Chobi Mela (Picture Party!!!)

My new good friends Kasia and Anders posed as bride and groom at the wedding.



Mithu was playing the shy groom in this picture. Masud obviously didn't have a clue that he was about to be bitten by a Dengue infested mosquito.



Lots of in-laws...



...and more in-laws.



And a very cute little girl. This is Shanin, who is three, and she's such a diva. Masud was yelling about something, and she said, "I'm going to go heat up some water and throw it on your head." I said, "That's a good idea!" and she said, "Amar ONEK buddi ache. (I am very clever!)"

Khala - my favorite lady!



I actually DID work a little while in Bangladesh - here I was helping Kasia with her awesome collective loan project.



Me in the new "for women only" cyber cafe.



Visiting a business of one of the collective loan participants (From left to right: Khala, Rena, Katie, Hasina and Kathy)



Mithu and Jhumur at the "Bou Bhat" - the party following the wedding where the new bride "feeds" all of the groom's family and friends.

A traditional favorite passtime in Bangladesh: Everyone piles on the bed and gossips till the wee hours of night. After this picture was taken, the bed made a loud cracking noise!



Mithu and Jhumur, the groom and bride, on a boat on Foy's Lake in Chittagong.



Here I am, driving a hard bargain with a street vendor in Dhaka. Look how mean my snarl is! A crowd quickly gathered to support me, and although I would have paid 50 taka (about seventy five cents) for the bracelet I wanted, the crowd wouldn't let me pay more than 30 taka, so I had to leave it.




Here we are on the back balcony of my brother-in-law Masud-bhai's new "chamber" (doctor's office) in Chittagong. It's really nice, very high tech and clean, and I am very proud of him!




A beat-up bus - most of the city busses look like this. Would you feel comfortable riding?

I forgot to tell you...

...in my post-emotional trauma fog yesterday that Masud came to Wisconsin to recuperate. He flew in on Saturday, and when I picked him up from the airport I was really scared. He's not a big guy to begin with, but he must have dropped at least 15 pounds since I last saw him a few weeks ago, and his face looked old. His boss told him to stay until he feels better. After a few days of my cooking (yeah, I do it once in a while) and lots of rest, and lots of Isaac-kisses, he is looking great. As a matter of fact, he cooked his own duck curry yesterday. He got his blood drawn today to check for any Dengue disasters, but I think he's on the mend.

Thank you so much to everyone who supported me through this. Every single call, email, comment, thought, whatever, meant so much to me and I'm so lucky to have such great friends!

Now, I must catch up on my blog-reading. I have not visited Bitch Ph.D. for over a month. The horror.

A sad day.

My grandparents moved into a rest home today. It happened really fast - they filled out the application while I was in Bangladesh, and less than a month later, they moved in. They've lived in Montello all their lives, and on Main Street for the past 30 years. It was hard.

My grandpa served in WWII - he was actually on Normandy beach on D-Day and helped to clean up the concentration camps at the end of the war. Because of his service, they were eligible to live in the Wisconsin Veterans Home in King. It's really beautiful - the Cadillac of rest homes. A nice big room, staffed by nurses and doctors, recreational activities, good food, and a beautiful view of two lakes. I wouldn't mind living there.

But grandpa has Alzheimers, and although grandma told him every day for a month that they were leaving, he still didn't get it. This morning, I handed him his shaving kit and grandma told him not to lose it. He said, "Am I going somewhere?"

Right before we got into the car, he started crying. He said, "I don't want to go! I want to stay here!" He rode with my dad in the truck, and dad said that he sobbed the entire way there. King is 50 minutes away.

Then there was the problem of Chips. About ten years ago, a friend of grandma's dropped off a puppy - a beagle mutt - and the dog has been grandpa's best friend for years. Chips has arthritis and he's never been trained properly. He's used to a diet of left over hamburgers and other table scraps. He's way overweight.

So we put him to sleep. Grandma made me promise not to keep him. She wanted to know that he's not suffering.

I'm sad.

Whoa! Hey!

What happened to my blog? Where is the groovy star graphic and my profile pic? I'm gonna have to work on that, but since I am still stuck with dial-up at home, it might be a while, folks.

The good news is, I finally figured out my schedule for this fall and it's not bad. I might even be able to use the van that drives from Montello to Madison, thereby saving on gas and parking. Rock on.

In other news, a huge spider has moved in to the office area of my parents' house. It is not huge in Bangladeshi spider terms, but it's bigger than a silver dollar. I discovered it when I tried to grab a new book of checks from the shelf, and there it was, with its web attached to my check box. I guess I really didn't need to write out a check after all.

My dad has been feeding it box elder bugs and chiggers and moths. It's kindof interesting to watch, actually.

Eww.

The good and the bad.

I've been in Madison twice so far this week, starting my new job as a McNair advisor. After hours, I've been exploring the campus and have discovered a few things.

