Well, medical fate strikes again. FOr the past few days, I've been cutting open tennis balls to put on the legs of my kids' chairs at school. Now, I know what you're saying...this woman is BRILLIANT! What amazing judgment she must have to think that cutting tennis balls open with a box cutter when NBC is running their Thursday night lineup is a GREAT plan! And you are RIGHT! I AM brilliant...if you expand your definition of brilliant to include "people dumb enough to stab themselves in the palm after being told by no less than 5 people on separate occasions that it would happen". If that's what passes for brilliant, then I'm a certified MENSA candidate.
Almost 2 and a half hours after the blood started spurting and I'm now sporting 4 stitches. I'm also required to go get a tetanus shot within the next three days (which means tomorrow with the show going all weekend), since they were out of them tonight. Yay smart people like me!!!
D.
Thursday, April 24, 2008
Friday, April 18, 2008
Buffalo Comedy Sportz Improv-a-thon
If you are going to be in the Buffalo area between April 26th-27th, come see me play in a 29-1/2 hour improv show with Buffalo Comedy Sportz (my first time with the troupe)! There will be food and drinks, prizes, and even a Chinese auction! All the proceeds will be used to send my team to the 2008 Comedy Sportz World Championship in Portland, Oregon this summer.
Also, I need pledges! You can pledge me per hour or just give me all your money (and I mean all of it). Email me directly for details.
So to recap:
WHAT: Comedy Sportz Improv-a-thon
WHERE: The Riviera Theatre, 67 Webster St, North Tonawanda
WHEN: April 26th at 4:00pm-April 27th 9:30 pm
WHO: Me and the other members of Buffalo's Comedy Sportz and YOU, our loyal fans
WHY: To send us to the Comedy Sportz World Championship in Portland, OR
AND: Give me money and get a genuine thank you!
PLUS: Chinese auction, yummy foods, drinks for the whole family, and prizes!
And remember, even if you don't live in Buffalo, you can still give me money and get that genuine thank you over the internet.
For more info, check the Facebook event here:
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=10924904118
OR the My Space Event here:
http://events.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=events.detail&eventID=420517.82916&Mytoken=EB484BEB-2FA1-4B7A-AD9A11A9C775BCB414263861
Also, I need pledges! You can pledge me per hour or just give me all your money (and I mean all of it). Email me directly for details.
So to recap:
WHAT: Comedy Sportz Improv-a-thon
WHERE: The Riviera Theatre, 67 Webster St, North Tonawanda
WHEN: April 26th at 4:00pm-April 27th 9:30 pm
WHO: Me and the other members of Buffalo's Comedy Sportz and YOU, our loyal fans
WHY: To send us to the Comedy Sportz World Championship in Portland, OR
AND: Give me money and get a genuine thank you!
PLUS: Chinese auction, yummy foods, drinks for the whole family, and prizes!
And remember, even if you don't live in Buffalo, you can still give me money and get that genuine thank you over the internet.
For more info, check the Facebook event here:
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=10924904118
OR the My Space Event here:
http://events.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=events.detail&eventID=420517.82916&Mytoken=EB484BEB-2FA1-4B7A-AD9A11A9C775BCB414263861
Sunday, April 13, 2008
UBCon!!!
Well, we came, we saw, we gamed the whole !@#$ weekend!
UBCon (http://wings.buffalo.edu/sa/sarpa/SARPAWEB/ubcon.php) was AWESOME! Kevin goes every year, but I've had this pathological fear of gaming with strangers since middle school, so this was my first time. Frankly, if not for the fact that I was honoring the passing of a friend of ours a few years ago, I might not have even done it, but I'm SOOO glad I did.
Aside from our regular gaming group, which we did on site on Saturday, we got to game with one of the best, Nicolas Logue of Eberron campaign fame (http://www.sinisteradventures.com/) and he was seriously cool. It was like being in a movie with your favorite characters. He never ONCE looked down at a book, just ran things and went with the flow (which I loved). I played a pre-gen character for the first game with him, then he let me play Adrian Quicksilver for the other two, which was a ton of fun. Adrian has a habit of being dropped into worlds he's not ready for because people like the pitch of his terrified screams and the tone of his diplomatic, yet insistence pleading to leave the (insert favorite tentacled evil beastie here) in favor of a hasty retreat. At one point, Adrian was actually falling down a temple tunnel with the acid breath of a gargantuan black dragon surrounding him...and that was one of the CALMER moments!
Anyway, we had a ball, as did our other gamer friends because of Nick. Wish you'dve all been there, too...can't help but wanna share the wealth! BTW, if you want to see him in DM action, check him out here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x9MWwPi3py4 He's not quite as animated as he was for our games in this one (and his hair's shorter now), but he's still the schiznit!
D.
