Parents Out There

If you read this blog and you comment, answer this question . . .Is parenting hard to you? Yes or No. If you say No, then I need to talk to you. Oh my, how parenting is hard. Is it really that bad to consider raising your child under the same context as you might raise, um, say, well, let's just say, a dog. I've actually tried it before. Using the sounds and finger movements that the Dog Whisperer uses on dogs, only on Jake. Making him sit before he can have a snack. Leashing him and walking him. Haha. Just kidding. It's just so much easier with dogs and they definitely don't talk back. Nonetheless, they also don't talk to you in your language, which can be hilarious. When Jake uses my phrases it cracks me up. It's hard though. I'm worn out by my own negativity. Constantly lecturing about how it has got to be. I've been reading this awesome book called The Blessing of a Skinned Knee. It's teaching me about the wisdom of the jewish religion and how you can intertwine it into your relationship with your child. Easier to read than it is to do, I definitely think that I'm on the right path, but every day is a new day. Another wonderful place to visit is a website called Early Parenting. Currently co-blogging authors, Carrie Contey and Bernadette Noll are hashing out parenting issues using Carrie's vast education and Bernadette's wonderful wisdom. I look forward to loads of learning. I'll take it any way I can get it. Meanwhile, instead of blogging, I should go play with that munchkin. Enjoy goofy pics of my easier, furry kids who are just happy with a treat and a quick run. Wait that works for Jake too. The two together are Izzy and Pico crashed after a day at the Pedernales, and the other guy is our new dog Clyde Blue. There is a whole post just about him coming. Love and Peace to all.

The Pack is Back

Life just isn't right without our pack and we have missed Gus so much. Pico de Gallo and Izzy Pretty have been fine on thier own but a couple of girls with no boy only leads to bitchiness. So, we hit Blue Dog Rescue in search of a new family member. We came across this beautiful boy and read his story. It was hard not to want a dog who had just climbed in a car for a roadtrip and seemed to enjoy it, so we set up a meeting. Check out his story at Blue Dog Rescue, just scroll down to Brando. He is everything you see here and more. What a fanstastic fella. We have such high hopes and know that here, in his new home, he will find the companionship he could only hope for. We are trying to decide what his new name will be. He's been Brando and Harry in his past lives, but we want him to start his new life with a solid name that represents the kind of life he will have. This is a pup who will snuggle in bed, run at the pedernales, hang in the yard with his two bitches, Izzy and Pico, guard his new kid, Jake, and have huge stuffed stockings at Christmas. We are so excited. Some names that have bantered around, Hank, Bloo, Bill and Sam. I thinking Hank or Sam are gonna be the big winners. Take a look at his video. We are going to have the most beautiful pack ever.

Date Night

I had a couple of excellent experiences yesterday. First, I spent the day at my son's class. All day. It was huge. There is no way that you can possibly do anything that is cooler than observing the social interactions of your child with his peers. We had a rough week but came out better for it. I veered him away from click behavior and hope to nip that in the bud immediately. We also experienced our first sleepover. My hub and I got to go out on a date and it was amazing. Eating out is something that we love to do. Real date. We went to Sampaio's, which is a Brazilian diner on Burnet Rd. I tried a wonderful Malbec (wine) which I had sworn I wouldn't like. I had one bad Malbec and it turned me off to all of them. Can't remember the name, sorry. We had mussels and fried brie. Creme Brulee for dessert with espresso. Yum. Life can be good . . .and rich . . .and I'm not talking about money. For the holiday, we are headed to the Pedernales for some R&R. These photos are from last year. It's very relaxing and we are on the hunt for fossils for Kinder Science Fair. I think we will have some success. It's fossil heaven.

Revived!

It's been a while since I've posted my thoughts. All this Yogadenada blogging got me thinking. Last night, as I sat awake, long after the boys had gone down, a few questions arose . . .

Whoever happens to be in the know:

1. Who's really in charge here? (Planet Earth, etc.)

2. Is there really alien life form on other planets, are they roaming earth, and more importantly, should we be scared?

3. Is "The Secret" really "The Secret" and if so . . .is everyone really practicing it? Because, if they were . . .wouldn't we all be happy, secure, living in a wonderfully green society filled with world peace and tranquil harmony . . . weath abundant?????

