The Fabulous B@ker Blog

Looks Like "I've" Made It

2012-02-13T18:37:00.002-05:00

Tonight a neighbor saw me in Wegmans and mentioned I was on "her list" - that she was going to invite me to play "Bunco" with a group of cardplayers who are invited to play Euchre on occasional weekends.

ME! BUNCO! Just like all those stay-at-home moms!

Wow! BUNCO! The game of housewives everywhere! I can't believe it!

Okay, I admit it. I don't know how to play Bunco. I think it involves tossing dice and drinking wine. All I know is that in my last neighborhood all the women got together and played Bunco, and I was never invited. It seemed like they had all bonded as stay-at-home moms and I was a bit of an outsider, being one of the only working women in the group. I always wondered what they did all day once their kids were all in school. [One woman I know who is a stay-at-home mom (and whose kids are in school all day) has a home that is a complete mess. I wonder what she does all day when kids are gone?] I fancied writing an undercover novel entitled "The Secret Life of the Suburban Wife," and still may someday.

Nothing against stay-at-home moms. I even resented it a bit that I wasn't able to stay home with the kids when they were little, but it looks like the fruits of my labor on the street are paying off.

Did I know that someday it would all lead to Bunco?!

The Stairs and The Stove

2012-02-10T19:20:00.000-05:00

Just because we know you've been wondering and wondering how the carpeted stairs and the new stove is doing...

The view looking down. Scary!

Bottom set of stairs.

The Stairs

The new stair runner was installed a couple of weeks ago and looks awesome, begging the question:

Will Jasper now go down the stairs?

The answer is : Yes...finally. Right after the carpet came, he would not only not go downstairs, he also would not go upstairs. Seriously, has there ever been more of a chickeny dog? We finally convinced him to go up and downstairs, but it took a lot of coaxing and a fair amount of treats. Now, with only a little hesitation at the top landing, he calmly goes step by step down, instead of running and slipping the whole way. Money well spent?

The Stove

You must remember the story of Silver, the fancy new stove that replaced Goldie, our vintage '70s Harvest Gold stove. What I didn't tell you about Silver was that when it was unwrapped and installed, the "3" key on the digital keypad did not light up. Not a huge deal since the "3" worked, it just didn't light up. Mostly only bothersome because the stove was new and cost a lot of $$.

So began the odyssey of getting the new stove fixed. Six weeks and two-going-on-three service calls later, the "3" still doesn't work. The last repairman even tried to tell me that maybe it was designed that way: that the 3 is not meant to light up. HA! I had just about had it by then and let him know.

Today I got a call from Sears that they had contacted the GE engineers and were now shipping a new and different part. What was really just a small issue with the stove is now really starting to p*ss me off. It's becoming more about principle since there's really no issue of inconvenience. I'm giving them one more chance to fix it then I may demand a new stove, which is kind of silly just because of a "3."

Mundane Reigns

2012-02-08T07:18:00.003-05:00

Same great taste, but less filling.

You know when we're in the middle of winter with not much going on when there's nothing newsworthy for the B@ker Blog. Boring, cold winter. You'll be the first to know if anything exciting happens. Check back!

Miss Mary Celebrates Another BIG DAY

2012-02-05T10:58:00.004-05:00

Happy Birthday to my OLDEST sister, Mary, today as she celebrates her 5X birthday. She ordered me not to old post pictures of her. I never was that great at following directions.

And there are more where these came from. Many, many more. Voluminous photo albums full. I'll probably be able to keep posting new pictures of her well beyond her 90th birthday.

I Can See Spring From My Backyard

2012-02-02T07:19:00.002-05:00

It's here! My favorite holiday of the year!! Today I'm donning brown from head to toe (my groundhog outfit) and am looking forward to our summer picnic at work.

It's a little anti-climactic seeing we've really had no winter to speak of, but the fact remains:

THERE IS ONLY SIX MORE WEEKS OF WINTER!

I think I can hold out a little longer.

Just Another Sunday in Mayberry

2012-01-29T16:58:00.002-05:00

Here I go again. Loving my street.

Today a couple of "us neighbors" coordinated a baby shower for another neighbor (we'll call her "Stephanie"...ok, you got me; that's her real name) in celebration of the upcoming birth of her baby boy. Even though this is Steph and Jeff's fourth child, it's their first boy, and that was a good enough reason to get together and have some mid-winter Sunday fun.

At the shower we all marveled how lucky we are to live on such an awesome street. Sure, the houses are relatively tiny and you know about all the problems that come with living in an older house, but you can't beat the interest and concern we all have for each other. Street sale, street picnic, Christmas cookie exchange, and just last night, a euchre party...we just plain like hanging out together.

I know the Village experience is not for everyone. Many like much more "space" and don't like the idea of getting to know their neighbors quite so well. (While I know some feel this way it's still hard for me to understand that feeling.) And while I would love to live someplace warmer I feel that what we have here is really special.

Lucky. Blessed. Fourth Ave. Fairport.

Slapshot!

2012-01-27T07:59:00.001-05:00

Finally! A positive post about winter!

One thing I really like about winter is hockey. This is worth noting since, in general, I am not a sports fan, nor do I like winter. In fact, as hard as I try, I DO NOT GET football. Every year on Super Bowl Sunday a pray we will not be invited to a superbowl party as sitting through the game is absolute misery and boredom for me (it's a great time to catch up on my reading, though). I usually go grocery shopping on Super Bowl Sunday assuming that everyone will be so busy with their parties that the store will be a ghost town. It's usually not until I get there that I realize everyone is there picking up snacks for their party and it's as crazy as ever. *Sigh*

I like baseball also, although I find it a little boring most of the time, and I suppose I can figure out what's going on in soccer and lacrosse. Basketball is also a fun sport to watch. But my favorite is hockey.

Not just because of the non-stop constantly-shifting action, but also because growing up in the North Country, hockey is what you did on the weekends. I have such great memories of hanging with my friends, freezing at the Massena Arena, and occasionally turning around to face the rink and check the action/scoreboard. Hockey was our social life in the winter.

Recently we've been trying to catch the Fairport Raiders in action (ironically, Massena's team was also the Raiders, although we had an Indian head and Fairport has a pirate). My cousin Sandy's two sons, Nick and Ryan, are on the FHS team so it's also a great chance to catch up with Sandy and his wife, Colleen. Annalisse also likes to go, but for her it's a combo of enjoying the game and checking out the spectators. She especially likes to go when Fairport plays McQuaid, Rochester's all boy high school, which apparently has some hot guys on the team (or hot guys, in general). Try as I might I haven't yet been able to catch a Fairport vs. Massena game. This year's matchup was in Syracuse, so we'll have to watch the schedule for next year's game.

For the last couple of years, but not this year as we've not had a winter to speak of, Fairport has hosted a Pond Hockey Tournament on the Erie Canal. Our little town is perfectly suited for such an event, with a lot of great restaurant's and bars just a short walk from the action. We've looked forward to going to that, but alas, this year it's not gotten cold enough for the canal to freeze.

So there you have it...I don't hate everything about winter, just most things.

Hibernation

2012-01-26T16:51:00.003-05:00

I seriously cannot believe I was on a tropical island just a week ago. How can you go from feeling alive and soaking up the sun, to wanting to put your PJs on at 6pm and heading to bed at 8:30 every night? My hibernation instinct has definitely kicked into high gear.

Come, groundhog, come and relieve me of this dark winter misery!!

Mesmerizing

2012-01-23T18:20:00.001-05:00

A little something to get you through the rest of the winter. You're welcome.

Just What I Needed

2012-01-23T18:17:00.003-05:00

I famously loathe cold weather...and that's why my weekend trip to San Juan was SO AWESOME. Through the marvel of modern travel, it always amazes me how easily we can go from being freezing cold in the morning to being in shorts with our toes in the sand in the afternoon (although sometimes with the hassles that come with flying). Well, it's an easy adjustment for me, anyway! In a nutshell, San Juan was absolutely beautiful, weather-wise, accommodations-wise, and people-wise. It rained every night and was sunny and warm everyday, and the hotel was just steps away from the beach. How alive we all felt in the warm sunshine!!

The meeting itself, which was all day Saturday and part of Sunday, was very productive. It worked out pretty well as a meeting place since most of the board members were already there as they had attended the Advanced Winter Institute for their colleges, so only a few of us had to fly in for the actual meeting. I'm always amazed by my NAGAP colleagues, who I'm so proud to call my friends. They have so many great ideas and demonstrate so much dedication to our association! It's a great group whose composition will change in July when a new executive board takes over the reigns, and I hope to be asked back to continue our great work!

Even though we were tied up for a lot of the weekend, we had a couple of wonderful meals (and walks) together. Many of us tried to eat seafood as often as we could, and one night, not being super hungry, I got an appetizer called the "Neptune Platter," expecting it to be delicacies with which I'm already familiar. It wasn't. On my plate was a strange array of treasures from the sea, most of which I did not recognize.

On the plus side: I ate the octopus drenched in garlic and butter, as well as the single piece of shrimp.

On the minus side: I had no idea what the other two types of fish were. I think one was cuttlefish which looked a little too dark-meated for me, and I think the other was - I'M NOT SURE WHAT...SOMETHING WHITE WITH TUBES.

A regret: I didn't know what paella was and that this particular offering of paella involved a huge tail of lobster. Now I know. Regrets, I've had a few...

While the hotel and beach were beautiful, I found San Juan itself to be pretty run down with lots of abandoned buildings, graffiti, litter everywhere, and shady characters abounding. You even had to be "buzzed"into the small shops around the hotel, which was kind of weird. I spent Sunday afternoon wandering around Old San Juan and at one point I realized I had wandered down some streets where there was no one around and there were no more shops. All alone. My woman's intuition kicked in and I quickly hightailed it back to the more populated areas with all the other tourists. Safety in numbers, I guess.

Also in Old San Juan I wanted to see the two main historic sites: The Castillo de San Crisobal and the Castillo San Felipe del Moro. Due to an unreliable trolley schedule, I was only able to make it to Castillo de San Crisobal. I'm hoping I'll make it to Castillo San Felipe del Morro another time.

While I missed everyone back home (and wish they had come with me!), it was hard to leave such beautiful weather and surroundings. I'm really blessed and lucky to have had the opportunity for such an awesome winter break. It gives me the strength to carry on through the cold, dark days that remain in this winter. Another thought that gets me through: Groundhog's Day is just 10 short days away!!

The Beach - just steps from the hotel

On a walk

Old San Juan

Narrow Streets of Old San Juan

Old San Juan

Castillo de San Cristóbal

A little friend

Our hotel

Cammie's Sardines

Countdown to Sunshine

2012-01-17T07:09:00.000-05:00

I'm barely hanging onto my sanity looking forward to this weekend's trip to San Juan, Puerto Rico for my NAGAP board meeting. There's not a lot of actual "fun" time available as I will get there late afternoon on Friday and leave at 6:30am on Monday morning, with a full day-and-a-half of meetings in between. I know though, that when I leave the airport to go to the hotel (which looks incredibly beautiful, by the way), my spirits will soar, fueled by much needed sunshine and warmth. (And palm trees and sand and ocean.)

I've never been to PR, so I'm looking forward to the adventure. I will have sometime between the end of the board meeting on Sunday at noon until I head to the airport hotel in the evening to see some sights. Stop back for some pictures to help get you through the dark, cold days of winter.

The Winter Weekend Means...

2012-01-14T08:43:00.002-05:00

My life is ruled by rituals, and weekends in the winter mean...

Sleeping in until 6:30 or 7am
Walking with pup to get my coffee (weather permitting) and drinking said coffee all morning long whilst surfing the Internet, browsing the (mosty ad-filled) paper, or watching some mindless drivel on TV for most of the morning
If I'm lucky: afternoon naptime!
Setting the grandfather clock from "silent" to "chime."
Eating out (what's so different from any other day of the week, you ask?)
If not going out to dinner, cooking a special meal (I actually do like to do this, more than you'd think!)
Staying in my sweats until the last possible moment that I have to go out and face my adoring public
Taking a shower eventually, or not at all (Hey! It's good for your skin to have a break in dry, cold weather especially. It's true. Look it up.)
Pulling the rocker up to the fire and enjoying a good book.

It feels soooo good. There's something so comforting about the low expectations for January. Hunker down, say warm and recharge.

(See? Another list. What a crazy list-maker.)

The No Snow Winter

2012-01-12T07:24:00.004-05:00

Here are are on January 12 and there has still been no winter to speak of this year. We've had a couple of overnight dustings, but they did not amount to anything and were usually gone my mid-day. We've even had a couple of winter advisories and severe weather warnings...all for naught.

(Obviously, there's a difference between "no snow" in Rochester, NY and "no snow" in Atlanta, GA so my Southern friends need not comment about how they never get any snow.)

I have to admit, this whole no-snow thing is making me a little nervous. In addition to the lack of white stuff, it's been unseasonable warm this year. Christmas week the temp ranged from 40-60 degrees every day. What the heck?

Global warming?
The beginning of the Apocalypse?

Whatever the reason, I can't help but feel we'll pay for this respite with a crappy summer. I bet you'd never hear me say this, but here it goes:

I wish it would snow. A lot. And I wish it were really cold out. That would make me feel better and put me more at ease.

(As long as it's all gone by April 1.)

For the Dog

2012-01-09T07:32:00.002-05:00

Part Lion/Part Chicken

Ever since he was a puppy Jasper has been afraid of going down the stairs. I don't recall a time when he was little that anything happened on the stairs (although he could have taken a tumble when I wasn't around), so I've always chalked it up to a depth perception issue, or possibly vertigo. Even though he was afraid of the stairs, with (a little to a lot of) coaxing he usually got up enough nerve to come down them. Until recently.

