My Chuckle of the Day!

Hannah Got a Scholarship

Hats off to the girl child! She is the recepient of the Gushee Language Arts scholarship at Liggett. Hannah had to submit a bunch of her writing samples and she won! I'm glad, not only for the bucks but for the self esteem it helps her build.

This is play week. Hannah is a mime in the St. Clare rendition of Godspell. Most of her buds are leads in the play but Hannah stuck it out in the background. She hates everything about the play this year but I'm really proud of her. It would have been easier to quit. When all of her friends go on and on about how hard it is to be on stage the whole time or how they don't like their costume or how they keep messing up their lines, I know it grinds her because she would give her eye teeth to be in their shoes. She has to wear all black and has no lines. She performs tonight, Friday and Saturday. It will be fun. Tim is coming down tomorrow and the Robars will be here on Saturday.

How do you reach a 16 year old?

Ugh....my fabulous son who is so good in so many ways is becoming a flake about school. He is missing assignments and getting weak grades on tests. All of this at the same time he tells you to your face that he wants to buckle down so he can go to West Point! I've never seen Ro so angry and disappointed. Do you take away things like girlfriends, baseball and drill team that he loves?....or do you ignore it and let him mistakes?...or do you lock him in the Grosse Pointe Library everynight for a few hours with only his books?

Relationships Today

It used to be that when two people decided to be a couple, the guy would give the girl a pin, a sweater, something and then tell their friends they are "going together." This usually occurred after they had dated each other exclusively for a few months. Today, they do it quickly and post it on the Internet.

Yesterday, I took Jackson and Arriana (a nice girl who goes to St. Charles and attends Regina who Jackson danced with at a Sweet 16 party a few weeks back) to lunch and the DIA after church. Then last night, I check out Jackson's Facebook page and wo, there is a photo snapped with his phone of the two of them at the Museum. His profile now says he is "in a relationship."

Maybe, I missed something but the two have gone on a total of two dates (three if you count the party where they reconnected) and have talked on the phone a lot. Is that a relationship?

I am so old.

My Mental Health Projects

Since I know your day wouldn't be complete without me boring you with my weaving projects, I thought I would show you what I just took off the loom. MaryBeth, my fabulous co-worker, had a birthday this week so I weaved over the weekend, washed and tied on Monday and gave this scarf to her on Tuesday. I wasn't feeling the pattern while I was weaving it but now I really like the verticalness of it. Very different. Usually, I have a little longer to bond before I give away my work but she's worth it. I used that rik rak for the first time and it really had a nice smooth feel once it came together.

My loom at CCS has a indigo-dyed tencel warp with big white patches ready to be woven on Saturday. I'll have to take a photo to show you how odd it looks. It reminds me of a blueberry cow hide. Not sure how it is going to all come together. My plan was to use a straight green tabby but maybe I need a new plan. At home, I just wound a forest green cotton warp for an overshot table runner that I saw in Handwoven magazine. I know I'm supposed to be creative and experiment but it is sure nice to have a pattern once in a while that tells you exactly how many ends, etc.

Jackson Left for West Point

Jackson, my over-the-top, 16-year old, ROTC-lovin' baby, is now at West Point in upstate NY. He left yesterday at 6 p.m. and they drove all night, getting there early this morning. Their schedule is grueling. He'll go to classes and sports with the student he gets assigned to for the next two days, eat in the dorms and essentially be a cadet for 48 hours. He gets home around 8 a.m. Saturday morning. I get a quick text this morning from him. All it said was "Is anybody there awake?" Guess he's already buying into the military intelligence thing.

I'm hoping it will be a great experience for him and that it motivates him to start thinking about college pretty seriously. Also hope he doesn't sign anything with a U.S. seal at the top while he is there!

The Blind Easter Egg Hunt

Aunt Sue made blindfolds for all the cousins today and had them find the Easter Egg candy, necklaces and other goodies on their hands and knees. It was a sight to see...or not see! Since the kids are getting too old for Easter Egg hunts and the smallest kids (Ben and Lauren) weren't there, it was a great compromise. It also gave the parents lots of laughs.


Baby Dawson also got lots of attention. I just got back from a short run. Man, I've eaten too much fabulous food this weekend. I'll be glad (not really!) to get back to my work routine tomorrow.

I love Easter

Just a little chocolate, a bit of church and lots of family time. Next to Thanksgiving, Easter is one heck of a holiday. No stress. Just togetherness. Perfect. Now if we could get Spring weather to go with it, it would be great. They're predicting 2-6 inches of snow this weekend. Unbelievable.

This and That

We had a great weekend...action packed but fun. Let's see....Saturday AM I went to Heritage Spinning and Weaving in Lake Orion with my CCS buds. I was good and only bought one skein of very cool hand dyed yarn and two small cones of green bamboo yarn. I'm going to use the bamboo as weft with a warp I dyed with indigo last week. We'll see. Mollie gave me the eyebrow in the store and said "why green?" She's much better at colors than me so we'll have to see how it all comes together when I do a small sample.

Hannah and I went to see the University of Detroit High School performance of Grease that evening over at the Detroit School of the Performing Arts. It was great. We parked the car at DSA and then walked over to Union Street and then back for the play. I love Midtown! Jackson went to a Sweet 16 party for his friend Alexus that night and I think he impressed a whole bunch of lovely ladies. They've been calling nonstop ever since.

