Stargazer

That smarts

My doc did the first step in freezing off this "lovely" wart that I have on my fingertip. I couldn't wait to have it done because it is very annoying; however, it does hurt like the dickens during the process and afterwards. As I told him though," No big deal compared to childbirth--every pain in my life since then has been gauged by that." This was about a 2 at its most severe, versus a 10++ for having a baby. (but at least I got two darling girls out of that!) I am ashamed to admit that I did the Hefeweisen cure to my gymnastics stress last night; I broke down and had TWO. They did take off some of those very rough edges so that I can now say this without fuming: I hate it when people claim to not be competitive when they actually are. I don't appreciate it when others tell my daughter that it comes so EASILY to her, and that Alison doesn't understand how hard it is to be the worst one in her group. How about a year ago when Alison had two major injuries--a broken hand in May and then a pulled hamstring in July? Easy, my rear end! She had a great attitude, went to gym every day and did what she could with a smile. Worst one? Alison spent most of her first two years of gymnastics praying that she would not get the worst score at each meet she went to, while my husband and I accentuated the positive like mad. ("You stayed on beam--yeah! You got a higher score on vault! You had a super attitude out there!") She has paid her dues; she had a wonderful year this year--not all go so well. But PLEASE give her credit for where she's come from and how hard she has worked. Well, maybe I am still fuming a bit...Thank you for listening; I DO feel better now.

More "biting" commentary

Aren't they cute in all their different leos, just before they went in to compete for Finals? This may be the last happy thing I post about gymnastics for a while. Alison went back today; rumors are swirling around about what different people are going to do, perhaps going to do--all kinds of uncertainty and change are in the air. I don't know whether to feel depressed, angry or frustrated. We have only been here for a year, and it feels like the team is coming apart. What Alison is feeling or wants to do is another question mark. She doesn't seem interested in rec-type gymnastics; she loves learning difficult new moves. However, if most of her friends quit or MOVE gyms (an unpleasant surprise to me), I can't predict what will happen. More is going on than I can really say on the blog--wish I could really vent about a few of the comments made to Alison, but that would impinge on her privacy. She says it is supposed to be secret, so I will reluctantly zip my lips. The good news of the day is that Ashley's boyfriend's stepdad apologized to her for the watermelon incident. She felt better about that AND  then was absolutely delighted to get her AP English scores in the mail- TWO 5s. How did she get so darned smart?

My new favorite tee

Taking a photo of my own chest in this Minnesota T-shirt is what blogging has driven me to.(click on the picture for a BIGGER view of my chest--har har)  It is my favorite souvenir that I bought; I could never have found it without my blogger buddy and guide, Gentle Breezes. Since I run, I  collect t-shirts and sweatshirts from my travels ; the minute I saw this, I knew I had to possess it. Don't you think it perfectly suits my sometimes feisty personality?

Summer doldrums

I borrowed this post title from my Texas blogger buddy Chuck aka Fat Blogger. He described perfectly how the last week has been feeling for me. June was tied up with school and preparations for the trip to Nationals. I had A LOT to accomplish, and was going at high gear the whole month. We returned from Wisconsin on the Fourth of July, took the week off from gym, and I think my mind literally went on vacation at that point. Not having any schedule can be a mixed blessing for me. Because I haven't had to budget my time, I have accomplished little around the house, nothing on my school projects, not much with my library books...I have finally started reading a "Prey" book by John Sandford; I would love to take it outside to read it on the deck, but the weather is not very cooperative right now. Perhaps the gray, drizzly skies are adding to my lack of energy. The interesting part about the "Prey" series is that it is getting better as it ages; the main character has married and had a child, which has actually improved the police procedural aspect. It is no longer the detective having his "love interest" in each book; it used to be sort of like  Captain Kirk on Star Trek when they played that corny music and he would fall in love with some woman in practically every episode.  The books used to be predictable in that Davenport would always be chasing criminals and some forgettable object of his lust. I am loving (now) that the series is set in Minneapolis, so the detective will say, "Let's meet at the 24th entrance to the Mall of America." I remember that street because I was just on it last week. That's where Bubba and I got off when we went too far past our hotel. (on 34th) I enjoy reading books set in the Pacific Northwest too; it is easy to picture the action because it's familiar territory. Gymnastics starts up again tomorrow; we'll see how it goes. I am apprehensive about what changes face Alison as she returns--who is quitting, who is staying, who is frustrated about how the competition went at Nationals,etc...That stress should knock the doldrums right out of me, especially if I have to deal with any of it as the incoming Booster Club President. No need to congratulate me; I think I probably need my head examined for agreeing to it.