For some reason, his fear of stairs has gotten worse. At our house the stairs are hardwood with no carpet, and he has slipped and stumbled his way down for a couple a years now. Lately, though, Mark has had to carry him down in the morning, an exercise I refer to as "Mark's 80 pound bench press."

(By now you are asking yourself: Why do they let him upstairs?! The reason is that he's such a baby/chicken that when left alone downstairs at night he cries for hours and hours. Mark has slept on the couch/floor a couple of times with him but that is not a great solution.)

In the hopes of finding a solution to this issue, this weekend we ordered a carpet runner for the stairs (FOR THE DOG) which is something we talked about for the last five years but never got around to doing (another item on "The List."). We made sure it was darker than the stairs so he could see the contrast, and it will be installed in a couple of weeks. We're hoping for the best.

BUT, what I'm thinking is we should build a lovely patio home. One floor, FOR THE DOG. With a great open floor plan, new kitchen, beautiful deck FOR THE DOG. Someplace warm FOR THE DOG. Hey, I'm willing to sacrifice our old, cold two-story house FOR THE DOG!

The Number One Song

2012-01-05T20:36:00.001-05:00

So there's this new thing going around Facebook where people post the #1 song from the day they were born. In case you were wondering, the #1 song on October 8, 1963 was Sugar Shack by Jimmy Glimmer & The Fireballs. I'm sort of bummed since I find this song so annoying. Oh well, it was the '60s after all.

Memories in Print

2012-01-05T20:17:00.000-05:00

This is what 850 pictures look like

Today I received my yearly photo order - a whopping 850ish pictures taken over the last year. You may recall in this post when I described my end-of-the-year task list, which included placing a huge picture order. The greatest thing is that it didn't even cost that much (approx. $35 in all) as I had a photo credit from last year, along with with 25% off the order and free shipping from Snapfish.

Am I the only one person concerned that in 30 years we won't have any photo albums...that all our digitally captured memories will be lost when our computers die (which they all eventually do) or the technology changes? I cannot tell you how much joy it brought me to look through those pictures tonight. They came out so great and I know that even though we probably won't pull out the albums very often they'll be there for our future generations.

Isn't it time you preserved some of your memories? (Do it before it's too late!) Maybe I'm just a sentimental fool.

Revisiting "The List"

2012-01-03T18:16:00.001-05:00

I live my life according to lists. Seriously, if I couldn't write things down and cross them off (and sometimes write them down just to cross them off), I'm not sure I'd ever get anything done. Remember this post when I talked about "the list?" (Or, more specifically, The Never Ending List.)

I'm happy to report that last week we were able to cross something off the list: a new stove. (Ironically, I never included a new stove on the "Never Ending List" blog entry.) Hurray. Pardon my lack of excitement, but I probably would want a new stove more if I actually liked to cook. Nevertheless, it's a pretty impressive piece of work, complete with a new (sorely needed) range hood and a long-awaited backsplash (although a little too late - the wallpaper is ruined since we didn't put up a back splash seven years ago when we wallpapered [which I hate - don't get me started]) the kitchen.

Even I have to admit the new stove is cool. It's a flat top with the controls in the front, and has two ovens: a little one which will be great for baking, and a regular sized (convection) oven. I (did not) shed a tear when they took old Goldie away...1978 called: it wants its stove back.

Next up: If all goes wel with this year's income taxes, I think we're going to put a new porch and stairs on the front of the house this spring or summer. Just think: All I need is about $100,000 and I could knock everything off that darn list. It's the stuff that dreams are made of.

Goodbye, Goldie.

Hello, Silver!

A Clean Slate

2012-01-01T09:19:00.004-05:00

Welcome to 2012! One of the great things about starting a new year is the way it feels like we can all start over with "a clean slate." Of course, our problems and bad habits do tend to follow us from one year to another, but I think it's important, psychologically anyway, feel like we've been given a chance to start the year out fresh!

The new year is already looking to be a busy one for us with travel planned and many weekends already committed. Last week I broke out the 2012 calendar and started filling it in. To my amazement we've already got a lot of weekends (and weeks) with obligations such as:

A trip to San Juan PR for me the third weekend in January for my NAGAP board meeting (please do not feel sorry for me!).
Annalisse's Downstage performances each month
A trip to Virginia the second week in April and a trip to Austin, TX the last week in April
Cam has a regatta every weekend in April, and we're going to try to make it those. The farthest one will be at WPI in Worchester, MA. If we go I'm hoping we might be able to meet up with our Franklin, MA cousins.
A trip to visit Anthony in Raleigh and to see Wicked either the first or second weekend in May
Caroline, our German exchange student, visits for two weeks starting in mid-May
Cam leaves for his camp job the last weekend in June, and Annalisse leaves for Germany for three weeks at the same time.
If I am asked back to the NAGAP board, I'll be heading to Las Vegas again in July, and somewhere else (TBD) for the October meeting.

There will also be a girl's weekend in there somewhere, as well as a 50th Birthday fishing trip for Mark. He'd like to go to Maine so I have to figure that one out. Also, I'd love to work in a weekend trip to Chicago with Mark and Annalisse at some point, maybe in March or August. I'd like to take in a Second City show when we go.

As long as the world doesn't end (as predicted) in late 2012, it's shaping up to be another fun year!

Take your clean slate and make it great!!

Goodbye, 2011

2011-12-30T20:16:00.000-05:00

How is it possible that it is the end of the year already? At times it is very disconcerting how fast the years go now. It seems as good a time as any to reflect on the highs and lows of the last year, which, overall, was a pretty good one.

If I had to think about a theme (or, in this case, several themes) for 2011, they would be:

Milestones ~ Connections ~ Travel ~ Fun

Milestones

An 18th birthday, a high school graduation, a 30th class reunion, starting college, a 16th birthday, a 50th birthday. WOW, those are a lot of exciting, important events for one year. I made it through mostly all of them without a lot of tears (of happiness). Milestones really do help us mark the passage of time, don't they?

Connections

This was truly a year of connections - spending time with loved ones and reconnecting with those who mean a lot but who we don't see all the time. Cam's graduation and celebrating Annalisse's Sweet 16 and Mark's 50 gave us many great opportunities to spend time with family and friends this year.

Especially fun was my 30th reunion and seeing so many of my great, old school chums (that' a word I don't use enough), especially Derb and Rick Martin and Mike Hayes from the old neighborhood. Through the power of Facebook (observations of which I've written about here) seeing my classmates was extra special since we had been in touch a lot before the event. I don't care what people say...while technology can isolate people, my experience is that it brings people closer together.

Another wonderful family connection this year was having my niece, Nic, move to Fairport. We've had so much fun with her and her boyfriend, Patrick!!

Travel (and fun other stuff)

Looking back, I was in and out and up and down a lot this year, and had the opportunity to experience a lot of different (and in some cases, new) cities. It stated in January with a trip to Ft. Lauderdale with my national association, which was cool because I had never been there. Who could refuse Florida in January? Not me. It was a nice little reprieve to help me through the winter months in New York.

In February, Annalisse took her first solo flight to Baltimore to spend a couple of days with Mom Shiao/Mema, Jackson and Amelie in Arlington. She felt so good about doing that all on her own. I was proud of her, too.

In April we traveled to Roanoke to visit Sue and take a look at Roanoke College - the highlight of which was visiting Jefferson's Monticello in Charlottesville. Also in April I spent a week at the NAGAP conference in Washington, DC, during which I got my iPad!

In May we didn't travel very far from home but had a surprise visit from our nephew, Anthony, who was passing through town on his way back to Raleigh, NC. Also in May was the Sophomore dance and Annalisse's play, Arsenic and Old Lace. So you see, we were too busy to travel in May!

June was taken up with the end of the crew season and a kinda-sorta important event: Cam's graduation and the weeks leading up to it.

In July it was back to Las Vegas for the NAGAP board meeting. The Las Vegas trip was probably one of the funnest things I did all year as my sister Mary, Annalisse and I had had non-stop laughter for four days. (And speaking of connections, it was wonderful to see our cousins Patsy, Nancy and their families while we were there.)

August found us back on the road to Virgina (to Arlington) to visit Mom Shiao, Dave and the kids. We also played tourist and visited the National Mall and Mount Vernon (that's two president's homes in one year if you're keeping track). We also had a chance to see our German exchange student, Belinda for a brief visit and got a chance to meet her mom and sister, Caroline, who will be staying with us for two weeks this coming May. At the end of August we were mostly focused on getting Cam ready for RIT, for which he departed on August 31.

In September I joined "my girls" for our yearly get together in Gettysburg (another weekend filled with much fun and laughter). Also in September I also traveled to Philadelphia for a quick trip to attend a graduate fair for NAGAP, and had a chance to hang out with Derb for the evening. Too. Much. Wine. but great memories and fun conversation!

In October I was on the road locally quite a bit for graduate fairs, and also traveled to Chicago for the NAGAP Board Meeting. Chicago has become one of my favorite towns!

In November we only traveled as far as Buffalo for the very memorable Mat Kearney concert to celebrate Annalisse's birthday.

...And that brings us December, a month with no travel but an extremely busy month nonetheless as we get ready to start a new year of visiting new (and exotic?) places!

Fun

It's probably evident through all our travels and events this year that it ended up being a really fun and special year. This year I think I learned to let go a little and to not take things too seriously. It was a year of understanding and appreciating what is truly important, and to stop every once in a while to count our blessings. A great year, overall!

Remembering

As memorable as this year was for us, it was not easy for many with personal and family losses. As the calendar turns, I think about Camille and Dave on their loss of Nick in August, Carla and Steven on the loss of dad/husband Larry a week before Christmas, Clare in the loss of her mom before Christmas, Steve and Jan in the loss of Jan's dad, Bob, who was a long time friend of Mark's dad, Charlie. There we so many touched by weather and natural disasters this year also. I can't even imagine their lose. Many others, known and unknown, through the year have lost loved ones and faced personal and professional challenges, and I hope 2012 will bring comfort and a renewed sense of hope for all.

Christmas Week Chores

2011-12-29T07:53:00.002-05:00

Among all the merriment and celebrations (and laying on the couch watching movies and naps) I do actually count on getting certain things accomplished during the week between Christmas and New Years. I'm happy to say I'm making pretty good progress on my yearly chores this week. Here's a sampling of the compellingly mundane stuff I do during this brief window of sanity before January hits again:

File all the kids special momentos collected over the last year in their "memory tubs" in the attic. This year there was some great stuff because of Cam's graduation and Annalisse's Sweet 16. I'm just hoping they'll appreciate it when they buy their first home(s) and I get to give them 5 or 6 large plastic tubs containing their artwork/projects (from daycare on up), report cards, school papers or essays I thought they might find interesting later, magazine and newspapers highlighting significant current events, t-shirts from special events or camps or whatnot, and other random stuff. Thanks, Mom. Now where am I supposed to put all this stuff?
File all the bills and paperwork from the last year. Keep the important things, bring the rest to work for the locked incinerator bin. Mark could never do this task because he never throws anything away.
Place my yearly photo order. This year I'm up to 885 pix over the last year. I'm one of those people who fears that in this digital age, we won't have any actual, printed pictures for the future. Think about it: we now take hundreds of pictures with our digital cameras and many people never print them. What if their computer crashes? What if the media changes and at some point they can't access their pictures anymore? Better get those pictures printed!
Buy photo albums for said pictures and put them in. This takes a while but is a good activity for hanging on the couch while I'm watching a movie. Between naps, that is.
Catch up on my reading...mostly on my pile of magazines, to make time for reading the new books I got for Christmas (David Sedaris' Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk and Miss Peregrine's Home Peculiar Children), as well as my upcoming bookclub book(s) (I'll miss the January meeting so I need to start The Hunger Games for February).
Clean out old clothes. It's amazing to me that I fill several bags worth of cast-off clothing to donate every year. We have too much stuff.
Take the Christmas tree down on New Years day. Always a tedious activity and I'll be sad to see it go. It brings such soft, warm light to the cold winter nights. As a consolation prize I'll leave the lights on the mantle until mid-February. That should get me through.

Then, there is the usual running around of the kids during Christmas week, and this year is no exception. How awesome it is not to be working this week, though. I'm hoping I can return to work on Tuesday refreshed and ready to meet the challenges of a new year.

Happy Birthday, Mom

2011-12-28T10:14:00.004-05:00

Aline in July

Aline in her younger days

A very happy 81st birthday to my mom, Aline, today.

I hope she has a
great day!

A Very Baker Christmas

2011-12-27T08:12:00.000-05:00

Two days after Christmas I finally have a chance to post an update on all the festivities.

Saturday's Christmas Eve followed a very intense, busy week at work and it took me a little while to unwind and realize I actually have 10 DAYS OFF! HURRAY!

One of the great dilemmas this year was when/where to go to church on Christmas Eve. We love our church, but our services were at 5:30, 7:30 and 11pm, none of which really fit into the Christmas Eve plans of getting to Aunt Mary and Uncle Peter's in a reasonable time for their annual family party, which started anytime after 8pm. Sure, the 5:30 service would have worked for us, but...OH ALL THOSE KIDS. If we attended the 7:30 service, we would not have gotten to the gathering until after 9, and 11pm - forget it. We considered going to our old church which had a 6pm service, but it's a little too contemporary for our taste. So, for the first time that I can ever remember we did not go to Christmas Eve service. This bothered me a lot, and I decided next year we would most likely go to our 7:30pm service since the party didn't really get started until close to 9pm anyway. I really missed going this year as I enjoy the hymns, pastor's message, and the generally "all is calm, all is bright" feeling about Christmas Eve.

Moving on...we went to Mary and Pete's and had a great time with our Versprille relatives, especially cousins Sarah and Otto, who are indie musicians that nowadays we only see once a year, at holiday time. (They play, or have played with the band Vetiver, and Sarah and her boyfriend Dan are currently developing their own project, Pure Bathing Culture). By 11pm, we were whipped so we headed home where I had to prep the baked french toast and stuff stockings for Christmas morning before hitting the sack around midnight (which is about three hours past my usual bedtime).