UBCon (http://wings.buffalo.edu/sa/sarpa/SARPAWEB/ubcon.php) was AWESOME! Kevin goes every year, but I've had this pathological fear of gaming with strangers since middle school, so this was my first time. Frankly, if not for the fact that I was honoring the passing of a friend of ours a few years ago, I might not have even done it, but I'm SOOO glad I did.
Aside from our regular gaming group, which we did on site on Saturday, we got to game with one of the best, Nicolas Logue of Eberron campaign fame (http://www.sinisteradventures.com/) and he was seriously cool. It was like being in a movie with your favorite characters. He never ONCE looked down at a book, just ran things and went with the flow (which I loved). I played a pre-gen character for the first game with him, then he let me play Adrian Quicksilver for the other two, which was a ton of fun. Adrian has a habit of being dropped into worlds he's not ready for because people like the pitch of his terrified screams and the tone of his diplomatic, yet insistence pleading to leave the (insert favorite tentacled evil beastie here) in favor of a hasty retreat. At one point, Adrian was actually falling down a temple tunnel with the acid breath of a gargantuan black dragon surrounding him...and that was one of the CALMER moments!
Anyway, we had a ball, as did our other gamer friends because of Nick. Wish you'dve all been there, too...can't help but wanna share the wealth! BTW, if you want to see him in DM action, check him out here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x9MWwPi3py4 He's not quite as animated as he was for our games in this one (and his hair's shorter now), but he's still the schiznit!
D.
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
Odyssey of the Heart
I know, sounds corny, but I had the BEST experience this year with my Odyssey of the Mind team! For those of you that don't know what Odyssey IS, check out their website and get a team GOING! (http://www.odysseyofthemind.com/) I personally have been the coordinator for the coaches and teams in my district for about 5 years now and even helped out with spontaneous for a while before that. This was my very first year as a full time coach and it was great!
Our team didn't place in the top 5, but WOW, what a group! They've been at this since September, all of them new to the experience, but did the best performance they've ever done in their lives and supported each other like true champions the whole way. We won in our regional tournament and went on to the New York State Tournament. We were like country mice in Times Square...everything was so big and glamorous and amazing on the SUNY Binghamton campus. They did the spontaneous event at a mind blowing 8:19 in the morning (mind blowing for folks like ME who couldn't sleep a WINK from excitement!) and did their long term problem in the afternoon. All day long, they watched other groups and were astonished with their presentations.
Finally, at the award ceremony,they sat holding hands nervously in a group at the awards (even the BOYS!). Worried about their feelings, I asked them "What do we do if we DON'T place?"
One of the girls said "Scream and yell for the teams that DO!"
I added, "Promise me, too, that no matter WHAT that we'll do the same thing whether we place or don't...we figure out what to do to make it better next year.'
They promised and DID JUST THAT...no crying scenes, no pouting fits, just good kids happy to have made it this far. We had pizza, talked about how cool all the events were, then went to bed, got back up and took our bus back to Lockport. Even the parents were wonderful! A bunch of them even hugged me and thanked me at the end, plus they gave the kids money to buy pins for me, the Highlander and the other coach (the cool blinky kind that I love that blind you when you look right at 'em...woo HOOO!!!)
I have TRULY been blessed, folks! :-D
D.
Our team didn't place in the top 5, but WOW, what a group! They've been at this since September, all of them new to the experience, but did the best performance they've ever done in their lives and supported each other like true champions the whole way. We won in our regional tournament and went on to the New York State Tournament. We were like country mice in Times Square...everything was so big and glamorous and amazing on the SUNY Binghamton campus. They did the spontaneous event at a mind blowing 8:19 in the morning (mind blowing for folks like ME who couldn't sleep a WINK from excitement!) and did their long term problem in the afternoon. All day long, they watched other groups and were astonished with their presentations.
Finally, at the award ceremony,they sat holding hands nervously in a group at the awards (even the BOYS!). Worried about their feelings, I asked them "What do we do if we DON'T place?"
One of the girls said "Scream and yell for the teams that DO!"
I added, "Promise me, too, that no matter WHAT that we'll do the same thing whether we place or don't...we figure out what to do to make it better next year.'
They promised and DID JUST THAT...no crying scenes, no pouting fits, just good kids happy to have made it this far. We had pizza, talked about how cool all the events were, then went to bed, got back up and took our bus back to Lockport. Even the parents were wonderful! A bunch of them even hugged me and thanked me at the end, plus they gave the kids money to buy pins for me, the Highlander and the other coach (the cool blinky kind that I love that blind you when you look right at 'em...woo HOOO!!!)
I have TRULY been blessed, folks! :-D
D.