4. What happens when we die? Jake wants to know.

O.K. thanks, and how sad that Kit got bumped off Project Runway (Bravo, Wednesdays). I really liked her.

Redirecting!

For any of those left of you who randomly check this blog. I am now determined to build Yogadenada.blogspot.com. Come check me out. I'm pledging to blog daily, Monday-Friday. Thanks Shannon. For lighting the fire again.

Hit the title of this blog and it will get your there!!!! Save it on your bookmark and change the way you see things!

Gus '07

A few weeks back we put our blessed old soul, Gus, down. Gus had been with us since the first few months that Joel and I had dated. I was out on a job in L.A., Dallas, wherever, and Joel called to tell me that a dog had been following him. It was Gus, who must have seen a pretty good ride in Joel, what with Lucy and Red following him. Those girls were nothing but beautiful. Gus came to us scruffy, skinny and beat up. He barely had any teeth and he had a bad case of heartworms. We were able to miraculously subdue him for a month in order to kill the heartworms and he grew into a beautiful dog with a loving and dear personality. I'll never forget how he followed me around when I was pregnant with Jake. He never let me out of his site. He loved Red dearly and was the only one with her when she died. He tolerated Izzy until he loved her and Izzy never felt anything but utmost adoration for him. He set Miss Pico straight from the moment she showed up, letting her know the hierarchy of the household with a simple and gruff growl. We will always miss you, Gus. You we're our boy. I know you are there with beautiful Red, romping her up for a good run to keep her in shape. You two are waiting for us, while Lucy sheriff's the whole rainbow bridge population.

I'm sorry it's been so long since I've enlightened anyone out there with my witty observations about life, etc.  I am currently feeling the heat of yet another catering season blowing it's steamy breath into my eyes and causing my heart to pace a little quicker.  My bank account hungers for those caterings while my joints roll over and hit the snooze button.  I'm already plotting t-shirts . . ."I survived Catering Season '07"  TACODELI!!  I am looking forward to, to, to, ummmmmm, nothing.  I get more tattoos on my birthday, yippee.  I'm about to enroll in Introduction to WWW Authoring and XHTML, the first website design class at ACC Informal Learning.  Just creating a little backup plan if you know what I mean, hint, hint, wink, wink. These joints ain't gettin' any younger and I'll be damned if I'll be greeting losers at the local Wal-Mart in my 70's.  

Kindergarten is upon me and I have no idea what to do.  I'm terrified.  I can already see Jake graduating, and thank god, apparently he plans to have me live with him forever in order to show him how to make ramen and also tell him how to get to his best friend, Brandon's, house. He mentioned we needed to get beer first.  I have no idea where he got that idea!

Well, I've written more than I expected. Keep on keeping on and don't forget to stretch, breathe and smile, every hour, every minute.

Oh, swimming season is closing in on us. Don't forget to get your dunk on as much as you can in the next few weeks. The title is linked to Austin's pool schedule.

Sorry, I'm no photographer.

Run. Eat. Learn.

