Based on what Bones told me and how he's been practicing, I feel certain he passed the audition. Now he goes into what they call 'the lottery'. First step is passing the audition, second step is getting your name pulled.
You've done all you can - no point fretting about that over which you have no control. God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, and all that sort of thing:)
ugh, 2 months of waiting and anxiety.
good luck, Bones!
posted by wRitErsbLock on February 7, 2010 03:06 AM
I know what Patti says makes sense, however, I know exactly how hard it is to put into practice. Sit down now and think of a few things you can use to occupy your mind... write them down. When you find yourself fretting about the selection lottery - pull those things out and concentrate on them to the exclusion of all else.
If you can make those other things wacky enough - like writing the plot of a novel in your head - it can divert the obsessive round and round thoughts. That's the goal. It doesn't solve the problem (only the lottery will do that) but it can break the cycle.
*This was written after breakfast before all my comments on my new breakfast*
My one regret I have that I did not do before embarking on this new eating adventure, other than not eating at Mo's one more time, was that I didn't have my Doc check my cholesterol recently. I'd like to know how many points it drops by eating like this.
I'm still making an appointment for after it's done to see what it is... as I know the number from two years ago.
About Steel Cut Oats... when you open the can, it looks like hamster food. I'm not kidding. I opened it and thought, "No. I'm going to eat this?"
I don't know what I was expecting either. I think I was expecting twigs.
Anyway the recipe called for boiling it for a minute, leaving it with the lid on overnight and then, reboiling it the next morning for 10 minutes.
Except there is no reboiling. All the hamster food absorbed all the water. In essence, it's a 10 minute reheat.
Except I turned the stove on and then ran to do something, to come back to find Steel Cut Oats and the bottom of my pan had become... ONE.
It was time to serve it up. Looking in the pan it appeared to be brown rice. I quit eating white rice voluntarily about 18 years ago. I buy brown rice boil in a bag, which is probably not much better for you than white rice... it's probably just white rice with a tan.
Anyway, this was the consistency. It was brown rice boil in a bag texture, leaving me with the question:
Fork or Spoon?
I eat my brown rice with a fork, but I pretty much remember Oliver eating his porridge with a spoon. I opted for the spoon.
And I covered it in blueberries and bananas.
Overall, it's bland. It's definitely the stick to your ribbiest food I've eaten since embarking on this new food adventure four months days ago, overtaking the first place spot of peanut butter and whole grain toast.
I can't eat very much of it before I'm over full. That's not a bad thing and that alone may be why this becomes my new breakfast. I definitely think it would be much better with butter and brown sugar. Without the blueberries and bananas, there is a huge choke down effect.
I want to try this with peaches and strawberries. I can see eating it with seasonal fruit.
Wednesday's post will be on the positives I'm seeing... as there are many.
As for the title of this post, it couldn't be any other title now, could it?
I want to hear the benefits so far. I can't really give up caffeine unless I want a headache that will last for over a week (trust me this would be one that would have me in bed with a bucket beside it, not just sitting at my desk wishing Ibuprofen would work). So I've never taken my change in diet to the same level you've managed over the last few days. However, I'm always glad to hear when this works for someone.
First, Bones' audition is tomorrow and he could not care one bit less.
Me?
I'm a mess.
Sometimes I need to be more like him.
Onto the edge of Granola Girl hell...
OK.
This is the deal. I'm never really hungry, but I'm never really full. I feel... empty. Does that make sense? I'm not craving anything, needing anything, but I'm not full.
I just... am.
And Dr. Oz may say he's a cardiologist, but I think he's in cahoots with the GI guys because I told my Dad, I've lost 2 pounds and it's been all water and anything left in my intestines.
All 30 feet of it. Give or take. Depending on true length.
Because when you eat like this, you either burn off the food or expel it and if you're eating yogurt and you're lactose intolerant... well... let's just say I told my Dad that if I need a colonscopy I'm eating Greek yogurt the day before.
So I have decided that starting tomorrow, I am going to try Steel Cut Oats for breakfast. And because I love you all so... I'm going to impart to you, how it goes.
First, I hate oatmeal. I don't do... mush. Second, I had heard Steel Cut Oats suck even more. Third, Dr. Oz said they're REALLY good for you and I read it helps cut down on cholesterol, plus it has a lower glycemic index than regular oatmeal.
With that I decided, "Why not? I'm all about the life experiences."
And wouldn't you know it, but my reader, Dick, happened upon saying he eats this stuff for breakfast and so I emailed him on how he prepared it and (Sorry, Dick, but this was just damn funny) he said he popped it in the microwave for 15 minutes.
*blink*
15 minutes? In a frickin' microwave? That tells me you have to boil the ever living sh** out of this stuff before you can eat it.
Yum.
So I looked on line and sure enough, I found a site that said something like, "Well, before we could never have Steel Cut Oats other than the weekends because it took so long to make, but NOW we have a simpler way and we can eat it every day!"
Great.
I'm all about simple, even if I'm making mush.
So tonight I start the process (there is a cook ahead process) and earlier this evening I went to Publix to purchase said oats. I bought a can of McCann's Steel Cut Oats, Irish Oats at that, and on the back it had a recipe for Irish Porridge.
