This Is More My Speed

There is another writers' contest which is the complete opposite of the deadly NaNoMoWri contest.

It's called the Short Short Short Short Short Short Fiction Competition. You must write a story in only six words. Ernest Hemingway was able to write a heartbreaking story in merely six words: "For Sale. Baby Shoes. Never Worn."

The competition closes at midnight on December 31, 2006.

My short story is:

Ambitious Wallstreeter will work for food.

June 23

I went ahead and registered to do a sprint triathlon. It's swim 1/3 mile, bike 12 miles, and run 3 miles.

I signed up with a mentor on Beginnertriathlete.com. So, here's to starting my New Year's resolution early!

Resolutions

Now that the big-food/gift-giving holidays are over, it's time to start making resolutions that gets my daily life and health into top shape.

My resolutions so far include everything from the mundane to the important (the order does not indicate importance):

1. Make my bed daily.
2. Work out at least 3 x's per week come hell or high water.
3. Eat healthy most days of the week.
4. Drink at least 8 glasses of water a day.
5. Try to make a point to get at least 7 hours of sleep per night.
6. Get Jacob completely potty trained including keeping him dry overnight.
7. Get even more on top of Brendon's numbers and get his A1C under a 7.0.
8. Develop my writing and make a concerted effort to get freelance work.
9. Finish reading all of the books I've bought and started.
10. Train and compete in a triathlon!!

I took a deep breath and jumped when I typed #10 because now it's public. It's a tall order, but it's something I feel I need to do in order to break out of my "safe shell" that I hide in. I was always competitive when I was younger and I really miss pushing my body and being in shape. I was a tomboy and I loved being a tomboy.

This resolution is probably the most important because more often than not, I make up my mind that I can't accomplish something before I even attempt it. So #10 is really a resolution to attempt something and complete something that I would otherwise convince myself was too difficult for me.

My plan is to talk to my personal trainer to see if he can give me training tips, or at least know someone who he can refer me to. And then the next part is to find a competition. And then train for it. And lastly, compete.

It's something I've thought of for the past couple of years and now it's high time I do something about it.

I'll be 36 in February and I hate the thought of wasting time. 40 is just around the corner and I don't want to look back and wish I did something back when it was a bit easier to do.

No offense to those who are 40+, hee, hee.

Christmas Was Good

My kids are at the age where they still believe in Santa and because of that, Christmas is fun.

We put out brownies for Santa. Brendon insisted that we leave a glass of skim milk for Santa because it's healthier. Jessica said he needs his vegetables too, so we added carrots to his snack. Jacob contributed straw for the reindeer (in preschool, he decorated a bag that contained the hay for the deer to eat).

The kids also wanted to leave a gift for Santa since he gives so many gifts and never gets any in return. Brendon left him one of his toy cars, and Jessica left her beloved kitty. Jacob really didn't understand this concept and refused to give up any of his toys.

They were too excited to go to bed and I explained to them that Santa won't come to houses where kids aren't sleeping. I use a little trick to convince them that Santa is coming. If you look out of our family room window and look to the mountain range out in the distance, you can see a red flashing beacon light that is used by airplanes to navigate the range.

Ever since the kids became aware of Rudolph, each year we look out the window to search the sky for Rudolph's red flashing nose leading the way for Santa to see.

Brendon was the last to spot Rudolph's nose. By the time he did, Jessica had already sprinted off to bed. "Mom!! This is the second year we saw Rudolph!! This is so awesome!!", said Brendon excitedly.

Hopefully they won't get too observant and spot the red flashing light on some other day of the year. That would really spoil the earliest bedtime of the year.

Passing Notes

Now that Brendon has learned to write somewhat, the passtime of note passing has begun. The other day, I found a crumpled note with a Christmas tree pasted to it. The note said "Mere Crismiss Brendon".

I asked who wrote the note and he said "N" did....a girl in his class.

Yesterday, I received an email from N's mom who is a good friend of mine. The email said that she found a note in N's backpack that said "You look prite today" (prite=pretty).

She asked N who gave her the note. She said Brendon did.

N happens to be the girl who gave Brendon his first kiss. They were 4 years old at the time.

They've had a love-hate relationship since then. I guess their relationship is in the love phase now.

Top 5 of 2006

Thanks goes to Kerri for giving a wonderful diversion to cleaning, laundry, and general things that grownup responsible people need to do.

