Photos by Eleanor

Here are some photos that Eleanor took awhile back. Most are of her daily life. A few at the end she took at the reception following Mike's graduation ceremony. She still talks about it. She and Johnny called it a parade and talked about the people wearing "funny hats." When they see flags they talk about the parade that Daddy was in.

Photos at Last

Eleanor loves her new house. When we go out both kids always ask if we are going back to the "new house." The other night Eleanor was talking about our house in DC. She called it our "regular house."

They use the word regular a lot. Regular ice cream means vanilla. There is also chocolate ice cream. All other ice creams are referred to by color. Pink is a favorite of Eleanor's. John prefers regular with sprinkles. Sometimes he calls it regular with sparkles.





Before we moved we told the kids that we were getting a new house in Alabama. John added things to this. It started with a new house and a toy. Then it became a new house, a toy, and a lollipop.

On the trip down Mike and I picked up a few huge lollipops for the kids. We also bought John a new drum set. The plastic one he received from Santa was no match for him. It was tossed during the decluttering phase of our move. John reminded us of this.

We bought Eleanor her own camera. She is actually very gentle with a digital camera. It's hilarious to see the world through her eyes. Turns out it's a lot of knees.

The following picture was not taken by Eleanor. It's a closeup of the curtains that I made for the kids' room.

Getting a Job

The first week that we were here I had a prescription filled at the local CVS. The pharmacist took my information and commented that she lived up the street. She then invited us to her house for dinner that night to meet some neighbors. One of the neighbors is a chemical engineer turned math teacher at a public high school. I told her that I hadn't heard from Human Resources. She told me that this is the way of Alabama; you have to find a principal who will push your application through.

She called me a few days ago and told me that her school has a special ed position open. I dropped off my resume on Thursday. The principal told me that there is a list of excessed teachers who must be hired before any new teachers can be brought on. I figured that I'd take my time and keep looking. A few hours later he called me back. He told HR that he wants to hire me and not to place an excessed teacher at his school.

I will teach three blocks of special ed math each day and have one block for a planning period. Not bad. Now I just need to brush up on high school math.

This is how things work here. There are rules, but not really.

Now I have to go get fingerprints taken at the local police department and find a doctor to confirm that I don't have TB.

School starts on August 11 here. I wasn't expecting that. It also lets out well before Memorial Day and we get a few days for Mardi Gras.

Dealing with DCPS

DCPS has no record of my letter of resignation. The one that I sent twice. Because they lost it the first time.

I need to check the exact wording of that letter to determine if I am still covered by their health insurance. If I wrote that I resigned in June (when school ended) my insurance ends tomorrow. If I wrote August then I am covered until August 31.

I predicted that they would do something this stupid, so I wrote "the end of the 2007-08 school year." They need to see the letter. Which they lost. Twice.

I now get to play "Hunting for Files" in the boxes in our office in an attempt to locate my letter of resignation and send it again.

I think that I just need this shirt:


That should cover us.

Bugs

We found fleas a few days after we moved in. Actually, the fleas found the cat and me. We had an exterminator come, and for the bargain price of $368 he sprayed various chemicals in our yard and house. We vacuum and change linens daily.

The fleas got a little bit better, but my legs got worse. These things sought me out and attacked me. I apparently have an allergy to them because I got all red and angry.

One of our new neighbors is a pharmacist. She took a look at my bites and said that I needed to see a doctor. She also said that post-Katrina this area has a lot of staph. So Mike dropped me off at the Mobile Medical Infirmary with a bottle of Smart Water, a People magazine, and an issue of Domino. Six hours later I had an antibiotic, cortisone, and a lovely anti-anxiety to help with the itch.

Randy, the exterminator, came back today and sprayed again. So far things are better. This is just one of the joys of living in the South. Had I only known.

In Mobile

Mike and I left our kids in Pennsylvania last Monday and drove to Mobile. We each drove a car, but I had the cat. I listened to two audiobooks: Barrel Fever by David Sedaris and I Like You by Amy Sedaris. Audio books are definitely the way to deal with a long trip. I tend to get sleepy after the first hour driving. Not good for a long trip. Every two hours Mike and I would swap discs. We'd reenact our favorite parts at meals.

We bought our house last Wednesday but didn't move in until Saturday. It's a Southern custom to allow the seller three days to move out. We got to enjoy the fine amenities at the long-term Marriott with the cat. We even saw a baby possum near the pool.

There are lots of critters here. Geckos, armadillos, and lots of bugs. Turns out 95 degree heat with 95 percent humidity is the perfect breeding ground for many insects. The cat has already had a case of fleas and an exterminator treated the house this morning. We aren't messing around with bugs.

I can now drive to both Lowe's and Home Depot. We painted the family room. It's pretty much the same color as our old living room. What can we say, we like that color.

We also want to paint the kids' room. We have until Monday, when they arrive with their grandparents and Sarah.