I'm Scared

We are wrapping up week 3 of the "Without an Elevator" saga. And it may be fixed today. We're getting positive reports from our trusty bowab, Mahmoud, that all is well, new motor is being installed and something about inshallah.

I know this word is just ingrained into the Arabic language, it's an expression. But seriously, when we're dealing with a metal box that hauls my children (precious cargo, IMHO) husband and myself up and down the height of six stories, I don't want to hear the arabic equivalent of "Yeah, hopefully" used in the same sentence as "Yes, the elevator is fixed."

I think I'm going to let Mahmoud and our landlord use it for a while, just to see how it goes. I'm not going to fall to my death 6 short weeks before I'm released from this place called Cairo.

Some Dog

Ok, Katelyn, you need to teach Sage how to do this! Or Chris! I stumbled upon this little gem while wasting time this morning. I know, easy, easy post. But seriously, how could I NOT share this?

The million dollar idea!

Let's face it, we're all looking for that golden ticket. When will the inspiration come and in what form? Well, I got mine the other day. I was picking little grains of rice out of the carpet (again) when it dawned on me. We have a sippy cup to transport nice, watered-down juice to the kids gullets, why not have something in the same concept for rice? To dispense the rice one grain at a time. Yay. I mean, we've got those cool non-spillable bubble tumblers, why can't we think of the same thing for rice. And not only rice, why not anything small? Shredded cheese. Ah, my formidable enemy. My kids are worse than Wallace (just a bit!). They will do anything for cheese, especially when it come in a nice shredded form. I guess it's a bit better than finding the block of Cheddar mangled and hacked to bits in it's sad little ziploc baggie.

"I only wanted a piece, Mommy."

Please sir, may I have some more? You'd think I starve the kids. We have stringent rules about not eating on the carpet or couch, but the biggest offender seems to be the one that understands the least. Jacqueline, Jacqueline, what will I do with you Jacqueline? She is also the inspiration for this invention. Oh well, as soon as I get a sponsor, grant money, then I can get the idea moving!

Going Crackers!!

So the two youngest have renewed affection for graham crackers and chocolate milk. You're thinking, what kids wouldn't like that combination? My kids, that's who. Grant has had a couple of food funks this year. When we got back in August, they were all hooked on kiwis. (No, they don't eat natives of New Zealand.) They were really cheap at Costco this last summer, so that was a staple. I got them a few times here in Egypt, not very cheap. The tide shifted to bagels with cream cheese and a sippy cup of white grape juice. Every. day.

"Grant, snack time. What would you like?"

"Bagull wit cweem teese." (no, it's not welsh, it's bagel with cream cheese.)

And that's basically the only thing he would eat. Jacqueline liked it too, but she'll eat anything. Really. This girl has a sweet tooth the size of Africa but it's balanced by her love of 'cumbers. A whole bowl can be polished off in no time. Jacqueline is the only well rounded child in that aspect. Then, without warning, he rediscovered Goldfish. That's all he wanted. The choice in drink didn't change, though. White grape juice, through and through.

I would try to offer other choices. Chocolate milk, plain milk, apple juice, purple grape juice, cran-raspberry. Nothing was good enough. I began asking myself why I even bought 2% milk. Then, I got lucky. That's the only explanation. I got sick of buying that big box of Goldfish every week and a half. I grabbed a box of graham crackers. Snack time came around and I offered up the new foodstuffs. And it's good!! Graham crackers and chocolate milk! I just about fell over from the shock. These are the kids that would turn their nose up at chocolate milk. Graham crackers? Yuck, get them away from me. You'd think I was trying to poison them, the way they reacted. But now, they can't get enough! And everyone is happy.

El Alamein

We love El Alamein. It is wonderful. On the north coast of Egypt, it meets with the Mediterranean. That blue, blue ocean and smooth white sand. It's so picturesque, I still pinch myself each time we go to there. That and the fact that we're not paying like it's a high-end Med vacation. The rooms are huge and right on the beach. We left Thursday afternoon and stayed till Sunday. And the weather even cooperated one day and we got into the waves! It was a bit windy the other days, so we just built sand castles, ran away from the waves and swam in the cave pool. And they did that weird snake/swan thing with the towels. At least they didn't get out my glasses.