There are many good things, including:

1. Almost every restaurant, kiosk or deli that I go to has at LEAST two vegetarian options. These are not watered-down versions of meat entrees. For lunch today I had vegetarian sushi - delicately fried tofu stuffed with barley noodles and wasabi. Mmmmmm.

2. The University Bookstore has a stack of discount paperbacks. I tell myself that I'm actually saving money, because for every purchase at the bookstore, I get a coupon for $2 off of parking in the city ramp. So, today I spent $25 to save $2.

3. I have not seen a single polyester pantsuit so far. "Dressed up" seems to mean khakis and a polo shirt.

There are some bad things as well:

1. Physical exercise is inevitable. My office is at the top of this mountain, euphamistically called "Bascom Hill". It's a 45 degree angle of terror for my fat ass. Also, the campus is huge, so today I think I walked about 5 miles in search of the elusive "Union South" building.

2. With the liberal atmosphere comes a fair amount of nutjobs. Today there was a woman strumming her guitar and singing about "evil spirits" and how she'd like to pray for all of us. She was giving out free Bibles. Freakin' fundamentalist.

3. Parking. Today's bill = $8.25 (minus my $2 coupon, of course). 'Nuff said.


But, all in all, I'm convinced I made the right decision to go back to school.

Dengue update: Masud got out of the hospital today, although he did sound like he was dying when I talked to him this afternoon. The doctors must know what they are doing, right? They wouldn't let a dying man out of the hospital, right?

Dengue Fever

This week has been totally exhausting. I got home Sunday night (sans suitcases), and went back to work on Monday morning. This was my last week of work for my county job, and it actually wasn't too bad. The woman we hired to replace me is great and a fast learner. The hard part was the jet lag - it seems like the recovery period gets longer each time I fly. I caught some kind of Bangladesh Death Flu before I left, which didn't help matters much.

Speaking of Death Flu, Masud had also been sick for about a week before we left. He seemed to be getting better, but suddenly yesterday he started feeling really sick at the office. He went to the clinic and discovered that his fever was at 104. He started to get a bad headache and the doctor decided to send him to the emergency room. They tested him for malaria, dengue, and menengitis. My poor husband is terrified of hospitals and needles, and he had to have some painful tests including a spinal tap.

It turns out that he doesn't have malaria or menengitis, but the dengue results won't be back from the CDC for a few days. The doctor is pretty sure it's dengue. Google it for more info - it's a pretty intense disease.

I want to be with him but I can't afford a plane ticket, and the drive is over 11 hours so I'd have to turn around right after I got there. I guess this is another consequence we'll have to learn to deal with...

Dramatic Goodbyes

Today is the last day that I will spend in Bangladesh. While I'm very sad to be leaving, I am so excited to see Isaac that it's making me almost crazy! It's been an interesting day so far, and it's only 11:15 a.m. This morning, I waited in Gulshan-2 circle for my friends to pick me up, and I was surrounded by a group of beggars and street children. They asked for money, of course, which I didn't give to them (I seriously don't have any!) and then asked if I would visit their homes. Rickshaw-wallahs began to gather and listen to me chatting with a group of street kids. As the crowd grew, businessmen on their way to work tried to shoo the beggars away, thinking that I was being harrassed. It was an interesting experience, mostly because I am usually terrified of people standing in a circle around me (both because of my fear of speaking in front of people and my crowd-anxiety).

After my friends picked me up, we went to meet with Mahmuda Islam, founder of Women for Women. I've heard a lot about her and read lots of her articles, and it was a real treat to meet her. She helped us out with a project at Nari Jibon, which was a great relief.

Now I'm at the office, preparing myself for a long day of tearful goodbyes. Tonight I'll need to pack my bag and make the last minute phone calls to friends and family. I have a bit of a virus, so I am not at my most patient of moods, but I am really looking forward to giving Isaac a huge hug and snuggling up for a nice long sleep in my own bed.

You Know You're In Bangladesh When...

...the bus driver hands out plastic bags before starting the journey in case any passengers need to barf.

...you plan your shopping trips around your bodily functions because a useable public restroom is rare.

...you see only three hair colors - black, grey and bright orange (the color of henna-dyed grey hair that people seem to think looks "natural").

...you don't bother to dry off after bathing because you sweat so much that your clothes are wet anyway.

...the begger to whom you gave 20 taka comes back and says, "Madam, the note you gave me is torn, give me a better one!"

...you cure your chronic constipation with a dish of lukewarm phuschka from the roadside stand.

...your feet are constantly polka-dotted with insect bites, and you have to shake out your clothes before dressing to make sure that there are no bugs inside waiting to bite you.

...once important task like applying deodorant and styling your hair become pointless in the relentless heat and humidity.

...you begin to long for simple delicacies like Kraft Mac N Cheese and other bland foods to soothe your spice-worn innards.

Update Via List

1. I forgot to shake out my kameez this morning before I put it on, and so all day a bug has been roaming around inside my clothes and biting me when it gets a chance. I don't think it's a big bug, because I can barely feel it walking around, but I sure can feel it bite, and it leaves nasty bumps that itch!