2006 Year End Top Five

Top Five Resolutions for 2007
1. Drop my final 19 pounds.
2. Cook on more days than we order takeout.
3. Make a concerted effort to pick up freelance work (the writing kind).
4. Keep up with the housework.
5. Shave my legs more than once per winter season.

Top Five Albums/Songs You're Embarrassed to Admit Loving
1. Any song by Air Supply
2. Sister Christian by .38 Special
3. Bat Out Of Hell album by Meatloaf
4. Yellow Brick Road by Elton John
5. Jump by Kris Kross



Top Five Fictional People You'd Like to Ride in a Hot Air Balloon With
1. Huck Finn
2. Plankton from Spongebob Squarepants
3. Gonzo from The Muppets
4. Cartman
5. Mr. Big from Sex And The City

And the bonus question: Who's your favorite reindeer of the

Special Note

I'm going to assume that no one has watched the You Tube video I've posted because no one has commented on it.

You must watch it. It is the funniest goddamned SNL skit I've ever seen. ENJOY!

The Zany Adventures Of Hans And Franz

I don't know if any of you recall my past posts about my husband and his boss going to the gym together and how I joke around about their "masculinity".

Well, they are officially a gay couple....in the eyes of the new gym they belong to. It's sort of like a Busom Buddies situation.

Apparently, there is a clique-ish group of guys at the gym they had been going to that started giving Jeff's boss a bit of trouble. One of the guys had a girlfriend that would work out with all of them and the boyfriend thought Jeff's boss was checking her out, so they'd crowd him at the machines and stare him down, etc. He of course had no interest in the girl, but they didn't seem to come to that conclusion.

So, Jeff's boss suggested he and Jeff cancel their membership and join a different gym. Jeff went along with it because he'd rather avoid drama anyway.

During work hours yesterday, they went to a new gym that they knew of and sat down with an employee to start up a membership.

Gym Employee: (after discussing about whether payment would be on separate credit cards or a joint credit card) We have a family plan. Are you two together?

Jeff: Inwardly groans because he knows what the guy is implying.

Jeff's Boss: If it's going to save us some money, then yeah, we're together. But how can we do the family plan when we can't show that we're related?

Gym Employee: It's not your fault you two can't get married. That shouldn't be held against you.

Jeff: Inwardly groans again.

Gym Membership: $940 per year
Discount on the Family Plan: $120
Pretending You're Gay Because You're Too Cheap to Pay an Extra $60 Each: Priceless

What Saturday Night Live Couldn't Show on TV

Yuletide Carols Being Sung By a Choir

Chris tagged me for this festive Christmas meme.....

Here are my favorite songs in order of which I love them most:

1. O Holy Night (This song must be sung by a choir. The Vienna Boys Choir does a beautiful job...and in fact their version is playing on my iTunes as I write this. The crescendo at the middle of the song gives me goosebumps and inspires me to become a nun. It makes me feel THAT holy....and I'm neither holy nor religious. Fall on your knees O hear the angel voices!).

2. O Holy Night (sung by Cartman. I couldn't download the video from YouTube, so a link is the best I could do. This version is the only one I'll accept next to the choir version.)

3. Little Drummer Boy (Choir version only. I think it's sweet how the kid wants so badly to give baby Jesus a gift, but because he's too poor the only thing he has to offer is some beats to the drum. The kid's lucky he's playing for Jesus because anyone else would say he's cheap).

4. The Christmas Song ("Chestnuts Roasting On An Open Fire....Jack Frost nipping at your nose.....Yuletide carols being sung by a choir....." See, I'm not the only one who loves Yuletide songs being sung by a choir, but I'll settle for this one to be sung by the late Nat King Cole).

5. Winter Wonderland (for years...up until my early adulthood, I thought this line of lyrics went as such...."Later on, we'll perspire, as we dream by the fire...." I'd like to start a petition to change the lyrics to the ones I'd mistakenly sung for years and years and years....they're so much more fitting, aren't they?)

I'd like to tag:
Jamie
Erica
Johnboy
Kerri
Julia

Rachel Ray Can Kiss My Grits

Rachel Ray has gotten on my nerves from day one of her cooking show. I won't get into the why's of my disdain for her, but this post will explain why I'd like to take 30 Minutes and mix her up with a can of whupass.