On Sunday, we did our annual St. Patrick's Day shenanigans at the Parade in Corktown. Jackson and I ran in the Corktown Races (4 miles!). Jackson, Lynn and Lisa had great times. Let's just say I finished. I have a long way to go to get my running mojo back after the long winter. We then hung around with the Greening of Detroit and marched in the Parade. I wish I had brought my camera. Nathan was adorned in a tree costume again and Jackson was part of the shovel brigade. Think of six guys singing and performing precision drills with shovels. He did great. I can see why he is good at ROTC. He spun that shovel like it was a baton. Boy there were a lot of drunks in Corktown Sunday afternoon!

We got out of the Parade around 4 and made it to St. Clare for the Winter Sports Banquet at 6. Hannah's basketball team didn't have the greatest record but I really liked her coach. Ro even got an award as the volunteer of the year.

Last night, I treated myself to a little St. Patrick's girl time with Linda and Kim. So nice to kick back. Kim and Linda are both running successful businesses, balancing a family and enjoying life! I think we only gossiped about half our friends so we'll have to do it again soon. Linda does PR for Morton's Steakhouse so we ate like queens!

Tomorrow night, we have to go to a parent meeting for the West Point trip. I'm anxious to learn more. Jackson leaves next week for three days. Hannah starts her vacation on Thursday so she is going to a sleepover tomorrow at Alex's house. Not sure how I'm going to pick her up the next morning since I have to work but I guess I'll deal with that as it comes.

Back to American Idol......this season isn't thrilling me.

Kwame

I am sitting here as a national NPR story is airing about the sad, sad state of affairs in Detroit with our goofy Mayor's text messaging scandal. Our Mayor needs to resign. His ego is an embarrassment. Our family works really hard to continually convince people why we live in the city. Usually our arguments are hanging by a thread at best. Stuff like this makes it even harder. A story this morning in the Free Press brought it home for me. The mother of his former chief of staff was quoted in the paper about how worried she was about her daughter and her grandchildren. Christine Beatty at least had the guts to resign right away. Her Mama has to be proud about at least that fact.

Here's hoping the prosecutor finds something that sticks to King Kwame so we can kick his sorry behind to the curb!

Getting to Know You

My buddy Corinne sent me this quiz so I thought I would post my answers on this old blog. (Boy, I am so glad the writers are returning to work so I can get back to Desperate Housewives on Sunday night instead of goofing on the computer!)

Welcome to the 2008 edition of getting to know your friends. Change all the answers so they apply to you, and then send this to your friends including the person who sent it to you. The theory is that you will learn a lot of little things about your friends that you might not have known!

1. What time did you get up this morning? 7:00, with a slight hangover from last night's auction at the kids school (thought it was 6:00 but the time "sprung forward" on me) and a million things to do for Carolyn's shower today
2. Diamonds or pearls? Definitely diamonds, pearls are for old ladies
3. What was the last film you saw at the cinema? Jumpers (it was stupid)
4. What is your favorite TV show? Grey's Anatomy
5. What do you usually have for breakfast? Fiber One bar and coffee
6. What is your middle name? Marie
7. What food do you dislike? Tuna
8.What is your favorite CD at the moment? Sheryl Crow
9. What kind of car do you drive? Buick Enclave
10. Favorite sandwich? Grilled cheese
11. What characteristic do you despise? Petite :)
12. Favorite item(s) of clothing? My worn out green fleece Greening of Detroit jacket
13. If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would you go? China
14. Favorite brand of clothing? Dana Buchman (bought on sale on EBay)
15. Where would you like to retire? Asheville, NC
16. What was your most recent memorable birthday? They're pretty low key
17. Favorite sport to watch? Anything the kids are in
18. Furthest place you are sending this? You tell me
19. Person you expect to send it back first? Not sure, I broke the rules by putting it on my blog.
21. When is your birthday? August 25, 1963
22. Are you a morning person or a night person? Morning
23. What is your shoe size? 9
24. Pets? Java (goofy mutt we adopted at the zoo)
25. Any new and exciting news you'd like to share with us? Hannah is going to go to Liggett and Jackson got selected to go on a recruiting trip to West Point.
26. What did you want to be when you were little? Stewardess
27. How are you today? Glad the busy weekend worked well and is over
28. What is your favorite candy? Swedish Fish
29. Favorite flower? Purple iris (I copied from Corinne)
30. What is a day on the calendar you are looking forward to? Hannah's 8th grade graduation
31. What is your full name? Colleen Marie Robar
32. What are you listening to right now? Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen
33. What was the last thing you ate? Tom Yum soup from Sala Thai
35. Do you wish on stars? Doesn't everyone?
36. If you were a crayon, what color would you be? Red
37. How is the weather right now? Chilly
38. Last person you spoke to on the phone? Neighbor
39. Favorite soft drink? Diet Coke
40. Favorite restaurant? Mama Rosas (closest one to the kid's school so I don't have to cook!)
41. Hair color? Definitely not gray
42. What was your favorite toy as a child? I can't remember
43. Summer or winter? Fall
44. Hugs or kisses? Hugs
45. Chocolate or Vanilla? Definitely chocolate
46. Coffee or tea? I am addicted to coffee, bold and black
47. Do you want your friends to email you back? Sure.
48. When was the last time you cried? Got teary-eyed at Carolyn's shower today when Sue talked about missing her Aunt Wilma
49. What is under your bed? Yarn (in a big plastic bin)
50. What did you do last night? Went to the Auction at the kid's school
51. What are you afraid of? Not having an answer to all these questions!
52. Salty or sweet? Salty
53. How many keys on your key ring? Way too many for stuff I don't even have any more
54. How many years at your current job? 6 months at Crain this time (although I was there for ten years from 1990-2000)
55. Favorite day of the week? Saturday (weaving class!)
56. How many towns have you lived in? Four
57. Do you make friends easy? Yes
58. How many people will you send this too? The sorry souls who come across my blog
59. How many will respond? Don't know
60. Who sent this email to you? Sammy sent it to Corinne who sent it to me.