2. I spent about $300 in the past 2 days on books, bootleg DVDs, and silver jewelry. Masud is in India on business, and when the shammi's away, the bou must play!

3. Yesterday while stuck in a typical Dhaka traffic jam, I heard some beautiful bamboo flute music. I looked to the left and saw a driver of a private car sitting with the window rolled down, playing the flute. When he saw me watching him, he stopped out of shyness, but I asked him to keep playing and he did. It was the most wonderful traffic jam ever!

4. I was nearly run over by a bus today, but managed to jump away just in time. Sadly, I didn't look before I lept, and landed in a huge puddle of poop-water.

5. It's been raining a lot here, which is nice because it cools the hot air a little, but it's also bad because it floods the sewers thus creating the aforementioned poop-water.

6. I tried to register for my classes this morning on the irritatingly slow "broadband" connection in the Nari Jibon office. I had a beautiful schedule created, but it turned out that four of the five classes were full. I think I'll just wait to get back.

7. I have some great pictures, but no way to post them. Anticipate much picture blogging once I get back to my wireless DSL connection in the USA.

8. I MISS ISAAC so bad that I can barely stand it.

Greetings from the Desh.

We made it safely to Bangladesh, although the journey seems longer and longer every time I do it. After being here only one day, I feel like I never left! Some observations:

1. You know you've left American territory when the flight attendant announces which languages are spoken by the crew aboard the plane: Hindi, Philipine, Bangla, Arabic, Urdu, English, and Thai.

2. It's hot here. The moment I stepped off the plane and the Dhaka smog hit my skin, about 20,000 zits popped out on my face. Gross. I'm ready for my close up now!

3. My brain does not work. I went to the Indian Embassy today to get my visa, but forgot to take some money along to pay for it. Grraahhhh!

4. I still have not been able to eat Jilapi, but hopefully I'll get some tonight!


More updates to come. Send cool breezes my way!

My big head is almost blocking out my good friend Kei, and behind him you can see Steve, who is a new grantee to Bangladesh this year. He'll be studying economic development at BRAC University. I think we were on the yellow line of the DC metro, on our way to have drinks. Steve is a neat guy - and he has really big feet.


Here I am again (no, I'm not stoned or drunk, I just have droopy eyelids!) with Kristin Boekhoff. Kristin will be doing a project involving low income housing for garment workers.

I didn't get any other pictures because I was too busy yammering away. These people are so interesting! I learned a lot about the world of finance and investment banking, and then talked about how to get natural dread-locks with Mike (who is going to Nepal and will fit right in), and then we had a very long and explicit discussion about the benefits and pitfalls of a squatty-potty and how to use a "bodna" (watering can type item used to clean oneself after eliminating). Sadly, the fairy tale must end, and tomorrow I'll be headed back to Wisconsin.

I do miss my little guy, though...and the puppy.

DC Fun

I'm sitting in my hotel room in DC, enjoying a nice rest after spending the day at the National Museum of the American Indian. If you're ever in the area, I'd highly recommend it. All of the Smithsonian museums are great, of course, but this one was very special. I took a guided tour with a "cultural interpreter," a Navajo woman who took seriously her responsiblity to reeducate those of us who have misperceptions about the First People. Honestly it was quite moving and I'm glad I had the afternoon to digest it all.

I'm here for another Fulbright orientation for the next cohort of Fulbrighters going to the Near East, Africa and South Asia. Yesterday, I was honored to sit on a panel called "What it means to be a Fulbrighter." (See my comments from last year's panel presentation here.) The other panelists were Dr. E. Ethelbert Miller, Scholar to Israel, and Dr. Everette Penn, Scholar to Egypt. I'm very lucky to have been included.

After the meeting, I met up with my fellow alum Keisuke. I haven't seen Kei since I left Bangladesh last June! He's living in DC, so we went out after the meeting for some great Chinese food (fresh noodles made on the spot!) and we caught up on all the news. All that was missing was our buddy TKP, who is in Kolkata doing her own research at the moment. I'll be visiting her hopefully next week!

Tonight we have a fancy shmancy reception - time for me to get ready. I'll take my camera along and I'll try to take some pictures for later posting.

The moment you've all been waiting for!

Here are the infamous pictures from the Montello Community Theater production of "You Can't Take It With You" featuring yours truly as "Essie Carmichael".

I'm in the news!

The Portage Daily Register wrote up the recent poverty simulation that was offered by our area extension office. It was a great experience! Check out my quote at the end.

When I have too much to do, I change my blog template!

It takes skill, my friends, to be a truly good procrastinator. When I think of what I need to accomplish in the next three days, my head spins. I think the reason I'm actually wasting time is because I know that I can't possibly finish everything in time, it's hopeless! I had some big moving plans for today, but after eating my cake at Isaac's friend's birthday party (and then finishing Isaac's half-eaten piece), I fell into a sugar coma for about two hours. There went that plan!

