Oh the Tides, They Are A-Changin' (or, "Election Day")

Am I weary of TV campaign and proposition ads?  Yes.  Am I tired of having to read everyone's political opinion and not-so-friendly discourse on Facebook?  Yes.  Do I think my vote matters?  Of course (hell, I handled my research and ballot 2 weeks ago in a fit of excitement).  Do I believe that any one proposition, candidate, or political party can provide all the answers?  Bitch, please.  I'm not that naive.

For the past 3 years, I stopped voting for myself.  I stopped thinking about what was best for my current life situation, or solely based on my own ideals.  I do more research on each candidate and ballot measure than I did for the first 9 years I was able to vote.  For the past 3 years on into the rest of my life, I vote for my children.  I vote for my daughter's right to handle her own body. I vote for my kids' civil liberties, and those of their future friends and peers.  I vote for their public education and their environment and over economic and foreign issues they will inherit long after you or I see any true progress on them.

I feel my son twitching and cartwheeling around in my gut, and I pray that I do my part to give him the best possible world to live in.  I pray that all of these kids will one day be proud of what their parents and teachers and elders have done before them.  We may have been here first, but they are going to be the ones taking care of us someday.  Don't screw it up for them.

The Cap'n Finds a Beloved New Port (or, "Girls Trip to NOLA")

Oh my goodness.  I have found a new obsession.  I tend to have lots of those.  It really started two years ago this very week...the BP oil spill happened in the Gulf.  New Orleans (as well as MANY other communities) got socked with a major disaster and subsequent bureaucratic bullshit just a few years after horrendous Katrina and her aftermath.  In spring 2010 I really started paying more attention to that region, its downfall and determination to revitalize, and firm imprint on American culture.  At just about the same time, the show Treme premiered on HBO.  Now, for those of you who aren't familiar, this is a show about life in New Orleans that takes place just a few months after Katrina occurred.  It's by the same team that did The Wire, which is sort of universally known as The Greatest Television Show of All Time Even though It Was Totally Unappreciated by the Masses upon Its Air Time (it's a working subtitle).  Anyway, Hubs and I watched entirety of The Wire over the course of my pregnancy (we finished the show about 3 weeks before HD was born -- I looked at him, depressed it was actually over, and asked, "What do we do now?"  He replied, "We become parents.").  So, having a budding interest in all things Gulf and missing the brilliance of David Simon, I plunged readily into his new show.  And boy howdy, was I hooked.  Not just on the show.  But on the resilience, the beauty, the violence and madness, and the tomorrow-be-damned festive nature of New Orleans.  It was a quiet interest, mostly played out in learning more about the music and reading up on the news stories that inspired the stories on Treme.

St. Louis Cathedral, view from Jackson Square

Then, around this past new year, a group of my good girlfriends from college all decided that since 2012 is the year we all turn 30, we needed to celebrate it up big.  I talked to Hubs and he thought a long weekend away with the girls was a totally fair present for a big birthday.  He'd use frequent flyer points (from his old job) to score me a free ticket, we'd budget for lodging and hefty food/drink costs, and he'd take the kiddo for 3 whole nights and days.  Have I mentioned how much I adore that gorgeous, kind, virile, crazy-amazing, beefcake man of mine?  And can you guess where my friends and I decided to venture?  I finally got to hit the city that's piqued my curiosity for so long.  And I fanned the flames of my Type-A nature by reading both A Confederacy of Dunces and The Awakening before the trip, not to mention downloading all sorts of music from the area, everything from bounce to zydeco.  What?  I like to be culturally competent when visiting a new place :)

These girlfriends of mine?  They're something else for sure.  There were 7 of us in total, and we're an impressive bunch.  Graduate degrees,  interesting & thriving careers, scattered all about the country.  Then there's little old me, the only mama of the bunch...guaranteed none of the other girls freaked out about how grocery shopping would get done while she was away, or asked her spouse 87 times if it was really ok if she could go.  The trip was wonderful, and we had such a blast just wandering without an agenda.  My days are typically so scheduled and structured, it was such a luxury to do whatever we felt like doing.  The only plans on the agenda were dinner reservations at Mr. B's Bistro and Luke, both were excellent.  Guess which OCD mama was the one to research and make reservations?  Like music and literature prep, researching restaurants is my way of psyching myself up for a trip.  Weird side note on food?  I realized the day that I left that I at ONLY seafood the entire time.  Oysters, fish, crab, shrimp galore.  NOM.

