A Great Day All the Way Around

Yesterday was Peach's first day at the much-heralded Groovy Granola Montessori School, and if her SPRINT into the classroom at drop-off and her "I can't wait until tomorrow chant" on the way home are any indication, it was a great success. Her teacher called last night to say she fit right in, like she'd been there forever, and that she was a great addition to "the community." And my feeble attempt at emulating this gal, albeit with a lacto-ovo vegetarian bent, was well-received by Peach and her lunch buddy for the day, with whom she shared some watermelon balls and cashews. Someday I may get brave enough to post a picture of the day's offering, however, I'm sure I'll never measure up to the original. We do have the cute bento box though. So there's that.

Already, the enormous differences between GGMS and Peach's precious preschool are very apparent. Last year, they had chapel once a week, we had the option of ordering take-out pizza or sandwiches for lunch 4 days a week (we chose Wednesday), and she was learning along side the children of some local glitterati. This year, they have group singing and movement once a week, there is a strict no-waste lunch policy, thus pre-packaged foods and non-reusable containers are forbidden, and her teacher will be out a few days next week because her dance troupe is performing at Burning Man. Opposite ends of the spectrum, but both lovely, loving places. We are thrilled with Peach's success so far and are eager to see how she blossoms in this new environment. Man.

In other GREAT news, Karla May's surgery yesterday was a success, with no trace of cancer in the mass they removed from her belly. I'll let her fill you in on the details, but she looked pretty good when I went to spend the night with her at the hospital last night. Pretty good for having been gutted a few hours earlier. I told her they should have taken her appendix and gall bladder while they were in there, just to save time (her tonsils are already gone). She fought hard not to cough or laugh, and she made a valiant attempt to watch Project Runway for the first time, but the drugs got the better of her. She may be layed up there for about a week, but head over to her blog and leave her some good wishes to read when she gets home.

Laissez les bons temps rouler

So I'm not going to go into a long, drawn out thing here, but I just want to say this: I love New Orleans. I've visited many times, got engaged there, and even applied to law school at Tulane and Loyola (even though Louisiana has a completely different system of law, and I would have been pretty screwed when I tried to take the Texas Bar). Yeah, I love the party atmosphere (ask Karla May about the trash can incident), but what I love even more is the history and the cultural pride associated with the city and the Gulf Coast in general.

I was supposed to go to the Big Easy about a month after Katrina hit for a much-anticipated weekend with all the crazy women in my family, and it was really hard to cancel the whole trip, not knowing when we could go back again and what it would be like if we did. I can't imagine what those people who live or have lived there must have felt like. I still think about them and pray for them, and, on this first anniversary, I hung this in my kitchen:

It's a piece of slate roof from a Garden District home (c. 1850s) that was destroyed by the storm. It came from these gals, who are from the area, and I think it's a beautiful tribute to what was and, hopefully, will be again. I also think it compliments this quite well:

It's a Glitter Girl piece, inspired by Mardi Gras. I got it the weekend T-Bone and I got engaged at The Old Absinthe House. Damn, what I wouldn't give for a cold beer and a noisy strike at The Rock 'n Bowl right now.

You take the good, you take the bad

You take Olive to Gymboree, and there you have:

Jo from The Facts of Life?

Yep. Random. I saw her right when we walked in yesterday, and I confirmed it was actually her by checking the sign-in sheet on our way out. She used her married name, but it was totally her. And (I think) she's pregnant. And surprisingly small. Well, everyone's small compared to me, the Big Girl, but what with all of Jo's motorcycle riding and automotive repairs for Mrs. G., I expected her to be kinda butch. Not so. I guess she's filming something in town, but she has a precious little girl and was just trying to be a normal mom, so I didn't hassle her. I don't think anybody else even realized it was her. But I knew. Because I'm smart like that. Olive, on the other hand, was too blinded by love to realize or care that she was mixing with famous spawn. I love this freaky town.

Here's Your Answer, T

I have two dear friends, M and T, who I have known since elementary and middle school, respectively. M moved to Missouri after our freshman year in high school, and T moved to Pennsylvania after our junior year. We've kept in touch over the years, are there for the big events in each other's lives, and continue to encourage and entertain each other despite the distance. M's back in Missouri, and T's in North Carolina, but we're having a summit meeting in Vegas in October to reconnect, relax, and recharge. M managed to score us a suite at the Bellagio, so we'll be rubbing ashy elbows with the beautiful people, y'all, and we've got tickets to see Elton John in all his queenly glory one night. I'm just praying he throws the mother of all shitfits on stage and takes an ax to his red pie-ana. Wouldn't that be so awesome?!

Alas, I digress. One of the many reasons I love these girls is that they totally GET me and all my weirdness, and even if we go without talking for a while, we always jump right back to where we left off, laughing all the way. Both of them read this blog, although they are too shy to leave comments (ahem), so I have to share this gem of an email I received from one of them tonight:

I’ve been waiting for your blog on how you’re going to leave T-Bone and head to LA to look for the Black Crowes guy, since it looks like he will be single soon enough. Can you even put it into words what it is that you find attractive about him???

And when you become that little boy’s stepmother, will you please give him a decent haircut???

I have made no secret about my love for Chris Robinson, and I have and will go to great lengths to see the man any time. That said, given the current state of his relationship with what's-her-face, I'm not exactly celebrating, especially since they have a kiddo, and it seems that my boyfriend may have been the dumpee in this situation. Which I totally cannot believe, but whatever. As far as what it is I see in him, I think it's a combo of him and his music and his full on commitment to letting his freak flag fly, man. I just wanna love him up every time I see or hear him. And the fact that he weighs about half as much as I do doesn't dissuade me in the least. He rocks. Plain and simple.

And T, methinks you might need to start a blog. Well played.

River Rats

That's what I brought home with me after a weekend on the Guad-a-loop. We had a glorious time at the darling Casa Bonita, and I seriously considered staying a while longer, like a year. We lived in T-shirts and bathing suits. We swam and boated and ate and swam and boated and ate some more, and I didn't even take a shower. For three days! My hair wasn't greasy when we got home - it was sticky, yo. Peach and Olive wore themselves out and fell into bed every night. And we all slept past 8 am every morning. Heaven.

I swear. If I ever win the lottery, you'll know where to find me.