Excuse me?

It's all just depressing. Come on US, let's get our shit together!
The bailout plan was denied. I'm not sure if it was the right choice or not, but what I do know is that the market crashed and burned yesterday with my money in it. Ugh. So today I checked my accounts. I have the typical 401k setup through work and I also have a separate IRA fund with my local financial institution. I am unable to check the 401k this morn because their system is down. Nice timing. I did call my financial guy and had a little chat about the IRA, asking his opinion. When I checked those funds online it appears that I lost a nice little chunk of cash over the last two month, but hey, I'm young. I have to keep looking at it with that mindset. 40 isn't exactly spring chicken, but it is when I consider that I have 25 more years of investment time. I'll get that money back.

It's frustrating. This whole "depression of 2008" thing. Here I am trying to think happy thoughts while the cost of absolutely everything is sky-rocketing. My friends are losing their jobs and my company is hanging by a thread. We're weeks away from the Presidential election and I'm scared shitless of what will happen after that choice is made. I'm still paying my bills on time, but what will happen next? How much worse can the economy get?

Speaking of shit, did you see the portion of the debate where McCain is assumed to have said "horseshit" twice in response to Obama's comments? It hasn't been confirmed, but see for yourself. Very impressive old man...
http://www.opednews.com/articles/McCain-says-Horseshit-on-by-Steven-Leser-080927-121.html

Out of Africa

This is a lot like my new purse that I purchased at Cranfest, although the trim is orange instead of hot pink. Ain't it cool?

Short term future?

The word from our CEO is that with the product we are shipping out today and the number of people we are employing - we should be able to make it until 2010. Don't know if that's January 2010 or October 2010, but either way it gives me reassurance that I'm good for a year and that the job search is still absolutely mandatory. Of course we could win some big OE programs or our aftermarket sales could suddenly turn around, but that's all a big IF. I'm not holding my breath. I'm all for optimism, but realism is where I'm at right now with my career. I have bills to pay and little people to support.

I don't know what happens in 2010. History has shown plenty of small businesses that have closed their doors in the county over the years. It's highly probable for us.

Double down

I took vacation Friday and headed on over to Cranfest with Sara. We've been going every year since I'm not sure. Maybe seven years? Anyway... we had a great day and bought a few nice things. Not as much loot as we usually come home with, but a select few items that caught our eye. I got two silver bracelets that were an incredible price, a new glass slide, this year's Xmas ornaments for the three of us (each year we get a special one), some jibbits and rocks for the girls (the rocks had their names engraved), a Vegas puzzle for Janie and a really cool giraffe print purse. I was iffy on the purse and pissed that the dude wouldn't let me talk him down. It was marked $35 and knowing how much cash they make on them, I tried to get it for $30. He said no and I put it back on the rack with an "I'll show him" attitude. After I walked out of the tent Sara told me to go buy the damn thing. We both loved it, but I was holding onto my pride over $5. Finally I broke down and went back in. A young girl was holding the same purse that I was buying and after I commented on how cool they were she reassured me that they were "very hip and in". That confirmed it. I bought the purse with my tail between my legs.

After a few hours of sweating bullets and sore feet from walking, we got back in the CRV and cruised down to the Dells for an overnight. We stayed at Ho Chunk. Ate a little dinner at a microbrew, had some drinks out and then went back for some blackjack. Sara got antsy at the table after a while because blackjack "is too slow" for her. She likes her games with a little more action. Although she was doing well, she opted for the poker machines. I played a few hours at the table on $40 and walked away dead even, which I was more than happy with. For me it's the hours of entertainment that I'm after, not a huge profit.

We had a very full, exhausting day. This was a record breaking year for us in a few ways. It was the highest temp ever at Cranfest (over 80); we normally have layers on to keep warm. It was also the earliest we have ever gone to bed. I was out cold with sleeping pills at midnight, versus the other 3am years. And last, but not least, it was definitely the best I've ever felt the day after. We usually drive home with heavy heads and laughing jags from being so punchy. Today we grabbed some breakfast and felt pretty darn good.

It could be worse, right??

Last night I dreamt that I was having sexual relations with Dr. Phil. No shit. The odd part about this (as if seeing Dr. Phil naked isn't strange enough) is that I don't even watch his show. I can't tell you the last time I saw his face on TV. So, why???

Here's the kicker. He was fantastic. Some of the details are pretty clear and I remember wondering how I was going to get him away from his wife. What's her name... Robin. All the memories are from the neck down, so it wasn't like I kept seeing his face in the dream or anything. At least not enough to get up and walk away from the dream!

