Morning View: World on Fire

Incredibly, Insanely Bored

And so I am blogging.

It is just after 10pm and I just realized that the only thing I have had to eat today was some Cheez-Its. So I found the need to go out in the kitchen and look at the Cheez-Its. Which were just about gone, even though Mark just opened the box today. And so I put the rest of them in a bowl because I was pretty much like "what the hell" and then to wash them down I got the Mike's Classic Margarita (raspberry) that didn't fit in the six-pack holder when I combined the partially empty lime and raspberry six-packs earlier today, and so it was sitting alone by itself on a shelf. Now I feel better that I do not have leftover Mike's Margaritas just floating around the fridge but a little odd because there is now just one lone raspberry surrounded by five limes and so I might have to drink that one, too.

And people? I had not even OPENED the drink when all that went through my head. That's just my normal brain-talk.

So, my boyfriend (yes, I am referring to him as my boyfriend now) just texted me with "what r u doing" and I answered "blogging" and he said "about what" and I said "right now, cheez-its and margaritas. this is one of my dump-out-whatever-crosses-your-brain posts." My god, I think he is gonna meet the crazy. Wow.

When we first got together he told me he intended to make me fall in love with him. (freakout alert!!!!) So like yesterday or something when he asked me what I was doing I said I was wondering if he had fallen in love with me yet. It took him an HOUR to respond & what he said was "that's a scary word." hahahahahaha EXACTLY. So I reminded him what he had said to me and he said it was very sneaky of me to get him like that. Well played, markira, said I to myself. :) So I am less nervous now about the whole thing, oddly enough.

He was supposed to come up tonight but his son has his first soccer game of the season tomorrow at 8am (WTF, who schedules a soccer game at 8am on a Sunday????), so naturally he can't make it. Which kinda sucks, but is also a little okay because I've been running around all week and now I'm just vegging, which is kinda nice.

Damn. I have two Cheez-Its left. I suppose I may have to eat something that has nutritional value. 'Cause I can't drink without food without feeling sick and I am now in the mood to consume some alcohol. And plus I can't leave that lonely little raspberry Mike's Margarita in the fridge. It's probably feeling really awkward surrounded by all the lime guys.

OK, I think I'm gonna at least change into pjs. Don't go anywhere.

I'm back. Thanks for waiting. :)

OH. I dreamed last night that Kira started her period. So now I'm all paranoid that I was having some sort of precognitive dream or something, so I wanted to make sure I put this down BEFOREHAND because you know how many times you get the deja-vu thing and think you probably dreamed of it or something and people are all "uh huh, sure." So now this is DOCUMENTED. Because of course I have NO idea how to go back and edit the post dates or put in additional stuff later in a post. Of course not. Right.

OR, my body could have totally been faking me out just before it sprung another one of these ill-timed off-cycle bleeding sessions that just showed up. I am SO ready for those to stop. Man, I'm almost hoping for a freaking cyst or fibroid or something that they can FIX so this will cut it out (sorry, Paul, I know I should have given you a heads-up before those last two paragraphs, but even if I had, I know you would have read them anyway, so I didn't).

I'm going sailing in a little less than two weeks!! Brenda invited me on the Captain's Birthday cruise, which I am really psyched for. I've never been on the schooner in September, I think it's gonna totally rock, and plus I'll be with one of my favorite people in the whole world (awwwww).

I think I'll go get that other drink now.

Does anyone else have a problem when they have an odd number of drinks left in the six-pack? Cause now I have five drinks in there, and it is bothering me. I may have to fix that. After this one.

And yeah, didn't end up with anything even vaguely healthy to eat with. Instead, I looked at my counter and saw the mostly-empty bag of Popcorn Indiana Kettlecorn ****

****OK, why the FUCK does "paste" not show up as an option when I copy links anymore?? This has happened the last few times I've tried it (not just here on the blog, either) and it is REALLY STARTING TO IRRITATE ME.

Anyway. Popcorn. That stuff is awesome. It rocks. I'd put a link but it's more work than just telling you to Google it.

So anyway. I put the rest of it in a bowl. It's slightly stale, because I ate most of the bag and then hit my "I won't eat anymore because then it will be gone" stage and started hoarding it. Which, yeah, is bizarre, but I do it a lot and that is why there are fifteen partially-eaten bags of potato chips on top of my fridge.

