Monday, October 12, 2009

TGIM

If you break your neck, if you have nothing to eat, if your house is on fire, then you got a problem. Everything else is inconvenience. ~Robert Fulghum

Monday, how I love you! Back to routine, back to normal... all is right with the world.

*sigh*

My cat, Breeann, is being interviewed over at Mean Kitty's blog, Writer & Cat, today. As of my typing this, the interview isn't up yet, but it should be soon.

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It was a long, busy weekend -- especially yesterday. DH decreed we should have a barbecue for lunch (at 10 a.m.), so it was off to the store for DD and me. We took Dakota, who LOVES going for rides and made a stop at the pets supply store near the grocery store to get her a pressed rawhide bone.

On the way out, a woodpecker slammed into the store window and then lay on the ground, wings out, fluttering around weakly. Dakota went NUTS, so I had DD move her away and I checked out the bird. After I picked it up and folded her wings down, it stopped fluttering, but her little heart was pounding and she was gasping for air, beak wide open (and that was one impressive beak!).

I handed her to DD (because I knew she was dying to hold it) and told her to cover the bird's head to keep it calm. We'd put it into the box in the back of the Pea and, if it was recovered by the time we got home, we'd release it out back.

After a race through the store for BBQ supplies, we hurried home. The woodpecker was more than recovered, it was trying to peck a hole through the box! LOL... We carrying the box out back and released it, so glad it hadn't suffered long term problems from whacking the window.

All the rest of the day, if there was a female downy woodpecker on our suet, DD would say, "Look, our woodpecker is back!".

In between making potato salad, cooking lunch, cleaning that up and doing four loads of laundry, I helped DD stack wood.

We had the second pile done when we realized the first pile was REALLY leaning. So, we decided to pull down the top third of that pile and restack, which would have gone fine except the end collapsed when we took off the wood in the middle, causing the entire pile to fall. And then DH decided pile number two was crooked, too, and used the maul to whack at the wood and straighten it out which would have been dandy except the end fell.... and you get the idea.

DD burst into tears and proclaimed it all "her fault" because she'd helped build the ends (in reality, I had done most of the end building) and that she'd done the stacks crooked. When I couldn't calm her down, I sent her inside and then told DH he could do the ends (he was trying to give me a lesson on doing them correctly -- so I told him that, since he was so good at it, it was his job), then I cleared out some gardens to settle down ... we had a frost the night before, so most of my annuals were dead and then I went inside to deal with DD.

We had a long talk about her continual self-degradation (I'm stupid, I'm ugly, I'm fat, I'm useless, I can't remember anything, I'm no help, it's ALL MY FAULT -- is this a girl thing, or does my DD have self-confidence issues?) and I said that I wasn't going to allow that kind of talk anymore. That she was smart and worked hard and was a GOOD GIRL, but that she was also only ten y.o. and couldn't be expected to know how to do everything.

And so the three of us rebuilt the piles. We have three and a half now, and DH has to split the rest, but we're about 2/3 of the way through what we have for the winter.

We won't talk about the huge purple bruise I have on my right foot from dropping a log on it, no we won't...

How was your weekend? Tell me it was great and why, and let me live vicariously.

======================




You Are a Blackberry



You are one of those super hard working, cellphone to your hip types.

You like gadgets that do what they're supposed to do, especially when they keep you super connected to the world.



You prefer function over flash, so things like a long battery life and easy features appeal to you.

You may not look as cool as all of the iPhone kids, but you're probably being more productive than all of them!




Yep, that's about right...

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8 comments:

MJFredrick said...

Having grown up with very little self-esteem (no one's fault, my mom has low self-esteem, too), I tried to build my son's confidence in himself from the time he was small. He only just now has any, which is a better track record than me. Hugs to your DD! I know where she's coming from.

MomJane said...

Poor DD. Tell her I think she is beautiful and smart.

Read Breeane's comments. So true. I know she whipped Bonny into shape in about 10 seconds with one swat to the face. After that Bonny made wide detours around her.

groovyoldlady said...

My girls are shy-ish, but don't seem to have any deep self-worth issues. However, much of that depends on personality. My hubby is melancholy and can be a navel staring introspective sort that over analyzes (sp?) his failings. I'm sanguine and can't manage to stay depressed for more than a day, no matter HOW awful/fat/foolish I am (as long as I get enough sunlight). ;)

Dru said...

Loved the interview with Breeann.

My weekend was good. I went to my indoor power walking class and survived it. Then I spent time working on my quilt. It's more than than I spent before; I finished up the book I was reading and then watched the Yankees game.

re quiz: I'm a blackberry too and it's indeed accurate.

I'm so glad the woodpecker was able to fly away. I was scared for the moment.

I think it's hard being a kid today growing up. I hope DD realizes she doesn't have to know everything yet at her age.

Have a great Monday!

Melissa McClone said...

Hugs to your daughter. I wish I had words of wisdom to share. When mine say something about themselves, I try to tell them something they've done with contradicts what they are saying. It seems to help.

Enjoy your Monday! And glad to hear the bird's okay!

Tori Lennox said...

Hugs to your daughter. Have you seen the Truly B fan page on Facebook? It's all about being confident and such. You might find some good gems to share with DD.

You Are an iPhone
You are one of those early adopter, super geek chic types. You like a gadget that has a ton of features to fuel your tech obsessions.

You tend to know the inner workings of every toy, phone, and computer you own. You're always exploring and learning. You want the most leading edge phone you can find, at almost any cost. You're usually the first one in line for the latest iPhone!


That's pretty accurate except I don't even own a cell phone. LOL!

Anonymous said...

Sorry to hear about DD self-estime. It does depend on personality and what parents say as well. My parents unfortunately believed in harsh (and often untrue) truths. IE you'll never find a husband if you are fat and ugly (great to hear when you are teen lol). Keep helping her see things more in prespective, Good luck!

Brandy said...

I think all girls go through a period when they have low self-esteem. I never left that phase. But, my daughter thinks she's "the stuff'. *G* Your daughter is beautiful inside and out. She's talented and caring and is a big help to her Mom. She's a good girl. And you can tell her I said that, too. *G*

I hope you have a good day.