Folks, I cannot think of anything much more unappetizing than the word "porridge". I don't want to eat anything that Oliver ate in that orphanage.
Ever.
And yet here I stood with a can of 'dried, just boil the crap out of it with water, porridge'.
I start it tonight and will report back tomorrow as I'm covering it in blueberries and bananas. I'll choke that stuff down if I have to.
And that brings me to the next topic. I have never in my life had to choke down so much food. I LOVE to eat, but honest to God, every meal I feel like I'm choking something down because it's good for me.
Greek yogurt with peaches? Big choke.
Porridge? Potential choke.
Sweet potatoes? Biggest damn choke effect so far.
My husband decided he was making hamburgers for the boys. I can eat the burger, but no cheese, no bun, no ketchup... why bother? So I sauteed some fish and had a sweet potato.
I'd heard all these great things about them, how good they are for you, blah blah, blahdefrickin'blah.
I hated them when I was 12, the last damn time I ate one, living in Taiwan, I remember the exact frickin' meal, and I frickin' hate them now.
I sat down and calculated, if your tastes change every 7 years, I was on a hate cycle when I was 12 and by my calculations, I'm still on a hate cycle. In three years I should like them.
I'll try them again in 3 years.
Over my dead damn body am I eating another until then unless it's sliced thinly, sprinkled with olive oil and garlic powder and baked at 350 for an hour so it tastes like a damn chip.
Good God. No. Sweet potatoes are the devil's something. I'm not sure what, but it's not good.
Trust me.
So tomorrow I eat Steel Cut Oats or porridge or something like that and hope the choke factor is low.
The oats are quite good if you use enough brown sugar and butter. For me the amount of brown sugar should be near equal to the dried oats and about half that size chunk of butter. You need that much to kill the taste of the oats.
posted by jon spencer on February 5, 2010 11:21 PM
Jon- Great. And the package was touting the great oat taste. I'm going to feel like I'm grazing in some big oat field, aren't I? Crap.
I hate to ask the obvious here, but did you talk to your own physician before you started on this diet? You've got food intolerances that may not be compatible, and perhaps he has a better idea, or can send you to a dietician who can help you get a handle on good choices, rather than making yourself miserable from the get-go.
I have tried similar diets in the past...and whammo with the IBS...so much fiber I cannot do it...
soak the steel cut oats overnight, thats what we doo....it cuts cooking time considerably
I feel your pain. I had two Bitburgers, one Lagavulin, a personal quiche and some calamari last night. The horror...the horror...
posted by Toluca Nole on February 6, 2010 03:28 AM
Your brother is frick'n hilarious. I have to say I really laughed out loud when I read his. Though, I won't be laughing too much. Looks like I may be making diet changes soon. Yuck.
Wasn't there an ancient episode of "The Munsters" where the mom is cooking oatmeal and it took like the whole episode of her stirring and stirring a big stiff cauldron of oatmeal?
posted by DogsDontPurr on February 6, 2010 07:21 AM
Ok, I was just over at Pete's place and saw this post: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/shakeypetesshootinshack/~3/9mE91S7iL4s/dogs-and-their-sweet-potato-orgy.html
Omnibus- See my Dr. First? Oh hell no! Why would I do that?! Actually, I'm just mildly lactose intolerant. My Dr. knows of the issues I have. I have IBS. I decided not to take it a step further in treatment as I can deal with it. Except for the yogurt. I just stay away from trigger foods. Evidently Greek Yogurt is a trigger food.
AWTM- Yes, it sat overnight and that is evidently the way to go. I can't believe I'm eating this.
Peggy- I'm going to have to agree with you. I like this better. It's more like rice.
TN- As long as you're not eating at Mo's and rubbing it in, I'm cool. Jerk.
Come on VW, join me! We can do this together!! Bwhahahahahaha!
DDP- Good Lord I so believe it. This stuff is... just thick. Spoon? Fork? A spoon could stand in it.
VW- I'm going over there. Dang, this probably isn't good.
I've been eating steel cut oats for many years for breakfast... and as a matter of fact I'm sitting here with a bowl now.
And I hate oatmeal.
The deal is, you never, ever follow the package directions. This is what you do -and trust me, they turn out nutty and sweet all on their own; you don't have to add anything, but neither are they mushy [shudder]-
Put 1/2 cup of water and 1/4 oats in saucepan, bring to a boil. Lower heat to low, cover and let simmer for 10 minutes.
That's it. There's no mush but they are not 'crunchy', either. Just good.
I understand the whole eat to live not live to eat thing - and I am doing my own diet change - but girl, there has got to be some pleasure in it right? I love oatmeal - but with lots of butter, sugar, a pinch of salt and lots of raisins. Not exactly a health meal and I do it maybe once a year...
Best of luck (lactaid tablets for the yogurt meal?)
I bought a can myself, falling for the whole "they're Irish" and "they're oats" and "they're nutritious." I love oatmeal, even sprinkled in flax seed and wheatgerm, no sugar, no butter, just skim milk. Oatmeal is good. Steel cut oats is NOT oatmeal. It is kitty litter. I would eat raw haggis before I ever attempt a bowl of that stuff again. The question one asks after dipping into McCann's: Just jow healthy does a person REALLY need to be?
