Whew!

This morning, I met with the teacher I'm replacing, and she doesn't need me to start until the day we originally planned. Today still is probably her last day, but she'll have a sub in the rest of the week to do test reviews and the tests, and she already had a sub set up for next week. The lady working next week is a retired Algebra teacher and can handle all the real lessons when they start back up. I'm so relieved that I can't stand it! Yeah!

Music MeMe - College Edition

It was so much fun the first time that I had to do it again. Same rules apply--see the earlier post.

This time my grad year was 1993, and I was starting to mature into someone a bit more musically interesting.

1. I Will Always Love You, Whitney Houston
2. Whoomp! (There It Is), Tag Team
3. Can't Help Falling In Love, UB40
4. That's The Way Love Goes, Janet Jackson
5. Freak, Silk
6. Weak, SWV
7. If I Ever Fall In Love, Shai
8. Dreamlover, Mariah Carey
9. Rump Shaker, Wreckx-N-Effect
10. Informer, Snow
11. Nuthin' But A "G" Thang, Dr. Dre
12. In The Still Of The Nite, Boyz II Men
13. Don't Walk Away, Jade
14. Knockin' Da Boots, H-Town
15. Lately, Jodeci
16. Dazzey Duks, Duice
17. Show Me Love, Robin S.
18. A Whole New World, Peabo Bryson and Regina Belle
19. If, Janet Jackson
20. I'm So Into You, SWV
21. Love Is, Vanessa Willlams and Brian Mcknight
22. Runaway Train, Soul Asylum
23. I'll Never Get Over You (Getting Over Me),
25. Rhythm Is A Dancer, Snap
26. The River Of Dreams, Billy Joel
27. I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles), Proclaimers
28. Two Princes, Spin Doctors
29. Right Here (Human Nature)-Downtown, SWV
30. I Have Nothing, Whitney Houston
31. Mr. Wendal, Arrested Development
32. Have I Told You Lately, Rod Stewart
33. Saving Forever For You, Shanice
34. Ordinary World, Duran Duran
35. If I Had No Loot, Tony! Toni! Tone!
36. I'd Do Anything For Love (But I Won't Do That), Meat Loaf
37. Slam, Onyx
38. Looking Through Patient Eyes, P.M. Dawn
39. I'm Every Woman, Whitney Houston
40. Baby I'm Yours, Shai
41. Come Undone, Duran Duran
42. I Don't Wanna Fight, Tina Turner
43. I'd Die Without You, P.M. Dawn
44. Whoot, There It Is, 95 South
45. Hip Hop Hooray, Naughty By Nature
46. Another Sad Love Song, Toni Braxton
47. Will You Be There, Michael Jackson
48. Comforter, Shil
49. Good Enough, Bobby Brown
50. What's Up, 4 Non Blondes
51. All That She Wants, Ace Of Base
52. 7, Prince and The New Power Generation
53. Dre Day, Dr. Dre
54. One Last Cry, Brian McKnight
55. Just Kickin' It, Xscape
56. I Get Around, 2Pac
57. Bed Of Roses, Bon Jovi
58. Real Love, Mary J. Blige
59. Here We Go Again!, Portrait
60. Cryin', Aerosmith
61. Cats In The Cradle, Ugly Kid Joe
62. What About Your Friends, TLC
63. I Got A Man, Positive K
64. Hey Mr. D.J., Zhane
65. Insane In The Brain, Cypress Hill
66. Deeper And Deeper, Madonna
67. Rain, Madonna
68. The Right Kind Of Love, Jeremy Jordan
69. Bad Boys, Inner Circle
70. That's What Love Can Do, Boy Krazy
71. Do You Believe In Us, Jon Secada
72. Angel, Jon Secada
73. Forever In Love, Kenny G
74. Again, Janet Jackson
75. Boom! Shake The Room, DJ Jazzy Jeff and Fresh Prince
76. When She Cries, Restless Heart
77. Sweat (A La La La La Long), Inner Circle
78. It Was A Good Day, Ice Cube
79. More And More, Captain Hollywood Project
80. How Do You Talk To An Angel, Heights
81. Rebirth Of Slick (Cool Like Dat), Digable Planets
82. What Is Love, Haddaway
83. To Love Somebody, Michael Bolton
84. Give It Up, Turn It Loose, En Vogue
85. Alright, Kris Kross
86. Check Yo Self, Ice Cube
87. Fields Of Gold, Sting
88. Ooh Child, Dino
89. Faithful w/ Go West
90. Reason To Believe, Rod Stewart
91. Break It Down Again, Tears For Fears
92. Nothin' My Love Can't Fix, Joey Lawrence
93. Three Little Pigs, Green Jelly
94. Livin' On The Edge, Aerosmith
95. Hey Jealousy, Gin Blossoms
96. If I Ever Lose My Faith In You, Sting
97. Anniversary, Tony! Toni! Tone!
98. One Woman, Jade
99. Can't Get Enough Of Your Love, Taylor Dayne
100. Two Steps Behind, Def Leppard

Music MeMe - High School Edition

I stole this from the world-famous Adminnie when I saw it on her blog.

