I need a vacation Part 2

About a month ago, I written a blog stating how I needed a vacation. I thought the matter was solved when Wah-Wah and I decided to drive up to the Black Hills for a week. Unfortunately my mom was offended that we were not planning on visiting her in Oregon. She had previously stated that she wasn't going to fly us out this summer and I couldn't afford a couple thousand dollars to fly out there. She changed her mind and is booking us tickets in August to fly out. I told her as much as I appreciate it, Wah-Wah and I really want to see something different besides Oregon. Mom didn't take that too well, so we decided to visit Oregon again.
I'm beginning to believe that I may end up living in Oregon someday. I don't like the idea of my parents flying me out there a couple times a year and having to spend all of our summer vacations with them. It's like they want us in their lives but at the same time they are moving across the country. Then there is the fact that my dad is trying to bribe us to move out there. It seems we are stuck. Wah-Wah's side of the family doesn't want us to move (even though we hardly see them anyway despite the fact they are in town), and my family is putting the pressure on to move. I'll have to decide some day.

Shared Birthdays

Last Saturday we had what was the first of many shared birthday parties of our two kids. Woogy and Nibble's birthdays are only two days apart, so we will probably always combine them. Keep in mind, we didn't plan it that way. This year, Nibble's didn't care about sharing her birthday, but I fear what she might think in the future about sharing her party.

Most of the party focused on Woogy. We had both sides of the family come down from Iowa (as you can see the two grandfathers proudly taking pictures in the corner of the picture). Woogy had a few kids from his babysitter's house, and a few neighborhood kids come over. We decided to have a Star Wars theme party, since that seems all Woogy plays now. I used to love to play Star Wars when I was his age, so I can relate. He actually plays with some of my old figures.

As far as presents go, I bought Woogy a Power Wheels jeep. He never asked for one, but I always wanted one when I was his age, so I thought he would like it. Instead he likes his new X wing fighter and lightsaber better. Just a couple of years ago, all he wanted was Thomas the Tank Engine. Now it seems he could care less about trains.

Since Nibbles only enjoys playing with her brother's toys, we only got her a couple of her own toys. Nibbles still had a good time eating some of her birthday cake and being held by Wah-wah.

Our church's food pantry

I just wanted to give a"kudos" to our food pantry at church. I've worked with several families over the years that have struggled to afford food for their family, and our church has always provided. They have never turned anyone away that I can recall.
Last week I was working with a mom who didn't get her disability check on time (because of the holiday) and they had no food in their house. She had already used the $10 in food stamps the state provided. I called to various agencies in the Independence area, and nobody said they could help because she didn't live in their catchment. I was pretty frustrated when I finally called our church and they arranged a couple bags of groceries for me to pick up.
Many other families have benefited from our church' s pantry. What I like best about connecting with our church is that they don't ask questions. I've worked with a few families that have been too embarrassed to go and really don't' want to be a burden. I also appreciate the fact that our church doesn't really care where the family lives. I realize there probably isn't a lot of starving people in Overland Park, but it is nice to know that they will give to families outside the area

May's music

Despite a disappointing concert at the beginning of the month, May was a good month for music. He is some of the goodies I picked up this month.

Angels and Airwaves We Don't Need to Whisper. I was never a huge fan of Blink 182, but I have to admit that Enema of the State is one of my favorite albums to go back and listen to when I'm not feeling my age. Anyway Blink is gone and the lead singer formed Angels and Airwaves. He has matured on his song writing and incorporates a lot of 80's sounding guitar fuzz on this one album without losing the fun of Blink 182. Some of the teenagers I work with dig this on






Athlete's Tourism is right along the same lines of Coldplay (only not as good). I thought this album was alright. The sound is very fragile yet has an a indie feel to it





Buy Snow Patrol's
Eyes Open. This is a fantastic album, nearly flawless. I have to admit that when Snow Patrol first did "Run" and "Chocolate", I dismissed them as Coldplay knock offs, but this album shows that can give Coldplay a run for their money. Gary Lightbody fills this album with catchy hooks with building chorus. With out a doubt, the best album I got so far this year




I had to get Embrace's This New Day from Amazon UK since it is not available in the states. Like their last album Out of Nothing, this album will probably go largely unnoticed, which is a shame, because it is so great. Embrace continue to do what they do best, stellar chorus and big catchy anthems.