I love the oats. Just add fresh berries and bananas and mix in. The sweetness of the fruit and the juiciness of the bananas gets rid of the need for the sugar and butter. Love them. My go to breakfast every day.
Pam- I'm going to try them that way. I think I'd like it not mushy.
Patti- I tried the lactaid and it does odd stuff. It makes me feel all rumbly. I felt like Winnie the Pooh.
QW- Actually, if something was going to kill me, it would have been the training for the marathon, the marathon, the training for the half, the two halves following. Cutting out preservatives and refined sugar and white flour are nothing but goodness.
And I was speaking to someone in the healthcare industry this weekend and she said this is the way of the health future. I've done a ton of reading on it and this is what's coming. It's not weird... it's not 'no carbs eat bacon', it's eating the way the body was made to eat. I just can't do yogurt. Unfortunately.
Leigh-OK, I stop at raw haggis! Actually, covered in fruit, the choke factor was low. I'm thinking with a buttload of butter and brown sugar it would have been like a big soft oatmeal cookie!
I could eat Irish steel-cut oats until they come out my ears - they're that good. Without sugar, they have a fine, nutty flavor. With brown sugar and butter, they're decidedly un-Irish... but heavenly.
You hate sweet potatoes? I can guarantee that if you had my daughter's split pea and sweet potato soup, you'd change your mind in a hurry.
Most foods we dislike, we dislike because of a specific experience. But if they're properly prepared, and approached with an open mind, you can find unexpected joys.
For about 6 months I modified my usual diet by eating a half box of Fiber-One each morning for breakfast. I was wondering if eating a lot of fiber would make me lose weight.
Instead, I was amazingly hungry 24/7. Even when sleeping I was hungry. But I couldn't eat very large portions so I was forced to eat just a single candy bar at a time. I had stools the size of couches. The only advantage of the whole thing was that I had a "superpower", the ability to clog toilets by simply failing to flush halfway through using it.
Oh, and I didn't lose any weight.
posted by Carl Brannen on February 6, 2010 05:56 PM
My friend Molly found a recipe for sweet potato fries. She swears they are delicious. There's not much too them other than canola oil, sweet potatoes, and salt. If you want, I can ask her?
My Mom sent me this YouTube video about a 911 call. A little 5 year old girl has to talk to 911 as her Dad made it as far as dialing the phone.
As my brother says, this little girl sounds a bit like my sister did when she was little.
So the first video is funny and then the 2nd video is just audio of the entire 911 call and really shows you more of what this 5 year old did... how calm she stayed. The "I'm a little shakey too" cracked me up.
If you've not seen these videos, they're worth the effort. They'll warm your heart.
Patti- I loved the dispatcher. What a great frickin' guy. I loved listening to him just as much, how he kept her so calm. He kept her focused but calm. He didn't need her wandering through the house. He needed her right there and he was so gentle with her, almost kind of cheery, but so reassuring. I was really impressed. I hope he gets kudos for that.
First, an update on Bones as Carl had asked in comments. He is still sick as a big dog. He started antibiotics today. I've been on the phone or at the office of our pede every day this week trying to get this under control.
He IS going to his audition on Saturday... how he sounds will be a different story. He has been home all week. I have to say, it is amusing to watch him walking around in his Scooby Do boxer briefs. The boys came home from school and found him crashed on the couch in nothing but Scooby underwear and both started to grin.
It's just that funny.
The quantity of clothing he wears is directly proportionate to the amount of clothes he wears. We hate when he's really sick... he hangs around naked wrapped in a blanket. At least he's not THAT sick.
He seems clueless about auditions and isn't worried. If he's not worried... then I need to take a deep breath. We'll know more on Saturday. The steroids are upsetting his stomach but the coughing is much less today.
As for the new eating habits:
OK, it's not that bad, but it has potential.
I think until you eliminate all this stuff from your diet, you don't realize how much you eat it. My biggest problem is how tired I am. I don't have coffee in the morning, so there is that, but I'm realizing as well, that whenever I was feeling kind of tired throughout the day, I'd grab something quick to eat. A handful of chocolate chips, a handful of popcorn, one cookie.
Something.
And I'm not doing that. I'm having to be cognizant that there are grapes in the fridge, oranges on the counter, bananas in the drain rack.
Also, this type of food does not stick with you long.
Breakfast was peach greek yogurt. I'll pass on that one. It's like eating plain yogurt with pieces of peach. I had to choke it down.
Two hours later I had all natural peanut butter on whole grain bread. An hour later a handful of grapes.
For lunch I had baby spinach with sliced up pear and cashews with olive oil and red wine vinegar. Excellent. But...
At 3:40 I had a blood sugar crash, broke out in a cold sweat and panic, as I tried to figure out what I was going to do in Publix, surrounded by food that I won't eat. The guy in front of me had a Reese's and I kept thinking how quickly it would raise my blood sugar.
I got home and had a scrambled egg and a small orange and all was right with my world.
My first big ARGH! was today when I realized the one tradition the boys and I have when their Dad is out of town or at a night meeting is going to a restaurant called Mo's. We eat for under $20 and we get a big cup of Queso, with tons of chips and we eat our meal while gorging ourselves with Queso and chips.
