Facie’s Ramblings

Do you expect a lot from people? I do. Unfortunately I am let down a lot... I expect that when I buy donuts from Giant Eagle that turn out to be bad, that I will be offered a replacement in addition to my lousy $2. I expect that when I buy tires warranted for 60,000 miles, that I won't get fewer than 30,000 miles. I expect that when my child's school is delayed for cold when it is in the low teens, that it will also be delayed when it is in the single digits (or that if won't be delayed for either). I expect that when I call or email someone with a question or request, that that person won't wait weeks to get back to me. I expect that when the bus is supposed to arrive at a certain time in the morning, that if it gets there early, it won't leave until the designated time, particularly when the temps are in the single digits and the next bus is close to 10 minutes away. I expect people who use public transportation to bathe and use deodorant on a regular ba...

Before I launch into a woe-is-me tale, let me tell you how bad I feel about complaining, knowing how many good things I have in my life and how much worse off others are. But I feel the need to get this off my chest. Unfortunately as much as I like my job, I find myself staying late pretty often. I had one blissful, leave-on-time week two weeks ago, which I thought was how it was going to be for the next month or so, but, well, um, no. We have deadlines. And, more than that for me/the bigger reason is I want my materials to be perfect or nearly so; I am unwilling to let pretty much anything slip past me. As a result, I find myself doing a lot of extra work/going the extra mile. So after putting my time in (and often eating at my desk), I walk the 10 minutes to my car, sit at every light imaginable (seriously, can we just computerize those babies after 5:30 or 6?!), suffer through tunnel traffic, even after 6 p.m., and I am home late (duh). Some days I eat with my family; more often...

I spent almost three hours last evening reading the Freeh report. Hubby asked why I would waste my time doing so, and I said that as a Penn Stater and someone who has given Paterno the benefit of the doubt, I needed to read it. Too many people were commenting in various places without having read more than the press release or parroting what others have said, and I didn't want to be one of those people. Unfortunately, I am one of those people who are having trouble putting all my thoughts and opinions into coherent statements. In fact, I have edited and pretty much changed this post three times. What follows is rambling and disjointed, which is due in no small part to my difficulty in wrapping my head around so much information and trying to reconcile that with my wanting to think the best about people. :-( Do I feel differently since yesterday, when based on the press release and some of what I had read, it appeared that JoePa knew more than he let on? Not a lot. In fact, he and...

Just three short weeks ago, I wrote a post about vacations . After a three-year hiatus, we were finally going to leave the Burgh to get away for three nights. We spent a lot of yesterday packing and organizing, which I actually started Friday night (how can it take so long?!). Then, while I was working on my online class, I received an email from the Stonewall Resort informing me that the resort could not accept Saturday's reservations due to a power outage. I ran downstairs to tell Brian, who was listening to the Pirates beat up on St. Louis. He was not happy. I immediately went on Facebook (where, seriously, I get a lot of my news) to the resort's page, and read some comments from people. The resort updated their page soon after. I spent a lot of yesterday evening checking FB and the resort web page, and doing internet searches to determine when power was going to be restored (someone on FB who had left the resort said that power was expected to be down for five days). I po...

This week I have been teaching Vacation Bible School, something I am grateful to have the opportunity to do. I want to be sure the kids have fun while learning the Bible stories. but the real challenge is determining how lenient to be and how many feelings I should try to spare. Yesterday, I told my 12 kids to divide up into groups of three or four for a scavenger hunt. Once the kids did that, because I had an extra list, I asked if anyone wanted to work alone. After about 30 seconds, one girl volunteered, and I then started to explain the instructions. Soon after, one boy started to get upset because he insisted that he really had wanted to work by himself. I explained that I had asked for volunteers (and I actually looked right at him when I asked this question), and he did not speak up. This seemed to upset him even more, and he next said that he wanted to work with the girl who was going solo. For about five seconds I considered telling him, as nicely as possible, that he needed to...

I have "written" versions of this post in my head many times. In fact, if I went back and looked, I would probably discover most of it in an older post. But since I don't feel like trying to figure that out and because this is what I am thinking about now, I am just going to put it out there now. Not well written, but, to quote one of my favorite sayings, it is what it is. I cannot seem to go more than a few days without lamenting that I have only one child. This was a mostly intentional decision, mind you. Brian and I had said we would have another child once we sold our house and moved into another. But we tried the house selling in 2007 and 2008, and got nowhere. By the fall of 2008, I really did not want another child, so I gave up that thought. I still don't want another child. Really. But much like some (many?) childless people, I wonder if I won't regret having an only child down the road. There are many days when I think about it. My kid is stuck with ...

In a span of about four hours on Tuesday, I went from worrying about summer childcare for my kid and my unknown work schedule on two projects, to thinking I was going to be working from home on only one project (thus needing a lot less childcare), to finding out all my work was wrapping up due to budget issues (thus needing no childcare). Sigh. Have I mentioned recently how much I hate the economy? I just heard on the news today that the Pittsburgh Public Schools are sending out almost 300 provisional furlough notices. I know of so many people who are either looking for work or who have had to settle for something. I know even more people who have not gotten a raise in years even though the cost of living has continued to go up. When does it end? As for my situation, it is not so bad, really. I highly recommend getting laid off to anyone. Seriously. Once you have gone through that and figured out how to survive it, most work-related things that come after are not so bad. When I s...