I then broke my Walmart boycott rule and spent $170 at the super walmart in Portage. Driving into the parking lot, I was reminded of why I don't go there - Walmart parking lots are a death trap of crazed shoppers who will fight tooth and nail for a space! I ended up parking at the very end of the lot and risked life and limb to walk all the way to the huge entrance.

While shopping, my left heel was rammed by more than one shopping cart, and I had to keep going back and forth from the "grocery" section to the "housewares" section because I kept forgetting stuff on my list. I met one confused woman in the health and beauty aisle said exasperatedly, "I just want to buy soap. Where is the damn soap in this place?"

I came home, loot in tow, and was so exhausted that the thought of moving today almost made me scream in pain. So I changed my blogger template instead.

Anxiety attack

The ol' Effexor took a vaycay today and I had a minor breakdown. There is just Too Much going on in my life right now for an itty-bitty pill (and my chemically-imbalanced brain) to handle!

1. My husband lives in Ohio and it is emotionally distressing for both Isaac and me.
2. I am trying to get the house ready to put on the market (by Monday).
3. I am trying to finish everything that needs to be done for my job so that while I'm gone nothing falls apart (by Tuesday). My to-do list fills two sides of a legal sheet of paper.
4. We spent the week doing interviews for both my position and another position. Interviewing people can be very stressful, and that meant that I didn't have time to do anything else! I need to get them all situated before I leave on Wednesday.
5. I had an interview myself on Tuesday for a project assistantship at UW-Madison. I just found out that I got it! I'll be helping to coordinate the McNair Scholars program! But now I need to go down there on Tuesday and have a mini-orientation before I leave.
6. I am leaving for Washington DC on Wednesday, where I will be on a panel called "What It Means to be a Fulbrighter". Usually presentations of this kind make me very nervous, but I did it last year so I don't even need to write the speech. But I still have to dress up and stand in front of a room of 200 people.
7. I will return on Friday from DC, and on Saturday morning I am leaving for Bangladesh for three weeks.
8. I have not started packing or planning for my trip to Bangladesh.
9. I need to move most of my stuff from my house to my parents house this weekend and make sure that Isaac has everything that he needs for the three weeks that I'm gone.
10. I should probably figure out my class schedule so that I can register when I become eligible on July 10.
11. The fact that I have to leave Isaac (and to a smaller degree, my puppy) for three weeks is making me very sad.
12. I have not done much remedial economics or sociology reading yet, although I have made my way through six of the seven Epic Novels about Captain Underpants.

Whew. That IS a lot of stuff. Would it be bad if I just had a beer and watched my "Friends" DVD?

Surreal

Isaac has little friends that come over randomly - their parents allow them to roam freely and enter strangers' houses at will, and they tend to spend lots of time here. They range in age from 4 to 11. I'm listening to them tell jokes right now, and here is a sample.

"Why did the dog chase the cat across the road?"
"Why?"
"Because he wanted to toot in the cat's face!"
Ha ha ha ha ha ha!

"Why did the chicken put his cactuses on his butt?"
"Why?"
"Because he thought one of them was Velma!!"
Ha ha ha ha ha ha!

Indeed.

Kreachers

We found a little turtle in our back yard today. We live on the famous "Montello Isthmus", a strip of land that stretches between the Fox River and a marsh. Not good for insurance purposes, but it's certainly picturesque (except for the state highway running about six feet from my front door, and the run-down houses on each side of mine...ahem). We often have wildlife making the dangerous trek from river to marsh through our yard. This includes ducks - quacking loudly in the mornings - and frogs, turtles and even snakes.

About two months ago, my mom dropped of a little snapper that she had rescued from the middle of the road. Isaac was devastated when I made him set it free in the back yard. Today I told him that the slightly larger snapper that we found was actually the same one. Ahhh, the white lies we parents tell! Anyway, he named it Saruman, not to be confused with Sauron the Hermit Crab.

Of course, Shadow the Brave protected us from the evil intruder.



Have I mentioned how much I love Shadow? I've decided that if I ever get the urge to procreate again, I can just get another dog. I may end up with 7 dogs in the end. Now, if only I could house train him!!!

Saturday update

Masud got here safe and sound - albeit exhausted. He's been in Connecticut for the past week for training. Our family should sign up for a frequent flyer program - between the three of us, we could rack up the miles really fast. He'll fly back to Connecticut tomorrow, and then he's coming again next weekend.

When I came home from the play last night, and we were all together, Isaac said, "This feels so good. Our family is fixed!"

Time is flying, though! I can't beleive I only have two weeks until I leave for Bangladesh. I've got lots to do before then - work stuff, packing, school stuff, moving, getting the house listed and ready to show, etc., etc., etc... Making lists is usually comforting for me, but not when they are overwhelming!

Tonight is the last performance of our play! I am hoping to get pictures soon - technical difficulties are to blame for my not posting them already. I'm looking forward to having my evenings back, but I am having a great time. The first night, the audience participation was great and I felt so happy up there. Something about making people laugh makes me almost crazy! I can't believe what I am willing to do onstage, but would never do in "real life" - like wear nylons and blush, and curl my hair in to ridiculous ringlets.