As the good doc would say, "It's time to get real!"

It doesn't need to be greener on the other side

I was thinking about how much I love yard work. It's like anything - it's all fun and games in the beginning, but it gets real old as the weeks go by and you're continuing the repetition until it feels like an endless task. That's what cutting grass is like. In the spring it smells good and it literally brings new life to the yard. By the end of summer I'm just plain sick of it. I'm starting to hope it never rains again so I don't have to tend to this sweaty task one/two times a week.

I can completely understand why people move to condos when they get older. I'm already at that stage at the ripe ole age of 40. The lawn, trimming bushes, the flowers and weeds, fertilizing... it's endless. Don't even get me started on my backyard when fall comes. It's raining leaves for weeks. I enjoy the yard work in small doses, but it does get overwhelming at times. And then when all of this is finished, the snow blower comes out.

So, back to the condo thing. I've been thinking about selling the house in a few years and getting something more low-maintenance for a while. The girls still need a yard right now, but the older they get, the less it will be used. The options are few in this small town, but I should be able to come up with something. My initial plan was to sell the house when Jules was is high school and rent a side of a duplex for 2-3 years so I was all set when it came time to move from the Midwest. Now I'm not sure I can wait the eight years to sell. Sounds like a whole lot of grass cutting and snow blowing to me.

Counting bytes in my sleep

Someone called me this weekend, asking if I'd do a website for their business. I felt bad about turning them down, but I just had to. Granted it would be extra cash on the side, but I don't know when I'd fit it in. I spend WAY too much time on this PC as it is. I wish my laptop was smaller so I could fit it in my purse and have it with me at all times. It's almost become my BFF, as sad as that sounds.

My daily routine pretty much consists of work (with office and personal email access all day), two online classes, career opportunity searching, maintaining the two school PTO websites when needed, reading of the news, corresponding with friends and checking the weather at the end of the day so I know how to dress my kids in the morn. Throw in some online shopping and personal research and you have a woman married to her computer. It's a wonder how I sleep at night. At least I don't have to share my bed with the hardware.

Sunday night football

Bummer game last night. I took a homework break at half time and checked it periodically before turning it off around 10:00. It's too depressing watching that happen at Lambeau. It's easier to take if they get pounced like that in Dallas.

The girls decided to wear their Packer jerseys today. I told them it made more sense if they had won, but then I figured a little team support is always good, no matter what the outcome. My kids aren't the bandwagon type.

What in animal planet is going on?

When I went to hang my sheets on the line this morn I noticed a pile of dog crap right by the clothes line. This irritated me a bit because it's the second time this has happened in the last few weeks and I DON'T HAVE A DOG. One of the reasons I don't is because of just that... I don't feel like picking up dog shit. I'm curious as to why a neighborhood hound decided to target my yard, yet again.

When I went to hang a load of clothes on the line a while later I brought a plastic bag with me to pick up the pile. About two feet away there's a dead bird in the grass. What the heck? So I picked up the whole mess and disposed of the goodies. Did the hound come with the bird in mouth and drop it when he crapped on my lawn, forgetting his prey when he left?

I'm no animal hater, but I don't care to find their pieces and parts all over my yard. What's next? A snake skin? Fox tails?

A free day

I took the day off today just because. It's probably going to be the last warm day of the season (anything above 75), plus I have a few vacation days to burn. As always I have laundry, homework, groceries, some sewing, cleaning and plenty of other things to fill my time. I'm meeting some friends for lunch and would also like to find that darn kitchen light fixture that I've been searching for so long... another trip to Lowe's may be necessary.

I've been busy since the girls left for school an hour ago. I found out yesterday that I was selected for another WI grant through a trust that was formed for WI public schools, so that's another chunk of free change. I have three small grants for this years' schooling and was able to cancel my student loan money for spring because of it. That is huge for me. The less money borrowed the better! This struggling single mom needs all the help she can get for her education. So I've been talking with the financial aid staff this morn to figure everything out.

It's going on 9a and I haven't gotten a cup of jo, yet.

Codger

Today I read a statement where someone called the Republican candidate "Grandpa McSame". That made me chuckle. Still does.

No offense to those Republicans out there... but come on. That's funny stuff.

Hurry up and wait

I went to get my chain yanked this morn. It was disappointing. The first month the tooth moved quite a bit, this last month he said it didn't move at all. I've been watching it, sticking a mirror in my mouth and hanging my head over the bathroom vanity to get a glimpse of the hardware in there. If I see more chain links sticking out of my palate, it means that the tooth has moved. If I see 1-2 links yet, it means that is what was there since my last ortho visit.