Can I tell you, again, how much I hate the job search process? I had a second interview scheduled for yesterday, for a temporary (about five months) full-time position. This potential job has been causing this household stress because although so far it is the best-paying job I have come close to, once I have to start paying for childcare this summer, we will most likely come up a little short. Of course, the optimist in me figured we would somehow work out the money situation (maybe Jordan would stay home one or two days a week since Brian works from home). And as I said to hubby, coming away with some money is better than nothing (since I obviously cannot sub this summer). Plus this job could end up becoming permanent (the woman I would be taking over for is going on maternity leave, so you never know). But I would be working full time, something I had not done since the day before Jordan was born. And juggling drop off and pick up, plus Jordan's many school days off, would f...

As I have mentioned before, I put some thought into my blog post titles. Sometimes I try to make them witty (so I like to think) or at least interesting. I read about a half dozen or so blogs on a regular basis (meaning I check them most days of the week), and I read another half dozen or so when I am willing to spend the time (probably more like once per week or less often). On top of those, I sometimes check out the blogs that other people link to. And what gets me to click on that link is an interesting (to me, anyway) post title. I don't care so much about getting a lot of people to read my blog; I write it for myself. But I am not going to lie. I find it satisfying, gratifying, something-fying when I see that people have actually stopped by to read my blog and especially to post comments, particularly when I have written something that I am hoping someone will either testify to or at least make me feel better. And I often wonder what makes those people, aside from my "reg...

Yesterday's post was a rant about a fairly pointless two-hour delay. For the record, if it is snowing in the morning or if it has snowed throughout the night, I am not against a delay; the road crews have a lot of ground to cover. It is unfortunate for those who still need to get to work and are left scrambling to find child care or have to go in late. But I am all about safety. It is the temps that are clearly going nowhere any time soon that do not warrant a delay, again, in my opinion. It will be cold all day today. Having another delay today, once again, seemed pointless, but I am over it. ***** I had a rough weekend, and I have debated whether I should write about it. As my mom and one of my brothers are so fond of saying (though I will be paraphrasing), "Once you put it down in writing (on paper or in an email), it will always be there. You can't take it back." For that reason, when things weigh heavily on my mind, I don't always share them in this blog....

Earlier today, I wrapped up my second year of Vacation Bible School. Last year was a very good experience, but also quite challenging, because not only had I not taught kids since the early '90s and was out of practice, but I also was dealing with an autistic child, something I had never done before. This year was really great. I was no longer a novice. I had taught 12 out of the 13 students throughout the school year, so I knew them pretty well. I had seven year olds, who can read and (surprisingly) are willing to act out parts from the stories (most of them, anyway). They can go to the bathroom by themselves. And best of all, I never lost anyone or even worried about it as I did last year. :-) This is not to say that there weren't some challenging moments. A few kids would color or play their DS while we were going over the lesson. Some were unkind to others at times. A couple of them complained about various things. But honestly, those minor things hardly bothered me. I ...

I subbed four days this week, my most this year. Mostly because of that exhaustion, I have been sitting on a post (in my head) since Monday or Tuesday, trying to decide if I should flesh it out and post it. Since I feel neglectful to this blog, I decided to do it. Earlier this week Jordan told me that when she tried to sit next to a certain girl, whom I will call Dee, at lunch, Dee told Jordan that her mother does not want her to sit by J. Yes, I said that . And as I write this, I am getting angry all over again. What kind of a mother, in a Catholic school no less, says something like that to her kid?! And my kid, although goofy, is honestly one of the kindest kids in the school. Believe me, I am there enough to see this and I certainly hear about it. Here is my take on why this happened. Last fall, I subbed a gym class that Dee was in. A few of Dee's classmates told me that Dee was cheating (that is, when the ball hit her, she would say it did not), and Dee ran off, pouting....

I am a big believer in destiny and a little bit of one in karma. Although I am not sure how this works with my religious beliefs, I go with it. (For the record, I considered lighting a candle while at church yesterday for the Pens, but decided not to.) Last year, at the start of the playoffs, I believed and hoped (and, yes, even prayed to some extent) that the Pens could bring home the Cup. The main reason? The 2009 NHL playoff commercial that had various players, including Mario Lemieux, hoisting the Cup. It ended with the quote, "It weighs 35 pounds except when you are lifting it." Seeing the Pens savior Mario holding the Cup, I could not help but picture Sid Crosby doing the same thing. That commercial still gives me chills, more so than this year's playoff commercial. This year, however, I did not have any big feelings. Sure I was thinking the Pens could go all the way. And again, I was hoping. But when the first three seeds were knocked off in the first round, t...

As I read and hear about the latest Big Ben accusation, I am reminded that he has a family. Two parents (a father and step-mom, but I consider them his two parents nonetheless). A sister. Not sure about anyone else. And I can't help but wonder how must they be feeling and reacting to all this, even though he is an adult. As I was thinking about what they are going through, I am taken back to a fall evening during my senior year in high school. My parents were supposed to be gone overnight. I told a few friends about this and was planning to have a handful of them over. I walked to the local grocery store, bought a bottle of pop and a bag of Doritos (yes, I remember exactly what I bought over 21 years ago, but I can't remember half the things people tell me five minutes later). When I arrived on my doorstep, about six or so friends were waiting for me, with some "adult" beverages. Later on, probably another three or four showed up as well. Those details are a little ...