I'm baa-ack!

So, you may or may not have noticed that my last post involved a very pregnant me waddling my way through getting on a train with 3-year-old, stroller and coffee in tow. That was 7 1/2 months ago, I think. Time seems to have a very shapeless form at the moment.

The good news, I did have the baby - it would be a sad state of affairs if she was still gestating, however, I'm convinced that given the option, she might still be in there. 16 days late - yeah, you heard me. ...and she still had to be kicked out via induction (but that story is for another time).

She was worth the wait.

The bad news is that seems to be the last time I had time to myself. I definitely should have enjoyed the hospital stay a little more. We slept, we ordered food, they brought it to us, and, we watched TV. What more could a girl ask for?!?

Needless to say, there hasn't been a lot of time to blog about anything, especially about jump starting my creative juices. The only juices I've jump started lately have resulted in leak stains through my shirt at very inopportune moments.  Being sleep deprived has me walking through my days like a zombie with a caffeine drip being the only thing to power me forward.

When I started this blog, I really hadn't planned on this being a "mom" blog, because, quite frankly, there are so many good ones out there, like this one and this one.  However, I'm truly in the thick of it.  "It" being motherhood.  Most of my life experiences lately seem to involve lack of sleep, spit up, or tantrums.  Sad as that may be, I must write about what I know in order to have a prayer of getting to the stuff in my head that I actually want to write about.  So, from here, I let the blog be what it will and see where it leads me.  Kinda fun, right?

Coping mechanism down!

I know, it's been a while since you've heard from me, but let me share a recent train ride that made me feel the angst of being a mom...  

Since I've been pregnant, especially in the last few weeks, I admit, my coping mechanism has been less than stellar. I feel more like my mother on days like these. Being like my mom isn't a bad thing, by the way, it's just that she isn't very zen when things go awry (I think/hope she'd agree) nor am I. I long for the calm and in control look that I see in some moms that have two kids, eight bags and a coffee in their hands. They seem to cope with such steel resilience. I, apparently, do not have that. At least not at the moment.  

Evidence is in Exhibit A:

Here was the plan: Tommy would come downtown with me on the train while my husband went to an interview that would overlap an hour into my workday and then he could come pick Tommy up and all would be good.  Simple enough, right?  Easy peasy. 

Well, yes, that is until I remembered all the crap that comes along with making an almost 3 year old happy at the office.  The trick was that in order for it to be there, I had to get it on the train.  This would be easy if I was traveling with a boy who actually is as "big boy" as he claims.  What I found out was that his motivation to be a big boy hasn't grown so big that it helps him conquer his fears.  He's only a big boy until he has to do something hard.  Then he's “just little” and has no shame in being carried.  So, along with two bags, a stroller, his Thomas the train backpack, which he promised he'd carry by the way, we waited for the train to approach hand in hand.

Our first attempt at the 8:51 was an epic fail.  To really provide full disclosure, I was also attempting to carry a full coffee amongst my many bags and stroller which, in hindsight, was a bad idea. So, at 38 weeks pregnant, I got three bags, a stroller and coffee on my person like an alpaca headed out for a climb of Mount Everest when suddenly my son is "little" and needs to be carried onto the train as well.  In my best “Im in charge” mom voice, I say no and hold his hand to walk up the stairs like a big boy.  But I'd forgotten about the secret weapon that my son has at his disposal.  The death scream. 

The scream being used to get his cousin
away from his cake on his birthday.
No, I didn't teach him that maneuver...

The death scream has a radius of about 1/2 a mile and can take down your average person in seconds.  He pulled it out just as we started to get on the train causing even the person cozily wrapped in a car far up front look up and cringe. As well, this was a rush hour train and it was filled to the brim with people who were embracing the quiet of the train because they had happily left their children at home.  It was then that I, cowardly, decided to abort the mission until the next, less crowded train came 30 minutes later.  The relief on people's faces as the train eased away was audible.  I, on the other hand, in response to my son's meltdown, decided to have my own on the phone to my unsuspecting husband. 