So, what I know now is that you have to create something cool in photoshop or illustrator, then create an image and html it into the blog. That is how I will make this blog lovely. And, I have got to get rid of the dots. They are starting to make me crazy. And how about this rain . . . oh my god. I lived in Portland, Oregon. This is much worse. I lived in Colorado. This is not as bad. I yearn for hot summer days and dips in the pool. I don't care what anyone says. Kindergarten starts in 4 weeks. We've got one week left of summer camp and our life as Jewish parents will slowly crawl to an end. Though my hopes are high that we might make frequent visits to the Jewish Community Center, the fact is that we won't. We never go there other than to drop Jake and pick him up and I'd rather spend my money on yoga and Gilbert's Gazelles. Joel has taken up running and it's been awesome. He has run up to 7 miles on one day and frequents 3-4 mile runs regularly. He looks awesome. I keep dreaming of consistent running but have lightly sprained my ankle twice just since I started messing around with it. My ambitions are high but I'm very much still committed to YAAC (yoga at all costs) which has been working out great for me. There are so many things to do and never enough time for all of it. I constantly struggle with time. Time for Jake, time for me, time for love and family, time for the dogs, time for the house. The struggle to balance is impossible and I really don't see where I am supposed to fit in any extracurricular learning. Maybe I should consider ritalin. Atleast I could focus long enough to learn how to sew. My own compelling need to fix this ugly blog will eventually force me to learn some HTML. Here's a tip for anyone who's chasing whatever latest fad diet that exists. One, those diets only work once. If you gain the weight back, they rarely work twice. Two, consider that you may look great just the way you are. Three, consider a lifetime change in diet. My bestest gal and hottie chickie friend, (you guess who you are) told me about her lifetime change years ago and I've done it twice and it always works. Drop wheat out of your life, consider dairy too if you are a huge cheese, ice cream type eater. I'm not. The wheat is my demon. Suddenly I'm not drinking beer, eating bread, flour tortillas, crackers, goldfish, etc. Immediately I drop water weight. It's awesome. Then I lean down, just a bit. Gotta exercise too. Don't forget your supplements if you skip dairy. I promise prettier blog and pictures. I'm lazy about uploading. Happy Raining!

Learning HTML!

Does anyone out there know HTML. I'm trying to teach it to myself. I can't stand not having control of my blog. I keep thinking about starting the web design program at ACC but then I think, this is stupid. I can learn HTML. Nonetheless, I'm very excited because I just changed the fonts on my blog and that is enough to put a smile on my face. Yippee. If you are trying to learn HTML, check out the link on this title. Oooh, just looking at the classes at ACC gets me excited. O.K. must go wake up the Jake.

New Destination

I'm not sure how heinous this is. But, I have moved my blog to wordpress.com. Just like any move, it's in shambles but I'm working on organizing it, and my blogging ambitions are rusty these days. I loved wordpress because of it's awesome templates and the fact that it fused my three blogs into one place, yogadenada, joanna fried poetry and redtruckbetty mamastuff. So, go check it out by hitting the title of this blog. Hope you follow me. I'm going to try to get busy hitting you with all kinds of new and exciting information about yoga and mamacrazies and maybe a bit of new poetry. Take care for now, and so sorry Blogspot. It was sweet while it lasted.

Nananananananana

Today is my birthday. Nananananananana. Gonna have a good time. Yes, today is my birthday and I'm guessing there arn't alot of you out there who actually read this and that's just fine because it's for me anyway, so that is why today, in this blog, I want to say one thing to myself . . .by the time I'm 50, I would like to have something that isn't a blog. Something that is more substantial than a blog. Screenplay, novel, book of poems. I don't care. But it must be something. So, HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JOANNA. God, you look great for your age. Congratulations for maintaining a positive attitude all these years and sticking to your guns. I have a new mantra in life. If you hate your job, be happy you have a job. If you hate your belly, be happy you have food to eat. If you are frustrated with your house, be happy you have a house. Life is good, you have the option to change if if you don't like it. You get the picture. O.K. going to do yoga. Just wanted to put the dream on paper, on internet space. Etc.

Yoga, Halloween and Barack Obama

Someday . . .I will blog on my yoga blog, yogadenada. I started it, oh so long ago, and I've only written one entry. The words are swirling around in my head, desperate to get out, finally, they've worn down and found a dark corner to hide in, waiting patiently and speaking up when necessary. No surprise here that I believe that yoga is the number one best exercise ever. There are many styles of yoga, from the sedate, slow-moving Iyengar, to the more aerobic, strength-building hatha flow. I have never practiced Ashtanga, but I get the idea it's an ass-kicker. I am terrified. Nonetheless, yoga is not just about the body, it brings mind, body and spirituality together as one. If you can make yoga a regular practice in your life you will be flexible, strong, mentally healthy and feel a sense of oneness with those around you and the universe. And, if you like the idea of being happy and healthy well into your 90's and 100's, then I say, go out and buy a yoga mat today, sign-up for a few classes and get yogaing. It partners all activities well. O.K. now I'm going to collect my check from the Yoga Foundation.