I have to keep thinking about the big picture. That has seemed to become the story of my life, actually. Nothing great is happening now, but everything I am doing will some day come back at me in a good way and improve my life later down the road. It's frustrating, because I'm the type that likes instant results... and we all know how patient I am.

To crown the king

Via MSNBC:

After the news of the crisis on Wall Street, McCain’s “the fundamentals of our economy are strong” stumble on Monday, the slip-ups yesterday by McCain’s two biggest economic surrogates and four days of sustained TV ad and email blasts by the Obama campaign and the DNC, the political worm seems to have turned a tad since the Palin bounce. Indeed, while we’re not crazy about focusing too much on those daily tracking polls, their needles have moved in Obama’s direction the past couple of days (and we bet that continues today). And guess what -- we’re not talking as much about Palin as we were last week, except for the latest developments in the Troopergate scandal in Alaska. The race has turned back into McCain vs. Obama, and it currently is sitting on turf (the economy) that should favor Democrats. In fact, even the McCain campaign tacitly acknowledges Palin's off the front pages with a new TV ad today that doesn't mention Palin at all -- not even a "McCain-Palin" Administration. It’s simply McCain. By the way, a car-bomb attack today on the US embassy in Yemen (which killed 16 people, including six security forces, six terrorists, and four civilians) reminds us that the focus of the presidential race -- as well as that political worm -- can turn at a moment’s notice.

Man, this is important stuff. The natural disasters, the damn war, the economy (influenced by everything)... it's all getting to be a bit much. This race is huge. The winner will either get a box of band-aids and start fixing things or take us all down to the bottom of the barrel where there are no more pennies left.

Another day

So I called one of my buddies from work at soon as I bought the Wii Fit. He ran the next morn and snagged one. He came in this morn with details, sharing that it was incredibly cool. I'm pumped, although I have to wait a few months to try mine!

Besides that, life is busy right now. Not that I'm ever bored, but things are picking up more so. With the reduction in staff last week it put more work on the IT group. We have accounts to settle, equipment to take care of and additional requests from the remaining staff. The CEO has decided to move the majority of the employees that are still at our older building over to where I am now (on High Tech Lane). Who was the smart one to make the move early, huh??? He feels that it will help boost morale and unite us, if you will. A little activity around here is definitely helping, so I guess it can't hurt. With the rest of the office moves and new projects starting up it should keep me and Blair on our toes for quite a while. It's good. This place still scares me, but I need to truck along for now.

We got Wii

Janie and I decided this year that instead of buying a bunch of sweaters, PJs and kitchen crap that we don't need, she would get us one nice family gift. It makes a lot more sense. Besides the fact that she has very different taste than me, it would be nice to get something that the three of us can use together. Something that I normally wouldn't spend the money on.

After contemplating a family weekend away or something tangible, we decided on a Wii because a lot of people told me how just plain cool they are. But they're not easy to get. Lucky for us Janie has a friend that's a Walmart greeter. Her friend has been watching and picked one up when they got a small shipment in one day. She even got the discount for us. Apparently they get 2-3 in some weeks and some weeks they get none. The demand is crazy.

Alison mentioned the other day that she'd love to get one for Xmas, but knows that they're hard to find. That made this gift that much more exciting, knowing that the kid isn't expecting it. So yesterday I'm walking through Target and out of the corner of my eye I see Wii boxes in the glass cabinet. They had two in there, and two Wii Fits. I've been wanting to get the Wii Fit, but those, too, are impossible to find. And here they are out of nowhere. Fit runs $89 and people are selling them online for $200-$300. It's ridiculous.

I grabbed the sales guy and as I am, another woman walks up and says she wants a Wii Fit, too. There were two in the shelf, so we were both winners... plus he said they had a few more in inventory. I'm excited. I'll wrap it up and have Santa bring it to me.

***For those of you that don't know what Fit is:
It is an exercise game consisting of activities utilizing the Wii Balance Board peripheral. The balance board measures a user's weight and center of gravity. The software can then calculate the user's body mass index when told of his or her height. The game has roughly 40 different activities, including yoga poses, push ups, hoola hooping and other exercises. Furthermore, Wii Fit allows its players to compare their fitness by using Wii Fit's own channel on the Wii menu. The game tracks a user's "Wii Fitness Age" through a body test basing the result on the user's current age, weight, and balance.

