I Don't Even Want to Include His Name in This Title

Who is this Dane Cook and why is he being forced upon me?

I have been forced to watch my fair share of post-season baseball this fall. I guess this guy Dane Cook has a few promos where he talks about the glory that is October. Whenever I see it, I make the same comment to Tim.

I have no idea why this guy is famous. I am sure there is a good reason, but I have never seen him in a movie. I have never seen his comedy act. I attribute this to a whole generational gap that I am thankful for. I think if I was in college when Dane Cook became famous, maybe I would know him. However, he could be my next door neighbor. I wouldn't know.

Midwestern Recipe: Pumpkin Bread

I am a big fan of sweet breads. I like this seasonal treat because it is moist and flavorful. So moist that it really needs to be eaten in two or three days.

1 3/4 cup flour
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. soda
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1 1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup margarine or butter
2 eggs
1 can of pureed pumpkin
1/3 cup milk
1/2 tsp. vanilla

Combine all ingredients with the milk and vanilla last. Bake in oven for one hour at 350 degrees. Check with knife. It is done cooking when the knife comes out clean.

Another Tribute

If you are a reader of The Midwestern Position, than you know how I love puffy vests.

Some might see the turning of the leaves or the arrival of Halloween candy as the first sign of fall, but for me, fall means a new puffy vest.

Don't be deceived by this red puffy. My new puffy is kelly green. Quite vibrant and eye catching. I plan to add a cream scarf and the cream hat that I already own to complete the stylish outfit. Did I tell you that my hat has a puffer on it...you know...the puffer ball on the top of the hat.

Question of the Day

Do we ever stop making the same mistakes over and over again?

Does everyone make mistakes over and over again or is there hope for me and all the other people whose foresight is completely obscured by emotions, excuses, or some other unconvincing arguments.

When I look at other people and the choices they make in their lives, it seems that they make the same choice/mistake over and over. It got me thinking about the decisions that I have made in my life. Anything from my ability to lose a little bit of weight, only to gain it back again to accepting unacceptable behaviors from the people in my life.

I guess I am one of many. Sometimes, I will think this is a good quality. For example, I give lots and lots of second chances only to be disappointed. Then, I usually start making excuses for people's behaviors and think my standards are too high. Finally, I get pissed and let them know exactly what I think.

Or even worse! I let it go only to make the same mistake again that leads to frustration.

Let's take weight loss. What it comes down to is that it bores me. Bad. It can keep my attention for about a week. Even when I think about the positive consequences in my life, I still cannot stay motivated to make healthy choices. For example, the beautiful and delicious buffalo chicken cheese steak that I have written about with great love before on this blog. I know that if I eat the whole thing, I will be uncomfortable, but it is so good. So, I make the mistake and eat it...even when I know, but my foresight is obscured by bleu cheese.

I am sure I could think of more mistakes/choices that I continue to make, but I do not need a shame spiral tonight.

Oh and that excuse about "we all make mistakes" is no good when you keep making them. It is time we all start learning from our mistakes.

Because I Can...

Let me complain a little...

The other night, we were returning from Delaware where we had enjoyed babysitting our little cousin, Emmeline. She is three months and so cute. We were on the interstate where they were doing some repairs at midnight. There was only one lane open. The left lane.

Warnings were given for many, many miles prior to the narrowing of the lanes into one lane, yet so many people just kept driving in the right lanes. When it was finally time to squeeze into the left lane, Tim let one person in and kept driving. One guy who drove by all the people waiting their turn in the left lane wanted in and Tim did not let him.

So, he threw up his aggressive middle finger to let us know how victimized he felt.

Really??? So, Mr. Aggressive Driver, you think because you did not show courtesy to all the people waiting patiently in the left lane that we should show you courtesy. When you give people the middle finger, it doesn't encourage us to be courteous to you.

People just have more guts when they are surrounded by metal and glass.

However, just the other day, three teenage girls crossed the street in the middle of a very busy road and not at the crosswalk. They made people slow down and stop so they could cross. So, I honked. Yes, this might have been seen as aggressive, but I wanted to let them know they were not be courteous. However, they let me know with a synchronized middle finger that they did not need the reminder.

Let's just all be nice.

Midwestern Endorsement: Pushing Daisies

Last week, I wrote about my disappointments with some of the fall pilot shows. However, Pushing Daisies do not fit into this category.

Instead, I love Pushing Daisies. It falls somewhere between a mystery and fantasy with lots of quirks in between. The narration reminds me of Ameile which is one of my favorite movies. Unlike so many of the television shows on each evening, it has an interesting concept.

Ned - the guy in the tie - has the skill of returning people to life with his touch, but if he touches them again, they are returned to being dead. Some mystery solving happens along with clever and witty writing between characters.

