the pattyo

***Today

Well, if my rant didn’t cause you to never visit my site again, welcome back!

I’m missing my college kids today.

I just wanted to write that.

***GO GIANTS!!

Today is the first of the playoff games. I’m planning on going to exercise so that I arrive at about 1:00 … I’m assuming they’ll have the game on, which begins at 1:06. If they don’t I’ll just have to cause a ruckus.

I think I like the word “ruckus”.

Like I like the words “awry” and “irk”!
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***Honesty

Okay … here’s the thing: I have a lot of friends in the music world who don’t report any of their private lesson income. For some reason, I guess, they think it’s unfair that they have to report this. They want that money tax free. At the same time, each of these musicians are Democrats. They believe we need taxes. They are, for the most part, the ones who are concerned about the environment, care about the poor, and think the government should put more money into the arts as well as social issues. They are also the ones who think the “rich Republicans” (and believe me, not all Republicans are rich!) are a bunch of dishonest folks who cheat on their taxes. So I just find this all puzzling. Somehow my musician friends are allowed to cheat on taxes, but others aren’t.

They also don’t report their teaching income because, during the bleak summer months when there is little work, they claim unemployment. Somehow teaching isn’t “employment” to them I guess. (Gee, so maybe they should just do it for free?)

At least the Republicans who cheat on taxes are consistent with their beliefs.

Rant over and out. I know I sound “holier than thou” and I’m sorry for that. I’m just bugged, and I needed to vent.
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***GO GIANTS

Okay, so they allowed the Dodgers to win the first of the double header today. They are just so gracious! Don’t ya love those guys? I mean … here they are, working on getting home field advantage, and they still go ahead and let the poor Dodgers, whose season is already over, win. What a team!
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***Sometimes You Just Have To Wonder …

Check this out!

(I think of the time these must take and I’m glad I’m not eligible for this!)

***The Debate That Wasn’t

I remember watching debates when I was younger. I could never have participated in one myself … they made me want to cry. I’m not one to be confrontational. I’d rather run away. I even did so once; it was the first day of summer school and the teacher of the class (some class with the word “ethics” in it … we probably don’t have those anymore!) told us “If you can’t handle debate. If you can’t argue your point. If you get scared when someone attacks you. Leave.” I left. But I at least understood debate. I remember that their were rules. The two debaters weren’t to interrupt each other. They had to watch their time. They needed to stick to the subject. They couldn’t get personal. If they didn’t do those things they’d lose the debate. I think the candidates for governor should watch a few high school debates (if they still have those rules). They could learn a thing or two! I did find Huffington entertaining, quick, and certainly not shy and retiring. I found Schwarzenegger to be what I expected and I didn’t expect much. I thought Bustamante, Camejo and McClintock to be the better speakers and closer to respectful of the whole shindig (I just hate calling it a debate).

Having viewed the debacle … I mean debate … I have to say if i wanted to vote for most fiesty I’d vote for Huffington. If I wanted to vote for most able to tie politics in to movies I’d go for Schwarzenegger. But neither of them will get my vote. It ain’t about fun, frolic, feistiness or film, folks.
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***And Now We Are Three

Dan, Brandon and Kelsey left very early this morning for UCI, and then UCLA. (Poor Jameson is going to be getting a lot more attention from his parents now!) Brandon will, most likely, spend the night in Irvine with Dan, and be taken up to UCLA Sunday morning. (I know he’d prefer to get home today, so we’ll see!) It’s very quiet in the house; Jameson had an overnighter at the church, and now he’s sleeping (or reading – I haven’t checked recently). I suspect it will take a while for what is a very large change to hit me, but I’m missing the older two already. (Sorry Dan. It’s just that I know you’ll be back so I’m not missing you. Yet.)

***Go Giants!

Before they left, Kelsey and Brandon were able to take in one Giants game with me. We had great seats, and we had a great time. But the Giants lost. Let’s see … I’ve attending three games now (one last season, two this). They lost all three times. The first two Rueter was pitching so I was hoping I could blame him, but this last game Ponson was pitching. So. Does this mean it’s my fault? I wonder. I’m female. I’m a mom. I’m an oboe player. (Three reasons to be a martyr.) Yep. Must be my fault.

But still, they have won their division! The game we saw was the day after. A lot of regulars were taking a well deserved day off. I would have loved to see my faves, but that’s okay. This just means I’ll have to be back next season! (I can’t afford any more tickets this year, and the league playoffs are far too expensive for me anyway … and of course are already sold out.)

