ISO...

...a drive-thru window at a convenience store where I can pick up a gallon of skim milk and a loaf of bread without parking the car, carrying two kids through the parking lot, finding a cart with a working seat belt, trekking them to the very back of the grocery store, deciding that yes, I do in fact need the sandals on the sale rack as I pass them by, and then giving in to Isaac's requests for a pack of bubble gum which will inevitably end up ground into the carpet or someone's hair. Even if the milk cost me an extra dollar a gallon, it would still end up being cheaper.

...and while we're constructing drive-thrus, I'd really like one at the library. I reserve all of my books online, and if I could just zip over and pick them up without unloading, getting out the stroller, and spending 20 minutes looking at the board books, I might actually have time to get home and clean my house.

...and since I'm making requests, I really need to get my hair cut. Eddie is on a really unpredictable rotation right now, so I can't make an evening appointment and expect him to be home. So, hairstylists everywhere, you've answered the call for good kids haircuts with those places where kids sit in airplanes (is it kiddie cuts or something?), I would be all over a mom's morning at the salon, where moms could get haircuts or pedicures, and the kids could vegetate in front of Veggie Tales in a corner. I'd pay big bucks for that.

...which brings me to my final request. I'd be guessing that in the big medical complexes there's a spare room hanging around somewhere. Anyone who has ever endured a pelvic exam with a child sitting on their lap knows what torture that can be. I'd love to see a drop-in babysitting service at the medical center. The grocery store by our house in Minnesota had something similar to what I'm envisioning, and although I never used it, it seemed like a brilliant idea. Then I could finally get my eyes examined (I'm about a month into my last pair of disposable contacts), could leave Maren behind when Isaac has physical therapy, and go to my gyn appointments without quite so much assistance.

Career Day

Annie came home from school today with a piece of paper which she handed to her dad the moment he walked through the door. "Can you come? Can you come?" The school was asking for parents to talk to students on career day. Eddie said, "Why don't you have Mom come instead?" "Mom does not have a career," was her quick response.

Hey baby, I might not have a career right now, but who wouldn't want to have my life? There's time for reading, writing, running, blogging, and when that gets boring, there are always babies to play with, toilets to clean, laundry to fold, and kids to tuck into bed. Speaking of which, I am being summoned to report to the management upstairs.

Book #32: The Appeal

Title: The Appeal
Author: John Grisham

A big nasty corporate raider pays to have a conservative, good-looking, stuffed shirt elected to the Mississippi Supreme Court to avoid paying damages for the people his company's pollution killed.

This book was so terrible, that I must have blanked out the fact that I did, in fact, finish it.

A few pictures from the Country Music Marathon

My godmother, Annie, and her family live in Nashville, so we flew into town on Friday morning to spend the weekend with them. The plane was filled with runners, which was pretty exciting.

Here's my cheering section (Annie and Maren):


Me (in the blue) around mile 8. I ran with the girl directly in front of me and the girl in the blue hat until I lost them on a hill around mile 16. It was so helpful to have a support group. They were the best. All of the girls I ran with-- Jamie, Amanda, Dessi and Katrina, qualified for Boston, so maybe we'll see each other next spring!


Just after the finish line, with my mom (who walked the 1/2 marathon in a rocking 2:26) and my godsister, Beth, who also ran the half:


One more shot of the cutest baby cheerleader:


Last time the race was so hard that I really thought marathons might not be for me. This time I felt fantastic-- it didn't even start to feel like hard work until after mile 23. I wanted to build myself a good cushion, and when I started to get tired, I realized that even if I walked the rest of the way, I'd still qualify for Boston. I think I'm hooked on marathons-- they're such a rush!

Country Music Marathon-- the results are in!

I finished the race this morning! My official time was 3:27:38, which was 9th in my age group and 41st overall among women. I'll do a full report with pictures (if I can snag any from Tom's camera) when I get home tomorrow.

Yes, I am ecstatic! And yes, I'm already planning for a trip to Boston next April!

Book #31: The Fortune Cookie Chronicles

Title: The Fortune Cookie Chronicles: Adventures in the World of Chinese Food
Author: Jennifer 8. Lee

Jennifer 8. Lee seeks for the true lineage of the fortune cookie while exploring the history of Chinese food in America.

Did you know that there are nearly twice as many Chinese restaurants in the United States as McDonald's franchises? While Chinese takeout is in the rotation for our Saturday date nights (which take place on the couch, sometimes with a movie, but more often with whatever sporting event Eddie can't tear his attention from), I didn't realize that Chinese-American food is nearly as standardized as the food from the Golden Arches, even though most Chinese food establishments are of the mom & pop variety. This is a really interesting, fast read (I think I started it yesterday). My only criticism is that sometimes the jumps between the fortune cookie story and the rest of the book (more generally about Chinese food in America) were sometimes kind of jarring. I also thought Lee was summing up and ending her book about two chapters before it actually ended.

