Yes we left town

The family and I left town for about nine days. Of course, inherent in any vacation is the preparation to make sure everyone has all their necessary items, oddball details and plans for the animal care while you are on vacation.

We chose Thanksgiving week as our vacation time and traded in the timeshare week for a week in Puerto Vallarta. So that we would not be travelling with all the holiday travelers on the way home, we bought two extra nights at the resort.

Our flight was O'Hare to Guadalajara and then to Puerto Vallarta. Our O'Hare flight left at 2am on a Saturday morning, was supposed to get to Guadalajara at 6:30am. We were anticipating a 5-hour layover in Guadalajara and then a flight to Puerto Vallarta and would arrive at about 1pm in Puerto Vallarta and likely 2pm at our resort. Somehow my inadequate Spanish language skills changed all that.

We got to the Guadalajara airport at 6:30am and found a huge line at immigration. It was absolutely insane. Taz insisted that we were supposed to be in a big long line that was for Mexican citizens. That would not be the blond family with American passports! I had all the passports in my bag so I stood in the correct line with the kids while Taz came to his senses and ultimately joined me in line. All of the sudden, this quiet, slim, Hispanic man mumbled something and I distinctly heard the world "connection" amidst all the unrecognizable words. I asked him if he was looking for people with a connecting flight. He asked where we were going and I told him Puerto Vallarta. He looked alarmed and rushed us to a separate line in which we were now first. After immigration examined our passports and stamped them, the man whisked us through the airport to claim our baggage and then we ran to customs. I kept telling him that our flight was not for five hours but he only looked at me once and said sharply, "you will  miss your plane. Hurry!" So we ran with this man with all of our baggage, raced through customs, rechecked the bags and out the door to the small plane which was waiting. I checked my watch and it was 7am. We ran onto the plane, strapped in the kids and the plane took off. The pilot said that the flight would only be about 30-40 minutes. Still the flight attendant brought some drinks and breakfast. I confirmed a few times that they were going to Puerto Vallarta.

By the time we were out of the plane, and got our bags, it was only 8am. We made it to our resort at 9am, which was 5 hours ahead of schedule. Very bad Spanish language skills can be a blessing.

Yes, I have been Vaccinated!

No one should have this illness which consists of a horrible hacking cough. Ok, that's fine except if you have horrible coughing fits during which you feel like you are going to hurl or choke, and really to need to use the bathroom for #1. Oh, then there is this horrible hot flash feeling. Taz also has this and he will vouch for me. The hot feeling is part of the illness and not something else. Additionally, my eldest daughter has this. Let's call her Boss to celebrate her bossy ways. :) Boss was whining about her symptoms too. I practically have to shove meds down her throat.

Boss:  I'm siiiiick!!
Me: Take your meds.
Boss: It's gross. I think I'm fine.
Me: Take this. You will feel better.
Boss: I don't like taking meds. They don't work anyway.
Me: They work if you take them.
Boss: Fine!!!!

Taz reminded me that I had been sick for 3 weeks. Ah, what would I do without the watchful eye of my husband? Fine. Boss and I went to our respective doctors and were given prescription cough medicine guaranteed to give hallucinations (Hydromet), and antibiotics to kill bacteria. We took our meds as directed. Next weekend, same thing. Boss and I were going stir crazy. Boss suggested that she fill a shot glass with her snot at the doc's office to show that she was really sick. Good one. How does a 15-year old know what a shot glass is? Whatever. We need more meds. Our ribs were hurting and we felt horrible. We dragged ourselves to the doctor yet again. Taz stayed home because he was not sick, despite his hacking and coughing. When he coughs up a lung, then we will involve the medical professionals, I guess.

It took a bit of talking to the medical professionals to get them to realize that yes, this is really Whooping Cough, also called Pertussis. It has not died out like they would love to have us believe. You can also still get it even if you have been vaccinated because the vaccination needs a booster. The last time I got a DTP, I was a kid. Adults should get a booster for Pertussis every 10 years. I wish my doctor would have told me that! What other medical trivia is there that I should know to properly care for myself?