Whew....I finished!

Isn't Baby Dawson cute???

Live in the Moment

My Mom sent me this and I thought it was beautiful. These are great words, especially as Hannah and Jackson are getting closer and closer to college and independence. It came from Anna Quindlen, Newsweek Columnist & Author:

All my babies are gone now. I say this not in sorrow but in disbelief. I take great satisfaction in what I have today: three almost-adults, two taller than I am, one closing in fast. Three people who read the same books I do and have learned not to be afraid of disagreeing with me in their opinion of them, who sometimes tell vulgar jokes that make me laugh until I choke and cry, who need razor blades and shower gel and privacy, who want to keep their doors closed more than I like. Who, miraculously, go to the bathroom, zip up their jackets and move food from plate to mouth all by themselves. Like the trick soap I bought for the bathroom with a rubber ducky at its center, the baby is buried deep within each, barely discernible except through the unreliable haze of the past.

Everything in all the books I once poured over is finished for me now. Penelope Leach., T. Berry Brazelton., Dr. Spock. The ones on sibling rivalry and sleeping through the night and early-childhood education, all grown obsolete. Along with Goodnight Moon and Where the Wild Things Are, they are battered, spotted, well used. But I suspect that if you flipped the pages dust would rise like memories. What those books taught me, finally, and what the women on the playground taught me, and the well-meaning relations --what they taught me, was that they couldn't really teach me very much at all.Raising children is presented at first as a true-false test, then becomes multiple choice, until finally, far along, you realize that it is an endless essay. No one knows anything.

One child responds well to positive reinforcement, another can be managed only with a stern voice and a timeout. One child is toilet trained at 3, his sibling at 2.

When my first child was born, parents were told to put baby to bed on his belly so that he would not choke on his own spit-up. By the time my last arrived, babies were put down on their backs because of research on sudden infant death syndrome.To a new parent this ever-shifting certainty is terrifying, and then soothing. Eventually you must learn to trust yourself. Eventually the research will follow. I remember 15 years ago poring over one of Dr. Brazelton's wonderful books on child development, in which he describes three different sorts of infants: average, quiet, and active. I was looking for a sub-quiet codicil for an 18-month old who did not walk. Was there something wrong with his fat little legs? Was there something wrong with his tiny little mind? Was he developmentally delayed, physically challenged? Was I insane? Last year he went to China . Next year he goes to college. He can talk just fine. He can walk, too.

Every part of raising children is humbling, too. Believe me, mistakes were made. They have all been enshrined i n the 'Remember-When-Mom-Did ' Hall of Fame. The outbursts, the temper tantrums, the bad language, mine, not theirs. The times the baby fell off the bed. The times I arrived late for preschool pickup. The nightmare sleepover. The horrible summer camp. The day when the youngest came barreling out of the classroom with a 98 on her geography test, and I responded, 'What did you get wrong?'. (She insisted I include that.) The time I ordered food at the McDonald's drive-through speaker and then drove away without picking it up from the window. (They all insisted I include that.) I did not allow them to watch the Simpsons for the first two seasons. What was I thinking?

But the biggest mistake I made is the one that most of us make while doing this. I did not live in the moment enough. This is particularly clear now that the moment is gone, captured only in photographs. There is one picture of the three of them, sitting in the grass on a quilt in the shadow of the swing set on a summer day, ages 6, 4 and 1. And I wish I could remember what we ate, and what we talked about, and how they sounded, and how they looked when they slept that night.I wish I had not been in such a hurry to get on to the next thing: dinner, bath, book, bed. I wish I had treasured the doing a little more and the getting it done a little less.Even today I'm not sure what worked and what didn't, what was me and what was simply life.

When they were very small, I suppose I thought someday they would become who they were because of what I'd done. Now I suspect they simply grew into their true selves because they demanded in a thousand ways that I back off and let them be. The books said to be relaxed and I was often tense, matter-of-fact and I was sometimes over the top.And look how it all turned out. I wound up with the three people I like best in the world who have done more than anyone to excavate my essential humanity. That's what the books never told me. I was bound and determined to learn from the experts. It just took me a while to figure out who the experts were.

I love snow!

We got socked with about eight inches last night. Both kids are off school. Jackson and Denzel are over at Autorama helping the Explorers get their 400 hp. convertible Cobalt ready to go for this weekend's show. Hannah has been goofing on the computer all day. It was strange to just come to work today without first dropping off kids at school. I got in at 7:30.