Note: Poor Ashley! She hates to get in trouble and for the second day in a row, she has been lectured or yelled at. Yesterday, her boyfriend's stepdad decided to ream her for cutting up a watermelon that his wife had given permission for her to cut. She came home crying, we talked for a while about how people sometimes take out their own frustrations on others, etc... then we headed out for Thai food and putt putt golf. ( I didn't golf because I'm terrible!) Just a few minutes ago she called; she had been coming home from her volunteer work at Ten Thousand Villages, pulled off Interstate 5 in a city where the cops are notorious for setting up speed traps right by the freeway, and...$140 ticket, plus a lecture that made her feel like a naughty teenager. (in almost three years of driving, it's her first ticket of any kind.) It has certainly not been her weekend, that's for sure.

Au revoir, Flo

So that my husband and I could go to Flo's service today, Ashley agreed to babysit Baby D, now Toddler D. He is our great-nephew, the younger son of nephew B. and niece M. (Flo was B's grandmother) Ashley called me while I was out eating lunch with my parents and brother and sister-in-law, crying because D. had been fussing for 40 minutes. By the time I got home, he was placidly eating some lunch and playing with toys--but Ashley was a wreck. ("I can see why women get post-partum depression, Mom!") As for the memorial, we are very glad we went; my husband's sister burst into tears when she saw us and gave her brother (Mr. Stargazer) a HUGE hug. She knows that he hates funerals and that he had to force himself to be there for the family. She didn't see his "deer trapped in the headlights" look when they opened up the casket, nor hear us whispering about the luxurious casket. I told my husband he could just make me one out of all of his spare wood; I can't even estimate how much Flo's cost with its scenes of the Last Supper, decorations, fancy handles,etc... but I know I wouldn't want it. I did love the music they played at the service--Ave Maria almost always brings me to tears, even when it's not at a funeral. Ashley survived her encounter with Toddler D, although my mom was here helping to entertain him when I arrived home. My mom would tap dance on the kitchen table in a can can outfit to keep a baby from crying--she can't stand it. Luckily, all she had to do was drag out some wiffle balls so that D. could throw them against the wall. The funny thing? When D's parents came to pick him up, he fussed when his dad tried to hand him over to his mom. It was good for Ashley to see that little ones even prefer one parent over the other at times. She tends to take it all quite personally. ("Kids hate me.") In other news, many of the excellent gymnasts at Alison's gym are talking about quitting for a variety of reasons; it will be very hard on Alison because several of them are her close friends. At least, Alison has had a fabulous season, so we'll have to see what happens...In memory of Flo, I would like to share what was printed on her remembrance flier, because I liked it very much.

Now that I am gone,

remember me with smiles and laughter

And if you need to cry,

cry with your brother or sister

who walks in grief beside you.

And when you need me,

put your arms around anyone

and give to them what you need to give to me.

There are so many who need so much.

I want to leave you something--

something much better than words or sounds.

Look for me in the people I've known

or helped in some special way.

Let me live in your heart

as well as in your mind.

You can love me most

by letting your love reach  out to our loved ones,

by embracing them and living in their love.

Love does not die, people do.

So, when all that's left of me is love,

give me away as best you can.

Cranky

My car's 30,000 check-up cost me $650; luckily I had already had the oil change and tire rotation done the day before.That's a crazy amount of money for routine maintenance, as far as I'm concerned.  Since the service manager had told me it would take five hours to do, I dragged myself out of bed to get it down there before 8 a.m.  At 2, I called and was told that it would be another hour to hour and a half. Finally, at 4:30, I called and was informed it was ready. As I told the woman at the service counter--you don't need to wonder why it's 5,000 miles over, I have quit doing business with car dealerships who quote me 5 hours, and it ends up being 8. She claimed that they couldn't get the drain plug out because it was rounded off. (THREE HOURS WORTH??) Since they are the only ones who have touched the drain plug, I guess you know what I said to that! Thus, I am already low on money for the month,  plus I wasted the day waiting around for them to call--didn't go for a run, didn't mow the lawn, just waited around and worked myself into a frenzy. At least, the car is now washed and someone even used Armor All on the tires. Big whoopie. I want my money, time, and frustration back.