I finally got this diagnosis for Boss and I at an Immediate Care clinic by the house on a Sunday. Why would you be sick during the week, right? They gave me steriod meds to heal my bronchial tubes. I was told I would not look like a power lifter at the end of  the six-day course. Such a shame. I feel somewhat better now that I am on the second day of steriod meds. Maybe it is the placebo effect or too much Hydromet. Either way, I am happy to have my lungs back, maybe.

Discontinued - Argh!

I like to find a product and stick with it. I wear makeup to work; not a lot of makeup but just enough to even things out and brighten things up a bit. I do not overdo it. Definitely do not want to get mistaken for a drag queen. A quick run to the store to get a replacement foundation and I discovered that they discontinued my foundation. How annoying! I had been wearing liquid makeup. However, I was getting somewhat dissatisfied with that setup anyway. Maybe it is because I am approaching age 40. I tend to get flushed from time to time and then my skin gets a bit oily. Liquid foundation might not be the best thing for me, I guess.

I decided to explore what else is out there. Maybeline's Dream Matte Mousse makeup? Just do not even pick it up. When I tried to blend it, little rolls of makeup rolled across my face. I tried using hardly any at all with the same result. What a waste of time.

Then I saw mineral makeup. At first I thought it was overpriced pressed powder except in loose form. You know, the type your mother used to wear and smelled like a funeral home? I remember that it looked very powdery and cakey on my mother's face. I think she figured that out too and started to wear something else.

What is the deal with this word "mineral" anyway? I have lots of minerals in my back yard but I wouldn't put them on my face. I did not want to buy a color without testing it. I remember how frustrating it was to find my liquid foundation. Most foundations were too dark for me and I always selected the lightest one, hoping it would not be too dark.

I tried Revlon's ColorStay Aqua. I'm surprised they can sell this at any price. Mine was $13.99 for 9.9 grams. It is a decent-sized container at a decent price but the foundation goes on really weird. There is a special brush on top and I used that to apply. The powder felt cool to the touch. I was not expecting that. Apparently there is coconut water in the powder makeup. It does not blend well at all. I applied the makeup very gradually, like you are supposed to. I even tried a different brush that is made specifically for mineral makeup. The brush that comes with the Revlon powder is nice but the product is horrible. I decided that perhaps drugstore cosmetics were not for me.

One very popular mineral makeup line is Bare Minerals. You can visit one of their boutiques to find your shade. Many rave about this product but I also hear complaints. It is a fairly expensive product as well. Something about testing products in a store with high-pressure sales ladies makes me nervous. That is one of the reasons I try not to walk through the cosmetics areas of department stores. That, and the unwanted perfume sprays.

I wanted to try a product in my home with my hectic beauty routine and see if it fit in. I found Everday Minerals. You can try 6 different colors in either matte or semi-matte for just the cost of shipping. The page says $5 but they wave that. I wound up just paying about $3 for first-class postage. Each little jar contains enough for about 8 applications. The best way to match the color was to take a small brush (like an eyeshadow brush) and make a line of each color across my cheek. Then I took a larger brush to blend them. Whichever one I could not see, was the best match. I wound up ordering the kit in "fair" first. All of those were too light for me. I then ordered the "light" kit and found my shade, "fairly-light neutral." The funny thing was that this shade is an even better match than my old liquid foundation that I loved so much. I added the link up above because I thought some others might like to see this. I was definitely impressed with the opportunity to test the colors so inexpensively. The cost is not bad at all. $12 for 5.5 grams. Furthermore, the sifter container actually has a locking inner chamber. This means that I will not have a puff of powder fly our when I open the jar.

Lily Lolo also has an online sample option. I ordered a kit that contained 3 samples for $6 plus $2 shipping. Since I had been spoiled by Everyday Minerals, I was not as satisfied with the shade match. As the day wore on, my face became very itchy. I also noticed that Lily Lolo did not stay on as long as Everyday Minerals. Perhaps it was the itching. Lily Lolo is $21 for 10 grams.

Only I could make a major project out of my foundation shade and brand. I suppose I should thank the manufacturer of my former makeup. Had they not discontinued my old shade, I never would have found a product that I like much better. Do not discontinue this one, okay?

My Music Man

My son has decided that he is going to play in the band and the orchestra. I had always expected that he would play in the band because he has been taking flute lessons for a few years. His flute teacher initially told me that my son surprised her. She stated that she would have steered him away from the flute because of the way his upper lip was shaped.

