iBeth

Canvassing

Tonight I started canvassing (along with a neighbor) to GOTV. The thought was a little overwhelming, since it's the middle of a very tough work week (plus I'm getting the children's cold, bleah). It had to be done, though; the deadline for registering new voters is Monday, October 4.

Happily, canvassing was quite a pleasant experience! Most people were reserved, even suspicious, when they answered the door, but they lit up with delight when they heard we were there on behalf of the local Dems. They said things like, "I don't usually vote, but I'm definitely voting in the next election," and "I can't wait to vote in this election, and I already know I'm voting for Kerry." These reactions, together with the fact that my canvassing partner is a registered Independent who just can't stomach the neocon Republicans anymore, helped reassure me that the polls are wrong. I have been pretty sure they were wrong (after all, these are the same polls that told us George Bush would win the popular vote in 2000), but I am even more confident now.

We handed out maps to the polling place. We handed out early voting information. We handed out the slate of endorsed candidates. We even handed out some voter registration forms. (We were supposed to get people to fill them out so we could take them with us, but most people were either taking a form for an absent member of the household or they were on their way out the door.) I will walk around over the weekend to collect the forms so I can turn them in by Monday.

I'm not sure whether I'll be able to cover the entire precinct, but my neighbor promises to help. And I'm looking forward to going out again tomorrow night. Particularly after tonight's terrific debate!

You can help get out the vote! It's not that hard, and it doesn't have to take a lot of time. Call your local Dem hq and volunteer. The election is only 32 days away. You don't really want to be sitting around on November 3, wondering if you could have made a difference, do you?

The local Democratic party will be running its first ever tv commercial soon, on MSNBC. Watch for it.

Technical Difficulties RESOLVED

We think David has SOLVED the technical problems we've been having--all the problems--without our needing to buy new equipment. We'll see if that's the case when I post this. And here's a test link to an interesting site, just for kicks: childrenshealthcare.org

Technical difficulties

I cannot seem to post blogs from my home (or rather, posts will go through as long as they are text-only posts with no links or photos). The best I can do is write the blogs at home, then copy/paste them into the blog from work or elsewhere; that also makes it a pita to post pictures. And I will probably post very sporadically until the tech problems get fixed. Please don't give up on me.

The good news: David has worked very hard to fix the problems with our router. The bad news: David's efforts to fix the problem have (temporarily) (I hope) resulted in our having NO internet access whatsoever at home.

Raising a reader . . . or two

As parents who want to encourage reading, we've been pretty lucky. Both our girls are already interested in books. Emma has been reading remarkably well since she was 3 (and she'll ask questions out of the blue like, "Why is that sample not intended for resale?") Amelia doesn't read (at least, not as far as we can tell, haha, since she has only recently begun putting together simple 2-and 3-word sentences). But it's not unusual to investigate a suspicious silence and discover Amelia sitting in a little nook somewhere, intently paging through a book.

In addition to their probably inheriting "sit on your butt" genes from their parents, I think a significant reason for their interest is the willingness of grandma and other relatives to read to them on demand, even when it is the same book over and over. And over. And over and over.

Still, I don't want to squander our good fortune. I look forward to reading children's books and talking about them with my girls. I look forward to debating why the book is better than the movie. I look forward to visiting sites of important authors (maybe even finally getting to the little house on the prairie).

So I was delighted to find TWO great books, complete with TWO great author websites, on the subject:

Jennie Nash's Raising a Reader companion site. Nash is a great storyteller herself; I'll never look at Curious George the same way again.

Jim Trelease's Read Aloud site. Trelease even read aloud to his teenagers! While they were doing the dishes! He has a photograph to prove it! Of course, in the photograph, it's difficult to determine whether his son is interested in the reading or interested in the bizarre actions of the adult in the room. (You may have to click on the word "Kitchen" to see the photo.)

I am especially delighted with the book lists on both websites. I've already purchased one of the books, and ordered more from the public library (which has an absolutely terrific book delivery program). Whether or not the girls enjoy the books, I have a feeling I will.

Knock knock!

Amelia tells knock-knock jokes! Or at least, she tells ONE knock-knock joke. And she isn't even 18 months old yet. She pioneered her comedy routine over the weekend, during the hurricane, while sitting in Daddat's lap. (Actually, she is starting to call him "Daddy" more than "Daddat" but the earlier name is so cute that we all prefer it.) "Knock knock!" she said brightly.

Her father and I paused in what we were doing. "Did you hear that? Did she say knock knock?" he asked me. I nodded. "Did you say knock knock?" he asked her.

"Knock knock!" she repeated patiently.

"Well . . . who's there?" he replied.

"Owl."

"Owl who?"

Then she laughed. He said, "who who? Is that what the owl says?" and she laughed some more.

Pleased by her success, she repeated her knock-knock joke several more times over the next couple of days, in an even more self-assured way. "Knock knock," she said to me while I was changing her diaper.

"Neck?" I asked, misunderstanding. (She likes to announce the names of body parts too, though usually on the changing table she names *ahem* other parts.)

"KNOCK KNOCK! KNOCK KNOCK!" she told me, a little exasperated.

"Oh! Who's there?"

"Who who!" she said, giggling as she jumped to the punchline. Every time since, she has leaped to the punchline as soon as we ask who's there. And you know what? The joke is just as cute told that way.