Right.
My husband had a meeting tonight and the boys were jumping to go to Mo's and all I kept thinking was, "I can't eat anything there!"
So I suggested a sushi place down the street that we have not been to in years and they were beside themselves. So sushi it was.
Even eating sushi rolls were a problem. They're all with white rice (I got it changed to brown) and I prefer my fish cooked... and I'm not doing fried anything. So while it was an OK dinner, I definitely missed Mo's.
My eldest boy is in the school Jazz Band, the only freshman. They needed a bass player and although he wasn't really up for it, they took him. (He didn't know how to read bass clef and had been playing his instrument a short time.)
Compared to everyone else? He sucks. He just doesn't have the time on the instrument.
But he's trying. I get email from the band director that he really is doing well, but the fact remains, he has to practice a lot, just to feel like he's coming close to keeping up. His bass instructors tell me he is very very good considering in particular the short amount of time he's been playing. "Baptism by Fire" as one of them says with my son being in Jazz Band.
He feels incompetent. He hates it.
He had a performance today and yesterday he was freaking out. To make it worse, or better, the band director had called the previous year's bass player, a freshman in college, to come back and help them out.
So part of him was happy and the other part somewhat humiliated that he needed help. Add to that the vast quantity of homework he had... and you can guess the mood he was in.
So bad was it, I wanted to offer him a crabby patty.
Him: Can we stop for a snack?
Me: No. I've got too much to do. I have to go to Publix, you can get something there.
Him: They never have anything I want.
Me: How was Jazz.
Him: I hate it. I can't play half the music. I feel like a jerk. They're calling Nick back in to play and I don't want to go to Palm Beach to do this.
Me: Do you want to quit Jazz band?
Him, looking out the window reflectively: I don't know.
I didn't say another word. Anything I said was going to be met with resistance or anger or something, so we rode in silence.
I saw a Burger King, I loathe fast food, and I pulled in and ordered his favorite, a double cheeseburger with mayo only. He was surprised but appreciative.
I empathize - been there, done that, got several t-shirts.
I've been a musician since 5th grade. I'm not a professional, but it is a big part of my life. Trombone, guitar and most recently bass guitar. Been thrown in the deep end several times in the past 30-some years, often voluntarily. Occasionally I ask myself, "Why am I doing this?" Later on, though, and with few exceptions, I realize that I got something worthwhile from the effort, whether it is contacts, exposure, or just more experience. It doesn't mean I liked it, though.
The fastest I ever learned was when I had to play with others who were better than me. Not just because I didn't want to be "that guy," but because I could hear and see what good players do to be good.
Put a radio on stations you never listen to and play along with music you don't know. Play along with commercials. When you can't play along, think about what you might play when you hear something.
Part of the stress is just plain discomfort at being in an unfamiliar situation, whether it is the music you are playing or where you are or what you have to wear. I know few players who don't want to do their best, and who don't beat themselves up when they play below their own expectations. This is good to a certain point, but can be self-destructive. There is a big mental jump from knowing you can't do something to being unprepared to do something.
In short, it stinks when you think you came up short, but don't let it drag you down.
Whenever my kids or the kids in the praise band in church start stressing, I always tell them, "You know what your part is supposed to be. The audience doesn't. Keep your rhythm above all else because a good note at the wrong time is worse than a bad note in time. You'll remember your clams, but the audience won't. When someone says, 'Nice job!' say "Thanks," and don't tell them otherwise."
This part of being a musician is the first step in paying your dues. The step up from here is when you go from playing the music to Making Music. When you start to see that, the fun-factor goes way up, and all the time in the woodshed seems worthwhile.
You have my e-mail address. Drop a not if there is anything I can help with.
He is male right? It is always all about the food :) haha
My daughter would encourage him - she loves it when there is someone next to her better than she is so she can learn from them - it's like a free lesson. This will all make him killer good much faster - if he doesn't hate it too much :)
So today was Day 1 of my 30 day no processed food lifestyle.
How did it go?
I realized it's going to take a lot more planning than I'd anticipated or I'm going to be hungry.
First, Greek Yogurt. Dr. Oz says it has a lot more good stuff in it, as opposed to regular yogurt. I've cheated and been buying the Greek yogurt with the fruit in the bottom and I am going to continue to do so. It doesn't have high fructose corn syrup in it and I'm OK with the sugar the fruit adds.
However... I am mildly lactose intolerant. The Greek yogurt may be what is killing me right now. We'll see. As I eliminate all other unnecessary fats from my diet, it'll be interesting to see if my body eventually takes to it, or continues to rebel. Today I took it with a Lactaid and that seems counterproductive. If my body doesn't really like something, I need to not eat it.
I was telling a buddy of mine how I'm struggling with this Greek yogurt thing and he said, "You're lactose intolerant, remember? That's what's doing it."
*blink* How did I forget that, but all my friends remember? So I replied, "They need to make lactose free Greek yogurt." He laughed and said, "I think you're asking for a bit much."
I'm giving it another week and then I switch to an egg with whole grain toast.
Bones was sick again today, which meant all my snacks were at work. I had gone back to bed when I got home from running errands (I'm not recovered from this weekend) and I got up when Bones did.
