Summer@Home Day 26 — Can Lightning Strike Twice?

Day 26
Words should be measured carefully before they are spoken. Frequently you do not know their import until it is too late. Once said, they cannot be unspoken, no matter how much we wish it were so.

Let me explain...

When I was pregnant with my now seven-year-old, we went to a Braves game. Now, you must understand that I am a huge Braves fan. Obsessive, some would say. Given the opportunity I would rather be at Turner Field than just about anywhere else. 

However, in this particular instance it was a day game in late June. I was six months pregnant, and I was ready to go home. We were on the right side of a 4-0 shutout going into the eighth, so it looked good for an on-time departure. 

Until the Orioles scored in the top of the 8th. And then three more times in the top of the 9th. By the bottom of the 9th, our four-run lead had disintegrated into a tie ballgame. 

Late June in Atlanta when you're very pregnant is enough to make even the most die-hard baseball fan weary.
 

Andruw Jones

Andruw Jones led off the inning, and the fans in the stadium rose as one. He was still in his prime and a force to be reckoned with at the plate. He and the longball were well acquainted. Exactly the person you wanted at bat at a time like this.

At that moment I spoke words that live with me to this day. 

"Andruw Jones, If you hit a home run right now, I'll name my baby after you!"

I screamed. I chopped. I prayed.

Summer@Home Day 25: Making Ghee

Day 25
One consequence of not driving is that I'm at the mercy. Of whom or what varies from day to day. Sometimes it's my schedule ... or  someone else's. Sometimes it's circumstances (like getting stranded at Publix). And sometimes it's a craving and a recipe.

Um... a recipe?

Yes. A recipe.

You see, I love Indian food. Samosas. Chicken Tikka Masala. Lentil Soup. Things made with goat and curry and ingredients I can't readily identify.

Sing with me now ... These are a few of my favorite things!

But I don't really dare trying to make anything that exotic at home. I'm a Nervous Nellie when it comes to cooking ethnic foods. I figure there's always something the recipe isn't telling you, that I would know instinctively if my name were different. But I'm one of "you white people" as one of my Indian friends calls me. So I feed my cravings at various Indian restaurants in the area.

A few days ago I logged onto AllRecipes.com and I saw this:

Their featured recipe was Curry Stand Chicken Tikka Masala in all its day-glo organge glory. Five stars out of five, based on 111 reviews.

Side note: The reviews are always my litmus test. If I'm looking at two recipes and one has 5 stars based on 500 reviews and one has 5 stars based on 2, I'll go with the 500. Call me a sheep. I don't care.

Do I dare? 

Summer@Home Day 12 — Not Stranded Anywhere

Day 12
I haven't driven since February 10 due to a medical condition. Many days I have felt trapped in my own house. There have been days I not only didn't go anywhere ... I didn't step outside.

Today was not one of those days, although it easily could have been.

My husband left for Maine today. Our oldest is graduating from high school on Sunday — long story as to why I'm not going, too — so I'm at home with the other kiddos for 48 hours and no wheels. Did we sit around the house all day?

Nope.

Summer@Home: Day 6 — Stranded at Publix

Day 6
Have you ever been stranded somewhere? It's a pretty helpless feeling. To have somewhere to go, but no way to get there?

Yesterday, Day 6 of my Summer@Home, I got stranded at Publix. Not on purpose, but kind of out of necessity. You see, grocery shopping these days is a "do it when you have the opportunity" kind of thing. The trips are not always planned. Sometimes the opportunity just kind of  pops up, and you  run with it.

Summer@Home Day 3: UPS Drivers, Beware!

Day 3

My friends are coming to my rescue in various ways during my Summer@Home. My dear friend Cathy invited Joshua and Jordan to join her boys for tennis lessons and do all the driving. [Shout out to Cathy! Lifesaver! Doin' the happy dance!]

Yesterday, I was able to break from work and go watch, which was a treat. I'd never seen either of them play. I was surprised at how naturally it came to them. They were doing quite well, and it was just their second lesson. And I got to sit in the shade, sip iced tea, and chat with other moms. Heaven...

But when we got home, I almost died laughing. And I soooo wish I'd taken a picture. But outside our garage door, it looked something like this:

Summer@Home - Day 1

Day 1
My summer at home has officially begun. School let out five days ago, so most people might consider that the official beginning of summer. But for me, summer began today — the day my husband went back to work in the office and I stayed home.

If you don't know me, you may not realize the significance of this. I have not driven since February 9, 2013. On February 10 I had the first of a series of fainting and dizzy spells that occurred multiple times a day for a month until my doctors were able to get a partial diagnosis and find medicines that would help. I passed out for the last time on March 13, so I am not allowed to drive again until I have gone six months without an episode. September 13 is my magic date.

So with school out, and my husband back at work, I'm starting a new — albeit short — phase of my life. At home. All day. Every day. All...summer...long.

Showing His divine sense of humor, and just in case I was thinking about cheating, God decided to call my car home a couple of weeks ago. So even if I wanted to, I couldn't hop in my car and take an illicit jaunt to the grocery store or ice cream stand.

I am truly stuck.

Kill me.

RIP Thelma

I'm not a car person. I don't really care that much about what I drive. I've only bought one new car in my life that I really cared about: a 2000 VW Passat Wagon. I was a single mom, and it was the first car I'd ever bought on my own, with my own money, without having to check in with anyone. I loved that car in a way that was not entirely natural.

I traded in my beloved Passat in 2005 to get a 2000 Suburban with 66,000 miles on it. Herb and I were expecting Jordan — boy #4 — so a third row became a necessity. It was a sacrifice I was willing to make. But I cried a little.