The Disappointment

We discovered today that Falcom, Mystique and Chasey WILL NOT be in this years Jubilee. There is a deep disappointment in Falcom and the family, but we are celebrating through it...pizza, popcorn, a little orange soda.

I can't help but remember my life's first disappointments. Fal has not cried, but he said, "I feel dead inside." I instantly went back to a year when I was going to be on the flag team. I practiced what felt like forever. I was a perfect marcher. I held good posture! I could not believe my eyes when I was not picked. I knew exactly what Falcom is talking about. There is not a thing that can be said that can make either of us feel better. It just is what it is.

Congrats to all the kids who made it in! I am sure you will make it a fun show.

Jubilee Tryouts

I was just explaining to DeeJay and Brandon the problem with being an artist. When you are involved with a sport, you are usually with a team. The events are regularly scheduled. There is pressure, but for the most part sometimes you win, sometimes you loose. When you are an artist, your opportunity to perform is narrow. You've got one shot to be picked. You are alone on a stage. Each time you audition, regardless of how you did before, you have to earn your spot. It's tough.

As I could see from the artists backstage waiting for their tryout, these three kids are at the 'make it or break it' point. What I mean by this is that the stress of the audition, coupled with the peer pressure seems to put an end their stage musings. I was hiding a bit, but I didn't see nearly the number of kids there this time as there were last time. Also, many of the kids who had performed individually last year were in a group this year, like a team. I guess there is safety in numbers. Also, there were no young boys singing.

The kids were great.

I'm not being a braggart about this either. After two hours of waiting, they were ready and did their deal and stayed on track. They were not the totally embodiment of energy and Falcom got to high and pitchy at the critical point of the song, but that did not cause him to stop singing. He buckled down and carried on.

One of the things that I thought was so cool was how many of the kids back stage were so kind and positive to Falcom. From, "Dude! Cool shoes!" to "Oh my God! You are going to do that song! That is awesome!" I could almost feel Falcom's self esteem go up.

It doesn't matter if they take him this year or not. He left there feeling good about the experience, and for me that makes it worth it.

I don't know if they will make it this year. It's not the greatest song. But one thing that all three of them deserve an award for...they are brave! They put themselves out there. They hold onto their love of singing and dancing and they are willing to put themselves out there. It is awesome and I am so proud!

Results are in on Friday! I'll be sure to keep you posted. (Literally)

Easter is on It's Way...

In preparation for Easter, we dyed our eggs.

If you have a person in your family who is blessed with the challenge of ADHD/ADD and you find the egg dying process especially challenging, I am here to tell you that you are not alone.

Every year I am surprised at how this fun artistic venture can become an exercise in behavior management.

After the first few minutes of

parental freak out, we were able to get everything under control and we were off to the races.

Vince's Birthday

I'm the kind of blogger who needs to update her blog daily. A lot happens around here! Today I am going to make several small postings. It's weird for me, but unmanageable otherwise.

Vince was working on his birthday. It was a very uneventful birthday. Really though; is 42 a big year? I guess we will have to wait and see.

Volcanic Ash!

Vince and I were having a quiet morning at home. We were sitting in front of the fire watching the sunlight move through the clouds at sunrise. We were both feeling thankful to have such a great place to watch sunrises. "Gosh" I said at one point, "It almost looks like a volcanic cloud." "Yea, isn't that interesting."

We continued watching, enjoying the views when the phone rang. It was Irene, "Redoubt just blew and the ash is coming our way! Good thing we have a basement full of teenagers to cover everything.

We were completely ready and yet somehow this ash missed our neighborhood completely! But in town, at Irene's, it is a huge mess. The dust is blowing everywhere and it's all volcanic ash and lodges in our throats and lungs.

It is making the snow melt very quickly though, so it looks like for us there will be an early spring!

April Fools at Mansfield Ave

I got April Fooled twice! Once by Jeff Middleton who told me that I had a flat tire. Who wouldn't believe that from a guy who drives heavy equipement for a living? He was about to get out his air compressor when Janet said, "Alana, don't you think it's interesting you would get a flat on April 1?" The second trick was by Valda who informed me that for Vince's birthday she had procured for him two goats, six geese, a couple new hens... I, seriously, thought I would puke! She really had me going...

Look what came in the mail from Karen and Moonlight Fashions in Saipan today! These fantastic new boots! Marina is taking them to show and tell next Tuesday and Falcom wants to wear them at Jubilee.

Can you blame them? Thank you Karen!

Suzanne came over for dinner where we worked on my job descriptions...

Education Coordinator at Mansfield Avenue
Zoo and Social Club

Directly oversees 5 staff members and 6 figure
budget. Duties include gathering and disseminating information, advocating for
the learning disabled, coordinating recreational activities, defending human
rights. Multimedia marketing specialist. Maintains office hours for therapy
clients and executes open door policy for crisis interventions. Provides
oversight and aide in execution of ideas to developing fashionistas. Facilitates
paradigm shifts to housewives once monthly.