I got up around 7am on Christmas morning, did all my chores (made a kuchen, baked the french toast, fed and walked Jasper, turned on all the lights) and waited and waited for the sugarplums to awaken. They finally 'roused around 8am (my, how things have changed) and we proceeded to open our stockings and presents. Much fun all around! Cameron, probably to his dismay, ended up with a lot of much-needed clothes this year. Being on the debate team, he received a nice dress shirt, t-shirts, and socks, along with some RIT sweat pants and his RIT Crew shell/jacket. He also received a raquetball racquet as he's taken that up at school.

Annalisse received a lot of clothes as well, but she likes that stuff. She also got a cute wallet thingy, and had fun with her "big" gift, the upscale camera we helped her buy earlier in the month.

After presents, we got dressed and headed over to Lena and Ken's for our Shiao family breakfast, which was also a lot of fun. We had a mid-afternoon break before heading to Grandma Pat's for a ham dinner and more presents. WHEW!! Grandma was incredibly generous, as always!

Our great day finished with us watching a couple of episodes of Boardwalk Empire, which I'm not sure we'll really get into. We'll give it a couple more episodes before we decide.

Exhausted, we ended our day, looking forward to a leisurely, unstructured, lay-around kind of week!!! It was a great Christmas - we have so much to be thankful for!!

Never a truer word was spoken

Cool wallet thingy

Bad picture but awesome new iPad case

Our Golden Christmas Wish

Breakfast at Lena & Ken's. Cameron looks thrilled.

Lena's tree

Christmas morning. The calm before the storm.

He came!

Cool purse

Cam's "big" present

He's watching you!

Sisters!

The Sweetest Thing!

2011-12-23T16:35:00.003-05:00

The only thing better than the feeling of a Friday night is...

A FRIDAY NIGHT THAT BEGINS A VACATION WILL LAST FOR 10 DAYS! If you want to find me I'll be on the couch in my sweatpants.

Bringing Back the Light

2011-12-22T07:48:00.000-05:00

Today is the Winter Solstice, which means...we made it through the darkest part of the year. Every day it will become a little lighter, which is of great joy to me. I'm always amazed when, at some point in January I leave work and all of a sudden it's light instead of dark out. The seasons certainly do turn, don't they?

Though still in darkness, we will find the light in the days to come as we celebrate Christmas...with a little help from the 700 lights on our tree.

Side note: Looks like we'll be having a white Christmas as there is still no snow, and even though the Winter Solstice marks the beginning of winter, it means we have just three more months until the ground comes alive again! It's the eternal optimist in me, I suppose.

The Longest Week

2011-12-19T07:40:00.002-05:00

Arise...now commences the longest work week of the year. Or, if you ask Annalisse, the longest school week of the year. Or, if you ask Cameron, the longest, most awesome sitting-alone-in-the-living-room-playing-video-games-and-watching-movies-wrapped-in-a-comforter-with-Jasper-nearby-while-everybody-else-is-at-work-or-school week of the year. I guess it all depends on your point-of-view.

Shakes Takes Downstage

2011-12-17T08:34:00.001-05:00

Last night was Downstage's first show of the season, and the beginning of Annalisse "Shakes" Baker's second year with this great, talented bunch of kids.

(If you're just joining us, Downstage is Fairport High School's comedy improv troupe. You can read about when Annalisse was selected here.)

This year there are five new members, to replace the five who graduated in June. One of the most awesome things about last night's show, in addition to the great laughs and our pride on how much growth (in comedy confidence, not size) the kids have shown since June, was that the five members who graduated, Jacob, Mark, Kate, Mitch and Jimmy, were at the show. It was great to see them and I know the kids enjoyed having them there.

After the show, as is the Downstage tradition, the kids got a couple of pizzas and had a sleepover (this time at our house). As I write this, there are eight out of the 10 kids sprawled across my living room. The bacon is cooking, the pancake mix is waiting, the coffee is brewed and the laughs live on!

Zombies are Scary

2011-12-14T18:55:00.001-05:00

Hey, didn't I graduate with you?

Annalisse and I are halfway through the second season of AMC's zombie-tastic series, The Walking Dead, and I'm telling you: ZOMBIE ARE FREAKY SCARY. Oh, they're alright if you encounter them one at a time, but if they swarm you, you are doomed. Why, oh, why do I watch The Walking Dead before bed?

I think zombies are actually pretty funny. I enjoyed their staring roles in Shaun of the Dead and Zombieland, and it was probably only a matter of time before they got their own series.

So the next time you encounter a zombie (a single one, not a swarm), just remember: Zombies were people, too.

Side note: the star of The Walking Dead is Andrew Lincoln, who has one of my favorite roles in one of my favorite movies, Love Actually - a holiday fave at the Baker's. Love him!

Dreams of Martin Street

2011-12-12T07:56:00.001-05:00

For the last two nights I've had dreams of my Nonnie's house on Martin Street. It's been pretty weird, consisting of situations where we're going through the stuff that existed when she lived there and discussing meaningful momentos.

The house on Martin Street is now for sale since my Uncle Joe passed away last November. It's a real shame that no one in the family can take it over, having been in the family since probably the mid-1930's. The house as it stands today does not exactly look the same on the outside, but the basic design still exists on the inside - enough to evoke strong, wonderful memories.

You've read about my childhood spent as part of a big Italian family (Nonnie had 11 siblilings, two of which had passed away by the time I was born) several times before, including this post and this one, and most of that time was spent in the house on Martin Street, which was a magnet for nightly extended family activity. In fact, five of Nonnie's siblings lived right Martin Street, and two lived just around the corner. Two other brothers lived within two miles. The only member of our family still living on Martin Street is Aunt Carol (93? 94?), who is actually on my Grandfather's side of the family.

How fortunate I was to have lived during such a special time that bridged the generations!

2011-12-08T17:50:00.001-05:00

Seriously, how could anyone, especially Santa, resist this face?

My Friday

2011-12-08T06:48:00.001-05:00

Today is my Friday as Mark and I are taking off work tomorrow (I suppose that makes it "his" Friday, too) to embark on our annual Christmas shopping extravaganza. List in hand, we will most likely knock off most of our shopping all in one day, come home, wrap the bootie, and stow it safely beneath the tree. Then, when Annalisse gets home from school she will all of a sudden notice that presents have magically appeared and her excitement will rise 10 decibles. (Funny how Cameron never had the same reaction. Kids!) It's a little deceiving, though, since only a portion of the gifts are for her - but, whatever.

The early highlight of the day will be going to the Chit Chat Cafe in Victor for breakfast, a once a year treat since we don't usually go out for breakfast. Then we'll head over to Eastview to pick stuff up there, then, who knows? Maybe I'll even get a nap in if we get done quickly. Now THAT would make for a perfect day!

O Christmas Tree! 2011 Edition

2011-12-04T15:03:00.001-05:00

The tree is up, the house is decorated, we are ready! (Except for the shopping part.) Once again, we have a beautiful tree - isn't that what I say every year? I absolutely love the glow of the tree at night and always miss it when we take it down (although I am always totally ready to take it down and get on with the new year...). Even though I do tend to get a little annoyed with Christmas at times, I do love the soft glow of our decorations combined with the warmth of the fireplace. Sounds like I'm ready to settle in for a long winter's nap...

(Did somebody say "nap"?)

Annalisse and Nic with our tree "in the wild."

Mark preps the tree

Our Golden Elf

O Christmas Tree!

Waiting for a Christmas miracle

That damn elf gives me nightmares

My techno tree on my desk

The Groundhog Commeth?

2011-12-02T18:52:00.001-05:00

Groundhog's Day is exactly two months from now. I cannot overstate the importance of this. Now, I shall go back into my hole until February 2.

Bullet: Dodged

2011-12-02T07:01:00.001-05:00

Yesterday Windstream completed its takeover of Paetec, and we are relieved that Mark escaped unscathed. For now anyway, his job is secure. Here's the article from yesterday's D&C. Fingers crossed for the near, and far, future!!

Ready, Set, CELEBRATE!

2011-12-01T07:27:00.001-05:00

Let the race to the new year begin!

Christmas cards ordered and written: CHECK!
Outside decorations mounted: CHECK!
Christmas tree in place and decorated: This Saturday!
Baker Holiday Cookie Exchange Scheduled: Sunday, December 18!
Shopping Done: OF COURSE NOT!
Holiday music loaded onto iPhone and iPad, including Michael Buble's new album, Christmas: CHECK!
Monitor amount of cookies, holiday appetizers, and wine consumed: TBD.
Counting down to holiday break: 22 MORE DAYS!
Taking a breather to reflect on the "Reason for the Season" and to think about the year gone by: I'M TRYING, I'M TRYING!

Remember that old saying, "If you need something done, give it to a busy person." Right.

Have a wonderful December!

How Long Until the Christmas Holiday Break?

2011-11-27T21:16:00.001-05:00

So here we are on the Sunday night after a nice mini-break since last Wednesday. As if I need to repeat this: I LOVE BEING ON VACATION. Whether it's a staycation or an awaycation, it's just awesome to hang at home or, in the case of the "real" vacation, experience new things and new places.

Cam was home on his quarter break, having wrapped up his first term at RIT. That was fast!! His grades were pretty good, except for one "C" in a 4-credit course that brought his average down. I stressed to him again how important it is that he "does well" to keep his scholarship and be on track for grad school (which he has indicated he plans to do), but I still think he's got some maturing to do...he needs to work on more homework/less fun stuff. I'm not against the fun stuff, but he needs to give his schoolwork the attention it demands. Okay, I'm all done lecturing!! That being said, it was great having him home and he was pretty pleasant for his time with us.

The break has been great for getting a lot of little things done. We decorated the house (with everything but the tree), did some baking, chipped away at the Christmas shopping, and just generally puttered around the house and did little projects.

What will this week bring? Probably lots more eating of the turkey and at least one evening program at work. Let's just say I'm counting the days until holiday break!! (27 days.)

Things to be Thankful For - 2011

2011-11-24T08:12:00.001-05:00

I would be remiss if I didn't pause to recognize the things I'm thankful for this Thanksgiving. There are so many blessings. Of course, I'm thankful everyday (although, to be honest, I'm thankful some days more than others), but Thanksgiving is especially great because it's a no-pressure holiday with amazing food (special thanks to Grandma Pat, who is making our awesome meal today), and is a great time to be thankful for:

Family and friends, near and far
Reconnecting with old friends this year
Our jobs - in these dire economic times Mark and I have managed to thrive in our jobs. I'm hoping I can say the same thing next Thanksgiving since Mark's company merger happens on December 1 and there's a lot of uncertainty surrounding that transition.
Good health
Two healthy, happy (most of the time) kids who make us very proud
Our sweet pup, Jasper, who brings a lot of golden happiness to our lives
Our home - a refuge from the crazy day-to-day stuff (especially nice now that it's fireplace season)
Our neighborhood and wonderful neighbors
Technology - it's killed my attention span but enriched my life. In particular I'm thankful for my iPhone, iPad and Macbook!
My niece, Nicole, who moved to Fairport in March. It's been so wonderful having her and her boyfriend, Patrick, in our everyday lives!
Travel - and the opportunities to travel and experience new things through my national association
Green Mountain Coffee and Finger Lakes Coffee Roasters - helping me get every day off on the right foot!
Sleeping in every once in a while
Being married to someone who also likes to eat out
Humor - if we didn't laugh, we would surely cry!

Best wishes for a wonderful Thanksgiving for your and your family. I'm looking forward to the turkey coma later today!!

School Picture Bonanza!

2011-11-22T20:57:00.001-05:00

Boy, did we get a bargain with Annalisse's school pictures this year.

OR DID WE?

I always get the least expensive (cheapest!) photo package for school pictures because it's basically a crapshoot. When they're good, they're usually great, but when they're "bad" they can be very, very bad indeed. So, if by chance they turn out pretty well I can always order more.

This year, we ordered Annalisse's 11th grade pictures on picture day in early September and they didn't come, and they didn't come. Then, a couple of weeks ago Annalisse was notified that her picture was lost so she needed to retake them. We received the new pictures today (which turned out great!), and were surprised that somehow we ended up with the jumbo pack: 8 X 10s, 5 X 7s, 3 X 5s, 2 X 3s, wallets, magnets, two key chains and a CD.

WHAT THE H?

That's a whole lotta Annalisse. What am I going to do with all these pictures? We don't even have this many relatives. Maybe decorate the Christmas tree? Placemats? Coasters? Use them as her senior picture...now there's an idea!

Vintage

2011-11-20T18:40:00.001-05:00

I spent a lazy Sunday (at last!) cleaning out some closets and drawers and came across two pieces of "vintage"clothing left over from my teenhood. Over the years I've never been able to part with these two things: my Massena Red Raiders hoodie (complete with the now non-PC Indian Head) and a down vest I got for Christmas when I was maybe 13 or so (purchased, I'm sure at Levine's Department Store, where my Aunt worked and where all my clothes came from). It seems these two items are some of the last remnants of a life live "long ago."

I don't fit into the hoodie anymore, and Annalisse hardly fits into it either. I do, however, fit into the down vest, although I never really wore it when I got it, or the years following...I'm not sure I ever saw the point to a coat without arms and still don't, even though down vests are still in fashion. Maybe it's a badge of honor to have two pieces of clothing that are over 30 years old! Or the memories...oh the memories!

City Driving Anxiety

2011-11-17T19:53:00.001-05:00

Here I sit in a Marriott in Tarrytown, NY waiting to spend tomorrow as an exhibitor at the New York State Art Teacher's Conference. I drove here this afternoon after spending most of the day at the New York Graduate Admissions Professionals meeting at Syracuse University. I can already feel my blood pressure rising as I consider the commute north after tomorrow's long day.

