What's the best way to spend a vacation? Stay home and relax, or go somewhere on a trip? If you want, post your answer.
Here's the recap of my vacation over Thanksgiving.
Ok, so I'm back from my trip up north. Here's my greatest accomplishment. Jill and I went jogging around the reservoir, which is like 8 miles, and then we walked 8 miles back. Not a personal record, but still a lot. I'm not thinking of joining a marathon or something, it was just something that I always wanted to do. It takes a long time though and it's so windy that you can barely take it, especially considering that we ran it 3 days before Thanksgiving and it was freezing up there.
After that, we chilled with my friend Mel down at Bonnies and then went onto see the rents. On the day before Thanksgiving, we went to NYC and walked around Times Square. That was a lot of fun. I don't even want to look at my credit card bill. I almost forgot! We went to eat out twice and both times the bill was like 200 bucks. I mean, it was worth it because we took some friends out and grandma and jack out, but still, we're going to be washing dishes to pay this one off.
Funny story - at one point, we were going to the store to get a jersey for me (guess which team) and we had to pay a toll. Mom is digging for change and I tell her to get rid of some of her pennies. She tells me that I'm out of my mind because where she lives if you try to give them pennies, they'll throw them back at you and tell you to front up some real money. Ok, I guess you had to be there. The imagery of one of these guys throwing change back at the car was pretty funny though.
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Ooh Oh Diamond Boy...
Busch beer, jello wrestling, the lady with 10 cats and curiously only 1 litter box....What do these things have in common? They all involve my home school instructional experience.
I had to tutor this one boy, who I referred to as "Diamond Boy" because of similarities to his name. While unusual, the mother and father were very nice. I remember one time when the Schwann's guy came while tutoring, they asked me if I wanted anything to eat. Their freezer was totally stocked. It was amazing. That wasn't the only amazing thing about this house though. There were flies everywhere and the house smelled so bad, I swore that I was in a toxic dump. I looked up at the ceiling and there was a huge brown spot. Not too worry, this was only because the toilet was overflowing. *I think that I just threw up in my mouth now, let alone that day.*
So, one day, I arrived to tutor Diamond Boy. As I walked past the couch on the front porch, I noticed that neither mom nor dad was home. Diamond boy told me that Mom was across the street and she'd be back in a couple of minutes. We went inside and sat down. Today we were going to work on writing about Diamond Boy's favorite pet. Clearly this place smelled like at one time there may have been a pet living there, so I thought we'd have a lot to write about. Diamond boy tells me that he wants to write about his pet Eugleena. I had never heard of this pet, and told Diamond Boy that we needed to write about a real pet like a dog or cat. Diamond Boy insists that this is a real pet and goes to get the evidence. I wonder what I'm about to get myself into. He walks back into the room with this mug that is overflowing with some sort of orange substance. I'm wondering what this witch's brew is. My eyes widen to the size of melons as I cover my mouth. The smell from this mug is so pungent that my nose begins to run. Finally, we get to the point where we reveal the #1 answer on the board....
Diamond Boy tells me that Eugleena is the name of his pet Bacteria! AHHHHHHHHHHHH! HOLY MOTHER OF PEARL! I elected to punt on the remainder of that session and left Diamond Boy to his pet bacteria. There is no way that I can make this madness up.
I can still here my friend Chris going "What's new with ooh oh Diamond Boy and his pet Bacteria?"
