Summer Fun

Just catching up on some pictures from this summer.

Back to school, school, school and school!

The three "middle" kids (Quentin, Christian & Lisa) started back August 8, poor slobs.  But they'll be singing a different tune in the spring when they get out on May 23, and the others still have to slog along until June 8!  Melanie and Colin start this Monday, the 27th.  This afternoon we'll go to Melanie's open house and drop off her nice new school supplies and meet her teacher.  Colin has been shuttling back & forth to his school, getting a parking pass, classes changed etc.  He is taking a class called "college experience" which lets him check out of school at noon, and attend a class at the community college here (CPCC).  His very challenging, academically rigorous class: history of rock & roll.  Ha!

My new career as a graduate student started last night.  After attending Colin's open house in the 100+ heat, then coming home to threaten the children with bodily punishment if they didn't behave while I was gone (David was on his way home from NYC), I set out for the UNC-C campus.  After I parked, I walked around like a lost soul trying to find the building (also in 100+ heat).  Finally found it, and my class began.  It was a very cursory first class, introductions all around, basic overview of the class (Foundations in Library & Information Science).  Our professor is a hoot, very entertaining with stories of her early career in the public library, then doing her doctorate as a single mom with three kids on food stamps.  I'll be interested to see if I can still create a coherent term paper.  There are so many young, beautiful girls in the class (and three men!) but there are at least 3-4 of us senior citizens.  I'm so intimidated, because many of the women have worked in libraries of various types for years, and know all the "lingo" and I feel like a babe in the woods.

I was suprised to see the school librarian from Melanie's school there.  She remembered me from "Beginners' Day" in the spring.  I laughed and said, "I guess I have no excuse for not volunteering in the library now, huh?"

My recovery: still hoping that I will return to some semblance of normalcy someday.  My insides still feel like someone put them in a blender, mixed them all up, and put them back, along with some bricks and lead weights.  I have a follow-up appointment next week.  Someone told me that it would be closer to a year.  <sigh>  I guess old ladies heal slower than most.

 

Medical Leave

Sorry about the down time.  I had surgery on July 12 and have been happily doped up since then, planted firmly in the recliner, wishing to do nothing more than sleep in my side, something which isn't in my near future.  It has been quite an experience, being waited on, literally hand & foot by my mom and my sister (who will arrive in the morning).  I've had quite a bit of <ahem> discomfort ... wait, no ... it's been painful, there's no pussyfooting around that.  But nothing that a quick dose of Percocet won't help.  I've been trying to wean myself off the narcotics (don't want to end up Lindsay Lohan's roommate in rehab!) and Advil & Tylenol has been doing the trick during the day.

Sorry I don't have gory pictures to post!! 

We will return to our regularly scheduled program in due time!

Colin's Excellent Japanese Adventure

Here are some pics from Colin's trip.

Moondoggie Here we Come!

We're heading to Destin, Florida this month.  Destin is the 'destination du jour' for most of the folks who live in Mississippi, Alabama, etc., and we used to go there a lot when we lived there in the Deep South.  In fact, when David and I started dating, we went to Destin with his parents.  Our first 'trip' together.  David's dad told me one time it was on that trip that he knew that I was 'the one' for David  I tend to be ready to go quickly, while David seems to take forever to assemble all his 'stuff' for the beach ... cooler, sun tan lotion, stero, umbrella, etc.  I would sit quietly on the bench in the front hall while David ran to and fro getting ready.  Anyone who could put with that was the perfect wife for him.  I found some pictures of that trip recently ... that was 21 years ago! ... and I harldy recognized the skinny youngsters that we were.  Anyhoo, we will be there with our neighbors-who-are-like-family from Memphis.  We try to meet them every year.

Colin arrived home safely Saturday night.  They flew straight through from Osaka, so were understandably dragging.  We did stay up for a while looking at his pictures, but he was in bed pretty early.  He's been struggling with jet lag ever since, added to the torture of taking finals this week.  Life is so rough sometimes.  He is over the moon about Japan and is already plotting to go again next spring, and perhaps to University there.  Better start saving his pennies!

Our beach trip will be my last hurrah before I go under the knife in the beginning of July.  I started having some weird symptoms and decided to get checked out by my doctor.  After two pretty thorough ultrasounds, it was determined that I have a lemon-sized mass that needs to come out.  So I'm having a hysterectomy, and as an added bonus, a tummy tuck due to some herniation that I have, a vestige of my three very large babies.  There will be less of me this fall!  I'm a little unnerved thinking about the aftermath, but the dr. has assured me that there have been significant advancements in pain management.  Hope it's a little more than a shot of bourbon and a bullet to bite on.

Quentin is taking drivers' ed this week.  They've seen"Red Asphalt" and have learned all about road signs.  The other day I let him drive home from Melanie's bus stop to our house (about 100 yards) and he didn't know the difference between the brake pedal and the accelerator.  Boy do we have our work cut out for us!!!