I sure don't expect the Fit to replace a sweaty workout at the gym, but it'll be fun and a good way to work on some core strength.

Rain, rain, don't go away

Today was one of those days where I was glad that it rained. It gave me a license to be a big POS. The girls were exhausted from sleepovers last night and I was just lazy in general. I probably went to bed before the girls did, but life catches up sometimes.

Besides a lot of snacking and laundry, the day consisted of the Packer game, a nap, cleaning closets and a brief visit from Grandma. I'm not sure I even showered today. Where did I have to go that would require me to look special?

Not enough money in the world

For those of you that have ever eaten at Friar Tuck's... answer me this: How much could they possibly pay those waitresses to where they actually agree to wear those mini monk dresses? Talk about ridiculous.

Black Friday

Today sucks. There were rumors that we'd have some more layoffs in production this week, but they decided to hit the office workers, as well. I walked in this morn unsure of what to expect. Granted I do have a unique job that involves tasks that nobody else does, but it sure doesn't make me invincible or any more worthy of staying than anyone else. We're all replaceable.

As the morning progressed there were bits and pieces of info flying around with names. Some I was a bit surprised by, others not as much. Either way I wouldn't wish this on anyone. Even though the writing has been on the wall for a while, nobody ever knows if they'll be the next one picked.

I'm sad. This whole situation is sad. Some good friends are gone and it's essentially the end of an era. A chapter in all our lives that is closed. We'll still keep in touch and get together for happy hours or golf outings, but we saw each other every day and relationships were formed. I was told this morn that the group that is left will be our core group to move on. It's a smaller, tight group that will have more responsibility and additional hats to wear. I don't know how I'm feeling about all this. I need some time for it to sink in, especially when I'm walking around and seeing less faces to say "good morning" to.

The clock is ticking here. All of our days appear numbered.

Gimme more

I discovered last night that schooling has started to consume my life. It's to the point where I'm not sure what I should do with myself if I have all my homework done. It's become a pattern or habit.

Having three classes going right now, I have become accustomed to spending any free time with the books. Last night the girls were with their dad after school and I was pretty much caught up with my homework. I got home from work and wasn't sure what was next. The dishes were good, I was stocked with groceries, bills were paid. Granted my house always needs cleaning of some sort and there are plenty of projects that I've been waiting to keep for the fall, but you have to be in the mood for that stuff. So, I decided to make a drink and watch Oprah. Cuz really, when's the last time I did that?? By 4:45 I was antsy and realized that I was overwhelmed with guilt for sitting on my butt during prime time. I grabbed the mp3 player and took a walk. Much better.

It's a good thing I plan to continue my education for at least the next four years. Not only is it a necessity to obtain the career that I want, but I enjoy it. Who'd a thunk I would have ever said this years ago, but learning is fun. As much as I dislike spending all those hours writing papers and working on financial spreadsheets, I really enjoy spending all those hours writing papers and working on financial spreadsheets.

An "oh, crap" moment

Ran into a little difficulty last night. I met a friend out for wings. When we left Larry's I saw that my front left tire was flat. Not good. I hate inconveniences that occur when I'm not at home. Especially when the girls are coming home in 30 minutes. Lucky for me Kuss hadn't pulled away in his car yet, so I was able to grab him and wrangle up some help.

He ran home and got his compressor. We could see the nail head sticking out of the tire. Figured we could at least fill it up and get me home to deal with it tomorrow. And that we did.

Another lucky for me, my mechanic's shop is right across the street from my house. Doesn't get any better than that. I parked in his lot in case it was flat again this morn, and went home.

Talk about service. I walked over at 7:00a today and told Dan what the situation was. He had the tire plugged and ready to roll by 8:00a. $15 later I was off to work and whistling a tune. I know I comment about the small town boredom at times... and I still stand by that, but there's sure something to be said for small town service. Dan has known me and my family for many years and has always provided excellent customer service on the spot. I would never be able to get this somewhere else and appreciate it to the fullest. What a great guy.

So, kudos to Kuss and Dan for getting me up and rolling. I've never had to change a tire (right, Bruiz?) and I don't plan on starting anytime soon.

Gives me the willies

I was trying to pick out a station on Yahoo!Music. After playing a little bit of this and that I selected "Gay Club Mix" out of complete curiosity. Cuz really, what do gay people listen to? Surely not the music that we do. They must have their own special flavor, for a lack of better terms.

The first tune that comes on is Abba - Mamma Mia. Makes sense. The next one is some cheesy Cher tune that doesn't even warrant radio time. NOT a Cher fan unless she's got Sonny standing next to her. Then I'm all about the beat going on.

