Archives for : February2009

Quick Poll

Posted by :Annika On : February 15, 2009
6

Category: Stuff

I already asked this on Twitter, but I can give more detail here.

I’m babysitting this afternoon, and Vivian usually naps during the time I’ll be there. Assuming she does so (and of course it’s OK if she doesn’t), what should I bring to occupy myself? Sara very kindly offered the use of her washing machine, but I will want something to do as well.

Options:

Knitting. Though honestly, I will probably bring some along no matter what.

Writing. I still have not finished editing our last screenplay. I also have a new idea to outline. (Wasn’t that so nonchalant of me? What I really wanted to say was YOU GUYS I HAD AN IDEA FOR A NOVEL AND I AM SO EXCITED EEEEEE.)

Third bonus option (blog-only!): Reading. I am reading Will’s finished (!!!) manuscript. The downside to this option is that it’s large and cumbersome and not in any way bound.

What say you, Internets? Tell me what to do!

Playground Politics

Posted by :Annika On : February 14, 2009
6

Category: Sam

I never have any idea what to think of the other parents at the playground. They either hover or completely ignore their kids. I imagine I am just as baffling to them. We went to a new park we’ve never been to this afternoon, and two interactions with other parents struck me as funny.

1. Little boy, Sam’s age, does not want Sam to climb where he is and tries to pull him down. Sam ignores him. There is no danger to either of them, so Will and I just watch. Sam stumbles (not the other boys’ fault, nor would it have mattered if it was) and the other boy’s mom runs over, helps him up, and dusts him off. I laugh because we have never made that much of a fuss over him falling over, but I think it was very kind of her.

2. I shoo Sam away from that same boy’s toys. A new family arrives with trucks and balls galore. Sam runs directly over as I lamely call after him. The little girls grab their toys away as he approaches and their dad orders them to share. I laugh because here we are trying to teach our kids manners and telling them basically the opposite thing. He wants his girls to share, I want my boy to keep his hands off other people’s things.

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It was a good playground. Sam did not want to leave. It was a longer walk than our regular playground (maybe half a mile more) but I felt much more at ease there.

Making Changes

Posted by :Annika On : February 13, 2009
9

Category: life, the universe, and unschooling

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What happens when you take two artistic homebodies and match them with a ball of energy?

Well, you know. Like any parents we are floundering along, doing our best. It’s been an interesting couple of weeks — in between financial woes and illness, Will and I have spent a lot of time talking about the lifestyle changes we want to make so that Sam’s interests aren’t ignored for our own comfort levels.

I’d already been spending a lot of thought on how I want to facilitate his interests and encourage him. I’m hesitant to use the word education here, because it has so many implications and I don’t want to get into all that, but basically I am thinking about his education. Bethany mentioned how hard it is to sift through the options, which was quite timely on the heels of Lori’s post about choosing the perfect curriculum. I was raised an unschooler, following my own interests. My parents were awesome, and quite actively involved, and I’ve always assumed we would follow suit pretty closely — at least in as much as we would not follow a curriculum, but rather Sam’s interests.

What does that mean? So far, mostly observation. I have a running list of things Sam has shown interest in. It’s by no means complete. Some of the items are kind of silly, but I don’t think that means they should be dismissed. I mean, if I assume that his kicking everything in sight (mostly my shins) is not acting out but an attempt to express himself physically, then maybe we look into karate classes and he channels his energy into a real skill. (Note to self: look into karate classes. If he’s going to kick me all the time, he should do it properly.)

One of our observations is that Sam is bored of his toys. There are too many and they are all out. We would love to rotate so that only a few are accessible at a time, but where on earth would we put the toys on hiatus? Living in two and a half rooms is challenging enough. We’re going to try, but we think it’s equally important to not bring anything new into the mix. Let him explore what he has and really enjoy it, rather than become further overwhelmed by the choices. So we’re putting a moratorium on toys and focusing on — you guessed it — Sam’s interests. (There’s a few small exceptions, things I am planning to make that I’m really excited about. I unearthed my desk the other day, so maybe I will have something to show soon.)

Right now it seems that what Sam would like to do most in the world is be outdoors, preferably somewhere that he can run and climb and scramble. Playgrounds are OK, but National Forests are better. He’s had the time of his life in Joshua Tree and at Vasquez Rocks. At the latter he’s tried to climb upwards of 25 feet (Will didn’t let him go all the way up) and so we’re thinking about some climbing gear. There was a moment when it was time to climb down and Will had to trust Sam to stand still while he moved down — and if Sam had not listened to him, they might both have fallen. Sam listened. I stood below thinking about a nice chest harness that could attach Sam to his Dad. Will was thinking about helmets. I definitely do not want to go overboard — I hate the focus on safety that is prevalent in parenting these days and think it is more harmful than good. More than the safety gear I want him to have an extra pair of good shoes, a windbreaker, maybe some gloves if he will wear them. I want Will to get a new pair of sneakers. I would like a good fleece jacket for myself. But I want that harness too.