We have a crazy couple of days ahead of us. The school auction is Saturday night and Carolyn's shower is Sunday. Autorama happens all weekend so we'll be back and forth to Cobo quite a bit too. It is probably a good thing the kids got a chance to chill a little today.

Late Breaking Leap Day News!

I'm an Aunt! Carolyn and David welcomed Dawson Elliott tonight at 8:06 p.m. He was 8-1/2 pounds and 22-1/2 inches long. That's a lot of baby out of five foot Carolyn. She had to have a C-section but all is well tonight. Dawson makes for a total of eight nieces and nephews on the Robar side. Here's a fun photo of Dad David from a party last year. I think he'll be a make a fabulous papa for Dawson. We're supposed to have a shower for Carolyn next Sunday. Let's see if she'll be up to it.

Think about how much money we'll save only having to buy this little dude birthday presents every four years!

High School Dilemma

OK, I want Hannah to go to Liggett and she wants to go to Mercy. Now what? Should I let a 13-year old make the decision because only she knows what will suit her best? Or should Dan and I overrule?

The freshman Liggett girl who gave Hannah her "shadow day" experience told her she hated the school. Obviously, the Admissions Office did not pick the best ambassador to answer all of Hannah's questions. I've tried to point out to my lovely daughter all the wonderful people we know that go there but she won't hear it. I think I am going to have Alex from church or Emmanuelle from St. Clare call Hannah this weekend.

Mercy is just too far. Twenty-seven miles each way is ridiculous. There is no bus so it would be up to Dan and I (and the Barrows) to get the girls there everyday in rush hour.

Or, she can just go to Cass with her brother! How easy would that be?

Asheville!

Ro and I leave tonight for our annual trek to the Arts & Crafts Conference in Asheville, North Carolina. My fabulous Mom is going to hang with the kids. Woo hoo!

Our Sanitorium

Ro is down in the clay studio all the time. But look who was helping him??

Bad Weather, Ha!

Don't you love those days when the weather dudes predict "storm team" conditions and it turns out to be the total opposite? Today was supposed to be freezing rain followed by snow. Well, I just got back from a run and it was dry on the pavement and 40 degrees. Sure, it rained a little this morning and made the snow that was there turn to slush but it was more of an irritation than anything else. Definitely not horrible conditions.

Hannah and I went over to the Detroit Institute of Arts after church. What a nice afternoon. They just remodeled the building and while I loved the old place, the improvements are pretty spectacular. We had a great lunch in the Cafe and then toured the modern and contemporary art (her favorite!). I saw the biggest tapestry in my life that covered a 10 foot wall. I can't imagine how long that must have taken the artist. We only stayed an hour or two so it was perfect. Where were the guys, you say? Where else? The Boat Show. Spring is coming, as they keep reminding me.

I have the day off tomorrow. What will I do? This is such a strange feeling.

My Hat-Inspired Blanket Is On the Loom

I went over to CCS after work tonight to fix my warp so I can weave like a maniac tomorrow at class. (I had cut a few of my warps shorter than the others so I had to replace them. Ugh!) I like the pattern but boy will I use a lot of yarn to weave a 42 x 80 blanket. The yarn is a merino wool so it is nice and soft.


It sure is pleasant weaving over there at night. While I'm cussing at the yarn, I work out all the world's problems.

I have slight guilt feelings about my CCS peace. Hannah's guitar school had a recital tonight. Her teacher didn't think her piece was ready so she didn't play. But she wanted to go. The thought of sitting there through a bunch of strangers' kids playing "Stairway to Heaven" on keyboard and guitar was more than I could stand on a Friday night. So I sent her with the Santoscoys since Noah and Nathan were in the show. Hee. Hee. Thank God for fabulous neighbors.

Happy Valentines Day!

Schools

OK, Hannah isn't a brain surgeon but she has a pretty good brain. We heard back from University Liggett and she didn't qualify for their 10 scholarships. But, they want to interview her for a spot at the school. We have big decisions coming up. She has it narrowed down to two schools (but I am still holding out hope that she'll consider Cass too.) Hannah is going to spend the day at Liggett next Tuesday and then we have an information night at Mercy on the 26th. Then it is decision time. We need to decide (with a big non-refundable deposit)at Mercy by March 3.

The pros of Liggett-- Great school. Only 8 miles away. Lots of sports. Boys. Great art room (very important to Hannah). No uniforms.
The cons of Liggett--Oh, so expensive. Mostly rich, spoiled kids. None of Hannah's friends (so far) are going there.

The pros of Mercy--Great school. Catholic. Nice art program. Hannah's best friend Taylor is going there.
The cons of Mercy-27 miles away. All girls. Competitive sports teams.

I think we should just move.

Sold!

Thanks to the wonders of Craig's List, I sold my Robar PR desk and file cabinets this morning. Another chapter closed for my little business but it made me feel good that a nice lady bought them. She was setting up a business that helps handicapped kids with mobility issues. (I threw in a desk lamp because I liked her.)

I posted the furniture Wednesday night and by Thursday morning, I already had inquiries. I got the price I asked and the buyer came exactly when she said she would. Cool biz. Secretly, I wonder what the business model is behind Craig's List. I don't see any money being made but I am grateful for it.

West Point?

Jackson is a finalist to go on a three-day excursion next month to West Point in upstate NY. Detroit Public Schools takes two sophomores from each high school on the trip to tour the campus, meet other cadets and get a feel for the place. Is this a good thing? West Point is the nirvana of military academies but should I encourage my ROTC-crazy son with this option? Or will it be a good wake up call for Jackson that grades matter A LOT?

