double helix: Blog

Yay Moondoggies!!!

Fri, 07 Mar 2008 06:07:36 GMT

The boys have signed!!!

03.06.08 - The Moondoggies sign to Hardly Art
The above headline is true - we are indeed at the height of some sort of strange bandemonium around here, contracts and signing pens being flung everywhere, angry lawyers and celebratory drinks, and the last but certainly not least in this marathon round of band acquisition comes in the form of The Moondoggies. This country-fried five-piece comes from the haunts of Seattle, or specifically the Blue Moon Tavern, and has been peddling their hook-drenched guitars, gospel-entrenched harmonies, and of course their Rhodes organ, since circa 2006 or so. We are quite pleased to be releasing their yet-to-be-titled debut LP later this year. Who says we don’t know how to handle a recession, eh?

Check it out in the press:

And did you see The Seattle Times tonight? These guys are EVERYWHERE!

"Everard is working both sides of 10th tonight, hosting "The Young Ones," a collection of rising Seattle acts, including rap crew Dyme Def, indie-poppers Throw Me the Statue and old-school rockers the Moondoggies (who recently signed to Sub Pop offshoot Hardly Art). "

It couldn't have happened to greater guys- way to go!!

Great, great bands!

Tue, 29 Jan 2008 05:03:54 GMT

So there was a great aritcle in the Seattle Times on Sunday. It was all about the anniversary of SubPop records- they were the label that originally signed Nirvana and released Bleach- and other great bands- my favs Death Cab for Cutie and the Shins. The main founder had some very nice things to say- and about the 'doggies in particular:

Sub Pop's kind of town

Sub Pop long ago earned a national reputation, and in recent years has earned a second one. Yet it remains, in many ways, a Seattle thing.

"Sub Pop would not have been Sub Pop without Seattle," Poneman says. "Seattle is an essential component to the story. Sub Pop is less geographical [now] — it has less of a regional focus. But Seattle is still home — I can complain about the irresponsible development going on downtown, I can complain about the traffic and real-estate prices, but it's still my home. And I think I can speak for Sub Pop: The people living in Seattle have always been very supportive of Sub Pop."

While he cites independent radio station KEXP (and its predecessor, KCMU) and Seattle indie record stores as "amazing partners to Sub Pop through the years," it again comes down to the bands. While Sub Pop's signings extend around the country, the most successful have Northwest roots.

And, Poneman flatly states, "We are in the midst of a resurrection" of Seattle music. He cites Band of Horses, new signings Grand Archives (led by Mat Brooke, formerly of Carissa's Wierd and Band of Horses) and Fleet Floxes, and unsigned (for now) band the Moondoggies as "great, great bands that are coming up — very exciting."

But Poneman can't talk too long without that self-deprecating, ironic streak. And here comes that smirk again.

"I've signed bands to Sub Pop whose parents used to watch the original Sub Pop bands."

Still behind - unlike the Murphy boys....

Sat, 08 Dec 2007 06:39:18 GMT

So I have yet to send off b-day presents to those who celebrated in September- now... I'm working on it. But just wanted to take a couple of moments to celebrate both Mike and Kev...

Mike's show "Uncle Mike ruins Christmas" at the Jet City Improv has a strong review from Seattle Weekly. That paper just loves these guys!

Kevin and The Moondoggies are playing a local show at the Tractor tomorrow night where it is a play through of Dylan's Blonde on Blonde record, with different bands switching in for each song. Good on 'em! They just finished recording a real record. More details on it soon! Oh- and they are being showcased at the Experience Music Project on January 3rd.

So far behind, I don't know what to do.

Wed, 03 Oct 2007 04:28:20 GMT

I am behind. Not just a day or two but 2 months. I have been so busy at work, finishing up the last triathlon, training (or pretending to train) for the Seattle half-marathon, planning a big party.... that I have let everything else slip. Right now I am staring at a stack of cards, birthday gifts, anniversary gifts, notes, etc. that go back to dates that I missed in August- and right up to now. I have 3 family birthdays coming up in the next 3 weeks and I am not on track to hit any of them. It has gotten to the point that I am so embarrassed by how late some of these things are, that I'm not sure if it is better to give them to people for Christmas gifts, or for the event next year. So if you are a close friend or family member and have had a special occasion in the last 3 months, please know that I did think about you as it came around, took the time to get a card (of course I did!) and then I just never carried through with it. And I am a dork. And I will probably sit on whatever it is for the next 3 weeks as well. Because I suck.

Thursday Funny

Fri, 14 Sep 2007 04:59:53 GMT

I love reading Wil Wheaton's blog. I started reading it a few years ago, and it is still one of my favorites. He makes me laugh. The kind where if you are drinking something it comes out of your nose- that kind of laughter.

I loved this entry.

How are you all?

More Moondoggies- and Kevin shows his feelings for unionization...

Sat, 11 Aug 2007 01:37:15 GMT

So here is a cool story about the Moondoggies here- where they are profiled by Seattle Weekly

and then later in this week's issue Kevin is the "Day job of the week" where he discusses his intricate routine for preparing tasty bagels daily.

So cool!

The Moondoggies- new press!

Sun, 29 Jul 2007 05:39:38 GMT

The Moondoggies got some hot new gushy press from the music editor of The Stranger.

Check it out!

Way to go guys!

Done with Harry Potter

Wed, 25 Jul 2007 04:36:17 GMT

Chris and I bought HP while on the big boat trip. We went to a midnight release party in Friday Harbor. Sans kids... which probably made us look really creepy.

Read it for 5 hours and finished. Chris is done too. We were really shocked when Ron Weasley killed everyone. Who saw that coming? Ha ha, just kidding...

Music to herd unicorns by

Wed, 25 Jul 2007 02:43:47 GMT

Chris and I have had a great time at the Chateau Ste. Michelle winery outdoor concerts this year. We saw Harry Connick Jr. in early June- and that was a fabulous concert. We got to be in the "special people" tent with a free wine bar and dinner...but most importantly a running water VIP port-a-potty!!! Then we saw Chris Isaak with my sister, mom, Mike and Jeannine. Again- it was another fabulous concert. Both of the artists had lots of fun audience banter and played great music. Then we got free tickets to go back to see the Moody Blues- who I like, and who Chris thought he liked. And it was back in the VIP tent, so we were all ready to go! We got there and they played all of the old favorites, Tuesday afternoon, In Your Wildest Dreams, etc. Of course they left Nights in White Satin until last.... but it was pretty good. And then there were other songs I didn't recognized, and new band members that I didn't recognize. It was a mix between old crunchy members and new young members with um, easy to view assets. One girl was in charge of getting the audience to clap, between the 3 songs she banged on the keyboard during. So Chris was bored and we both sat there and concentrated on the lyrics. Here are some gems from the Moody Blues catalogue.

