I've found a home for the dog dish. Apparently, someone left it on my desk thinking I had a dog. "No," I explained, "I have a baby - and it's really not appropriate for him." So, the dog dish has now gone to someone who has multiple dogs.
Random indeed.
My friend Thomas sent this challenge out via e-mail, and I figured I would post my response on my blog, rather than just sending it to him directly. Here are the rules: they can't be concerts, greatest hits, compilations or soundtracks (although I think Pink Floyd's The Wall may be excepted from that last rule). It's actually a lot more difficult than it sounds, but it's good food for thought.
It was actually hard to identify my top 10 albums (I don't even have all of these on CD!), and I'm almost embarrassed by some of them, but I believe these are honestly my favorite ones (based on the fact I either know all the lyrics to every song, can listen to these albums repeatedly, or both).
At any rate, here are my top 10 picks (in alphabetical order):
BLACK CELEBRATION - Depeche Mode. I think this is the best Depeche Mode album ever, even better than People are People. "New Dress" is probably one of the most insightful songs out there ("You can't change the world, but you can change the facts... When you change points of view, you can change the world"), and "A Question of Time" has punk-rock sensibilities in the guise of New Wave techno-ish sounds. I simply love this album. BLIND MAN'S ZOO - 10,000 Maniacs. It's hard to decide on a favorite 10,000 Maniacs album (how can you choose when Natalie Merchant's lyrics are all exquisite prose?), but I think Blind Man's Zoo wins, only because there aren't any songs on it that I don't like. The opening track "Eat for Two" is probably the best known song from this album, but, as strong as it is, it's also probably the weakest. "The Big Parade" brings tears to my eyes every time I hear it (no better song to play in remembrance of our fallen soldiers abroad), "The Lion's Share" saddens me as I think of the corruption in governments around the world, and I don't think any song could speak to the importance of being an individual more than "You Happy Puppet". "Dust Bowl" will break your heart, and "Poison in the Well" will make you angry. Finally, "Jubilee" is a haunting and extremely disturbing song in which the music helps you visualize the lyrics - to a point where you almost want to cry. THE CIRCUS - Erasure. I don't think this album got nearly as much attention as it deserved. "Victim of Love" was the main single from this album, but there are so many great tracks on it. Listening to the lyrics, you can sense a theme of accepting one's (homo)sexuality, but the themes also work for any impressionable young teen (as I was when it was released) trying to find one's place in the world. As it was the precursor to The Innocents (another great album, but not my favorite one by Erasure), I think a lot of people have forgotten it, but it's entirely their loss. Among my favorite songs are "Sometimes", "It Doesn't Have to Be", and the title track. But my favorite of all is "Spiralling" - it's by far one of the best break-up songs ever. DARK AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL - Oingo Boingo. Boingo Alive was immediately eliminated from the running based on the rules of this exercise, but I was able to find another favorite Boingo album nonetheless. This album showcases an older, more mature Boingo (to go along with the older, more mature high-school-aged me). The songs have more serious overtones that were missing from much of their earlier work. "Out of Control" is deservedly the best known (it's a great anti-suicide song, by the way), but some of the deeper tracks still resonate with the inner teen-angst that never fully goes away. "Try to Believe", "Skin" and "Is This" are easily some of the best songs lyrically in the Boingo anthology. NEW MISERABLE EXPERIENCE - Gin Blossoms. This is an album from my early post-high school years, and the songs on it evoke all sorts of memories - both good and bad. Its only noteable single, "Hey Jealousy", doesn't do the album justice. "Lost Horizons" is chock full of despair, and "Hold Me Down" ought to be the theme song for Alcohol Anonymous (or any rehab center, for that matter). All the songs on this album are lyrically smart, and I don't think the Gin Blossoms have been able to recapture the brilliance of this collection. SEVEN AND THE RAGGED TIGER - Duran Duran. I don't think the songs on Duran Duran's third album get nearly as much credit (or play) as they deserve. Even the singles ("The Reflex", "Union of the Snake") are overshadowed by the less complex (but more bankable) songs from Rio. I saw the video for "New Moon on Monday" the other day and was immediately reminded of what a great album this is. "The Seventh Stranger" still ranks very highly on my list of break-up songs and is one of the best deep cuts on this album. TALK SHOW - The Go-Go's. Their third and last album before their initial hiatus, Talk Show has much more depth than Beauty and the Beat and Vacation. The entire first side of the album (yes, I remember the days when this was on vinyl) was comprised of catchy pop tunes, most of which were released as singles ("Head Over Heels", most noteably) or should have been, but the B-side has those deep-cut gems like "Capture the Light" and "I'm the Only One". My favorite song on this album, hands-down, is "Mercenary", followed by "Forget That Day" and "You Thought". These three songs - which are great break-up songs, by the way - almost heralded the band's split. TRAGIC KINGDOM - No Doubt. I feel like such a poser including this album, especially since almost half of the songs on it were released as singles. But once you get past "Spiderwebs", "Don't Speak" and "Just a Girl", you uncover gems like "End It On This", "Excuse Me, Mr." and, my personal favorite at our karaoke bar, "Sunday Morning." Just about the entire album screams Girl Power; and it practically serves as a soundtrack for any teenage girl's love life. It's definitely an album I can listen to repeatedly and never tire of it. WARNING - Green Day. Of course I had to include a Green Day album. Warning happens to be my favorite, even though American Idiot has sold much better. The funny thing is that I didn't even realize Green Day had released a new album when Warning came out. Aside from the title track and the very catchy "Minority" and "Deadbeat Holiday", there is a very sweet love song ("Church on Sunday") on this album and my favorite song to listen to while pregnant (and the source of the quote on my baby announcements): "Waiting". "Fashion Victim" is another great song that, oddly, reminds me of the girls at my high school, past, present and future.