So what did we do?  Oh you know...wandered, ate, drank, and danced!  My first night was sazeracs with my buddy Alisa at Old Absinthe House, since we were the first to arrive.  By next morning there were 4 of us, and we perused all the art and day stages of the French Quarter Festival and hit Cafe du Monde.  As the rest of the girls (women by now, I guess?) arrived at a different time later that day, we all met at Pat O'Brien's home of the hurricane.  We had a lovely time catching up and enjoying our drinks (two hurricanes later, I am pretty sure I lost my eyeglasses there...oops).  Night out at Mr. B's for supper where we were totally raucous and annoying to every other diner in our vicinity.  So it goes when you reunite old sorority sisters.  Then wandering the Quarter, dancing to street musicians.  I capped off the night at the hot dog stand, which I am sure saved me a massive hangover the next day.

The next day split the group in half.  One sect toured the Garden District, and the rest of us checked out the Festival.  Tons of fun bouncing from stage to stage.  We saw a really talented jazz band of kids age 8-13 who have been accepted to play at next year's Rose Parade.  Had a ton of fun cheering our friend Rachel on at the swing dancing stage while she boogied.  Saw the super fun Kermit Ruffins and Barbeque Swingers.  We purchased a lovely birthday hat, and had so much fun celebrating a collective birthday party as we passed around the hat and gave each girl her "turn" at being 30.  The girls were nice enough to let me take it home to HD as a souvenir.  Evening was supper at Luke (along with a couple of prom groups, so cute), then a night out on Frenchman Street at several clubs.  We were taken around by a local, the cousin of one of the girl's boyfriends.  He was nice enough to listen to all my nerdy ramblings about how I boned up on music before the trip out.

Anyway, I'll let the photos speak for themselves, in no particular order.  Laissez les bon temps roulez!

Roasted oysters and french bread at the French Quarter Festival.

My love for high five photos is deep.   Luckily, my pal Rachel is feeling it.

Pirate's Alley Bar.  Obviously my favorite stop.

It may not have been Mardi Gras, but Indians were still about.

Our fun self-made go-cups :)

Rachel and Jen T, sporting the communal birthday hat!

The next generation inherits the birthday hat.

My turn in the birthday hat. 

Big Sam playing at Blue Nile

Coffee and beignets, from Cafe du Monde (of course)

Me and Jen, loving the Carousel Bar.

Indian!!

Jen T & Jaisha line dancing in support of the band on Pirate Alley

The whole gang after an amazing supper at Luke.

Drinking Dom Perignon, courtesy of baller Jillean.  Wooo!

Jen V & me, digging into po' boys at Acme Oyster House.

Verily, a Call for Grog an' a Hornpipe (or, "Birthday Party")

"Verily" is perhaps my favorite term in pirating lingo.  But I digress...much earlier than normally in my posts.

Awhile back, Hubs asked what I wanted for my birthday, and I had an instant reply: "To be utterly removed from any party planning."  I am more or less the social director/type-A control freak of our little family, but now and then a matey needs a break.  He did little more than ask for a guest list and run a few ideas by me.  All in all, Hubs is wonderfully capable without my micromanaging!  He planned a great night, with a good mixture of spontaneity thrown in.

WE DID KARAOKE.

Ok, y'all.  It had been a solid couple of years since my pipes did any public singing beyond belting Yo Gabba Gabba tunes in the grocery store to calm a peckish HD.  Color me stoked!!  Item one last Saturday was to dispatch HD to her grandparents' house for the night [Side note -- HD loves her grandfolks, but she threw a snotty-nosed, puddle-sized tear, heaving sobs fit when we tried to leave.  She's been going through major mama separation anxiety a little later than most kids.  She's fine once we leave, but any tips on easing this is appreciated. Comment or email me!].  Item two was to don my best grandma sweater and hit up the unspeakably delicious Dosa for a little quality date time with just Hubs.

Hubs secured a private room at a joint in Japantown, complete with plastic liter bottles of Korean beer and delicacies like seafood pancakes.  There was even a glorious fruit platter.  The room was long and skinny with black vinyl booths, sort of like sitting in a semi-janky stretch limo.  We met up with a slew of friends and brothers and got the party started.

My lovely sis-in-law, rocking the crescent tambourine.

A little warm-up tune.

Hubs and me, now both officially sailing strong in our thirties.

Behold, the glory of a packed private karaoke chamber! Note the fruit platter.

The song options were beyond off the wall.  You had some standard show tunes, top 40, some basic country hits.  The typical variety you'd expect, but with weird little gems thrown in -- like the main tune from School of Rock.  My karaoke twin Shana and I bogarted the mike most the evening, slamming down ditties like "I Would Do Anything for Love" and "Glory of Love".  Because, you know, those are some serious jams.  Hubs did a stellar rendition of "Physical" as an homage to the week of my birth, and my fave Toto song.  We were treated to jokey takes on ditties by Mariah Carey, TLC, Blackstreet, and Boyz to Men.  We made excellent use of the applause button on the karaoke controls.  It was a blast.



And I even busted out a Johnny Rotten impression (which most of our guests kindly ignored).  You can feel free to do the same.

The night rounded out at local bar Blur, where we grabbed a sweet huge booth.  I also was treated to some tasty Sheep Dip.  Then, Hubs and I bid good night and proceeded home.  And for the first time since HD's been alive, we spent the night in our own home without her (we've spent nights away from her, but only if we're in a overnighting somewhere for a wedding or event).   The next morning was the biggest luxury ever, sleeping in until 8am (a HUGE gain for us over the standard 6:30) and going out for breakfast.  Once we retrieved HD, we made it up to her by taking her to Golden Gate Park to ride her beloved carousel:

The past few years, my birthday has been very low-key, which has been perfectly lovely.  But it was still nice to be made a fuss over.  Thanks heaps to everyone who was able to come, and to those who called me anyway to show some love.  This will easily tide me over for another 10 years :)

Avast! It Be International Talk Like a Pirate Day!

All abandon hope; ye who enter here.  Me first mate will celebrate by shooting daggers with her eyes. Now dance the hornpipe smartly, me beauties!  OR ELSE.

An Extrarrrrrdinary Grog Fest ("First Birthday Run-Down")

We celebrated our little monster's Shipwrecked Birthday a couple of weeks ago.  Being a former sorority girl, I still love to plan parties and I always forget to take photos (we always had hired photographers; those were the days).  Lucky me, I have a very good friend [hi, Jen!] who takes glorious pics.


Hard to tell, but that is an awesome mermaid birthday hat by Stell & Livi (love Etsy!).



Who: My Mama (Admiral Granmadre?) flew across country for this, y'all.  That's love.  Also in attendance were almost all of Hubs's local extended family, my own local bro & future sis-in-law, and a handful of friends who don't have kids but are awesome enough to [pretend that they] like HD. 

Where: Our backyard, on a partially sunny mostly windy/cold day.  I shook my fists at the sky and thrust a sword into the wind while bellowing curses at Poseidon, like any proper pirate when weather is uncooperative.

Vittles: We went Caribbean-style on the food in light of our theme.  On board was a light grapefruit & jicama slaw, some slammin' Caribbean rice & beans, "salty sea dogs" (yeah, that would be hot dogs), mango salsa, homemade guac, and grilled jerk chicken.  By the way, I highly recommend wearing gloves if you chop habanero peppers.  Better yet, don't chop them at all (just de-stem and seed) if putting them in a marinade, in order to avoid fire-hands.  One better on that?  Don't touch your nose after chopping said peppers -- you will end up frantically Googling "habanero in nose" from your phone, then stuffing pats of butter up your schnoz while your husband screams with laughter and takes pictures.  Ahem.

Hubs in all his wisdom insisted that cooking standard food was enough, and I shouldn't bake dessert.  So we go some amazing mini cuppy cakes from Sibby's:

Random Fun: 

Pirate ship pinata!  Thing was indestructible, just like in Parenthood (movie, not tv).



HD chewed on beloved Pink Poochie!!



We used awesome props from LittleRetreats on Etsy for some piraty photo fun!!!