Between a tub & the Elevator

Our elevator stinks. In both ways. Smelly-something-sulphur-y and the fact that it does not work. You have to push the button just the right way, do a little dance and maybe you'll ascend. It likes to stop between floors. Usually it starts right back up. Usually. We were on the way downstairs to begin our weekend vacation to Alamein (future posts coming) and the elevator stopped between 4 & 3. I had all the kids and a couple bags with me. That delayed us for 30 minutes. The kids handled it ok. Only when we began a slow, uneven descent with the door open and no power, did I begin to get a little anxious. When we lined up with the 3rd floor door, I pounded on it and we hopped out. Then hauled the rest of the bags down another 3 flights of stairs. I found out that Mahmoud (our boab) went to the top floor and was lowering it manually. Geez, that made me feel WAY better. We've sworn off the elevator for a while. Which doesn't help when we live on the 5th floor. **

So today, the elevator is out. Out, out, no power, nothin'. Great. I have to go to the grocery store. We were gone for the last 4 days and need supplies! (darn tootin', cowboy!) Jacqueline & I began our slow decline. We get down one floor and there is a bathtub on the stairs. Yeah, a bright blue bathtub. The landlord is particularly fond of renovating his bathrooms. When I suggested he update our's, he said that it would be too expensive, everyone else in the building would want it too, blah de blah blah. He just does his own apartment instead. So it's been an ongoing project for the past 2 years; jackhammering, broken tile in the stairwell, a different bathtub on the landing. This one is numero dos. We can't use the elevator and can't make it down the stairs. Great. I put Jacqui in the tub first, then climb in myself. We scoot down the length of the butt, sorry Freudian slip, TUB, and then I climb out on the next landing, reach around for J. and continue our journey. Then there are the piles and piles of tiles (I saw miles & miles). I mean, really, this shouldn't be an epic akin to Lord of the Rings just to make it downstairs! (sorry, first epic that came to mind, just finished a LOTR marathon)

We go to the store, shop, load the groceries in and head home. We get home, park, unload bag upon bag of perishable food only to discover that the elevator STILL isn't working. It made me really start wishing I was on a lower floor. Fortunately, (b/c they are never around) Adil & Mahmoud came running out and did a relay race with my groceries posing as the baton. At least nothing was broken. I walked upstairs with the eggs (so they wouldn't be broken) and Jacqui, who was asleep. (like you need to ask, of course she didn't go back to sleep for a lovely nap) I spent the rest of the afternoon on the phone with our housing people who deal with the landlords. I went back to take a picture of the tub, and it has been moved. Gosh, they can be speedy when they want to! We'll see what tomorrow brings in the elevator department. My knees may never forgive me.



** Actually, it's the 6th. They count the ground floor as 0 and the next floor I'd call "2nd" they call "1st". Go figure.

Who is that?

It is me. Yep, I'm a new woman. I took the plunge and did something to my hair that I never had the guts to do before. I went red. I've tried brown, mahogany, chocolatey about 8 years ago. I've never been platinum, but I have been pretty blonde before. I've done low lights, I've done highlights. Never red. So, I did it. Next week I'll put in some blonde highlights for depth, etc. This is a quick snapshot just for the sake of being quick. Yeah, no make-up, nothing. You got me au natural. I'll do an update in a few days. We are leaving for Alamein and will be back Sunday!

Interpretation

Oh, the joy I've had while reading these funnies! I don't even know where to begin. I think these are flashcards to accompany material for training Homeland Security personnel. Well, some wise guys found just the pictures and put in their own captions. Here is one of my favorites.

If you spot terrorism, blow your anti-terrorism whistle. If you are Vin Diesel, yell really loud.

Oh my, the tears were rolling with that one. Here's one more to whet your palate.

If you are trapped with no hope of being found, amuse yourself in your final moments with shadow puppets.

For the rest of these funnies, go here: http://www.safenow.org/

Read. Laugh. Enjoy.

Closeted Foodie

I think I'm a foodie. I'm no connoisseur of food & drink; I do love the stuff. Big fan. I can't bake a loaf of bread to save my life and my cookies always suck, so I'm no baker. I do enjoy experimenting with different dishes & recipes. I usually put my own take on whatever recipe I'm using. But I'm not a chef. I visit TasteSpotting every day. Sometimes a few times. It's my food porn and I'm addicted. I found this great link today. Yummo. Uh oh, I can't believe I just said that. Rachel Ray says that and I refuse to repeat anything she says. She's ok, I've just never made any of her "30 minute meals" within said time limit. Just sayin'. And Martha, well, she's ok as well. I admit I do have a book or two of her's and will buy 'Living' & 'Real Simple' from time to time, but she just doesn't live in this world. For example, an excerpt from a recent mag article about packing for travel.