The exit for Tarrytown/my hotel was literally right off the exit from the Tappan Zee Bridge, about 10-15 miles away from NYC. I can tell you I could never live in a place like this, not with all this crazy traffic. As I was coming into the area and the traffic was picking up, it was bad but NOT AS BAD as it was in the outbound traffic lane, which I will be in tomorrow at 4pm. Not ideal. I looked at alternate routes out of the city from here and there are some, but everyone goes the same way for around 13 miles at the start of the route out.

After heading out romorrow afternoon I'll be driving to Binghamton, which is approximately three hours from here. I'm tyring to get as close to Rochester without actually driving all the way home (too tired, too dark) so I can get up early on Saturday and arrive in Fairport by 10am (in order to get to the Minerva-Deland Craft Fair!). The report is it's snowing in Fairport right now so maybe it's good that I'm not there or I'd probably be cursing a blue streak.

It definitely looks like another 600 mile three day trip. Give me the calm, quaint, welcoming Fairport over the big city anytime!

A Night to Remember

2011-11-12T16:53:00.001-05:00

LAMP

Yesterday afternoon (on 11-11-11) I loaded up the car with four 16-year-old girls (a.k.a "L.A.M.P": Leighanna, Annalisse, Mo & Paige) and headed to Buffalo for the Mat Kearney concert, Annalisse's birthday present from us (the birthday celebrations just go on and on, don't they?). In case you've never heard of Mat Kearney, he's an indie folk/rock artist, and all four girls are huge fans.

The kids were so excited for the concert! We got to Buffalo around 5:30pm, found parking, and walked to a nearby TGIFriday's for dinner (their choice...). The doors opened at 7pm so we stood in line for a little bit, then entered the Town Ballroom, a cozy music hall resplendent in black walls and a mosh pit surrounded by different levels for standing. Not a seat in sight. (I must confess the idea of standing for over four hours caused a little panic for my 48-year-old self, wondering how my back and legs would be survive the night.) Like a true mom I collected all the coats and purses and let the kids go into "the pit" to get closer to the stage. Since it was such a small venue I didn't worry about them because I could watch them from where I was standing.

Mat finally took the stage around 9:30pm (2 1/2 hours of standing by now...thank God I had a railing to lean on), and the crowd went wild. Even though I wasn't really a fan before the concert, I'm definitely a fan now. He was really great: strong voice, talented musician, warm and funny in the way he interacted with the audience. At one point he stepped off the stage into the crowd and walked right past the girls, went up into the upper levels, and headed back to the stage via the stairs directly next to where I was standing. No, I did not reach out and touch him. That would be creepy.

For Mat's encore he invited Leagues, the opening band back out on stage and they performed...wait for it...my current favorite earworm...PUMPED UP KICKS! How awesome was that?! Since Annalisse knew it was one of my favorites she was surely freaking out. Fun!!

Annalisse and Mat

After the concert the girls were really wound up so we went out to the merchandise table and they got their pictures taken with the "hot" guy from Leagues, and we convinced Annalisse to ask the drummer from Mat's band how she could meet him since she was celebrating her 16th birthday. He told her to go to the bus and wait there - that Mat would be out in 10 minutes. So, out we went, and out he came, and bada-bing! Pictures and chatting with Mat Kearney. What a great night they had. I think I even heard it was "the best night of my life" from one of them.

And I was pretty happy, too. When we can make our kids really happy, what's better than that? Thank you, Mat Kearney, for a great and memorable evening.

Update 11/13/11: Speaking of Mat Kearney, this article was in USAToday this morning.

You'll Never Find a Recipe Here

2011-11-09T20:32:00.001-05:00

As a blogger (that's debatable), other blogs tend to catch my eye. God knows there are enough of them out there, and there are quite a few I follow myself. UNTIL, the blogger starts posting recipes on a regular basis. That's when I "unbookmark" them and move on.

As a person who does not really like to cook, I can't really see the attraction in all the foodie stuff out there these days: TV shows (networks), magazines, Internet sites, and entire sections of bookstores devoted to cooking. Sure, I like to eat great (fancy) food, but I learned early on how the chef (or book pictures) lull you into a sense of "I could do that," only to find out it takes more chopping, mixing and stirring than I have the patience for. That being said, I can certainly appreciate the experience of eating such creations MADE BY OTHERS.

My promise to you, good or bad: You will never find a recipe on the Baker Blog. You'll have to go to one of the other 10,000 foodie blogs for that.

Weekend Unscripted

2011-11-06T18:55:00.003-05:00

Look what we raked up.

Finally, a weekend where we didn't have every moment planned, just the way a weekend should be. It all started on Friday night after I took Annalisse to work and Mark had an after-work gathering (from which he didn't get home until after 8pm). Can you say "laying on the couch wrapped in a fluffy blanket, watching TV with my pup by my side"?! Rare are these nights!

Saturday was another winner, sleeping in and staying in my sweats all day, with just a brief jaunt to take Jasper to the field, followed by a nap (and finishing my book for tomorrow night's bookclub). Mark was off with Scott catching perch all day on Lake Ontario. Once he got home (Annalisse was once again at work) I decided to take a shower around 6pm to look presentable (a relative term) so we could go to Donnelly's for a burger.

This morning, it was up for church then raking a gazillion leaves (and they're not all down yet) on what turned out to be an incredibly warm, beautiful late fall day, which was followed by yet more lounging around! Wonderful!!

This was also the weekend our clocks "fell back." Just so you know, I'm sticking to Daylight Savings Time and will be heading to bed at what the rest of the east coast knows at 8pm. Winter solstice can't come fast enough.

Oh, and another thing...I got a chance to see several movies this weekend - which is pretty much unheard of. Jude's reviews follow:

Evita (1996) - Motivated by my obsessive love of the Evita broadway soundtrack, I decided to watch the much derided adaption starring Madonna and Antonio Banderas. My recommendation: skip it. Bad acting and even worse singing. No one can compare to Patti LuPone and Mandy Patinkin.

Crazy Stupid Love (2011) - Super Cute movie all around. Emma Stone is sweet and appealing ( the next "America's Sweetheart"?) and Ryan Gosling...well...let's just say he cleans up well. Really well!

Water for Elephants (2011) - I was looking forward to this one since we had read it in my bookclub. It was a pretty true adaption. I thought Robert Pattinson and Reese Witherspoon did a respectable job, but I watched it for Christoph Waltz, whom I've been fascinated with since Inglorious Basterds. I can't help but think he's being typecase into sinister roles. I'd love to see him in a different kind of role. I find him so incredibly appealing to watch!

A question that needs to be asked

2011-11-04T15:25:00.002-04:00

My question is: why does Cam get to go to Vermont this weekend, when I haven't been to my favorite place on Earth for three years? He never even liked to go to Vermont. Not fair! Maybe I can get Annalisse to look at colleges in the Green Mountain State...?

(Cam is headed to UVM for a debate today, and returning Sunday. He likes to rub it in.)

Halloweenie

2011-11-01T19:45:00.001-04:00

Patrick awaits his next victim

Another Halloween come and gone. This year was so much fun!

I often espouse how wonderful it is to live in the Village of Fairport - a little like living in Mayberry - but Halloween is especially fun around our neighborhood. Everyone seems to really get into it. People decorate, and my neighbors go out of their way to set up fun activities for the kids.

Don't even ask.

This year, with my niece Nic and her boyfriend Patrick living nearby, we had extra excitement. It turns out Patrick LOVES scaring kids on Halloween. So, decked out in our old gorilla mask and hairy hand gloves, he sat in a dark corner of the porch ready to "roooaaaarrrr" at the teens after hey received their candy treat. (The rule was no scaring the really little kids.) You should have seen how some of the kids jumped and screamed. One girls screamed long and loud. Annalisse thinks she might have even cried. It was cruel, but hilarious!! Who doesn't love to get scared?

It was a beautiful night and perfect conditions for trick-or-treating. We went through a ton of candy and wrapped things up around 8:30pm. It was just the way Halloween is supposed to be!

Another 600 Mile Weekend

2011-10-30T17:18:00.001-04:00

Don't the Bakers ever stay home? Apparently not.

We hit the road once again heading east to Saratoga Springs for Cam's first race with RIT. The weather forecast was for snow, a byproduct of the huge October nor'easter hitting New England, but LUCKILY, all we got was a really, really cold day. I say luckily, but after three hours in 38 degree temps I could hardly move my body to walk.

Anyway, Mark and I left around 8:30am for our trek across the state. Annalisse stayed home as she is "so over" regattas and had bigger fish to fry - the main plan of which included hanging with her cousin Nic and going to see the supposedly extremely scary Paranormal Activity 3. We got to the regatta around 1pm and checked in with Cam, then walked around a bit and wasted time until his 3pm "launch," which, as it turned out, probably occurred around 3:45 because he didn't reach the finish marker until 4pm. My plan was to be on the road for a quick visit to Massena for by 4pm since it is a 3:45 minute drive from Saratoga. So, after he finished and was heading back to the dock we headed to the car - FROZEN - and drove through the dark, deserted, cell phone dead zone Adirondack Park in the dark. That was fun. Not.

Can you tell my cranky mood from earlier in the week persists?

We reached Massena around 8, I took a quick shower, then headed out to meet some friends for dinner. By the time we crashed, we were exhausted. That was a lot of driving.

After a quick trip to see my mother and sister (and kitten, Riley - so cute!) in the morning we zipped out to my other sisters, dropped off some stuff, and headed back to the Roc. AND HERE COMES THE BEST PART!

I got a speeding ticket after I left my sisters! Mark was closing his eyes so it was my turn to drive. Obviously a bad mistake. The trooper, who was a really nice guy, reduced my ticket to a lesser charge so it won't make an impact on my driving record, but still...

For those of you keeping track, this is my second speeding ticket (luckily both were reduced) since August 2010. I'm serious when I say I'm usually pretty good about using my cruise control and obeying the speed limits. That's why it's so frustrating that when I do zone out once in a while, and am not paying attention which obviously leads to my foot getting heavier.

Perhaps this week will be better? At least we have Halloween to look forward to.

What It Must Be Like To Be a Trucker

2011-10-27T17:25:00.002-04:00

My travel season as a "road warrior" concluded today with a trip down to Elmira College. Altogether I attended six fairs this season, and my colleague Tonya did probably 8 or 10...I lose track. Even though I didn't travel too much for recruitment this fall, when I did travel I sure felt wiped out by the end of the day because of all that driving.

Which leads me to believe I could never have a career as a long distance trucker. It was all I could do to stay awake and engaged on the way to Elmira (approx. 2 1/2 hours each way), even with Evita blasting. On the way back it was Jesus Christ Superstar, with white knuckles all the way because of the really bad rainy/snowy rain conditions. I cannot imagine how truckers do it, hour after hour, day after day, week after week, year after year.

Which reminds me of that time in the mid- to late-70s when CB radios were all the rage. I remember my Nonnie saying they were just a fad and would never last. I was sure she was wrong...it turns out she was right. I still remember some of my familie's "handles": I was Animal Cracker, my Uncle Duff was Porkchop, Auntie was "Sweet Caroline. I know we all had one, but I'll be darned if I can remember them now. I remember sitting in the car with friends talking to "truckers," who were probably just other townspeople caught up in the craze. Thanks to the Internet, you can brush up on your trucker slang, and see CW McCall's Convoy video one more time. 10-4 Good Buddy!

Foul, Foul Tuesday

2011-10-25T06:26:00.000-04:00

It started on Monday, and is building to Tuesday - my foul, foul mood.

Maybe it's because I didn't get my nap this weekend. Perhaps it's the cold, gray October sky, or the spitting snow forcasted this week. Maybe it's the grind of my job. One thing I know it is: we are heading to Saratoga for Cam's regatta this Saturday and it's supposed to be 45 and rainy/snowy. Another thing I know is: he won't wear his boots or heavy water-proof clothing because he's a teenage boy. Let the worrying begin.

I'd better treat myself to Panera today or it's not going to be pretty.

Weekend in the Windy City

2011-10-23T20:10:00.000-04:00

I do believe Chicago is becoming one of my favorite cities. Not that I've spent a lot of time in really big cities, but how cool it is!

I headed out early on Friday morning so my friend Kristen and I could meet up and go to Jackson Park, site of the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition. Luckily both flights came in on time, with just one minor glitch: some guy threw up on Kristen on the plane. Y-U-C-K! Poor girl.

After we each checked into our respective rooms at the uber-luxurious Conrad Hotel (located in the heart of the city complete with a high end mall attached!!) Kristen changed and cleaned up and we headed out by cab on our adventure, which it turns out, was located in a pretty shady section on the southside of Chicago (?Bad, Bad, Leroy Brown?). The driver dropped us off at the address I had printed out from the Internet, which turned out to be a community recreation center. Undeterred, we went in and started asking about the landmarks we were seeking, and were helped by a very nice (large) man with a booming voice whose name was Bill.

Bill took out a map (you get the sense people occasionally stop by looking for the fair sites) and pointed out the location of the Statue of the Republic (since moved from its original location) which overlooked the fair, the Japanese Garden on the Wooded Island, and the Fine Arts Building, which is now the Museum of Science and Industry. BUT, he said, while the sites were close by, he didn't think we should walk to them because of the traffic. Bill kept going on about the "traffic," which it turns out was a euphemism for the fact that the park we'd be walking through is dangerous and a place known for drug deals. So into Bill's golf cart we hopped for our own private tour of the old sites. We thought that was super nice of him to escort us through the park, and Kristen felt it was a gesture that balanced out the universe after her earlier bad episode on the plane.

Obviously, it was very difficult to imagine "The White City" in run down, weedy, crime-ridden area where it stood almost 120 years ago, but it was still a lot of fun to actually be there. The only original building left standing is beautifully restored on the outside, and thoroughly modern on the inside. The Museum and Science and Industry was one of the coolest museums I've been to and I would highly recommend it if you visit Chicago.