Thanks to all who came and played along with my piratey obsession.  I love folks who feed my inner crazy.  Until later...set sail, me matey!

Where the Parrots Fly (or, "A Much Needed Break")

A couple weekends back, we made like parrots and flew south.  Although I suppose parrots don't exactly ever need to migrate.  Anyway, we decided to brave Southwest Airlines with a near-toddler and head to our old hometown to visit some old buddies.

Highlights include:

• Hanging with so many good friends.  Mad love going out to my girl Jasleen, Meghann and her daughter Kyleigh, my other Megan and Meaghan, Meredith, and Hubs's homeboys Clive and Paul.  I appreciate y'all taking the time to coo over our kid, and to give me real adult conversation as well :)
• Visited the gorgeous Getty Villa in Malibu.  Schooled HD in ancient Roman and Greco art, architecture, and ways of living.  She's been speaking Latin ever since!
• First experience in a pool.  The bebe didn't entirely freak out (no cries, just lots of clings), so we'll take that as a victory point.
• I got to visit my former life's version of Cheers.   Reminisced on the days when, truly, everyone at Q's really did know my name (in my defense, I lived across the street).



The Border Grill is hilaaaaarious.

• Visited the HAPPIEST PLACE ON EARTH -- UCLA!  Hubs and I are both alum (although, we didn't meet until after each of us had graduated), so naturally we had to give HD a tour of her inevitable future.  8 CLAP!!!



Hand to God, that plaque says "We Will Valet Your Stroller."

• Ate amazingly well.  Hats off to Border Grill's margaritas and the Godmother sandwich from Bay Cities Deli.  Also happy hour sushi, which is one of the things I missed most about LA.

Trying on laurel wreath props, getting our Roman comedy on.

HD, humoring our extreme Bruin exuberance (it's her FUTURE!).

Blue and gold look so very good on HD.

Finally, I think we'll make sure that every vacation includes a full length mirror:

Pillagin' and Plunderin' (or, "Yes, I Am a Full-Time Working Mama")

Once upon a time, way back in 2008, I was on a very specific career path.  I worked with fun people and made a commission.  I got to travel and had an expense account.  I was good at what I did and was promoted and placed with high-profile clients accordingly.  Yet the entire time I was on that path, I had a sneaking, hidden suspicion that it just wasn't for me.  It took me a few years to realize that I was working in a job like that because I thought it was what I was supposed to do.  Degree from top university + prestigious corporate training program + non-stop schmoozy career = Success.  Friends, travel, building a family of my own could all be worked in around that eventually.

Don't get me wrong -- it does work that way for some people, people I actually know in real life.  That equation does make others happy.  But I wasn't.  So when I decided to start building a life with Hubs I not only moved to a new city, but I also completely switched up my career.  I took a job in HR (arguably one of the more thankless career paths in the working world) at a non-profit (definitely less than I was making before, but I believe in the cause!!).  No, I didn't do it to be a martyr or give my former corporate existence the middle finger.  There were lots of reasons for rebooting my career -- and the absolute biggest one was that this job allows me to separate my work and personal lives.

There are all sorts of studies about Generation Y and their (our) work ethic.  My favorite perception of my generation is that apparently, none of us believe in work-life balance.  That is, we're so plugged in to our smart phones and so amped to telecommute that work-life is a seamless state; there's no one or the other.  Supposedly, we're all drafting corporate memos on our iPhones while we're out at happy hour.  I call bull-honky, as I ostensibly am the complete opposite of what some Boomer psychologist says I'm supposed to be.  As soon as I log off my work computer, I am done.  I work very hard when I'm in the office, but the second I'm out the door I'm in full Mama-mode.  My train commute consists of making grocery lists, searching for baby food recipes on my smart phone (take that, corporate email!), and getting in a blessed 30 minutes of a novel (ah, glorious Me Time).  The second I get home, I am playing with, feeding, bathing, and comforting my baby and attempting to be an attentive wife.  Who has freaking time to work from home?

This week, I got another promotion.  When my boss broached the topic, I had two simultaneous thoughts: 1) "Ooh!  More money for HD's college fund!" and 2) "There's no way I can work more hours; I'd never see my kid."  Luckily, the hours will remain the same.  And no one's giving me a Blackberry any time soon.

Huzzah!