Book #30: Climbing the Mango Trees

Title: Climbing the Mango Trees: A Memoir of a Childhood in India
Author: Madhur Jaffrey

Actress and Indian cooking doyenne Madhur Jaffrey writes about her childhood in Delhi, as viewed through the lens of food.

Since finishing my MA, I've decided that if I ever went back to school, two of the things I'd love to study are Indian-American writings and books about food. Climbing the Mango Trees combines both of these interests, so it should come as no surprise that I was totally entranced by this memoir. I've read several of Jaffrey's cookbooks, and even cooked dinner from them a few times, and as I was reading the memoir, I felt like I could taste the food she described. Her stories made me wonder which foods I'd include in a memoir of my own childhood. I'd definitely have strawberry shortcakes, s'mores, weenie roasts and lobster boils on the beach, Christmas cookies, cheese souffles, banana omlets, and grilled cheese sandwiches from my friend Lucy's sandwich maker. Mmmm. I think I gained about five pounds just reading Climbing the Mango Trees and imagining all of the foods Jaffrey writes about.

Book #29: Everything Bad is Good for You

Title: Everything Bad is Good for You: How Today's Popular Culture is Actually Making Us Smarter
Author: Steven Johnson

So watching television and playing video games make people smarter? People are smarter now than they were a generation ago because of interactions with technology? According to Steven Johnson, it's the truth.

This book is possibly the best argument for my addiction to The Sopranos that I've ever read. It also helped convince me that a little video gaming by my kids probably isn't the worst thing ever. Since we're discussing it with my book group in a couple of weeks, I don't want to get into everything that I liked and didn't like about the book, but overall, it was an eye-opening read and helped me look at issues from a different perspective?

Emotional lability and exercise

Today I really pushed myself in spinning class. During the cool-down, when I was feeling all sore and endorphin-y, this song came on. Apparently it's one of the most popular songs in America right now, but when it comes to country music, I've got my head in the sand like an ostrich, so this was the first time I heard it. Pretty soon, not only was I tired and happy, but I was also crying, openly, in front of the whole class.

On Saturday, out for my long run, I was listening to Lynne Rosetto Kasper talking about a trip she took to Italy's Emilia-Romagna region. She was there more than a decade ago, doing research for her book, The Splendid Table, and in this episode of her show, she returned to one of the places she had visited while working on the book. She asked the proprietor, an old woman, if she had heard of the book. The old lady brought out a framed copy of the pages referring to her establishment, which had Lynne crying, which had me sobbing, trying hard to catch my breath, as I ran down the sidewalk in the subdivision.

I'm not normally much of a crier. That's not to say that I never cry, but it doesn't happen all that often. I'm more likely to tear up when I'm pregnant, or as I've recently discovered, when I exercise. Now that I've traded techno for podcasts to accompany my long runs, I've found myself getting misty-eyed several times over the last few months.

Which makes me a little bit nervous for the race on Saturday. With all of the emotions surrounding a marathon, the intensity of running 26.2 miles, and the 20-something country music bands along the way, I am sure to be a blubbering mess by the time I reach the finish line. I'd better to remember to wear waterproof mascara and sunglasses.

White Sony Television

White Sony Television
1994-2008

White Sony Television, beloved companion and communicator of mass media, died this morning after suffering a fall from a great height. She was 13 years old.

Whitey came into our lives on Christmas morning 1994, in West Des Moines, Iowa. She spent most of her childhood in various student apartments in Provo, Utah. In her adulthood she found herself the focal point of rooms in homes owned by Ed and Shelah in St. Louis, MO, Rochester, MN, and Houston, TX.

Television never married, although she had productive long-term relationships with Gray Apex DVD Player and Black Dish DVR. She enjoyed all kinds of programming, but specialized in broadcasting morning news programs, educational shows for the under-eight set, anything on the Food Network, and SportsCenter. She served most recently as Ed and Shelah's private bedroom receiver, and those who came to the house could see her sitting prominently high atop Ed's dresser, a spot which she enjoyed, but which, unfortunately, also led to her sudden and unexpected death.

Whitey suffered from a broken vcr and loose plugs in her old age, but her family never abandoned her for a sleeker, plasma model, instead nursing her through several lost remotes and an often-hazy connection to the satellite dish.

She is survived by Gray Sony Television of the family room and Black Television of the playroom, as well as countless electronic gadgets from all over the house. After services in her honor, White Sony Television will be laid to rest at the local recycling center.

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In related news, White Sony Television's death has been labeled an accident, and all charges against Black Horizon Treadmill have been dropped. Treadmill issued this statement, "I am very sorry for any role I may have inadvertently played in Television's death. I will try to keep my vibrations to a minimum in the future." Charges against Shelah, who was operating both Treadmill and Television at the time of the incident, are still pending. Experts close to the case believe Shelah will be asked to pay for a replacement as part of her punishment. She was not able to be reached for comment.