So, I turned around,head hung, with my son crying and yelling next to me, "you hurt me mama! You hurt me!" loud enough to summon DCFS.  Yes, I had probably squeezed his hand too hard when I saw that getting on the train wasn't going to happen, and perhaps less than gently, guided him down to the bench that would harbor us for the next half hour. Judge me if you will.  Don't worry, I'll willingly pay for it in therapy appointments down the road.  In a true life ending fashion, I told my husband that we couldn't come downtown and this was a disaster of epic proportions.  There was a silence on the phone of a man trying to find the right words, who truly realized that this had been a mistake to let his swollen bellied wife attempt, but she had insisted... unfortunately, there was no going back.  He was already half way downtown for an interview for a very much needed job for our family.  Now, he had to figure out how to make it better and cheerlead me through getting on the next train.

"I'm sorry about this babe.  We really shouldn't have planned it this way.  I'm sorry.  Next train, ask the conductor for help and if he doesn't help, get his name and I'll beat him up, I'll have words with Metra.  Seriously, promise me."

I hung up vowing to to do that and sat in silence, tears flowing down my face, my kid leaning against me with tears drying on his face, and drinking a coffee in 95 degree heat, sweating like Blagojevich on sentencing day. Defeated. 

The beauty of me, if I do say so myself is that I can get really down on a situation in one moment and then really buck up in the next.  I got five minutes of quiet from my son, finished my cup of coffee, and by the time the next train was approaching, I was determined to make this happen.  I loaded my stroller and my computer case on one arm, the Thomas backpack (did I mention that he said he'd carry it) and the diaper bag on another and, this time, when my son balked at getting on the train, I heaved him up on top of my large belly and got on the train.  It was much emptier than the previous one so we found a spot and hunkered down for the half hour ahead of us.  I sent a text: "Made it on the train. Sorry for the panic. Good luck!" hoping this would make my earlier scene a little better. 

I had conquered this episode of mommy-hood and felt pretty accomplished. I was one more step towards seasoned motherhood  So, when we got to the station, I put Tommy in the stroller for our 95 degree walk to my office, and I was actually able to have a giggle about the fact that my pregnant thighs were rubbing together to a most uncomfortable beat.  

Murder at 3514

One of my son's favorite stories is titled, "A Fly Went By".  It's cute and involves a various amounts of animals as well.  But, I have recently decided that flies are not funny, cute, or in any way, shape or form something a children's story or nursery rhyme should be written about.  Flies have been more accurately depicted in the movie "The Fly" with Jeff Goldblum.  Now that's the reality of a fly.  They're gross.

To be honest, I feel the same way about rats.  I'm a huge Disney fan and will go see almost anything they put to film, but when I went to see "Ratatouille", I left the theater disappointed and realizing the truth --- Rats, especially in the hundreds, don't warm my heart, even when Disney has gotten a hold of them and makes them as human as possible.  Once you've seen a rat run across an alley, scurry out of the way in a restaurant, or leave rat droppings behind in your apartment hallway, their humor ceases. 
I say this for ants as well. Though clever, the movie "Antz" left me itching.  Ants moving as a group, animated or otherwise, are just creepy.  By the way, mice get a pass... don't know why, but those guys in "An American Tale" & "Stuart Little are just down right charming.  I think Mickey Mouse really paved the way for the mouse.  

Okay, sorry, I digress.  The fly.  Not funny.  Not cute.  My feelings about this recently increased 10-fold.

You see, the days following a recent party at my house, we have been overrun with flies in the windows.  The buzzing alone is enough to make a woman lose her mind, but when I opened the blinds to find 15... that's right... FIFTEEN flies attached to my window, I actually lost time.  I became a crazy murderer armed with a section of the newspaper.  I had an out of body experience as I watched myself maniacally slam the window over and over screaming, "Die, you bastards!  Die!"

I'm a peaceful person.  Really, I am.  I like my husband to send spiders, moths and other things not welcome in my home, out the door to let their life unfold as it should naturally.  We have a rabbit problem where they are eating our grass and garden like we were holding a dinner party for them, and still, I won't let my husband use anything toxic to deter them.

So, you can imagine my distress when, once out of my hysteria and back safely in my own consciousness, I saw the remnants of my massacre lying on the floor below the dining room windows.

There were bodies everywhere.