I had to tutor this one boy, who I referred to as "Diamond Boy" because of similarities to his name. While unusual, the mother and father were very nice. I remember one time when the Schwann's guy came while tutoring, they asked me if I wanted anything to eat. Their freezer was totally stocked. It was amazing. That wasn't the only amazing thing about this house though. There were flies everywhere and the house smelled so bad, I swore that I was in a toxic dump. I looked up at the ceiling and there was a huge brown spot. Not too worry, this was only because the toilet was overflowing. *I think that I just threw up in my mouth now, let alone that day.*
So, one day, I arrived to tutor Diamond Boy. As I walked past the couch on the front porch, I noticed that neither mom nor dad was home. Diamond boy told me that Mom was across the street and she'd be back in a couple of minutes. We went inside and sat down. Today we were going to work on writing about Diamond Boy's favorite pet. Clearly this place smelled like at one time there may have been a pet living there, so I thought we'd have a lot to write about. Diamond boy tells me that he wants to write about his pet Eugleena. I had never heard of this pet, and told Diamond Boy that we needed to write about a real pet like a dog or cat. Diamond Boy insists that this is a real pet and goes to get the evidence. I wonder what I'm about to get myself into. He walks back into the room with this mug that is overflowing with some sort of orange substance. I'm wondering what this witch's brew is. My eyes widen to the size of melons as I cover my mouth. The smell from this mug is so pungent that my nose begins to run. Finally, we get to the point where we reveal the #1 answer on the board....
Diamond Boy tells me that Eugleena is the name of his pet Bacteria! AHHHHHHHHHHHH! HOLY MOTHER OF PEARL! I elected to punt on the remainder of that session and left Diamond Boy to his pet bacteria. There is no way that I can make this madness up.
I can still here my friend Chris going "What's new with ooh oh Diamond Boy and his pet Bacteria?"
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Sometimes I wonder....
Why do jerks sometimes smile?
Why do "Mother Theresas" seek revenge?
Why do millionaires file for bankruptcy?
Why do homeless people seem so rich?
Why do planny people live in chaos?
Who gives Murphy the right to make up laws?
Jackson is walking to school. He stops at the corner, looks both ways and crosses the street. Turning around he notices that there isn't a soul around him. The school is about 4 blocks away, but on a day like today it seems like miles and miles. He blows into his hand for warmth and a big cloud puffs out of his mouth into the frigid air. The cold air singes his lungs as he takes in a deep breath.
Finally, Jackson decides to walk in the street so that he doesn't have to trudge through the snow that is now up to the middle of his calves on the sidewalk. Thinking back to yesterday's walk, he remembers having to sit in class for the entire morning with the cold wet snow trapped inside his shoe and soaking the back of his jeans. Just then, Jackson remembers his IPOD, which he brought to make the walk go by more quickly. Putting in the ear buds at the very least distracts him from both the length of the walk and the cold.
He arrives at the corner of the first block and notices a few cars waiting at the bus stop. On most days, Jackson would be eager to scamper down there and take the bus into school, but not when he had Lenny Kravitz filling his ears. He continues on, walking past the intersection and a car zooms by, coming within a few inches of hitting Jackson as it swerves from side to side on the road, losing traction on the snow covered roadway. There was a giant splosh of slush that flew up on Jackson's coat. He angrily yanked the ear buds off of his head. Ironically, the one thing he was trying to avoid ended up being the one thing that exactly happened. He was now covered from head to toe with cold, wet snow. With no time to react, Jackson swivels around, shaking some of the snow off of his face, and notices that one of the cars from the bus stop has pulled up behind him and the driver is getting out of the car. The smoke from the car's exhaust filled the air. Fortunately, there's always someone trying to help someone in need. Jackson wasn't hurt, but it meant a lot that someone was trying to help him.
The woman from the car walked up to Jackson and asked if he was ok. He was shaken, but her voice calmed his nerves and seemed reassuring. She reached out to hug him. Jackson thought this was a little weird, but not wanting to hurt her feelings, he reached out his arms to hug back. As he extended his arms, he noticed that his watch read "8:45". School started in 15 minutes, so he had to get on his way. He hugged the mid-30's woman and began to pull away. Her leather coat was straight out of the oven and Jackson buried his face into her shoulder to keep warm. Only, when he stepped back, she didn't let go. Her long black hair draped over his face and he couldn't see what was going on. Confused, he suddenly, he felt a sharp blow on the back of his head. It felt like blood was gushing everywhere. Jackson tried to look down to see if there was blood dripping from his head, but all he could see was a bright light as he crumpled to the ground, face first into the cold, sharp snow, still not sure what had just happened.