Well, I have about an hour before it's time to start the hair curling ritual, so I'm gonna take a snooze.

A Death

Last night at 9:30, I came home and checked on the hermit crabs. I noticed that hermit crab number 2, Raki, looked kindof strange. On closer inspection, I realized that her legs were not attached to her body. Ewwww. I'm not sure if she spontaneously dropped all her legs (a la Mr. Krabbs of Spongebob fame) or maybe another crab picked a fight. I'm guessing the latter.


The Suspect: Sauron is the biggest crab, the most active, and probably the one that literally took Raki apart.

We had a funeral for Raki while I held her body pieces in a table spoon over the garbage can. She is now blissfully scampering over the big beach in the sky.

Isaac was pretty sad. But we're going to get another crab and name her Raki II.

Yard Sale Mania.

I'm recovering from a gross infection that gave me a sore throat, psuedo ear ache and a terrible headache. Plus, I spent most of the weekend outside selling the misc. crap that had been stored for years by this house's previous owner. You wouldn't believe what we dragged out of the garage and other buildings (nor would you believe what people actually paid money for!!!)

Among some of the more interesting finds:
-A tricycle that must be over 70 years old
-An old outboard motor (anybody wanna buy an Evinrude Zephyr?)
-A half-barrel and tapper-thingy
-Two WWII folding cots with Medical Unit tags on them
-A WWII dress uniform
-An authentic pith helmet
-About a thousand plastic buckets and containers

It was fun and I made some money, too. Sadly, I went shopping today and blew most of my wad. How quickly it leaves my fingers!

This week is affectionately termed "hell week" by members of the community theater. We have to do the full show every night, including dress and makeup and hair. We open on Thursday, so if you're in the area, stop by. I'll try to post pictures - hopefully someone will take some!

Masud is coming home this weekend. Family reunion, yay!

Traffic in South Asia

This clip is from India, but it gives you a good idea of what traffic is like in that part of the world. In Bangladesh, there would be about double the amount of cars/buses/pedestrians, plus about a thousand rickshaws thrown into the mix. Scary? Yes.

Day 2

We made it through another day without baba (Masud). He seems to be busy in Ohio - his car needs fixing after the long trip, and he's looking at apartments. He starts his job tomorrow. I'm lonesome for him.

We are planning to visit him the third weekend in June. This month is very crazy - I've got rehearsal every night now for the next three weeks, leading up to opening night on the 15th. I need to have a garage sale one of these weekends so that we can show off our patio when prospective buyers come to see the house. (Have I mentioned that we are selling our house? And that I'm moving in with my parents?) Then we'll go visit Masud, then I have a Fulbright conference in DC, and then, drum roll, I'm going to Bangladesh. Somehow I need to find time to do some shopping and pack for that big trip, too.

Rehearsals are going well. I only needed a prompt once during tonight's rehearsal, so that was good. I'm really enjoying my comedic role - lots of physical humor and airhead-ish lines. Very fun. Too bad I sweat like a cold pepsi on a hot day when I'm onstage. My tu-tu acts as a heat retainer and even my knees start to sweat. My hair was drenched after my big dance number tonight. As adverse as I am to physical exercise, it's kind of fun prancing around on that stage!

I'm very much in love with the puppy. We had decided to name him Shadow, but tonight we decided to try Oliver. The poor thing will never get his name! Page calls him Zeus, dad calls him Dog, mom calls him Puddintate and Mr. Pupper Doggums, and I call him Toast, Felix, Rufus, Good Boy, or whatever else comes to mind. Oliver is cute though, so we'll see if it sticks.

It seems that my battery will die soon so time to log off...

Ouch.

About a week after I came back from Bangladesh last year, I remember saying to Masud, "Let's never live apart again." But here we are. He left this morning at 4 a.m., his Subaru packed to the max with his stuff. I feel like I'm suffocating.

When I tell people our situation, I am met with blank stares. I feel like they are thinking, "Why aren't you going with your husband?" Sometimes I wonder that too. We even say to each other, "We'll see what happens next year" - as if one of us will decide to give up on our dream. The truth is, he will love his job, and I will love my school. My program is 5 years, and maybe after that I'll get a job and he can quit his. But we don't know.

There's a Masud-sized hole in my heart. He's a little guy, but the hole is huge.

Page's Graduation Party (in pictures)

Random pictures - Sorry if you have dial up!

Page's Graduation (in pictures)

Isaac's end-of-the-year field trip to Wisconsin Dells (in pictures)

Help us name our new puppy!

Yes, he's adorable. He's a Yorkshire Terrier, six months old, and we fell in love immediately. He was kinda expensive, but I'm not saying how much because I just got done whining about how much people in developed countries spend on their pets! I'm a total hypocrite!

But we're having trouble thinking of a good name, so help us out. My ideas so far are: Jonas, Rufus, Wakefield, Bean. Isaac's ideas are: Loving Dog, Meadow, Shadow, Turok.