I know how many there were because I counted as I picked them up with a paper towel, and I'm almost sure I heard little tiny bagpipes playing "Amazing Grace" in the background.
I half expected Horatio from CSI Miami to come in with his high tech equipment eying me as a primary suspect above his sunglasses.

I cleaned them up worrying that Karma would come to haunt me sooner than I would like.

Twenty minutes passed, and I had begun to recover from my temporary insanity, which I had decided to plea if Horatio actually did appear.  Then, suddenly out of the corner of my eye, I heard a buzzing against the window.

They were back.  There were four of them!  I put my husband on execution duty after that.  They continued to reappear for the next three days as if out of nowhere.  I was worried that Karma really was a bitch, so I Googled "Reappearing Flies".  The answer I got was something to the extent of something dead in the wall that had grown maggots which turned into flies --- followed by "the good news" of once they had eaten the dead thing completely, the flies would disappear with nothing to feed on.

Wow.  I feel so much better.

a 21st century problem

Today, I did the unthinkable.  I forgot my cell phone at home!  Gasp!

You need to understand, I am of the age where I actually do remember when phones only had cords and in order to talk to a friend, you had to commit to that activity alone for the duration of your call. That is, unless you had known you were calling your best friend and pulled your laundry over to the phone area so you could fold and talk!

Now, I know I'm not the only person to realize the important role cell phones play in our lives on a day- to-day basis. I'm the first to admit that I have an unnatural relationship with my iPhone today.  My parents are, no doubt, nodding their heads and rolling their eyes as they read this.

I coveted my first cell phone, the Motorola Star-Tac Flip Phone (I am, most assuredly, dating myself) which was purchased for emergencies only.

It stayed in my car, turned off, because the battery life was about 3 minutes if left on, but I loved it.   I then, went through a phone progression that went with the times, with an interim of pager and cell phone so you didn't run your bill up too high.  My move to LA took my cell phone addiction to a new high.  It seems that those of us in LA had propelled to a level of cell phone use that bordered on rude.  (Again, do you hear my dad nodding?)  We all talked on the phone anywhere, anyhow, anytime.  It didn't help that we all had our own cars everywhere we went even though we were all going the same place -- very Swingers!

Recently, a little late to the game, I got my iPhone.  3G, no video capabilities, but awesome!  When I first got it, you would have thought Gollum from Lord of the Rings had taken over my body.  No one could touch it, hold it, look at it or, god forbid, play with it.  It was "my Precious".  I have since loosened up and let my 2-year old play apps that I've downloaded for him.  It seems that I have been served many cups of the Apple brand cool-aid.  I not only love my iPhone, but my husband would tell you that I'm having a sordid affair with my MacBook Pro, and I have spent the past several months trying to conjure up a logical need for the iPad.  (I'm almost there ;)  When I saw this clip, I laughed so hard because, unfortunately, I see myself in it.  If you're offended by swearing or don't know what an iPhone is, feel free to skip this:

But I digress... I really started this post to tell you about my "incident".  So, I headed out to my dad and step-mom's house yesterday to pick up my son who they had been babysitting for all day.  Love it!  It is about an 7 minute ride from my door to theirs, even in traffic.  As I got on the road, I realized that I had forgotten my precious iPhone.

As you can imagine, I struggled with the dilemma of possibly turning around to go get it, but that was silly... it would be safely in my hands in 20 minutes.  I couldn't possibly be that dependent on my iPhone.  I then continued on my journey to my Dad's feeling proud that I made the choice and telling myself, "See, I'm not that addicted, I can stop any time."

At about 1 minute in, I realized that I had gone to check my phone for new emails for a 5th time and still did not have it in my car.  I began to get a little irritated at my choice not to go back.  I was expecting some important email responses, not to mention a text from a colleague of mine.

At 3 minutes in, I turn up the radio to distract myself from the fact that all I'm able to do in the car at a stoplight is wait and drive when it's green.

At 5 minutes, a panic attack sets in because I realize that I can't call my husband to let him know that I forgot my phone at home and think he may not be able to reach in an emergency.... Speaking of emergencies, what if my step-mom is trying to get to me because Tommy has fallen down the stairs and they need to go to the ER right this minute...

