Lockdown, Lockdown!
Thu May 8 2008 |

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I was dropping my kids off to school this morning when they both remembered, in a sort of excited way, “Hey we had a Lockdown yesterday!”

Katie said, “We were in Art Class! We had to run behind the teacher’s desk.”

Allison said she was in her regular class, but they ran behind her teacher’s desk as well.

I’ve been meaning to mention this, because I found it really wild when I first learned about it. But apparently it slipped my mind.

On a regular basis at this school, the students and teachers have practice fire drills, tornado drills and lockdowns. Katie mentioned this a couple of months ago in a casual way. Kind of like she did today in a by-the-way kind of manner. Back then she said, “I know why we have fire drills, in case of fire. I know why we have tornado drills, in case a tornado comes blowing through. But why do we have a lockdown?”

I told her that was a very good question and she should ask her teacher about that. Of course she didn’t remember to ask the teacher. So a couple days after that she asked me on the drive to school about it. Since I have to go inside to drop Allison off at the pre-school I was able to speak with Allison’s teacher.

I had
a
feeling I
knew what it
was about,
but I asked anywayI had a feeling I knew what it was about, but I asked anyway and she answered with one word, “Columbine.”

Oh.

That’s a scary word.

Most readers (from the US) know that’s about the high school shootings in Columbine, Colorado back in April 1999. For reasons unknown, two high school students went on a shooting rampage at a high school and killed 12 students and a teacher, wounded 23 others and then committed suicide.

So now it’s possible that students may bring firearms to school. To practice for an event such as that, occasionally they have a lockdown drill. The principal, at my kid’s school, simply says, “Lockdown, lockdown” into the PA system and the teachers lock the classroom door as the students crouch down behind the teacher’s desk, which is usually situated away from the door.

Ugh, that makes my stomach tie into knots just thinking about it.

I understand the need for the drill, but I find it really amazing that it’s necessary. I suppose this is like the bomb drills in the 50s and 60s, right? And children became desensitized to that. But my kids are not completely clear on why they have a lockdown. I told Katie in a vague way it’s if someone who is not supposed to be in the school is in the school. It’s to keep her safe. She seemed to accept that without further questioning. Yet Katie and Allison still find it fun and exhilarating.

I find it exhausting.

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I don’t think I have an inner-cook
Wed May 7 2008 |

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Do you think Rachael Ray gets tired of cooking every day? I watch her 30-Minute Meals show occasionally. She’s on from 6 until 7, two episodes, naturally. And my kids don’t seem to mind watching it.

When I think my head will explode from too much Dora the Explorer we watch the Food Channel. Because it’s kid friendly. My other choice of neutral, kid-friendly channel after a day of too much children’s programming is HGTV.

Anyway, last night we were watching Rachael make a low-carb spaghetti meal. And I thought it was interesting watching her chop her stuff. She made some kind of vegetable dish that went on the spaghetti and then she seared tuna (yuck) and put a type of salsa on top (just tomato, onion, and some herbs chopped up).

If you’ve never seen her show, her thing is that she’s cooking in real time. So the meal she is making in the thirty minute time frame should take you at home no more than 30 minutes. As someone who did not grow up watching an adult cook, I do find it somewhat fascinating. I always struggle with knowing when to start stuff so everything is hot at the same time.

I guess that’s just about time management, but it’s still a question mark for me.

Quick side note that I found amusing. A couple of years ago my mother-in-law was making some kind of cheese sauce to go over broccoli. And I was sitting in the kitchen watching her cook. She said something like, “A cheese sauce is just a modified white sauce.” And I was like, “Come again?”

“Didn’t your mother teach you how to make white sauce?”

“Um, no. I doubt my mother knows what white sauce is.”

I don’t fully remember, apt student that I am, what exactly comprises a white sauce. Flour, butter and maybe milk, I think. But I do remember being floored when my sister-in-law mentioned a year or so later that she had made potato soup and it came out really well — she said she just started from a white sauce.

And I had to laugh thinking, Wow, your mother taught you how to cook. That’s so wild.

Besides feeling like I have no plan over all, I tend to get hung up on the preparation of dinner, you know? My middle kid wants to help with everything and I don’t always have the patience for that. And my youngest kid wants to be in my arms, which makes chopping carrots difficult.

That’s where I was noticing Rachael Ray doesn’t have small children in her kitchen. She mentions that certain meals are good for kids, in that the children will like the presentation. And sometimes she will say that a particular meal would allow kids to help in the kitchen.

But mostly it’s just her and the food. I’m pretty sure if I didn’t have kids I would still find cooking a chore. Usually we have sandwiches for dinner. Unless Mr. C is cooking. But somehow watching Rachael Ray on television makes it all seem potentially doable, you know.

If not for the kids.

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Achieving a Zen-like state or apathy, I’m not sure which
Tue May 6 2008 |

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I’m sure everyone is familiar with the concept of wanting to think about a certain topic yet being interrupted by a child. Anyone with small children will understand that and I usually find that’s something I am struggling with.

However, I’ve noticed these days that I just want to empty my mind. That reminds me of a SpongeBob SquarePants episode when Squidward wants to impress a rich friend. He borrows the Krusty Krab from Mr. Krabs and pretends it’s a fine dining establishment. Anyway, SpongeBob has to read this book called, “How to Become a Fine Dining Waiter in Twenty Minutes.”

But his mind is on overload and he’s having trouble, so Squidward tells him, in a soothing voice, “Just empty your mind. Empty your mind.” Then of course there’s a shot of multiple SpongeBobs inside SpongeBob’s head saying, “Just got a message from the Boss. Empty all the files except for breathing.” Then they’re trashing stuff, shredding files, etc.

It’s funnier than it sounds. But it’s a good analogy for me lately. I find
when
I have
a moment to
sit still
and be quiet
I’m not really thinking
of anything. As someone who tends to obsess on details, that’s a good thing.I find when I have a moment to sit still and be quiet I’m not really thinking of anything. As someone who tends to obsess on details, that’s a good thing. A surprising thing, actually.

Mr. C and I got a babysitter and went out on Sunday. After dinner we ended up at Barnes and Noble just sitting in those comfy chairs next to a coffee table with a trick leg. That coffee table had seen way too many feet in it’s day, so I refrained from setting my legs on it.

Anyway, Mr. C took a detour through the book stacks and as I waited for him I noticed I had very few thoughts. I was just taking in the travel section, which is where were sitting. The maps I saw were from London, Germany and Thailand. In retrospect I was surprised that seeing the maps didn’t spawn random thoughts. It was really just an observational moment.

Alright, I did see one other man sitting in the third chair who looked like he was in his mid-50s. He was reading “Depression for Dummies” which caught my eye. But it was more like he was trying to take it in by osmosis. He held the book close to his chest with his eyes shut, as if he were concentrating really hard.

It didn’t look like he was sleeping, but he didn’t have the book open, that’s how I was able to read the title. Eventually he stood up, put his hand in his pocket and walked away. I did see him wander by one more time with the book in hand.

I was really tempted to just ask him, “Excuse me? What are you doing? Are you reading that book? Are you resting your eyes? What are you doing?” But I didn’t. It doesn’t matter what he was doing.

The point is that my mind stayed in the present, which in retrospect, is surprising to me. I wonder if my mind is tired of my issues as well?

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