As he lay on the ground, he could see the high heeled boots of the woman in front of him, and another pair of black boots standing alongside her. Not knowing what was going to happen next, Jackson quickly stumbled to his feet and darted across the road, kicking up slush into the air in hopes that it would hit the woman right in the face. "WAIT", the woman screamed, but Jackson wasn't stopping to see what she wanted. A sharp screech echoed through his ears and a big wave of snow flying into the air. Snow slapped against Jackson's face as the cold metal slammed into his face. A loud scream pierced the air and this little town would never be the same again.
Why do "Mother Theresas" seek revenge?
Why do millionaires file for bankruptcy?
Why do homeless people seem so rich?
Why do planny people live in chaos?
Who gives Murphy the right to make up laws?
Jackson is walking to school. He stops at the corner, looks both ways and crosses the street. Turning around he notices that there isn't a soul around him. The school is about 4 blocks away, but on a day like today it seems like miles and miles. He blows into his hand for warmth and a big cloud puffs out of his mouth into the frigid air. The cold air singes his lungs as he takes in a deep breath.
Finally, Jackson decides to walk in the street so that he doesn't have to trudge through the snow that is now up to the middle of his calves on the sidewalk. Thinking back to yesterday's walk, he remembers having to sit in class for the entire morning with the cold wet snow trapped inside his shoe and soaking the back of his jeans. Just then, Jackson remembers his IPOD, which he brought to make the walk go by more quickly. Putting in the ear buds at the very least distracts him from both the length of the walk and the cold.
He arrives at the corner of the first block and notices a few cars waiting at the bus stop. On most days, Jackson would be eager to scamper down there and take the bus into school, but not when he had Lenny Kravitz filling his ears. He continues on, walking past the intersection and a car zooms by, coming within a few inches of hitting Jackson as it swerves from side to side on the road, losing traction on the snow covered roadway. There was a giant splosh of slush that flew up on Jackson's coat. He angrily yanked the ear buds off of his head. Ironically, the one thing he was trying to avoid ended up being the one thing that exactly happened. He was now covered from head to toe with cold, wet snow. With no time to react, Jackson swivels around, shaking some of the snow off of his face, and notices that one of the cars from the bus stop has pulled up behind him and the driver is getting out of the car. The smoke from the car's exhaust filled the air. Fortunately, there's always someone trying to help someone in need. Jackson wasn't hurt, but it meant a lot that someone was trying to help him.
The woman from the car walked up to Jackson and asked if he was ok. He was shaken, but her voice calmed his nerves and seemed reassuring. She reached out to hug him. Jackson thought this was a little weird, but not wanting to hurt her feelings, he reached out his arms to hug back. As he extended his arms, he noticed that his watch read "8:45". School started in 15 minutes, so he had to get on his way. He hugged the mid-30's woman and began to pull away. Her leather coat was straight out of the oven and Jackson buried his face into her shoulder to keep warm. Only, when he stepped back, she didn't let go. Her long black hair draped over his face and he couldn't see what was going on. Confused, he suddenly, he felt a sharp blow on the back of his head. It felt like blood was gushing everywhere. Jackson tried to look down to see if there was blood dripping from his head, but all he could see was a bright light as he crumpled to the ground, face first into the cold, sharp snow, still not sure what had just happened.
As he lay on the ground, he could see the high heeled boots of the woman in front of him, and another pair of black boots standing alongside her. Not knowing what was going to happen next, Jackson quickly stumbled to his feet and darted across the road, kicking up slush into the air in hopes that it would hit the woman right in the face. "WAIT", the woman screamed, but Jackson wasn't stopping to see what she wanted. A sharp screech echoed through his ears and a big wave of snow flying into the air. Snow slapped against Jackson's face as the cold metal slammed into his face. A loud scream pierced the air and this little town would never be the same again.
Friday, November 7, 2008
He said "Ween"......
Does anyone out there like watching the Halloween movies? Which one is your favorite? Every year, I watch the Beavis and Butthead Halloween special. It's stupid, but I can't resist. It's called Butt-O-Ween! ha Ha! Getting back to my initial question though. I was referring to the Michael Myers movies. They're my favorite. My personal fave is Halloween H20. It's the one with LLCoolJ. It's pretty good and much more contemporary than the others. I mean, how many of those scenes in a random barn can someone tolerate? I wouldn't even know where to find a barn now, although I know there are tons out there.