My boy was determined, however. He was persistant and was able to make a sound through the mouthpiece and soon he was playing music. His music teacher was impressed and has encouraged him to play more and more complex peices. He will play flute in the band and is learning violin in the orchestra. This is the same child who plays baseball and does crazy tricks on his bicycle.

Here's the odd thing. The majority of boys at my son's school are playing instruments and it is very uncool not to play an instrument. The world apparently did a 180 after I grew up. I certainly did not feel cool with my piano lessons and practice, practice, practice when I was younger.

Taz took the tuba when he was growing up. He said something about being tone deaf and getting very bored. I am pretty sure that means that music must not come from his side of the DNA.

My eldest daughter, decided that he was her prodigy. She has played the violin for years. Her words, "if you know how to tune your own violin, you will be a rockstar in orchestra." Rockstar can tune his violin and likes orchestra so far. Mercifully, eldest daughter has not taught him to slide on his strings and make that horror movie sound on his violin. No word if anyone else has realized that he is a rockstar. I had better get his autograph while I can.

Jury Duty: Can this get more boring?

I have jury duty today. I hate to sound ungrateful for our legal system but really, I am not someone that anyone would want on their jury. I am an attorney. Worse than that, I am a CPA and my specialty is tax. My mind does not work like a normal person. I am well aware of that one. Just philosophically, my tendency is to want to punish someone and I think that the reasonable doubt I would need is much higher than the average person. However, I am against the death penalty.

Imagine how annoyed I was when, as a law student, I discovered that attorneys do not get an automatic pass for jury service. Where I live, you either get assigned to the criminal courts or the civil courts. This time, I got assigned to the criminal court building. It's not in a good neighborhood but there is protected parking. Fantastic. Previously, I always got assigned to the civil courts. Your chances of getting assigned to a case in civil court are less than getting struck by lightning. Most cases settle the day of court and usually right before voire dire. Usually, you just get stuck sitting in a room all day with a book.

I remember serving my one day when I was pregnant with my son. I was actually having contractions. I told the administrative person this and she told me that they could reschedule my jury service. No thanks overstuffed lady of the bureaucracy. I had already served from 9am-1pm. If I was having that baby there, at least I would be done with jury service. There was a hospital nearby if things started getting intense, right? I plead temporary insanity. They let my group go at 3:00pm. I had my son within two days of jury service so I guess I was not just being a whiny pregnant woman.

This time, I got assigned to the criminal court building, which was very annoying. My mother had been assigned to a two-day case when she was assigned to the criminal court building. Of course, she is a 68-year old administrative person, so I bet they loved that. I am hoping that they will just dump a 38-year old tax attorney right out of there as soon as possible. I have had enough of the legal system lately with the nonsense involving my poor daughter.

I have my book, several dollars in change for the vending machines and my summons. I never win raffles so I am hoping my lack of ever getting picked for anything holds out.

**********

In the Criminal Court Building

My group gets called second. What happened to my lucky streak of never getting picked? They shuttle us into a courtroom and start jury questioning. The judge explained that it was a first degree murder case but it was not a capital crime. Then she read of a gigantic list of possible witnesses. Great. A long trial. The judge claimed the trial would "only" be a week.

During the jury questioning, it was amazing how many people claimed they were the victim of a crime. Most stated they didn't call the police and no one said that the perpetrator had been caught. Hmm. Interesting. My turn and I gave them the spiel about my daughter and the town drunk hitting her and being convicted. The judge commented that I was the only one who actually had the perpetrator caught. Good police force huh?

Apparently, if your daughter had a court date 5 days prior for a battery, that is a very good reason that neither the state's attorney nor the defense attorney will want you on the jury. I collected my $17.20 and left.

Pillar of the Community

We live in a good city with a low crime rate. I guess we have a problem citizen. This is what happened. My daughter is 15-years old. She was riding her bicycle home from a friend's house at 4:30pm on a Sunday. She was supposed to be home at 3:00pm. She felt a poke on her leg and stopped her bike to brush a bug off of it. A man approached her and started talking to her. She said, "excuse me sir, I have to go home." The man, a pillar of our community, screamed, "No," and punched her in the back of the head." My daughter rode her bike home and told me that a black man hit her and that she was scared. She was crying and had mascara running down her face. She was also past the time that she was supposed to be home. I suspected that she might be fibbing so I asked her a few questions. I called the police because it just didn't seem like she was making this up.