Floating:

Now I know how it feels
To have wings on my heels
To take a stroll among the stars
Get a close look at planet Mars

Candle of life:

Something there outside
Says we're only
In the hands of time
Falling slowly
It's there for us to know
With love that we can go
Burn slowly the candle of life

Gypsy:

A gypsy of a strange and distant time
Travelling in panic all direction blind
Aching for the warmth of a burning sun
Freezing in the emptiness of where he'd come from
Oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh, oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh
Left without a hope of coming home

Never blame the rainbows for the rain:

Sailing along
The river of time
Adrift on dreams
Through midnight chimes
Positively frozen
Crystal Waterfalls
The mountain of hope
Is there to be climbed
The sea of serenity
Is rightfully mine
Step on to the water
Knowing what is true

Okay, so are these not the most hokey lyrics ever? Now I look at this group as kitschy fun... but what the hell do these songs mean?!!! Were these created just so people had something to listen to as they rolled their 20-sided die during a round of D and D? The audience was totally into it though! And we were definitely the youngest ones there. And maybe the most sober....

Once more, with feeling

Wed, 25 Jul 2007 02:20:50 GMT

"I think this line's mostly filler"- Willow from BTVS

So Chris and I went out with Jeannine and our new friends Kris and JB to see the Buffy the Vampire Slayer musical sing-along last month. In case you missed this fabulous event, it was a regular episode (Once more with Feeling) where a demon put a spell on Sunnydale that caused the entire town to burst into song and or dance. And yes I know all of the words. We have been so busy lately, that I didn't blog about it- but it was a great time. Chris and I went to see Rocky Horror while we were in marching band in high school and this experience was very reminiscent of that. It started at midnight (and we're getting old, so this was a stretch!) at the Egyptian theater in Capital Hill. The line was around the block, and I managed to avoid eye contact with a few former students. It is not that I'd be embarrassed to be seen there, but that I am always aware that sometimes students don't want to be recognized by their former Biology teacher while out in the wee hours of the morning.

We got a little gift bag of goodies- fake vampire teeth, a confetti popper, bubbles, a kazoo, and other items to either be thrown, or used, or ? during the sing-a-long. The audience was into it, and they had some Buffy-oke before the event and then some Buffy trivia and it was entertaining. The only part that was a wee bit uncomfortable was a group of about 20 people that were screaming at the MCs to start the video. I was pretty embarrassed to be a fellow Seattlite... our lack of audience etiquette strikes again. And this was a traveling show. I hope they come back next year.

Anyhoo, the crowd seemed to have no problem joining right in, and we all sounded uber nerdy, and out of tune, but great fun was had by all.

If you have the chance to catch this in your town... I highly recommend it!

Things that are fun

Tue, 26 Jun 2007 05:02:13 GMT

I hate bloggers who do not update their sites, especially because I am such a loser, I will check it a few times, and then I am always disappointed by what finally gets posted there. There is absolutely no relationship between the length of time between posts and how great a post is after a long absence of posting. Sorry about that - and I am kind of apologizing to you, my audience, that consists of my mom and my husband, and the random person who stumbles here looking for another Megan Anderson, or an explanation of the structure of DNA.

Things that are fun:

SNLs MacGruber skits.

The best car commercial ever. The car even shares my name!

The Pittsuburgh Pirates Sopranos Spoof (yes I know this ceased to be entertaining 3 weeks ago- but I guess I'm posting this for those who love mascots.

Things that suck....

I have to stay up late to call the Grand Hotel Esplanade to get my money back, and I will have to use my broken German to inform the desk clerk that I was overcharged, after they will put me on hold for $5.00 a minute. This is supposed to be one of the greatest places to stay in Berlin and it was sooooo disappointing. Even though the Stuttgart football team was there and we sat next to a bunch of them in Harry's New York Bar (and had no idea who they were) while fans tried to sneak in the hotel, it was pretty disappointing. No AC was great on an 85 degree day, and the customer service left a lot to be desired. Oh, and they have spiders. I was bitten on the foot on the way into the bathroom that was fun.

Tomorrow I have to work. Everyone else I know (at the school) is on summer vacation. Suxor!

Guten Tag!

Sun, 27 May 2007 15:56:12 GMT

So I am in Germany. I have been neglecting every possible form of writing because I have been running from one end of the country to the other. So far I have seen Hamburg- where Molly and I traveled to Lubeck, to see the history of Germany's marzipan industry. Then we left to go to Berlin- which did not impress me as much as other european cities... and I think it had to do wtih most of the time we were there we spent in the former East Berlin and the look of the city is much more sterile than what I have seen before. It is obvious it was from the total destruction of Berlin in WWII, but it just seemed to be missing its soul. However, we did have a very nice time there and saw places like the Jewish museum- with the very haunting "fallen leaves" art instillation and the holocaust tower. We also visited the Jewish memorial, the Brandonberg Gate, Checkpoint Charlie and a chunk of the wall that still remains. Germany has had a very interesting history in modern times. The temperature here is very muggy and sunny. We have had 3 thunderstorms recently. They seem to clear up pretty soon and make the temperature bearable for a few hours...

Football has been the name of the game here. When we stayed in Berlin, the Stuttgard team stayed at our hotel. We hung out in the bar near a bunch of the team/ management... and people would ask them for autographs, but we didn't recognize them. It wasn't until we started walking around Berlin the day we left that we noticed everyone wearing red and white or red and black. At the Olympic statium, they had the national finals for Stuttgard vs Nurmberg. We hopped on the train to Nurmberg where everyone was wearing the Nurmberg scarf or jersey. Molly and I got some rattlers (beer and juice) and crushed into one of the major town squares (that have beautiful bavarian style decor and incredible churches everywhere) and watched the game. Nurmberg won in overtime and the town was crazy!! It started to pour right at the game ended and everything was soaked. Our hotel was right on the main thorough fair in town and so people drove by and honked, cheered, and sang all night long. The police presence was very strong , and some even wore riot gear! The next morning Molly and I went into the town for breakfast, and the fans were still there, drinking their morning beer and still cheering and singing. As I write this, almost 20 hours later, there are still people driving thru town, flying the team flag and honking and cheering-- and everyone joins in!! The team came home today and they are having a gigantic rally in town.