Princess at Saipan ExPat Community
Education Management
industry
1998 – 2000 (2 years)
Benevolently ruled over small
serfdom. In order to learn more about the common life of my people I was a 'mall
cop' and then became a first grade teacher to twenty five hyperactive 6 year
olds of 7 differing nationalities.

Petroleum Engineer at Various
Marketing and Advertising industry
November
1995 – September 1998 (2 years 11 months)
Involved in the distribution
and sales of refined petroleum products. Customer service was always paramount
during distribution of cylindrical meat products and hot beverages. Certified to
drive standard and commerical vehicles, hazardous materials, school children and
water vessels.

This is one of my favorite pictures from Valda's Africa collection. Yes, it's real. Yes, she was right there. Isn't it amazing!

Wednesday was the opening ceremony of the Kilcher Road Coffee Klatch. Spending time with the Kilcher road gals is Fantastic! Luckily I brought my instant Vietnamese coffee as Jeff had finished the coffee before I could get over there. There was kvetching and laughing and fingernail polishing. It was great.

Lunch with Karen S. turns into a two hour Magna car ta. Look at this food. Did any of you not from Alaska think that we could get such fine looking food in rural Alaska. Sure, our state lawmakers are a bunch of noodle heads, but our restaurateurs are fantastic!

Regular Tuesday with Irene

Irene reenacting her physical response to each attempt she has given to reading The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.

Events sap and surge my creativity. I could make a tidal analogy, but that is so overdone. Friends die. Friends reappear. I've had both this week and today I was glad to find myself in the loving embrace of a strong cup of coffee and a salami with real mayonnaise sandwich with my keel, Irene. (This week Vince is taking more of a mast and rudder position in my boat analogy.)

Topics Discussed:

• Irene's perfect and articulate verbage regarding the latest wave of marriages falling apart. It's not the divorce that is the problem, it is the way these women embarrass their decent husbands, their children and themselves while doing it.
• Are all 'Fair Trade' designated coffees sucky? Irene has a theory that us green shoppers will take anything that is labeled 'Fair Trade' and the coffee producing industry knows this and so they save the good stuff for the real connoisseurs, put the rest in a bag, label it 'Fair Trade' and make money on both ends. Nothing is wasted! Everyone is happy! Profits for second rate coffee is high!
• Vince finally butchered roosters today! (This picture is of Monday nights Curried Halibut with Artechokes, not Rooster). For some reason he only did two of them. (I'm not really sure the reason for that, but I am not complaining.) He then brought them in and put them in the crock pot and wants me to pick up tortillas for a nasty old rooster taco/burrito/fajita thing. How do I sit and eat something that I know too much back story about?
• Priscilla has decided on an appropriate home for this little dog when she dies. It has really calmed her heart. In the meanwhile, she is hoping her lab kicks the bucket before she does so she won't have to worry about her having a proper placement. I said, "What the heck! Let me take her today!" But the idea of Nicki having to go around with other dogs and be outside unchaperoned was too much for her to take. No, Priscilla is not ill or out of sorts in anyway. She is just pre-planning.
• Riley dissected dog sharks in class this week. One of the advantages of having a fisherman dad in the classroom. Irene was amazed they were all female and the kids were amazed they all had a belly full of baby sharks. Can you imagine the look I have on my face as I imagine and write about that. Yea...
• How I kind of got freaked out when I snooped into my old friends career lives and found them all to have very well defined intense job descriptions. I was wondering if I should add that to my list of things to have a midlife crisis about, not having a job title. But then looked over at Vince and remembered that one of the things that made me love him was when I asked him what he did he simply said he "worked at the hospital". I could have thought he was in the laundry for all he cared. This is when I decided that I did not have to add it to my crisis, but that did not stop me from creating a job description for myself. "Disaster Control at Mansfield Avenue Zoo and Social Club". Irene and I created an equally clever job description.
• Irene has been falling asleep at all times of the day and night while trying to get through The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. One of her validating quotes that she had to share with me is, " Blogging is a powerful way to sharpen the mental saw." OK, the quote was actually about journaling, but this was enough for her to move her blogging priority from quadrant 4 to quadrant 2.
• This weeks film at the Homer Family Theater, "Taken". "Taken" is for guys what chick flix are for gals. Just perfect in that macho killing in the name of righteousness way! The ending was a total let down for Vince who felt that them leaving him there at the airport to take a cab home after he had saved his daughter and wiped out the entire Armenian Slavery ring single handedly was in terrible taste. "You don't ask a guy like that if he wants a ride home. You say, 'Here is my car. I'll take the cab.'" Ah Vince...The little birds of the neighborhood are out in force this week. It is warm and light enough to be tricked into thinking it is spring. I took this shot of this little guy sitting on my deck rail. Many winters I have thought, "If they can make it...so can I."