I woke up hungry.
I decided an egg sounded REALLY good. Except we didn't have any. Which left me foraging as I was hungry for protein.
Damn the peanut butter companies. They add sugar. I did end up at Publix today and found one peanut butter that was all natural, literally all ground up nuts with some added salt. Until I can get to a place that will grind my peanut butter for me (Whole Foods), I am going to eat this stuff I found... in a bind.
Instead I ate a piece of whole grain toast and a fistful of nuts with a big glass of water.
I went grocery shopping and bought shrimp, scallops and chicken for stirfry. I can't eat the noodle part, but I can eat the vegies and protein. I ate some of the scallops with an orange for lunch (sauteed in butter with garlic powder... the scallops not the orange), but will be eating vegetables mainly at lunch for now on.
As I walked down the aisles, I picked up ketchup wondering if I could make a cocktail sauce.
NO.
Ketchup is loaded with high fructose corn syrup and if you buy organic ketchup, they just substitute 'organic sugar' for corn syrup. So, that's out. I am now debating whether I should be considering mustard as a truly processed food as there are no additives or preservatives.
We'll see. As of now, it's a no.
So this is Day 1. It's all good. My eldest thinks I'm going to turn into a monster, going into cheese withdrawal. He said, "You're going to be miserable, Mom, and so you will make the rest of us."
Nice.
Not so.
Bonus, no sugar withdrawal headaches. I'm eating enough, so I'm not hungry.
If I don't plan better... I'm going to have hunger issues. No doubt.
I'm doing the same thing -- all natural -- but not Dr. Oz. I'm doing the Master Your Metabolism book by that bitch trainer on Biggest Loser, Jillian. Nothing refined, all organic. I did lose 7 pounds the first 8 days, but I spent 30 percent more on groceries and I am STARVING. I am trying to cut a serious sugar habit, so I'm not surprised I'm hungry. I didn't take chances with the headaches, though, and took a caffeinated aspirin every morning the first week, to stave off that first suggestion of a migraine. Not organic, no, but we don't need a violent, hungry mother in the house every morning, now do we? I'll read your posts anxiously to see how it's going. It'll keep me honest, to think you're suffering too.
It will take longer than 30 days to get a complete changeover of your diet into place without having to really work at it. However, long before 30 days you will feel very much better. I think you'll notice in less than 2 weeks.
It's all about habits, you won't get into the habit of having the right stuff around quite yet because you're still experimenting with what works for you so you still don't know what "the right stuff" will be.
You'll also forget to read labels occasionally and you'll know it nearly immediately. After about 3 months you'll be able to pick up your new set of "regular" groceries without thinking too hard about it. It will actually be easier because it's a much smaller subset of the food in the store. When you do make a mistake and pick up the wrong thing, it's easier to remember to never again grab it off the shelf.
Yes, you are right in that you have to eat what is right for you. Dr. Oz is obviously not lactose intolerant - this means yogurt works for him. That's great for him, but doesn't mean you need to be tied to it.
Substituting egg is excellent. Also, if you make enough dinner, you can reheat for either breakfast or lunch the next day - makes life slightly easier (especially if you know you're going to have to dash out the door first thing).
Have you ever tried raw milk? A lot of people who have been diagnosed as lactose intolerant actually do fine on milk fresh from the farm. There's a ton of raw milk available in Florida, too. The Campaign for Real Milk has a list on their website.
Yay, Bou! I wish you lots of luck. Label reading gets easier and easier, but there are some days when I find myself just wanting to weep at all the stuff out there that looks like real food and isn't. Usually when I'm hungry, come to think of it.
Anyway - I vote eggs for breakfast, or peanut butter on whole grain toast. I've been eating the stuff that's only made from peanuts with salt for so long that I'd almost forgotten how fancy it can get. There are some tasty brands out there, though.
I was watching the Food Network the other day. There was one of those cooking-tips-slash commercials for paper towels, where the lady made Greek yogurt by placing it in a paper towel (surprise!) stretched over a jar. The liquid part strained out, and it left a denser yogurt in the paper towel. Maybe you could try that with the lactose-free stuff?
Leigh- I'm laughing. I'm sorry, it's funny! We can suffer together, and today, was nasty. Blech.
Michael- I think I have to stop the yogurt. I'm thinking the dense stuff has the lactose in it. Good grief. I have a new adventure though... I'm posting on it. Steel Cut Oats... heh.
Omnibus- I'm staying away from all additives, including Splenda. So no ketchup... this is going to be a long 30 days.
Teresa- I just don't see much I can eat that doesn't have additives. Really... it is incredible.
Amity- Oh yeah, PB tastes so much different without all that stuff!
Ringo: Mom, do I have to wear dark socks with my tux?
Me: Yes. Tell me you weren't thinking of wearing white...
Ringo:
Me:
Ringo: Just asking.
Me: Dark socks.
Ringo: Do they have to be long?
Me:
Ringo:
Me: I'm not going to argue about socks. Ask your Dad.
Ringo: Crap.
Me: He'll give you the straight scoop.
(In reality I know he'll believe his Dad. If I say 'dark long socks', I'm going to take crap for it because I never have to wear a tux.)
Five minutes later...