The third tune was the clencher. Clay Aiken. Is he out of the closet now, or just pretenting? Whatever he is, his music sucks. There's no way anybody gay or straight listens to that. After hearing him I opted to go back and find me some nice relaxing classical....

Seeing double

They say we all have a twin out there somewhere. Well, mine lives right here, probably 15 minutes away from me. I saw her at Menards on Sunday morn.

It all started back in high school. My BF at the time was going to North High. One day he tells me that he met this chick in the hall that looks exactly like me. Her name is Peggy. Apparently we had the same body style, 80s hair, everything. I started hearing about Peggy from other people, too. People that knew me said the resemblance was crazy. Then it got to where I was going out and strangers would call me Peggy. No shit. I was starting to wonder if I was ever going to meet her, because heck, wouldn't you want to??

A few years passed and I was down at the beach for the 4th. I was talking to an old friend from HS and somehow this Peggy conversation starts up. The friend tells me to hang on a minute because she knows Peggy and just saw her on the beach a while ago. She goes to get her. As I'm waiting I'm getting a little anxious. What will Peggy look like? What if she's butt ugly, because you know, people think that we look so much alike!

I think Peggy and I both had the same reaction when we saw each other for the first time on the beach. We just sat there and stared at each other, checking each other out. It was weird. I wouldn't say that we are identical, but there's definitely a strong resemblance. Or was at the time. We started chatting and she tells me how strangers were calling her K when they saw her out. I couldn't believe that she was getting the same reaction from people that I was! How bizarre. One guy went up to her at a bar and slapped her on the ass, thinking it was me. Obviously this is someone that knows me and she looked enough like me that he mistook her identity.

We were relieved to finally have met after experiencing the same reaction from people after all those years. Then she tells me that her mom wants to know what my mom looks like. That got me laughing.

Since my 20s I've run into Peggy now and again. Going out, at Walmart, around town. I found out that she worked at the dealership where I bought my Mazda 3. I think she still remembers me 20 years later. How could she not, right? It's like looking in a mirror. I will say that we have some differences now that 20 years have gone by. Different hair and maybe varying a few pounds each, but overall there's still something there. One thing's for sure, we have very different taste in men. The guy she was with on Sunday morn wouldn't even be a last resort for me. I think I'd rather start liking chicks.

When she saw me Sunday there appeared to be recognition. I saw her whisper something to the nasty guy and he glanced my way. Looking back, I wonder why we didn't become better friends. How crazy would it be if we had exchanged numbers and started hanging out?

Prost

I was reminded tonight that some of the good times in life can be spontaneous. As I went on my walk to mail my bills I ran into some friends. We ended up spending a few hours chatting about life in general and it felt nice. Old friends are just that. People that know everything about me, but have still stuck by my side all these years, even through my imperfections. People I'll trust when 10 more years go by.

Happy bday Kroos!!

We hardly knew ye

Ha! We just got an email stating that they're taking away the vending machine in our building because of low sales. We don't even buy enough Twix bars here to warrant a snack machine. How sad. Guess I won't have to worry about wasting any more energy on that....

Out with the old

Another day, another 50 cents.
TGIF is all I can say. I think I'm emotionally exhausted from this week and need to think about things that put me in that happy, flowery place. That'll happen as soon as I get home this afternoon.

Tonight I have decided to hang low and do house stuff, homework and possibly obtain spicy food. I have The Bucket List from Netflix and might even stay up "late" to watch it (they say it's a fantastic flick). I enjoy my Friday eves at home.

Now that fall is officially here (did you feel it this morning??) I was debating whether I should start packing up the yard crap that can get put away in the basement until warmer days come back. A little premature maybe, but I'm like that. I want to reorg the basement a bit and start tossing more junk out. Getting things in order makes me feel good. I'm the type that will clean up a room or closet, putting items on shelves and eliminating clutter, and then just stand there and look at it for a while. Because that's what makes me happy. A life less the mess.

Diminishing

There's a lot of speculation and rumors going around at work in regards to the state of the company. More talk of layoffs in production and the office area. Right now I can count the amount of production workers we have in this week on one hand. The rest are off on temp layoff until next week or longer. Sales are incredibly low and with some outsourcing taking place for the glass cutting we do, it sounds as if there will be more permanent layoffs coming up. Along with that some possible office people. Of course this is all through the grapevine, so I take it with a grain of salt, but there are still a few departments that haven't been hit by the downsizing and people wonder if they may be next.