Halloween! I love Halloween. Ours was fast and furious. Jake was Speed Racer and I was a super-hero that looked more like Billy Jean King gone Glam. I wasn't hot. Leading up to Halloween we hit a pumpkin patch, pics attached by Jake and myself. As in, Jake took the pictures, except for the crazy ones he is the subject of. We did pumpkin painting, pumpkin carving, caramel apples and then wrapped it up with trick or treating. My job is done. Moving on to Birthday (mine), Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's (um, bloody mary's in the backyard). I fucking love the Holidays. I'm not being a smartass. And for once in a long while, I think I'm feeling o.k. and mentally healthy for a change. Big question of the New Year, is Joanna dumb enough to get pregnant one more time? Yes, No, only time will tell. Back to Halloween. Jake was coming down with a cold and pooped out early. I had to take his heavy load of candy. The wierd thing was, he never ate it, didn't ask about it. Joel and I polished it off in two days. Wierd, very wierd, very, very wierd. He's into gum these days. Oops, he just asked about it. I guess I'm running to the store for some candy now.

If you haven't heard about Barack Obama, which I'm sure you have, check him out at the title link to this blog. He offers hope in the face of our nation's problems. Not that a Republican in the office is a problem (ahem), but a dumb-ass republican puppet who is an embarrassment to our country and misrepresents the people, continuouly making press blunders, is just the little whipped flowers on top of the icing on the cake. He's a small problem. A front man. We don't know who the big problem is because we arn't really sure just who's in charge. Barack Obama is (shhhhhh, don't tell anyone) ... Black. Can America diversify? Is America ready for diversity at that level? It would be new and refreshing to have a woman as president and it's unbelievable that a female president is even an issue, though probably not a great idea . . .we are a bit emotional . . ."I'm so pissed at China, they didn't compliment my nice red dress I bought especially for the meeting we had last night, bomb them damnit." I keep thinking Hillary's real reason to get into the presidential office is some evil revenge on Bill that the whole country is going to be forced to witness. Anyone other than a big, white goon in the office at this point would be great. What makes us think that being caucasian makes someone smarter or better informed at making decisions about America. Obama's belief and efforts are in-line with a more progressive way of running our country. He tackles issues of political corruption and his efforts are devoted to breaking this nation's horrible addiction to oil. His campaign title "The Audacity of Hope, Reclaiming the American Dream" is awesome. He's a visionary, and maybe a bit of an idealist, and we all know the country is ripe for a change in direction. Will he run for president? I don't know enough. I'm still trying to figure out who he is. He's young and I'm excited about the whole idea. When I was digging around looking at press on him I found this hilarious t-shirt site. If I didn't think I'd get punched by some asshole right-winger, I'd definitely wear "F*ck Republicans" with the donkey humping the elephant. Too fun. Or the retro-looking "I miss Bill" t-shirt, I have to buy that one. Enjoy our kooky spooky pumpkin pics. Jake and I had a blast taking photos. The last one's a finger. Verrrrrry artsy. I'm sure he meant to do it.