I filled out the permission slip last night and wrote the check (only $30 for three days!) but I'm not sure it is the right thing. Let's see if Obama wins and gets us out of this War. A great college education doesn't mean anything if you don't survive your military service requirement!

Matching The Colors in Hannah's Hat

First step today: dye a boatload of yarn. Tomorrow, I seek out the right maroon/eggplant (or maybe taupe) color for the weft. Someday (soon I hope), a great 42x85 inch throw blanket made from merino wool. This is the yarn dripping in our basement. I brought it home from CCS to rinse and dry.

Back to CCS

Woo hoo. My CCS weaving class starts tomorrow. Ro is out of town (the annual ice fishing trip) so I have to leave early so I can take Hannah to basketball but I don't care. It's good to be back. My plan is to dye this huge pile of merino wool I have in my stash and make a throw blanket. I recently bought Hannah a really fun hat that has exactly the colors I want to match in the warp. I am going to bring it for inspiration.

Mollie always has a great group of people in her class. With two looms at home, I find it hard to keep rationalizing why I continually sign up for this class. I think it is the camradarie that she inspires that makes it so special. It is somehow always an amazing group of people with such diverse interests/jobs/perspectives. We all make a boatload of mistakes but we get through it together. Either that or I just go for the bagels!

Grazie Party

My team threw an "over the top" retirement party for one of the Gods of Crainville yesterday. Tony Merpi is by far the coolest boss I've ever had. He was the ad director when I was the marketing director at Automotive News. Last month, he announced his retirement because he wanted to spend more time with his family. He'd been with the company 31 years.

Most retirement parties are kinda boring. Not this one. We had 180 people at the Roostertail for a Rustic Italian feast. We had fun dance music from a fantastic one-man Italian band, an overflowing antipasto station, a full Italian meal and even canollis served from a gondola. Every table had a big jug of wine with Tony's picture on it. We gave out WWTD (What would Tony do) bracelets, pens that featured a different Merpi saying every time you clicked them and a memory book filled with 60+ letters to the guy. We had a tear-jerking slide show set to Bocelli music of photos of Tony through the years. People sang songs, danced to the band and told stories from the microphone. It was a fab evening of Tony's work family, friends, clients and kids.


It was great to do something like this for a guy like Tony. He will be missed.

Reading, Riting and Rithmetic

After church today, Hannah and I are going to help out at the St. Clare of Montefalco Open House. Every Catholic School in the area is hosting an Open House today from 1-3 so I'm not sure how many people we'll have going through. St. Clare was a great choice for Hannah and Jackson so I'm happy to talk about it to others. However, I always feel guilty at the Open House. The school tries to maintain somewhere around a 60/40 Catholic/Non-Catholic ratio. Most of the people going through the Open House are not Catholic so their odds are slim. The diversity of black/white, Grosse Pointe/Detroit and Catholic/Non-Catholic is also what makes St. Clare great since the kids are challenged daily to think about the differences in people and to appreciate them.

It is a weird situation since St. Clare also desperately needs enrollment to stay open. The School Commission is working really hard to reach out to Catholics but it is difficult in this economy and since the school is located in Grosse Pointe where the public schools are pretty good. In any case, Hannah will put on that plaid skirt uniform one more time today and do her part. (The parents don't have to wear the uniform, thank God!)

We're spending a lot of time these days thinking about high schools. Hannah took the test yesterday at Liggett. They have 10 scholarships available so we're crossing our fingers. It is a fabulous school but it is tres expensive. We could probably buckle down and do it but should we? We've also thought vaguely about moving to a good school district but that doesn't seem fair to Jackson who loves Cass Tech. (And who would buy our house in this economy??) I always thought what we did for one child we should do for another. Jackson chose Cass over U of D and is so, so happy there. But is he being pushed hard enough??? Should we have sent him to the tougher school? Is it fair to send Hannah to an expensive private school while Jackson is at Detroit Public Schools?

Hannah got her acceptance letters yesterday from Mercy HS and Bishop Foley HS. We expected the Mercy letter but we got a laugh out of the Bishop Foley packet. She didn't even apply there!

80 and Still Partying!

When I turn 80, I want to have spicy food and be surrounded by my family. Last night, we helped Dan's Dad, Wayne, mark eight decades. We all met up at Mongolian BBQ and had a really nice time. Wayne is so cool. He can hardly hear anymore (and always leaves his hearing aids at home) but just when you think he's not paying attention, he lobs some zinger of a joke in. I especially love when he makes a great joke and then starts laughing. He has this twinkle in his eye when he cracks up that is hilarious.

Goodbye Sue and George

I'm leaving in about an hour for a funeral at St. Charles. Sue Wenrick, a neighbor and fellow St. Charles parishioner, died last Sunday after a fight with cancer. Such a cool lady. Ro used to rent studio space from her when she owned the St. Charles School Building. She almost singlehandedly saved St. Charles when it was on the "Archdiocese hit list" to close in the late '80s/early '90s by buying the school building and giving St. Charles a little income. She rented the space to starving artists who sometimes paid rent...but always had a lot of fun. She was a realtor and most importantly, was a great single Mom to her son Clayton. He is now an amazing young man. She pinched and saved and got him through Waldorf, Cass Tech and then art school. Sue always had a "cause," whether it was a teen at church who needed tuition, the Dearing Dance Company, a gay man who couldn't pay his mortgage because his partner didn't leave him the house in the will when he died, a stray dog, something. Even as she was struggling with chemo, she would call me and want to help with this or that. She will be missed.