After our visit to Jackson Park, we headed back over to Michigan Avenue ("The Magnificent Mile") for lunch before going back to the hotel to freshen up for our 4pm meeting. At 4pm, we were off and running for our meeting which lasted until 8pm, to be followed by another full day on Saturday. It was wonderful, as always, to see my NAGAP colleagues and the meeting was extremely productive. On Friday night we went out for drinks, but by Saturday night, after an awesomely delicious dinner, I was spent and I headed back to my fluffy bed to veg out for a couple of hours. This morning I had a bite to eat, headed back to the hellish zoo that is is O'Hare, and flew home to have dinner with the family, which included a visit with Cam.

Tomorrow it's back to reality with no fun travel planned until January, when, UNFORTUNATELY, I have to go to Puerto Rico for our next board meeting! Super Like!

A Random Potpourri of Thoughts

2011-10-20T20:11:00.000-04:00

Well, the sign of Libra is winding down, regrettably. It's been a crazy week that found me out at one thing or another every night, except tonight, when I am sitting in my sweats in my upstairs three-season porch with the heater blasting on me. HEAVEN!

iPhone 4S

I can't believe a week has gone by and I haven't mentioned that I bought the new iPhone 4S. Of course, I can't afford it and there was just a teeny tiny bit of buyer's remorse but GOSH DARN IT, my iPhone 3 was almost three years old, the apps were constantly crashing, it took forever to respond when I was typing and it was extremely slow in general. (Still, I didn't really need it.) Annalisse got her iPhone at the same time with the $$ she has earned at her bussing job, so we each had a very exciting day on Friday, October 14 when I arrived at the AT&T store by 6:50am (and still had seven people ahead of me)...and I can't even tolerate lines! I was that excited! And, IT'S AWESOME!

Chicago

Tomorrow I head to Chicago for the weekend for my NAGAP board meeting. I can't wait to go. I just love Chicago. This time I plan to get over to Jackson Park, which is the site of the 1893 Columbian Exhibition (Chicago World's Fair), which I am currently fascinated by after reading Erik Larson's The Devil in the White City. I fly home by 4pm on Sunday to get ready for another awesome week at work. *Sigh*

More Crew

Looking ahead to next weekend, the plan right now is to head to Saratoga to watch Cam in Head of the Fish regatta. He said that the team is not really ready for a "real" race yet since all the JV rowers have never actually rowed before, but his coach is using this as an opportunity to give the team practice and experience to a formal/competitive race. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE let there be nice weather. Remember two years ago when he almost got hypothermia from the cold and the wet? Right....

The End of the World

Apparently the world is going to end again tomorrow on October 21. My question is, if it happens to end between 8 and 9am when I'm in the air on the way to Chicago, where will we land? Will we just wander through space for all eternity?

That's about it for the potpourri of updates from the Bakers. Obviously, we're mired in the day-to-day and there's nothing really exciting going on. I'll take mundane.

The Golden Boy (Man)

2011-10-17T20:14:00.001-04:00

Happy 50th Birthday today to MY OLD MAN, Mark! With his young looks he should be able to go another 10-15 years until he actually looks 50. Must be his much younger trophy wife that preserves his youthful looks!!

Today's celebration marks the end of our monthlong birthday celebrations. Until next year...

Sardonic Wit

2011-10-13T20:16:00.001-04:00

How often do we get to talk about someone's brilliant "sardonic wit," and really mean it?

Last night I did something I've wanted to do for a long time. Although it was not in my Top 10 of things to do before I die, or even on my proverbial "bucket list,"I got to see one of my favorite authors, David Sedaris live. Long a fan of his (seemingly embellished) autobiographical and fictional essays, I was so excited when a friend asked me to go along. For an 1 1/2 hours he read some new material and told some sort-of-silly jokes.

Funny, irreverent, sardonic wit. He did not disappoint!

Birthday Trifecta

2011-10-10T19:38:00.001-04:00

We all survived our wonderful, fun, birthday extravaganzalicious weekend! The weather could not have been more perfect, and we had fun with all our relatives visiting. In addition to Mark's side of the family and friends, both my sisters and mother were there. Mary and Larry surprised us on Saturday afternoon, and it was so great! I think everyone's spirits were buoyed by the incredibly beautiful weather that graced us both Saturday and Sunday. I even managed to sneak a brief late-season nap on the porch!!

So, two birthdays down, and one to go. Of course, Mark might as well be 50 already rather than waiting until the 17th considering all the hoopla on Saturday. It was a very special time with very special people! Some pix from the party:

The Chow!

Judy and Mom

Greco Gurlz

Nana and the kids

Our Baker/Shiao Family

The Birthday Boy

All the Birthday Libras!

Sweet 16 Cake

Teenage Mutant Ninja Teenager

He Made Computers for the Rest of Us

2011-10-06T19:40:00.000-04:00

A sad goodbye yesterday to Apple's founder and innovative genius, Steve Jobs, who lost his battle with pancreatic cancer. If you know anything about me you know how much I love technology, and specifically, how much I love my iPhone, iPad and MacBook. But the loss of Steve Jobs is not just about technological devices, it's about his creative, imaginative, innovative mind, and his understanding that technology can also be about relationships, creating devices that are fun to use and can bring people closer together.

I think we are all a little nervous that really cool and fun technology has died with Jobs. Let's hope not. He's among a handful of figures that we can say changed the world when he put technology into the hands of non-techies. In other words, he made computers for the rest of us.

RIP, Steve. You will be missed.

Sweet 16

2011-10-05T17:47:00.004-04:00

First Birthday

Okay. How did it happen that my beautiful-little-rosebud-lips baby is 16 today? Seriously!! STOP, TIME, STOP!

I might as well get used to the idea as Annalisse has been waiting for this day FOR A LONG TIME. Over the last year, whenever I told her she was too young to do something her response was, "You won't be able to say that to me when I turn 16." HUH, right!

All kidding aside, I am so proud of her! She is a confident, beautiful, funny, loving and loyal daughter. Of course, along with all that comes the sassy mouth and cranky moods, but they just add to the charm!

So Happy Sweet 16, 'Lisse! You are loved!

Sassy Sweet 16

Welcome to Rocktober!

2011-10-01T20:00:00.001-04:00

Well, people, it's here. OCTOBER! After another busy week that included a quick overnight trip to Philadelphia to host a reception on behalf of NAGAP (and a great dinner with my old friend Derb), it's been a lazy, cold, dark and rainy Saturday. After a bit of catch-up and a short panel presentation at the University of Rochester (where I was able to peer through a window across from the program to slyly watch Cam at the table of his debate team), I rewarded myself with a much needed (and well-earned) nap!

The libra birthday odyssey gets underway this week with the celebration of Nic's birthday on Tuesday night with dinner at P.F. Chang's (her choice), followed by Annalisse's birthday on Wednesday, which will be pretty low key because she has to work, followed by the birthday celebration weekend when both our mothers, My sister Carol, Mom Shaio and Dave come to help us celebrate Mark and Annalisse's milestone birthdays.

(Oh, yeah, and a happy birthday to my friend Meg, one of the most rabid [in a good way] libras I know.)

We will be having a 50th/Sweet 16 combo party next Saturday (October 8th, which is coincidentally WHOSE actual birthday??) starting with pizza for just our immediate family, and having more friends and family come over for dessert. Yesterday I went to the party store to try to find decorations that would work for both. I think I was successful and am looking forward to decking out the house with "50" and "Sweet 16" stuff.

Such a great time of year as long as I don't think about what comes after October...

Weekend Update

2011-09-25T21:37:00.003-04:00

Another weekend come and gone. And what a weekend it was, weather wise. it's a real gift as we drift into the fall. The good news is we've entered the sign of Libra and, unfortunately we've also officially entered the fall season.

Ready for the Harvest Dance!

Annalisse continues to enjoy her job at Otto Tomottos, and they enjoy her. She worked Friday night, but took Saturday night off to go to the Harvest Dance with her girlfriends. We took a quick trip to the outlet mall on Saturday morning in a last ditch effort to find a dress as she had searched at the mall last week with no success (panic is rising!). We found a really cute black number that was reasonably priced (it's all relative...) and looked super sweet on her. On Friday night while she was working Mark and I went to Label 7 for our official 24th anniversary celebration. They have great food there, and a nice atmosphere - I would highly recommend it.

On Sunday Mark and I were helping out at Fairport Crew Club's Liftbridge Regatta, so I had to be at the boathouse by 7:30am (ON A SUNDAY!) and work until 1:30pm. Mark was scheduled to drive one of the small boats (a "launch") at noon, so he would be tied up until around 3pm. Since he didn't need to come right away he picked Cam up at RIT so he could hook up with some of his FCC friends for a couple of hours. After my shifts were done, I took Cam to get his hair cut then we waited for Mark to come home before going to McCardle's for dinner (apparently Cam has been dreaming about loaded fries).

After dropping him off at school, we headed home and Annalisse and I watched Bridesmaids, which was cute but not as super funny as everyone has said, and even a little sad. Now, after a busy weekend and weekend, a quiet moment on a Sunday night as I get ready to take on another week that includes a quick overnight to Philadelphia for a NAGAP reception, topped off with (hopefully) a nice visit with my friend Derb, of 30th reunion fame.

Have a wonderful week!

You know things are really busy when...

2011-09-21T07:21:00.022-04:00

...there's a lot to blog about but no time.

Here are just couple of quick updates from "the road" - I'm on my North Country grad fair tour and enjoying a light day as I head to Utica later today for tomorrow's fair. Since last Thursday I've driven over 1,000 miles with more to go until I reach home on Thursday. Let's just say I don't think I could drive for a living.

Girls Weekend, 2011: Last Thursday around noon I headed down to Gettysburg for my girls weekend with Sue, Lorie, Gina and Heather. Sue and I decided to meet on Thursday night since it's such a long trip, and the other girls decided to do that, too. It made for a great Friday since, after a good night's sleep, we could start seeing all the historic sites right away.

I arrived at the historic Cashtown Inn around 6pm, checked in, and went into the quaint tavern for a glass of wine before Sue arrived. I must say, I felt myself melt away into relaxation with the low lights, beautiful setting and great acoustic music piping in. Ahhhhh....wonderful! The Cashtown Inn is about eight miles out of Gettysburg, and is rife with history, having served as a makeshift confederate hospital during the three days of the Battle at Gettysburg (July 1, 2 & 3, 1863). And the best part...IT'S HAUNTED! It was featured on the TV show Ghost Hunters (which Annalisse and I LOVE). That being said, I didn't experience anything paranormal, although Sue said she heard what sounded like furniture being dragged on the third floor (there was no one staying upstairs). Since there was "no room at the Inn," the other girls stayed in town and we met up Friday morning.

On Friday, we got the lay of the land and decided what we wanted to do for the next couple of days. We checked into the Gettysburg Inn right at Lincoln Square, in the heart of Gettysburg, and that was really lovely. After a bit of wandering, we drove around to the battlefields, and then headed back into on town for dinner. The day was certainly punctuated with a lot of laughs!!

On Saturday, we Gina decided to get her hair cut, and "we" decided Heather needed new (hair) color, so a bit of the day was taken up with those shenanigans. In between appointments, Sue, Heather and I headed to a wax museum, and saw a bunch of shriveled up, dusty and decaying wax figures depicting various scenes leading up to, and after, the Civil War. Hokey, but fun nonetheless. Then, we booked a ghost walk. After the ghost walk (which was mostly compelling storytelling), we got into the car and drove back up to the battlefields (it was 9pm by then). Spooky, creepy, FUN!

Until next year, enjoy some pix from this year's adventure:

The Blue and the Gray duke it out.

The battlefields at night...orbs??

The Girls

What the heck?

The Cashtown Inn

Sue and Heather receive words of wisdom from Lincoln and some green guy who looks like Andy Williams

Roger, our Ghost Tour guide

The News from Southwest Rochester

2011-09-13T19:37:00.004-04:00

I'm sure you're all wondering how Cam is doing at RIT...probably losing sleep wondering! Wondering! Wondering! Wondering!

As far as I can tell, he's doing well so far. I've seen him twice: once when he wanted to come home to pick up some gaming stuff (and sign his athletic paperwork for crew), and last Sunday when we picked him and his roommate, Michael, up for dinner at Zebb's. Both boys are VERY quiet, so it's a little tough to get information without dragging it out of them. Truly, I couldn't tell you how his schoolwork is going because every answer, when asked, is "good" (although I don't believe he's actually gotten any grades back yet), but his social life seems to be on track.

In addition to his plan to join crew (the interest meetings are this Thursday and Friday), he informed me last night (at 10pm) that he joined the debate team and will be traveling to Binghamton this weekend for his first debate (I wonder how the floodwaters are doing down there...poor people!). Only a little hint of irony there since he never talks much...

Of course, in the back of my mind I'm still a little nervous about his academics and look forward to getting feedback on that sometime soon. In the meantime, though, we text back and forth when needed (mostly for issues regarding $$ and requests to transfer more of it from his savings to his checking account), and exchange the occasional phone call. We're all settling into our new routine, and Annalisse claims to miss her brother and says she doesn't like being an "only child" (plus Jasper!). Hmmm...I'm not so sure about that one.

Where were you when the world changed?

2011-09-11T10:23:00.004-04:00

September 11, 2011

Today marks the 10th anniversary of the terrorist attacks on NYC and Washington. It's a solemn day of reflection and remembrance for all of us, and you'd be hard pressed to find anyone who could not tell you where they were when the world changed.

It was an incredibily beautiful, blue-sky day, and I was taking our cat Prudence, who was in the throws of treatment for feline diabetes, back home from a trip to the vet for a check up. As with most mornings, I was listening to WHAM1180, Rochester's most- listened-to AM station, when the coverage began. Listening closely, I tried to piece together what was going on. By the time I reached work, my coworkers were huddled around the computer and we were all in shock, trying to make sense of the events as they unfolded.