Here's the deal.

The rules:
A.) Go to musicoutfitters.com
B.) Enter the year you graduated from high school in the search function and get the list of 100 most popular songs of that year
C.) Bold the songs you like, strike through the ones you hate

I graduated in 1989, and apparently, I was a bubble gum pop princess--forgive my youthful indiscretions.

1. Look Away, Chicago
2. My Prerogative, Bobby Brown
3. Every Rose Has Its Thorn, Poison
4. Straight Up, Paula Abdul
5. Miss You Much, Janet Jackson
6. Cold Hearted, Paula Abdul
7. Wind Beneath My Wings, Bette Midler
8. Girl You Know Its True, Milli Vanilli
9. Baby, I Love Your Way/Freebird, Will To Power
10. Giving You The Best That I Got, Anita Baker
11. Right Here Waiting, Richard Marx
12. Waiting For A Star To Fall, Boy Meets Girl
13. Lost In Your Eyes, Debbie Gibson
14. Don't Wanna Lose You, Gloria Estefan
15. Heaven, Warrant
16. Girl I'm Gonna Miss You, Milli Vanilli
17. The Look, Roxette
18. She Drives Me Crazy, Fine Young Cannibals
19. On Our Own, Bobby Brown
20. Two Hearts, Phil Collins
21. Blame It On The Rain, Milli Vanilli
22. Listen To Your Heart, Roxette
23. I'll Be There For You, Bon Jovi
24. If You Don't Know Me By Now, Simply Red
25. Like A Prayer, Madonna
26. I'll Be Loving You (Forever), New Kids On The Block
27. How Can I Fall?, Breathe
28. Baby Don't Forget My Number, Milli Vanilli
29. Toy Solider, Martika
30. Forever Your Girl, Paula Abdul
31. The Living Years, Mike + the Mechanics
32. Eternal Flame, The Bangles
33. Wild Thing, Tone Loc
34. When I See You Smile, Bad English
35. If I Could Turn Back Time, Cher
36. Buffalo Stance, Neneh Cherry
37. When I'm With You, Sheriff
38. Don't Rush Me, Taylor Dayne
39. Born To Be My Baby, Bon Jovi
40. Good Thing, Fine Young Cannibals
41. The Lover In Me, Sheena Easton
42. Bust A Move, Young M.C.
43. Once Bitten, Twice Shy, Great White
44. Batdance, Prince
45. Rock On, Michael Damian
46. Real Lov, Jody Watley
47. Love Shack, B-52's
48. Every Little Step, Bobby Brown
49. Hangin' Tough, New Kids On The Block
50. My Heart Can't Tell You No, Rod Stewart
51. So Alive, Love and Rockets
52. You Got It (The Right Stuff), New Kids On The Block
53. Armageddon It, Def Leppard
54. Satisfied, Richard Marx
55. Express Yourself, Madonna
56. I Like It, Dino
57. Soldier Of Love, Donny Osmond
58. Sowing The Seeds Of Love, Tears For Fears
59. Cherish, Madonna
60. When The Children Cry, White Lion
61. 18 And Life, Skid Row
62. I Don't Want Your Love, Duran Duran
63. Second Chances, .38 Special
64. The Way You Love Me, Karyn White
65. Funky Cold Medina, Tone Loc
66. In Your Room, Bangles
67. Miss You Like Crazy, Natalie Cole
68. Love Song, Cure
69. Secret Rendesvous, Karyn White
70. Angel Eyes, Jeff Healey Band
71. Patience, Guns N' Roses
72. Walk On Water, Eddie Money
73. Cover Girl, New Kids On The Block
74. Welcom To The Jungle, Guns N' Roses
75. Shower Me With Your Love, Surface
76. Stand, R.E.M.
77. Close My Eyes Forever, Lita Ford
78. All This Time, Tiffany
79. After All, Cher and Peter Cetera
80. Roni, Bobby Brown
81. Love In An Elevator, Aerosmith
82. Lay Your Hands On Me, Bon Jovi
83. This Promise, When In Rome
84. What I Am, Edie Brickell and The New Bohemians
85. I Remember Holding You, Boys Club
86. Paradise City, Guns N' Roses
87. Iwanna Have Some Fun, Samantha Fox
88. She Wants To Dance With Me, Rick Astley
89. Dreamin', Vanessa Williams
90. It's No Crime, Babyface
91. Poison, Alice Cooper
92. This Time I Know It's For Real, Donna Summer
93. Smooth Criminal, Michael Jackson
94. Heavan Help Me, Deon Estus
95. Rock Wit'cha, Bobby Brown
96. Thinking Of You, Sa-fire
97. What You Don't Know, Expose
98. Surrender To Me, Ann Wilson and Robin Zander
99. The End Of The Innocence, Don Henley
100. Keep On Movin', Soul II Soul