I see this show as being innocent and simple and not messed up with torrid story lines and annoying self-absorbed characters. I will be watching Pushing Daisies on Wednesdays at 8/7 central.

Down and Sort of Out

I like to claim that I have an immune system of steel. This is not the case this weekend. I felt it sneaking up on me with dry throat. I felt one nostril closing up with whatever mystery gunk is up there.

Well, I woke up with a full blown cold. Solutions...

• Coffee (of course)
• Dayquil
• Childhood orange quilt
• Reruns of half-hour television shows
• Tim's laptop computer for Wikipedia...to look up things that pop into my head...to do some online shopping...to write this entry.
• A great husband who will get me glasses of water and make frozen pizza for me.
  

No Place for a Deer

Sure, they look cute and fragile, but they are damn fast.

I am rarely put in a place where my most basic verbal instinctive reaction occurs, but today as I drove home from school with a quick stop at the coffee shop, I revealed my words.

I screamed with my window down "HOLY SH..". Why? Well, I didn't expect to have a huge HUGE deer run in front of me in the middle of the city. Not just any deer, but a several horned buck that just kept running down a residential street. I am glad that we were perpendicular rather than parallel because I am sure I would have crashed into something because I couldn't look away from this rare and strange scene.

I just hope there weren't any children around to be shocked by my crass, yet gut verbal reaction.

TV Can Be Quite Good...These Are a Big Maybe

New shows rarely impress me. I usually will find one show a season that I am into. I entered into this new television season with high hopes for two shows, Chuck on NBC and Dirty Sexy Money on ABC. However, after watching the first episodes of each show, I think they both have fatal flaws...at least in my eyes.

Chuck is clever enough. There are nerdy jokes which I like, but Chuck has downloaded all of the world's secrets into his mind. It will look like someone is going to die or some disaster will happen, but then Chuck reaches into his downloaded subconscious and can figure out the mystery at the last moment.

I am going to give it one more shot tonight with Chuck. I am going to hope that Chuck doesn't have an 'aha' moment during the last five minutes of the show to have an easy solution. Granted, it is a comedy and I should expect holes in the story, but I have high television series standards.

Then there is Dirty Sexy Money. What is there not to like about Peter Krauss. Dreamboat. However, unlike his earlier series Six Feet Under, these characters are an open book from the first 20 minutes of the series premiere. I hope they have not pigeon holed the characters so that there is very little character development.

I think television executives should know better now with excellent shows like The Sopranos or Six Feet Under that are character driven with a slow and unwinding art of story telling. With Dirty Sexy Money, I feel like I know the characters and their possible story lines after only one episode. I try to stay away from shows that are event driven rather than character driven.

This might be premature and I hope I can eat these words, but television executives dumb down shows and I think this is a big mistake. We are big boys and girls with brains. If you write it well, we will watch it.

My Weekend

New Ringtone
I used to have Shakira's "Hips Don't Lie" as my default ringtone on my cell phone, but now, I have the theme from one of my favorite television shows, The Office. I look forward to my phone ringing.

Raised Flower Bed
We worked very hard on landscaping this weekend. I would post a picture but it won't be complete until the spring when we fill it with soil. We plan on using our fall leaves to get it all healthy for the spring planting. We placed 60 edging stones and it looks lovely. It will be a raised bed where we plan to really get green thumbs.

More TV Love
We watched the first two discs of Heroes, Season One. I love it. I knew I would but I just couldn't commit to watching it every week. I can commit to The Office because if I miss something, I won't be far behind the story.

Christmas Present
I purchased my first present for the Christmas season. I have a grand plan. I want to be finished with Christmas shopping by December 1. My other goal is to buy 80% of my Christmas gifts online and not enter a single mall. When I purchase gifts, I am going to ask, "What will this person REALLY enjoy?" Giving gifts is a tricky thing. I feel like as a 31 year old woman, I do not really need to receive presents, but I love to give presents. Tim and I do not exchange Christmas, Valentines, or anniversary presents. You get to a certain age and realize that if you want something, you go and buy it. However, that is the challenge of gift giving...I want to buy things that people have not thought of buying for themselves, but they will love it just the same.

Mixed CDs
I get big joy out of mixing CDs for friends. I mixed four CDs. I like to have a theme for each disk that is specially chosen for the receiver of the CD. The four themes follow...
- 80's songs that are underappreciated
- songs that you should know
- songs I am loving right now
- songs to work out to

Three out of four of those these are kind of bossy.

More Than a Phone?

Sometimes I feel old.

I was in the Verizon Wireless store after school. My phone had served me well for over two years but was no longer holding a charge. It was time for my upgrade.

Like any trip to the cell phone store, it takes FOREVER to get something accomplished. I just wanted a phone. Instead, I had to sign in at the kiosk for service. Then, I waited for about 25 minutes even though my name was first. Everyone must have been on break.

