I don’t personally know anyone really famous.  I mean sure, I met George H. W. Bush and shook his hand, but I certainly don’t know him.  The most famous people I know are Gary (who passed in 2007) and Bill from Rosenshontz, Steven and Peter from Gould & Stearns.  I also know Gary’s son, Penn, who sings with the Tuft’s Beelzebubs and sang Sweet Caroline on The Sing Off‘s first season. And okay, my former neighbor’s son (who grew up in my town and went to my high school) has starred in shows on Broadway and a woman who grew up in my town won the Nobel Peace Prize.

However, I do have some other interesting (to me) connections in the 6 degrees sense.

My dad’s childhood best friend married a woman who has worked with deathrow inmates in LA.  Not just any deathrow inmates, but some of the most famous killers in California and US history.  She was hired in the late 1970s to help prevent suicides on death row.  There was a serial killer who committed suicide while on death row and the LA county system didn’t want that to happen again.  She has written a pretty interesting book about her experience in the prison system.  The twist to the story is that the killer who took his own life?  One of his victims left a wife and 2 sons.  That woman and her 2 boys moved to my hometown and are very good friends with my family.

From college I have some crazy connections.  First of all, Dave Matthews’ wife was two years ahead of me at my college.  I didn’t really know her, but of course since it was a tiny school I knew who she was.  One year she and I lived in the same dorm.  I guess he used to come visit all the time, but I never saw him. He played a free concert for us in the spring and that was pretty awesome.  That same year a good friend lived with a transfer student.  That transfer student went on to marry one of Ted Turner’s sons.

It isn’t really so much that I want to know famous people, or that I think name-dropping makes me cooler, I have just always made connections between people and things in order to better understand my world.  I think it just makes it easier for me to sort things out when I can make connections.  The music teacher at my school?  Her step dad was the minister at a church in my town. Her sister and I do theater together.  That sister’s mother-in-law works for my dad.  Oh, and one of the bridesmaids in that sister’s wedding was in my Lamaze class.  A friend with a baby born just before Tumblebug?  I met her because she is my sister’s best friend’s brother’s wife’s sister.  I also taught the younger siblings of those 2 sisters.  Maybe it is just growing up in a small town.  Was I the only one who understood the girl from Ferris Bueller’s Day Off?

Economics Teacher: Bueller? Bueller? Bueller?
Simone: Um, he’s sick. My best friend’s sister’s boyfriend’s brother’s girlfriend heard from this guy who knows this kid who’s going with the girl who saw Ferris pass out at 31 Flavors last night. I guess it’s pretty serious.
Economics Teacher: Thank you, Simone.
Simone: No problem whatsoever.

• old friends who pop up out of no where
• eating breakfast at a local diner where everyone knows you
• real Vermont maple syrup
• a syrupy sticky baby
• bright beautiful sunshine
• my sister getting married
• to someone nice
• my parents’  great friends
• they also have access to a great pool
• my son’s joy in the swimming pool
• new friends
• turkey burgers
• frosted cookies
• sandboxes
• big kids and little kids
• swings
• feeling comfortable with people you’ve only just met
• a sandy chocolately baby
• a clean fresh baby
• a sleeping worn out baby
• a busy day that was crazy fun

Sisters

How about, “I am sorry your pettiness and immaturity caused me to choose others to be my friends”?

Or maybe, “I am sorry you blame me for your mistakes.”

Nope.  Those probably aren’t good apologies.

I do owe apologies -and thank you notes- to nearly everyone who got me or my baby something last spring and summer when he was born.  I was just so overwhelmed by life I didn’t write most of them and now it feels like it is too late.  I am going to get started on Christmas and birthday and then maybe work my way backwards.

I owe an apology to some of my former students for not doing a good enough job as their teacher to help them improve.  For not knowing enough to teach them better.  For being too embarrassed to ask for help.

I owe an apology to my son for being a crappy housekeeper and limiting the space he can crawl in.  For not moving him into his own bedroom until he was 11 months old.  For still not cleaning out that room.  For the pink rose wallpaper that is still on the walls.

To my friend who has passed away for not being a better friend.

To my friends I have lost touch with for not being better at keeping in touch.

To my body for not taking better care of it.

To my blog readers for being a poor blogger.

Am I the only one who forgets that they don’t actually know some (or all) of the bloggers they read?

Three geeks on a couch, originally uploaded by Lady Strathconn.