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
New Blog: Blinded By The Sprite
Once again, at Walter's insistence, I've started another blog. This one is just for what he calls "my little rants about songs". Apparently, I crab about music enough that he's had time to CREATE a name for them, but he seems to like it when I do it and thinks the rest of the world might be similarly entertained. I pity any of you who actually agree! :-)
The title for this blog actually came from Mark (Wassamatta U) and Kevin both. Kevin was responsible for Blinded By the Sprite (which he woke up and said to me in the middle of the night and just wouldn't leave my head) and Mark had gone entirely insane using the words "verse" and "stanza" to the point where I HAD to take something he said just to make him take his Ritalin...!
Anyway, you can check it out and let me know what you think: (http://blindedbythesprite.blogspot.com/)
The title for this blog actually came from Mark (Wassamatta U) and Kevin both. Kevin was responsible for Blinded By the Sprite (which he woke up and said to me in the middle of the night and just wouldn't leave my head) and Mark had gone entirely insane using the words "verse" and "stanza" to the point where I HAD to take something he said just to make him take his Ritalin...!
Anyway, you can check it out and let me know what you think: (http://blindedbythesprite.blogspot.com/)
Monday, February 18, 2008
Sometimes, you gotta be stronger than you are...
My dad told me this once, and I normally try to live up to it. The past month has been hard though.
Kevin's been in pain since...well, some type of heavy duty meds have been involved since 2004, but it started before that, even. The accident brought out some more complications, none of which the doctors can be clear on yet. They were offering him stronger meds, which he balked at because of the level of addiction he was afraid he was getting into. Meanwhile, I was trying to do whatever it took to keep him pain free, but hitting a wall when it came to the meds being upped because of his worries. He was getting depressed, I was getting depressed, detached and even angry by varying degrees, all which culminated in HUGE amounts of guilt.
See, it's a little scary trying to take care of someone for a tomboy. We pretty much have NO clue about woman's intuition, so if a guy like Kevin says he's fine, we believe him until he actually makes the pain noises. Then we feel guilty thinking we should have known better or felt some kind of natural urge to protect him or something, which makes us mad ("why didn't you TELL me you were hurting?" or "why'd you do that? It's just gonna hurt MORE!") and THAT leads to the guilt about getting mad at someone in pain.
After talking with him, I came to some heavy realizations about all this:
1. Kevin is actually suffering from CHRONIC pain, not just recurring bouts that have an ending. The pain for him is constant, and in varying degrees. It's not the type that actually gets better (at least, not as yet); there just seem to be good and bad days. This means it's NOT just mind over matter.
2. All Kevin is really supposed to do is sit or lay down and not bend his neck. This means his life is mostly tv and books/computer for a short period. It makes him feel useless and of no help to me as a man, but his independence and stubbornness about doing for himself leaves me with the same feeling as a woman. I know the doctors are right and I really need to make him NOT do things, but I have to keep in mind the destructive thoughts he has about not feeling like he can help me when I remind him NOT to try and clean/make dinner/do laundry, etc.
3. I can't hinge my happiness on how he feels on any given day, or else I'll always be sad and so will he. There are enough opportunities for him to be depressed about pain without me adding to the festivities! :-) It's actually okay for me to find ways to enjoy myself (Comedy Sportz, after school activities, etc.) as well as take care of him.
5. That being said, when I get overwhelmed with trying to be brave for him, it's okay to break down once in a while and cry. It does NOT make me a bad wife. If I don't, I'll get tight and wound up and won't be much good to him, anyway. Supporting someone through pain is taking care of their needs, but NOT wallowing in misery with them. I need to find ways to stay happy to keep his spirits up, too.
So, last weekend afforded me the chance to...well, cry. I think I needed it. I told my mom and she was just sorry it was so hard for both of us. I don't think it occurred to me that I was in a situation to be pitied, too. After all, I wasn't hurting. But, she said it's like being the parent of a child who's sick and you can't help. You're going through an emotional strain that can be just as awful as what the victim is suffering. She's right...your spouse really IS your baby when you don't have kids and I worry about his well being more than anyone else's I know, including my own. I had entirely disregarded my need to let go.
Yay, moms!
Next step...talk to her about where SHE'S currently going wrong. She and my brother aren't talking and I've woken up two nights in a row now with answers why and explanations that ought to be made. That'll take a COMPLETELY different blog someday, but not today...!
I WILL get a new blog going for something Walter suggested and Mark named...more on that later, too!
D.
Kevin's been in pain since...well, some type of heavy duty meds have been involved since 2004, but it started before that, even. The accident brought out some more complications, none of which the doctors can be clear on yet. They were offering him stronger meds, which he balked at because of the level of addiction he was afraid he was getting into. Meanwhile, I was trying to do whatever it took to keep him pain free, but hitting a wall when it came to the meds being upped because of his worries. He was getting depressed, I was getting depressed, detached and even angry by varying degrees, all which culminated in HUGE amounts of guilt.
