Kid and Caboodle

Today my son persuaded one of his classmates to try a grilled cheese sandwich for the first time in his life. A.J. told him that “cheese is really tasty,” and the kid took him at his word. I find it almost unfathomable that a child living in the United States has never had cheese before, but I guess his parents only expose him to Chinese food. A.J. says his classmate does drink milk at school and doesn’t get sick afterward, so it’s not a matter of lactose intolerance or milk allergies; he just really has never had cheese before. A.J., you’ve opened up a new world for your friend!

Tonight I’ve been rereading one of my favorite books, Patricia McKillip’s The Changeling Sea. It’s a children’s book, but it is a wonderful little story. I love Patricia McKillip’s writing in general; reading her books is like having a beautiful, strange dream. I’m never quite sure what’s going to happen in one of her stories, but I don’t mind because her writing is so beautiful.

On a more serious note, today I picked up a copy of a book about Osama bin Laden’s family. As Sun Tzu says, to win a war, one must know one’s enemy as well as oneself.

Even though it is spring, a.k.a. allergy season, I seem to be doing ok. I haven’t had any major rashes, sneezing, itchy eyes, etc. I am pleasantly surprised. Of course, I haven’t been going outside much, either; in fact, my supervisor gently scolded me today for not taking a lunch break and enjoying the weather today. We’ll see how I do tomorrow, when I’m in the sunroom telecommuting with all the windows open and people are mowing their lawns ….

Today I was invited out to lunch with some former co-workers, one of whom is retired. It was very nice to take a break from work and to catch up on our lives. We had lunch at Full Kee, in Chinatown, which is one of the few restaurants in town that serve authentic Chinese cuisine. No “crab rangoon” or “chop suey” here! You can get some of the standard Americanized foods, like beef with snow peas, but you also can get various frog dishes, congee with preserved egg, pig skin-and-duck blood soup, or other delicacies. I rarely take a lunch break since work is so busy, so it was doubly nice to get away today. And the weather was good, too!

Yesterday I put together my first beading project — a necklace for the young daughter of a friend. Although I used the wrong type of thread so can’t knot it properly, I think the end result is attractive. Considering how young the girl is, it is probably better that I not make the necklace a set length anyway; if for some reason she wants to continue wearing it as she grows, she would need to be able to continue adjusting it. Since the beads are not secured tightly on the thread, they also can be taken off and sewn onto a book bag, blouse, or some other object if desired.

I had an entertaining train operator during my evening commute. As we were leaving L’Enfant Plaza, he said, “The next stop is in the Commonwealth of Virginia. Now leaving the District. Say, ‘bye-bye.’” That woke me up!

Last week I ordered some waterproof windbreakers for my parents. My father had admired a jacket I had worn often during our Taiwan trip and asked me to get him one. I asked him whether or not he wanted me to give him one as a birthday present in August, but he said he wanted one right away since he does a lot of gardening these days. So, I ordered him one, and threw in one for my mother at the same time. My mother called me this evening to thank me for them. She said that they had arrived that afternoon and that she and my father were eager to try them out; they were thinking of going for a walk that evening even though it was drizzling. I guess they really like the windbreakers!

It looks like it’s going to be a lazy Sunday at home. Originally we were going to go boating this afternoon, so we did laundry and other chores yesterday. But right now it is raining very hard, with occasional gusts of wind and rumbles of thunder, so we won’t be able to go out after all. What shall we do with our free time?

A.J. is happily sitting in his pajamas playing video games. My husband has announced plans to work on his model rocket. I am having a cup of hot chocolate and planning to make a trip to the art store. I want to get some beading supplies, spray paint for my husband’s rocket, a box to hold A.J.’s toy cars, and some “gold stars.”

Today I did my state taxes and edited two travel stories my father asked me to review. I also spent time with the mother of one of A.J.’s classmates, went to dinner with my family at Noodles and Company, and got to take a nap! It was a productive, social and relaxing day.

I’m enjoying an unexpected bit of free time this evening. My husband picked up our son from school and took him to McDonald’s for dinner (Friday is McDonald’s day). Right now, I’m sitting in the sunroom with all the windows open enjoying tea and cake while I wait for them to get home. What a nice way to start the weekend!

Today was my telecommuting day. I worked in the sunroom all day, enjoying the sounds of birds and feeling the warm breeze blowing through the windows.

At lunchtime I relaxed on my living room couch looking at catalogs while doing laundry.

I made two entrees for dinner — baked salmon with a mayonnaise-horseradish-dill sauce (recipe) and breaded chicken patties topped with marinara sauce and melted cheese.

I had a nice slice of chocolate cake with a whipped cream icing for dessert this evening.

I’m looking forward to going to bed early.

This afternoon my supervisor approved my request for two consecutive days off in May, no questions asked, despite my recent three-week trip to Taiwan. I wonder whether she is trying to boost my morale. She keeps asking me how I am adapting to my new work schedule and points out that it enables me to spend more time with my family. So far I definitely appreciate the benefits. I am very tired at 5 a.m. and at 9 p.m., though. This schedule is quite an adjustment for me; I have had the evening shift, which is in line with my natural sleep cycle, for over five years so it is hard to remember to go to bed early so I won’t feel miserable the next morning.

The weather was very nice this evening. I let my son, A.J., ride his bike and play with a neighbor for more than an hour after we got home.

Since A.J. was having so much fun outside, I delayed our evening meal until my husband got home from work so we had a family dinner for a change. The three of us had asparagus-and-gruyere ravioli with smoked salmon, which was a spur-of-the-moment but very tasty combination of ingredients. A.J. also had a bowl of chocolate ice cream for dessert.

One of A.J.’s classmates has invited him to play at his home on Saturday. The two of them seem to be good friends in school. I had a nice chat with this classmate’s mother and look forward to meeting her.
Tomorrow will be my teleworking day. I look forward to sleeping in an extra hour.

Ran into someone I last worked with about 13 years ago. I can’t believe it has been so long! We didn’t really have time to chat, but he gave me his business card and I plan to drop him a note soon.

I seem to have lost most of the extra weight from the Taiwan trip — yay! Had some chocolate “Hit” cookies tonight, though!