The 10 years following the attacks have been so bad for many aspects of American life: lives lost to war, a plunging economy, high levels of joblessness, increased (and many times, in my opinion, absurd) levels of airline security. Sometimes it's hard to keep our chins up. I think there have been a lot of governmental mistakes made over the last decade by an administration that used the terrorist attacks to further personal agendas borne of paranoia and arrogant desire. But that's a topic for another day.

For today, we remember. We will move on, but we will never forget. September 11, 2001

The Would-Be Runner

2011-09-06T18:47:00.005-04:00

I would love to be a runner. I've tried to become a runner several times in my life, and most recently through the "Couch to 5K" training program, which has an app that I recently downloaded onto my iPhone. I learned about the program from my friend Kristen who a started it a year ago and is now running marathons (my idol!).

Why running? A couple of reasons:

People describe the joy in running and how they really get into their own heads while doing it
It's obviously great exercise
What a great sense of accomplishment when you finish a marathon!
It can benefit the runner (weight loss) and her overweight (or super fluffy looking) dog

Last week, after buying new sneakers for the first time in 10 years, plus an arm holder for my iPhone, I resolved to start the program. The first two sessions went pretty well. I was EXTREMELY SORE after the first night, and was ready again for the second session a couple days later, but had not had a chance to go again until tonight.

So, out I went this evening, and almost immediately I felt a pull in my groin (TMI?) and stopped running, fearing I would do some kind of damage if I kept going (not to mention that it was getting increasingly uncomfortable). I tried a couple more times to jog, and had to stop again.

HOW PATHETIC IS THAT? I can't even succeed at a running program. Walking has always been my favorite activity and maybe I'm just meant to walk. I suppose if I try to walk two miles a day (an activity always made better with my favorite pup) that's better than nothing.

Still, I wish I could run. Maybe I'll try again tomorrow.

Fly, Little Bird, Fly

2011-09-02T20:30:00.013-04:00

Our first little bird has flown the nest for his new life at RIT. Wednesday was a great and busy day of moving Cam into his little little room and, ironically, not getting a chance to say formally "goodbye."

Since Cam's scheduled move in time wasn't until 3pm, we arrived on campus around 11:30 and had lunch at RIT's Global Village, which features a beautiful courtyard, some great ethnic food, and a couple of cute international stores. After lunch we made our way up the "quarter mile" (which is actually 1/3 mile), a brick walkway that cuts through the center of campus, which took a little while to get down since we kept running into people we knew. We spent some time checking-in and visiting the services tables at the field house, then got back into the car and drove over to his dorm's unloading zone.

Finally, the big moment was here! We unloaded the car and made a couple of trips up to his room. Within a 45 minutes we had unpacked his stuff and made his bed - that tells you how much stuff he didn't bring. The room looked so bare!! His roommate Michael had been there, as evidenced by his duffel bags all around, but was not around while we were getting Cam set up.

After unpacking, Mark, Annalisse and I decided to head back over to to the fieldhouse to see if we could catch the crew coach* as I had a couple of questions. We intended to go back to Cam's room when we were done, but then he texted me to say he was heading to where we were to meet his friend from Mike from Fairport. SO, as it turns out we never got a chance to formally say "goodbye." It's probably just as well that we could avoid that scene all together...

I've talked to Cam once over the last couple of days, and we've texted a bit. In general, though, I'm trying to leave him alone so he can focus on the fun at hand and settling into his new life. It is a little weird, and definitely a different feeling than when he was in camp, where I knew he was safe and staying out of trouble. It does help to know he's only a 1/2 hour away, and I remain very excited for him!

*As it turns out, Cam decided to join the Division III crew team at RIT, a decision we're really happy about that. I'm not sure what the process is, and if he's automatically on the team by just exhibiting interest. We'll know more after he goes to the informational meeting in mid-September.

Today is THE Day!

2011-08-31T07:46:00.003-04:00

Today is the day for which we've been preparing a LONG time. And I'm not just talking the last couple of years. Isn't most, if not all, a child's education geared toward preparing him/her for college (or a trade) after high school, which gives him/her the education or training needed to be a productive member of society? Obviously, a rhetorical question.

So all that readin', writin', and 'rithmetic has led us to college move-in day. The car is packed, the boy, and the parents, are ready. I'm so excited for all the new experiences that lay ahead for Cam, good and bad; this will be a time of tremendous growth for him. Today he goes to college as a teenager, tomorrow he will come home as a man. Well, not literally tomorrow, but the proverbial "tomorrow." Corny, eh?

Good luck to my eldest! The world is at your feet!!

The Wind, The Week and the Waiting

2011-08-28T08:29:00.008-04:00

As Hurricane Irene batters the East Coast (it's dark and windy here, and Jasper is a little freaked out), and hot on the heels of this week's other natural disaster (the earthquake centered near Richmond VA), we conclude our staycation week. Of course, I didn't get as much accomplished as would have liked. A couple of things I should (could) have done the summer, but did not (yet) were to paint the front steps and the back privacy fence. I'm just not good at home improvement, and Mark can't be convinced to do those things either. So, alas, they still look bad: all chippy and faded and such. Maybe I'll get some ambition to do those things in the early fall. Another thing I did not yet get around to do prep work for a church committee I'm heading up this year. Procrastination at its finest! (AKA vacation)

The week wasn't too exciting, and it was even a little boring. We did all the running around we wanted to do, and with being a little cautious about our money situation (with extra bills related to the RIT bill and the possibility of Mark getting laid off in December), we didn't do anything too exciting (i.e. day trips or shopping). Annalisse had to work most evenings at her new bussing job at Otto Tomotto's, and there were a couple of days when Cam did nothing but play video games all day (THANK GOD HE GOES TO RIT ON WEDNESDAY. WITH MOST OF HIS FRIENDS ALREADY AT COLLEGE HE'S EXTREMELY BORED. HEY! MAYBE I CAN GET HIM TO PAINT THE PORCH STEPS...) I tried my best to get a nap in here and there, but that didn't work out too well either.

One thing I did enjoy (surprise, surprise!) was cooking. Yes, cooking!! I had a chance to think of some special things I wanted to cook for the week, and could actually take the time to prepare and cook them. We had a great German meal (complete with our awesome neighbors to share it with), I tried shrimp scampi (a little bland...I think I need a different recipe), I made Cam's fave mac-n-cheese, and tonight I'm making Chicken Mirabella.

Another thing I really enjoyed this week was reading The Devil in the White City, a fascinating true story of the 1893 Chicago World's Fair, complete with murderous intrigue. Great book! I highly recommend it.

So, tomorrow I head back to work and I actually feel ready to tackle a new year with renewed energy. The greatest part about my week off is that I could step back and think about my job, and how I want to approach things this year. A nagging question: after a tough recruiting season and very difficult external factors affecting applications and enrollment, will this be a year of change for me? We shall see.

For now, though, I'm savoring the last quiet moments of my vacation, and plan to hunker down and ride out the storm (literally, and, I suppose in some cases, metaphorically speaking).

Countdown to College

2011-08-23T18:21:00.015-04:00

Today we took a trip over to RIT to check some things off the "to do" list before Cam heads over for move in next Wednesday. We thought, to beat the crowds, we would:

Get his ID - CHECK.
Get his books - CHECK.
Verify the balance on his bill for the payment plan option - CHECK.
Take a peek into his room - CHECK!

His room is really basic. Just room enough for two occupants with a bunk bed, dresser, desk and office file desk on each side. There isn't even a closet, just a closet bar to hang clothes and some cubby holes. Cam and his roommate Michael (from California; same major) will be living in very close quarters! I was wondering where his gigantic TV would go, so we'll have to see if we can make it work on top of his dresser. Michael is bringing the other "big ticket" item: the fridge. The room is carpeted and the bathroom is right next door.

Cam wasn't that interested in buying cool or cute stuff for his room, but it should be pretty nice and comfy with his new bedding and accessories. I think I actually saw a smile!

Staycation 2011

2011-08-19T14:01:00.011-04:00

Today at noon begins my one week "staycation"/ vacation for this year. Sure, I've taken a lot of trips this year, and it seems like I'm always on the go, but for the last time for what will probably be a while we're all home for an entire week with not a lot planned. About the only concrete things going on as of "now" are that I'm heading up north on Sunday to see my sister and mother, both of which are hospitalized right now (Mom for pneumonia, Carol for hernia surgery [she should be getting out later today]). When I return from Massena, we're going to RIT on Tuesday to spend a couple of hours and get some of Cam's tasks out of the way (ID, books, checking out his room is we're lucky). Other than that, the week is ours...

Which could be a good thing or a bad thing. The challenge will be to keep the kids busy. Both have been pretty much couch-bound since Cam finished his camp job and Annalisse returned from all her summer travels. No, they're not sick. Just lazy (BAD MOTHER!). I am really looking forward to Cam heading off to RIT and Annalisse heading back to school so they can do something other than watch TV and surf the Internet all day. A couple of days of that is okay, but weeks and weeks...?

So, we're looking for long walks with Jasper, nice meals at home that take more than 1/2 hour to prepare (as is mostly the case after a busy day of work), sleeping in, and picking up last minute stuff for College and the new school year. Let's hear it for STAYCATIONS!

An Ode To Summer

2011-08-12T20:54:00.015-04:00

Summer, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways (not too many original thoughts tonight...)

I love listening to crickets outside the open window on the sleeping porch.

I love to go outside at night, stop, look at the sky and just savor the moment.

I love the chirpy, fighting birds outside my window at 4am (even though I pretend to complain about them).

I love our new fire pit, and crackling fires shared with friends.

I love sleeping with the windows open, even if it's super hot out.

I love having Jasper follow me everywhere when I'm puttering in the yard, pulling out weeds here and there.

I love when the kids are having fun at camp and with their friends, as this is a special time they'll always remember.

I love the fresh fruit and vegtables available the farmer's market, but mostly I love the sticky buns.

I love eating outside with water nearby. It makes me feel like I'm on vacation.

I love vacation days with not a lot planned.

I love thunderstorms, any time of day, but especially at night.

I love wearing no socks from May until October.

I love indulging in the memory of the summers of my youth, spent with friends by the St. Lawrence. They leave me smiling, and a little sad.

In these waning days of summer, I have to remind myself to live in the present, savoring each moment in the weeks to come, as Cam prepares for the next stage in his life, and Annalisse starts an important year in her high school career.

Just to be fair: THINGS I HATE ABOUT SUMMER

I hate the bugs; mosquitoes, flys and the like.

I hate having to work in the summer.

That's about it.

A Capitol Vacation

2011-08-05T12:16:00.005-04:00

Tomorrow we embark on our last getaway as a foursome as we head to Northern Virginia to visit Mom Shiao, Dave, and the kids, and also to see our German exchange student, Belinda, as she visits her family in Virginia. I never tire of visiting the Washington area (except for the crazy, intense traffic) as there is always so much to see and do.

This time, we're going to head up to Mount Vernon in Alexandria. The kids and I went there quite a few years ago, but Mark has never been so that should be fun. That means this year we will have visited two president's homes (the other being Monticello in April). I don't even mind the long car ride as it's always broken up by a visit to the Country Cupboard in Lewisburg, PA, and gives me a chance to get caught up on my reading.

Check back for a trip report!

Not A Great Surprise

2011-08-01T18:09:00.005-04:00

Well, this should be interesting. Today Mark's company announced that it has been bought out by a larger telecom company from Arkansas. This came totally out of the blue for the majority of Paetec employees. Now we're left wondering what will happen with Mark's job as Windstream Corp. will most likely consolidate the jobs at Paetec to do away with redundancy. Once the new company really understands how difficult and expensive it is to do business in New York state they'll probably pull all the jobs out of here. Not good.

Hmmm...time will tell.

A Bad Day For a Good Soaking Rain

2011-07-29T09:24:00.002-04:00

Today is the big day for the Fourth Avenue Street Sale, and it's incidentally the first day we've gotten a MUCH NEEDED GOOD SOAKING RAIN in a really long time, I'm taking more than a month. Everything is brown, dry, and hard so we definitely needed the rain, but c'mon! How am I ever going to take my sale loot and go out for dinner when I can't even put my treasures out?

Hoping for the weather to clear...

Graduation Celebration

2011-07-24T16:11:00.020-04:00

This weekend we celebrated Cam's graduation with a dinner/dessert/bonfire, which was exactly one month after his June 23 graduation from FHS (it seriously seems so long ago!!). I think you may recall me mentioning at one point, probably back in the early winter, that Cam said he did not want a graduation party. The dinner, followed by dessert at home was an acceptable compromise for all of us.

At 5:30pm, our extended family, plus a couple of friends (about 30 people in all, counting the littler kids), gathered for a dinner at Bocaccini's, a nearby restaurant that is one of our local faves. Mom/Jeanne, brother David and our nephew (Jackson) and niece (Amelie) had come from Arlington for the weekend, and Mary and her family, came from Watertown for the day. The beautiful day was the crowning jewel to what had been a hot and sunny week. We had a delicious dinner with appetizers and four entrees (served family style) that we had chosen ahead of time. At the beginning of the dinner we presented Cam with the t-shirt quilt Grandma Pat had made from t-shirts I had hidden away over several years. It is very cool and we hope he will use it on his bed at RIT.

After dinner, we came back to the house for (a lot of) dessert and had a little celebration for Amelie's first birthday, which was Friday, July 22. She is so stinkin' cute!! A little into the dessert Cam's friends came over for a bonfire on the patio, and we all took care to leave them alone and tried not to embarrass him too much. It sort of worked (not really).