Ringo: I knew it. I shouldn't have asked.
Me: He gave you long dark socks.
Ringo: Yes.
Me: Whatever. I told you.
Ringo: You who wears your purple sweatshirt, black shorts, and fuzzy blue slippers?
Me: Hey, that's my around the house attire. I'm not being asked to play Jazz at some ritzy house on Palm Beach. YOU have to look the part. *I* however can wear whatever I want.
Ringo: You're a disaster.
Me: I'm not playing on Palm Beach. I'm allowed to be.
I love my purple sweatshirt from high school. I love my blue dead muppet slippers. I don't care how much the kids laugh...
Versatek6- He is wearing his Dad's black shoes. No black patent leather. I was doing a quiet thank you last night when I realized he can wear his Dad's shoes.
They had pictures today for Jazz at school, and one of the Mom's called me (she had been helping) to tell me that my kid definitely had it going on. She said half the boys walked in all rumpled,looking dazed.
With engineers, bad fashion is mostly about not wanting to spend time and money on something that doesn't matter.
They make me wear nice shoe at work now, so I bought a really nice pair of brown leather shoes at Goodwill for $1.29. They had hardly any wear and they fit perfectly.
And how about an update on the singing audition?
posted by Carl Brannen on February 4, 2010 05:12 PM
I feel certain that Bones has pneumonia as I type this and we'll be back to the pediatrician's tomorrow morning. First thing.
This morning at 11 I had them call me in a steroid as the croup had started. He slept all afternoon which is very not Bones. I'm nebulizing every four hours. He sounds like he's going to lose a lung.
I'm trying not to think past getting him well.
On another note, something not previously blogged, for the next month I am giving up all processed foods including, but not limited to, white flour products, sugar, and anything containing them and this will also include my giving up most cheese.
I read an article in our paper about Dr. Oz and his suggestions for living a healthy life. Some of his items I cannot abide by such as... drinking black coffee. Fair enough, no more coffee. I only drink one cup a day anyway.
I don't drink so I won't have that glass of alcohol either.
I'll be eating pretty much the same thing for breakfast and lunch every day, eating lean meats for dinner, no sauces and a lot of fresh vegies and fruit.
Every morning, as long as my stomach can take it, will be Greek yogurt OR an egg on whole grain bread. Lunch will be some type of salad with balsamic vinegar and olive oil. Snack will be almonds and raisins and I'm allowing myself three small squares of 70% dark chocolate which is evidently good for flavenoids, whatever in the hell that is.
Why am I doing this?
As one of my friends said, "This is tweaking your inner marathon running mentality isn't it? It's one more thing to see if you can get your body to do."
And... yup. He's right. There is a part of my personality being tweaked in this.
But what I really want to see is what kind of, if any, body changes will occur because of this. Will my rosacea clear up or go away? Will my migraines go away? Will most of my digestive issues go away or get worse? Will the 3:00 draggies be eliminated? Will I sleep better? Hurt less?
It's a big body experiment that I'm starting with 30 days and may extend to 90.
And you all are the recipients... as in, I'll be blogging it every day. I'll be blogging the highs and lows and all that comes in between.
What I do not expect is weight loss, although I am weighing myself before just to see what happens in 30 days.
No processed sugar or foods. No high fat meats. No triscuits and cheese.
I'll be eating like a caveman, except for my Greek yogurt.
We shall see. Stay tuned. Tomorrow is Day 1. March 3 is the tentative last day.
Additives and preservatives... they are evil especially if you get migraines.
Yes, go the caveman route - that's how you have to start. Make sure anything you buy to eat has only "real" ingredients. It's darn near impossible to always eat completely fresh, so you will eventually move into some packaged foods. Read every label. Be very afraid of the words "natural flavors".
In restaurants - go for fresh fish and salad if possible - no gravy stuff at all.
ha!
The best thing about a natural diet is that it's not bad for you like low fat or low carb. You will feel better. And after a few weeks, you will notice (if you taste them) anything with additives will taste metallic to you. I think the thing that surprised me most after I gave up that stuff was that Hershey's chocolate kisses tasted so bad! I literally can't eat them and I used to LOVE them.
Good luck. It's a bit austere at first. Once you've got a pattern, you can add to it a bit at a time and see how it's tolerated. I think you'll feel much better.
Teresa- I'm kind of more interested in what it's going to be like not having the refined sugar and white flour in my diet. I think that's going to be the tough one to be honest. I'm wondering if it's going to make a difference in my skin.
Rave- I am NOT a big salt person. I think I can count on one hand how many things I've salted. Blech. BTW, I realized today that included my peanut butter. Holy crap.
The Thomas- The Cougar Diet! NO! I'm married! And if I wasn't, younger men would be icky. Blech. I see these women my age with men in their 20s and I think, "Why?" Anyway, yes, this is my big science experiment. My only concern is that 30 days won't be long enough.
Peggy- Evidently Greek yogurt has more stuff in it that's good for you. Honestly, my body is struggling with it since I'm lactose intolerant. I've added lactaid to my diet when eating it and I'm thinking that's doing something not good in itself... eating something my body is screaming "NO!" However, I find it to be thicker and I actually like it.
I have been having steel cut oats and blueberries and bananas for breakfast most days. Really good and so good for you. No lactose problems with that at all.