So, there you have the latest and the greatest from the Branch front.  See you on the other side!

Did I Win??

 I entered an essay contest at MissCellania (http://www.misscellania.com/) about stress in parenting (not that I have any stress at all in my life).  I didn't win a Brand New Car or anything like that, but MissC did put my little ole essay on her website as "one of the funniest".  Heh.  Some of the other ones made me ROFL.  MissCellania's blog is one of my daily routines ... she never fails to make me laugh.  Check it out (but fair warning, it's not always rated G!)

The Japanese voyagers are reaching the end of their trip.  Here are some of Colin's emails:

Heymom I made it and I am beat. 10 hour plane flight and not a bit of sleep... oh well good night`s rest tonight because school doesn`t start til 9:00. Ok well I`ll email you again tomorrow with more updates

 

2 days have gone by and i am enjoying my stay in Japan very much. The first day of school was very interesting. If I wasn`t that tired i`d write more but i am beat...

 

Ahh... third day and i am close to getting rid of all the jet-lag so i can give you most of the details now :) The first day at school was just an introduction to the school grounds with some basic classes. Today was a half day and then a trip to the Nanzan University Seito Campus, that was kind of boring but not all that bad. The family i am staying with is very nice, although i wish they would let me use my Japanese more... anyway they have a Wii and I got to use it today woo!! I also had real Japanese Ramen for lunch today. It was different from what I`m used to but i liked it anyway. So until i can write you tomorrow again... see you :)

 

(This one is in answer to questions I had).

 

1.  Where does your host family live?  House or apartment? 

 

a house 2 actually they`re connected by a little walkway

 

2.  How is it getting to school?  Bus/train?  Long ride?

 

we walk to the bus stop and then we ride the bus for about 10 min it`s not that bad

 

3.  What are you eating?

 

Well last night we had a big slab of teriyaki chicken so i am eating pretty well. I even had ramen for lunch one day

 

4.  Are you keeping up with your journal?

 

i dont think anyone is we are having too much fun

 

5.  Have you cracked "The Great Gatsby" open at all?

 

i have read the first couple of chapters

 

things are going great and i seriously want you to look into doing that gap year

see you soon!

 

Well the first week has gone by and i am looking forward to spending the weekend with my host family.  Im actually kind of disappointed that i have to leave on tuesday (Monday should be interesting because most of the students dont know that we are coming back). Anyway almost died of a heart attack when this huge spider showed up on the carport. It was about this big (                                                       ) no joke either. then i got another scare because Asami was still spooked and she screamed real loud when their dog ran in (interesting family no?) Still i am kind of disappointed that i have to leave on tuesday because the family is starting to grow on me. Even if i cant understand what theyre arguing about sometimes, they are still a very nice family (Yuika is a little shy though). Back to the point, tomorrow i will be able to attend Asami`s sports festival so that will be a real treat. Not many gaijin get to see them. Then, On Sunday, WE might be going to a nearby amusement park so that will be a lot of fun. To wrap up i am having a real fun time and I can wait to get home (I just love this country so much).

 

forgot to say something, Tonight we had a going away party type thing and i got to make Mochi (rice cakes) the traditional way (cool huh)

 

Well... the sports day thing yesterday was interesting... it started out simple with just a couple of footraces and a relay race before lunch. thats when things got... umm... wierd.  next thing i know they have finished this one event where the children bring in their parents to help out and they picked up this huge inflatable ball and tried passing it over the croud of pople. the rest i too pictures of so ill just show you when i get home. I also got a wicked sunburn n the back of my neck ouch... then we went bowling for some wierd reason and then we went out to eat at a Japanese/American steakhouse. The food was very good but the ketchup for the fries was a hassle. it was packaged with mustard and to get it open you had to squeeze both of them together which made the mustard side explode. anyway im still having a blast and can wait to get home. Cya then

Colin Goes to Japan

Colin and the crew made it to Nagoya, Japan!  They arrived last night around 1 a.m., after an 11 hour flight.  He said he didn't get any sleep at all, but that he was planning on getting a good nights' rest.  According to emails we exchanged with the host family before Colin left, he will ride the bus with their daughter, Yuiko, to school .. where he'll go to classes in Japanese language and other cultural things like origami, flower arranging, the tea ceremony and Judo.  I'm dying to know the details of the trip, and will pass them along to you, my dear readers, as soon as I get them.  You can also read the group's blog at http://www.jpnclub.com/, where they'll be posting their photos as the trip goes along. 

As for the home front, Mom and Dad are here, partly to see Colin off at the airport Friday, and partly because my birthday is Tuesday.  Mom helped me landscape an empty spot in my front yard.  Yesterday we were at the mall, where I treated myself to a makeover and professional photo shoot (a deal that Estee Lauder had set up).  Wonder how goofy the pics will turn out.  I will share them here if they're not too evil looking!