Whirling Words about the World

My latest addiction is Itunes Radio. I know everyone does it and I've done it forever but my awesome iMac, that doesn't serve much of a purpose other than feeding music at my workstation, sends ethereal ambient tunes from Drone Zone on SomaFM, served best chilled, safe with most medications. Since recently I've been spending a lot of time thinking about the mediocrity of the human race in comparison to the cosmos, it seems best to have a soundtrack reminiscent of space. The music actually has a vibration that resonates through my brain and compels a certain meditation. For those who don't know, my son Jake attends a religious school, the JCC-ECP, the Jewish Community Center-Early Childhood Program. It's awesome. It's a really wonderful school and though I am not religious AT ALL, I have no problem with their very beautiful education about God. If I have to align with a religion, I'll take God's chosen. Nonetheless, this is not a diatribe about religion, what I am embarking on here is that my son comes home with many questions and statements about God. "Why does god make the clouds?" was one. I skirted that one with "Do you think God is a man or a woman?". "Woman", my gorgeous, intelligent young son said. Good Boy. You see, I ain't raising no dummy. I also don't spend a lot of time skirting issues by the way. If he asks me about God, I quickly explain that some people believe that God created the world, but Science very clearly explains away (atleast to me) any chances of some ethereal sort creating the world in 7 days. I mean come on. It's pretty obvious that our ancestors are little hairy types and maybe even a few fishies. As a matter of fact, not to be insulting, but I would say that we are really more of a product of de-evolution as opposed to evolution. Once upon a time, there was a planet void of toxins, trash and war. Are we really anything more than a dirty little vermin, slowly killing off this planet like a nasty disease that no antibiotic can kill. All the other planets are pointing and laughing at Earth. Poor guy. He's got those nasty humans and he can't shake them no matter how many earthquakes, monsoons, hurricanes, etc. So sorry. I just had to get that off my chest. I think my mind wanders too much and sometimes, well, we as people just take our lives so seriously that we stop living it. We are so busy working to buy better cloths, houses, cars, jewelry, groceries, upgrading, not re-using, not recycling, not re-planting. Our world is a consumer world and we can't stop churning out more shit, way more than we are extinguishing, wouldn't you say? We are so consumed with the next buy, even me, I'm not placing myself outside of this guilt. I just can't get over consumption. Target, Wal-Mart, Sears, Home Depot. Is this product or trash? I know I rattle on all the time about this, but what are you and me and everyone else doing to make this a better world? A healthier planet? Life has to move outside our inner circle. We have to look at the bigger picture. I get an opportunity to meditate almost daily at the end of my yoga sessions. Recently, in the last year, I've started looking forward to these times and deeply appreciating the moment, I get excited. I used to think it was such a waste of time. Laying there, flat on my back, I sink into the earth and my mind opens to a broad space. I begin to have a sensation of lifting above the earth and being a part of everything. At that point my thoughts become so large (that's the word) that I can't herd them into any one place. I just grasp a greater sense of being and feel both very small yet connected to everything. Mind you, this is not a religious moment, it's a sensation that we are individually very small, but as a race we are great and can do huge things. As a population we can change direction. We can all meditate, for a brief time everyday and float into a bigger space and realize that we are both great and small in our minds. But if we put our minds together we can change the direction of a huge motion of negative energy and swooping wide, we can change the tide. Wanna try?

Real Parenting

O.K., it's 10:10pm and the hub is in the bedroom reading stories to Jake, not Jake's bedroom, our bedroom. It's all the same around here. Jake is drinking milk from a sippy cup and odds are he won't brush his teeth afterwards. Sometimes we do, sometimes we don't. We didn't eat supper until 8:30pm. Jake sat ON the table, not at the table. Me, Joel and Neighbor sat on the couch. We each had some form of alcohol, beer or wine. We watched Southpark.
Jake goes to school at 8:30am, atleast that's the idea. This morning he woke up at 8:15am. He really didn't want to wake up, but I sang a little ditty and blew mouthfarts on him, making rhyming tunes to words like fart and poop. I know it's bad, but hey, it makes him laugh and I laugh too. I managed to get him dressed, teeth brushed and hair hand-combed and out the door by 8:30am. Not sure how, it was a bit like being a drill sergeant. Did he eat breakfast? No! Damnit. Oh, I said "Damnit", I'm sure. "Oh shit!" is a big favorite too. "Oh Shit, I forgot your shoes." "Damnit Izzy, get out of the trash." You know, shit like that. I dropped him off at school, kisses and hugs and kisses and hugs and lots of "I love You". Life is good. I worked my fucking ass off all day but that's another story. I come skating up to the school at 2:40pm, 2:45pm is the last minute pick-up. Racing into the school, I clip a parent with dawdling kiddos, trying to make it before it is embarrassingly late. I waltz in to a wonderful closing of Jake playing outside with his classmates, "Mom, I don't want to leave yet." I breath a sigh of relaxation. "O.K.", I say. We hang out, then dawdle down to the Frog room. We hang out there too long because we simply love Jaqlyn too much, oh if only I could spell her name right. I am shamed by her wonderfully natural way of observation. As she reads over his class report, she asks Jake "What did you say you were sorry to God for Jake?", "I said I was sorry for talking so loud in class," said Jake. Ouch. Why didn't I ask that question. Moving on. We dallied there for awhile then ran off to finish my work day at TACODELIIIIIIIIIII!!!!!!! In the car I asked Jake what Dad and I should say we are sorry for to God. I won't get into it too much, but let me just say that it turns out that Jake isn't missing alot around here, as in, he does know exactly what we should feel bad about. O.K. now we know Jake's an observant little booger. We went to Tacodeli where I promptly gave him a chocolate chip cookie and lemonade so that he would let me finish up work. We got home and he did awesome artwork and colored and watched T.V. while I worked even a bit more. Then, YEAH!, we went to the park where he played with Zoe and dreamed of playing soccer and being in kindergarten. When we got home he asked me if boys took ballet. "Why yes," I said, with great delight I might add (Joel's eyes were rolling). I ran to get my New York Ballet workout tape to show him just such types of fellows. He lost interest immediately. Jake just got out of bed and asked to brush his teeth and pee. Then he crawled back into bed with Dad. I'm gonna go take a shower and crawl in next to him. Fuck you Parenting Magazine. We co-sleep, we single sleep, Jake sleeps in his own bed and our bed and sometimes I sleep in his bed alone. I say fart and poop and there is no fucking way that ignoring it is going to make him stop saying it. This kid is way too smart for that. He's already signed his forms for class clown of 3rd grade. Dad's been priming him since birth. This is a real day in the real life of a parent of a 4-year-old. I wish we could be better. We did get broccoli and salad in him for dinner. I'm feeling good about that one. I just can't take the pressure of proper parenting anymore. We are animals, we breed, we raise our brood. I can't keep up with the many new fangled ways of raising kids. Americans who raise thier children by the book, end up with cows. Sure, they travel in herds, but you can't tell one from the other. I'll take my crazy zebra-striped Hyena anyday. He's one of a kind.