Y'all have been reading me long enough to know that I'm not one of these helicopter Moms who can't let their kids do their thing, be their person, hovering, pushing, living vicariously through their offspring.
Good Lord if this thing with Bones isn't about to send me around the damn bend.
Y'all have read about him enough to know that he's not a round peg child. What bugs the crap out of me is there are a TON of kids that are not round pegs and our society seems hell bent on sanding down all their edges, turning them into round pegs and making them fit, "DAMMIT!", into that hole.
At all costs.
Every child has to sit. Every child has to learn the same way. Every child has to...
And it pisses me off. Until I had a child like Bones, I never realized what a disservice we do to our children who think a little differently.
And let me tell you something folks, it's the kids that think a little differently that we need to think a little differently as adults... for they will be the ones to see things the rest of us round pegs don't frickin' see.
Trust me.
And as bat crap crazy as he makes me, it is seeing the world through his eyes that I realize, my world was black, white and gray before him... and he adds color.
Not only did I call the school first thing, get Bones an appointment with our pediatrician, and get a letter stating he needs to postpone as I was told to do... instead of FAXing it there, I frickin' DROVE THERE and hand delivered it, met with someone, and rescheduled for 2:00 on Saturday, the absolute last audition time possible.
If he doesn't audition then, it's not happening.
And although I was told that the voice teachers can tell if a child can sing, Bones sick is not the same as Bones well, and his voice teacher has told me repeatedly, that although Bones can sing, it is the whole package that will sell him. She said he sparkles and has something inside him that people want to be around.
Well, some people. Don't ask his 4th grade teacher. That wasn't the case. May he rot.
So he's on a cough suppressant and we have myriad things we are doing to get him ready for Saturday.
I'm watching this thinking, "NO. This is not my life. What am I becoming?"
My girlfriend Leigh (commenting in the previous post) and I were discussing this at Audition sign ups. She and I have very similar personalities, both mothers of three boys. We both find ourselves doing things as women/mothers, that never in a million years would we have believed 20 years ago if you'd been a soothsayer and led us down this path.
Boy Moms are just a different breed and if we're not born that way, we're cast into it via fire.
We were laughing in the auditorium about how we were trying to remain so calm for our kids, but inside we're screaming to make this work. This school... we're looking at with so much hope.
It's making me a freakin' basket case. I found myself in the pouring rain today, driving to the school, leaving Bones in the car so he'd not make them sick (dock points for bringing sickness into a school), and as I walked in I realized... holy crap. I was in my run around, dash to the pediatrician clothes.
I was in black shorts, a purple sweatshirt from HIGH SCHOOL (my sister is loving that one... I'm 44), and my eldest boy's checkered Vans. I was the complete multi-generational fashion disaster.
Bonus for me, I was wearing make up and and my hair was clipped up instead of looking like I'd rolled out from under a couch.
Bones had his theater audition two weeks ago. It went OK. I'm sure he passed it, but I don't think he'd have gotten in with theater. He readily admitted he did not click with the judges.
That's the deal with theater... it is so subjective even at this age, whereas for voice it is more of a 'can he keep the pitch, repeat a note, sing a song?'.
And as I put in the comments to Leigh, it was an absolute sea of children from every walk of life.
And there were little girls stretching for dance, all of their hair in little buns if not cut short, and some of them so limber you could not help but stare as their bodies twisted in ways that my body NEVER twisted and that I feel certain they were not designed to bend to.
There were kids with drum sets, guitars and every other instrument of size imaginable. There were amazing projects for the kids doing Communication. I have no idea what these structures were, some of them, but it had Bones and I talking.
Then of course there was the vast animation and chatter that can of course be attributed to kids in general, but I feel certain belonged to a lot of the theater kids for when the theater kids left, the room got a bit... quieter.
I sat in the back of the room with my logic book working puzzles trying not to overthink the entire thing when a Mom I knew back when Bones was two found me and we spoke for the next hour about our bleak options if our kids don't get in.
I damn near have a stroke every time I think of his not getting in. And I know that's how 75% of the other parents feel as well.
And I find myself once again on a planet I am unfamiliar with as I talk to my girlfriend about his voice, her husband being a voice specialist. I'm a boy Mom. Bones likes to play airsoft guns with his brothers, he loves playing football in the rain because then his brothers drop the ball and he has a chance, he plays shoot 'em up video games, and on any given day is nearly hanging from my proverbial rafters.
And I'm worried about how to take care of his voice for an audition? I'm actually on the verge of a meltdown over this? Really? ME?
It just needs to be over so we can move on because we all know it's not really the audition throwing me over the edge but the fact if he doesn't get in... my options are so... bleak and damaging to him.
And I promise I will never look back on any of this and laugh. None of this will ever be funny.
Ever.
Bones waiting for me today, not looking too sick, but sounding like crap.
I am hearing you loud and clear with this one...I lie in bed nightly and PRAY I am doing the right thing....heck I am pushing folks this way, that way trying to veer through the normal maze with the not normal kid....
Criminey people BEND BEND...these kiddos have a lot to offer
They are making us wear a sweater for pants you know
I had (I'm going to spell it wrong, sorry) laryngitis the week before my big audition for the international choir. 50 spots and over 500 folks. No voice. None. Nada.