What else will Sam show interest in? What else will we find ourselves trying? I don’t know! We’re figuring it out as we go. I have to say, I am excited about moving toward a more outdoorsy life. But it’s a big change. (Will wants to try camping next. Yikes!)

Thank goodness his second-greatest interest is Star Wars. Much more my current speed.

In case you need to know more about me….

Posted by :Annika On : February 12, 2009
3

Category: me-me

An interview! These questions come from Bethany Actually.

1. You live in Los Angeles. Why do you like living there? If you couldn’t live there, where would you want to live?

Los Angeles was the first city that I loved the instant I set foot in it. I fell in love first with the trees, and second with everything else. Right now, it is harder to like living here because we are so ridiculously poor. But it’s not impossible — and having a child is actually making me love it more because I am spending all my time with someone who is impressed if I take him around the block. We spend so much time at the zoo and the Autry Center and the many parks, not to mention just walking around.

If we couldn’t live here — well, we eventually want to move out to the desert, either in Pioneertown or out by Littlerock, and build a ranch. Or farm. Call it whatever pleases you.

But I’m going to pretend you asked where I’d want to live if we couldn’t be in Southern California at all. Because the first answer I came up with SHOCKED me. I would like to move back to New York and get a place in either Brooklyn or Queens. Now what you have to understand is that while New York City technically has five burroughs, I am from Manhattan and so as far as I am concerned there are no other burroughs. And yet, that is where I would go. Assuming that Will and Sam were agreeable.

(This is funny! Apparently a couple of years ago Whoorl asked me a similar question. I have NO MEMORY of that interview!)

2. I know you’re a Star Wars fan. What do you think of Star Trek, any of the permutations?

I think that if I sat down and watched it, I would LOVE Star Trek. I did watch TNG for a while when I was about 12, and I loooooooved Wesley Crusher. (I’ve met Wil Wheaton, and it was really cool because we met through a mutual friend who we both worked with at Metblogs so it wasn’t like meeting a celebrity at all — as an actor or as a writer, which is what he is known for primarily now — but was just two writers meeting through a friend. Which was awesome.) Anyway, TNG: I don’t remember much about it, to be honest. Later in my teens I watched most of TOS, which I found moderately delightful as a kitsch piece. Now that I have seen a lot of old sci-fi movies like Beast of Yucca Flats, I am positive I would adore TOS. I saw one episode of Deep Space Nine in college, and it was BRILLIANT. Honestly, part of the reason I never watched it again was because I was sure it couldn’t hold up. I’ve never seen Voyager or Enterprise.

3. Who taught you to knit; how old were you when you learned; and what was the first complete project you knitted?

I taught myself to knit. When I was 16 or 17, my friend Joni tried to teach me, but I just couldn’t get the hang of it so she taught me to crochet instead. Ten years later my friend Cassie gave me Stitch & Bitch for Christmas and I was knitting within a day or two. I honestly have NO IDEA what the first project I finished was. I do know that my longest-going UFO (unfinished object) is a seed stitch scarf in off-white alpaca that I will most likely never finish.

4. If you had limitless resources and time, where would you like to travel?

Can I just say everywhere? If not, I will limit it to two places: the American Southwest (we’ve been planning a driving tour for about eight years now) and the Mediterranean. I am DESPERATE to go to Sicily. It’s where my family is from, several generations ago, and most of the family history is lost (or known only to distant cousins). There is a cooking school, which as far as I know is not connected to any of my relatives, that I have to go to before I die. I also want to see Greece and Spain.

5. What’s your favorite food to prepare?

This is a hard one! I love cooking, I love eating, and I love feeding people. There is very little I don’t like to prepare. I love cooking with meat, which is funny because I was raised vegetarian. I love making pies — the fruit kind, though I’m sure meat pies are nice. Oh, and the pizza kind!

I will play along by emailing interview questions to the first three people that respond to this. (If you want to comment but don’t want to be interviewed, that’s fine! Just say so.)

Oh for fuck’s sake.

