Here's what's going on

Here it is Wednesday and I feel as if the weekend should be here.  This has been a week of feeling puny.  That is the word I use when I'm not sick, don't feel well, just don't feel right.  I don't feel puny every day, just sometimes.  Sunday sort of puny.  Sunday night was just bad and with little sleep. 

When the alarm went off Monday I started to the shower.  Half way there I knew I needed more rest.  Listen to your body they preached in the hospital.  After calling the Marriage Factory to say sorry, back to bed I went.  I spent the day feeling off.  Not scary, just not normal. 

Tuesday the alarm went off, I felt normal.  Off to school I went.  Lots of walking around the classroom to check work, be sure work being done, and to hear each child read to me.  The walking is good for me, and I count it as part of my daily exercise.  I enjoyed my 3 hours working with the first graders, received some hugs and came home.  I did feel  tired when I got home.  I ate lunch, read some and then I took a long nap. 

Funny thing, I forgot to turn my iPhone's ringer back on after leaving the classroom.  I woke up from the long nap at 4:18. I was going to check Facebook on my phone when I saw I had received a text from Marty.  It said he would arrive at the BART station at 4:29.  Lucky I woke up when I did.  Otherwise he would have arrived, called me and it wouldn't have rung, and I wouldn't have answered.  That would have either ticked him off or scared the liver out of him.  Luckily we are less than 5 minutes from the station, so I was on time. 

Some days are good, some a little harder.  But even puny days are better than a good day a month or so ago.  This eating healthy stuff seems to be working.  I have lost 31 pounds.  Only a ton to go.  Friends say I sound like their ole Janet.  So it is all good. 

The Irony of It

The San Francisco/Bay Area was preparing for a BART strike to happen today.  Something like 500,000 people a day ride BART.  Extra ferries and buses were ready to help.  But nothing can handle that many extra people trying to get to work.  When they went out on strike in July, it was gridlock on all highways and surface streets even though it was a holiday week.  Driving was a total nightmare.  We were preparing for a bigger mess today because there's no holiday, therefore more people would be on the roads.

Last night Governor Brown called for a 7 day inquiry into the contract negotiations, and the unions can not strike during this period.  Huge sigh of relief, people will have a normal commute.  No gridlock, trains and  ferries running, traffic normal  all is right with the world.  Sounds good doesn't it?

This morning around 6:30 a big rig caught fire on the Bay Bridge, the main bridge between the East Bay and San Francisco.  Two lanes are blocked and the others are intermittently closed.  Every highway you can think of 80, 880, 24, 580 are jammed up for miles.  It will be into the afternoon commute before the big rig is pulled off the bridge, the road cleaned, and Cal Trans says the road is safe to use.

The irony of all this . . .  people are being told to use BART and not to drive.  Don't you love it?

School traffic, no parking

Yesterday I took Marty to BART earlier than usual.  Then I headed off to school.  Huge mistake.  I have to pass three other schools before I get to Kaiser.  The first traffic was a little heavier, then I got closer to Chabot.  School buses, Mamas dropping children off, Mamas walking children to school.  Close to chaos.  The next school had started so not much traffic, and then I was a couple of block from the turn to Kaiser. 

Both sides of the street were lined with cars, two blocks before the turn to the school and four blocks uphill after the turn.  Traffic was stopped down hill for a couple of blocks as parents let children out in the circle in front of the school. Cars just stop in the circle and doors slowly open, a leg or head will appear.  Then nothing.  Finally children start spilling out of the car, both sides not just on the sidewalk side.  And I wait to get around to the street where I can park.  Why do these children have to be driven to the door, and why do many parents have to walk them to their desks???  Why can't they be let out at the foot of the hill (one block walk) and parents leave.  I can almost understand walking a kindergarten child to class the first week, but 5th graders? 

So I can't find a spot close to park and I drive uphill several blocks.  I know in about 15 minutes most of the street parking will empty out. I'll then move my car down hill.  No way am I walking up this monster hill when I leave.  We are having summer as usual in September, and it will be 90 degrees when I leave.  This girl does not do heat and sweating.

I planned to sit and play Angry Birds as I waited.  But you would not believe the view from the Hiller Highlands.  It is one of the best views in the Bay Area.  Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco, The Oakland Bay Bridge, Alcatraz.  This link is close to what I was looking at.  Be sure to click on the time lapse for yesterday. Lovely. I sat and enjoyed the beauty and then went inside to work with the first graders.

I now know next time Marty leaves early, I'll sit in BART's parking lot and call my Mother, read a book.  I won't get in the school traffic. I can look at the view when I leave.

MOTHER'S DAY

Today our son Erik spent the day with us. Marty and I had already planned to see Iron Man 2 at IMAX. So Erik joined us. We rode BART into San Francisco. We grabbed a bite to eat and then sat and talked. Then we wandered outside the Metreon in the gardens before going into the movie.