I picked up Bill Mallonee's Locket full of Moonlight on itunes. itunes is great for finding some gems like this. I haven't found this album anywhere else, not even at his gigs. Bill is a brilliant artist who writes real heart felt songs. Bill covers so many topics and emotions in his music. It's a shame that when I saw him a year ago, he needed $20 to make it to his next gig

I need a vacation

I've been working at Comp Mental Health for almost 6 month's now, and I'm starting to think "vacation". Unfortunately, there is no paid vacation with my job. They justify screwing us out of vacation time because we are "contract employees" and are hourly rate is so high. Regardless, we are welcomed to take off as much, or as little time as we want, we just don't get paid for it.
Lately, I've been feeling "burned out". This isn't the first time, and I usually get over it. Last weekend, I just wanted to veg and start to look forward to a vacation. I promised Wah-Wah when we got married that we would have at least one nice vacation a year. This year we were planning on going to Oregon to visit my parents with their free airline tickets they were providing. But then my parents said they were going to save our airline tickets for an Alaskan cruise next year. It's their 40th anniversary and they wanted to fly everyone to Alaska. Suddenly we were no longer had our free tickets to Oregon. Wah-Wah decided she wanted a vacation this year without my family.
For several weeks, we've been trying to figure out where to go this year with 2 young kids. We've decided someday we'll do Disney, but when the kids are older. We thought of flying out to Vegas and maybe driving down to the Grand Canyon, but we weren't expecting airline tickets to be as expensive as they are. So now we are looking at where we could drive.
Wah-Wah really wants to go to the Black Hills in South Dakota. Almost 25 years ago, I swore I would never set foot in South Dakota again (I lived in Sioux Falls for 2 years and absolutely hated it), but I always liked the Black Hills. There is Rushmore, Crazy Horse, Crystal Cave, Devil's Tower, and Custer just to name a few things to see.
I'm a little worried about the drive which is about 10 hours. The kids have never been in the car longer than 4 hrs. The drive itself looks boring with nothing along the way. Personally, I've never driven longer than 6 hours so I hope I can handle it.
Nothing is final yet, since we are trying to keep the same vacation time as our babysitter, but South Dakota is what we are leaning toward. It would be nice if we lived closer to something exciting (say the Corn Palace or Wall Drug)

A Trekkie's paradise

Iowa is known for the "Field of Dreams, the Bridges of Madison County, and the only state where pigs out number people. However, what you may not know is that it is also a Trekkie's paradise.

This weekend we drove up to Riverside IA, to watch my brother graduate from U of I with a degree in nursing (I'm aware of the stereotypes). Anyway, we visited him at his home in Riverside. Riverside is a small little town outside of Iowa City too small for a McDonald's or Walmart. Infact,the only restaurant in town also has the only gas station attached to it. Riverside is also where they hold the annual "Trek Fest" (which my brother is the chairman for). Riverside has long claimed it is the future birth place of Captain James Kirk (even though it has never been mentioned in the "Star Trek" series). Riverside take's great pride in this since as you drive into town, you see the "USS Riverside" and signs leading you to the sacred spot where Captain Kirk is born. I thought this was so cool, I had to pull over and get pictures. I have to admit, that without this little piece of Trek paradise, Riverside would just be another little Iowa farm town.