At minute 6, I have completely spun out of mind control because I begin to think... what if I were to get into an accident and the injuries were such that I wasn't conscious and they need to figure out who to call after the ambulance, but I don't have any phone numbers in my purse, they're all in my phone so no one knows where I am for several hours...

Minute 7 hits and I'm approaching my Dad's street and I think... see!  that wasn't so bad.  I actually had some time in the car with nothing to do but think and decompress.  This was kind of nice not having my phone with me.  I certainly came up with a blog post.  I should try this more often!

...and then I had the ride home...

We say goodbye to a furry family member.

Denver (Big D) Stewart

Saying Goodbye

Friday, August 6, 2010, my family and I said good-bye to a very special, furry family member, Denver, our Golden Retriever.  She was 10 and a half.

Learning to write about things really close to you heart is hard, I'm finding.  It seems that the most personal of experiences are the hardest to do justice.  I have so much going on emotionally in my head and my heart that getting it on paper seems stuttered and detached.  From all my acting years, I know that when you use the most personal things from your life to fuel a character and a scene, the more truthful a performance will be.  Translating that skill to my writing is proving to be a challenge.  I think it has to do with the fact that in acting, I used my whole body to communicate emotion, in writing it's all words.  It feels like I'm spending so much time in my head when I'm trying to pull information from my heart.

However, I had a very special life with Denver and her passing shouldn't go untold, so here goes...

in 2001, Denver came into my life like a bullet.  I heard from my dog training teacher and mentor that someone from his class was looking to give up their Golden Retriever and would I be interested?  Now, I wasn't quite ready - I lived in an apartment that didn't allow dogs - and I wasn't just going to take any dog that needed a home.  It needed to be the right dog.  I said I would meet her, but couldn't make any promises.

The day they came to class, she came barreling up to me and, with the risk of sounding a little like a crazy dog person, I will say I knew that she was The One.  We didn't have a make out session or plan to marry, but I knew that she was not only the right dog for me, she was the perfect dog.  She then spent her lifetime proving that fact over and over until the minute she died last Friday.

Denver did a multitude of things over the past decade that made my life better:

1.  She gave me someone to come home to and be responsible for.  Living single in LA with nothing to ground you can be a challenge - it's not all Entourage and 90210 - you can lose yourself easily.  So, with her in my life I was slowly becoming a better person who was beginning to grow and thrive again.

2.  She was a partner in crime for all things dog appropriate and that was a lot in LA.  We did brunch, hiking, agility class, and time at the park.

3.  She taught me to be a better dog trainer.  My mentor was leading me, but she was who I went home with to try out all that I was learning.  She let me make mistakes and not have it ruin her.  She communicated when my frustration was too much, not by acting out, but by walking away from me to let me cool down.

4.  She helped me prepare to be a parent.  She showed me that impatience actually hinders the learning process and does harm to relationships.  Her reaction to my emotions informed me on how they could hurt those in my home.  At the same time, she never carried that lesson into the next moment.

5.  She weathered so many tears and provided a body to hold on to when my sadness was too much for me to take alone.

6.  She loved my son in his first two years in the best way I could have asked.  ...and anyone whose had kids for the first two years knows it's not the golden years for kids and dogs.

Her last week was shocking to us in that she hadn't really shown any signs until the day she turned down food.  I knew there was something deeply wrong because she had never --- I mean never --- turned down food before.  From that day, things went south very quickly.  In fact, the vets didn't get a definitive diagnosis of liver cancer until 24 hours before she left us on her own terms.

After I got the diagnosis, there was some hope that she would rally with the help of some steroids for a little while, but the next morning, it was clear to both my husband and myself that there would be no last trip to the beach for us to catalog in our memories.  We called the vet to tell him it was time, and he cleared the end of his day for a goodbye at my home.  Five minutes before we were expecting him, Denver took her last breath in my lap.  It was yet another gift that she has given me.

We will miss her.  We do miss her.  Like crazy.  There's a hole in our home that won't ever be filled for sure.  ....but I do subscribe to the idea (as a friend of mine wrote to me) that "with and in her death, there will be new life and growth," and I look forward to see what comes next.  I only hope it does justice to the memory of my golden girl.

