I’d Rather Wax My Legs Than Wax My Car

Did everyone have a good weekend? I did! Except for one of my Saturday afternoon tasks. So my car needed to be waxed. Like a few years ago. And two different people I know were like, “WAX your car already.” So. . .I finally did. But I hadn't waxed my own vehicle since probably college days. And I guess I was a little rusty. Because it didn't go well. Apparently you CAN leave the stuff on too long.  And how do you know if you've left it on too long? When it takes a sand blaster and some unholy words to get it off. Seriously, I probably needed to go to the altar Sunday morning over my car waxing attitude.

I've kept this car longer than any vehicle I've ever owned. I got convicted not to buy a new car when Suzie Orman said “A car's only purpose is to get you from Point A to Point B. Does yours do that? Then you don' t need a new one.”  (Suzie can be a such a hag!) Then I listened to Dave Ramsey who said the same thing. So…I have kept this car instead of giving into temptation and upgrading every few years like I used to. All that to say when half my car was coated with green wax that had been sitting for a while and refused to budge and I was on like hour 2 with hours left to go, I thought, “I wonder if Honda would take this thing–just like it is. I'd rather buy a new car right now than spend one more second on this.” I seriously was mad enough to hop in the 1/2 green car and go trade the thing in. I don' t think there's a dollar amount I wouldn't have paid to turn the job over to someone else. But I pressed on, drove 20 minutes to the car wash to correct some huge errors in greenness, and went to Braum's for my favorite ice cream. And for once I didn't get the junior cone.

So let's do a giveaway. I'm giving away three copies of Shelley Adina's Tidings of Great Boys.

Great title, eh? I love the color scheme of the cover. Purple apparently is THE color of the fall season. Thank God it's not orange. Which makes my complexion look like I just threw up.

Okay, so let's get a question of the week. How about to get in the running for one of the books, you leave a comment and answer the question: Who is someone famous you'd love to meet? (and why)  You don't have to limit it to one person, but the individual must be living.  And it has to be generally accepted that the person is living. (So you can't pick Elvis, Mom.) Last day to enter the drawing is Sunday. After pot roast lunch. I'll announce the three winners next Monday.

I would have to say I would saw off my right arm (no my left. let's not go too crazy–it would be hard to eat cereal with my left) to meet Carol Burnett. She is totally my hero. She is the funniest woman on the planet and totally paved the way for women in sketch comedy. I used to watch the Carol Burnett Show reruns every day when I was growing up. Then my friend Denise and I would act them out. We would usually crack ourselves up. But we normally didn't crack anyone else up. Audiences can be so tough.

So we had show-n-tell this last week. It's really just my sneaky way of my kids giving their first speech. I had some really great ones. On Wednesday I had a student show us his guitar. He started to pack it up, and I said, “Aren't you going to play us something?”  Because number one, I want to hear some music and number two, it takes up class time (teachers love distractions too). So he nervously thinks about it, then goes back up in front of the class. And begins to play. And as he plays the intro, I'm thinking I know this song. And then he begins to sing this:

Isn't that cool? Just a reminder that I teach in a very politically correct public school. So yeah, very cool. I was very proud of that kid just for having the guts to sing in front of his classmates period, not to mention how jazzed I was that he sang THAT song. Gutsy.

And then Thursday I had a student bring his violin. This student caught my attention pretty much on day one because he loves classical music and is very knowledgeable about it. So he tells us about his violin–how his immigrant parents from Mexico bought it for him and it was a big deal because they don't buy expensive things. I think they made a very wise investment. After my smart ninth grader said he knew the violin was his ticket to college, I asked him to play something. This is what we heard (at the 1:25 marker):

Can you believe that? To say it was amazing would be an understatement. I was in the presence of musical greatness. We know I don't have a blubbery bone in my body (talking tears here, not fat). But students+art? Gets me every time. I was totally wiping my eyes. Completely teared up. I wish you guys could've heard that boy play.

I saw Fame this weekend. It was okay. I'd give it a C minus. I wasn't bored out of my head, but…I was bored. I liked the singing, the dancing. But about an hour into it, I thought is the plot gonna start any time soon?

I really want to see Bright Star.

“My sister has read his poem book. And she wants to see if he's an idiot or not.” That's how I feel about a lot of poetry and the creators. I'm hearing great buzz about this movie, but unfortunately it's not playing in my area. Hopefully it will. I love period pieces. And big hats–I'm a sucker for big hats. But. . .I don't see how it can end happy. I'm pretty sure they don't break out into song and dance like they did on Fame. Which is a pity. Because I think I would enjoy any movie more if that did occur. Have you all ever seen the movie Much Ado About Nothing? (My most favorite story ever, even if it is by Shakespeare.)  It ends in singing and dancing. Merry making. Revelry. Lollygaggery.

Speaking of happy things, have you seen this talented dalmatian?

I don't know whether that's neato to watch…or wince worthy. Did anyone else wince while watching that? Just seems…wrong. Now if you could show me video of a dalmatian who could walk and vacuum, then I might be impressed. And ready to write a check.

Something else I accomplished this weekend was finding a picture of the leading man for the book I'm working on. I like to print out real pics of my characters. Helps me visualize them. Anyway, what do you think of Dave Annable? I found him on Ellen. He was just there. On stage. Waiting for me to see him and put him in a book. So I did. You're welcome, Dave Annable. Does anyone have any suggestions for his female love interest? I've had red heads and brunettes, so maybe I should branch out and have a blonde leading lady? Pamela Anderson and Jessica Simpson need not apply.

One last thing–Chili's restaurants are huge supporters of St. Jude, one of the best charities ever created. Many Chili's restaurants are donating 100 percent of their profits today to St. Jude's. So if you are looking for a place to eat lunch, dinner, or fourth meal, head to a participating Chili's.

Have a great week. Don't forget to let me know what famous person you'd love to meet. You have until Sunday afternoon to comment.

JEN