OK, I'm getting a little paranoid 'cause my boyfriend has not texted back since I told him about the blogging (but have not given him the blog name) and so I checked my sitemeter to see if maybe he had found it somehow. Apparently he hasn't, but I *did* find out that my average hits have gone up to 19 a day, with 12 today! Now, I know that's not a big deal or anything, but considering this is the AVERAGE and I go MONTHS at a time without writing, I think that's still pretty good. You know. For me. It's not Bloggess-league, but I'll take it. Especially since I'm not really writing this stuff for anyone but me (I love you guys who are reading this, but sorry, you're all just a bonus).

I'd be in bed right now but I had some caffeine cause I thought I was gonna hang out with a friend tonight and then she bailed and so now I'm all wired up for nothing. Lucky you, guys.

OK, I'm even boring myself now, so I think I'm gonna wrap it up. And I don't want to finish this drink OR this popcorn (no, I have no idea what is wrong with me), so I think I'm gonna go put away and go to bed, even though I'm not tired. Maybe I'll fall asleep anyway.

Lately when I've been falling asleep, it has been FAST asleep. Like, not waking up when the phone rings right next to me, kind of sleep. That has never happened in my entire life, I have always been a very light sleeper. I think it's awesome and I totally thank the drugs for the Periodic Limb Movement Disorder. Although I'm still tired during the day. But that may be a combination of other factors, like the depression, the Vit D deficiency, my general biochemical makeup, etc etc.

So. Everyone have a good night, talk to you all later, yeah? mk

*****
oh, and yeah, on the Kira/period thing? I am soooo expecting that to happen literally any day now. To the point that the poor girl can't say she has a stomach ache or cramp (from sports) without my first thought being "PERIOD!!" She has gotten to the point that she sees my face and before I even open my mouth she says, "No. I checked." None of the other girls in her class have started (that I am aware of), but Kira appears to be a bit more, um, physically ready than they are. (yes, I mean the bra thing. shut up.)

OK. I neeeeeed to go to bed and shut the hell up. good night. If you see me approaching the keyboard again tonight, throw yourself in front of me. :P
******
Which would be a damn good trick, really, considering you can't actually SEE me....can you? Crap, now I'm gonna dream about the CIA or ninjas or something. mk

Steaming Students

Several schools in my area released their students at the half-day because of "extreme heat conditions and poor air quality." Some local schools are closed today as well, and I believe it is likely the rest will close early again today, as the weather conditions are supposed to be about the same.

Maine as a state is generally unprepared for excessive heat. Most of the schools don't have air conditioning. Many of the buildings are made of dark brick with lots of large windows. A lot of classrooms don't even have fans to circulate air. When the outside temperatures are in the mid-to-high 90s, with body heat the temperature inside the classrooms can be over 100 degrees.

The National Weather Service has issued a heat advisory and an air quality alert. The heat index values are expected to be about 100 degrees. Outside. They specifically mention that "the high heat and humidity combined with the long duration of the current heat wave will make conditions uncomfortable and potentially dangerous especially in hot buildings without air conditioning or proper ventilation."

This is the first time that I know of that schools in Maine have closed due to heat. There has been a huge uproar in the community (mostly, I believe, from people who do not have children) about the superintendents' decisions to close the schools. There has been an awful lot of "we never did that when *I* was a kid, and it was plenty hot some days, let me tell you." These people probably also declare that they walked five miles every day to school, in a blizzard, uphill. Both ways. And liked it.

The fact is, when we were growing up, schools in Maine did not start until after Labor Day. Check the weather: next Tuesday it's supposed to be in the high 60s. The average high temperature for that day is about 71, with the record high being 83 back in 1983. Yesterday's previous record high was the same, but back in 1995. Yesterday's high temperature *shattered* the previous high record by about 15 degrees.

And we are putting students in the buildings, in school-approved attire that includes no spaghetti tanks, halter tops or back-baring tops, skirts or shorts reaching at least fingertip length. And we are making them sit still for up to 80 minutes at a time. With no air conditioning and little air circulation. Without enough hydration, even if they have water bottles with them, which many did not. And expecting them to pay attention and learn.

So yeah, I completely support the schools for sending people home. I hope they do it again today.

I guess in the future we'll have to include "severe weather days" instead of "snow days" in our projection for the length of the school day. :) mk

p.s. For those who deal with these high temperatures all the time (I'm looking at you, Florida) and laugh at the reaction Maine is having, I challenge you to have your kids attend school in 0 degree temperatures (or lower), when you've received a foot or so of snow the previous day. Laugh then.