I guess Nurmberg is well known for its rallies... awkward transition to what we did today- and that was to visit the former Nazi party rally grounds. It was so shocking to see what this party did on such a grand level in such a short time. There is a great museum that is in the Kongresshalle, that is one of the largest remaining Nazi structures in Germany. It is a beautiful brick building and they use it for educational purposes, as well as housing the orchestra. From there we walked to the Zeppelin Grandstand. This is where you have seen Hitler standing in front of his thousands of troops on a great marble podium, with the banners behind him. The marble background and steps still remain, but all of the cement seating areas and towers have all become overgrown. They use the area for concerts and an a big road rally. We walked up the great road, which was the parade route for the Nazi soldiers. Then we went into a big huge park that held Luitpold Hall which was destroyed during the war. In here, still stands the Hall of Honour - which Hitler would hold his Day of the SA and SS rememberences. It has marble columns that would have fire coming out of the top. The whole structure was covered with plastic, because they were refurbishing the front. It started to rain and we watched an elderly couple and a man duck in thru the plastic... so we followed them! It was really cool to see this structure that had been reclaimed and redesignated as a memorial for WWI, WWII, victims and those who fell by the hand of the Nazis. Molly struck up a conversation with the man who told us he was vacationing from another town in Germany. He talked about how he was born in 1932 and he had become part of the Hitler youth. His village had no Jewish citizens and so had a very different view of what was going on as he was growing up. It was so cool to hear about the history first hand in such a place!!

Tomorrow Molly and I are off to Kaiserslautern to meet up with mom and dad's friends Mo and Dan. I really only have one full day with them, and then I am back.

Hope you all are well!!!

Megan

John the Fisherman

Mon, 07 May 2007 03:46:09 GMT

So I have a pretty serious addiction. And it is soooo embarrassing. I need to go to Guitar Hero II Rehab. Chris bought this game a month ago and I picked it up one day and haven't really been able to set my axe back down. I know I have a problem because I spend way too much time playing it, I have started listening only to the rock station in order to work on picking out guitar solos, I have made a GTH mix on my iPod and I have become seriously interested in actually picking up a guitar. Of course it has to be one with no strings and 5 multicolored buttons on the handle.

The saddest part of it all, is that I am leaving for Germany in 2 weeks from tomorrow and my biggest concern is not that I have failed to learn German, but that I am worried I won't finish all of the songs on the "hard" level and move to expert. Don't worry, I am holding my own hand to my head in the shape of an L, you don't have to do it for me.

And in other news...

Can you even believe that it is May? I didn't even get a chance to pipe up with my "I hate March" diatribe. Which I didn't do, because I didn't hate March this year. It went super fast... and we traveled quite a bit and so the last 2 months have just flown by.

I am freaking out quite a bit because I have signed up for the Danskin once again and I only have 3 months to go. I have missed my last 3 personal training appointments, which of course means that I have skipped my hour long strength sessions. I have been no where near the pool and my bike is still on my trainer upstairs (and although I do stare at it while on my elliptical machine, I haven't been on it for quite a while). Plus, this summer, I am not off from mid June until the tri. I work until the end of June, will be gone for 2 weeks in July, then start back up to work in August. I think I'm a bit cocky, because I made it through last year, and now that I'm actually running in my age class, I am not at the very end of the race this year! I think I'll have a 30 minute start, which with my current training regime, probably doesn't give me that much of a head start.

That is it! I am going upstairs right now to work out. I'm not even going to finish this p

And God made the banana!

Wed, 28 Mar 2007 19:20:06 GMT

This is one of my all time favorite arguments against evolution. If you have a few minutes or maybe 10, you should watch this. Oh, and will you let me know if this argument is the one that pushes you to the side of being pro-Intelligent Design? I am just trying to see what it takes to make people drop all scientific belief and to get on the ID bandwagon. If you don't care at all about either side, enjoy the following video with Kirk Cameron and a banana!

You have GOT to be kidding me

Wed, 14 Mar 2007 05:34:49 GMT

Seriously?!!! Seriously?!!!

I give up. This SUCKS for the rest of us.

Happy International Band Day!

Sun, 04 Mar 2007 20:46:30 GMT

Whoo-hoo, happy band day. Go find a marching band member (look for the polyester pants, sensible black shoes, dickie, and shako with a feather sticking out of it) and give them a hug. Let this be the one day you don't mock our people. We are everywhere!

This one goes out to Wes (a pause as I pour one out for my fallen homie)

"Ba-bee-ba and go!!"

The intervention was unsuccessful....

Sun, 04 Mar 2007 20:43:16 GMT

It turns out I have a slight issue with being a little too competitive. I have been told this by a few people who know and love me and then some others (they were just jealous :) ). I don't really feel that this is a problem, because it means that I am always striving to do my best. Now I'm not so competitive that you can't stand to be around me (or so I think)... and I won't egg you on for the hell of it. Do I measure how I am doing by comparing myself to others? Yes I do. In that, my goal is to watch someone who is successful at something I am striving to do, and follow their example. That does not mean I belittle their performance, smash my success in their face and do a victory dance- it means that I set goals that I see others attaining, because it gives me a model for success. Yes I admit that when I fall short and see someone that I can't stand attain that goal, there is some colorful language that bounces around in my head. With my friends and family I am totally supportive of what they do and I get no pleasure by "beating" someone at anything. I do love playing games with people, or making a friendly little wager. And yes there is some chest beating "I will destroy you" friendly banter that goes back and forth- and there is NO actual true feelings in that. I am going to blame my husband for my X-box trash talk that has been getting worse and worse over the last few years. It is his influence and his friends, that I have voiced untrue and unprintable comments about their mothers - but it is X-box, and that is half the fun!

I think the person I am most competitive with is myself. I am always comparing what I'm doing to how I've peformed in the past. While I'm training- I am constantly looking back at my performace and try to beat my record or whatever- and that is pretty standard in athletics, so I don't feel that is an example of being too competitive...

