How do you feel today?

[lorin]

I am guessing some of the mods will say this should be put in the Tank, but I scared of that place. So please bare with me......

I am devastated about Haiti. I just finished watching a brief history of the country on CBS Sunday Morning. That country never had a chance. Between the reparations placed on the country by France in exchange for independence (20 billion dollars) for lost property (slaves) to the US backing all these corrupt politicians to the massive deforestation it was doomed before it started.

I am also very angry with myself. I was a Red Cross worker for so many years, worked many disasters. I let my certifications expire and now I cannot be deployed. The one thing I am decent at and I let it fall by the wayside. Seems like everything that has been important to me in the last years have fallen away.

ok, ok, I got that out of my system.

[Kil Tyme]

Lorin, at least you have worked disasters in the past whereas I have never done that; just cause you missed helping this one isn't bad enough to beat yourself up over, but I certainly appreciate your devistation about what others are suffering through.

And in the Tank we all agree that Pat (they had it coming) Robertson and Danny (blame globalwarming) Glover are a tad on the dim side, to say the least.

I am in day 3 of a terrible cold, so I can't enjoy my 3 day weekend; but at least it is an excuse to stay inside and watch all the football playoff games and perhaps reach level 80 on my first WOW character.

[Menolly]

If you don't count the slight symptoms I felt yesterday, I'm on day one of a full fledged cold and feel miserable as well. But, Hyperception noticed the outdoor cats' fur appeared to be lightly dusted with pine pollen, which I am highly allergic to. It is a good month early, but then this cold snap we just went through was a good month early as well; we usually don't get cold fronts like that until February.

So, I'll start my homeopathic tree pollen tincture regimen and see if it helps in a few days. Even if it is just a cold, at least my system will be prepared when the tree pollen does hit next month.

I'm actually thinking there may be a nap in my future. Y'all don't miss me too much should I disappear from the Watch for awhile...

[Orlion]

Hope that nap goes well for you, Menolly!

Don't beat yourself up over Haiti, Lorin, it's not like you knew this was going to happen. However, I do understand how much it sucks to be powerless to help those you care about...

Last night, a group of four drunk idiots decided it would be funny to block the road I lived on with mattresses and chairs. Needing to get by, I moved them, while they had their drunk laugh and went on my way. Once I parked and went to my house, I noticed the mattresses and chairs were gone, but instead, they were pivoting a truck parked on the side of the road to block it, laughing all the way like the bunch of

Spoiler

douchers

they were being. I called the cops, and it looks like they got one of them, but I was tired and went to bed before I could find out anything else. I hope the truck wasn't towed away, since I don't think it was owned by any of these pricks and it's a huge pain and expensive to reclaim towed vehicles here... *sigh*

[aliantha]

Jeez, Orlion. That's along the same lines as the college kids (I'm *sure* it's college kids, who else would bother?) who shimmy up the traffic light poles in downtown DC on weekends and push the walk/don't walk lights as far out of position as they can go. Okay, so most of the locals don't pay any attention to the walk/don't walk lights anyway, but still....

Lorin, I feel for you. OTOH, this could be your incentive to re-up your certification.

Jenn -- congrats on the promotion!

Owlie -- congrats on the job!

Menolly -- feel better!

Who'd I miss? Ah well, good wishes and smilies all 'round.

Yesterday was the start of a three-day weekend for me. I've got a ton of stuff I should be doing, but I took yesterday off. Well, kind of. I did finish the sweater I was making for Batty's girlfriend and started one for me, and I watched two of the movies that have been piling up on the coffee table. But I was supposed to be writing....

[Menolly]

Hey, yougurt g-ddess. Slip some my way, will ya please?

Orlion, Gator Town's men and women in blue lost one of their own due to just such a "prank" about a decade ago. The story was even revisited this past June on the local news. The video will play after the short commercial...

Officer Scott Baird

[aliantha]

Hey, yougurt g-ddess. Slip some my way, will ya please?

Sadly, I'm out. One of my chores this weekend is to make a new batch....

[Savor Dam]

Menolly, while I'm sure Ali's yogurt is to-die-for yummy, lay off the dairy until you get the cold (or allergy) under control...and did you ever get that nap? If not, an early bedtime is called for after pasta and salad.

Seems that someone needs to give Jewish Mama a little of her own!

[matrixman]

Woo-hoo! Go SD Go!

(I hereby nominate SD for reckless courage above and beyond the call of duty as a Watcher, heh heh.)

lorin, what can I say? You humble me. As a Red Cross worker, you've likely helped more people than most of us ever have.
That's cold comfort, maybe, but I'm just putting it out there.

A sad axiom seems to be that it is precisely in times of disaster that disaster relief's inadequacies are most painfully transparent.
(But until Superman comes along, we just do what we can.)

[Menolly]

Menolly, while I'm sure Ali's yogurt is to-die-for yummy, lay off the dairy until you get the cold (or allergy) under control...and did you ever get that nap? If not, an early bedtime is called for after pasta and salad.

Seems that someone needs to give Jewish Mama a little of her own!

Woo-hoo! Go SD Go!