I learned last night that we'll have another funeral at St. Charles next week. George Taylor died yesterday during his dialysis treatment. Another amazing man. He was a Detroit cop who dealt with the riots in the '60s during his first week on the job. I'm really grateful that a few months back Jackson spent some time chatting with George for a paper he was writing on the riots. They had a great conversation about a ton of issues, especially the tensions between black and white cops. George was an amazing role model. In his younger days, he organized tons of basketball leagues for the Detroit Police Athletic League to keep teens busy. George and Glenda had five kids of their own but there are always tons of people at the Taylors house because of the incredible love the Taylors show everyone. The first few years I attended St. Charles I had the wrong number written down in my phone book for the church. I always called the Taylors house instead. It never crossed my mind that they didn't answer "St. Charles Church." Instead, when I would call to ask what time this or that was, they always answered my question and never let on that I had the wrong number.

Here's my favorite George story. During the last few years, his diabetes left him blind. I went to his house and picked him up for a Parish Council meeting. While driving from his house to the rectory, we chatted about this and that. Then he turned to me and said, "Colleen don't go down this street. There are a bunch of drug houses here. Turn left and go down Lafayette instead." Somehow, this blind man knew what road I was on. He said he could tell by the bumps in the road that he remembered from his years on the force. I was taking directions from a guy who couldn't see!

I'm sure Sue and George are enjoying each other's company today in heaven.

Terror on Wheels

OK, Ro decided he wanted to go the Design Forum for an event at the Auto Show sponsored by Crain, my boss. I had the dry cleaning in my car. Met him at 4:15 in Eastern Market and gave him the shirt he wanted. Picked up Hannah at 4:30 at St. Clare. Took her home to get a shower and to make her dinner (grilled cheese). Picked up Jackson at Cass at 5:30 from baseball and took him home and got Hannah to guitar at 6:00. Went to the restaurant next door to the guitar store and had a chicken sandwich while she played. Got to the Forensics tournament with Hannah by 7:00. She and her classmates performed until 8:45. Took them all to Coldstone for ice cream until they shut the doors at 9:30. Home finally. Thank God.

I'm tired just typing it. I was so proud of Hannah and her 15 or so classmates tonight. They really are amazing. The kids all perform 6-8 minute memorized selections. Some are funny and some are dramatic but man, they were all good. Hannah did a piece from the children's book Eloise. She was great. They were all great. Not a clinker in the bunch. It is amazing to see how much these 8th graders have grown. Forensics is a fabulous self-esteem booster.

Lots of Warp/Weft

My camera is still at Lori's house but I took a few shots tonight with my phone of my recent weaving projects. I bought a red coat just before Christmas, so of course, I needed a new scarf to go with it. This is made with a silk/wool yarn and is about five inches wide.
















Yesterday I took a vacation day and finished my CCS piece in the afternoon. This piece is huge. (It is on our queen size bed in the first photo.) It is 18 inches wide and 90 inches long. I am going to wear it as a shawl (I think). It is the softest thing I've ever made. The blue yarn is a silk/alpaca mix. I really like this one. It was a great way to use a lot of yarn colors. I still have to tie it up and wash it so I'm curious to see how it will look all done but so far, so good. Lots of knots in my future.


On my loom at home is a new project that I just finished setting up tonight. I've never woven anything this wide. The baby blanket will be 34" wide. It is made from a really nice Inca cotton that should wash up easily for Baby Z's Mom. The baby shower is March 9 so I have lots of time.

Going, going....gone!

Poor Ro. His company car, a 2007 Tahoe, was pushed away from the house on Sunday afternoon by three thugs in a Dodge Caravan. Thanks to OnStar, it was found a few hours later in Hamtramck with lots of damage, no tires and a missing radio. Ro and Jackson saw them pushing the car down the street but they couldn't catch them. Our fabulous neighbor, the cop, tried to help but he couldn't get them either.

GM was cool about it and Ro was given a new car to drive but it was the sheer nerve of it that irritated us. The truck was in front of the house because I moved it there to go to church! They took it at 2:00 in the afternoon.

So we spent a few hours thinking about where we wanted to move (a nice waterfront house on Grosse Ile won) and then we came back to reality.

I took tomorrow off so I'm going to finally clean my Robar PR office once and for all and then go over to CCS and finish my piece. Seems strange but I can't get the New Year officially going until I complete all my unfinished business from the year past.

Twisted and Warped

Over the holiday, I managed to snag the computer away from Hannah for a few minutes and I found some really cool weaving sites from around the world. One of the sites listed other sites she'd found and it got me looking around. What fun...two hours later, I still had nothing done. Check 'em out if you have the time (or the inclination). I love the blog name, Twisted and Warped, and the clasped weft weaving from the girl in Australia boggles my mind. She has yarn on the ground and somehow does tapestry from the top. Got to try that sometime (or maybe not!)

weavingspirit.blogspot.com
ammit.exblog.jp
callybooker.wordpress.com
mylittlekitchen.blogspot.com
narablog.com
curiousweaver.id.au
megweaves.blogspot.com
twistedandwarped.wordpress.com
saralamb.blogspot.com
leighsfiberjournal.blogspot.com

Happy New Year

OK, I am a goof. I took a whole bunch of great photos at the New Years Eve run on Belle Isle and then at Rick and Lori's for the actual midnight events....and of course, I left my camera in Milford. Hopefully, I'll connect with Lori soon so I can get it back.