We're kindof leaning toward Shadow. Suggestions? Since he's kindof a replacement for my husband, maybe we should name him Masud?

Poor George!

Isaac and I went to the Humane Society yesterday afternoon to visit George and turn in our application to adopt him, but it was not meant to be. The staff decided that he should not be adopted to a home that has small children. I disagree, but have to trust the experts. So the search goes on.

I kept Isaac home from school today. He's been complaining of feeling "pukey", and last night while I was at play practice, he started crying and had severe stomach pains. I'm worried that it might be all of the emotional stress that is going on in the house, so I decided to let him sleep in and we're going to spend the day together, maybe looking for puppies, or maybe just hanging out at home. When I was little, my mom used to let us stay home from school for no reason, and sometimes she would even take me shopping. Those days were so awesome! Who cares about perfect attendance, anyway? It's all about balance.

Wish us luck in the puppy search!

That doggie in the window

As a preemptive strike against the depression that is sure to result at the loss of our husband/father, we have decided to get a dog. I’ve been researching breeds online, and I’ve considered plunking down a pile of cash for a purebred. Then I stumbled across the horror that is “puppy mills”. Do you know about this? It’s terrible!

Now, I would like to remind my readers that there are human beings in this world who are suffering, and I believe that we (in developed nations) spend way too much of our resources on our animals. But, at the same time, all living things deserve to be treated with respect. No living thing deserves to be tortured – even George W.! Gourmet doggie biscuits may be overboard, though.

If you’ve read my recent posts about my hermit crabs (notice, I’m calling them MY hermit crabs, not Isaac’s), you will know that I have a soft spot for animals. Although I don’t purport to be a vegetarian because I feel bad for the cows, I do cringe when I think of the slaughterhouse. Well, this puppy mill business has got me all upset.

Puppy mills are horrible places where dogs are kept locked in cages, often out in the cold year round, with little or no care. They are bred constantly, and the puppies are shipped out to pet stores and sold on the internet or through the newspaper. Sometimes they don’t get sold, and live their lives in those awful places, or worse.

Google it if you think you can stomach it. It’s so sad.

And this is where pet store puppies come from! Augh!

So puppies or full grown dogs that are rescued from these awful places are usually terrified of humans. They are not housebroken, because they’ve always just pooped right in their cages. They have not been able to run, play or socialize like they should have. Some of them have severe medical problems like splayed feet from walking on wires too long, matted and infested hair, ear infections, etc.

We found a dog at the local animal shelter who had been rescued from a puppy mill. His name is George (but we’re going to change it to Jonas). He’s a small poodle with short black curly hair. He’s very timid, but we hope we can bring him around with lots of love. He’s a year and a half old, and spent his entire life in a puppy mill. Poor thing!

We are going over this afternoon to turn in our application and pick up some pet supplies. We’re not 100% sure that we’ll get him yet, because he needs to be temperament tested to be around Isaac first, but I’m already in love. I hope it works!

Bullets

· Isaac is almost done with kindergarten. This Thursday his class is taking a field trip to Wisconsin Dells to ride on “The Original Ducks” (google it if you don’t know what it is). I am going along as a chaperone. I am almost having an anxiety attack just thinking about all those kindergarteners in a boat on the river.
· I spent the day trying to clean the garage. All I actually accomplished was to shove more clutter into bags and piles. Fortunately, Masud will be taking some of the clutter with him to Ohio so that cuts down on the amount of stuff I’ll have to eventually sort.
· Tonight I went to another one of Page’s awards ceremonies. Last Wednesday, it was the senior awards night, and tonight it was the music awards banquet. Apparently I was cheering too loudly, because at the end of the night she informed me that I was “annoying” her, and that I should get a ride home with mom and dad. Humph. Serves me right for trying to be supportive, I guess.
· I have not seen the DaVinci Code yet. Page saw it yesterday and said it was “not as good as the book.” I might just wait until we go to B-Desh and buy a bootleg copy.
· Isaac and I have finished reading the first four of the “Captain Underpants” series. Highly recommended for those of you who enjoy potty humor.
· We have less than a month until opening night for our play. I’m getting a little nervous. This weekend, I went to several thrift stores and found some very ugly dresses for my costumes. One of the skirts has a Kathie Lee label. Oh, the horror!
· I think I washed dishes 25 times today. Dish washing ranks just above toilet cleaning in my “loathsome housework” list, probably because it is like stringing beads on a thread that has no knot in the end.
· It’s 8:00 and I’m in my P.J.’s. I think that means I should start getting social security checks soon.
· I am slightly disturbed that my life has become so boring that I have nothing good to blog about. I’m hoping grad school provides some exciting blog fodder.

Crippled Crabs

Last Saturday I took Isaac to the Portage pet store because we were going to get another hermit crab. There were no small crabs left, so I looked at the four remaining "medium-sized" crabs. They are about the size of a golf ball.