Errands and recovery

Life has settled down into a more normal pattern now--no unpacking, no holiday, no exhaustion. The mundane has started to take over; I looked down and realized that I was 400 miles over my oil change due date. (oops!) So, I took it down; they informed me that I was also 5,000 miles over my 30,000 check-up. It sounds like an expensive appointment since it takes 5 hours to complete. They say that my brakes are fine after checking them, but I claim that at times, they sound like a dying whale. It is NOT a pleasant sound.  Ashley has been doing a lot of sewing to make this shirt. She has seen them around, but none of them fit her. (too big) She is very proud of herself and my parents are delighted to have her come down to use their sewing machine. We have one, but it isn't working correctly right now.I am in awe that she designed, cut out, and sewed this herself! (I could never do it.) Alison is seriously disturbed about two deaths that occurred while we were gone. She doesn't understand how an older person who appears healthy, and active can just go to bed and die. It is difficult and scary for her to contemplate. She has three grandparents about that age! The other death was of a classmate's dad in a freak drowning accident. She has gone to grade school and junior high with this boy; she cried in the car when I told her that no, he had not swum for shore because they would have found him by now. It is all too close to home for her, I think. I have explained to her that these events would have happened whether we had been home or not. To cheer herself up, she decorated her door at home just like it was at Y Nationals.

All those wonderful and funny memories from the trip to Wisconsin are hard to recapture exactly; I'm sure glad to have the blog, photos and videos of it. I am still amazed when I watch Alison's Finals beam and bar routines. Before we went, I was hoping she would just stay on the equipment, yet she far exceeded that expectation. I now have to figure out how to burn all of her meets, state, regionals and Nationals onto one DVD with titles.  I hope that this won't cause any major trauma in my life, like last time I "played" around with the digital camcorder. I think the rest of my family was ready to move out...

If you love gymnastics and have two minutes...

I have included two of Alison's best routines from Download ymca_nationals_finals.wmv ; she did beam and bars on Day Three.It is a tradition for most of the gymnasts to wear an individual leo for that competition and not the team one. Isn't she adorable? I hope you are all enjoying your 4th of July. I am trying to stay awake for it.

Tired

I have no energy to blog right now since I have been up since 4:30 p.m. (2:30 my time) I did manage to post some of my photos in this album from Y Nationals. They include photos of the gymnasts, the University of Wisconsin-Stout, shopping, and my blogger buddy VJ! (Andrea was too busy working at the meet to stop for a photo) We came home to a lovely sign from Ashley, "Welcome home Mom and Alison!" My husband and she had made obvious attempts to keep up with the housework, which I appreciated since I'm still washing delicate leos and other laundry from the trip. In sad news, my sister-in-law's mother-in-law, with whom we celebrate every holiday, passed away in her sleep yesterday. She was a wonderful and cheerful lady; we will miss you, Flo!

Logging and not blogging in Wisconsin

Log-June 30th

I live in Washington State and I am used to the rain, but I have never seen bad weather like here in Wisconsin. Most of the time it almost looks like we could be in Washington, either western or eastern—except for the hideously changeable and extreme weather. I have taken off and put on my rain jacket more times than I can count! The adventures have continued with tornado warnings, thunderstorm sirens in the middle of the night(I slept through them), loss of power and today, a torrential rainstorm and WIND in the middle of YMCA Nationals opening ceremony dinner. The speeches during the ceremony were very good; it brought us all to tears when it was announced that a mom from one of the visiting teams had been killed in a car accident last night in Eau Claire. I can’t imagine how horrible that would be for her family and team! Besides the weather shenanigans, it has required other adjustments. No Starbucks. No Hefeweisen. No wireless.The University of Wisconsin at Stout has some beautiful buildings, but we are scrambling to fill our time. I have talked to my older daughter, husband and parents several times; Ashley found the card and note I left on her bed and appreciated it. I wrote a very heartfelt message on it, which I was afraid would embarrass her—but didn’t. My husband misses me and that’s obvious from his impatience when he left me three voice mails. (plaintively entreating me to PLEASE answer my phone so he could talk to me) Tomorrow morning at 8, the gymnastics starts and that will keep us busy for a while. Alison is uncharacteristically quiet and that worries me. Is she horribly nervous? Is she tired because we haven’t slept that well? Is she feeling OK? I wonder what is going on in BlogWorld; I feel so cut off without my Internet.The hotel supposedly has DSL in a special media room, but NO ONE can get it to work. The hotel employees don’t have a clue about what to do either. So, blog friends, I hope you are all well and enjoying yourselves. I wish I could read about all your adventures…

