What I Learned Today

In Japan, the talent show that would be the equivalent of America's Got Talent, was (at least up until 2006) called...

wait for it....

wait for it....

Mongolian Cow Sour Yogurt Super Voice Girl !!!!!!!!!!

It's Baby Time! (da-na-na-na...na-na...na-na)

Koby

My baby turned 21 on the 16th.
My little boy.
I can't believe he's already 21 years old.
Trite as it sounds, it really does go by So Fast!

When he was a wee one, he was a major handful. He emerged from the womb kicking and screaming and stayed that mad for about four years. We called him Gozer the Gozerian and Hell Baby. If it was sharp, poisonous or on fire, he was all over it.

One day, when I had the audacity to go to the bathroom by myself, I came out to find he had stripped naked, climbed to the top shelf of the pantry, and tossed the (glass) bottle of canola oil to the floor. No, that wasn't just last week; he was about a year and a half old when he did that. So here I come, around the corner, and find him like that, naked and clinging to the shelves, the kitchen floor covered with about a half an inch of oil and a zillion shards of glass. Oh, did I mention I was running a daycare at the time? How many of those kids do you think also headed for the kitchen to check out the show?

Koby helped me a lot in entertaining the daycare kids. He showed them how to bypass the security clips on the cupboard doors to get to the box of "shiny popsicles" (ant stakes) and how if you laid down on your belly and reached under the edge of the dishwasher, you could use your tiny fingers to pry out hidden clumps of old dishwasher detergent (?!?) because, evidently, they are a delicacy to babies.

My first kid was so easy. This one? By the time he was two I'd had to call the Poison Control Center three times!

Koby's early school years were spent half in public school (where they wanted to exorcise him) and half in home school (where he flourished). His dad taught him for fourth grade, then I taught fifth and sixth. By seventh grade Koby was yearning for peer association, so he went back into public school. In spite of my protests, he insisted this was what he wanted. I told him school was no place for socializing, it was for academics, but he insisted. I gave in, telling him that what he starts he must finish so there was no going back on the deal or screwing off with his work once he was in. When we picked him up after school that first day back he jumped in the car and declared, "Get Me Out Of Here! The kids are so rude! Everyone just yells and messes around and you can't hear the teachers, even if they yell, 'SHUT UP!'"

Sorry, kid. You made your decision.

Then came the teenage years. Turbulence doesn't describe it, but it wasn't because of Koby. Life tossed us over the waterfall and tumbled us around, over and under the rocks. I had to pull him back out of eighth grade when I learned he was failing (failing?!) and they were going to pass him along into ninth anyway. Over my dead body! I brought him home, gave him an assessment test, and began at the beginning to cover all seventh/eighth grade material he had not absorbed at the junior high. It took longer, but that wasn't the point. Life at home had been like a 9.0 earthquake, so it wasn't a big surprise to me that Koby was having trouble paying attention at school, but I knew he was smart and with patience and perseverance we would get through it and get him educated. By the following year he was ready to enter high school.

Koby's teenage years were rough but we clung together, sometimes biting and scratching, and made it through without either of us drowning. Now he has grown into an ossum man with so much wisdom and strength. He makes me very, very proud.

One of the traditions in our family is that the birthday king (or queen) gets to choose what we'll all have for dinner. This year he wanted raviolis and lasagna. Yes, both. At the same time. So that's what we all got. He loaded the disk changer up with Mob Hits, Louie Prima and Dean Martin and we lip-sinced at each other across the table. As the meal wound down and we lounged over dessert and coffee, he looked at me with a satisfied smile and said, "Now this is what dinner is supposed to be like."

At the end of the month he's moving out. Not far away like my other boy, thank goddess, but I'll still miss him. Koby is hilarious, artistic, musical, helpful and responsible (the latter being an adjective I apply to him with a great sigh of relief). I'll miss the way he can make a drink squirt out of my nose without notice.

O, Sousanna, don't you cry for me!

Well, coincidentally, the letter from World Vision arrived today. It says, "Sousanna is no longer available for child sponsorship. Her family has moved out of the region as part of a resettlement plan organized by the local government. At times, families like Sousanna's are relocated to different areas for social or economic reasons."

Yikes. A very ominous statement considering we're talking about Armenia. Steve says I shouldn't fret - they were probably just being disruptive.

So, moving right along, Koby and I sat down at the computer tonight and picked a new pook. Meet...

Nazeli This little doll is just two years old. She was born in June of 2007. Nazeli lives with her parents and one brother. Her father is a driver who struggles to provide for the family.

