Pandora and "Kansas Radio"

I love Pandora.  

Typically I have it playing all day in the background unless I am grading essays.  Then the only music that can be heard is the sweet cry of anguish coming from yours truly as I read essays that could sometimes be better written by Oliver the dog Reilly.  But I digress.

I created a station called "Kansas Radio" and included bands like Styx, REO, Chicago, The Eagles, Boston and of course, Kansas.  I've always loved them.  Carry On My Wayward Son - ah - such incredible lyrics.  Really.

Once I rose above the noise and confusion
Just to get a glimpse beyond the illusion
I was soaring ever higher, but I flew too high
Though my eyes could see I still was a blind man
Though my mind could think I still was a mad man
I hear the voices when I'm dreamin', I can hear them say

Carry on my wayward son
For there'll be peace when you are done
Lay your weary head to rest
Don't you cry no more

Masquerading as a man with a reason
My charade is the event of the season
And if I claim to be a wise man, it surely means that I don't know
On a stormy sea of moving emotion
Tossed about I'm like a ship on the ocean
I set a course for winds of fortune, but I hear the voices say

If you're still reading and you're of a certain age or if your parents raised you right and you KNOW Kansas, there's no way you weren't singing along.  Am I right?  Seriously, how could one deny the thought that went into those lyrics?  Love that!  Dust in the Wind, there's another masterpiece.
I also loved "Hold On" but if I recall, that was a bit of a turning point for the band.  One of them, the guitarist I believe, became a born-again Christian and band members began to battle over lyrics.  Too bad. I still loved it.  Heck, I love it still.

In 2018, where is our Kansas equivalent?  I know it's out there with the small indie bands and alternative groups, but where is the Kansas equivalent being played on the radio with relevant lyrics?  A band or artist whose music isn't replete with hidden messages about their favorite number, what someone made them do, or revenge?  An artist who doesn't rely on dance moves and putting pinky rings up to the moon?  An artist who doesn't wax philosophic about his "boo bae tastin like kool-aid".  I mean really.  Here's a song in the top five as of today.  It's a song called "Rockstar" by Post Malone.  I'll admit, I've never heard of this person.  It truly amazes me how quickly my knowledge of pop culture vanished when the kids moved out and I left the traditional classroom.  Wow.  

Anyway, this gem begins like this:

Ayy, I've been fu***n' hoes and poppin' pillies
Man, I feel just like a rockstar (star)
Ayy, ayy, all my brothers got that gas

Well, that's enough of that, right?  I choose to believe that the rest of the song is about a ridiculously heinous bout of flatulence experienced by Mr. Malone and his friends.  That's what 'll get me through the day. This is what's playing through those ubiquitous earbuds?  Say it isn't so!

Am I the only one longing for music from days gone by?  Have I crossed over into that "officially old" state that we thought our parents were in when we were teenagers?  Maybe I have, but my ears are thankful; and so is my mind. ;-)

Home Sweet Home

I have had a lot of questions from my Hutch peeps about "The Cat House" and the progress.  My blog sort of stopped (anyone who knows me gets why that happened.  I wonder if I will ever be able to make that a regular thing?) Some thought "cat house" referred to some sort of house of prostitution.  Lol.  Um, no.  It referred to the smell of cat urine in this house the moment we walked in the first time we saw it.  It was disgusting.

Those days are long gone thank goodness.  I just finished a Christmas gift for mom and dad about the renovation; a retelling of the entire process, if you will.  Looking back on the whole thing was so much fun.  I had forgotten little details and all the fun we had.  I am so thankful to those two for all they did to help me make my dreams, both big and small, become a reality where this house is concerned.  I love it.

I Miss Hutchinson

I miss Hutchinson, Kansas.  I never thought I would utter those words.  Really.  I mean some really crappy things happened there. 