Swim like you think yer dyin'!

Can you stop time? Have you ever wanted to? How about for one or two hours a day you just shut the world off and forget that your job sucks, you can't pay your bills, your house is dirty, your ass is too big, whatever. I've got the secret . . . It's called swimming. You know, you've heard of it, right? You did it when you were a kid. No dumbass, not that shit where you put on goggles and a cap and ear plugs and drudge along back in forth in those boring fucking lanes, counting strokes and getting that silly exercise stuff. I'm talking about good old heart-thumpin', chlorine-stinkin', swim-suit losin' swimming. Jumping in with yer knees up to your chest, back-slapping, ass-kicking fun. Actually, I'm not much for jumping, but the other day Jake and I put on our goggles and started exploring the deep end of our neighborhood Brentwood Park pool. Since then, nary a day goes by that we don't make it there for a quick underwater expedition. I have found that for a couple of hours a day I actually forget that I'm miserable in my life, unable to decipher a single bit of it. For a little while, I'm Joanna, the 8-year-old, swimming underwater, blowing bubbles up to the top and sitting on the bottom of the pool. I can remember showing up at the pool at opening time in Tulia, Texas. I'd ride my blue 10-speed the four or five miles to the pool and stay till closing, everyday, all summer long. Flirting with the cute life-guards and eating lunch at the snack bar, I was a brown bean, just like The Jakey now. Who new about skin cancer? I'm sucking at that whole concept even now. I don't think I even wore sunscreen back then. These last few days of Jake's summer I'm showing him the way of the underwater world. Everything beats slower down there, everyone flows. I'm creating this concept of underwater yoga. It's beautiful. So, if you haven't made it out to the pools yet, I think you have one more month. Pull out that moldy old swimsuit, slather on some 50 spf, and get some Vitamin D. The sun isn't all that evil. You'll find us there, looking like racoons in our goggles, popping up for air. Hit the title for a link and find a free pool near you.

The Evolution is Upon Us!!