July 1st log

The first day of gymnastics included many ups and downs. The ups were that Alison did WAY better than I expected her to. The downs were that the team had too many falls on bars, thus our team score will not be strong on that event. At this competition, it’s not all about the individual, but equally about team. The girls started on beam; we are a big championship team so we had our own rotation. Alison was last and had a 9.35 on a beautiful routine that must have impressed the judges. She then got a 9.05 on floor, an 8.75 on vault and an 8.75 on bars. She was disappointed to not get a higher score on floor, and really wanted a 9 on bars. Still, her mother was very proud of how cleanly she competed, and would love to share some routines. (but can’t!) Other than gymnastics, we have toured Menomonie, bought some gifts and souvenirs; there were actually more shops there than I thought. I feel so cut off from the world right now. Is my world now partly the Internet? I hate only talking to my older daughter and husband by phone. I miss them terribly—my parents too. I am used to firing off quick e-mails to my blogger friends, and now can’t even check the local weather on the computer. On the other hand, I think of the team who lost the mom; they were competing right next to us, wearing black ribbons. There are more important things in the world than gymnastics, that’s for sure.

Journal entry-July 1st continued

The girls got in trouble because of their “poor showing” this morning at gymnastics; the fact that for the first time in 5 or 6 years, they may not be the YMCA National Champions is horrifying their coach. Bubba and I traipsed over to a nearby hotel and begged some internet access—none of their cables would work with our laptops, so we used the computer in the lobby to check our e-mails. Thank you for all your comments to my post from Minneapolis. Looking back on it, the Mall of America was one of the highlights of our trip. Another wonderful plus was that I had the opportunity to meet several blogger friends! One lives around here and took time out of her life to meet me. She is kind, vibrant and one of the most caring mothers I have ever seen. The other hooked up with me because she is helping to run this meet in Menomonie. She has been invaluable in the information she has sent me about directions, COFFEE shops, etc…Thank you, Andrea! She was actually working on bars in the gym where Alison competed this morning, so I got to have a hug before all the nerves of watching my child flip and twist. This was before I accidentally walked into the men’s restroom and sent Bubba into a fit of hysterics. This was after I climbed in the wrong, but identical rental car in the parking lot and sat waiting for the rest of my group. Yes, the adventures continue… P.S. Go over to this site to check out my guest post on  Bob’s site. He is quite a character; I always enjoy reading what he has to say.

July 2nd and 3rd log

It’s raining here again, and we are going back for our last day of gymnastics. I’m glad it’s winding down. Three days of gym is a bit much; Alison’s back is hurting and I don’t know quite what to do about it. Yesterday was not as good a day on floor (she fell), nor beam (she wobbled), but she did a better bar routine and a nicer vault, although it didn’t score as well. With all of that, she still ended up qualifying for finals on bars and beam, which thrilled her until she realized that they do finals individually—everyone watches JUST you. (yikes!) The rest of the team did wonderfully; we are pretty sure that our Championship team got first place after all the 9.5+ from our top gymnasts. I spent most of last evening on the phone with Ashley, discussing friend problems, then chatting with my mother-in-law about all our doings this past week. I am definitely ready to come home and see the rest of my family, plus catch up with all of you.

P.S. We are now back at the “scary” hotel in Minneapolis; this time there were two police cars and yet another huge gang of interesting folks outside milling around. Alison did a fabulous job at event finals, which are scored at Level 10 standards—9.35 on beam (ended up 3rd), 8.15 on bars (8th) and her all-around put her at 14th in the junior division. The Championship team is the YMCA National Champion also!  I will be posting a photo album and some video when I recover.