• I never wanted to move.
• There was no support system or family there.
• I was pretty much alone from the minute I set foot there.
• My marriage died there.
• I struggled as a single mom there.
• It was ridiculous being the ex-wife of a person everyone thought was "such a nice guy".

The list is long.  And let's be honest, Hutch is not a booming metropolis.  I constantly complained about nothing to do, no cultural experiences, blah, blah, blah and with the news that they won't even have a Target next year...I must be off my nut!  However,  now I find myself living in another city, completely happy in the spot where God planted me, yet missing something I never thought I would and reflecting on what that place really was.  I've come to realize that Hutch wasn't a bad place to be at all.  In fact, Hutch was where:

• I watched Brig start school, never looking back at me, but holding her Bubby's hand tightly.
• I saw Conor shoot hoops on the driveway for hours and then in gyms for more than I can count.
• I watch my babies grow into teenagers, learn to drive, fall in and out of like, love, etc.  
• I met some terrific friends and co-workers.
• I met students who changed my life and who taught me instead of the other way around.
• I learned some important lessons from some excellent bosses.
• I learned some important lessons from some terrible bosses.
• I got my masters degree.
• I made our home into my perfect sanctuary (with the help of friends and family).
• I discovered Roys, Crosspoint Church, and that the best iced tea at the State Fair came from the Bracket's stand at the Sugar Shack.  
• I grew up.

So as I look at that second list, it's obvious that Hutch was much more than a location on a map where I "did some time".  It was an important part of my life.  It still continues to be as Conor and Rhyanna are firmly planted there and are thriving so I get to go back and spend some time now and then.  It's not the same, but it'll have to do - and I can still get my Roy's fix when I need it!   That 20/20 hindsight is a tricky tricky thing, huh?  I guess the lesson learned is to stay focused on the positive and bloom where I'm planted instead of looking to the future and making plans someday, right?  

Ask and you shall receive...

I know I have said before that my dad is incredible.  Let me reiterate that.  Throughout this entire project, he has worked tirelessly to give me a house that I love.  Case in point, my closet.  The first thing I asked for in the master bedroom was a change in my closet doors.  I really don't care for doors that slide back and forth.  I can never see the entire closet and it drives me crazy.  In the Hutch House, I even removed all the closet doors from the upstairs.  I put up curtains instead.  In this house I decided that I didn't want my closet as open, but instead asked Dad if there was anyway I could have french doors on the closet instead.  He made it happen.  What's even better?  We found one of the doors on clearance!  We all love a bargain.

I then said it would be nice to have some shelves in the closet.  Originally I was going to put a dresser in it, but both parents told me that was probably not the way to go.  So after some grumbling on my part and thought on dad's, he came up with a plan.

I went to Lawrence  to proctor AP testing today.  When I came home, my closet was complete.  <3

The doors need to be sized and painted, but it is so roomy and I can Khan Mari to my heart's content!

Forget SUNSHINE, I'm walking on FLOORING!

      Celebrating milestones when working on a house is mandatory, especially when we've been living with subfloors since we closed.  This week was the week we installed floors!  So excited.  Don, Mom, Dad, and I tackled this project, and really, it wasn't too bad.  

       The flooring I chose was EXPRESSA from Menards.  I am usually not indecisive, but this was hard...really hard.  I always knew I wanted a dark flooring upstairs and carpet was a given for the bedroom.  The older I get, the nicer it is to feel soft carpet under my feet when I wake up in the morning.  ;-)  Anyway, after looking at almost every flooring place in the city and second guessing myself MULTIPLE times, I went with this.  For the basement, however, I wanted to go with something lighter.  We purchased it all and had Menards holding our stash in the back room.  Sigh.  Then I started second guessing some more.  The lighter shade I picked out for the basement was chosen after looking at samples online.  I saw the picture of it when I was in the actual store after the purchase.  Now some may think I am picky, but I really thought the lighter finish made the floor look striped. After talking with  mom, who is not afraid to return anything...she returned a Corvette once...I decided to return it.  The people at Menards have the patience of Job.  Really.  One kid in particular was stuck waiting on us every time we came in.  Poor guy.  The flooring was returned and I decided to go with the same dark that I chose for the upstairs.  Problem was, they were out of it and there was no way to even back-order it.  AHHHH!  Mom and Dad to the rescue again.  They were headed to a birthday party in Frankfurt, Kansas.  They spent the night, got up early, and headed to two different Menards in Nebraska to get the rest of the boxes I needed.  Wow, right?