Right away, I noticed that two of the crabs had missing legs and were exploding out of their shells. Being the crab expert that I am, I figured they needed to molt and change into bigger shells. My crustacean-loving heart was broken for the little guys, and I decided to plunk down the $20 and buy both of them.

We took them home and welcomed Sauron and Voldemort to the Zaman clan. Raki and Tough Jumbo came out and greeted them, and Isaac and I treated the group to fresh bananas, apples, lettuce and dessicated fish. Mmmm. Dessicated fish.

They seem to be happy in their new home, and hopefully they will molt and be happy. I'll try to get some pictures this weekend.

In other news, last night the school board voted to reinstate the four veteran teachers that they had reduced to 75% last month. The elementary teacher that was cut will not be getting her job back, but at least the high school teachers get to stay. I'm very relieved. Now, we must think of fund raisers.

Zuma, killer of productivity

It's been raining for three days straight now, and there is no sun in sight. I am already bummed out because Masud is leaving, and I've been sitting on the couch for an hour playing Zuma. Yesterday's dishes are in the sink, on the counter, and on the table. There is a pile of laundry next to me, my bed isn't made, and the house smells like yesterday's fish fry.

Wahhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Isaac is at his grandma's house so I should be DOING SOMETHING, like reading an important book to get ready for school, picking out my classes, emailing professors to get on their waiting list, blah, blah, blah...

I think I'll play another round of Zuma.

The News

I can finally spill the beans. Some of you know about this already, but for those of you who are not in the "inner circle", here it goes:

1) Back in March, I was accepted to the Development Studies Ph.D. program at UW-Madison. I have officially decided that I will start in the fall. I will be majoring in Sociology, minoring in Economics, with a tertiary specialization in Women's Studies. My research proposal was on women working in IT (information technology) in Bangladesh. (are you snoring yet?) Watch out academia! Here I come!

2) Today, I told my boss that I will be leaving my position in August in order to go to school. (This was why I didn't post anything before - I didn't want people finding out via blogspot.)

3) I'm going to Bangladesh in July for three weeks! I'm so excited - my brother-in-law Mithu is FINALLY going to celebrate his marriage. He got married in 2002 but until now he has not been able to leave the country. He got his greencard a few weeks ago, so we are all going to the Desh with him and his wife to celebrate! I'll also be doing some work with the Nari Jibon clan as well.

4) Masud got a new job. It's a GREAT job at a GREAT company - a position that he's been dreaming about for years. There is a big bummer, though. The company is in Canton, Ohio. He'll be leaving the day after Memorial Day, and I suppose we'll see him once a month or so. Sigh.

So there you have it. I may not post often, but I make up for lack of quantity with quality, that's for sure!

Ahhh, glorious Friday.

This morning, I woke up to a mysterious clicking sound and realized that one of the hermit crabs must have emerged from beneath the substrate. Those poor dudes have been buried under the sand for almost a month now. I dug them up once and realized they were still alive, and since then I've just kept their terrarium moist and left them alone since they are probably molting. I did a daily sniff test, too, to make sure that they were not dead and rotting in there. But I was starting to worry.

So imagine my relief when I grabbed the flashlight and saw Hermit Crab #2 "Raki" sitting on the drinking water dish. Of course I scared the crap out of her with the flashlight, and she squished back into her shell. But I was so happy to see her that I almost cried!

This is why I'm a vegetarian - I have an emotional attachment to a crustacean. I've been very worried!! (Wendy - are hermit crabs crustaceans?)

I'm so glad it's Friday. This weekend is supposed to be nice, so I'm going to do some more spring cleaning. This week was very intense - not so much because of work but some big things are happening in my personal life. I'm not quite ready to announce it to the world yet (NO, I'm not pregnant) but hopefully by the end of next week, I can post it here. It's big, believe me, and I have good reasons for not posting it yet.

Anyway, now that I've got you all riled up, it's time for me to play another round of "Insaniquarium" from popcap.com. It's addictive.

My bro...isn't he cute?



Page and Josh sang a nice duet (here they are waiting to begin - goofing off of course).



Scary close-up!



Grandpas are good for piggy-back rides.



Here's Page's quartet. They got first place!

A Bummer Week.

This week started off with an emergency school board meeting to discuss the huge budget problems in the Montello School District. The board is looking at a deficit of $400,000 this year and another $3-400,000 next year. They have cut back four of the school's best and most loyal teachers (including Mrs. Ellebecker, my beloved art teacher) to 75% time. Of course, being cut back is better than losing their jobs altogether. But they will have to pay for the 25% of insurance (on top of their regular contributions) and they will lose a chunk of salary, which could be devastating. What this means for the students is less choices for their favorite non-core classes - Art, FFA, Business and Family Consumer Science.

Mr. Guttenberg, the superintendent, made a very compassionate and reasonable presentation about why the decision was made. They had no choice. Declining enrollment is forcing them to cut corners. Sadly, the problem can only get worse - fewer options means fewer students will want to come to Montello.

An article in the local paper ends with the statement, "We may be looking at consolidation with another school district in the not to distant future."

So that was depressing.

