Good grief, how can I be so old?

So, here's the deal. I have basically ignored AGE. Yeah, I know it's around, lurking over my shoulder, taunting me with its evil wiley ways and manical laugh, but I thought maybe if I gave AGE the silent treatment, it just might pack up and go bug some other middle aged woman who is trying to grow old discretely. In some cultures, I could be somebody's Great Grandma, for goodness sakes, and in some other (CRAZY) cultures, I could be having another child......why do I have to be a slave to some number? ........I guess I just hate that my number defines me. There is an expectation that goes along with every age, right?
We tell people to, "Act your age!" and we are quick to jump on someone's behavior when it doesn't meet our age appropriate standard. However, there are certain stereotypes we put on age that are starting to resemble me.....The day after my birthday, I got an invite from the AARP. I worry that I will start to lose my "relevance"as I get older. Yeah, yeah, I know the stories about the artists who produced great works at substantial ages, and I'm certainly not as old as I hope to be, AND I realize that the alternative to growing older is not living, but really, 50?

Spring Break

Anymore, spring break implies exotic locations and whirlwind parties, but for me the first week of April comes and my sights are on California, or as I like to call it, Howeland, for Natalie, Will, and Fallon Howe. Don't think us too staid though. We are a lot like the college rowdies who flee to Florida beaches. For instance, we consume a variety of drinks: Natalie likes dieto coca cola, I'm still into diet Dr. Pepper as well as energy Sobe, Caroline drinks water but asks for Coke, and Will drinks anything leftover. Also, both Natalie and Fallon had uncontrollable vomiting bouts yesterday. Oh, and we spend a lot of time dancing to Yo Gabba Gabba. Sometimes Fallon takes her shirt off before she dances. Yesterday, things got a little crazy when we were playing on the PhotoBooth on my MacBook. We made some wild faces. Yep, we is wacky.

Am I allowed to say "Coochie?"

I remember an entertainer named Charo whose schtick was to yell "Coochie, Coochie!" and then shimmy. She was much beloved of Johnny Carson and Jay & Dave, but I never understood the allure. Yet, there was something wonderfully flamboyantly outrageous about Charo that I had to admire. So, last night when I went to a Poetry Slam and one of the feature poets entertained us with what she called her "Coochie Poem" I was pretty sure I was in for something a little different. To her credit, she did warn the parents that they might want to leave the room, but I was there with some students and pretty sure I could handle any crazy poem this Poetess could dish out about Vaginas. I think the subtitle to her poem was 1000 ways to say, "Coochie." Who knew? And why would you want to? She said words that made my eyes pop out of my head. (Words that I was brought up thinking should require a bar of soap after you say them.) I suppose some of them were funny and I guess the idea is to take away the stigma that euphemisms and slang carry, but I think I could go through my life just calling it Australia (you know, for Down Under). It made me wonder if I am in a serious generation gap....or a Mormon gap....or something else. What do you think?

People are Funny

I love this picture and I hope you do too. The audacity of people just tickles me and I couldn't pass up this photo op with "Big Hairy Guy from Hawaii." He wasn't complicit in the photo; my sister, Laura, was my accomplice, but I like to think that his bravado in going shirtless was really an invitation for me to pose with him. I am thinking of creating a coffeetable book called People I Think Are Weird.

2009? Where did the time go?

Things I am most thankful for....

1. I recall being a little girl and considering the year 2000 - wondering if I would be alive on such an auspicious date...and here I am 9 years later wondering what other milestones I will get to reach in my life. I went (kicking and screaming) to the Dr this week and she and I discussed what a great time it is to be alive. She said that she had to look twice at my file to see how old I was (yup, I am sticking with the hair dye until I have no hair) and she told me she thought our parents didn't look like us when they were our age. I am grateful to live in a time such as this when my age is not considered "over the hill" and that I can look forward to many more years on this earth.

2. We had such a great Christmas with Katrina and Joseph home, but we missed Natalie, Will, and Fallon sooo much and we thought about them everyday. (This year was a Howe family year - note to self, my other children should marry orphans.) Every year our family struggles to find times when we can all be together. This year, we WENT TO HAWAII - YO! Thanks to my sister and bro-in-law, we funned in the sun, and for a few days, we were all together. Rick has made sacrifices this year so that we can be together more often and our family is happier for that.

3. Fallon and great nieces/nephews. Okay, I'm not going to lie too much here, but becoming a grandma is just a little hard on my ego. Damn it all, I love being "experienced" but I hate looking like I am. Fallon, the OG (original grand baby) makes up for every wrinkle and gray hair. She is a joy; gorgeous, smart, funny, etc. This Christmas, I got a few glimpses of my FOUR great nieces/nephews and they are similarly endowed with good looks and brilliance. It must be the genes...

4. Okay, I probably make everyone sick with my constant talk of "my classroom" and my educational experiences, but I have to brag just a little bit about my Master's in Education. It took me a span of 14 years and three colleges to get my Bachelor's degree and a mere two years to get my masters. It was a challenge for me to work with younger brained classmates who had more classroom experience than I, but I pulled it off and in the end I made the Dean's List and I passed my Praxis reading test. Whoot!

5. Rick and I have been married 26 years. Back in the day, it was unusual for people to get divorced; now it is unusual for people to remain married. Anyone who knows us knows that it hasn't been the easiest passage for us, but we love and respect one another and we are committed to our life together.

6. Music, books, friends, food, entertainment.....
Katrina hyped up my iPod Touch, I read "The Road", my friend Judy cooks me bread, I took a cooking class and have renewed my love affair with the kitchen, and Joey keeps me locked in on the movie scene.

7. Kids. I get to work with kids every work day and the Primary Angels on Sunday. Kids are hopeful and energetic and wonderful.

8. The three people who read this always give me grief b/c I don't blog very often. I love to write and am a hopeful author. This is a great forum for me to express myself. Hoo Rah for blogspot.