Then, my name was called. A woman told me about the phones that would be a good fit. She told me, "I am going to let this all sink in and I'll be right back with you."

I knew this to be a lie. I knew she would help another customer and it would be another 40 minutes before I saw her again.

Yep. She helped a woman who must have been signing her life away because it took FOREVER for her business to be finished. So long, in fact, that I was able to observe two fourteen year oldish girls walk from cell phone to cell phone and have the same conversation over and over. It went something like this...

Girl 1: Do you like this phone?
Girl 2: Do you like this phone?
Girl 1: It's okay if you like this phone.
Girl 2: Do you like this phone?
Girl 1: No. I just don't get this phone.

Really. Over and over they would discuss if they liked each phone. Am I missing something? What is there to like? It dials. It rings. It opens. I know there is a whole world of texting out there that I have been able to avoid on a daily basis, but I had a hard time thinking about a connection in my own 14 year old world.

I guess I would have to say that my telephone that was plugged into my wall in my bedroom would have been as important as these girls' cell phones. Granted, I did not have long discussions about whether that phone was good enough. I just felt old and grateful that I was not 14 years old.

Finally, another Verizon person came to the counter and I got my phone.

We'll See in the Spring

I am having low gardener self-esteem. I tried my best to split some hostas in my yard. I had this space that was all cleaned out and needed something. I have so many healthy hostas, I thought I would share the hosta love. However, they are pretty wilty. I am treating them very well with lots of water.

I also planted some bulbs for the spring because they are some of my favorites. Hyacinths, daffodils, and tulips will bloom. This weekend, we have big landscaping plans because we are going to build a raised flower bed using edging stones. We are going to fill it with soil and compost to prepare it for the spring when we will split some more hostas and will add some more perennials.

Bothered

On Friday night, we went to my favorite Thai restaurant. I was looking forward to an evening with Tim since our week was pretty hectic. We could just have a nice evening where we could just talk. However, it wasn't in the cards.

Instead, we had this guy (roll of the eyes) who was sitting next to us. Let me describe him for you. He laughed in a LOUD high-pitched cackle. He ate his food and many, many pieces of it fell out of his mouth when he ate. Some of it got caught in his very hair beard.

I should have been concentrating on my husband, but I couldn't. I just couldn't. I sound judgemental. I am judgemental. I judge those who make eating at a restaurant unbearable. It wasn't just me that was uncomfortable with this guy because the couple on the other side of us were bothered.

I wish I could be the type of person who can ignore others when they are without any self-awareness, but I can't. Never have been.

At Least I Tried

Hmmm...What should I write about? I do not feel like I have anything going on. Okay. Let's do one of those random type posts. Let's do what I am diggin' right now.

Weeds. I love that show. It is not heavy duty, just some funny weed selling in the 'burbs. Like I have written/complained about before, I hate when I run out of DVDs before they have more seasons out. I am left just wanting more.

The Biggest Loser. I have never watched this reality show before, but before I knew it, I was hooked. I think it is really inspiring, but I wish people didn't get kicked off. I want them all to lose and get an opportunity to do that...but they do. They'll get to keep working on it at home like the rest of us chuckleheads.

Chili. It is hot, spicy, and so yummers. Granted, it has those magic beans, but I can handle it. I have had leftover chili for two nights in a row with a dollop of sour cream on it. De-lish.

Fall. I am getting the first feelings of fall with the cool morning and evenings. I have broken out the hot cocoa and the jean jacket. As a kindergarten teacher, my calendar is based on seasonal themes...apples, leaves, pumpkins...Do people not entrenched in fall themes get into it as I do? However, I am dreading the leaves in my backyard. Oh well, I will look at it as exercise.

31 Years

Well, it is that time of the year again. I like to take my birthday to be reflective and all about me. I blame my mother. Not only did she bring me into this world, but she threw great birthday parties for me.

At 31, I know that I lead a quieter life than most. I do not go out on the town that much. I prefer to be at home with Tim. Rather than go out to eat on Saturday nights, I like to spend the late afternoon cooking something yummy for us and always with a dessert. Friday nights are even quieter with our ritual leftovers from the week and some television.

At 31, I am doing the job that I love to do. I am exhausted each day, but I leave knowing that I have put my all into those kindergarteners. Each day, I stop and get my coffee, drive to work while I listen to the news, and start my day with emails to friends.

At 31, I have a great relationship with my family. They've always respected my choices and my voice. No matter where I move or how far I am from the midwest, I keep those ties tight.

At 31, I have come to understand that you do not need friends less and less as we grow, but more and more. Thankfully, I have found friends who know this is true.

At 31, I am living with the funniest person that I know who accepts me for exactly who I am and never asks for me to change.

Welcome Leah Renee

Tim and I became an aunt and uncle for the first time on Friday, September 7, 2007.