I digress a bit. I think you may be wondering why I am bringing up my competitiveness on my blog? Well, something odd has occured this week. Every day I have a fortune cookie that is left over from our Chinese New Years celebration a couple of weeks ago. And the following message has been in the last 5 fortune cookies that I have eaten:

"Keep in close touch with what your competition is doing"

It sounds ominous and I am not sure who my competition is.... is it the person on the treadmill next to me at the gym? Is it someone at work? Is it Brad and Angelina and the race to get our baby first? (This last thing- may be another reason people think I am a bit too competitive/ "crazy and should consider a mental health professional" tomay-to, tomah-to. Here is an example of two people who don't know me, who have no idea that I'm adopting from China, who are adopting from another foreign country so what they do has no infuence on me whatsoever. But for whatever reason I have decided that I better get our child first. Now is that competitiveness? Is that weird? Is it time to get the net? Or at least a 500 foot restraining order? Who knows. But is something to do. :)

Seattle Danskin Triathlon

Sun, 25 Feb 2007 06:33:24 GMT

Sunday, August 19th.

It is so on.

See you at the finish line.

Breathe in, breathe out (warning- this one is a rambler)

Sun, 25 Feb 2007 06:32:03 GMT

I just finished a super busy week at work. I wasn't sleeping very well, so last night's hours of sleep was the longest night I've had in about a week. I am still wrapping up that horrible flu that was going around and on some meds that made me really jumpy. I am at that point where I was tired of being sick, and ready to move on. Working out was a bit taxing, since I had let my cardio routine drop- and it has been a looong time since I've done anything with my arms (so much for my winter goal of building some strong swimmer muscles so I was feeling pretty out of sorts.

So today I took some time to relax, and take a nap, and not do much more. And for whatever reason, I spent a lot of time thinking about LIFE. You know those type of one sided conversations where you take stock and think about decisions you've made, things to come, and if you're making the most of what you've got. I came to the conclusion that things couldn't possibly be better right now. And this is a really big deal for me. I have spent the last 4 years working on the same unattainable goal- starting a family. I was really focused on that and I let a lot of other things fall by the way side. These last few months I have really been feeling like I've moved on and rejoined the world. I know our adoption is in progress, and that there is nothing I can do to speed it up and I am OK with that- I am having a really good time in the meantime. Chris and I are having a lot of fun together, work involves all sorts of new challenges, and when I look around I have the most supportive family and friends that a person could have. I think I laughed tonight until I did that snorty, side achy thing and it was good. And I was sitting there cheering our friend on playing "Wii tennis" and I just had the thought- I am happy. I am not sure I had a lot of that going on while we were going through the whole infertility game. That was a focus on what was not happening- and also magnified by do-it-yourself hormones. That was awful and I am so glad we've folded on that front.

I have always been a planner- very goal oriented. And that is good at work, or while you are doing projects, but there are many things that don't work out that way. I have heard "Life is what happens when you are busy making other plans" so many times this week and it is cliche, but oh so true. So my new mantra at least for my personal life is to sit back and enjoy what I've got. You never know when something will happen to change it all, and you should be able to look back and say that you really enjoyed it while you had it- whatever it is. (BTW, I think I became super reflective after I read the paper this morning- and noticed that my horiscope was missing. They skipped right over Aquarius and on to the next one. Does that mean I have no future?)

One thing that has been the highlight of my week was how much time we've made for socializing. I have spent time with family, friends we haven't seen in a while, reconnected with other friends, and made time for a few phone calls. And that was really reenergizing. I was totally fried last night, but went over to our friends house and watched a movie. I love seeing what makes other people laugh- which then makes you laugh harder - kind of connecting on a silly level. It is good for the soul. (It sounds like we were watching some feel good movie of the year- but it was the Departed- and Mark Wahlburg's character is by far the most fun to watch.)

Well, I guess I am done being goopy and reflective for the night. I hope you have a good one.

News from the Murphy music scene...

Wed, 14 Feb 2007 18:04:12 GMT

Chris and I are going to Mars Bar on Friday night to see Andrea drum her little heart out in her mostly all girl funk band, Kissing Potion.

The Moondoggies are also up to their usual tricks with some shows next month at The Comet and The Blue Moon. This is my favorite cd right now, and that is not just because Kevin is my brother. It is in spite of it.

Check out the myspace sites- some good stuff from the family!

Evolution...Kansas style

Wed, 14 Feb 2007 05:48:20 GMT

Whoo hoo- way to go Kansas! They kicked out the Intelligent Design driven science standards and rewrote the evolution back in. They have had 5 sets of standards in 8 years. Ugh. How do teachers have any idea what they should be teaching?

By the way , our local agency that created that whole Intelligent Design idea, the Discovery Institute, made claims today that Kansas has adopted "dumbed down standards" because they are teaching evolution by natural selection as the mechanism for the origin of life. Wait a minute, the people who are trying to use science to discuss the origin of life are dumbing things down- and this is coming from the people who want us to teach kids that God made the world using his magic wand. Seriously- which is the easier explanation?

30 minutes late- doh!

Thu, 21 Dec 2006 08:42:17 GMT

So 30 minutes ago, it was December 20th. And that was the date of the Carl Sagan Blog-a-thon that was being held in his honor to commemoriate his death 10 years ago. I am out on vacation and just realized that I missed it by 30 minutes- so I am pretending that I am already on Hawaii time, so it still counts so there. Carl Sagan is one of the many reasons that I am a science teacher today and so I am pitching in my two cents to talk about him.

I was introduced to Carl Sagan as many people were through "Cosmos". My dad and I would watch it together when I was pretty young. I was a huge fan of the astronomy explanations and the pictures as well as artist recreations that were a part of the show. I would listen to the soundtrack on my walkman at night, imagining the heavens above. This build into an interest in being an astronaunt, that shortly changed after my 10th b-day (January 28th 1986- the day the Challenger exploded). I continuted to love science and broadened my studies into life science- where my real passion was: molecular biology. I do still love looking at the night sky and bought a telescope a few years back. Being able to look at Jupiter's Great Red Spot and Saturn's rings on my own was breathtaking.

A few years ago, soon after the movie Contact came out (based on a novel written by Carl Sagan) I found that the long lost soundtrack was being produced again, and that you could get the series Cosmos on DVD. I picked it up and watched a few segments. Carl and his odd pronunciations were quite a few years outdated, and I was surprised to see how much we have learned about the universe since the early 80s. I still show my students clips from it- the ones on Natural Selection, and the Big Bang. They giggle at it- but it is still engaging to some of them. I tell them that there are other movies that would get my point across easier, and with more special effects- but I talk about how this series inspired me to go into studying science and led me to my classroom and that they should follow their passion and end up doing what they love for a living.

To Science! To Carl!