Remember over the summer when I spent a week in NYC and I was at a restaurant where I spotted Jude Law sitting at a table next to mine? Well one of the people I was with was to appear on Rachel Rays' new talk show. Part of my NYC trip was spent helping M (my brother's girlfriend's sister) buy clothes for different footage scenes that RR's producers would be shooting for the episode she was to appear on.

What started the ball rolling for M was her mother who saw that they needed women who were looking for a relationship to write in so that they could be on the show. M's mom thought this was the perfect and fun opportunity to get her daughter a date.

Cut to the chase, the RR show producers said they wanted footage of M looking at the JDate website, chatting with a first date at a coffee shop, going to a club with her friends, and various other places doing various other things. This was all to show how she spends her time as a professional city girl who is looking for a relationship.

We all thought that the show would be about matchmaking. We imagined M would appear on the show and RR would appeal to the male viewers and plead M's case that she's a wonderful, pretty, intelligent girl who would make a great mate.

The producer who was working closely with M had led her to believe all along that this would be about matchmaking. She was sneaky about it though. The show was in fact about finding a guy, but there was a flip side to it that M was never told about.

Well, the show aired last week and you want to know what the show was really about? Do you really want to know?

It was about desperate girls whose lives revolve around trying to find a boyfriend and who obsess and get depressed over not having one.

OK, I thought that was a little harsh, but hey, at least she's willing to help M find a man.

Not so fast. RR basically ridiculed M in front of a live studio audience after showing clips of her doing things to find a guy like going to the gym to catch a guy's eye, pouring over various dating websites, crying when she'd walk past a couple making out on a park bench.

RR said she thought is was pathetic how girls obsess over not having a boyfriend and that she thought that girls' lives shouldn't revolve around trying to find the right guy.

Granted, she's right, but the way she came off with her soapbox lecture about how SHE was single for 36 years and didn't obsess over men, and then how she kept calling M "sweetie" in a condescending tone was enough to make me want to reach through the TV to throttle her.

"Oh, you thought we were going to help find you a guy. Aw, poor thing. You were wrong sweetie. We want you to go on a man diet", said RR.

For 30 days, M, along with some other women RR skewered during the broadcast, are to partake in a challenge of not thinking about men at all. They can't go on dates, or talk to them...nothing.

SURPRISE!!

THAT was why the producer wasn't forthcoming about the entire premise of the show. What single girl would want to be on a show about going on a dating diet?

The only redeeming factor was that RR handed M a packet of free tickets for shows, free dance lessons, and free certificates to different restaurants all just for her and no one else. She has to do everything by herself.

The funny thing is, although she would like to have a boyfriend, M is nothing like how RR's talk show portrayed her. On the show she seemed like a sniveling, desperate, weird girl who had no other ambition in life than to land herself a guy.

But in real life, she works for a major news cable network, has her own apartment in Manhattan, and has a healthy social life with female and male friends alike.

M was confused about the turn in the shows events, but she's happy she got all of that free stuff.

I still would like to mix Rachel Ray with a can of whupass though.

Constipated

I really want to write. I feel the urge and I know something's there just waiting to be released, but nothing is coming out. No matter how hard I push, I can't get out the measliest of ideas worthy of blogging about.

For me, writing is fun. If something funny happened, or I come up with a funny idea, I write about it. I then laugh at what I wrote and I wind up feeling good. That age old saying is true "laughter is the best medicine."

For me, writing is cathartic. If I have a problem, or something that's eating away at me, I'll write about it. Once it's out on this blog, those thoughts are no longer jinglejangling around in my head and I feel invigorated and ready to tackle the next challenge or problem that may arise.

Hopefully soon, I'll get over this constipation of the brain. It's really getting me down in the dumps.

Ack...Tonight's Hannukah

Jeff asked me what I was going to make for Hannukah tonight.

I told him the traditional fare...Chinese takeout.

We'll celebrate the Festival of Lights by eating Chinese takeout followed by lighting the Menorah and then finishing off the night by decorating our Christmas tree.

Damn, I have to wrap some gifts to give the kids tonight.

Mofo, the festivities have begun.

Challenge

Winter is closing in and I'm getting that nesting urge where I want to declutter the house and cook....in the kitchen....using the stove.....

So far I've gone through my room and threw out everything I haven't used and didn't know I had. Everything now has a place and is in my room because I use it. Anything extra, like memorabilia, fits neatly into a box that sits on my closet shelf.

Jessica's room is now free of clutter, unplayedwith toys, and everything has a place. Plus, all of the parts and pieces to her toys are grouped together! Nothing's missing or broken.