Posted by :Annika On : February 11, 2009
13

Category: rant-a-rama

There is a grassy area a block wide and half a block long about five blocks from our house. Sam and I have gone there to play at least once a week for several months, sometimes daily. It’s where I took this picture. Also this one, and this one and this one. It’s in front of this building (which is open to the public), obviously part of the same property. There is a security guard who is usually in the lobby, and who I know for a fact has seen us there. We have seen other children playing there, adults playing frisbee, people with dogs, and skate boarders. People lay in the grass and read. Will once saw someone flying a kite there.

Today we stopped there for Sam to run off some steam. The security guard came out and told me we could not be on the grass. I doubt I can recount our exact conversation, but the basic gist of my response was, “Isn’t it public property?” He said it’s private property, so I asked why there was no sign stating as much. He told me they put up a sign (note: I have never seen any such thing, and we pass by very frequently) but someone stole it. I said that was not my fault, and he repeated that we were not allowed on the grass. He then walked away and we continued to play. Sam eventually went back onto the grass and I didn’t stop him. The security guard didn’t come back out.

Am I in the wrong here? There is no fence up, and the grass is very easily accessible to the public. There is, as I said, no sign (though I’ve never been under the impression that one could enforce a “stay off the grass” sign anyway).

Why now? And can he even enforce it? It really seemed like he was just being a dick, but I’m not keen on breaking the law, or on being a cunt in response.

“Videogames are PORTABLE?”

Posted by :Annika On : February 11, 2009
1

Category: Daily Photo

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I hope I didn’t goof.

Posted by :Annika On : February 10, 2009
10

Category: Sam

We’ve had a zoo membership for most of Sam’s life, and he and I have visited a lot in the last few months. Over the holidays we went to the Autry Museum, which is right across the street from the zoo, and Sam loved it. In January we made zoo trips at least once a week, and often ate lunch at the Autry cafeteria, which is wonderful and super-cheap. When our zoo membership ran out at the end of January, we were given money to either renew it or get a membership to the Autry instead. Will and I talked it over and chose the Autry.

Today Sam and I went to buy the membership and visit the museum. When we got there, he pointed across the street to the zoo and I told him we were going to see the cowboy stuff today. We went inside and he was fine. We ran around (there is a courtyard area where you can pan for gold and sit in a reproduction stage coach, and Sam LOVES it out there), visited the permanent exhibit, played for a long time in the family gallery, ran around some more, and then started to leave. First Sam led me to the cafeteria, where I bought him a bag of Miss Vickie’s jalapeno potato chips (bribery or treat? you decide), and then we walked back to the car. He stood in the parking lot and asked to go to the zoo. And my heart broke. I told him that we can’t, that we aren’t members anymore. And he seemed to be OK with it, but I doubt he understood.

I feel pretty sure in our decision. I know Sam is going to love it. But I kind of wish the zoo wasn’t right there in plain sight.

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Eamon’s Plate

Posted by :Annika On : February 10, 2009
0

Category: Daily Photo

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Amazon Kindle

Posted by :Annika On : February 10, 2009
2

Category: sideblog

I know this is a long shot, but if anyone is planning to order the new Kindle, buying through this link will earn me a 10% commission, which I will use to buy Star Wars Collectibles books for Sam.

In Which I Suck At My Job

Posted by :Annika On : February 9, 2009
7

Category: Stuff

The past week I have been just barely floating along in the mom department. I’m sick and Sam is sick and we are both so grumpy. He is communicating really poorly. I am not much better (though at least I have not stopped speaking English). We have hardly left the house, we have watched too much television (all Star Wars all the time), and I have spent nearly every minute wanting a nap (and a few more wishing everyone would leave me alone).

Today I was determined to do better. We took a brief desert trip on Saturday and Sam was in absolute heaven, which made it perfectly clear just how miserably bored he’s been at home. I’ve got tons of plans for when I feel better, but it couldn’t wait.

So we got dressed and drove to the Autry. Which is closed on Mondays.

Oh, and Sam fell asleep in the car on the way there. If Sam naps, he doesn’t go to bed at night.

I drove around Burbank for about ten minutes, furious at myself for not checking museum hours (I could have sworn they were open 7 days), and then turned around and drove back through Griffith Park.

Ah-ha! I thought. The Observatory is in Griffith Park, and even if it is not open I’m pretty sure the grounds will be. Sam would love the view(s)!

Well. The Observatory is not open on Mondays, and while the grounds are open the view is not worth it when it suddenly starts pouring down freezing rain with high-power winds. Sam clung to me and cried as I ran back to the car.

So we came home and he is watching The Empire Strikes Back. I won’t even mention that I took a wrong turn leaving the Observatory and came down a winding road that was partially flooded. The whole story loses credibility at that point, because how bad could my luck be?