Monty

It's been a few weeks since Monty has come back and I find it hard to remember why we left him out on a farm. He's settled down a lot since coming back. He no longer eats socks, or chews up books and toys. In fact aside from trying to "get it on" with some stuffed animals, he's a perfect dog. Woogy loves having him back and chases him around the back yard. Nibbles is just fascinated with him. Monty holds back from snapping at her even when she pulls his tail.
Recently we took Monty on the Shawnee Mission Park dog walking trail. It's one of our favorite hikes. It's the only area around where dogs don't have to be on their leashes. Monty always stays with us and doesn't run a head like all the other dogs. All the other dog owners always say what a cute and well behaved dog Monty is.
unfortunate I feel guilty taking Monty back from my in-laws. They were apparently pretty attached to him too. I guess I rationalize it by the fact that they never took him to the vet to get his shots updated, and they let him roam freely with a herd of angry horses. I felt that he wasn't going to last too long out there. I feel like I should offer to buy them another dog, even another sheltie if they want one. I do feel like I owe them, after all they did take Monty when I was too depressed over losing my job to give a crap about him. I sure don't want to cause a riff in the family either. Wah-Wah's side of the family is notorious for being angry at one another and not saying anything about it. Wah-Wah called the in-laws tonight and they just said they didn't want to talk about Monty since it was a "sore subject"

He's back

I'm a real sucker for my son. Ever since we left our dog Monty on Wah-Wah's sister's farm 8 months ago, Woogy has been asking when he's coming back. I've tried to explain to him that Monty belongs to his cousin's now, but he doesn't seem to understand. This weekend, when we were back out on the farm, Woogy again asked me "why can't we take Monty home?"
I started to think about the good times I had with Monty and taking him to Shawnee Mission Park dog walking trail and to the park. I decided I wanted the dog back. Wah-Wah's sister was relucant to let Monty go but did say it was probably for his own good. She was expecting the horses to eventually kill Monty because he keeps trying to heard them. She said that he's already been kicked a few times.
Monty seems to remember his old home. It's got to suck for him. He's used to looking at wide open land and now all he sees is our backyard. He seems to have settled down however. Woogy is happy for the time being and is very possessive of Monty.
Personally, I'm feeling a little guilty since my 3 year old niece was getting attached to the dog, but she does have 5 other dogs, so hopefully she'll get over it. 6 months ago, things were much different. Between a new born baby and losing my job, having a hyper little dog was just too much. Let's hope things work out this time

untitled

I'm still pretty busy most evenings with progress notes, but I still like to tab into my creative side which is writing. I wrote this thinking of some of our pop ideals. So far it is untitled and is a work in progress

I heard a song
I heard the saddest song on WSUK
They play it every other hour
of every other day
Because the greaser DJ thinks it is fit
for regular air play
All your heroes are whores


I saw a movie
I saw the saddest film where everyone got killed
and the crowd went wild
I didn't understand the end
I couldn't spot the good guys
All your heroes are whores

I guess sometimes it rains from the sky
The statues all start to cry
Someone, somewhere writes another beautiful song
Anyway, I predict
the next meteor that hits
will be a monster
and I for one am looking forward to it

What's new

I finally have time to write a blog! After several weeks since my last blog, I finally have time to blog! So what have I been up to? A lot of working.
After working 8-9 hr days, I come home, eat, read a few stories to Woogy, and go down stairs and do progress notes till bed. What a life!
Well I do have a few moments here and there. I spend some time on itunes sampling lots of music. Since I've discovered the joy of getting my music off itunes, I no longer frequent CD stores (which are all but gone anyway). I've also recently indulged myself and bought a new PS2 game. I usually don't buy games and just wait for my birthday or X-mas for new ones. But with "Star Wars :Battlefront 2" I couldn't wait. Finally there is a good Star Wars video game for PS2. You can play in any battle, fly any ship, and play any character. I've been really enjoying this game.

Over last weekend, I remembered why I don't like the warmer weather--it means I have to do yard work. I spent nearly all day Saturday mowing the lawn, fertilizing it, pulling weeds and cleaning out the garage. This weekend I'm going to start putting wood finish on the fence. This will probably take the rest of the summer.
I also signed up for the Blockbuster Online thing so I don't feel so left out on Thursday nights. Seems to be a good deal, and it is a pain to go to the video store all the time. My first movies : "Proof", "the Man", and "Saved" have already arrived.
Also this weekend, I took Woogy to see "Ice Age 2". He's getting better at the theater and will stay in his seat most of the time. Judging by all the previews, it looks like a ton of animated movies are coming out this summer, so I'll end up seeing a lot of those. We also saw a trailer for the new "Simpsons" movie due out next year (another pivotal moment in my life!)