I would not be so bold to say that I know much about anything. In fact, that is exactly my problem and why I am, and have been, stuck in such a long, on-going rut for so long, long, fucking long. From the time I was 17, I have begged and pleaded for anyone to help me make a decision as to what I should do with my life and with boring dismay, I must confess, I have still not discovered it. But nonetheless, here I am to annoy all of you with my ill-educated ramblings on whatever happens to cross my mind in those sketchy early-morning hours when it's too early to get up but just close enough to that time that I can't go back to sleep. First, I should tell you that I have become highly addicted to chocolate covered peanuts. I consider them to be an anti-depressant. I'm trying not to drink so much and they have become an awesome substitute. Watering plants is a good anti-depressant too. I think if you see a beautiful garden, you can bet that person is working through some shit. Anyway, for those of you who arn't up-to-date on my life, here's the low-down. I lost my best dog Red, old news, but losses like that don't just go away. Hell, I'm still mourning my grandma Beulah and that was 4 years ago. A drop in the time bucket. I try to call her everyday. And I listen for Red's shuffle every morning. Joel and I gave the preggers concept one big fat fucking final try and to no avail, the Gods slapped our hands and reminded us that, in our case, one is enough. Fine, I'll look the other way at all those who get to have 2, 3, 4, 10. Getting on with my life with liposuction, running, yoga and such. I've been scanning the news these days and I'm scared. My recent National Geographic talked about hurricanes, CNN talks about heat waves in California, fighting in Israel and Lebanon, and goddamn it's hot. When I read these reports, I see very little mention of what might have caused the environmental concerns. It's just something we must persevere. I can't help but wonder if there is something that we can be doing. I know, we are recycling and riding our bikes and cleaning with non-toxics. I've got my borax, Dr. Bronner's and vinegar and my compost pile to decrease the landfills. I try to only purchase thrift. No new shit for me, thank you. I recycle clothing, damnit. The deal is . . .it's not just about what we are doing but how we are thinking. We have to shift gears. We have to acknowledge, that we humans, are the most destructive thing to ever happen to Earth. And Bush is quite possibly the devil. We procreate and we don't think about what it will be like for our children, hell, what it will be like for us. I fear for the day that we live in plastic bubbles, removed from the contaminated planet we call Earth. Bladerunner. 12 Monkeys. Sci-Fi isn't really fiction, it's prophetic. Atleast that's how I see it, and that's all that counts on this blog, right. I have always believed that practicing yoga (really practicing it), not just as an exercise, but a way of believing, thinking . . . might help evolutionize us, grow our brains bigger, expand our souls and ways of thinking. No more destruction towards ourselves, each other or the planet. It's hard not to think it's too late. Like I said, I don't know much about anything at all and I certainly haven't spent much time with the bible or history. Not enough to know whether what is going on right now is prophetic in anyway. But, what I see, is reason for concern. I see pollution, war, destruction and hatred. It concerns me. It scares the shit out of me. I wonder what life will be like in 20 years. I wonder if we will look back on 2.75 a gallon gas and say "Can you believe it got that high?", or "Wow, those were the good old days!", or "What was gasoline anyway?". I wonder if we won't have a choice as to whether our sons and daughters will fight in a war. That's what really makes my heart skip a beat, feeling the rush of blood as it catches up with itself. I have to admit, sometimes I think. . . it's too late. There is no changing this blood ugly course we've got ourselves on. Then, I go and pop YogaShakti in the DVD player and do a long yoga session, throw some coins for the I Ching and think . . .today I'll try to evolutionize, just a little bit.
And now, give this a think . . .if you arn't part of this evolution, then you might just be part of the problem. What can you do about it?

Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends

Look, if you haven't seen this show then you are an unforgivable turd who lives life boring the shit out of everyone around you. First, the animation is delightful and addictive. As soon as the theme song starts, you should immediately start dancing. That's the only way to do it. I'm not saying this is educational tv, but it's better than being put through a series of learning programs on Noggin (which I love by the way, but can only stomach so much of) and not as bad as letting him watch . . the Simpsons, the Oblongs or Family Guy. It's clean, it's funny, it's adorable, it'a entertaining. Check it out on Cartoon Network. I sit down and watch it everytime it's on for a little lighthearted pick-me-up. I'm trying to do this crazy new thing called "Live Today". Try not to think about yesterday too much and avoid thinking about tomorrow a whole heck of alot as well. Seriously, thinking about something that hasn't happened is a total waste of time. Today is Today and in the exact moment when it happens, it's the only chance you will get to experience it. So, at the risk of sounding wholly cliche, stop and smell the bluebonnets, reach in and feel the texture of a plant's leaf, listen to the crickets and frogs and birds in your yard. On a cool summer evening, go outside and plop your ass down in a chair and stare at the sky, touch the fireflies and have a goofy conversation with your 4-year-old, or husband, or wife, or sister, or mom, or dog, or cat about what it would be like to ride a shadow, or whether you've ever seen a ghost, or what would happened if it rained lollipops. Last night, Jake and I sat outside in chairs facing each other with our legs wrapped up singing "Cowgirls, Cowboys won't you come out tonight, come out tonight, come out tonight, etc." Jake made up verses and we talked about the shadows. Our shadows have become our new friends who often play with us in the mornings. I have spent so much of my life worrying about the past and fretting about the future and it's this little fella I grew from a very small seed that has finally made me realize that it's this very moment that counts the most. And with that said, I'm going to make the most of this one and go do yoga to start the day.

