Show and Tell: Doin' De-butt
I actually posted this on Saturday. And really, since I’ve been out of town, I didn’t have a chance to post a Show and Tell this Sunday. So instead, I’m updating this post to make it this Sunday’s Show and Tell.
Presenting … my youngest cousin’s cotillion. Or what we call, a “Debut.” In my case … it’s de-butt! 🙂
And make sure that you peruse the other Show and Tell posts this week!
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Whew. This was a busy week.
Monday was spent catching up on the events that happened over the weekend. No … not the “social” aspect of last weekend (although I might blog about that another day). Working as an RN in the health care industry, the work never stops. Even when working for an insurance company. So as the phone calls and faxes came furiously all day Monday, there was little to no time to rest. And given that our company was closed for Election Day … well, I wanted to get everything from the weekend done by the end of Monday, so that Wednesday, I could work on everything that came in from Monday and Tuesday. So basically, my work week was spent trying to catch up from the previous couple of days. I. Hate. Work Weeks. Like That.
Tuesday, obviously Election Day. Hubby & I tried to stay up to watch the results come in, but ended up falling asleep in bed with the T.V. still on. I swear, one minute (oh, let’s say around 11:30) Obama had 207 to McCain’s 148 (or something like that …) and the next, it’s 11:55 and the news reporter on the T.V. announces that they’re waiting for the new President-Elect Obama to give his victory speech in Chicago. And then the next minute it’s 5:30 in the morning and the T.V. is off. I’m guessing that Hubby finally turned it off when finally going to bed. Or, I turned it off in my sleep haze and don’t remember doing so. Either way, I’m seriously bummed I didn’t get to hear Obama’s speech.
(Sidenote: A week prior to the results of this election, I received one of those mass emails from one of my parents’ friends about how a vote for Obama would mean a vote against G*d … or something along those lines. And since then, I’ve been getting these “replies” from people that I don’t even know either agreeing or disagreeing to that first email. Today … I got one with this article attached to it. Grr …
Wednesday was obviously a repeat of Monday morning. And we all know what happened on Thursday.
Now yesterday … yesterday evening was fun. It was my youngest cousin’s cotillion. In the Philippines, it’s customary to celebrate a girl’s “coming of age” by having a “Debut” party when she turns 18. (Think “My Sup.er Sw.eet Sixteen” with a two year delay.) I had a variation of one; more of a combination of a graduation / birthday party, all while wearing a fancy shmancy dress. My youngest cousin had, what I consider more of a traditional Filipino cotillion; complete with the white ballgown, the 16 or 18 person “Cotillion Court”, and the ballroom dance routine.
Oh, and did I mention that her party was more elaborate than my wedding?! Uh, yeah. So much that when we got the invitation in the mail … I thought that it was actually a wedding invite! Even the banquet hall was complete with a “head table” (for my cousin and her “Court”) and chair slipcovers with baby blue satin ribbons to match her “theme.”
And the cake … !!
But really, the best part of the party was, once again, being with my cousins. One came from as far as California just to celebrate with us. And the fun that ensued was beyond incredible. As tired as I was from the past work week … I wished we could have spent more time together. Perhaps one day we’ll be able to do the “girl cousins” cruise we planned that night!
(Another Sidenote: If you ever want to see a great example of a traditional Filipino cotillion … not to mention an excellent example of growing up Filipino-American, go rent “The Debut“. It’s so “on the nose” that it totally freaked even Hubby out!)
And today? Well, today I’m finally getting a chance to relax. Hubby & I took a trip to Chicago for an extra-long weekend getaway. A much needed getaway. We’ve been busy nonstop with various activities since Labor Day and just wanted to have a moment together without any distractions. And when we got a most excellent deal on a Downtown Chi-town hotel, well we snapped up the offer. So as I type, I’m lying in our wonderful king-size bed watching my Hubby snore next to me. Oh, and I think he’s getting sick, too.
But I’m seriously okay with that. And to tell you the truth, I almost half-expected him to get sick. After all, he has had little to no sleep over the past weeks. And this is his body’s way of telling him that taking care of himself is just as important (if not more) than any other business he has.
Besides, then I wouldn’t have time to write this post.
The Quick Brown Fox …
jumped over the lazy dog …
Oh yeah … Day # 6 and I’m already stretching the dregs of creativity.
Okay, so I do have a few posts in the work but I just haven’t had time to sit down and write them “properly.” After all … I am quite the deliberative person.
So. What to talk about today? How about how I went to pick up my parents at the airport this afternoon? Except I wasn’t quite sure what time I was supposed to be there until about, oh … let’s say 1o am this morning?
Yeah. So when I went to their house to drop them OFF at the airport at the beginning of their trip … in typical Filipino fashion, my parents (well, actually my Mom) was running behind and rushing around. She left me what she thought would be their flight itinerary, but in reality … all the paper had was a list of where they would be on a day-to-day basis. Nope. No flight info anywhere.