Meds and rest.....and then (not to be done on a regular basis) choliseptic (wrong spelling again) spray 15 mins before my turn.
Numbs the throat and takes away the "roughness". Done on a regular basis does damage because you can't FEEL what you're doing to your vocal chords. But for something like this? Well, it worked.
Your post has brought back way too many memories from pulling my son through the school system. I have to say I'm sitting here feeling sick for you.
No, it never will be funny. Years from now when Bones has grown up and is making his way in the world (something I have no doubt he will do well with because you and your husband will give him everything you can), you will hear another parent with a similar story and your stomach will clench and you'll feel that twist for them because you know what they are going through.
I'm praying for you - that it all works. Praying hard.
Nope, not funny. Yup - schools are not only doing a disservice to the kids, they are doing a disservice to society as a whole - these creative minds are our future hope! No kidding, look up how many dyslexic or "ADHD" kids have become super successful, important adults.
You should read The Speed of Dark by Elizabeth Moon. While it is the story of an autistic adult, not that of someone with ADHD, it's written with a unique perspective and empathy that reinforces the idea that, as you eloquently put it, "...the kids that think a little differently that we need to think a little differently as adults... for they will be the ones to see things the rest of us round pegs don't frickin' see."
The big awful news on my horizon is Bones has his audition for Voice to get into the local Middle School of the Arts and he is now sick as a dog, having caught a horrible cold. I have no idea what is going to happen to his voice by Tuesday his audition date.
I am absolutely physically sick about it. I am beside myself. So much has hinged on this and now...
I'm going to call the school to see if we can get his audition put off, but it says specifically that they need 3 days notice and tomorrow will be ONE. It also says I need written documentation from his Doctor. I'd like to just take him down there personally for them to see.
The kid can't sing. His voice is all cracky right now.
For over a year he has been taking private voice lessons to get into this school. For over a year, he has been singing and training. Over a year... trying to do the right thing to get him in the right school.
I'm so sick about it, I want to vomit. He so belongs in that school... and he so does not belong where he currently goes. If he doesn't get in, I am going to have to consider home schooling. That is what a potentially bad situation this could be. And I work, and I can't quit my job and...
Call the school, explain the situation, get the doctor note if that is what they want - are there other days they are auditioning? I mean kids get sick - three days warning for a Tues audition would be Saturday, no one would have answered the phone had you called.
As for homeschooling, you know I'm here if I can help - you can probably work around the job and homeschooling, seriously. If it comes to that.
How good is he at doing what you ask him to do if you are not sitting right on him?
Call the school straightaway. This whole audition thing is a bit of a hardship on everyone's nerves, even without a bad cold, so it's not just you having a meltdown. It's insane. They'll work with you. Maybe they'll let him make it up on the same day as his other audition. Benno did his and as we walked out of the school, I felt like a hippo jumped down off my back (even though Benno doesn't think he did as well as he had done in our MONTHS of careful preparation). Sigh. It will all work out for Bones. The universe does not intend for you to homeschool a preteen boy. I promise. Call. Call. Call.
He's not good if I'm not on him unless... I give him a one on one check list. For instance, if I tell him, "I need you to read these three pages" he can do that. If I say "I need you to read these three pages and then answer 20 questions" he can't. I have to feed it to him a task at a time. Not only can he NOT multi-task, multi think, he's not the type of person you'd want to. He makes a scatter plot look linear. But, we've learned what works. The problem is, in our schools, every child has to conform.
Leigh- What a mess this audition thing has been. Bones did his Theater audition already. I walked in and there was just a sea of children, girls stretching to dance, kids with funky projects for communications, kids with instruments of every shape and size, noise and animation all over, probably coming from the theater students. I quietly went to the back, grabbed my logic puzzle book and shut down. About an hour into it, a mother from when Bones was TWO saw me and recognized me and pulled me out of my shell.
If you set him down with a list of passages from three or four books - would he do it? Would he retain what he read so you could work with him one on one, after you got home? Or if you gave him a book he was interested in and you told him to set a timer and read for a couple hours? Or if you set him in front of a computer and asked him to write a story or research something he was interested in then write whatever he wanted about what he researched would he do it?
or would he come up with his own "kitchen science" experiments and burn the house down? Are you able to leave him in the house alone for a few hours yet?
The whole conform to a particular model is, of course, necessary when dealing with a large class and mandated outcomes - unfortunately that leads to many brilliant, talented, and creative minds being frustrated and squashed.
I sure hope he gets into the new school.
That is a big no to most of those. I can leave him alone for a few hours at a time, and other than his calling every 15 minutes because he needs to talk to someone and is lonely (he's extraordinarily extroverted) he's fine. If I left him alone to do a science experiment, he'd burn the house down.
If I let him research whatever he wanted... and write... I guess he could do it for about 20 minutes. But it comes back down to he wants to know someone is there. He wants to talk to someone during it.
He does all his processing out loud. And his primary learning is auditory, which is why theater and voice fit so well with him.
If I told him to sit down and research and talk to me about what he found... it would be non-stop. He is the kid who gets in trouble in school for talking. He's very chatty.