Iron Man 2 is nearly as much fun as the first one. Lots of things get blown up, lots and lots of things; there is romance; it gets tense; and it is funny. A great way to spend an afternoon.

I had a lovely day with my son and husband. Thank you Marty and Erik!

It was like dueling iPhones with the three of us, all day. I think some of these people had been there for hours waiting to get in the movie. They had lunch, drinks, and were settled in. We were in the second line and got there 30 minutes before the start.

Again with the iPhone as we wait for BART. Bart was off schedule (power failure) so we had to entertain ourselves some way.

DE PLANE! DE PLANE!

The human body will adapt to many things in order to sleep. Bright lights, noise, cold, heat, being uncomfortable can be over come with time. With time . . .

I grew up in a railroad town, back when trains ruled transportation. We lived three blocks from the roundhouse. The train engineers each had a distinct whistle. When they pulled into the train yard they would blow the whistle so their families knew they were home. We had whistles blowing all night long. I never heard them.

Marty and I lived in an apartment with very loud neighbors over us. They threw furniture at each other. We learned to sleep through the barrage. We once owned a home that backed up to the freeway. Never were we bothered by the noise. When we lived in Concord we were fairly close to BART and could hear the high whine of the trains. Everywhere we have lived, there have been certain types of noise for that area. Your body adjusts and you sleep through it.

Now we live in a very very quiet neighborhood. Our bodies jerk awake if there is a change in schedule of delivery of the newspapers or of the neighbors leaving earlier than usual. Our bodies are used to a serene evening. And then we had yesterday.

We had a major storm go through yesterday (still raining and windy today) and that caused problems at the Oakland Airport. They have to change the landing approach during storms. And our neighborhood becomes the final approach. Yes, I can almost see the pilots' faces. We hear the planes coming, going over the house, and leaving. And they are always getting lower and lower. For an agoraphobic who is terrified of planes, this is not a happy time. I don't just hate being on a plane, I don't like for people I love to be on a plane, I don't like planes flying low over my house. I know, I am crazy.

Any who, last night was the worst noise in the 6 years we have lived here. All night, plane after plane, after plane screamed over our home. Who knew Oakland has so many planes landing all night long. Just as we would start to fall asleep, here comes another plane dropping lower and lower and doing the gear changing sound. A very long fitful night.

Even Marty, who can sleep through anything, got no sleep. Poor Marty had to be up and out of the house by 7:00 today for a meeting. I am a volunteer and canceled doing weddings. As soon as I post this, I am back in the bed.

NOT WHAT WE HAD PLANNED

We were up early today in order to go to church. As we were getting in the car, it began to rain. Rain that wasn't supposed to start until this afternoon. So we drive to and from church in the rain. I think that puts more stars in our heavenly crowns.

The plan was to go to San Francisco to finally see Avatar on IMAX. We have tried before and the lines were awful and it has been sold out when we checked from home. So everyone in America has seen this movie and the theaters are close to empty. We were going today.

We rode BART in and were in the City by 12:25. We walked through stores to stay out of the rain and then only had a block to walk in the rain. We walk into the box office area and the lines are really long. And then we saw it on the board. IMAX sold out. We are ticked. The next showing is in 4 1/2 hours. We do not care to kick our heels that long. What to do?

The Apple Store, that is where we are headed. In the rain 3 or 4 blocks away. Remember I have Marty's old iphone. And the battery doesn't hold a charge sometimes. (the reason we got rid of my Razor) We have tried to talk to someone at Apple and can't get an appointment at a time we need. So Sunday before 12:45 we should be able to get someone to help us. Wrong. There were no appointments for the rest of the day.

We got back on BART and came home.

Just a couple of things. . .

Today I feel pretty good, no spasms. Thanks for the Poor Babies.


I started off the day in a snit. I just woke up mad, and didn't want to let go of my snit. Every thing made me mad. The radio, the furnace, Marty breathing. Yeah, I was in a mood. I am too old to blame it on PMS. I just was in a snit. But I am lovely and sweet again. Maybe I was mad because of the mob violence last night in Oakland.

I know the crowd started out with good reasons to march. A man was killed by a BART policeman. BART has handled the situation very poorly. Hell, they haven't handled it at all. Eight days later, the policeman has resigned and has still not been interviewed about the shooting. He lawyered up right after the shooting. Yes people are furious. The whole Bay Area is upset. But the crowd trashed/burned Oakland police cars. Oakland police had nothing to do with the case. Then they trashed downtown Oakland. The mob broke windows, trashed other cars, and just acted like a mob. Over 100 people were arrested, and probably 99 will sue the city for obstruction of their right to freedom of speech.

Now I am back in a snit.