Duped. Swindled. Hoodwinked.

I like to think of myself as an intelligent, savvy, and a relatively street smart gal. 

For example, I got approached on the street last week by the folks trying to gather donations for Save the Children.org.  It's an entity that I actually know exists, and still, I let them know kindly that I have a policy not to give randomly on the street.  I, logically, give to a certain number of charities at certain times of the year after having collected and researched information on them over time.  That's just the way I roll.

I also receive numerous desperate pleas from the Prince some country I only slightly recall and other wealthy individuals from India who are simply looking for a way to bring their millions of dollars to the US because of unstable times in their country, and they need my help.  All I have to do it give them my bank account numbers.  They will wire the funds to me, and when they are able to retrieve it, I will have done them a huge favor for which, in return, I will receive a generous percentage of the millions I have housed for a short amount of time.  Though the deal sounds totally legit, I delete these requests without another thought.   I wasn't born yesterday even for the promises made by self-declared royalty!

 Like I said, I can spot a scam a mile away...   

Weeeell, today, I went to see my Aunt who is visiting my Mom downtown, joined by my husband Art and my almost 2-year old son.  We had a lovely brunch at the Lux Bar.  The day was absolutely gorgeous so we went walking up and down Oak Street in order to extend the visit a bit longer.  As we're looking in windows at The Ultimate Bride (um, freakin' fabulous dresses, btw), I hear, "Do you like Jazz?"

I turn around and see two clean looking individuals, a guy and a girl, walking towards us.  They are in black T-Shirts and shorts and really look like they could be in a band… or crew for a band.  Really.  

I, trying to be courteous, say, "Well, yeah.  Some."  At this point my Aunt continues to move forward while I, not wanting to be rude stick around to chat with these seemingly harmless folks.  Our conversation went something like this:

"Well, we're part of a band that's playing a bunch of different venues (they named them, I recognized the places, but don't remember them now, except Green Mill, of which I'm a fan) in a fundraiser that's organized to raise money for a member of our band, who sadly, has colon cancer."

"And no health insurance," chimed in the girl making a sad face.  Little did she know, she just hooked me.  Who would lie about that?

He continued, "We are giving away these first 20 CD's... for a donation."  

Hmmm, Giving ... for a donation.  Is that an oxymoron?   Or just moronic? Tough questions for tough times. 

So, of course, I said, "Ok, you sold me.  How much is the CD?"  (Mistake number One:  Yeah, absolutely just let them name their price!)

Brief pause and then,"$20," he said, and followed it quickly with, "But showing the CD at the door will also get you into the show at Green Mill for free," – in defense of the asking price. (I told him I really liked the Green Mill.  Yeah, I play it cool.  I also tell car dealers when I absolutely can’t live without a particular car.)

And, as if I was no longer in control of my limbs, I reached in my wallet, grabbed a 20-dollar bill and gave it to him.  (Mistake Number Two:  Certainly don't negotiate the "donation" they're asking for!  I'm so awesome.)

Now, before I continue, as you know, I'm an artist myself and I have a soft spot for artists.  I also can sympathize with how horrible colon cancer would be for anyone, let alone a struggling musician who, it was not far fetched to say, had no insurance.  Cue the violins. 

   ... back to the encounter.

I handed him $20 like I had it to give - I must have been feeling the Oak Street vibes - and he said, "Great!  See you on Thursday!" and almost too quickly, jetted off.

My Mom, Aunt, Art, and, it seemed, even my almost 2-year old didn't say anything, just looked at me.  I looked back at them like the cold heartless animals that I knew they were, and said, "It was a fundraiser for colon cancer!"  The ladies turned without a word and walked ahead.

Well, now I got to thinkin'... (Mistake number Three:  Got to thinking too late.)

I stopped my husband before we caught up to the ladies and said, "I think I got taken."  His first instinct, a good one, was to slowly tilt his head and say, "What do you mean?"

"I just gave them $20.  They didn't have a flyer to offer.  I think it might have been a scam."

Art squinched up his face and tilted his head and said, "Well, they had me until the CD purchase."