Wind Storm 2006 Part 2: This time it is personal

Sat, 16 Dec 2006 16:55:40 GMT

Whew, what a couple of days! Chris and I have been trapped up on the hills of Redmond with most of our routes off blocked by more than 4 trees balanced on double sets of power lines. My fabulously brilliant husband purchased a generator on Thursday night, so after we lost power at 12:48 am Friday, we were able to power some lights, the fridge, and the TV! It is important to get your priorities correct. We had all of the neighbors over yesterday to have a breakfast style dinner feast. With all of the people in the house, it was actually warm for awhile. I had also spent a few hours over the stove cooking, so that made it warm too.

I think the most unsettling thing is how there is no one out here helping, and the helicopters keep flying overhead filming the mess. We've seen things that are so dangerous, and we've done things that were so dangerous (trying to drive down Union Hill with Chris's truck almost bumping the tree that was down across the lines) and no one is out here directing traffic, or removing the trees. I guess it is so much worse in other places that we are a much lower priority. I feel like we are living so primitively, but most poeple don't have the limited items we have running right now- and it is so cold!!

Chris is out scouring for gas right now. I have heard that it is really tough out there to find gas stations that have gas, or that you have to wait in hour long lines. I feel like we are so isolated, but you could probably drive 20 minutes into Seattle and find lights and groceries. Our generator will run out of gas by 2 pm today, so we are crossing our fingers that the power comes back on before then. For whatever reason, we still have wireless internet, so I can keep checking on the state of things on line until I run out of power on my laptop.

Okay, I'm braving the cold to go jump in the shower, and will see if the generator can handle my hair drier.

Megan

True Love

Wed, 01 Nov 2006 05:50:05 GMT

So I have enjoyed being married to Chris for the last 10 years. I have been pretty reflective lately about what makes a great marriage. It is really hard to put my finger on it, but it comes down to how compatable you are. Here is tonight's perfect example...

Yesterday I bought a cheap costume at Target. It was a foam Darth Vader costume for only $29.99 and it came with a helmet. I bought it as part of my "I am at the district office so now I'm on the dark side" joke. I came home tonight with the costume and Chris comes running out and says- "hey look what I bought" What was it? A light saber- with cool sound effects- and it was Red- which is Darth Vader's color. It was creepy. We are totally M.F.E.O.

SpokaVegas

Mon, 16 Oct 2006 04:14:40 GMT

What free time?

So I decided to try going back to work. I did the whole retired thing for 2 weeks and was missing science education and kids and not being busy. I interviewed and got the job of professional development specialist in secondary science in my old district. I am having a pretty good time. It is interesting being at the district office. There is a perception that you have crossed over to the dark side. As soon as you step out of the classroom, then you seem to be focused on your career other than the students. I can see how some people can lose touch with what teachers are doing in the classroom today but I also see a lot of people working hard to have a wider reaching influence on all kids in the district.

I went to the WSTA conference this weekend. That is the Washington Science Teachers Association. It was in Spokane- a city I don't know very well. I crashed in a hotel room with a new co-worker at the Davenport. It was so beautiful. My friend Tracie's great- grandmother used to work there as a maid. The whole thing was renovated and incredible. The conference was a lot of fun. I came away with a lot of ideas to help literacy in science and some text reading techniques. So many things I want to try... who knows when I'll be back. :(

So lately, we've just been up to the on-going construction process (ugh!) and trying to decide on paint colors for the bedroom. Good times.

Snooze, doesn't sound like I'm up to much these days... just too busy to stop and do anything interesting. That is my goal for the next week. :)

Get a job, (na)^9

Fri, 08 Sep 2006 04:29:42 GMT

Nerd? Oh yes I am.

So I have no job. Not even a J.O.B. I am an unemployed slob, lookin' for work. Going on a leave of absence sounded like a GREAT idea in March, but maybe not so much now. Here is what I've done so far since my unemployement officially started:

Cleaned out the closet (no skeletons!)

Biked with Schuess (30 miles today!)

Swam

Tried to run (fell down- got some good road rash but my back muscle doesn't hurt anymore, weird!)

Cleaned out the junk drawer

Picked up a keg (it hurt...half barrel was still 3/4 full back muscles sore again)

Viewed the entire internets

Put a tow hitch on the Lexus

Car-ioked the entire Depeche Mode catalog

Took out the boat, sans Chris

Actually watched the netflix in a short window of time

Cooked a couple of times

Visited Target at 8:42 am. No one is there!

Applied for a job, one I think I really want

Supervised BBQ palace construction...things are moving along!

Registered for the Oktoberfest Brew-ha-ha

Called mom, at least every other day

Made plans to visit Molly in Portland

Booked a Christmas trip to Hawaii

And other random crap

I have an interview on Wednesday. It has easily been 6 years since I had to interview for a job that I wanted. It includes a presentation on how to integrate technology into science education.... should be easy. Should be!

Another odd thing is knowing that the world is back to school and I am not. I have been waking up 40 minutes later than I used to arrive at school. I am actually enjoing the early summer hot days, since I am out and about and am still laboring under the idea that it is still summer. I used to hate this time of year, too hot to wear new school clothes, summer clothes not professional enough for work. Also difficult- not remembering any of the kids names until October. I was fondly remembering the beginning of last year. The kids seemed pretty cool and had no mishaps, until the 2nd day when the really tall kid from 4th period passed out due to the heat and pinned me to the floor. It is pretty embarrasing trying to rouse a kid who is pinning you down when you don't remember his name. :)

To more unimportant stuff to do tomorrow!!

Megan Anderson...triathlete!

Tue, 22 Aug 2006 17:13:20 GMT

So on Sunday I finally had my triathlon! It was one of the coolest and most rewarding things I have ever done! Just knowing that I took on such a huge thing and made it through just fine was really fulfilling. I have been training since April and was really nervous, but just got so excited by Saturday am. I am totally going to do it again next year. It is addictive!

A bit about the Danskin tri- it is an all-woman sprint, so that means it is .5 mile swim, 12 mile bike, 3.1 mile run. I think this is the same course as the SeaFair tri.

The day before they have you go to an expo where you register, get body markings on all 4 limbs, listen to speakers, learn about the course, see how to do emergency bike fixes, etc. They also sold gear there, and I got a great pair of tri-shorts that are very comfortable to swim in, plus they have some padding that helps with the bike, but doesn’t soak up water or make you feel like you are running in a diaper. TMI? Sorry.