See, it's a little scary trying to take care of someone for a tomboy. We pretty much have NO clue about woman's intuition, so if a guy like Kevin says he's fine, we believe him until he actually makes the pain noises. Then we feel guilty thinking we should have known better or felt some kind of natural urge to protect him or something, which makes us mad ("why didn't you TELL me you were hurting?" or "why'd you do that? It's just gonna hurt MORE!") and THAT leads to the guilt about getting mad at someone in pain.
After talking with him, I came to some heavy realizations about all this:
1. Kevin is actually suffering from CHRONIC pain, not just recurring bouts that have an ending. The pain for him is constant, and in varying degrees. It's not the type that actually gets better (at least, not as yet); there just seem to be good and bad days. This means it's NOT just mind over matter.
2. All Kevin is really supposed to do is sit or lay down and not bend his neck. This means his life is mostly tv and books/computer for a short period. It makes him feel useless and of no help to me as a man, but his independence and stubbornness about doing for himself leaves me with the same feeling as a woman. I know the doctors are right and I really need to make him NOT do things, but I have to keep in mind the destructive thoughts he has about not feeling like he can help me when I remind him NOT to try and clean/make dinner/do laundry, etc.
3. I can't hinge my happiness on how he feels on any given day, or else I'll always be sad and so will he. There are enough opportunities for him to be depressed about pain without me adding to the festivities! :-) It's actually okay for me to find ways to enjoy myself (Comedy Sportz, after school activities, etc.) as well as take care of him.
5. That being said, when I get overwhelmed with trying to be brave for him, it's okay to break down once in a while and cry. It does NOT make me a bad wife. If I don't, I'll get tight and wound up and won't be much good to him, anyway. Supporting someone through pain is taking care of their needs, but NOT wallowing in misery with them. I need to find ways to stay happy to keep his spirits up, too.
So, last weekend afforded me the chance to...well, cry. I think I needed it. I told my mom and she was just sorry it was so hard for both of us. I don't think it occurred to me that I was in a situation to be pitied, too. After all, I wasn't hurting. But, she said it's like being the parent of a child who's sick and you can't help. You're going through an emotional strain that can be just as awful as what the victim is suffering. She's right...your spouse really IS your baby when you don't have kids and I worry about his well being more than anyone else's I know, including my own. I had entirely disregarded my need to let go.
Yay, moms!
Next step...talk to her about where SHE'S currently going wrong. She and my brother aren't talking and I've woken up two nights in a row now with answers why and explanations that ought to be made. That'll take a COMPLETELY different blog someday, but not today...!
I WILL get a new blog going for something Walter suggested and Mark named...more on that later, too!
D.
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
Well, of course YOU did...!
So, I threw my primary vote to Barrack Obama today. I felt so GUILTY, it wasn't funny. I snuck in there with that same self conscious feeling I get when I'm buying fried chicken in public, the same feeling that makes Kevin the buyer of watermelon in our house instead of me. I can't stand that sensation that people are looking at me going "Well, of course YOU voted for Barrack...he's black and everything!" Like I couldn't POSSIBLY be voting for him because I loved his speech at the National Convention or that I like his moderate attitude or because I think he's got a better chance than the others of wresting power away from the Republican Party.
Think this is a silly thought? While I was visiting Canada back in October, an older couple asked me if I was voting for Hilary or Osama (yes, OSAMA!) I laughed and said, "You mean Obama, right? Because that would be a VERY different election...!" Again, they believed I could only be thinking about voting for the black guy or the woman, regardless of their actual job qualifications. At the time, I was really kinda leaning toward John Edwards (out of defiance, I guess), but it was awkward to only be seen as being so one sided.
Anyway, I'm glad it's over for now. I'll have to wait and see what the polls say. Honestly, though, if it's between John McCain and Barrack Obama, I'll be happy with either one. I'd like to believe that Barrack would be forced into ushering in a new age of change, but John McCain seems to be just as bent on making his party better and has a history of being a maverick as it is. It all works toward the same goal, really.
Think this is a silly thought? While I was visiting Canada back in October, an older couple asked me if I was voting for Hilary or Osama (yes, OSAMA!) I laughed and said, "You mean Obama, right? Because that would be a VERY different election...!" Again, they believed I could only be thinking about voting for the black guy or the woman, regardless of their actual job qualifications. At the time, I was really kinda leaning toward John Edwards (out of defiance, I guess), but it was awkward to only be seen as being so one sided.
Anyway, I'm glad it's over for now. I'll have to wait and see what the polls say. Honestly, though, if it's between John McCain and Barrack Obama, I'll be happy with either one. I'd like to believe that Barrack would be forced into ushering in a new age of change, but John McCain seems to be just as bent on making his party better and has a history of being a maverick as it is. It all works toward the same goal, really.
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