Congratulations to Joe and Ellie!
Welcome Leah Renee! I can't wait to hug on you.

Heartbreak List

Using the beloved itunes and ipod, I listen to two podcasts a week. I listen to Car Talk and This American Life. They are free on itunes and bring much joy, reflection, and humor to my life while I clean the kitchen, drive to Ikea, or participate in general life activities.

I listened to a particularly connective episode of This American Life this weekend. It was from last week and it was titled Break Up.

It has been awhile since I went through a break up, let alone one where I was being dumped, yet this topic hooked me.

Like all episodes of This American Life, there are several stories throughout the hour, but Starlee Kine's tale of heartbreak hit a nerve. She tells about her relationship with "Anthony", the corniest relationship she ever had. The kind where they talked for hours, listened to hours of music...corny music too...and to make it even more corny, he dumped her on New Year's Eve. She tells about how they listened to a lot of Phil Collins during their relationship. At first, it was an ironic-lark kind of thing, but then they found a true appreciation for Phil Collins.

Starlee talks about love songs and more specifically, break-up songs. I don't have much use for them anymore, but I do like them because they are just so darn sad. When I was broken up with once, all I did was listen to sad songs and would search out the saddest song I could find. My friend Janelle was really into this past time. When we were in junior high, we'd talk about how it was better to be in the depths of despair than content. Man, I am glad I am not 15 again.

After the break-up, Starlee turned to music. Well, I don't want to tell the story because she tells it so much better. Listen to it here.

So, in honor last week's This American Life, I will share my top ten Break-Up Songs! Feel free to add to the list. There are just too many to have just ten. And don't be surprised if there are some deliciously guilty pleasures on this list.

1. You Oughta Know by Alanis Morissette
2. Ain't No Sunshine by Bill Withers
3. Somebody's Crying by Chris Isaak
4. I Just Don't Think I'll Ever Get Over You by Colin Hay
5. With or Without You by U2
6. Bell Bottom Blues by Eric Clapton
7. Dreaming With a Broken Heart by John Mayer
8. Can't Let Go by Lucinda Williams
9. Against All Odds by Phil Collins
10. You Were Always on My Mind by Willie Nelson
    

Midwestern Observation

Either I wasn't paying attention or this is a new phenomenon, but it seems that most cars have some sort of decal decoration in their back window or on their bumper stickers. I am sure that back in the day, we couldn't derive that much information from a person's car.

Maybe we could assume if they were a clean person or a dirty person by the dirt on their car, but now, I could do a reasonable character assessment based upon their many, many decals.

I decided to keep track of the decals, license plate covers, and bumper stickers in just one day and I was able to learn that people feel the need to let all of us other drivers that they...

• are an Army Wife.
• are paying tuition at many, many colleges.
• use Apple computers.
• love the Dave Matthews Band.
• have been on some great vacations.
• have a child who is an honor student.
• hate some brands of cars...this one is because some little cartoon is urinating on the brand.
• support a variety of causes that range from Autism awareness to Supporting our Troops.
• are Democrats.
• are Republicans.
• are soccer moms.
  
• love Jesus.
• want to impeach Bush.
  
• are Evolutionists.
• love the Philadelphia Eagles, Phillies, Flyers.
• miss Dale Earnhart.

I am sure if I continued my unscientific observation for longer than one weekend, I could come up with some more details of these drivers' lives, but I will just be amused at their attempts to add to their identity through car decals.

Weekend Update (a week late)

Let me get you up-to-date...it has been awhile.

Sara came to visit me and we had quite a weekend. Our first stop was at the Jersey Shore. I was told that I could anticipate crowds and traffic. I guess it is something that a person has to put up with on Labor Day weekend. However, we had NO traffic and NO crowds. As you can see from the picture, the beach was clean and quiet. Usually, I fear water that is not inside a swimming pool, but I was brave and ventured into the ocean. I think I need swimming shoes because I hate the bottom mystery sludge.

Of course, my newest tourist stop for visitors is Amish country in Lancaster County. We went to a town called Intercourse, Pennsylvania where Sara couldn't resist posing with this t-shirt. We took a buggy ride around the country side, enjoyed some homemade root beer that was sold to us by a young Amish girl, and ate delicious soft pretzels.


We ended the weekend in Philadelphia at World Cafe Live where we had dinner before we saw Mark Olson. He was the lead singer in a band called The Jayhawks. It was great and that is no surprise. The band that opened for Mark Olson was not that great, but we tolerated it to get to the reason we were there.

Election 2008 Post #1

I am so annoyed that Fred Thompson has decided to run for President. Sure, anyone can do it, but I do not like having the possibility of having him as President. Another gray haired suited white man. I watched Fred on television today as he stumped in Iowa and the man is not dynamic. I get the feeling that he thinks this is going to be easy.