I would put some pictures up here, but they aren’t terribly flattering. I’m disappointed because I thought I’d taken more; I have a new camera (Minolta Dimage XT) and I guess I must have been doing something wrong. (I hadn’t had time to read the instructions. Today is to be “instruction reading day” for me.)

Oh wait! I’ll at least put up the ballpark picture. Unfortunately I allowed a bar to get in the way of the batter’s box; I didn’t have Dan there to remind me about things like that! (He’s the master photographer around here.)

***I Hate Colds

But who doesn’t? I was teaching my final student yesterday at 2:15. About 1/3 into the lesson I began sneezing. I thought I had allergies at first, but about two hours later I knew it was gonna be the cold that has been traveling the pit. That’s the trouble with pit playing … everything seems to get shared. I feel better than I thought I would, but I still don’t feel up to par. Ah well. I’ll sit here sniffling and I can feel sorry for myself due to both the departure of my children and the arrival of this stupid cold.
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***That Spelling “Thing”

I attempted to research the “Cambridge” information and couldn’t come up with anything that said it truly came from them. Since that time I’ve seen the same thing with only “a ldeanig uivtsnirey” used instead of a specific school. Still, I think it’s fascinating that our brains can read the whole paragraph with ease. (Or at least mine could!) At another site someone responded with:

u p______y c_n r__d t__s t_o.

That individual was correct! I certainly c___d r__d it! (If you can’t, email me and I’ll fill you in.)

My daughter just thinks it’s great because it shows that spelling isn’t important after all. (She’s wrong!)

So what is it with our brains? Mighty interesting, don’t you think? And fun.

***In Other Blogs

Some people waste time with their blogs (me), and others don’t (Karen). If you go to blogify I think you’ll read something worth its space in cyberville.

***Two More Days …

and our family will shrink in a major way; Kelsey and Brandon both leave for school. We’ll have one child here. Lucky him … all that attention. The TV is “all his” (weekends only). Oh, and all the negatives as well. Poor guy. I’ll try to be a nice mommy.

I’m going to miss the other two tremendously. Kelsey and I have been working out together and I’ll have to become brave and go to the club alone. (Thank goodness for my new iPod – if I need to hide it will assist me well.) Brandon has been visiting for the week and it’s always a joy to have him home. (But how can anyone sleep in that late?!) And, help, oh help (!), I’ll be outnumbered. Two guys. Me. Hmmm. Wonder how it will work. Do you think they will want to cater to me? Bow to my every need? Keep me happy and in chocolate? (Those might be one and the same.)

A report will follow.
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***Yet Another Long Pause

I don’t seem to be able to keep up wtih this site! I spend more time with the oboe site since it serves a purpose. Sometimes I wonder about the pattyo … it has no purpose other than self-indulgence. Ah well.

***Interesting Read

Aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn’t mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoetnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be at the rghit pclae. The rset can be a total mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit porbelm.
Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. How ture!

Fun, don’t you think?

This makes me suspect that those puzzles where they jumble up words (perhaps called word jumbles?) never begin and end with the correct letters. I’ll have to do the ones that come in the paper sometime just to check.

***Go Giants!

“My” team is doing quite well, thank you very much. Last year came to such a disappointing end and I’m hoping that this year will be different. Brandon, Kelsey and I are going to the game on Thursday. I’m excited! I doubt it will happen, but that could be when they clinch the division. Now wouldn’t that be cool? (But shoot … in the current game, which I’m listening to on my radio, they are trailing the Padres. Score 7-5, top of the 7th. Rats. There’s still time … there’s still time … )

Update: It’s now the top of the 9th, Giants 8, Padres 7. 1 out, 1 on 1st. Oh dear, oh dear … just two outs. C’mon Worrell!

Update #2: 2 out. Still one on 1st.

Update #3: 2 out. Kotsay on 1st. 1 ball, 2 strikes …

Update #4: Oops … missed an update where the Padres then had two on. But who cares? Lockhart grounded out. We won!
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***Yay!

So … what would I do without Dan?! The pictures are back up at our sites. This is a good thing. Thanks Dan!

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***Power Outages

I hate it when the power goes out; I realize how much I rely on it! I also realize how many clocks have to be reset. It’s a pain.

Then again, I’d not want to go back to candles and big blocks of ice. Nope.

***Shopping

Sometimes I wonder why I shop at Target Stores (see my earlier blog from last Sunday). Other times I wonder why I shop at all. But last night, with the power out, it was a great way to kill time.

Unfortunately it was also a great way to spend money>

***Pictures

Along with the power outage came a loss of all pictures at my site. Be patient. They will be fixed.
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