficult. She was frequently out of work, and the jobs that she was able to find didn't pay well and had little or no benefits. Her ex-husband gained sole custody of their son and, without his mother's influence, he became as abusive and self-serving as his father, only calling his mother when he wanted something from her. One day, she tripped and fell on her front step and shattered both of her feet. It took a long time to heal from the injuries, and she missed a lot of work as her medical bills piled up. Eventually, she lost her home and had to move into a cramped one-bedroom apartment.
In the spring of 2002, Aunt P was out of work once again and receiving unemployment, which was barely enough to scrape by. One day, she had what she believed to be a heart attack. A friend took her to the ER, and was admitted for tests, but a few days later they sent her home and told her that she hadn't had a heart attack. The hospital bills began coming in immediately, and she decided to try to apply for medical assistance. They told her she made too much money (with unemployment) to qualify. "How much is too much?" she asked. She made $20 a month over the limit for medical assistance. Aunt P reached into her wallet, pulled out a $20 bill, and laid it on the table. "Now, do I qualify?" The answer was no.
In the days that followed, she had dizzy spells and trouble breathing, and she went to yet another ER. She was admitted to this hospital and seen by a doctor who blamed her problems on her excess weight, and once again she was sent home, where she continued to have dizzy spells and trouble breathing. She drew up a living will and named Matt her executor, although he and I both told her we were sure she would be just fine.
A few weeks later, one of Aunt P's close friends, panicked by the fact that she hadn't answered her phone all day, went over to the apartment, let herself in with her key, and found Aunt P's body on the floor. She immediately called Matt, and he and I were both shocked and completely devastated. We requested that an autopsy be done, and when we got the coroner's report, it said that the cause of death was suffocation due to scar tissue that had been caused by a heart attack. Yes, the very same heart attack she'd supposedly never had. She was only 54 years old.
Whenever I hear anyone dismissing the idea of universal health coverage, I wonder if they've ever had the opportunity to watch a person that they loved die due to a lack of health care, simply because they didn't have or couldn't afford coverage. After all, it's not an uncommon thing in the USA -- the only wealthy, industrialized nation which refuses to provide its citizens with this most basic of human needs: across the country in 2006, twice as many people died from lack of health insurance as died from homicide. 11.3% of Pennsylvanians are uninsured, and an average of two working-age Pennsylvanians die every day because they lack coverage. Uninsured people have to forgo routine health screenings, and they wait longer to see a doctor, and so they are more likely to be diagnosed with diseases in their advanced stages. Uninsured people have a 25% higher rate of premature death than those with private insurance, and lack of insurance is the third-leading cause of death for people aged 55-64. Uninsured people also pay more for care, because they don't have insurance companies negotiating lower costs for them. (These statistics are from familiesusa.org).
I'm very fortunate, as a full-time mom who chooses not to work outside the home, that I have excellent coverage through Matt's job. Still, a roll of the dice and I could have easily been in Aunt P's shoes (and to be honest, so could any of us.) She was a wonderful, vibrant human being who was taken far too soon, and her death was completely preventable. For me, the national health care debate will always be deeply, profoundly personal.
Saturday, March 15, 2008
Paris: Day 5, or "Au revoir, Paris!"
Paris Travel Journal
Day 5
I tried to sleep in, as we had been out late (by Parisian standards, anyhow) the night before, but it’s hard to sleep when Paris is right outside your window, and pains au chocolat are right downstairs!
Although it was raining, after breakfast we returned to the Quartier Latin, this time for the “literary walking tour” outlined in one of our travel guides. The entire tour would have taken three hours, but because of my ankle we decided to just do a few highlights: the Hemingway stuff. I had read “A Moveable Feast” in preparation for our Paris trip, and was excited to see the places where “Papa” lived and worked in Paris.
74 rue Cardinal Lemoine, where Hemingway lived with his first wife, Hadley, and their son
37 rue Descartes, where Hemingway wrote. This building is also where the poet Paul Verlaine lived (and died).
Place de la Contrescarpe -- a very pretty plaza once described by Hemingway as a "cesspool"... lol.
For lunch, we stopped in at a little pizza restaurant and shared a pie with salami and mortadella, and I had a glass of the house red. Everything, of course, was delicious, and it’s fun to hear French spoken with an Italian accent!
After that, we walked across the Seine to Notre Dame, the famous cathedral immortalized in Hugo’s “Hunchback.” We walked around the outside of the building first, admiring the gothic architecture.
Then we went inside, and in this church, we were actually allowed to take photos (I suspect they got tired of telling people not to!)
One of the little "chapelles" around the perimeter of the cathedral
Matt tries to blend in with the spooky gothic-ness of Notre Dame, lol
We left Notre Dame and crossed back to the Latin Quarter. There were so many cute little shops, and it was time for souvenir shopping. And, when my ankle pain became unbearable, a stop in a boulangerie for another café crème and pain au chocolat ;)
Rue de la Huchette, an old, winding street full of places to eat and shop
We topped off our day with a boat ride along the Seine. We walked along the river to get to the boat, and saw a few cool things along the way:
Le Grand Palais, an exhibition hall
I love these teensy little French cars!
Just thought this tree outside Le Grand Palais was really cool-looking
The Pont Alexandre III bridge
The sky looked so pretty!
The boat ride was a nice, warm break from the cold and rainy streets of Paris, and along the way we we got an extra-special treat:
Un arc-en-ciel! Très beau!
After our boat ride, it was time to say au revoir to the sights of Paris, because our flight would be early the next morning. On the way back to our hotel, we saw a fruit vendor and stopped and got some fraises:
They had some competition from the pains au chocolat, but strawberries are still my favoritest food ;)
I really wish our trip had been longer, because there was so much we didn’t get a chance to see or do (or eat, lol). If – no, WHEN I travel there again, I would love to rent an apartment for two weeks, although I suspect that still wouldn’t be enough! I’m trying to convince Matt that we could live very happily in a little farmhouse outside Paris, but he’s not yet convinced that he could learn enough French to survive…
I cried a bit when our flight took off. Although I missed Jacob, I really did NOT want to come home. Life is so much better when you’re traveling – no work, no cooking, no bills to pay, and someone comes in and cleans your room for you! Add to that the magic of Paris and… I’m surprised they didn’t have to drag me kicking and screaming into the airplane.
I hope you’ve enjoyed my attempts to take you with me on my travels!
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