[Soapbox alert: What is wrong with this country that we can't properly fund education??? Isn't it common sense that if we want to grow and succeed as a nation, we need to invest in our future "human capital"? I just don't get it!!!]

Then, on Tuesday, I developed my traditional spring flu - sore throat and sinus infection. Lovely. I want to cut my own head off to get rid of the pressure.

And, to close out the week with a bang, I went to a conference on the Methamphetamine problem in Wisconsin. It focused heavily on "drug endangered children" and the presenters showed some horrific pictures of child abuse by meth addict parents. If this drug makes it to Marquette County...it will be devastating. Meth is addicting for 90% of first time users, and once addicted, there is a very small chance of recovery. It's bad stuff.

I need some good news!

Today I'm going to Oshkosh to hear my sister sing at the state Solo and Ensemble competition. Hopefully that will lift my spirits.

In the garage, I feel safe.

It's a great Weezer song. I love that song! "No one hears me sing this song..."

But today I faced the abyss that is my garage, and I felt overwhelmed, not safe. The week after we bought our house last October, I went through and put piles of crap in garbage bags. Mr. Zellmer left EVERYTHING here, and in order to clean the place and move our own stuff in, I just shoved everything into boxes and bags and threw it in the garage (which already had years of detritus piled up). Then my dad got here with our overstuffed U-Haul. Our materialism came back to haunt me, and we piles more stuff into the garage. All winter it lurked in the back of my mind, the monster that I would have to face one day in the spring.

That day was today. My goal was to move stuff around enough to create room for the crap that I put on my porch throughout the winter. It was a huge task, involving a large bonfire in the back yard.

I'm happy to report that the porch is half empty. The garage is another story.

I had planned to empty out the other half tomorrow, but I decided to spend time wtih my grandma instead. Grandma is much more fun than cleaning.

Update your blog!

I'm busy, okay??
Here's a list.

1) Walmart has made a "marketing decision" to stop selling guns in a third of its stores. I particularily love the last line of the article that I linked to in that last sentence...

But the National Rifle Association said it was concerned people in rural areas, where Wal-Mart may be the only vendor, may no longer have access to guns.

Yeah. People have no access to HEALTH CARE, but we better make sure they have guns. I like to buy a gun every Tuesday, dammit, and I wouldn't want to have to drive all the way to the big city to do it.

2) I love Easter for the candy, but I hate jelly beans. Except "Brachs Tropical Flavored Jelly Bird Eggs". Mmmm, the purple ones are sooooo good.

3) Isaac and I are reading a great book called "The Tale of Despereaux" every night. I highly recommend it for kids of all ages.

4) After I read 3-4 chapters out of "Despereaux", I read (out-loud) a few chapters from a book called "Naked Economics". It puts Isaac to sleep in about 2 minutes (he does listen though!) and I'm learning a lot about the financial world. Economics rocks.

5) I've been having economically-related dreams lately where I'm teaching a class on economics and I have no idea what the hell I'm talking about.

6) Ice Age 2 is great. There are two swear words..."Ass" and "Damn". What if Isaac says those words in Kindergarten? The horror.

7) Some guy with an Indian (Pakistani?) accent just called me saying he was from Verizon, and offered me a package deal to get 12 Indian channels for $55 a month. I could see Indian Idol! But then I would have to stop buying my lunch and that would suck.

8) Apparently Isaac had a picture day a few weeks ago at school and I completely forgot about it. He brought home the proofs in his backpack today, and his hair is completely uncombed, he is wearing a stained sweatshirt, and I think there is a smudge of jelly on his chin. Mother of the year, here I come!

The Eye-mote

Those of you who have known me for some time are probably aware of my eye-poking phobia. I think I've even discussed it once or twice on this blog. For those of you who don't know, I am terrified that I'm going to be poked in the eye with something sharp. I can't stand it if something sharp (like a pencil or the corner of a book) is pointed towards my eye - I have to either move my head or put my hand up to shield my eyes.

Yeah, I'm nuts.

But lately I've been obsessed with Sylvia Plath. I started reading "The Bell Jar" for the library book club and loved it. Then I found a book of her poetry on the half-priced pile at the bookstore and fell in love. I have never really gotten into poetry, except for Emily Dickinson, but this woman was amazing. I knew I loved her, but then I came upon the poem entitled "The Eye-Mote"

Oh, she's a goddess.

Movie Recommendation

Does this seem racist to you?

Mr Bush said on Thursday that the message should be: "If you are doing a job that Americans won't do, you're welcome here for a period of time to do that job."

(From the BBC)

I guess folks are only welcome here if they want to do a shit job that nobody else will do.

If you're a doctor or a lawyer, well, you're out of luck. The American Dream is all yours, as long as you're willing to work long hours for low pay. But, hey, you're probably used to it!

More information here.

For some interesting insight into the important role that immigrants play in our economy/society, please see the movie "A Day Without A Mexican". It's a very entertaining presentation of what would happen to California if all the Mexicans disappeared. Go rent it. Now.