I've been un-pooked!

Dear Mimi, The World Vision office in Armenia has notified us that your sponsored child, Sousanna Hakobyan, is no longer participating in World Vision's sponsorship program. Please watch for a letter in the mail that will provide more details, and take a few moments to look through the information enclosed with the letter. We know that it can be sad when a sponsorship relationship ends. Through gifts, correspondence and shared prayers, many sponsors develop close relationships with their sponsored children. We want to thank you for your generosity and commitment to Sousanna. Please know that your love and support have made a difference in the life of this precious child. Watch your mail for more detailed information

Well, I didn't exactly have a relationship with Sousanna yet, but this is sad in a way, and I just hope that her dis-association with the program means that she and her family have risen above their poverty and are doing well. If I learn more once I receive the correspondence from World Vision, I'll post an update, Regardless, I'll pick another pook.

Stay tuned...

Why

This is why I do what I do, and why I wish you would, too.

(18-minute video) (go ahead, take the time to watch)

Thank you. Go save the life of a child.

Quote du jour

"Ignore how much you positively ache for the nourishment that feeds the very you that is you and you can get pretty good at convincing yourself that it really isn't a necessary part of your diet."

~ Nakedjen

Corvallis

Steve and I took a small vacation. We left Thursday evening and flew to Portland, where Lainie and Paul picked us up at PDX. After a dinner in the airport that was better than standard airport food, there was the long drive back to their place. I had forgotten how long that drive was and it made me feel bad for them, and grateful for them.

Friday we lounged around, rested some, read some, and generally just took it easy until about 5:00. After a light, early supper of fabulous salad concocted by Miss Lainie, we headed over to the OSU campus. Turns out waiting was a very good idea. Silly us, we thought we'd escape the summer heat by flying north, but it was 95 up there on Friday!

By that late in the afternoon, though, we skipped over the hottest part of the day. We wandered through "Green Town" to see all the displays of "green" innovations. We learned about making cob, saw a people-sized camera obscura (that was closed for the day, but we made a note of it), watched the tail end of the kinetic sculpture introductions, and enjoyed looking at all the electric vehicles on display. I discovered I want to make a greenwall.

There were also community art projects happening outside the entry gates. The theme of this year's festival was water, or rather, "H2 Oh!" Folks had created freestanding art accordingly. Lainie covered a flat, fish-shaped piece of wood with paper printed in a sushi graphic, attached a depiction of an Elvis movie to the front of it, and added the Darkside logo. She called it "Dinner And a Movie." Even if people couldn't guess her title for the piece, we could tell they loved it, as we spied many, many visitors shooting pictures of it!

Friday night we saw the Jacob Merlin band open for Cherry Poppin' Daddies. Jacob Merlin was really pretty great; CPD was great at the beginning and end but, I have to admit, kinda boring in the middle of their show.

It was a late night for these two who are used to nodding off by about 9:00. By the time we got home and relaxed, it was about 1:00. Some of us slept delightfully late Saturday morning. After breakfast and showers, we got a bit of an earlier start, though. The weather was cooler than Friday and we got out to the campus by about 11:00 to discover the sidewalk chalk art. It was a lot of fun wandering around checking it out and, thankfully, we remembered our camera that day!

Unfortunately, Paul had to work most of the day. While Lainie went off on her own to see the Wave Exhibit, Steve and I checked out the Art Village. The carousel animal restorations were amazingly gorgeous.

We sat awhile, listening to Common Pulse and Bon Ton Roulet at the Shady Stage. After pigging out on festival food Friday and half of Saturday, I discovered an amazing salad at one of the stands. It was spinach and mixed greens with strawberries, dried cranberries, candied pecans and a balsamic vinaigrette. Oh, man! It was absolutely delightful to eat such a cool, fresh, healthy meal in the shade while listening to those bands!

Behind us, on the Main Stage, a sound check for that night's headliner had begun. After hearing the usual, "One, two check. Ooonneee, twwwooooo, CHK!" for about five minutes, I glanced over my shoulder and saw in the distance several bodies standing at several microphones. Without waiting to figure out if what I was seeing was what I thought I was seeing, I jumped up (as much as my old bones can jump up from sitting on the ground) and raced across the grass. I was right! It was them! Out of their usual costume, dressed in kakhis and polo shirts, there were my boys! No one at the festival seemed to be paying attention, except for about ten of us who settled to the ground on the only patch of shade available, about 10 feet from where they stood.