What a great start to the New Year. Jackson, Hannah and I joined 1,000 other people (including our friends Lisa, Patrice, Thomas and Taylor) on Belle Isle for the four miles of festivities. Hannah only tackled the one mile run this year but it was a good healthy start to the New Year. It also made it so I could eat and drink a little at the party later without feeling too guilty.

Our New Year's Eve party tradition continued in 2008. We've been with the same group of friends somewhere in Michigan every NYE since 1980. The kids are getting older now (Kurtis is in college) but everyone still hangs. All of the teens had an amazing snowball fight/football game at 1:30 a.m. (we got 14 inches of snow in Milford overnight). Karin and Paul had sick kids and Sheri and Joe wimped out for another party but we had a great time with about 10 adults and eight teens. Karl organized ping pong and Foosball tournaments that kept the night moving. Can you believe that our NLU theme song by Meatloaf "Paradise by the Dashboard Lights" played on the radio just as Lori and I started our game against one another?? Talk about karma.

I'm glad to see the New Year begin. Always seems like a good way to assess how lucky I am to have such a cool family and great friends.

Cheers!

Holiday Roundup

We've had a great time celebrating here and there this holiday season. Here's a few snaps. My Mom got Tim a biker chick calendar. I think this ranks as the most appropriate gift of the season thus far. On to New Years at Rick and Lori's on Monday.

McCain??

Must have too much time on my hands this restful holiday. I just took this Fox 2 online quiz that asks for your opinions on the key issues and then matches you with the candidate that is most closely aligned with your views. Mine came up McCain, Clinton and then Obama. Hmmmm. I have to give this some more thought.

Merry Christmas Eve!!

We're getting ready for the Christmas trifecta. We'll go with the Robars to Mass at St. Mary's in Milford today (the church we got married in...heavy sigh!) and then go to St. Charles tonight for midnight Mass. Tomorrow is 10:00 Mass with my folks at Queen of Peace in West Bloomfield. My Dad lectors every year. It'll be great to see everyone and man, will we be blessed!!! We do Christmas with Dan's brothers and sisters on Saturday the 29th in Chelsea at Carolyn and David's house.

We helped decorate St. Charles yesterday. It sure is funny to watch 20 people all try to decorate the church. Of course, none of the lights worked and there were no hooks and several ornaments crashed but somehow it all got done. Father David is smart....his soup and chilli is the reward for all.

Still got some wrapping to do............

Ho Ho Ho Dog

Java is definitely in the holiday spirit. She got an early Christmas present. A bed!

The Big Dance

Hannah and her pals Stephanie (L) and Wesley (center) went to the big War Dance Formal Friday night at the GP War Memorial. Seemed so strange to see Hannah in heels and a dress. They had a great time even though (I think) they didn't dance with any boys.

We went to see Melani and the Mosaic Singers/Youtheatre in "Woodward Wonderland" at the DIA last night. So glad we went. Amazing singing and hilarious skits. They did a parody on Chilly Willy in the Thanksgiving Day Parade, a funny takeoff on Church Christmas pageants and a very sentimental look at the old Hudson's. The kids even did a rendition of the old Motown Christmas shows with the Temptations, Jackson Five and Aretha Franklin. Really put you in the holiday spirit.

We got eight inches of snow last night. There were only 44 people in church today. Dan and Jackson are out driving now so Jackson can get some practice cruising in the snow. He'll probably get his license in February so the more time behind the wheel, the better.

I went over to CCS yesterday. I'm 75% done with a great overshot piece with gorgeous silk yarns. I'm anxious to see it done. The class has ended for the year but I'd like to finish this piece up. It is very peaceful weaving alone over at CCS. I do miss the hub bub of the crazy students. They crack me up with their self-induced stress and constant chatter.

At home, I am weaving a Creole pattern on a scarf. I think it is going to be a present for my new next door neighbor if I finish it before Christmas.

Off to Chicago tomorrow for yet another Crain Christmas party.

Things I Am Thankful For

1. Ro
2. Two fabulous, independent, smart, curious, artistic kids
3. Healthy, loving parents on both sides
4. My Saturday weaving buddies
5. Living in the D
6. Avalon Bakery
7. People who believe in me...sometimes more than I do
8. An amazing church that not only survives, but thrives
9. A great joke
10. Diet Coke

Marathon Mania

What a fabulous day! The marathon team of Moms on the Run (Again) completed the 26.2 mile race in 4:19, right in the middle of the pack of all the female relay teams. (There were five of us. Suzanne didn't make it for the picture.) After the race, we walked slowly back to my street for the annual Burns Block Party at Pat's house. Mile 22 of the marathon goes right down our street so we always gather to cheer on the runners, especially those late in the game souls who are really hurting. Holy crap....can Pat cook! Her husband said she used 162 eggs in all the cakes and quiches she made for the Marathon crowd. We celebrated with a few mimosas and were damn proud of ourselves. There was even an eight-piece jazz band on our lawn. The weather was perfect and the friends were great. If you're really nice to me, I'll show you my medal!