I don't wish this on anyone, so I pray that we can weather this storm yet one more time. I just wonder how long.

Off to think about happy stuff now.

Grrr

Some days I want to rip these fucking braces right out of my mouth. There. Needed to get that off my chest.

Vending machine woes

After lunch I was having a small craving for something chocolate, so I figured what the hell. I don't hit the vending machines often... I'll go see what they have. Keep in mind that I haven't purchased anything in this building for about seven years.

I grab a dollar bill and walk to the lunchroom. I see the snack machine takes coins only. A little archaic, but I figure I can work around it. I put my dollar in the soda machine, figuring that I'd be able to hit the coin return and get four quarters out. No such luck. Nothing came out. It just kept flashing that I had $1.00 inserted. I may as well buy a soda then since I have no other choice, so I pressed a few of the buttons and it's flashing that it needs $1.10 for a soda. Are you kidding me? Apparently it has been a while since I purchased something from a machine.

I walked back through the production area to my office for some more money. I got a dime and four quarters. When I got back to the lunchroom I put the dime in and got a Diet Coke. That's all fine and dandy, but I wasn't thirsty for a soda, so I stuck it in the fridge for another day. Then I sat with my quarters.

I put three in the snack machine and decided on a Twix bar. It's not good for my braces, but I was beyond caring at this point. The selection for the Twix bar was "BB". Being the idiot that I am, I pressed the letter "B" twice, instead of hitting the "BB" button. Density. Some cheese popcorn fell and I noticed my mistake. Now I really didn't care anymore.

I walked back to my office with popcorn in hand. All that and $1.85 later and I never got my chocolate. I'm guessing that was a sign that I shouldn't have tried to acquire it in the first place.

Crappy news

An old, old friend of my parents passed away on Monday. He was only 60 and died of a heart attack. I knew him well as a child and had the opportunity to work with him for a short while right out of high school. Just the nicest guy ever. This really bums me out.

It's another sign that you never know when someone will be taken away from you. My parents are starting to get up there in age and I think of this often. Granted, some people live to be 80-something and never give up, but there are plenty of others that go well before their time. It's life, but a very difficult part to deal with.

Head scratcher

I just have to comment on the Republican VP nomination. It appears clear to many as to why McCain chose Palin. He only met her twice, for crying out loud. What did he really know about her? Surely not the scandalised info that is starting to pop up in the media. I know that people are human and things happen, but not when you're running to live in the White House.

http://mudflats.wordpress.com/2008/09/01/breaking-news-palin-says-teen-daughter-is-pregnant/

And the chances of Palin living in the Big House are pretty good. McCain isn't exactly the epitome of health. He's had some health problems and a few bouts with cancer before his ripe age of 72. Do we really want an inexperienced Palin running this broken country if/when McCain takes the big digger?

http://mudflats.wordpress.com/2008/08/29/what-is-mccain-thinking-one-alaskans-perspective/

There's a lot of info out there on Sarah Palin. And these links are just another person's opinion... but read the rest of the posts on the blog. It is interesting to hear the view of one from Alaska. I'm not saying she's all bad, of course not. I just don't understand what makes her so qualified. A lawsuit against the Feds? So far the odds seem to be stacked against her.

What worries me most is what will happen to this country if the Republicans win. Times are bad enough. I'm not comfy with McCain taking over because I don't believe he can "fix things" with what he's shown the last few months. This VP choice proves that he's making decisions off the cuff, shooting for image and not experience. Personally, I can't afford to live in an economy that keeps heading for the pits. Literally.

Not quite ready

As of today everyone is officially back to school. Yay! The excitement has been building as we got ready for it. Last night we looked at their daily class schedules, put book covers on Ali's books, got the backpacks ready and everyone picked out their clothes. Oh, the decisions.

They were pretty antsy to get going this morning. I told them I'd walk down with them, so we took a few pictures and picked up their friends down the street. After they found their lines on the playground Alison took off with her friends. She was in heaven, the little socialite. Jules hung by me and I sensed that some anxiety was starting to kick in. When I told her I was going to head off to work she started getting a little clingy and I knew what was next. She does this the first day, every year. I really hoped we were past it now that she was getting older, but not so lucky. I eventually handed her off to her teacher because Alison wanted nothing to do with helping out her little sister. She was having too much fun!

I know Julia was fine the minute she got into class, but it's just the sweet, little, sad face that pulls at the heart strings. I see myself dropping her off at high school with her hanging onto my arm...