The Boy Who Lived is coming to Orlando! Or rather, his wizarding world is. Either way, I'm excited. I'm not a big fan of Universal Studios (I get passes every quarter that I can't give away), but it would be worth the poor customer service headaches to see their version of Diagon Alley!
Space is very limited at my office. Just to give you an idea of how limited space is, there are two people sharing what used to be a storage closet, and what was once an executive office now houses three people and a meeting area. Having said this, I knew my cubicle would be a storage area once I went on maternity leave. (This is also why I called my boss a week before I intended to return, so that she could give everyone the head's up to get their crap out of my room.)
So, when I got to work this morning, the first thing I noticed was that my chair was missing. And that there was a dog dish on my desk. And a stack of T-shirts was in my bookcase. And my trash can and recycling bin were both gone. And someone left me a Lionel train car.
Now, I've found owners for the T-shirts and the Lionel train car, and I got my chair and trash can back, too. As for the recycling bin, well, I'm just using my neighbor's bin. But what's with the dog dish? No one is claiming it (not that I can blame them), and I really have no use for it.
Strange, strange, strange, indeed.
I used to ask my nieces this when they were younger. Back then, there were only good days and great days - and the difference between a good day and a great day was as simple as an afternoon in the park.
Today is my first day back to work, and I can say it's been a good day so far. We had a bit of a busy morning (by "we", I mean Baby C and I), complete with spit up, poopy diapers and a whole lot of toots. I sneaked out of the house while he was still sleeping, not that I really think he would have pitched a fit.
So he is at home with my mother-in-law this week, resting comfortably, I'm sure. I had a rough night last night, so I'm personally amazed that I'm still vertical, but as my mother often said of herself, I'm at work to rest. I told my boss this morning that she couldn't possibly be as difficult a boss as Baby C is - she is at least able to verbalize exactly what she wants, rather than crying (sometimes screaming) at the top of her lungs until I guess what she needs.
Expressing here at work is very different than expressing at home. Well, that goes without saying. I use the ladies' locker room of the corporate gym downstairs to pump, and while it's not the most ideal surroundings, it certainly gets the job done. The environment also prevents me from getting too relaxed. The test today, though, is to see if I'm able to pump enough food for the baby. He has such a voracious appetite, I can't help but be nervous about that.
So, to answer my own question, I think it's been a good day. If, when I get home, I discover I've made enough food for Baby C and have kept up with his needs, that will make it a great day. Well, discovering that and having a shower and a nap. That would be a great day!
Poor Baby C. He's hanging out in his bouncy chair next to me, trying to sleep, and it's so difficult for the poor little guy because he's all congested. He'll drift off to sleep for a few minutes, then wake up again hacking on something. I've been letting him sleep on my chest a bit after nighttime feedings, and he's able to breathe (and I'm able to monitor any choking that could happen), but the poor thing is just so congested.
It's my fault, really. I caught a cold (don't know how - it's not like I've really left the house) and, despite all safeguards, I passed it along to him. I took him to see Dr. W last week because he was cranky, irritable, and just not feeling well, and Dr. W verified that yes, Baby C did catch my cold. The plus side, though, was that as my body worked to fight my own cold, I would pass antibodies on to him through my breast milk. The down side, of course, is that he is congested and there's not a whole lot (besides saline drops and the bulb aspirator) we can do about it.