This didn't make me feel better.  He silently took charge of my son and continued walking.  We didn't speak anymore about it because I was starting to feel like a serious idiot.  …or moron?

Dictionary.com defines the difference as,

"an idiot is a stupid person with a mental age below three years, while a moron is a stupid person with a mental age of between seven to twelve years"...

psyched about neither definition, let's say nincompoop.

Here comes the coup de grace:  

We got in the car, and I can't stop the nagging feeling that I have been seriously had.  Um… no judging!  It's easy from your perspective, to see that this is stating the obvious – at that moment, not so much.

So, slowly, much more slowly than I pulled the 20 out of my wallet, I got the CD out of my purse and looked at the enclosed white sheet that I assumed had the list of songs that were burned on to my most recent jazz purchase.  As I look closer, it was a listing of who's playing when at The Empty Bottle, a venue on Western in Chicago.  Oh, and the listing is for April & May of 2010.  It's June 6th today.  So, now I have a $20 listing of memories I didn't make at The Empty Bottle.  (FYI, on 4/26, the bands F*ck Knights, The Runnies and Dumpster Babies played there.  To think I missed them... that's just adding salt to the wound!)

Ok, so as I look at it, I realize that there is very likely no Jazz on this CD, but I have this tendency to believe in people.  Musicians don't have a lot of marketing money, and... so, maybe they just slid that in there to ... um, ... protect the CD?  Art, smirking, says, “Just put the CD in.  Maybe the music is good?”

In slow motion I take the CD out of the envelope.  The front of it has no writing, and as I'm noticing that, Art asks, "What's the band's name?"  The pit in my stomach grows in acidity as I realize that I have to answer, "I don't know."   Deep breath in.  Deep breath out.  I put the CD in the player and wait.  

And wait.

And wait.

Art presses some buttons to fast forward, but the player isn't reading the CD.  He gallantly continues to eject and re-insert our new gift hoping that songs, any kind of songs, will play miraculously.  The reality sinks in that I just bought this one and only blank CD, with added bonus of April/May listing from The Empty Bottle for the low, low price of 20 of my hard earned dollars. 

"There is a special place in Hell for someone who swindles a person into giving money in the name of colon cancer," I say.  Quickly though, I formed a plan, "Oh! We should get a sitter, go to the show, find this guy, and confront him.  Remember, this CD also gets us into the show at the Green Mill for free next Thursday."  Before the last word comes out of my mouth, Art bursts into laughter that he's clearly been holding back for a good hour.  

"I'm sure the Green Mill will honor the blank Maxell CD you bring to the door for two tickets to the show that night," he is barely able to say between gulps of laughter.  

Picture this for a moment.  I’m at the Green Mill door with a blank CD in hand as payment.  "No really, I bought this for $20 from a guy on Oak Street... for the band benefitting the guy with colon cancer... (make a sad face) with no insurance!"

My last hope is my CD player in my computer, but alas, it confirms what I already know.  I have been seriously bamboozled.  Perhaps my time in the suburbs has made me more naive than I knew.  Whatever the case, no one, not even the little child with one arm in Mexico selling Chiclets on the side of the road that her mom bought for one cent, and she's selling for “almost free for you”, will get me again!

Showering is overrated

Don't think badly of me.

My name is Nicole and I don't shower everyday.  Neither does my husband, who is, much to his dismay, out of work, and trying not to live out the stereotype.  This isn't helping ...by the way, he's totally going to kill me for outing him.

It's just that there's a lot involved in showering for me --- I don't know what his excuse is.

There's the undressing, getting the water the right temperature, hair washing, hair conditioning, body washing, face washing, drying, lotioning, and dressing.  Whew!  I'm tired just thinking about it!

If blow drying of the hair and applying make-up happened all the time, it might bring the occurence rate down even further.  It's all about the hair --- can I make it look good with out the shower?  If so, it's on!

I'm not proud of this.  I will say that I heard that it's good to give your hair a break from washing once and a while.  ...I also glom on to the theories about dark chocolate & red wine on just the word of the internet.

I am proud to say, I always shower if I've worked out, or find my self itching or carrying the odor of the homeless.  I've got standards, you know.

hmm..  there must be an Anonymous program for this.  If not, there should be.