Doesn't this look striped to you?  Ick.

       Obviously I was excited when we got started today!  We fell into a decent rhythm, figuring out that the flooring had to be at a 45 degree angle in order to get it to lock together.  "45 Amy, 45..." became the phrase Don hollered out for the rest of the day.  I absolutely LOVE IT!  The upstairs flooring is done and it is beautiful!

Wall Art

So I put up the first, and so far only,  decor in my house today...this sign.  Now some of you "House Beautiful" - "Martha Stewart", I-wouldn't-put-up-anything-in-my-house-that-wasn't-out-of-a-magazine types will hate it.  That's just fine.  I happen to love it, and it brings me joy.  What is it?  Well, it was inspired by the show Everybody Loves Raymond (a fave).  There was an episode called Baggage.  Ray and Debra go on vacation and it's late when they come home.  The suitcase is left on the steps.  Several days and then weeks go by and neither of them will move the suitcase because they think the other should.  It becomes a hilarious silent , then public war.  Ray hides some Roquefort cheese in the bag before leaving on a business trip, infuriating Debra when she finally noticed the smell.  More hilarity ensues.  Marie Barone, may she rest in peace, gave this sage advice to Debra at the end of show, "Don't let a suitcase full of cheese be your big fork and spoon"...you'll have to watch it to understand the meaning.  Whimsy in a house never hurt anyone.  In fact, it brings me joy.

Apendi..what?

If this project has taught me anything, it's that God felt I needed a lesson in patience and rolling with the punches.  It has also taught me how lucky I am to have wonderful administrators and a job I can do from anywhere.

Favorite son, Conor, called me as I was finishing up a class.  Seems he had some major stomach pains and left his school (he's a Social Studies teacher) to head to same-day care.  There, they told him it was 90% possible that it was his appendix and that they would need to do surgery by the end of the day.  Wha......t!?!

Now, please understand that while I would NEVER invite nor give myself the label "helicopter parent", any time that there is a possibility of someone cutting into one of my children, I'm going to be there.  That fact together with the mom guilt I still have over not being five minutes down the road anymore had me throwing necessities in a bag and hitting the road in under 20 minutes.  As a side note let me say that I had to let LVS know that I was "leaving" for the day and that I would be unavailable to teach my afternoon class, by email, and by phone.  I was astonished at the response.  First, my principal called me and left a message...then texted to make sure I was ok.  Then came the emails from coworkers sending prayers and well wishes.  What a fabulous place to work!

I arrived in Hutchinson about the same time that Conor was told he had "appendagitis".  What does a kind, caring, English teacher mom do?  I corrected his pronunciation...
Me:  It's pronounced appendicitis
Con:  No.
Me:  Really, Conor?  It is called appendicitis.
Con:  Mom, it's really called appendagitis...Google it.  (Secretly shaking his head and wondering when he can take another pill...)

So I did.  Epiploic appendagitis (EA) is an uncommon, benign, non-surgical, self-limiting inflammatory process of the epiploic appendices. Other, older terms for the process include appendicitis epiploica and appendagitis, but these terms are used less now in order to avoid confusion with acute appendicitis.

Who knew, right?  So much to his delight, he was not facing surgery.  Instead, he got a nice prescription for some hydrocodone and orders to hit the couch and stay there until whatever was going on untwisted itself.

Again, I am lucky that I have a job I can do from any spot that has an internet connection.  And, we are all thankful that Conor didn't have to go under the knife.  <3