Those of you who know me and my past must know that I am not easily starstruck. In fact, 99% of musicians kind of piss me off. Not these guys. I worship them. I've been wanting to see them live since the mid-80's. Now, not only was I seeing them live, but I was almost in their personal bubbles! It was like they were doing a pre-concert concert just for ME!

Ladysmith Black Mambazo is a group of guys from South Africa, an a capella group, spreading peace, love and joy as they tour the world. Whenever I talk about them to people, I generally get the same response: "I've never heard of them." Yes you have, but you don't know it. Think back to Paul Simon's big hit, Diamonds on The Souls of Her Shoes. Remember the smooth harmonies and African beat in the background? That was Ladysmith.

Their less commercial music stirs something very deep inside me. I sat there on the grass, completely rapt in their presence. They did three numbers. At the end of it, I wept.

After a bit, we three went off to meet up with Paul at a Mexican restaurant in town. Giggles, really good food, blessed hydration - it was a good dinner break for all of us. Paul then had to go back to the theater to work until closing; Lainie, Steve and I headed back to the festival.

While Steve was great about schlepping the lawn chairs and picking a spot with a view right up the aisle for that night's musical events, Lainie and I wandered the chalk pictures some more. There were so many really great ones! We found Steve and settled in to wait.

A band from Zimbabwe called Bongo Love was opening that night. They weren't bad, but we all agreed they just didn't have "the groove." Maybe that was why we didn't notice - or care - that because of the aisle all we could see was people's butts as they wandered up and down, looking for a spare piece of grass on which to sit. When Ladysmith started their portion of the show, it only took a few minutes for me to know this Just Wasn't Going To Work For Me. Lainie and I both popped up and wandered forward, eventually finding some friends who allowed us to sit at their feet. This put us about 75 feet from center stage - a pretty good vantage point.

I don't know if I can describe the show without gushing too much. They were energized. They were funny. They were glorious, golden gods. (See?)

Because Lainie was a VIP (on the Board of Directors for the festival), she managed to do some schmoozing and get us backstage after the show. I bought a DVD and most of the boys sicned it for me (some were still cooling their heels in the RVs). We all shook hands, took a couple of pics, and there were huge smiles all around. When it became clear I'd have to let go and wouldn't be able to bring them all home with me, we made our exit and floated home.

An Addition To Our Family!

In fulfilling one of my two major goals this year, we are adding a member to our family.

Sousanna is 11 years old and in 6th grade where her favorite subject is Foreign Languages. She lives in Armenia with her mother and one brother. She helps at home by working with her mother doing household tasks. She likes to play with dolls. She is in satisfactory health. Her mother takes care of the household and struggles to provide for the family. Despite her efforts, it is difficult to meet the family's needs.

Sousanna is growing up in a poor community in Armenia. Due to the 1988 earthquake that destroyed the city, housing is still very impaired and decaying. Apartments have bad sanitation and no heat when it is needed. The usual diet consists of potatoes, bread, noodles, beans, oil and greens. Meat and fruit are scarce. It is generally mild in the summer but winters can be harsh.

Sousanna becomes the second pook in my Pookfolio. Many of you dear readers (perhaps all three of you) are familiar with my long-standing pook, Geghetsik.

Geghetsik turned 12 in January of this year. She, too, is in the 6th grade. She loves Math and wants to become a physician. In spite of some bouts of tonsillitis, she’s been able to stay healthy. Her dad got treatment for his hernia and is back to work, helping to support the family.

We’ve been able to sponsor a tree planting event in Geghetsik’s village, as well as provide some refurbishing of the meager school facilities. In addition to planting (and naming!) the trees, the village kids got together and cleaned up the play areas for the kindergarteners. In return they received new clothing, backpacks and school supplies.

Geghetsik wrote me that she has been receiving lessons in human rights, democracy and…wait for it…cow insemination! “Some children went to the summer camp and returned much inspired.” (I’ll just bet they did.)

Thank Goddess For Coffee

Steve's been sick for the last few days. Flu, it seems. Tossing, turning, sweating, aching, and now coughing. I think I was jarred awake at least once every hour last night. This morning when my eyelids reluctantly parted so that I could turn off my alarm without banging my shins on the desk, my brain felt surreal, like my head was filled with flan but without all the sweet stuff.

My son has been raised well. He is a kind, generous, and compassionate soul. He had made coffee before leaving for work (genius!), and left me enough for that oh-so-important first cup. Goddess bless you, my son.