My husband and 2 friends.

No one likes going to funerals. No one enjoys them. No one looks forward to them. You are saying goodbye to someone you knew. Cared about. Loved.

I am going to a funeral of a child today.

I didn’t actually know Brady. His mom is the younger sister of a friend of mine from high school. My sister is friendly with Brady’s mom.

Brady was 3 and a half. His death was an accident. A sad, horrible accident.

He leaves an older brother and a brother to be born next month; his mom and dad; several aunts and uncles and cousins; grandparents on both sides and even great-grandparents. He was cute and lively and a little bit devilish.

I am going to a funeral today.

Funeral Blues

Stop all the clocks, cut off the telephone,
Prevent the dog from barking with a juicy bone,
Silence the pianos and with muffled drum
Bring out the coffin, let the mourners come.

Let aeroplanes circle moaning overhead
Scribbling on the sky the message He is Dead.
Put crepe bows round the white necks of the public doves,
Let the traffic policemen wear black cotton gloves.

He was my North, my South, my East and West,
My working week and my Sunday rest,
My noon, my midnight, my talk, my song;
I thought that love would last forever: I was wrong.

The stars are not wanted now; put out every one,
Pack up the moon and dismantle the sun,
Pour away the ocean and sweep up the woods;
For nothing now can ever come to any good.

    -- W.H. Auden

Picky Princess opened the American Girl doll dress my mom got her and said, “O-M-G!  That’s so cool.”

The Baby Boomers in the room said, “What?”  I sort of wanted to say, “No, it’s W-T-F.”

T and I just went to the grocery store. I walked over to meet him as he came home from work. I took my iPod, cell phone and sunglasses. We shopped.

As we got to the checkout I realized we were buying alcohol for an upcoming event. Remember what I brought with me? No ID. So, of course, the clerk asked for it. T showed his. “And yours?” I explained that I had walked. A manager came over. He hesitated (I am 31 and look it). I looked over at the service desk and asked if Jean was working. The kid behind the counter said, “Yes, but there is a manager right there.” Again I explained the no ID thing. So he got Jean. She looked over and smiled and waved. We got our champagne.

How often in your grocery store is the most important person on the floor your friend’s mom? Jean’s daughter was in my wedding, did several shows with me, and dated my closest childhood friend.

Tuesday we had our first outside dinner of the summer. We ate at Top of the Hill Grill. T got a bean burrito and I got a quesadilla. We watched the evening go by, which included a waterskier on the Retreat Meadows. It was a great start to our summer dining.

Later I went to my friends’ house to watch Idol. I don’t watch Idol, but it was a chance to hang out with friends and a baby! I brought the little guy (3) two Mr. Potato Head accessory kits – Safari and King Spud. He had fun putting together new combinations of his dress up tuber (a “big brother” gift from another of our friends). Even the big boys had fun with it. I brought 7 Mason-Dixon bibs I’ve been working on for months. We also drank and gossiped and gigggled. Idol wasn’t so bad, but I don’t think I will start watching it myself. I really thought Phil Stacey did a great job and I was sorry to read (after searching this morning) that he has been kicked off.

Wednesday was board meeting night and then LOST. It was a wicked great episode.

Today is just Thursday. Staff meeting, rehearsal, Grey’s.

While at Oce@n St@te J*b L*t we found these great fish. They were unstuffed pillows. I thought we could buy some stuffing and make her a very nice body pillow. Lord S thought not and so we just took pictures. OSJL is a crazy-ass store with everything you could possibly want – for cheap! They have them all over New England, although not in Vermont. The aisles are crowded and narrow. There is crap all over the place. The cashiers are surly. And stuff is CHEAP! In the 20 minutes we were in there the cashier on aisle 4 called for assistance 5 times! They look like they are on the set of a movie about angry retail workers.

Next we went to the store next to OSJL, it looked kind of like a TJ Maxx, but it was called A.J. Wr!ght. It was little, how do I put it? Not what I expected. I will let the gifts that we picked explain themselves.

Do woman really still wear hats? And what is that glass bust thing? Lord S just liked the name Apple Bottoms. It made a lot more sense when we saw shirts with that label too. We are certainly showing our rural sensibilities aren’t we? As a fan of the Da Vinci Code (book, not movie) I was interested in the Last Supper print. I suppose it is more near to accurate than the original, done by a white European, but it was still a little startling.

Happy Birthday, Best Lady! Hope it was a good one!