Playdough

O.K. so I tried to start a new blog but I realized that it was stupid so here is the one post that was at that blog. I also linked to a really cute site where you can learn how to do other cool things with your kid, wife, cousin, niece, nephew, dog, alone, whatever. Hit the title of this entry. I've been doing a little baking so I might give you a bit of a how-to on that next time and I might even do a little starter (sourdough, that is). Yeah, call me Marta Hewlert or something. Sorry for the icky pics but to be honest, playdough isn't pretty to get to, just fun to play with, smell, taste and eat and . . . I'll stop there.
PLAYDOUGH, PLAYDOH, PLATO, ETC.
2 cups of flour
1 cup of salt
1 teaspoon of food coloring (always use more).
2 tablespoons of oil
2 cups of water
1 teaspoon of cream of tartar.
Cook it in a saucepan over a medium heat and you will get a soft, lovely, pliable playdough that is not only fun to play with, but yummy to eat. No silly, don't eat it. Make the alphabet with it. We always make tons of it because it lasts forever. Try not to get too stressed. It's messy and it should be. We forget how to be friends with our kids, so busy to make sure they are good little humans that arn't offending anyone. Just remember, who they are now is only a fraction of who they will become and what you do now will determine every bit of what they will become. Think about it. They get in our way and slow our day down. Oh, if only I could have a cup of coffee in solitude. Solitude will come your way. It's called "old age" and who you are now will determine who is by your side in 40 years. I would love to have Jake come by and visit me in my garden when I'm 80. What would you like?

My Red.

I dedicate this blog to the best little girl that ever came into my life. I just hope that someday I see her spirit running through the mist of the Shoal Creek dog park. I would love to see that smile just one more time. Baby girl, I love you. And Papa and Jake and Gus do to.

My Little Girl

On Saturday, April 15th, my sweet girl Red died. I was gone out of town and she died here at the house with Gus. She was the world to us, the glue in the family factory. There is a hollow place in our world now. We loved you Little Red Dog.

Oh sew Quickly...

I have no time to post. My life is a mess. Oh Calgon, take me away. So, when you drink too much Vodka it makes your brain dry up. Ouch. Come on brain, relax. Oooh. Jake is screaming. I am so excited because I have signed up for a beginners sewing class at First Samples and am going to pushstart my dream of being a DIY clothing designer. Woohoo. If you are interested you can click on the title to this entry and it will send you to thier sight. I read about it in the crappy Austin American Statesman (don't get me started on our great newspaper) and decided to muster up the $120 bucks to do it. I don't see why it seems like I never have time to do anything for myself unless I wake up at 5am, an then it's only yoga, but I'm happy about that. I just need time to sew. I also picked up a book about making clothes out of t-shirts, 108 ways to redesign a t-shirt. You can even make a bikini, as if, I'm packing this chunky belly into any bikini, oh god, give me back my skinny body, pleeeeezzzeeee. My Jake is filled with so many words. He's currently telling me how he spits on monsters and chases them up trees. I love the little fellow, he calls his burps "amaaaazing". I had him say his prayers today from school. It's so cute. I'm not religious but there is something about hearing your child say a prayer he has memorized and talking about God. It's a part of him that comes from somewhere else and has no connection to me. I feel like, in this space, he can teach me something. O.K. just wanted to spit out some words. Must get ready for soccer practice. Check out the slowly evolving link list. I have tons more, just give me time.