Getting Crazier...

It looks like my return to work could come much sooner than the first week of November. The doctor wants to put the lady I'm replacing on home rest immediately (really last Thursday) until the baby is born. She calmly explained that she has no sub ready to go (my orientation class is still scheduled for the 29th), and she swore she would spend her days teaching from her chair until I could work. She's being re-evaluated today. I'm hoping he will allow her to stay as long as possible because she wants to stay as late as she can--that and I really want to go on Moose's field trip on Friday. The sub-school principals is trying to get me into this week's class if possible, but they may end up covering the class with other subs until I can get in there. None of us like that option, because it will just be a huge mess!

In other news, my baseline mammo wasn't weird because I breathed. I, like about 30% of women in my age range, have benign cysts that showed up. Their presence was confirmed by ultrasound. The good news is that they don't increase my breast cancer risk. I do, however, get to have yet another mammo in the spring. Yippee.

I finally finished the Hogwarts scarves for Moose and Roo, and there are still no pictures here or on Ravelry. I continue to be incrediby lax in posting pictures of FOs. The two pairs of socks are still in progress, and going nowhere fast. With all the tension about the return to work, I can't seem to concentrate on anything these days. I did pull out a skein of Cascade 220 Superwash and start a swatch (i.e. sleeve) for a sweater I saw in IK Fall 2008. I'm under no illusions that it will go anywhere at all...

Life at Full Speed

So just when I thought I could relax, I get an offer to return to teaching as a long-term sub in an Algebra class at our daughter's school. It's a dream opportunity. The teacher is part of the GT Center team, so I get all her little geniuses. For a middle school, it means the kids, on average, will be a bit better behaved than the rest of the crowd. They are also 7th graders, and I find that tends to give them a bit less attitude--they're still scared of their new, big, bad building--than the 8th graders. Now we just need to get a sitter for Moose for the mornings before he has to catch his bus. I also have to jump through the bureaucratic hoops over at the district offices to get my sub badge and pay account set up. I love that I'm suposed to start the first week of November, and they can't squeeze me in for an orientation class until Oct. 29...

On top of all that, I finally scheduled my last two tests to get my new state license. One is on the afternoon of the 15th, which means I have to find some alternate way of getting the kids to piano. The other is on the afternoon of Nov. 1st, which means I sacrifice yet another Saturday to the demands of the educational field.

Then there are the piano lessons, getting Moose and his bass to school and home every Friday, the orthodontist, Cub Scouts, Girl Scouts, youth group, church commitments, volunteering at school, and Bible study. Whoever said stay-at-home moms don't work really needs to spend about a month in the shoes of one of us.

And just one more thing makes all this a bit crazy--radiology called to re-do my baseline mammogram. Fun. Turns out when they say don't move and don't even breathe during the x-ray, they really mean it. I specifically remember breathing during the shot they want to re-do. Now I feel really stupid for having to drag out to the hospital for another two hours just because I can't follow directions...

I'm knitting like crazy on the kids' Hogwarts scarves for Halloween. Roo's is done except for the fringe, and I'm about a third of the way done knitting the one for Moose. I also have two pairs of socks--one is my design from the workshop, the other is plain vanilla--on the needles, and my Pi shawl is languishing in hibernation.

None of this inspires me though, and I really, really just want to knit a sweater. If I get the scarf done, I might have time to cast on for a sweater before I have to go back to work. I think it might be time to peruse the Ravelry queue to see what will work up fast and scratch the sweater itch. What to do, what to do...