Sports Stars

I love Fall. All the sports activities collide. In the last week:

HANNAH was named MVP of the St. Clare volleyball team on Sunday and is now in the midst of basketball tryouts. Their practices are from 8:30-10 p.m. at night. Ugh!

JACKSON had his last soccer game for Cass Tech yesterday. He hasn't played soccer in years but the coach recruited him as goalie and I think he had a fabulous time meeting some new kids and reacquainting him with the sport. He starts baseball conditioning next week.

RO is Up North with Rick attacking the mighty salmon for the last time this year.

and

I am in the Free Press Marathon today! Don't get too excited. I'm on a relay team of five women, Moms on the Run (Again), and will run one leg. This is the third year I've done it and it is always a blast. I'm doing the fourth leg, Belle Isle. In previous years, I've done the Tunnel route (6 miles) and the city route (4.5 miles). This year is just three miles. I'm a turtle so I hope my mile time doesn't disappoint the rest of the team...but hey, it is all about fun. I just saw my neighbor, Lynne, pull out of her driveway. She's doing the first leg (over the bridge). I'm up in about three hours.

The race goes through Indian Village so my neighbors Pat and Dan always have a fun party on their porch. We have an eight-piece band playing on our lawn to entertain the runners. Should be an interesting day, sports fans!

It is 10:03

and I am supposed to be at Mass at 11. I'm sitting here sweating away (just got done with a great Belle Isle run) waiting for Hannah to get out of the shower. Ro wants me to meet him at the St. Jean boat dock and bring him back to the launch where he stores his boat. All before church. Not sure if we're going to make it but hey, it is Sunday. If it is meant to be, it will happen.

OK, Hannah just turned off the shower. Better make this quick. My first full week at Crain went pretty good. I do think I will miss some things about life on my own but all in all, I made the right choice.

Next week is the Free Press Marathon. Our team, Moms on the Run Again, will be ready.

Cheers!

Last Weekend

Our fabulous neighbors, Sean and Amber, got married on their front porch last weekend with 200 of their closest friends. We had tents crossing the driveway, caterers cooking in the alley and a DJ in the garage. Somehow it all worked. The weather was amazingly perfect. You knew it was a real party when our deck (that housed the all-important bar) caved in with about 40 people on it! I guess it is time to replace it with Dan's dream stone patio.

Jackson went to Regina's homecoming on Sunday with Melani. They looked so grown up. With all the wedding craziness we didn't do too much on Friday night for Jackson's 16th birthday. I don't think he minded. We took their photos on Sean and Amber's front porch since it was still decked out with flowers.

Freedom

OK, I weaved yesterday. I'm going to go for a run in a few minutes. I think I finally have my life back.

Over the last month, I've opened an ice cream store, handled a marketing campaign launch for Ford, traveled to Miami for a press event, helped the kids get ready for the new school year, dealt with a myriad of bridge issues, threw a two-day Crain executive meeting and placed 900 people in 55 houses for the Crain House Party. Oh, and did I mention that I decided to shut my company and take a real job. I also debated between three job options during the last month and finally took the leap and decided to rejoin Crain as director of corporate communications.

It has been a wild August/September. I've been up late, waking up early and essentially going nuts. Talk about stress.

Here's to the changes Fall brings! I even got the computer running again yesterday. That's a sure sign that things are going to work out great.

Boycott Marriott!

OK, I've worked in hotels. I know sometimes they're oversold. I know all the right things to say. Then why was I walked?

I am writing from an uncomfortable bench in Philadelphia Airport at 2:25 a.m. (The airport terminal doesn't open again until 4:30 a.m.) In my quest to squeeze way too much into my world, I left my Ford event in Miami at 8, got on a 10 p.m. flight to Philadelphia with a connector to Detroit at 6:15 a.m. (My Bridge clients have an important meeting with a local paper on Wednesday at 11:30 so I have to get home!)

The plan was to get into Philly at 11:30 and get a few hours of shuteye in the Airport Marriott before the morning flight. I had a confirmed reservation at a way too high price guaranteed with a credit card. I get to the desk and this little tart says I've been moved to the Downtown property and the shuttle will be right here to come take me. UGH! I was only going to be there for four or five hours. I didn't want to go downtown. I used my best Ritz Carlton tactics but she wouldn't budge. I showed her my Rewards card. I revealed my receipt from the Marriott I stayed in in Miami last night. I flashed my printed confirmation. I told her about the meetings I plan. Nothing worked. The kicker was that people around me in line were getting rooms. She told me they were "pre-checked in." Such BS.

I'm running on about three hours of sleep from yesterday. (I got into Miami at 2 a.m. last night.) So before I started to cry (I was close), I asked for the courtesy of a key to the fitness center so I could at least take a shower. I got the phone number for complaints and she gave me some dumb ass $100 gift certificate. Just wait....Marriott is going to give me more than that before I'm done.

Thanks for letting me rant and rave and wish me luck tomorrow working all day on no sleep. (Coincidentally, I have a 2 p.m. meeting tomorrow at the Westin at the Detroit Airport for a meeting I'm planning for Crain. I wish it was a Marriott so I could cancel it!!)