In case anyone is wondering, I haven't given up on the ATV dream. I spent a $1000 bucks the other week on car titles and a new set of tires, so I didn't feel like that was a good time, but my tax return is coming soon so maybe I'll see how I'm doing then

off the road

When I was 8 years old, I rode my first ATV( Back then, they didn't have four wheels, but three). I have wanted one ever since. Then a couple of years ago, we went to Omaha to visit Wah-Wah's uncle and he had a ATV and a lot of land to ride it on. I had the time of my life. I remember it felt like such freedom, to be able to go over any terrain. The truth is, I always love going off roding. Even now I spent my weekends mountain biking for the adventure of it.
Lately I've been strongly considering buying my own ATV. This has to do with the fact that I finally own a car that is strong enough to tow one. Wah- Wah knows that I have always wanted one, so she is being understanding. I've also justified buying one to Wah-Wah because I told her that someday Woogy may want to go with me on one (which kid wouldn't love to go off roding with their dad?). It's pretty "Wild At Heart" (John Eldridge would approve)
Anyway, last Saturday I went shopping for one and found one at a store in Bonner Springs that was exactly the price I was looking for (used, in good shape). The only problem with it was that I didn't know how to ride it since it was a manual. Up till now, I've always rode a automatic. I didn't even know they made manuel's. Once I got on the ATV, it was pretty clear to the salesman that I didn't know what I was doing. He was nice enough to invite me back this weekend to show me how to ride it.
I haven't made a final decision yet if I'm going to actually buy one. I still got to price trailers and gear (helmet). My brother in law has plenty of land and if I had an ATV I would actually look forward to visiting them

Tired all the time

Since I've been working at Comprehensive, I've noticed that I am suffering from ADHD. Lately, when I try sitting down and talking with my client's and their parents, my mind is wondering all over the place. This isn't a good habit for someone who is trying to counsel someone.
I think this is because I am tired all the time. My job is a hourly rate which pays top dollar for my education level in the mental health field. Basically, I get paid for the hours I work. In order to keep my job, I need to bill 60% (26 hrs) of my time. However, I'm welcomed to bill as much as 40 hrs per week (no more since they would have to pay overtime). Since I get no paid vacations, I figure that I need to bill as much as I can. This is pushing me to keep working and is tiring me out. Plus there is so much driving that I do on top of all that.
So far, my supervisor has told me that I'm doing well, but is concerned that I might burn out too. She really doesn't want me doing any work at home (which I do so I can have more billable hours during the day). Even my client's are noticing that I'm tired all the time. One of them is offering me "energy" drinks every time I come over. I even started taking vitamin B pills (which is helping)
Getting up in the mornings is always a struggle. Even after a shower and several cups of coffee, I'm still tired. Back when I supervised CM's I told them that you can't take care of others unless you take care of yourself. Some how I need to find a way to do that

2 shows in two weeks

I hope I never get tired of going to concerts. I went to my first rock show when I was 13 and have enjoyed ever since. Sometimes they are life alternating experiences (as in U2 in St.Louis and Coldplay at Memorial Hall). Though I wouldn't quite give last Thursdays performance of the Violet Burning on the level as U2 or Coldplay, it still was a great show.
Last Thursday night, A Forrest and I went to some family's house to see the Violet Burning play in their basement. Talk about a small venue! These must be really cool parents to host a rock concert in their basement. There were about 30 people that showed up. It looked like most of everyone knew each other and I was figuring that this would be some sort of a revival coming. But it never did. There was no hidden purpose to share the gospel. Even Michael Pritzel (the lead singer) usually spends 15 mins talking about the Bible and in prayer, was relatively quite about the gospel. He's usually a very good speaker and is really inspiring.
The Violet Burning instead played mostly songs from their new album which I enjoyed. A Forrest and I talked briefly to the guitarist and where pretty amazed that he just joined the band a day ago.
This week, on Wednesday, we are seeing Sigur Ros, a band I've really been getting into. In case you've never heard of them, they are a band from Iceland whose songs are very ethereal, and atmospheric. As far as lyrics go, they are either in Icelandic or nothing at all. This is good for your imagination since you have to listen to the music and make up your own mind. Their music is so unique, abstract, and complex that it will be interesting to see how they pull it off live. Their new album "Takk" is a masterpiece. I listen to it nightly before I go to bed and discover something new in the music every time.
I obviously have high expectations going into this show, so we'll see what happens. Two shows in two weeks is pretty good for me

Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day has come and gone and like always, I don't plan things out in advance. A great example: I had a great idea a few weeks ago of taking Wah-Wah to the Nelson Art Galley for dinner, music, and to browse the art work. Unfortunately, when I went to get tickets, they were sold out.
Fortuately things worked out and we had a good Valentine's Day. This is actually our ninth one together (she remembered that, I didn't). I had the day off (since our babysitter wanted a day off)and I dropped off flowers at Wah-Wah's work. I couldn't see her since her company is working on the bird flu and it is pretty restricted. Afterwards, I took Woogy and Nibbles to the Wonderscope. Woogy always has a great time there as long as we don't go more than once a year.
After several hours of playing, we went to pizza street for Woogy's first all-you-can-eat-pizza buffet. When lunch was done, I stopped by "Need More Disc" and picked up the new Ester Drang and then took Woogy home for a nap. While Woogy slept, I spent some time with Nibbles and got her to go for her first crawl.
When Wah-Wah came home, we exchanged gifts. I gave her the first 3 Harry Potter books on hardback since she doesn't own them. Our babysitter did agree to watch the kids for a few hours tonight, so we dropped them off and went out to Outback Steak House. Calling ahead did no good since it was still an hour wait when we got there. We decided to order our food to go.
I'm glad we did that, because we had a nice quite meal at home by candlelight with some wine. I had Over the Rhine's "Drunkard's Prayer" playing which was perfect background music.
I'm glad things worked out. Next year, I just need to plan more in advance.

Speed trap

My job is pretty consuming. This is the first chance I've had to blog in a while. I've been getting home late and having to do progress notes for a while. As busy as I am, I'm not complaining that much. I do enjoy my job (somewhat)but it is starting to cost me.
I've noticed that the Missouri side of KC is one big speed trap. I drive all over the place from Independence to Grain Valley, and cops are everywhere pulling people over. I've been pulled over twice with in 30 days (that's not good). Both times were for less than 15mph over the speed limit and both times I was given tickets (which proves a fact I've longed believed: cops never cut me any slack). My second ticket, I had a hysterical mother in my car that I was trying to get to the hospital, but the cop didn't seem to care.
I admit that I've got a lead foot and my job puts pressure on to drive from one end of the city to another in order to get contact hours, but this is getting annoying. Up till now, I haven't gotten a ticket in almost 3 years, now I'm lucky to go three days without getting one. Well I've slowed down, but I'm considering a radar detector before I get another ticket

Our new car

Today we bought a new car. A '04 Chevy Impala. I certainly didn't wake up this morning with the intentions of buying a Chevy, but I'm usually pretty quick to settle on a car when I see one that meets our needs. We found our new car at Carmax which I would recommend to anyone that has little kids. Woogy loved the play area for kids and was fine while we took care of business.
This is the first car I've ever owned that was designed for comfort. Every car I ever owned up till now has always been a compact (Nova, Escort, Civic, Matrix, Focus)so it is nice to ride in something that is actually comfortable. So why the Impala?
We decided we needed a bigger car with two kids. Wah-Wah decided she didn't want a mini van (why, I don't know). Reviews were pretty positive, both from consumer reports and Edmunds. Finally, I didn't feel like driving all over town looking for something better since I'm running out of time on my rental
As for our old car, the Focus, it was totaled out and the quote I got from the adjuster was much more than I expected. I wonder if he was looking at the right car? He appraised it for a thousand less then what we paid for it. I'm not complaining.