The swimming was probably the most fun, because I wasn’t scared, just excited. You could see all of the 2-4 heats ahead of me bobbing in the water. We ran off the boat launch and headed out- and women are so polite if you get kicked in the face, someone always stops to apologize. I thought I’d be super intimidated by this leg, because I hate having my face in the open water, watching the deep dark green nothingness below, but here you always saw squirming limbs, so I am probably the only person who felt relieved and not nervous from that! I didn’t pace at all and threw myself into this leg, and came out at a respectable 22 minutes. I had veered off course a bit and probably could have done it in under 20, but I guess I’ll do that next time.

The transition from swim to bike was sloppy for me. I didn’t have my stuff set out to minimize the amount of shuffling, and had to throw things around to change tops, find the towel, put on socks and my bike shoes, eat a balance bar, etc. It took around 7-1/2 minutes. But I was glad I dawdled a bit, because my legs were still a bit wobbly by the time I had my bike off and was hurrying towards the bike start. Bike shoes that clip in- best invention ever!! I got the multi-directional clips that Mike helped me put on and set- so I never felt locked in and never fell while still attached to my bike. I had only practiced on them 2 times before, so they are idiot-proof.

The bike part was probably the most disappointing leg because I thought I should get it done in 40 minutes or less. I had some technical difficulties with my shoelace coming undone and wrapping around my pedal and through the chain, while my right leg was stuck, locked into the pedal. I had to stop to fix that mess- but I didn’t fall! Also, my pace was off because I had a couple of unexpected inclines and felt a bit warn out. It was hot and windy on I-90, so that really slowed me down. I finished with in 53 minutes.

I dropped off the bike, changed to running shoes and headed towards the run/ walk-with-random-bits-of-jogging-leg (my version) totally warn out and pretty nauseous. Chris has pictures of my slowly going through the start, trying not to lose it. It took me quite a while before I felt my legs get stronger. I need to practice the bike-run transition a lot more next time. By this time it was really warm and I was a bit dehydrated. I think I’ll keep my camelpak on for both legs next time. My pace here was really slow and ended up being a 15 minute mile as I would walk, walk quicker and then jog for a minute or two, then slow down again. The volunteers on this part of the tri are so great- everyone is cheering for you and encouraging you and so are the participants. And you find yourself doing it too for the people who are passing you or who are going the opposite direction. There was this hill at the end that sucked but then you finish downhill and have .1 through the crowd and you totally have your Olympic moment. Sally Edwards is a 16-time ironwoman and she is there to give you 5 and help throw the medal on your neck.

So my goal was to really just to finish, and I gave myself a 3 hour time that I wanted to be done by, and I was happy with my 2 hours 17 minutes. I know I can probably cut the bike time down and the transition time down and if I keep training the running time down. I will definitely be doing this one next year. I don’t know about the SeaFair or Chelan. It was cool to do my first one in such a supportive environment. We’ll see… I guess Danskin does one in WaltDisney World where you swim a quarter mile in a lagoon, run through adventureland and tomorrowland and then bike around the park. How cool is that? I feel like an actual athlete. So many people are intimidated by the tri- but it is a lot of fun. The variation really keeps it fun and always changing!

Happy August to You!

Wed, 02 Aug 2006 23:17:27 GMT

It is August 2nd and I have not bought one school supply! Don't think I didn't try... but I realized that I am not teaching this year and made myself put the pretty lime post it notes back into the bin. I have so many that I could decorate little Olivia's room by papering it with the sticky notes! The first week of August I usually get itchy to be back in my classroom and begin planning for the next year. I don't feel super restless yet (other than looking for different jobs on the net) but that should descend soon. I have been trying to push past it and have planned 2 more vacations this summer- both with out Chris, which is odd. He is going to Vegas to pick up a boat with friends one of those weekends, so he will probably survive.

My great college buds Adrienne and Tracie and I always have a weekend away in Chelan where we drink a lot of wine, eat tasty cheeses, soak up the deadly UV rays and work out.... yes, I said work out. Ad and I are training for the triathlon, so we are going to be swimming a lot and working out in the weight room. These are also my friends that went to Vegas with me in March and went running in the AM down the strip. The intoxicated guys that could still walk would leer whistle and try to follow them. It felt good to try to balance out all of the excess! I have decided to rent a boat while we're out on the lake. I have done some pretty difficult docking maneuvers lately, so I am feeling more confident. Since Chelan is so big, and I'm totally confident cruising along, we should be fine. Chris just suggested that I make sure we're fully covered with insurance, and that we should be fine!

Adrienne and I are also going to Crater Lake, Oregon because we've both always wanted to go. It is my first hiking vacation ever. I don't want to be one of those people stuck in the woods with only a half of a protein bar and a tee shirt so I need to figure out what I need.

We are knee deep in the construction process for the BBQ Palace. Right now my dining room/ living room looks like swiss cheese but we finally have one truss up! (update..as of 4 o'clock we have 2!) Yeah timber framing!!! I am starting to get really excited about this process and went to the Street of Dreams today to look at some of the outdoor kitchens/ entertainment areas and looked at the finishing trim details. A wee bit over the top, but I got some good ideas. I am not sure I have room for the negative edge pool (with swim bar and submerged stools) to drip down into a waterfall in front of a sport court but we'll see. I have my sister's boyfriend Dustann- who is an amazing architect and timber framer, and one of my former students helping out. He comes to do all sorts of jobs here and there while he is home from college in the summer. It has worked out pretty well!

The last person on the 24 bandwagon

Tue, 25 Jul 2006 05:48:44 GMT

So Chris tivo'd the entire season of 24 this past year. I haven't ever watched it, because I haven't had enough hours in the day to fit in the tivo shows I'm already watching. So anyhoo, Chris started watching it on Saturday and I watched a few minutes of it, but somewhere in hour 4 I got hooked! And this is the ONLY way to watch this form of televised crystal meth in 3-5 episode chunks. Chris has to go to work, so my idea to watch 24 episodes in 24 hours was shot down pretty quickly. I'm totally up for it. Crap! I just missed the reveal of the big bad.... we gotta back it up 30 seconds. Duh duh duh!!! I won't reveal it, just in case I am not the last person to know what happened this season, but that was kind of a surprise, huh? Best part was when Jack Bauer shot his ex-mentor's wife in the leg. Nice.

Best vacation ever?