Brendon's room presents a challenge because he has so many different things that have multiple parts that need to be put together that it's difficult to tell which part goes with which set of toys. For instance, he has 2 or 3 race car tracks that may or may not have all of their parts, and to top it off, I can't figure out which parts to put with which set.

Jacob's room is easy because he hardly has anything in it. He basically feeds off of his brother's and sister's toy scraps.

As for cooking, summer seems to catch me in a slump because of the heat and activities I'd rather do than cook. But, now that winter is approaching, I'm surfing the cooking blogs looking for inspiration for meals to make.

I'd like to break through my winter boredom by making challenging meals that need precision and expertise.

I'm pretty good at cooking the basics with a minimal amount of ingredients, but now I'd like to try more advanced recipes.

NOTE: Is it me, or are my posts completely and utterly boring. Nothing funny has happened and I've not felt very humorous lately. I hope I get out of this boring-slump. Something funny needs to happen....and soon!

Tightening the Reigns....Expanding The Choices

Brendon had a checkup last Friday. It generally went well, but his Endo was concerned about his weight (his A1C is a 7.4)

In relation to his height (67th percentile), she said his weight is too high (97th percentile). To look at him, you wouldn't say he's fat. He's a solid kid and you can see the definition in his structure. I won't say he's big boned as that is the age old excuse for being too fat. I had been concerned, however, that he eats too much. He can really pack it away if he isn't limited.

Before Brendon went on the pump, we had strict guidelines for how many carbs per meal and snack he ate regardless of what his appetite dictated. I had always felt that because this was an unnatural way to eat, he'd pick up bad eating habits such as eating because of whim rather than because he was actually hungry. I had rather he eat because he was listening to his body's signals.

Since he's been on the pump, we have let him eat when he requests a snack or a meal (within reason...I wouldn't let him pig out or eat WHENEVER he wanted without taking into account how much time passed from his previous meal). He still received 3 meals and 3 snacks, but the amount depended on his appetite. If he wanted seconds, I'd usually give him more of a lean protein, fruit, or vegetable. He'd pack away a lot of food, but I didn't feel as uncomfortable giving it to him because he was eating more of the low fat, complex carb foods which I felt wouldn't give him a problem.

The Endo had suggested we cut back his total carb intake by 10-15%.

In order to keep better track of his carb intake, I've divided his meals and snacks so that for each meal he receives no more than 65 grams of carbs. For snacks it's no more than 18 grams. I still go by his appetite as in giving him food when he's hungry rather than being guided by the clock (but like I said before, I take into account when he last ate and won't give him anything else within an hour or so since he last ate).

This also means being more discriminant with what he eats. For instance, instead of serving him waffles with a tablespoon or two of maple syrup, he gets it with a serving of peanut butter divided between the two waffles.

I try to cook foods that are minimally processed (if at all) because of my family history of heart disease, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol. Just that alone puts him at risk for those ailments when he's older. But, because of having diabetes, it puts him at an even higher risk because of the disposition of the disease to make a person more vulnerable to cardiovascular problems.

To that end, it doesn't stop at home. I've limited what he can eat from the school menu. Instead of allowing him to eat school lunches everyday, I've chosen the days with the healthiest meals. Instead of letting him eat all of what the school is serving that day, I've been writing notes for him to follow as to which foods he can eat and which he cannot from that day's menu.

Thankfully, he respects diabetes and although I try my best to not allow him to be limited by it, there are unfortunately limitations that must be accepted because of diabetes' dynamics of making his body vulnerable to certain problems (the limitations really revolve around food rather than physical activities to which I believe there should be no limitations other than taking a bit of time to recover from a low). He knows this as I've explained in detail what certain foods do to his body and why they must be limited or even eliminated from his diet.

I also make it a point to structure the other children's diets the same way although I don't track their carb intake. Whatever he eats, they are served the same. No favorites. I feel that this will provide good HABITS for him to follow if he sees the entire family eating the same foods. I want to avoid having him feel that he's being set apart or penalized because of something he couldn't help.

Growing up, I was never allowed in the kitchen while my parents cooked. My cooking and kitchen knowledge is based on what I've read and experimented with through recipes from cookbooks and websites and watching Food Network. When I was on my own, and before I became skilled in the kitchen, I relied on fast food and take out food for meals.

I refuse to let that happen to my kids. Knowledge=freedom to make better choices.