The party broke up around 9pm, and Cam's friends headed out around 10. Then, it was up-and-at-'em early this morning to get Cam packed and ready to go back to camp in time for his 9am breakfast meeting/party. Annalisse followed with her 11am drop off for her second CIT week and what I'm sure will be a more management week heat-wise.

What a crazy, busy, wonderful weekend it was! Is there any doubt why I love this summer so much? Another milestone achieved, and now we turn our attention onward to prepping and packing for college, which is a mere five weeks away.

Aunt Lena and Jackson

Cam, Uncle Pete and Dad

Opening Amelie's presents with Mom, Dave and Aunties

Cam and Dave - GAME OF THRONES = Total Happiness

Cousins! Annalisse, Nic, Drew and Drew's girl, Ashley

Cam's t-shirt quilt

Amelie and Jackson playing in the pool

Amelie and her new furry friend

2011 Epic Summer Fails

2011-07-21T07:23:00.009-04:00

This has been a wonderful, action packed, fun-filled (hot) summer so far, but there are two areas that have not been successful: my garden and week 1 of eating out while the kids are at camp.

I'm not much of green thumb, but most summers I manage to get some nice, colorful annuals and a bunch of herbs into my garden by the end of May so that I might enjoy them all summer long. This year, according to my usual routine, I picked up my herbs and a couple of flats of nice red verbenas, along with a couple of pumpkin plants just to shake things up a bit. I also found a couple of packets of peas and green beans in the garage and decided to give them a try, growing them in a pot so that I might have a nice little patio garden.

Unfortunately, I had two main forces working against a hearty garden this year: the heat and the squirrels/chipmunks/rabbits (I don't know which one is the culprit, so I might as well list them all). Within days of planting the verbena, the plants has been mercilessly dug up and dragged to other parts of the garden or into the yard. Replant, dug up. Replant, dug up. Give up. Fail. They did the same to my little bean/pea dish gardens. I can only imagine them in there with their little front paws digging through the soil to get to the juicy seed. Dang critters!!

Next was the heat. I'm do not generally think to water the yard/plants/gardens, but this year we've had non-stop heat with very little rain for what seems to be almost three weeks now. So this one was my own fault. When I returned from Las Vegas most of my little garden, what was left of it, was decidedly brown and dead as a doornail. Poor little pumpkins...looks like the kids won't have the benefit of a Halloween pumpkin from our own garden...which was basically just a fantasy I dreamt anyway.

Next 2011 Epic Summer Fail: The Week of Eating Out/Week 1. If you've been a faithful reader of the Fabulous B@ker Blog for any amount of time then you know that when the kids go off to camp we try new restaurants in a week long (or two weeks, depending on the camp schedule) odyssey of eating out. Today is Thursday and WE'VE NOT EVEN EATEN OUT YET THIS WEEK. I know! It's unbelievable.

The reason is that Mark has a new position and his team is working on a project that has been resulting in late nights and weekends at work (or working from home). So, he's been getting home pretty late (for us) each night, and last night he had a work dinner. It's not as bad as it sounds; when I eat out I tend to eat more, and when I eat at home (because I hate my cooking) I eat less. Eating at home assists with the reduction of my PFD, or Personal Floatation Device (stomach/mid-section), as we like to call it at work.

So, I've been trying to water the garden more and we have a second chance at redeeming our "Week of Eating Out" next week when the kids are back at camp. Maybe I can salvage these summer "fails" yet!!

A Final Farewell to Some Old Friends

2011-07-16T20:52:00.008-04:00

A trip to the IMAX theatre this afternoon marked the last time we'll see our friends Harry, Ron and Hermione (in 3D, no less) on the big screen. The long awaited Part 2 of Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows is complete, and it's so sad. JK Rowling is a brilliant writer, and the movies (some better than others) brought her characters to life. Could we envision anyone else playing Harry, Ron, Hermoine and the other characters? Probably not! We will miss you, but you will live on on the "small screen" for a long time to come.

On another note, welcome to the 500th post of the Fabulous B@ker Blog. You know what that means! I will be publishing the first 500 posts into a book for each of the kids to enjoy later. I hope you'll join me for the next 500!!

Viva Las Vegas 2011

2011-07-15T21:06:00.022-04:00

On Tuesday night at midnight Mary, Annalisse and I returned from this year's junket to Sin City - Las Vegas. As with last year, I had to go to Vegas for my national association board meeting (poor me!!), and Mary and Annalisse tagged along for fun. After my meeting was over we had a couple of days to shop, eat and sight-see. If I had to characterize this trip it would be: totally fun and a lot of laughs!!

While Mary and I are not big gamblers, we did designate a litte $$ for the slots in honor of our father, who loved going to Las Vegas. Mary was pretty lucky the first night, winning $175 while playing just $6. She was really excited! The next night I got up to $350 on $20, but got greedy and cashed out at $200, which I used toward tickets to see the Beatle's Love, a Cirque du Soleil show at the Mirage (where we were staying). Acrobatics, dancing, spinning, flipping, bouncing! It was amazing and I would highly recommend it, even if you're not a Beatles fan (which I am).

While out there we also visited our cousins Nancy and Patsy, who live in nearby Henderson. Patsy's husband, Joe, who is a bodyguard, entertained us with some great stories about the celebs he's worked with/for, and our cousin Nancy told stories about the celebs who shop Neiman-Marcus where she works as a designer. Anyone who knows Annalisse, Mary and I knows we ATE THAT RIGHT UP!

Las Vegas is such a strange and crazy place. Very surreal. We saw tons of weddings, bachelor and bachelorette parties, and an Elvis or two. Who the heck shops in those extremely high end stores, anyway??

Here are some pixs of our fun and memorable trip:

Mary with one of those freaky statues that move

Yummy Treats!!

Beautiful Palm Trees

The Two O'Clock Show at the Fashion Show Mall

Mom and Daughter...she's taller than me...

LOVE!

The Gardens at the Bellagio - Beautiful!

Dolphin Show at the Mirage

The Waterfall at the Mirage

Jet Lag

2011-07-15T07:51:00.004-04:00

Wow, do I ever owe my faith readers an update from our trip to Las Vegas. In a nutshell: lots of fun, lots of laughs, but it's been nose-to-the-grindstone since I got home, and when I get a minute to post (usually in the evening) I'm too whipped to do it. Will post details and pix soon!

Reflections from the Hammock

2011-07-04T17:17:00.008-04:00

Isn't the sky so blue today?

Hey, look at that sweet bunny in the garden. I don't think he knows I'm here.

Where's Jasper?

I wish there were a stronger breeze so I could rock back and forth.

Chippy, I don't care if you're mad that I'm under the tree.

Blue jays, can you keep it down?

I probably should go back inside and fold the laundry. Nah.

I wish I could sleep here tonight.

Zzzzzzz....

Looking Forward to the 35th!

2011-07-02T14:58:00.008-04:00

We just got back from our one-night attendance at my 30th HS reunion. SO MUCH FUN! I saw so many people that I wanted to see, and had a great time catching up with everyone. Although, I must confess, it was a bit of a different experience than our 25th get together, mainly because of Facebook. The ability to keep up with everyone's news on a daily basis certainly takes away from some of the mystique surrounding the event. Instead, the mood changes into one of familiarity rather than the greeting of a long lost friend. Of course, that only applies to classmates who are "on Facebook." Those who are not were chided and cajoled (by me) to join, mostly out of my desire to stay in touch now that we've reconnected once again.

The highlight of the reunion was seeing my old friend Chris Derby, and his wife Marie. There are always a couple of people that I especially hope to see at these shindigs, and he is one of them. Chris was a very special friend throughout my HS years, and it was wonderful to spend time with him and Marie, with the promise of a possible get together when I will (hopefully) be travelling to Philadelphia for a NAGAP reception in September.

Connection. It's what life is all about. And it feels so great!!

(A special shout out to classmate Dave Randall who accidentally stumbled upon the Fabulous B@ker Blog in an Internet search for info on our reunion. Good to see you again, Dave!!)

The Excitement is Building

2011-06-30T07:13:00.003-04:00

Seeing my classmates' statuses on Facebook saying that they're heading "home" for our reunion this weekend is making me really excited. I wonder if I'll see some long-lost classmates that I would love to see again (Chris Derby!), and I already know that some I really want to see will be there. My only regret is that we're only attending the Friday night event, then we have to head back to Rochester on Saturday morning after breakfast with my mother because of our usual busy weekend schedule.

Still, fun is approaching...!!!

Reflections on Fun

2011-06-27T07:05:00.011-04:00

Sometimes it feels like work is "something that I just have to do" to get to the fun stuff each summer. No wonder I love summer so much...even if we weren't going to Las Vegas next week or DC in August, it's the fun of the lazy, warm summer days that gets me. I love being home and just hanging with the kids (when they're around) and Jasper. This past weekend was especially special and memorable, and this coming weekend is my 30th reunion.

I think a lot about how I graduated in '81, and Cam how graduated exactly 30 years later. Who would have known what the future would hold when I was a naive 17-year-old with no real idea what it meant to be an adult, and not really any idea what I wanted to be "when I grew up." I reflect on that time in my life and wonder how my parents felt when I was graduating from MCHS. Did they have the same feelings of pride and anxiety I've experienced this past year with Cameron? For some reason, I'm not sure they thought as much about it as I did...this intense parent involvement in their children's lives seems to be a fairly new concept. Of course, I'm sure they wanted the best for me, but I think their expectations were different than mine for Cam and Annalisse. Having never gone to college, I think they would have been happy to see me in a retail job or getting a job at one of the area manufacturing plants. I'd like to think I exceeded their expectations.

So, there's certainly a lot to this summer. Do you wonder why I love it so much?

One Down, One to Go!!

2011-06-24T09:06:00.005-04:00

Yesterday was a big day for the Bakers as we celebrated Cam's graduation. It was a wonderful day in many ways, and culminated in the touching ceremony, which started at 7:30pm downtown. We are so proud of him, with the difficulties and challenges of this past year behind us, and looking forward to the next chapter in his life. In the meantime, there is the fun of summer camp and getting ready for RIT to look forward to.

CONGRATULATIONS, CAM, and best wishes for happiness and success to FHS's Class of 2011!

Summer, at last!

2011-06-22T07:13:00.003-04:00

Today is Annalisse's last final exam, then it will be officially SUMMER (even though the calendar said it was summer starting yesterday...)!! It's also my last day of work before a couple of days off for Cam's graduation activities. I'm already warning all my family members that I will be blubbering like an idiot all Thursday night. Stay tuned for pictures...not of me blubbering - of Cam's graduation.

Dad, I got your sign.

2011-06-19T07:21:00.010-04:00

Happy Father's Day to all the beloved dads in our lives, especially Mark, and all the wonderful dads who are no longer with us. Of course, on Father's Day I am especially reminiscent about my dad, who will be gone eight years next month. It's so hard to believe that much time has passed when it seems like, literally, yesterday.

One of the ways I process grief and difficult situations seems to be to think about things in the car. I remember that when my father died for months afterward the moment I turned the key in the ignition, my mind would wander and I would think about my dad. So intently, in fact, that sometimes I would get to my destination and have no idea how I got there, or remember the trip. Another thing I noticed when my dad passed away was that everytime I would go for a dusk/evening neighborhood walk with Jasper, a street light would blow out. It got to be so noticeable (and common) that I actually thought my father was sending me a message by drawing my attention to the blown out streetlight. I'm talking really common. Like every night. I would nod and say to myself, "Got it, Dad."

After a while, it seemed like the street light blowouts were not happening as much anymore, and I would only occasionally notice them. Then, last night, when pulling into the driveway at 2am after picking Cam up at the Senior Bash and dropping him off at a friend's house, my next-door-neighbor's street light blew out. It was simply startling because of the timing and how unexpected it was. I felt it was a direct message from my Dad on Father's Day, and chills went up my spine. I know it sounds crazy, but sometimes, when you miss someone so much, that's the way grief works.

So, just like when I hear Louis Prima on the radio, last night I Got it, Dad.

What's that feeling? Oh, yeah - RELIEF.

2011-06-17T17:05:00.007-04:00

Finals week has been a long week filled with anxiety and a queasy stomach. No, not for Cameron or Annalisse - for me. I've been very nervous for a while now about Cam and his commitment to his senior year schoolwork, and this week presented the last set of challenges following a very long year. Cam had four tests this week, none of which he appeared to be studying for. The kicker was, once he had completed his Physics regents on Wednesday, when I asked "How did it go?", his response was "I didn't know half the questions." STOMACH FLIP (for me, not him).

I spent the whole night and next morning worrying about his pre-calc final (the same class he was failing at mid-term), and told him directly that if he did not spend some time studying for this last test he would not be going to TBW (Taco Bell Wednesday). WOW! For the first time in a while he dragged out his stuff and started studying. The things that motivate these kids. On Thursday afternoon, when asked how the pre-calc test went, his response was "Easy." A good omen. All I know is I haven't gotten a call from the school and I feel more relief than I have in a year, knowing there's a pretty good chance (dare I say 100%?) that he's on track to graduate next Thursday.

Knock, knock. Who's There? JOY and HAPPINESS.

Anxiety, don't let the door hit you on the way out.

486

2011-06-15T06:56:00.005-04:00

That's the number of posts to the Fabulous B@ker Blog since May 15, 2007. When I get to 500, I'm going to publish a book of the blog called "The First 500." I thought it might be something interesting for the kids (and their kids) to read when I'm long gone. With all the stuff coming up - graduations and summer and such - I bet I'll reach 500 by lat summer. C'mon people, give me something to write about!!

This is a post about NOTHING

2011-06-14T18:21:00.007-04:00

Just like the TV show Seinfeld, this is a post mostly about "nothing." There's simply been nothing really exciting to write about, life is just chugging along. The kids are done with school but still have tests (Cam is done on Thursday, and Annalisse has a couple of tests this week and next), we are counting down to graduation (June 24), and I'm just trying to balance Cam's assumption that he can come and go as he pleases with having him home at a reasonable hour so I can go to bed. Interesting times. I was recently putting together a slide show for his graduation celebration dinner, and was moved to watch how my "baby" grew out of the towheaded smiley boy into a handsome young man. Time does fly.