It's a total Buzzkill!
I don't mean that I think Halloween is a buzzkill. I mean that our neighborhood on Halloween is a buzzkill. We got 8 trick or treaters this year. That's ridiculous. I don't mean 8 groups of kids. I mean, 8 kids. The last one got the treat of his life. We practically took the entire bowl and dumped it into his bag because we didn't want to be left with all of that sugar in the house.
I remember when I was little, we used to go to school in the morning, then run home for lunch, change into our Halloween costume, and run back to school. That afternoon, we'd have a parade around the school and then we ran home and went trick or treating for hours. Does anyone else remember doing this? I remember filling several plastic grocery store bags with candy. I trick or treated like it was my livelihood.
Funny story - Most of my friends have heard this story before, but it's worth repeating. My friend, Mike Cimini (anyone out there know him?) and I went trick or treating when I was a freshman at St. Bonaventure. Possibly a mistake, but whatever. We go to this lady's house and she says "You fellows are rather large" - Mike without missing a beat at all says "Oh yea, well you're not so small yourself"....
Rude, but it was so funny! You should always get a few moments like that in life.
It's a total Buzzkill!
I don't mean that I think Halloween is a buzzkill. I mean that our neighborhood on Halloween is a buzzkill. We got 8 trick or treaters this year. That's ridiculous. I don't mean 8 groups of kids. I mean, 8 kids. The last one got the treat of his life. We practically took the entire bowl and dumped it into his bag because we didn't want to be left with all of that sugar in the house.
I remember when I was little, we used to go to school in the morning, then run home for lunch, change into our Halloween costume, and run back to school. That afternoon, we'd have a parade around the school and then we ran home and went trick or treating for hours. Does anyone else remember doing this? I remember filling several plastic grocery store bags with candy. I trick or treated like it was my livelihood.
Funny story - Most of my friends have heard this story before, but it's worth repeating. My friend, Mike Cimini (anyone out there know him?) and I went trick or treating when I was a freshman at St. Bonaventure. Possibly a mistake, but whatever. We go to this lady's house and she says "You fellows are rather large" - Mike without missing a beat at all says "Oh yea, well you're not so small yourself"....
Rude, but it was so funny! You should always get a few moments like that in life.
Thursday, October 30, 2008
First Day of the Leardini Ledger
Welcome to my Blog!
The election is coming up and we've received so much information in the mail about it. One thing that I think is funny is that Jill gets so irritated by all of the new mail. Personally, I love it because now there's something else to look forward to each day besides bills.
So, the biggest news for me is that I'm finally going to get all of my breathing problems fixed! I'm going to have Sinuplasty surgery and also Turbinate Reduction surgery. I'm so glad that someone finally found out the problem so that I can finally breathe without problems.
Funny thing - every so often we have "Jeans Day" at work. You know how it works....pay a dollar, you get to wear jeans. So, I'm sure that you can see this one coming. I wore jeans today and jeans day wasn't until tomorrow. I felt like a fool. Ha Ha! How funny is that? I went home and changed.
Ok, this was a good start for my blog, kinda bland, but what can I say, it's almost 11:30 and I'm beat. I'll think of something better for next time.
The election is coming up and we've received so much information in the mail about it. One thing that I think is funny is that Jill gets so irritated by all of the new mail. Personally, I love it because now there's something else to look forward to each day besides bills.
So, the biggest news for me is that I'm finally going to get all of my breathing problems fixed! I'm going to have Sinuplasty surgery and also Turbinate Reduction surgery. I'm so glad that someone finally found out the problem so that I can finally breathe without problems.
Funny thing - every so often we have "Jeans Day" at work. You know how it works....pay a dollar, you get to wear jeans. So, I'm sure that you can see this one coming. I wore jeans today and jeans day wasn't until tomorrow. I felt like a fool. Ha Ha! How funny is that? I went home and changed.
Ok, this was a good start for my blog, kinda bland, but what can I say, it's almost 11:30 and I'm beat. I'll think of something better for next time.
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