The police questioned her and then asked me if I would press charges if they got this guy. Momma bear did not hesitate. I said absolutely but asked how they were going to find him. The cop smirked a bit and said that they got him about 30 minutes ago when the call came in from me. Apparently, he is a frequent flier with the police force. We pressed charges. My daughter and I were both subpoenaed to the guy's trial date.

Here is his picture. The guy looks like he can barely keep his eyes open in his jail photo.

Meanwhile, the police blotter report was this.

Police arrested J of X, age 55, for allegedly hitting a 15-year-old girl in the back of the head. The girl was riding her bike on the sidewalk of the # block of Y Street when J approached her and began talking to her in slurred speech.According to the report, the teen told police he had the smell of alcohol about him, and she said that she didn't want to talk. As she turned to go, J allegedly struck her from behind with his fist, knocking her down. He then fled, but police found him sleeping at the intersection of A and Y Street.
He was taken into custody, and has a court date of Z.
The previous day, J was cited for drinking a 12-ounce Miller Lite out in public in the same area.

The part of him fleeing and then sleeping makes me wonder. Oh, I just punched a teenage girl. I must flee so the police do not arrest me. However, I am so tired. I will just take a nap here, two blocks away. They will never find me.

We found out that the defendant had multiple run ins with the law and multiple convictions but that this was his first time being a violent offender. He approached her with one goal - to ask her for some money so he could buy beer.

They charged him with battery, which is a Class A misdemeanor. It took two hours of sitting on the wooden bench until our case resolved. We had spoken with the State's Attorney and the State offered the Defense a plea. Twenty-four months of conditional release, 240 hours of SWAP (Sheriff's Work Alternative Program), and orders not to contact us or go near the high school. If he gets arrested during his conditional release, he goes to jail even if he is not convicted of a crime. The SWAP program is like a hard labor camp. They pick up trash and other such menial chores with those orange vests on. If he is even a minute late to one of the the work days, he goes to jail. The jail sentence will be the same as the conditional release program if be violates the conditional release terms and the time period starts over again.

I am happy that my daughter got to see our justice system in action and that it was a positive outcome. The judge even thanked my daughter for coming to court. One benefit to this fiasco is that my daughter has been taking school more seriously and has been complying with the curfews that we set.

I do worry about this man. As my grandfather used to say, "it takes all kinds to make up this world." This man does not seem to have a happy life. I hope this is the wake up call he needs to get his life on track. It is never too late to turn your life around.

Introduction: Taz

I'm a new blogger. What do I write about? According to a long-lost classmate, I make her laugh. I certainly hope that is a good thing. Now that I'm on the spot, let's hope that continues. I am a wife and mother. I like to refer to my husband as Taz. He has the odd ability to whiz around the house after work and straighten it just like the Tasmanian Devil. Only sometimes I realize that it is an odd problem.

When we were first married, I laid out my clothing on the bed and hopped in the shower. I had my hair wrapped up in a towel, my robe on and opened the door to the bedroom.

Me: Where are my clothes?
Taz: Oh, I straightened up.
Me: So where are my clothes?
Taz: Where they go.
Me: And where is that?
Taz: What are you looking for?
Me: The clothes that I laid out on the bed before I jumped into the shower.
Taz: Oh, I put them away in your dresser.

Thank you Mr. Helpful. I got the clothing out once again and got dressed. I went to school and he went to work. The next day was Saturday and I planned to sleep in. Taz was whizzing around the house. Must have been a caffiene drip or something. I felt some odd tugging and tucking. When I woke up, I realized that Taz made the bed with me in it! I got into the shower, but brought my clothes with me in the bathroom this time. When I came back, the bed was made and he was vacuuming.

From this, I have a few pearls of "wisdom."

Whoever picks up the first robe, sock or item out of place, will be the one to do this for the duration of the marriage.

It is not necessary to clean a hotel room before you leave or fold dirty towels. Really. Put that down.

It is okay if the kids take toys out to play with them. Really Taz. Relax.