We are gearing up for a very busy summer as Annalisse tries to secure a job to support her shopping habits. It looks like she might have a berry picking gig at Chases Farm Market, and she'll be giving the owner a call back tonight to discuss that. While I'm sure the work won't be super fun or interesting, the pay will sure be great for her!! Aside from the time we already have trips planned and her two week CIT program at Camp Bristol, she's pretty available to work, especially during August and the fall.

I'm a parent who happens to love summer and having the kids around. It's nice to not have to make lunches, nag about homework, go to evening school activities, nag about homework, make sure everyone gets to bed at a reasonable hour, and NAG ABOUT HOMEWORK.

There are exciting weeks ahead. Stay tuned!!

That Wild and Crazy Prince Philip

2011-06-09T08:39:00.005-04:00

In celebration of his 90th birthday tomorrow, here's a funny article from London's Daily Mail highlighting some of the crazier things Prince Philip has said over the years. The man has no filter, and the results are pretty funny.

Another "Last"

2011-06-09T07:02:00.005-04:00

Today is Cam's last day of high school as tomorrow, the REAL last day, the seniors are heading to Darien Lake for a little fun and mayhem. Even though this is technically his "last" day, he's been basically checked out of HS academics for a while now. It's been a real struggle to keep him focused (not that it was successful), with constant reminders that his senior year's grades do count. Oh well. After next week's finals we can all breathe a sigh of relief and the homework nagging can stop for a couple of months. Among other worries I might have about what he may encounter at college, here is my prayer as he starts this new chapter in his life:

God, please give my son the maturity to stay focused on his homework now that I won't be there to nag him every night. Amen.

Good luck on finals, Cam!! It's been a "fun" ride!!

Grilling Weiner

2011-06-08T20:00:00.007-04:00

Another politician has joined the recent (and not so recent) ranks of being a lewd (married) cad who texts sexy pictures of himself to a cadre of acquaintances (including strippers and porn types) and thinks he can get away with it. What is it with these guys? Seriously, what kind of ego must it take to think you can be in the public eye and do something so public and get away with it? And now the news is reporting that this poor guy's wife is pregnant...they just got married last year. I feel sorry for that woman.

The best part about this whole scandal is guy's name: Anthony Weiner. WEINER! Can you believe the possibilities with that one? "Weiner sent a picture of his wiener"..."Boy, are they ever grilling Weiner"..." That guy is such a weiner"...see what I mean?! You can't make this stuff up!

Judging from the picture of Weiner in this post, what woman in her right mind would even accept a sexually themed text from this guy? YUCK.

The Gift That Keeps On Giving

2011-06-05T08:01:00.008-04:00

At the risk of offending the more conservative readers of the Fabulous B@ker blog, I must provide Sarah Palin's historical account of Paul Revere's midnight ride. Here's an excerpt from the USAToday article for your reading pleasure:

"He who warned, uh, the … the British that they weren't gonna be takin' away our arms, uh, by ringin' those bells and, um, by makin' sure that as he's ridin' his horse through town to send those warnin' shots and bells that, uh, we were gonna be secure and we were gonna be free … and we were gonna be armed."

Please, people, stop acting like this woman could ever be president!

The Last Downstage of 2011

2011-06-04T08:06:00.005-04:00

Last night was Downstage's final performance for 2011, and it wa the five seniors' last performances ever. Nick, Mark, Kate, Jacob and Jimmy will be an incredibly hard act to follow, and even harder to "replace." They were amazing improve'rs and really super funny kids. It's been a great experience for Annalisse this year and I'm sure she'll get even better with time! Very proud!!

The Last Race

2011-05-29T15:15:00.007-04:00

Today was Cam's last regatta, this time in Pittsford. It was a beautiful, warm weekend for the race, a much needed reward after all the terrible weather we've had to endure for this sport. His boat made it to the finals, but was beaten in the end by McQuaid. For all my complaining, the end is bittersweet.

We'll miss the people and having Cam involved in such a great sport. With the boathouse being just down the street we've promised the volunteer coordinator we'll help out with the Fairport Lift Bridge Regatta this fall. It looks like Annalisse will not be returning to crew, having moved onto other interests. Thanks, FCC, for the great run, or should I say, "paddle!" : )

World Without End, Amen

2011-05-25T07:22:00.015-04:00

By now you've probably figured out that the world did not end on Saturday. Maybe for some, metaphorically, it did end, but in general most of us are still physically "here." Oh well, there's always October 2011, and, if that doesn't work out, December 2012 to look forward to - or to dread, depending on your point of view.

A Tony Surprise!

2011-05-22T13:23:00.005-04:00

This afternoon we had a surprise visit from my OTHER nephew, Anthony (or, Tony, as he is now known), who stopped by after coming north from Raleigh, NC, for a wedding shower/bachelor party for his friend Josh, who is originally from Fairport.

It was so great to see him! I'm trying to convince him to come up again for Cam's graduation celebration. The kids always have such a good time when they get together.

Love you, buddy!

Congrats to Drew!

2011-05-22T07:46:00.004-04:00

Congratulations to my awesome nephew, Andrew Walldroff, on his graduation from SUNY Potsdam today!! While he still has his student teaching semester in the fall, he's mostly done and that's good enough for me. Good luck, Mr. Woof Woof!

Winding Down with Crew

2011-05-21T06:43:00.020-04:00

How could I have not posted about the results of last week's NYS Scholastic Regatta in Saratoga Springs? Oh well, better late than never!!

Cam's crew career is winding down as we head into the final stretch for spring regattas. Last weekend he headed out on Friday afternoon for Saratoga, and we followed (just for the day) on Saturday. OF COURSE, the forecast, after a beautiful, sunny week, predicted rain. The good news is the rain held off until 3:30pm on Saturday, by which time Cam's boat was getting queued up for the semi-final race, having come in fourth out of six for the qualifying race. For this regatta, Cam, who usually coxes the C boat, was moved up to the B boat (there are the A, B, and C boats) as the regular coxswain, Kevin, stayed behind to attend the senior ball.

By 5pm, the conditions were miserable, and Cam's boat finally made its way down the course, having been waiting in the pouring rain for 1 1/2 hours. I was concerned about him as he was already not feeling great from a cold that had plagued him most of the week. It was an incredibly exciting and close finish for second, and we left not exactly knowing if Cam's boat had come in second or third. Mark and I hit the road for the long ride home (in pouring rain...), and Cam texted me a couple of minutes into our trip to let me know they had come in "second by a second," and had advanced to the finals.

On Sunday morning, while we were home dry and warm, the rain continued in earnest in Saratoga. I continued to worry about Cam's health, and, adding to my concern was the fact that he generally would not wear his boots or rain gear to keep dry (teenage rebellion!!). Luckily, for once, he heeded my advice and wore what he need to, and made it through the day bringing his boat in 4th out of 6. Their performance earned the team a gold metal, as they cane in first rated for a "club" (not associated with a high school) team. It was an awesome finish for this big race, which is highly regarded.

Now we have two regattas to go before we wrap up the Baker family crew experience as Annalisse will most likely not rejoin, pursing one of her many other interests. Today Mark and Cam are in Syracuse, which might be underwater because of all the flooding this spring. Rain is predicted all day (naturally), and at least Cam left armed with his boots and rain gear. The question is, though, will he where them?

Happy Birthday, Fabulous B@ker Blog!

2011-05-18T16:13:00.004-04:00

Happy 4th Birthday to You!

Happy 4th Birthday, B@ker Blog,

Happy 4th Birthday, to You!

And many more!

The End of Days, again.

2011-05-15T09:43:00.012-04:00

Have you heard? The world is going to end (again) this coming Saturday, May 21 (or is it October 21...or is it sometime in 2012...). That means I'd better get busy; I have a lot to do in the next six days, like:

Go on that world tour I've always dreamed of (talk about jet lag)
Go on a cruise (it will have to be just a three-day cruise)
See that old boyfriend one last time (probably not going to happen since I'm not even sure where he lives now)
Finish all my projects at work (well, I suppose if the world is going to end I should probably just quit tomorrow anyway)
See the kids happily on their own, married with families (this is probably not going to happen in the next six days)
Get the newest iPhone (unless my current one can take me through until next week)
So, so much more

It looks like Annalisse will only be able to enjoy two out of the three productions of her play next weekend since the third performance is at 7:30pm, 1 1/2 hours after the world ends.

Seriously, if the world is going to end next Saturday by what some are saying will be a cataclysmic earthquake, why can't the church people predict all the other devastating earthquakes that have happened in the last several years? And all the deadly tornadoes the midwest and south have had to endure this spring. Sure, there has been an inordinate amount of rain and flooding, but surely nothing of biblical proportions.

I guess the main point of this story is:

I think End of Days hype is stupid

and

Let's live every day like it's our last, anyway

Mother's Day Weekend Recap

2011-05-08T18:45:00.023-04:00

For the first time in three years we were home for Mother's Day this year (the last two years we've been in the cold an rain at the Saratoga Regatta). It was wonderful! The weekend could not have been more beautiful, and there were lots things going on, starting with Friday night and Annalisse's second-to-last Downstage show for the year. The kids continue to amaze me with their talent! It's been amazing experience for her this year!!

Then, on Saturday morning we got up bright and early and headed over to the market for our long awaited sticky buns - AWESOME, and worth the long winter's wait. Of course, they are made even better by being fried in butter...no wonder my spare tire is inflating more and more...

Later in the morning, Annalisse and Nic headed out to get pedicures in preparation for Annalisse's 10th grade dance that evening, and Cam and I headed out for to do some errands (a great chance for him to practice driving), then we came home, we had lunch, and by then it was almost time to get Annalisse to her hair appointment. Let's just say it was an expensive day for our high maintenance daughter. The results were definitely worth the wait as the "finished product" looked absolutely adorable. How grown up she looked!

Three of her friends came over for some pre-dance noshing and picture taking, then it was off to the dance. Rumor has it that a good time was had by all and this year's dance, unlike last year's dance, was not cancelled within one hour because of "grinding." After the dance, the kids went to a friends house for about an hour until Mark and I had to drag our butts off the couch(es) to bring them home. Exhaustion all around.

We got up early on Sunday for church, then headed home for a bacon/pancake breakfast, which was awesome. Cam slept at a friends and got home around 10am so we had a really nice family breakfast actually sitting around the table in the dining room. I know! Hard to believe. After breakfast, I took Jasper swimming then gave him a bath (it will take him two or three days to dry out), and we did yard work before picking Grandma Pat up for a trip to Pudgies in Canandaigua for pizza.

What a great weekend it was, made better by the wonderful warm and sunny weather. On this Mother's Day I feel very blessed and content, and refreshed and ready, I suppose, to start another week at work (...and counting the days until retirement...).

A True Sign of Spring

2011-05-04T21:39:00.004-04:00

Never mind that I broke out my winter coat and gloves to walk the dog this evening...

There is a sure sign of spring on the horizon: the Fairport Farmer's Market starts up again this weekend!! A nice morning walk with the pup! Sticky buns! Flowers for the yard and herbs for the garden! Although it's tempting to say "we made it" (through the long, dark winter) it still feels like we've a ways to go with unrelenting rain, gray skies and chilling cold.

We have to take all the signs of spring that we can get...my sanity depends on it!!

Wills and Kate

2011-04-30T08:36:00.014-04:00

It may be a cliche and a little annoying, but Annalisse and I have succumbed to the royal wedding fever that captured the world for the last couple of weeks, and culminated in the beautiful wedding yesterday of Prince William and Kate Middleton.

Yes, we can all rave about how useless the English monarchy is, how they cost the taxpayers of England millions of dollars for "doing nothing." Gadzooks! How can the Royal family spend millions of dollars on wedding when the country is experiencing strict austerity conditions?!

The fact is, many of us are really drawn in by the fairytale romance between a handsome prince and his down-to-Earth, beautiful commoner choice of a bride. After thirty tumultuous years of royal-watching where Prince Charles revealed himself to be a cold, out-of-touch spineless mamby-boy who led his young, shy, inexperienced, emotionally unstable choice of a bride forth like a lamb to slaughter, it's wonderful to see love prevail at last! Who would have thought Chuck and Di's "fairy tale romance" would all turn out as badly as it did? Certainly not me and cousin Jean, who were up at the break of dawn 30 years ago to watch that ill-fated royal wedding.

It seems lessons have certainly been learned from the story of Prince Charles and Princess Diana. Prince William and Princess Catherine represent a warm and promising future that I believe will breathe new life into the English monarchy.

There was a touch of sadness when we think back to the tragic circumstances of William and Harry's mom's death, and the memory of those two young boys walking solemnly behind her carriage during the funeral procession. Very sad for those guys. I'm sure it was on their minds especially yesterday.

Back across the pond, Annalisse and I got up at 4:30am and drove over to our friend Chris' place for an early morning viewing of the wedding, complete with English-themed treats like scones, croissant and jam, and tea. There were collective sighs of "Ahhhh!" when Prince William, upon being joined by his bride-to-be at the alter, told her "You look beautiful." (Lip readers, all of us.) After the wedding, Annalisse and I headed home to wait for "the kiss" (scheduled for 8:25am - and there were TWO kisses!) before I dropped her off at school. I took the day off to hang at home with pup, and make a belated Easter dinner, for which Nic and Patrick joined us.

The day was a great success, with warm fuzzys all around!

Alive!

2011-04-27T12:37:00.002-04:00

Today it is warm, sunny and breezy. When the weather is like this, I feel so alive! Isn't it funny how the weather affects our mood? I was truly meant to live in a warm weather climate.