I allow Brendon to fix himself simple meals. He'll weigh and portion out the ingredients (basically whatever goes on a sandwich). When he's older, I'll teach him more advanced cooking skills based on his ability.

Hopefully I'll set the foundation for him and my other children to eat healthy, flavorful, fresh meals. That's what I hope for...we'll see how it all turns out.

Things That Make You Hmmm

Here's the situation:

Last night at dinner (around 5 pm) Brendon was a 176. Jeff dosed him for the meal.

After dinner (around 6:30) Brendon took a shower and before doing so, disconnected his pump.

Long after Brendon was in bed (around 10 pm), I checked Brendon as usual and he came in at a 163.

Jeff went up to bed around 10:30, and soon after, came back down to tell me that Brendon's pump was still on the bathroom counter. He hadn't hooked himself back up (as an aside....of course we should've double checked that he did, but we neglected to do so).

So for 3 1/2 hours, he had no basal insulin at all. About 2.5-3 hours after being bolused for dinner, Novolog is gone from the body. Yet during the time when there was absolutely no insulin in his body, his number hadn't gone up until 10:40 when Jeff hooked him back up and checked him again. At that point he was a 193.

I was supposed to check him a third time when I went to bed, but I fell asleep on the couch and hadn't done so.

Around 6:30 in the morning, Brendon woke me and said he felt low. He was a 41.

He goes through periods (or cycles) where we need to cut back his insulin dramatically even if he hasn't been active or stressed.

After reading about Dr. Faustman's work and the subsequent research done by other scientists that have confirmed her findings, I believe that Brendon's body has produced beta cells and that they are secreting insulin.....as minute an amount as that may be. They may not be secreting enough to keep up with the amount of glucose they have to cover, but it was enough to keep him relatively steady for a very short period of time.

Call me crazy, but this is what I believe is happening now. I really hope that the work Dr. Faustman has done to cure mice will work on humans.

Deer Santa

This is going around the email world, but I think it's funny as hell and thought I'd post it anyway. Ya gotta love that zany dude we all call Santa:

deer santa:

I wud like a kool toy space ranjur fer Xmas. Iv ben a gud boy all yeer.
Yer Frend,
BiLLy

Dear Billy,
Nice spelling. You're on your way to a career in lawn care.. How about I send you a frigging book so you can learn to read and write? I'm giving your older brother the space ranger. At least HE can spell!
Santa

Dear Santa,
I have been a good girl all year, and the only thing I ask for is peace
and joy in the world for everybody!
Love,
Sarah

Dear Sarah,
Your parents smoked pot when they had you, didn't they?
Santa



Dear Santa,
I don't know if you can do this, but for Christmas, I'd like for my mommy and daddy to get back together. Please see what you can do.
Love,
Teddy

Dear Teddy,
Look, your dad's banging the babysitter like a screen door in a hurricane. Do you think he's gonna give that up to come back to your frigid, fat mom, who rides his ass constantly? It's time to give up that dream. Let me get you some nice Legos instead. Maybe you can build yourself a family with those?
Santa



Dear Santa,
I want a new bike, a Playstation, a train, some G.I. Joes, a dog, a drum
kit, a pony and a tuba.
Love,
Francis

Dear Francis,
Who names their kid "Francis" nowadays? I bet you're gay.
Santa



Dear Santa,
I left milk and cookies for you under the tree, and I left carrots for your reindeer outside the back door.
Love,
Susan

Dear Susan,
Milk gives me the shits and carrots make the deer fart in my face when riding in the sleigh. You want to do me a favor? Two words, Jim Beam.
Santa



Dear Santa,
What do you do the other 364 days of the year? Are you busy making toys?
Your friend,
Thomas

Dear Thomas,
All the toys are made by little kids like you in China . Every year I give them a slice of bread as a Christmas bonus. I have a condo in Vegas, where I spend most of my time making low-budget porno films. I unwind by drinking myself silly and squeezing the asses of cocktail waitresses while losing money at the craps table.
Santa

P.S.

Tell your mom she got the part.