Sat, 15 Jul 2006 17:04:29 GMT

Chris and I have just returned from a week in the San Juans with our boat- the soon to be christened "Impulsive one".... It is a pretty good sized boat that held Chris, his small bag of things, high maintenance me- with my traveling library of books (got through 5 of them!), my various hair products and my bike. We spent a couple of nights in Friday Harbor, one night on the boat, the other night in the unreasonably priced Best Western Suites. Avoid them at all costs. But the fun really began when we got to Roche Harbor. We met up with our good friends Shelly and Rob, who we have been co-ordinating vacation plans with for the last 6 years. This year there was an additional guest, their little guy Nathan- who is 8 months old, super happy and is soothed by the crashing of ocean waves on a hull and the droning of a motor. Just like his dad, I think!

We went out and saw the K pod of killer whales off cattle point on San Juan Island, caught some crab. Chris got 4 pretty good sized dungeness, BBQ'd off the back of the boat, visited with the fellow slip mates, made it through the small locks, where Chris only got yelled at once. And we are both sporting some pretty substantial tans. I have shifted beyond eggshell, where I usually reside for 3 days during the month of August, and think I may even be up to an actual shade of off white.

So we were teased by the people staying on their boats in the marina that we weren't really boating because we stayed in the historic Hotel de Haro for 3 nights in Roche Harbor. When we planned this vacation a few months ago, Chris assumed that the boat would be pretty uncomfortable and so we should have a real bed and a shower. The hotel was okay, we stayed in the glamorous sounding Presidential Suite. This is where Teddy Roosevelt stayed many years ago, so I was expecting it to be very nice. BTW, the cost of the room was almost 30% cheaper than the Best Western room. It was very quaint, with the sloping floors and claw foot tubs, but there is some construction going on around the resort, so it was very loud. And the walls are paper thin. We decided that the next time we are up there, we will elect to stay on the boat that is very comfy and easy to move about in.

The whole trip took us about 7 hours round trip, so we might make it again before the end of the season. The seas were unusually calm, so it may have tricked us into thinking it is a pretty easy trek from Lake Washington up there. We traveled through the Swinomish slough, and saw a lot of beautiful towns and scenery. It really set the mood to just kick back and relax. I think that is the reason that both Chris and I think it was the most relaxing vacation ever, since we immediately forgot what day it was as soon as we got there. Also, we didn't plan a lot of activities, so there were a couple of days that we didn't do much at all. It was very different than our usual globetrotting a bit city in 3 days itinerary that we are so fond of. Maybe we'll slow down on that a bit.

Another rock star in the Murphy family...

Tue, 27 Jun 2006 17:23:30 GMT

Chris and I went to see Jet City Improv on Saturday night. It was very exciting, as the newest member of the cast is none other than Mike Murphy, my little brother. He does a very good job and always makes the audience laugh.

Here is a picture of him doing something extremely funny. He is the one on the left with the enormous Elvis hair.

Catch him there on Saturday nights... but not every Saturday night. And not at 8 pm, but sometimes at 10:30, but not always... good luck tracking him down.

The Jury is in....

Tue, 27 Jun 2006 17:17:36 GMT

I am at jury duty in downtown Seattle. So far it has been very interesting, with lots of hurry up and wait type moments. Very similar to our adoption on a much smaller scale. I was called to be on a jury yesterday with a really icky topic and was dismissed and so now I'm back in the pool. But the room is air conditioned, with wireless connections, so me and my lap top are very happy.

I think I'm going to start updating this site again more frequently. In fact I might even make it interesting- so you just watch out now.

I am extremely sun burned right now, after a fascinating weekend trip on the boat through the locks and on to Blake Island. I learned many important lessons this day....

1 The Starbucks at Carillon point is extremely close to our boat moorage.

2 I will need to take some Dramamine to get up to San Juan Island next Thursday

3 It takes 2.5 hours to get back through the locks on the West side and that I should wear loads of sunscreen to protect myself and that I should NOT allow Chris to collapse the entire canvas top because I have no ability to gauge when I am getting burned.

4 The lake is freakin' cold at this time of year, and that means it is good

5 I need to start working on my open water swims NOW for this triathlon in August... less than 2 months now

Enjoy today's heat!

Yay me!

Sun, 21 May 2006 16:08:32 GMT

Yesterday I did the Tour de Cure 25 mile bike race. It went all around Lake Sammamish, plus a little tour through the Lake Hills area of Bellevue. I had been training for this ride by going on the Sammamish lake trail, which is very, very flat. The description of this ride said that there were some gentle rolling hills. Hmm, I would have to disagree with that description. The East Lake Sammamish part was easy, I was actually wishing the pace was faster, and ended up passing a few people. Then I got to the state park, and the next 8 miles were hell. We did some "slow burn" hills that look so much more friendly then they actually are, and then went up the Lakemont I-90 exit and up the hill that I was just teaching my sophomores about. Due to the I-90 fault line, the hillside was raised up from the level of the lake and now there is a huge (50 feet? more) difference in elevation. You can walk up to the exposed rock/dirt layers of the hill and find marine fossils from the lake. I didn't stop, though as I was convincing myself that this was the highest point we'd get to. Ha! By the way, the camelback water pack I bought- best purchase ever! I carry about 1.5 L of water on my back with a little tube that I can easily pick up and bite, and suck on to get the water out. No stopping to pick up a bottle from the mid-section of the bike!

The Lake Hills Area of Bellevue was a very nice little neighborhood, with an unending climb. I kept looking at the time, because I was worried that I wouldn't make my goal (to be done in under 3 hours) and I was getting tired. The funny thing was, right before we met up with WestLake Sammamish Parkway we went down 3-4 pretty terrifying descents, where I had to ride my brakes. Going over 25 miles an hour really freaks me out, because I imagine what will happen to my teeth if I hit something and fly off at that speed. So 40 minutes of climbing, 4 minutes of plummeting down. I had called Chris to tell him I'd be another 20 minutes to the finish line, but it actually took me about 7! I got back to the finish line and they were ringing cowbells (do you ring a cowbell) and handed us metals. I almost took out the guy who handed me mine. I guess I'm not to the driving with one hand while trying to maneuver through a crowd of people stage yet.

I felt okay the rest of the day- a little tired, my wrists are hurting from my mountain bike style handlebars- I may need to change this for future long rides, and every once in a while, my legs give out and I wobble a bit. But 2 hours 21 minutes- and all around the lake. Good for me!

Here is a picture of me at the start line. I am the pink blob in the center of the picture. That is my loud bright pink Cantonese style biking jersey. At least it makes me easy to spot!!