Discovering moonlight

Last night, Emma discovered moonlight. She walked into the darkened bathroom and noticed a patch of light streaming from the full moon outside the window, and she was thrilled. She ran to stand in the light and shouted, "Mommy! Mommy! Look! I found moonlight! I found moonlight right here in the bathroom!" I came over to to witness the marvel for myself, and she explained how the moon was shining through the window and onto the floor; she demonstrated her shadow in the moonlight, all the while covered in a silvery glow. Amelia watched and echoed "Moon!" at appropriate intervals. After I had admired Emma's discovery sufficiently, she ran out to the family room, shouting, "Daddy! Daddy! I found moonlight!" I hated to turn on the electric lights after that, they seemed so artificial and glaring, but Emma and I examined the moonlight and agreed that it would not be sufficient for me to see in the shower. Thankfully, the moonlight remained when the shower was finished and the lights were extinguished. One of these days, we will have to take the girls for a moonlit walk through the neighborhood.

pre-hurricane

Despite the oncoming hurricane (enough already with the storms!), Emma and I managed to enjoy an eventful day.

We cruised past the playground of the UU church--hadn't seen it since hurricane Charley. Already I feel nostalgic for the "old" preschool. It appeared to have lost a tree, or at least lots of branches, but the equipment was still there. As we drove past, Emma observed, "A tree that is short, with lots of leaves so you can't see the sticks, that's called a 'bush'! Some people are named Bush. We have a president named George Bush."

Next, after some wandering, we located the Orange County Democrat HQ, where I volunteered to be a precinct captain. The job is somewhat overwhelming, but I guess I can do better than the alternative (so far, the alternative is that no one does it). I learned, to my horror, that more than 73,000 Democrats have been registered since 2000 and have never voted. Given Gore's official loss of Florida by 537 votes, if people like me had volunteered in 2000, maybe thousands of innocent people might still be alive and unwounded.

I had called earlier in the week to volunteer, and I was under the impression that all I had to do was swing by the office to pick up materials. Actually, I had to sign a loyalty oath and wait 30+ minutes for an overworked volunteer to put the packet of materials together. Emma was delightfully well behaved throughout, and she received a Kerry sticker when we left.

We then raced to meet Aunt Laura at the Orlando Repertory Theater, where we had tickets to see Frog and Toad. We arrived with mere minutes to spare. The theater was nearly full, a happy contrast to last season when we never saw more than a few rows filled.

Bringing Emma to this theater always reminds me of seeing shows at Goodman Children's Theatre in Chicago. Mom, Aunt Marian, and all five of us "little women" would drive downtown for the magical shows every year. We stayed after the show to get programs signed, and often would stop for dinner at someplace like Buffalo's restaurant (olive burgers and ice cream sundaes, yum). The memories are happy ones; I love sharing them with Emma, and soon Amelia.

But I am also very sad that my mother isn't around to enjoy children's theater with her grandkids. Amazingly, she would be 69 if she were still alive. Having children of my own makes me feel closer to her even as it makes me miss her all the more.

Frog and Toad was hugely entertaining, the best show I've seen so far at the Orlando Rep. Lots of tuneful songs and sophisticated yet hammy acting. At intermission, we asked Emma what her favorite part was, and she told us, "the whole thing!" All the way home, she asked questions about acting; how do the people get to act (do they live in the theater?), how do they get their costumes, etc. Maybe someday she will want to sign up for acting classes.

Afterwards, she collected signatures on her program. The lead actors were delighted with her "Kerry" sticker, too. Then we were treated to spinach lasagna at grandma and grandpa's house.

Now, as the wind outside picks up, Emma is asleep on the sofa, next to her dad, who is watching hurricane news. She may be getting a cold. Amelia is sitting in my lap, nursing. It really doesn't get any better than this.

Da Dah! Mouse!

Amelia is amazing. She just demanded that I turn on my old laptop so she could type. When the Windows tone sounded, she imitated it, "Da dah!" then cheered, "Yay! Mouse!" Now she is leaning on the keyboard with all her weight hollering, "Type!" The poor keyboard is trying its best to comply. We chose that model of Toshiba, lo these many years ago, because independent reviewers determined it was the sturdiest available. Little did we know what it would need to withstand.

When Amelia knows a word, she announces it at peak volume. This morning she was gleefully shouting, "tic tac toc" (kit kat clock, hanging on the wall of the nursery). Just now, she hollered "diaper" to alert me to the fact that she needed a new one. We have just returned. When she wants to put on her own pants, she insists, "Do it!" And more and more, we're hearing sentences such as "Read book!"

I've discovered that my current firewall won't let me post pictures, alas. So you'll just have to imagine the most adorable baby possible.

Contentment

David is watching tv and listening to swing music ("I carried her books in Kalamazoozoozoozoozoozoo). Amelia has plundered my purse and is happily dousing herself and her Dora doll with Purell disinfectant. She would love to play with my car key's lock/unlock buttons, but I'm not letting her do that. Emma is typing away on my old laptop (ca. 1993 or 1994) and periodically interrupting me to ask, "How do you spell 'having'?" "How do you spell 'drink'?" In fact, she thought I told her "driak" and just interrupted me to tell me I was wrong, it is "drink." Hard to believe she is only 4.

Even though earlier this evening, I was hoping that the kids would be asleep by now, so that I could have some peace and quiet, even though the interruptions are themselves being interrupted, I am content. More than that, grateful.

A good night to start a blog.

Lorem Ipsum

"Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipisicing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum."

I'm only spouting Lorem Ipsum to have something to say in my first post. Still, it's interesting to note that Lorem Ipsum is not nonsense text, but rather is a 2000+ year old passage from Cicero.