Long Dong Claus




Dear Santa,
Do you see us when we're sleeping, do you really know when we're
awake, like in the song?
Love,
Jessica

Dear Jessica,
Are you really that gullible? Good luck in whatever you do. I'm skipping your house.
Santa




Dear Santa,
I really really want a puppy this year. Please please please PLEASE PLEASE
could I have one?
Timmy

Timmy,
That whiney begging shit may work with your folks, but that crap doesn't work with me. You're getting an ugly sweater again.
Santa



Dearest Santa,
We don't have a chimney in our house, how do you get into our home?
Love,
Marky

Mark,
First, stop calling yourself "Marky", that's why you're getting your ass kicked at school. Second, you don't live in a house, you live in a low-rent, ghetto apartment complex. Third, I get inside your pad just like all the burglars do, through your bedroom window.
Sweet Dreams,
Santa

Holiday Follies

We have a gas fireplace with a glass plate in front of the fake wood. Last night, Jessica asked me how Santa would get out of the fireplace with the glass being in the way. I've found the best way to get out of answering a question in a sticky situation is to volley a question back to the other person. "How do YOU think Santa would get past the glass?" Jessica replied with a whole theory of Santa having invisible powers and being able to get through the glass. I found that to be completely implausible because invisibility doesn't mean you have the power to transfer THROUGH solid objects. But, I let it go because she was satisfied with her own explanation and I was off the hook of coming up with something of my own.

Today I'm starting Christmas AND Hannukah shopping. We get a few Christmas gifts for the kids because our relatives send them gifts since they live so far away. Our few mixed with their many looks like a lot of gifts to the kids....so that leaves us off the hook for buying more.

And then there's Hannukah. 8 nights of gifts X 3 kids = 24 gifts. Do you know how difficult it is to find 24 different kinds of gifts? It's damned hard...THAT'S how difficult it is.

I'm off to make my list and check it twice. Happy friggin Holidays to you all.

F This.....

I wanted this blog to be invite only, so here I am working on getting everybody's email address in the OC and I'm thinking....this is going to take me years to include everyone.

So I'm scrapping the invite idea and just making it open to everyone. I changed my blog URL so that it doesn't include my full name...which is a pain in the butt for all of you because now you'll have to change my URL address in your templates (for anyone who has linked to me), so sorry about that!

The reason for the changes is because during Thanksgiving week, an anonymous commenter left a couple of comments saying that I had a nice house and kids, but I don't talk about my husband and asked if I was divorced. Another comment by anon immediately following that one said that if I wanted to be a good mom to Superman and keep him safe, that I shouldn't post pictures of him.

At first it didn't strike me as threatening, but of course the more you think of something, the more your mind builds things up and before you know it you're a paranoid mess.

No other comments have been made, so I'll just relax and go on with business as usual....

My First Post In Beta Mode

• Just playing around...d
  on't mind me.

Everybody's Doin' It

Remember back in the day when the catch phrase was "Go on try it...everybody's doin' it" and then we'd succumb to peer pressure because we didn't want to be the odd man out?

I switched to beta....I think. I have some more stuff to check out, but what ever steps Blogger told me to take, I did. I just don't see a difference yet.

So, now I'll be twiddling with my blog....

See ya's!

Thanks

I was informed by Allison that I was nominated for *Best Parent of a Child With Diabetes* blog. Thank you to whomever nominated me.

I'm honored to be amongst the parents whose blogs are much more eloquent and graceful than mine

whose posts are more inspiring than mine due to what she endures to keep her family close and happy and the perseverance and tenacity she contains in order to do so

whose posts are much more gutsy and humorous than mine

and whose posts are much more persuasive when proposing a call to action in order to improve the quality of life for our D kids and all of the adult PWD's.

I'm humbled.

I Came...I Saw...I Conked Out

NaNoWriMo is over and done with. What was my word count? A measly, piddly 7,333 words. I was pulling stuff out of my ass just to see if I could make it to 10,000. I just couldn't do it. I was bleary eyed and tired last night and falling asleep at the wheel. Think? Who could think? Dialogue, plot, characterization...fuck that shit.

I gave up on the storyline and instead typed:

1. A grocery list

2. The words to "The Star Spangled Banner" (which by the way has 4 stanzas...did you know that? I'll bet you didn't. Can you imagine people singing all 4 stanzas at the start of a ball game? It would be a friggin disaster).

3. The story of "Goldilocks and the Three Bears"

4. The classic "Cinderella"

When I first saw NaNoWriMo, I thought what the fuck...as in the line from "Risky Business" which to me meant....go for broke dude, what have you got to lose.

Last night, I thought what the fuck...as in what the fuck am I doing?

I tried it and failed miserably. I have my excuses...legitimate IMO, so I'm OK with not getting to 50 grand.