Vacation...

I officially started my near month long vacation this past Saturday at 3pm. That's when I finished my last trip. My next trip isn't until April 22. Woohoo! It doesn't get much better than that. Although my schedule says "VC" for vacation, I'm really not going on vacation. As a flight attendant, often the best vacations are the ones right in your backyard. And that's exactly where I'll be. Beth and I have finally decided to landscape our barren Mars-like dirt plot we like to think of as our backyard. There is a little green along the back fence thanks to some weeds that get watered courtesy of our neighbor. Little do those weeds know they are going to have an untimely death later today.

Our backyard is going to be quite an undertaking. I am feeling overwhelmed when I think of the entire project, but I am very much looking forward to getting it done. Our yard is 38 feet deep and 50 feet wide. It isn't big, but big enough to stress me. I have to tell myself to focus on each small project one at a time, instead of the yard as a whole. That is difficult to do right now because I am ordering and organizing all that I'll need for the entire yard. Does anyone have some Tums?

We are going to do our part to help the drought here by utilizing the ideas behind xeriscaping. Our yard will be all desert landscaping with no grass (there are, however, many types of low water use grass that classify as xeriscape). We may put a small plot of fake grass down in the future, especially if we ever get a dog. There will be two patios... the main one right off the house and the other a little to the right and behind the main one for our dining gazebo. Both patios will be made using brick pavers. We will be making a planter to frame the yard along the fence, and two small planters under each of the windows along the back of the house. Off the main patio, there is going to be a raised island with a pond and planter. We are looking at around six trees and numerous plants to complete the project.

My parents are flying in Friday night. Dad, Carter, Patrick and I will get busy all day Saturday installing the drip system and water supply for the pond and misters that will be around the gazebo, and we'll hopefully make some good headway on the patios. The following week is Beth's spring break and we'll use that time to complete the planters and do all the planting. It will probably take us the entire week, but it'll be well worth the effort. I can't wait for the night we get to cook dinner on the barbey and enjoy it under the gazebo, all while sipping one of my wildly tasteful martinis and hearing the water babble in the pond. Bliss.

I hope to enjoy that by Sunday, April 11, and all are invited! It'll be one hell of a time!

Leapin' Lizzards!

I am watching Annie for the second time in two weeks. I just love the movie. It takes me right back to childhood. My favorite character is Ms. Hannigan, played by Carol Burnett. She simply cracks me up! When mom got mad at Brian and I when we were kids, we'd always say, "We love you Ms. Hannigan!" Of course, she'd be ready to kill us. I'm suprised she never used Ms. Hannigan's famed line, "Kill, kill, kill!"

I finished all my papers Wednesday afternoon as needed. What a relief that was. Now I am working my ass off at work. I came back to St. Louis Thursday night and hit the road early Friday morning. Since Friday, I've been to Miami, Dallas, Tampa, St. Louis (4x), New Orleans, Washington DC, Chicago (2x) and Kansas City. Tomorrow I go back to Chicago (2x), Kansas City and St. Louis. On Tuesday I fly to Boston and back and finally home to Las Vegas. It will be nice. I'll have worked 16 flights in six days. That's enough! I go back to work Friday and Saturday and then will be done until the middle of April. Those multiple day trips pay off in the end when you get to take half a month off.

My parents are coming to Las Vegas the weekend of April 2. Dad is going to help me install a sprinkler system in the backyard so we can landscape it. He's also going to help me get the patio started. We are planning on using brick pavers. That following week is Beth's Spring Break so we plan on finishing the back yard that week. It'll be a lot of work, but I am looking forward to getting it finished. Can't wait.

I hate deadlines!

4 2-page journals: Done

1 5-page paper: Done

1 3-page essay: Done

2 2-page journals: Yet to be started

1 5-page paper: In-progress

When did I start all this? Monday. When does it need to be finished? Tonight by 4:30 (this so I can make it to the post office and have it mailed before 5). Local time: 12:48pm! OMG!

Oh, and BTW, Happy St. Patrick's Day! Hope you've got your green on!

Bush's Secretary of Education likens teachers to Osama bin Laden...

I had heard about this when it happened a couple of weeks ago, was pissed then and am still now. Here's what happened. Secretary of Education Rod Paige, while speaking to the nation's state governors at a conference in Washington D.C., called the National Education Association (NEA) "terrorists." He was referring to how the nation's largest teacher's union, the NEA, has filed numerous lawsuits against Bush's No Child Left Behind Act.

"This is typical behavior for the Bush administration. It says one thing - "no child left behind" and does another - under-funding its promises to our schools by $9.4 billion in its latest budget proposal. And when people dare to disagree with its policies, it questions their patriotism or labels them terrorists," says MoveOn.org's website.

"Secretary Paige uses insult to defend the indefensible. Not only did the president break his promise to fund the reforms, his current budget calls for cuts in support for schools over the next five years. And he still wants to take billions from public schools to pay for private school vouchers. So Paige resorts to slurs: even in his supposed apology, he dismissed teachers' growing concerns as "obstructionist scare tactics."

Help join the effort to fire Secretary of Education Rod Paige by signing a petition a here.

Also on this topic, Bush has scorned Senator Kerry for his voting record, saying Kerry voted for No Child Left Behind and now does not support it. Guess what, President, a lot of people supported the bill you pushed through, but not the one that came out on the other side. And I guess, in hindsight, that should be no surprise.

Website update:

New Recipes: Holly Golightly, White Peach Margarita and Fruit Spritzers
New Features: Spring cleaning in your fridge, low carb fruits and veggies
New Calendar: March, 2004

In brief...

--> The kinder, gentler IRS. Although my encounter with the IRS in person a couple of weeks ago was enough to make anyone go postal, my experience today by phone was surprisingly swift, informative and helpful. I had a question about the lifetime learning credit. Through a quick phone tree and a transfer, I made it to the person I needed to answer the question. In all, I was on the phone about 16 minutes, and no more than two of it was prerecorded/hold time. Nice surprise. Having said all that, my taxes are done and I am looking forward to a refund! Gotta love TurboTax.

--> Watched the premier of "Forever Eden" last night on Fox. Interesting new reality show. The twist? It never ends. It'll be interesting to see how long Eden really sticks around. And of course, it took no time for the drama to kick in. Tonight is part two of the premier, following American Idol at 8pm. As you know, American Idol is the only reality show I follow closely. Last night they aired a special with contestants who had been turned down during the auditions. The first one that came out, Army Girl, was pretty damn good. I think she has talent to be a finalist, much more so than some of the ones that made it.

--> I watched the movie/documentary "Bowling for Columbine" last week. I hadn't seen it before, and was literally jolted by it. I cried several times during it as the reality of the events being documented hit home. I found "Bowling for Columbine" to be exceptionally profound, and it left me with a heavy heart. It reminded me all the more why our country is out of control and that the administration MUST be replaced this fall. If Bush remains, living in the United States will simply not be tolerable anymore.

--> Speaking of politics: MoveOn.org announced today that Bush is getting ready to begin is reelection campaign on screen later this week. MoveOn has organized a political action committee to counter Bush's efforts at re-elction. I strongly encourage all who feel passionately about ousting Bush in the fall to go MoveOn's website and sign up. They are looking for a minimal time committment from those willing to participate, and are creating a true grass routes effort to regain the White House. Something to encourage you by: MoveOn.org now has over two million members, more than the Christian Coalition! Now that's something to be proud of.

--> As I write, I am happily listening to air traffic control from Chicago's O'Hare airport, LIVE! I know this wouldn't appeal to many, but for me it's like listening to the rain fall. I love it!