The other sad thing is that we've elevated one side of his mattress to help with the post-nasal drip (and also prevent him from choking on phlegm), and Baby C keeps sliding down at night. I can't swaddle him, either, because the blanket starts to cover his little face when he slides down, so his little hands feel like ice when I pick him up for a feeding. So, not only is he congested, but he's also uncomfortable and cold. I may need to ask my husband to close the vent in his room so the air conditioner isn't blowing at night, at least until he's feeling better.
Oh, my poor little baby!
It's incredibly hard to believe it's already been six weeks. Well, let me rephrase that. On one hand, it's incredibly hard to believe it's already been six weeks. On the other hand, it's incredibly hard to believe it's only been six weeks. Baby C has grown so much (he weighed 10 pounds 6 ounces when I brought him to the hospital for an impromptu weigh-in on Monday), and I'm starting to shrink (I'm only 10 pounds heavier than my starting pregnancy weight... which was 10 pounds heavier than I wanted to be to begin with, so I'll still work on losing another 20 pounds).
So, I head back to work on Tuesday. I offered to come in today, but my boss is out today and told me to take an extra day and just come back Tuesday. Have I mentioned how awesome my boss is? In the interim, though, I'm responding to e-mails and doing what little work I can from home... which is to say, not a whole lot. I don't mind, though. My mom is watching Baby C for me while I take a few moments for myself.
I'm anxious to get back to work, if only for some sense of normalcy. There's that Mommy Guilt seeping in from time to time (even now as I listen to my mother sing lullabies to the baby), but as my mom has told me, I'm too much like my grandmother - I want my own existence. So, for the next few days, I'll be preparing a food supply for Baby C so that he has enough to eat while my mother-in-law watches him during the work day. I'd might as well get used to it, though. It's not like he'll be at work for me to nurse whenever my breasts start to feel full.
Ah, the joys of being a working mom.
Which band or artist which is no longer performing or alive would you have loved to have seen?
Submitted by Rev Stan.
Hands down, it would have to be Nirvana. I had an opportunity once, in high school, to see them. Some friends were getting tickets and invited me to come if I could (a) get permission from my parents and (b) pay for my ticket. I was at a stage where I was thinking, "Well, Nirvana's such an amazing band; they'll be around forever," and opted not to even try to go.
And then I awoke one April morning in 1994 to the sound of Richard Blade letting all us KROQ listeners know that Kurt Cobain had been found dead. It was heartbreaking.
Today, Baby C is four weeks old, and I've been able to keep him with me in his bouncy seat while I've worked on the computer. We've discovered he likes music; last night, each time I put him down after feedings, I let him drift off to sleep listening to Bach. But, as it is now daytime, I think Bach is a little too nighttime-ish.
Enter Green Day. For those new to the story, I listened to Green Day nonstop while I was pregnant. In fact, the first time I felt Baby C move, I was listening to "St. Jimmy". It makes a good rock 'n' roll story, anyway. Well, here we are, nice and quiet (and blissfully asleep), even while the non-ballad-esque songs are playing. (No, I'm not playing music from my iTunes at full volume. I'm not that bad of a mom.)
Oh, as I was writing that last bit, Baby C woke himself up just as "Waiting" started playing. (This, by the way, is my favorite Green Day song right now.) It looked like he listened for a few seconds, and he is now just hanging out with his eyes wide open. God bless Green Day!
The past few nights, Baby C awoke at roughly the same times: 11 o'clock, 2 o'clock, and 5 o'clock. This is after putting him down around 9 o'clock. (It takes him about an hour to eat, burp, and get drowsy after his 8 o'clock-ish feeding.) I discovered last night that if I can get to the baby for the 11 and 2 o'clock sessions before my husband realizes what's happening, Chris can change Baby C at 5 o'clock (his alarm is set for 5:30, anyway) and hand him off to me before jumping in the shower. So, the trick now is going to be consistently waking for the 2 AM feeding, since I generally stay up until 11, anyway.
My hope, of course, is that this all means Baby C is on his way to getting on a schedule. He's in the midst of another growth spurt, evidenced by an increase in daytime feedings and two outgrown sleepers, so I'm hoping this means his little stomach is growing, too (and can thus hold more food!).
And if Baby C gets on schedule, I can start revamping my own schedule and begin planning to return to work. How new mothers are expected to go back after only six weeks of leave is beyond me.