" Whether I'm traveling by car or by plane, . . . A leather duffel & a suitcase on wheels (mine are by Louis Vuitton) are sturdy & flexible."

Seriously? And really, who names their property? Turkey Hill? Okay, I digress. This post didn't begin as a homemaking maven magnate bashing. I found Homemade Girl Scout Cookies recipes. Yay. I probably won't make them, (because I'd eat them all) but I can look at the palate-pleasing pictures and drool. TasteSpotting, check it out. I am an enabler.

Samoas
Thin Mints
Tagalongs

My Bane in Life

Whooo-boy, it's a two-fer today! Although I have had that "Playtime" post ready for a while, I just had to upload the pictures. So, as mentioned in the previous post, my girls know everyone else's lines in the play before they do. As did I when I was a child. I was just frustrated that they were following the same path through elementary school that I had in the class play department.

I was relegated to Caroler #3 and other such glamorous roles. I think the main frustration for me was that I was sitting (bored) on the risers listening to the rest of the kids mumble and stumble their way through the lines while I muttered them under my breath. Probably much to the annoyance of my parents, I would subject them to the full length version of all my plays. They would ask,

"So, what is your play about?"

"It's about the 4 food groups!"

I would then launch into the beginning scene along with the accompanying songs and choreography. That one number about broccoli, had 'em rolling in the aisles. I yearned for my time in the spotlight. I never got it.** So what do I do now? Yearn vicariously through my children. Although I do draw the line and am not a pushy parent, bugging the teacher to put my children front and center. That's why I said "Yearn". You wanna know about pushy parents? I could tell you some doosies! But let's not spoil the moment right now. I'll save that story for another time.



**never got it in gradeschool. i did drama & such in high school.

Playtime

The girls plowed right back into school with class plays only one week apart. Each class in the school does one ensemble play a year. Eliza & Mairyn had their's back to back. The plays usually reflect a main focus of study. For Eliza's class, the play centered on the Roman myth Remus & Romulus. They have been studying ancient Rome & Greece. In March, they are doing their residential trip to stay in Alexandria for 3 days. Eliza's part of the play was the adult Remus. She was great! (of course, what else would I say, I'm her mother.) The audience actually reacted and responded when her character was killed. I'm saying that b/c there were other deaths & they weren't that sympathetic.

Mairyn's class had been studying clothing and textiles through the ages. So their play was a spoof on the UK What not to Wear. Mairyn was Susanna. A main part, finally. I know that every mother believes that their child should be up in the middle of the stage in the spotlight. But really, my kids have been relegated to Villager #4 and Chorus person for the whole of their school experience. I think the stinger is, though, that my children know everyone's lines, something they inherited from me. I will post about that next. This one is for the girls! So Mairyn does a smashing job, really brillant! (come ON, how can I send my kids to a British school and NOT be allowed to used expressions like that!) They even had a dance number where they were partnered with a boy! They were both so cute!

My Current Fav

I go on music kicks. Right now, I'm in a French groove. I found this song in a really round-a-bout way. And I don't even remember what brought me to the video in the first place. I was watching this YouTube video about time lapse photography somethingorother. Anyway, there wasn't any narration, just the demonstration and this song playing. AND the best part was the person referenced the song. I find a lot of good songs, but never know the name or artist. And it's really annoying to have to play the YouTube video to just listen to the song! This one is called "Ensemble" by Coeur de Pirate. A French-Canadian gal that does an awesome job. She also reminds me of Sara Barielles & Yael Naim. Very similar styles and sound. But, the only thing I'm very sad about is that I can't download it. It's not on iTunes, Amazon, or even this stinkin' website for purchase or download. I can stream it, and that's what I'll do, stream, baby, stream.

http://rcrdlbl.com/2008/12/09/exclusive_new_download_m_pour_montreal_coeur_de_pirate_ensemble

** Just go to this link, it's the first in a lineup of three songs. It's called "Ensemble"

Join the Polar Bear Club

I found this in Eliza's backpack some time ago. It just took me a while to get it scanned and arranged in a collage. (yay for picasa) Eliza showed it to me and was very excited. And well, I think it's pretty self-explanatory. Although I don't think she knows the meaning of a Polar Bear Club. I still don't have any idea what this club is about, it definitely doesn't involve extreme temperatures or speedos. I especially like the "almost passed" and the "nearly passed, a little".