(I hereby nominate SD for reckless courage above and beyond the call of duty as a Watcher, heh heh.)

Oh hush, the two of you.
*glare*

[Savor Dam]

Oh hush, the two of you.
*glare*

If you were asleep, you would not be hearing MM and me giving you your own good advice back. You know the truth of the advice and that it comes from those who care about you. How many people have to tell you in thread before you give yourself the consideration you extend to others?

Go!

Golden slumbers fill your eyes
Smiles awake you when you rise

[Sorus]

My vote is for Gerard and to you, Sorus, I would love to hear what you think of that. Anyway, got two days off and it's laundry with Lucimay on Sunday so get your plane tickets people.

Haven't worked with him enough to have strong feelings one way or another... I think the way things are going right now I will be lucky if I don't get fired. Congratulations on your promotion, but don't count on anything until you actually see it on your check; I've been promised raises before but my salary is exactly the same is it was the day I was hired.

[aliantha]

Fingers crossed for more $$ for both Sorus and Jenn, then...

I was gonna say, SD, good luck with getting Menolly to get off the computer...

[Menolly]

I was gonna say, SD, good luck with getting Menolly to get off the computer...

Hey now!!
...I can quit anytime I want...
NOT!!!

[Savor Dam]

Nobody is asking you to quit. We don't want that; you would be severely missed. You are an essential cog in the ticking of the Watch.

Just do what you said you would do almost 12 hours ago. It was going to be a nap then, but now let it be a good night's sleep. Gather your strength and come back to us tomorrow that much healthier and ready to be who you are.

We will be here when you return.

[Menolly]

...hmmph...
*I don't have any more excuses, as Hearts of Space is now over*
...grumble...

[Cameraman Jenn]

Sorus, you are SO NOT about to get fired. Seriously. They consider you one of the most valuable people there.

I had a great laundry time with Lucimay yet again. We had some seriously deep and interesting philosophical and metaphysical conversations. We also got to hang with Lenore who is a regular at the cafe. Very cool woman. We found out today that she is 74. Shocker that. It rained a fair bunch today which we needed so with my hiking yesterday and today's great afternoon with Lucimay it was a good weekend.

[aliantha]

Jenn:

Last day of my 3-day weekend. Planned to spend it doing chores and generally relaxing. Then I made the mistake of looking at the Blackberry...and found out I needed to coordinate some stuff for the India team. Including running interference on some of the damn visa applications.

Bah. I am *so* handing in that electronic tether when my sabbatical starts...

OTOH, I get paid OT for the time I spent working today, so I guess it's not all bad....

[Seareach]

Ok all you mums and dads out there. I've got a parenting question:

SoS (who is only 6 and as lanky as it gets) is concerned about his weight!!

There are two reasons (I can see) for this: firstly, at school they're all into teaching about obesity and eating healthily. Fair enough, but I think that the way they go about it sometimes does not take into consideration overactive little minds. Secondly, Mr Seareach is very overweight, and SoS has says "I'm scared I'm going to get fat like daddy".

I've tried my hardest: I've explained that he just has to eat healthy food and get outside and play and he'll be ok. That didn't work. I got out a picture of Mr Seareach when I first met him (he was lanky then too) and done my best to explain that when people get older like mummy and daddy you have to work harder to stay fit/healthy/slim....that daddy drinks beer etc. I feel like I've done everything.

However, SoS is now starting to refuse to eat his dinner because he doesn't want to "get fat" (he's a fussy eater and sometimes getting him to eat a lot of different things is difficult at the best of times but....<sigh> I dunno). What do I do? Is it child psychologist time? I'm at my whits end here!

[lorin]

Ok all you mums and dads out there. I've got a parenting question:

SoS (who is only 6 and as lanky as it gets) is concerned about his weight!!

There are two reasons (I can see) for this: firstly, at school they're all into teaching about obesity and eating healthily. Fair enough, but I think that the way they go about it sometimes does not take into consideration overactive little minds. Secondly, Mr Seareach is very overweight, and SoS has says "I'm scared I'm going to get fat like daddy".

I've tried my hardest: I've explained that he just has to eat healthy food and get outside and play and he'll be ok. That didn't work. I got out a picture of Mr Seareach when I first met him (he was lanky then too) and done my best to explain that when people get older like mummy and daddy you have to work harder to stay fit/healthy/slim....that daddy drinks beer etc. I feel like I've done everything.

However, SoS is now starting to refuse to eat his dinner because he doesn't want to "get fat" (he's a fussy eater and sometimes getting him to eat a lot of different things is difficult at the best of times but....<sigh> I dunno). What do I do? Is it child psychologist time? I'm at my whits end here!

May I make a suggestion? Have your son pick the menu with you and you and he prepare the meal together. Let him pick the ingredients and teach him the basics (wait a few years for the chopping) Do this at least a few times a week. You will find he will take pride in his creations, and will want to eat what he has cooked. Also it will give him the opportunity to contribute to his nutrition. Cooking is a powerful skill that will help him throughout his life and help him avoid the fast food trap.

I did this with all my foster kids who have all kinds of food and nutrition issues.