Another year over, a new one just begun...

And so this is 2007. The year my child turns ten (holy #@*(). The year my IUD would have expired had I stuck with it as a form of birth control (I remember - back in 1997 mind you - the doctor calling this year "ought seven" and thinking how utterly ridiculous that sounded, and then suddenly starting to wonder what we'd call this decade. I still don't know what I'll look back on it as, but it won't be the "oughts"). The year my "baby" cousin, my godchild (yes, you can laugh at the very idea of that), becomes an adult. The year I win the lottery? (Actually, I won in 2006, all of $4!) So, the painted ponies keep going up and down, days spin past. I take this as a good thing, too busy enjoying things to stop and realize how quickly those things are passing me by. Of course, not all of them are pleasant, but what can I say, in my rapidly advancing age, I'm becoming almost an optimist. Wow. That just blows my mind. