Senior Year Sticker Shock

My emotions this year are worse than a run-away roller coaster. I have a Senior. One moment, I'm smiling with pride at what a fine young man he's become...er, becoming (he's still a teen, so even though he does grown up things, he still reverts and does bone-headed teen things, too). The next moment I'm in tears, my baby has grown up, his school years will be over soon. A few moments later I'm ticked.

Yes, I get frustrated, at times, with the teen behavior. However, my main frustrations are from Sticker Shock.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not completely naive. I knew this would be an expensive year. I just didn't realize how many petty fees were involved.It's the petty fees that have me in a tizzy.

In October, my son brought home the graduation order packet. I cried, however my eyes quickly dried once I read the packet. My first rude awakening: We have to buy the cap and gown. I don't understand the point. I'm a bargain shopper. I look for the best deal I can find. The cap and gown cost twice what my last pair of pants cost. And, I'm getting more than a few hours of usage from my pants. A few people from other schools have told me the gowns they have are papery. I really hope I'm not paying that much for paper. If the schools had seniors pay $10 up front for storage fees, the gowns could be kept at the school and there would be plenty to cover cleaning and storage.

The other petty fee? Graduation announcements. I understand the cost of foil embossed cards announcing my child's success. However, I would be more receptive and spend more if the company didn't make petty moves to increase their sales. You get 30 announcement cards. If you would like the parchment inserts for a more classic look, you can buy them, but they come in a quantity of 25. So if I only need 30 cards, I have to buy 50 inserts, 20 of which will be used for baking cookies, I guess. Is it really too much to ask for items that go together to be sold in the same quantity? Even the hot dog people got it together with the bun people.

The last shock (I hope it's the last) which saddened me to no end, $50 to put a baby picture in the yearbook. I looked forward to the day I'd get to pick a baby picture of my son for the yearbook. I think most of us do. We put in a lot of work raising our children, we get a lot of heartache, too. But, in the end, we want to see that difference. We want to open that yearbook and see them way back when and what they've become. We want others to see that difference, as well.

The yearbook staff lays out the baby pictures 2 to 4 per page, averaging about 6 per page, front and back combined. I don't believe it costs $300 to produce one page. So why the high fee, are the kids trying to keep mom and dad from getting a picture in?

I'm proud of my child, my tears ebb and flow, or flow and ebb. My frustration is high and it comes and gos. I will try to justify some of the fees (still coughing over senior pictures), but in the end, I have to stay true to my checking and say no to some petty fees. After all, I want my frustrations to be because of low-brain-cell teen moments. Greedy companies will be always be around, but my son's final years of teen hood will be over soon. Pardon me, I need to get some tissue.

Grateful~Grateful~Grateful

Five Gratefuls:

1) I'm thankful that some people don't hop on Negative Nelly's Bandwagon. I have a relative who is not appreciative of my writing. I was chosen to be a guest columnist for a local paper this year. It's a non-paying gig, but it's great for clips and shows I can consistently meet deadlines.

Anyway, another relative mentioned she's been reading my columns and enjoying them. Neg. Nelly throws out "Do you get any compensation for those?" Which is a legitimate question, except she's asked that a few times now...only in front of other people. But, the other relative didn't bite. She was still happy.

2) I'm grateful for people who write to columnists when a column touches them. What a great feeling opening my emails and seeing those comments.

3) I'm grateful for my kids. I have learned more in life because I have been blessed with these boys.

4) I'm grateful for my husband. He is supportive of my choices in life. There are times he has no clue why something may mean so much to me, but he never says "no."

5) I'm grateful for delete buttons. Seriously, life is so much easier when I'm not erasing holes in papers. 

What are you grateful for today?

Ollie Bear

See that cute, cuddly kitten? That's Ollie.
Also Know As:
Ollie Bear - because he's kind of big and round
Shred - because when he's trapped inside, that's his favorite way to relieve aggression
Steam Shovel - because, I kid you not, he eats like a steam shovel. He puts his head down, opens his mouth and scoops his jaw across the bowl.

He came as set, that's Stan...the one on his belly.

Ollie used to be the mild, tentative one. He used to let Stan (yes, they are named after Laurel and Hardy - because I love Stan Laurel) venture out and try new things. They started in a safe corner near our couch so we could protect them from our other two cats. Stan, ventured to the kitchen first, upstairs, first, garage first, and outside first. Ollie hung back and watched Stan.

One day, Ollie stopped hanging back. This past spring he took to the outside. Our $20 dollar kitten...uh, I guess $10, became a good chuck of change kitten. He prowled the neighborhood (yes, he had all his shots) but he still got a virus/infection/something. He had a temp and spent a few nights at the vet. The only animal with a stream of visitors. The vet was happy to send Ollie home.

Ollie has had a few vet visits along with his typical shots and that whole fixing thing, that really ticked him off. But, I think the vet has been cheaper than the food bill.



That's Ollie's "Who's in my food bowl?" look.

I love that bear. He has the tiniest meow it's short and soft, "ow". He's fun to snuggle, when he comes in he searches for me to rub his head, and there's nothing warmer than waking up in the middle of the night to him sprawled across my feet.

Friday - Whew!

Ah, the lazy days of summer. The photo is of Twin A and Twin B. We discovered overcast days are the best for local swim spots. We had the place to ourselves for most of the day.

This picture just gave me a sense of calm after looking over teen son's schedule for the next few days. Holy schnikes! He's up at 5:45 (wants to pick up his girlfriend, so he sacrifices an extra 20 minutes of sleep). Since it's Homecoming week, today after school the band will get dressed up and play in the Homecoming parade, attend the carnival, and then go straight to the football game. He should be home close to 11p.m. I'm tired just thinking about his day. He'll probably stay up until 1:00 a.m.

Tomorrow he'll be up early washing the truck for the dance that evening. He'll be picking up the corsage (that mom so kindly thought to order in advance...mom's of boys, plan ahead, they just assume florists are on-call 24/7 and can whip up a corsage in 5 minutes) and his girlfriend. Doing pictures and dinner and then he'll be out until about 12:30. The dance goes until midnight.

And you know what? He'll still be a ball of energy when he gets home. Oh, to be 17 again....but without all the high school angst....and zits...and he said/ she saids...

Have a wonderful weekend everyone!

Grateful Wednesday

First, my apologies for all the typos in my last post.

~ Grateful Five ~

1. Sore muscles. Yep, that's just warped, but it reminds me that I worked hard.

2.I'm grateful I have a child who really wants to know his grades. Of course, he insists he hates school and it's cruel and unusual punishment that he has to attend. But, when I went in to sort homework papers yesterday, Twin A had written on his paper the numbers 1, 2, 3, 4. Written both above and below with arrows pointing from all angles to the numbers, he wrote: "Please circle my score." I've never seen a child more excited about a grade.

Either he's super proud of the work he did or he's hoping the teacher will be so impressed and just give him a 4 without looking.

3. Teen son is quite the gentleman. He carries his girlfriend's books. He opens the door for her. He even gets up earlier than necessary so he can drive 3 miles out of his way to pick her up for school.

Now, if only he would carry a few bags of groceries without my having to ask. On the plus side, he does open the door for me. 

4. Volunteering at the school. This is the twins' last year of elementary school, when the year is over it will end 15 years of dropping off, picking up, volunteering at that school.  Teen started the preschool  program in the school back in 1997. And teen is graduating this year. Oh my, Kleenex moment.

5. I'm grateful for fall. I love the cooler weather and the leaves falling. My husband hates fall. Only because it never fails the day he goes out and blows the leaves away, we get a big wind storm that brings them all right back. Every. Single. Year. I know when he goes out, the next day or evening we will lose power, whether that be for a few minutes or days, it will happen.

Maybe I should start placing bets with people?

What makes you grateful?

WIP Help - Mine or Cellar?

It's amazing how one small item can flick the proverbial switch. In this case it was flicked on.

See, I've been trying to find a suitable hiding spot for a dead couple in my WIP. I've gone through many thoughts a long-forgotten bomb shelter. Blech, doesn't fit with the Montana image I have.

An old ice house? No. A hidden cellar entrance...this was much more plausible and I may revert back to it. In the house I grew up the cellar was under the hallway floor. It was a dirt cellar and it scared the bejeebus out of me when my mom would ask my sister and I to go get a canned item. Thankfully, her canning didn't last long. Either she got tired of my sister and I bickering or we didn't eat it quick enough.

The bickering ensued when we were asked to get a jar from the cellar. The floor-door was a carved out U-shape approximately 6 feet long and 3 feet wide (it reminded me of a hole dug for a casket), most people never knew it existed. There was a small ring used to pull the floor-door open. This was the first hurdle. As the tiny ring was tiny (enough space for three fingers) and the floor-door heavy, it hurt. That was the first bickering point - who would lift the door. I don't know why we bickered, as the other person didn't have a great job either. The person not lifting the door, had to grab the bar from the laundry and shimmy along a two inch wide section of floor and position the bar to hold the floor-door up.

Then the really spat began. Who would go get the jar? These were knock-down, drag-out battles. Neither of us trusted the other. We each assumed the other would shut the floor-door. The fear was intense. There was only a single light-bulb connected to an old rope-like electrical wire (picture the basement scene in Psycho). Except the Psycho basement seemed better because it was walled-in. The dirt walls did nothing but suck up the light. The shelf was about 5 yards in to the right. The wooden steps were okay, wide at least, but the section to the left and under the stairs was pitch dark. There was always a fear of a hand reaching up and grabbing my ankles. Actually, it wasn't an ordinary hand, it was a pale, coal-smudged hand. The bones thick and knotty with long fungus-encrusted nails just as thick.

Whoever lost the battle would sprint the two strides, grab blindly and blaze back up the stairs. If mom got peaches instead of pears, oh well. Her wrath was much warmer than going back in the cellar.

See why the cellar seems like a logical choice? However, as my husband was lighting the brickets for the BBQ, it dawned on me, an abandoned mine might be a good choice. Growing up in Montana the adults were always yelling at us to watch for mine shafts. There are many small holes left open with no warning signs or fences. The big abandoned mines are all obvious and protected.  I even lucked out and fell down one that branched off. It was about 10 feet down and the split between the right and left tunnels was where I landed.

So the coal triggered mine and now I'm debating cellar or abandoned Manganese or Silver mine?

What would creep you out more?

Tidbits

Tidbit 1:
It wasn't so long ago my twins were influenced by one of the teen's friends. The teen friend is concerned about Zombies, a Zombie apocolypse to be exact (yes, I've already told the young lad to lay off the horror movies and freaky video games).

This friend is well read on how to protect himself in the event Zombies attack. My twins wanted to stop at Walmart and pick up a flame-thrower.

A few nights ago, dear twins were watching television and apparently they saw a jet pack. They want one. I wonder if Walmart would carry those in the same aisle as the flame throwers?

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Tidbit 2:
Don't snub tiny local writing events. I attended a small writing event in the next tiny town over. I'm proud to say the energy can be just as exhilarating and I walked away with ideas galore.

Scout out these small affairs as the fees are reasonable ($10 with lunch included - oh yeah). Oh, make sure you block out the rest of your day for writing. Once the event is over you will be ready to fire off pages of ideas.

Have a wonderful weekend!