We are so on the cutting edge

Mon, 08 May 2006 03:08:27 GMT

On Friday night I went to a club to see my brother Kevin's new band- the Moondoggies. I had no idea what to expect with the new band or the club. It is at this place called the S.S. Marie Antoinette in Seattle across from the Rock Salt restaurant/ club. We have docked at the Rock Salt before and so we knew the general area- but we parked there and headed across the street with Mike and Jenny to check it out. This place looked like an abandoned house that had somehow been placed in the middle of downtown Seattle. There was no one around and it looked like it was all boarded up and overgrown. There was a sign on the door of a picture of a guy with a smaller sign that said $5. We were "stamped" (a picture of a martini was drawn on our wrists with magic marker) and walked into the room. It was a total dump. It looked like an abandoned building, like the one that the Familiars had played at for Andrea's b-day party in the Central district a couple of years ago, or the house that Andrea squatted in a year ago. My siblings know their way around condemned architecture.

So we wait around a bit for things to get started and the opening act comes on. They are so loud, and apparently Chris and I are so old, that one of Kevin's friends comes up to us with ear plugs. And they were fabulous. Chris and I stuck out a bit. We were not emo, or in our early 20s, or hadn't changed out of our yuppie wear (khaki pants and denim) and for that reason I was selected by the crazy blond woman to be "marked" or whatever. She just walked straight across the floor to me and took a handful of purple glitter and blew it all over me. I just looked at her and said, "Uh, thanks". We may be married in crazy land.

Kevin's band went on next and they were great. Not in an "I am the older sister and I support my little brother and hey, that is some nice music there isn't it?" type of way. They were great! The band involves some of the Familiars, which was Kev's last band. The sound was a lot different. The Moondoggies are a little bit more bluesy, folky, with some kick ass guitar and two keyboards- one is an organ that just hums loudly occasionally. My brother has a beautiful singing voice and later I found out he wrote the music. The kid is effin brilliant. Chris and I were totally blown away and are now huge fans. We can't wait for the CD. When is that coming out Kevin? We didn't stay for the headlining band, The Biography of Ferns, since we're old and it was near 11 pm.

The funny thing was that the next morning I was reading the Seattle Times and it had an article about the 10 coolest most underground clubs. And what do you think was mentioned? Yep, the S.S. Marie Antoinette. We are so hip we were there before it was written up.

New blog

Mon, 08 May 2006 02:45:10 GMT

I have started a new blog about our adoption. This is for people who want to know what's going on with it. Maybe I'll cross post, maybe I'll put different things on each. We'll just see.

Made in China

I want to ride my bicycle....

Sun, 23 Apr 2006 15:18:17 GMT

So I have started working with a personal trainer to get ready for the triathlon in August. I don't know much about swimming, and that is the leg I am most worried about. Luckily I have great friends who have all taught swim lessons, participated in this specific triathlon, and can help me learn what stroke to use, how to pace myself, etc. I have been working on the biking- having just purchased a new road bike that is super fast (as compared to my pseudo mountain bike that I've been using).

I figured that this would be my summer of having fun by working out, meaning that I would sign up for some activities that would get me out of the house, and enjoying the area I live in even more. So I signed up for this "tour de cure" which is a bunch of different levels of biking next month. I signed up for the lowest level- which was a 25 mile bike ride around Lake Sammamish. They had a practice ride yesterday so I dragged a couple of friends along, grabbed the new bike and did a 13 mile loop around the Issaquah area. I was a beautiful day, and the bike rode very well. If you ever have the opportunity, drive out Issaquah Hobart from front street in the fall, on a sunny day and look at all the changing colors- hawesome.

Next week I think I'm going to try to start the swimming. I have to shake this bronchitis thing first. Ugh. So tired of being sick.

8 weeks of school left....

There is nothing like grading a stack of poorly written papers to ruin your Spring Break.

Sat, 08 Apr 2006 04:13:07 GMT

So I have been having a pretty great break. I have gotten together with family, done some organization around the house, learned how to dock the boat (and I pulled up to Ivar's Salmon House tonight and did a pretty good job of it... according to Cap'n Chris), and all that is left is to sit down and grade my 107 lab reports. Now I spent so much time instructing the kids how they were to be completed, I handed out 3 different forms that walked them through the entire process, I gave examples in class and talked about it non-stop until even the good kids started to tune me out, and what do I get.... mostly junk. Some papers are oh so close to being proficient, but the majority went off on their own and skipped the stuff I asked for, and freestyled some of their own stuff. Also, I have counted 11 different ways to spell Bacillis subtilis. Argh. I have been counting how long it takes me to do a paper and a bad one is about 12 minutes, and a great one is 6. I don't have enough hours left in Spring Break to get these all done. Crap.

But I bet at this time next year I'll be missing those lousy reports.

What is new?

Sun, 02 Apr 2006 00:26:34 GMT

Hmmm, let me think about that.

This month I:

*Gave notice that I'm not going to be back to work next year

*Went on a fabulous vacation to Vegas, and won a few bucks at craps

*Sang 1/4 of the Carpenter's catalogue with a Vegas cab driver named Steven

*Have started training for a triathlon

*Wasted over 30 hours playing Zuma with Chris and friends

*Officially became "DTC" yesterday as our adoption paperwork was FINALLY sent to China

*Learned how to take our boat through the Ballard Locks and how to navigate through our first boating emergency- running low on lube and locating a marine store en route.... long story.

Lots of stuff going on. All in all, I had a really good month--which is the first time in 5 years of teaching that I have actually enjoyed March. I have a slew of projects to take on for April and May, plus with the school year winding down, I have to figure out how I'm going to take 5 years worth of stuff out of my classroom, AND figure out where I'm going to store it all. I mean, what do you do with a styrofoam model of the lower half of a man's body, a california roll shaped rug, and the largest post-it note collection this side of the Mississippi? Lord only knows. At least now I have a TA so I have some slave labor to help with this task.

My next big concern is what the heck am I going to do before we go to China next year? There are some obvious things, like learn Mandarin, decorate a nursery, go shopping for little people stuff, etc. But I am going to have a lot of time to do that. Maybe a year from now, or longer. So, I am going to see if I am happy just subbing for a couple days a week, or figure out a way to donate my time, maybe become a tutor, or see if the district needs someone to help out with the brand spankin new Science teachers. That would be really cool. Or I could do something totally different... I am open to suggestions, so we'll just see where this takes me.

Hey- you have a good day, won't you?