Found focus

After giving up all hope, the police found our stolen Ford Focus. Believe it or not, they found it in Wyandotte County (image that!). Sadly, I don't think it will ever be the same. I don't remember the three bullet holes in the driver side door and I'm pretty sure I had a rear window. Other things that seemed out of place are the cartons of cigarettes and cans of beer, not to mention the new odor of urine that wasn't there before.
Yes, someone had a good time in my car judging by the condom wrappers on the floor. But the lowest thing was they took Wah-Wah's Barbara Striensand X-mas album (which was in the glove comparment). What kind of animal does that? I mean it is bad enough they took the stroller (in the trunk), but Barbara?
The focus was towed to a body shop, and I'm pretty sure they will total it out. Now we just wait and see what the insurance company will give us on it. If it breaks $1000, I'll be surprised. We are deciding if we want to get a mini van or a more practical fuel efficient car. Honestly, I never saw myself in a mini van, but then again, I never thought anyone would steal Barbara's X-mas album.

Irony

I've always loved irony. I think it has a way of making things funny that would other wise be sad. I had a ironic experience at work the other day. Most of the kids that I work with are good kids (just have messed up parents). The other day, I was talking with a client's mom who was feeling pretty down and was complaining that her son is a pretty awful kid (because he fights his siblings, argues a lot, etc). I told her that that wasn't the case and in fact, her son was a very likeable kid. I started going on about all the good things that I saw in her son (such as he has never been in trouble with the law).
At that very moment, I noticed a few squad cars parking outside her house. I told the mom that it was probably nothing, but I soon noticed that the police were talking with her son. He had been busted for breaking neighborhood windows. Even worse, the cops found him with some switchblades.
I felt like I had to eat all those nice things I had said about my client. I still believe that deep down, this is a kid who has potential, but I just found it pretty ironic that as I was telling this parent how great her son is, he is outside breaking windows.

dad's retirement

Last Thursday, I drove up to Des Moines for my dad's retirement (I was in my rental which is a sweet ride. Still no word on the Focus yet). My dad is 63 but has apparently done well enough that he has enough to retire. When I first arrived at the Wells Fargo headquaters, all the staff was down in the cafeiteria saying good bye. I was pretty impressed with what people said about my dad. They called him a manager who took the time to walk the floor talking to everyone. I was surprised to hear that since he doesn't acknowledge me when I come home. Nor does he (or ever) seemed that interested in what is going on in my life.
After the long party, we went to a nice dinner at a country club with the executive board of Wells Fargo who continued the stories of my father which I never heard. My favorite was the one of him down in New Orleans foam dancing in a club with a few vice presidents. I had a pretty hard time believing this since he usually goes to bed around 9. My dad is obviously a different person at work. The party that I attended was apparently just one of 9 retirement parties he has. Right now he is in Oregon attending more parties. He plans to move there in few months now and spend some time making jewelary and wood carving. I wonder if he'll do more foam dancing.

Need a new car

Wah-Wah and I had a pretty rotten morning today. Wah-Wah went out to start her car (our Ford Focus)to get the engine warmed up. Minutes later I heard her scream that someone had drove off with her car. I've told her time and time again, that leaving her car running in the driveway isn't a good idea, but I was still surprised that someone would take off with it. Of course, our nosy neighbor (who seems to see everything on our street saw the guy who did it, but didn't recognize him.
The police were called and they seemed to think that the car will turn up.

Hopefully it will be salvageable. Since our car was salvaged when we bought it, it isn't worth that much. If we have to buy a new car, we'll take a financial hit. I learned that our Focus seems to attract crime. Apparently our car was used in a high speed chase which originally got it in a wreck. The guy that sold me the car forgot to mention that part. As a precaution, I decided that it would be best to change the locks on our doors since the thief now has our house keys. Unfortunately, the bastard also has our stroller which was in the trunk. But the joke is on him, the only music in the car was Wah-Wah's Barbara Streisand and Johnny Mathis X-mas albums(so hopefully I'll never see those again)

Thank the Lord, Wah-Wah didn't have her purse or the kids in the car, only Barbara and Johnny where stolen. I'm beginning to realize that I might live in a high crime neighborhood. This is the second time in 3 years that something has happened to our cars. Maybe it isn't as bad as I think. After all, a free car with the keys is a tempting offer to anyone, but since our neighbor said that she saw the guy walking up and down our street a lot, makes me wonder if he was scoping the area out. Maybe we would be better living in the "Dot". At least there you kind of expect stuff like that to happen