Of course I didn’t realize this until after the had already been gone for a few days. And of course there was no way to get a hold of them, as part of their international trip included cruising the Greek Isles. And why would they think of calling me just to make sure they were okay? (Hello?! Dad with a history of a heart attack and open heart surgery within the past year … in a foreign country?!)
But … at least I knew what day they were scheduled to come back home. And what airline they were using. AND which airport they were flying in from. So, “Encyclopedia Emily” decided to go to the airline website and figure out which flights were coming into Detroit from the airport they were flying out from. And my excellent deductive skills narrowed it down to three different times.
Problem was, that they were all about 2-3 hours apart in time. So I could’ve showed up at the first time and possibly have had to wait until they showed up (which could be as long as 6 hours … can you imagine that?!) OR I could hope to G*d that they would call me before their flight takes off.
Lucky me, the latter happened. Which is good, because there’s nothing to do and no place to just hang out around our airport. And I wasn’t about to pay whatever huge amount it would be to just park my car in the lot. AND, well … I didn’t bring anything to do (read: knitting) if I had to wait around.
Okay. So that was a lame story. I promise a better one this weekend.
But maybe not tomorrow, because I’ve got my youngest cousin’s wedding … oops, I mean cotillion-slash-18th birthday party to attend.
Political Non-Pundit
I am no political expert.
In fact, I’m probably furthest from that. However, I do like to keep myself pretty well informed. Especially because Election Day is now less than a week away. And seeing as this was one h*ll of a presidential campaign run, it’s hard not to want to be well-informed.
(Sidenote: It’s times like this, that I reaaallly miss Tim Russert. He just had an excellent way of explaining politics that made it fascinating. Election night coverage will not be the same without him …)
Anyways, I strongly believe in the right to vote. After all, democracy (and, a-hem … not free market) is what this country was founded on. And while I agree that campaigning is needed in order to promote a candidate’s platform, I don’t agree when someone tries to tell you how to vote. That, of course, does not mean that people aren’t allowed to debate with each other about who they support or don’t support a particular candidate.
Let me reiterate that one more time. I don’t agree when someone tries to tell you how to vote.
And why am I bringing this up now? Well of course, it’s because I have a story to tell.
Last Tuesday I dropped my parents off at the airport. They were on their way to Turkey and Greece to participate on a tour based on the travels of St. Paul. (Uh huh … you probably already know where this is going.) Because my car has been acting up, I suggested that we take their car to the airport. That way they could pack the car while waiting for me to drive over to their house.
So the drive to the airport was a smooth ride. So smooth that I considered “borrowing” their car for the two weeks they would be away. Never mind that she had a rosary (and a Franciscan Tau) hanging off her rear view mirror … I would have totally “borrowed” it for a couple weeks. The conversation was light. As we just got back from my cousin’s wedding, we talked about how great it was to be in the same room with everyone again.
It wasn’t until we got to the airport curb where the main part of my story takes place. As we were pulling out their luggage from the trunk, I glanced down at the bumper sticker that she’s had on her bumper forever (“Love a Franciscan: 2B1 Ask 1″) and chuckled like I always did when I spotted it. (As I’ve said in the past, my mom is very strong in her Catholic faith.) But then I glanced to the right of that sticker and saw a “Vote No on Proposal 2” bumper sticker. (More on Prop 2 in a bit.)
After helping them unload their luggage, I turned to give Dad a hug and kiss. And as I lean in to give my mom her hug, she pushes my hair off my shoulder and whispers in my ear, “Don’t forget to vote for McCain. And don’t forget to vote No on 2.” In which I promptly kissed her on her cheek and wished her a safe and fun trip. I briefly shook my head afterwards and thought, “Yup, should have seen that coming.”
For those of you that aren’t familiar, Michigan’s Prop 2 is a proposal to allow for embryonic stem cell research within the state. In the past, my mom and I have had conversations about stem cell research. My mom, of course being a devout Catholic does not support any type of stem cell research (and yes, of course she’s a “Right to Life” person as well).
And myself? Well the truth is, I’m still trying to determine how I feel about it; which is exactly what I told her. And that’s because of my own personal experience with our one and only IVF cycle and the one lone blastocyte that was left for us to freeze (to see what happened to that one embie … click here).
However, after that little bit at the airport … I felt myself fighting off every urge to vote Yes, just to cancel out her vote. But I won’t do that. I will make an informed, unbiased decision before November 4th. And I will make it based on my own opinions.
And I won’t let her (or anyone else, for that matter) know how I voted either.
Because while I support the need to campaign and to rally for whatever (or whomever) you’re voting on (or for) … and while I don’t hold anything against those that openly show how (or who) they’re voting … I personally believe that my vote is confidential.
The important thing is that everyone should go out and vote. For no other reason than BECAUSE YOU CAN.
As for whether or not I decided to “borrow” the car for a couple weeks … well, as you can guess, I decided against it. The icing on the cake was when I had no choice but to head straight to my doctor’s appointment after being stuck in the mid-morning rush hour traffic.
Which doctor and for which appointment, you might ask? Well, of all things … it was my first appointment with my new OB/Gyn.
Uh, so yeah. I hid the car at the back of the lot. I so didn’t feel like getting into it with any person who may be for or against Proposal 2.
(Not so) Serious Rants
Well, I can’t believe the last week of October is already here. It seems like just yesterday that it was Labor Day weekend and Hubby & I were celebrating our 12th wedding anniversary.
And even though the past two months felt like they’ve flown by … when going over the blog posts I’ve written during this time period, it feels as if the end of August was a lifetime away.
Yes, I did not deal with certain events during this interval very well. And to some extent I’m still not doing so hot. But I think I’ve come to the decision that there isn’t much more I can do that would make things any better or any worse for me at this moment. As my Hubby is so fond of saying, “It is what it is.” In other words, accept it and move on.
This coming Saturday will include a family function that … I’ll be honest … I’m a little apprehensive to attend. However, I will do so only for the love of these children and for the love of family. I’m not exactly sure how the rest of the family will treat me, but I will make the effort to be on my best behavior. I have a feeling I will be full of anxiety for the duration we are there, but perhaps the little white magic pill I’ll take before heading out the door will help. Thank G*d for modern chemistry.
In addition, I’m already expecting work to be extremely busy this week. (Okay, so when is it not busy?!) The Process Improvement group I’m part of is presenting it’s results from our first session to the big-wig execs tomorrow, which means that I should find something other than jeans to wear to work. And yes, I am lucky enough to work for a company that sees the value in promoting casual work wear (which includes jeans, in our case). And I think it’s great as a Health Insurance Company, that they did this to help promote exercise, activity and overall healthy living. But crap … I haven’t worn “business-wear” in years. Not since the days of being a “stupor-visor.” Do I even fit into any of it? Somehow methinks not.
Anyway …
This past Saturday, Hubby & I spent the day in Ann Arbor doing a very typical Midwestern-y Fall Activity. Well typical for those that enjoy watching sports. We spent the day watching the annual “Battle for the State” game; the University of Michigan vs. Michigan State football game at the Big House. We were expecting it to be a very cold and wet day, but the weather gods apparently decided to be kind to us instead. Unfortunately the sports gods weren’t too kind to my team, as we lost. It was an exciting game, nonetheless.
Oh, and I just happened to snap a picture of this:
Yep, that’s right some of the University of Michigan students supporting “Oba-den” (uh-huh … I like combining words).
It’s seeing those things that remind me why I enjoyed college life so much. Those were the days where I felt I could make some sort of difference in the world. The days where I felt invincible. Not that I’m not contributing to society and making a difference in this world right now … I think I find myself more invisible these days than invincible. In any case … the picture ROCKS! And I’m so surprised that there weren’t too many “McPalin” supporters at the game; especially because I have this image of the rich, older U of M alumni being more Republican than Democratic.
Anyway (as I continue to babble), on the 40-some minute drive to Ann Arbor (and afterwards, as we were stuck in post-game traffic), Hubby and I were listening to a couple of NPR podcasts we downloaded onto our iPod. One of the podcasts came highly recommended by a co-worker/NPR-listener/friend of mine, as it was an episode of “This American Life” that broke down the current economic crisis in terms that everyday people could understand. And while searching for that episode online, Hubby found another episode aired in May of this year and was actually the predecessor to this October episode.
Now, I can’t claim any prior knowledge (other than what we typically hear in the daily newscasts) on exactly why our country is in such economic turmoil. However, I can tell you this. The more I listened and learned, the more I found myself getting angrier. Seriously. Nothing says “Let’s make more money off the poor so we can get richer” like listening to some of the stories told.
And the fact that none of these financial “schemes” (for lack of better word) have been regulated?! Well … it totally pisses off the RN Case Manager in me that works for a Health Insurance company where … anything and everything (in terms of dollars and cents) is scrutinized by the government. Okay, so I totally understand that regulating health care is a matter of life and death. But really (in my humble opinion), by not regulating our financial market at all … well crap! We’re letting strangers bet on our livelihoods. And when you think about it, that’s what these financial people are doing … gambling with our lives!
Okay, I will get off my high horse for now. But again, I strongly recommend you listening to these podcasts. There’s a 95 cent fee to download the podcast from the website. Or you can always listen to them free directly on the site.
Oh, and while I’m on the whole NPR thing. Here’s a little tidbit I heard on the radio this evening. Apparently there is modern version of the “New Testament” coming out tomorrow that supposedly is very “pop culture”-ish. The little bit I caught talked about having images in it like Co.ca.Co.la and Gandhi. But the best part was hearing this girl say, “Can’t have a bible without Bono!”
And with that crack of lightning (from the heavens above) … I’m “Audi 5000“!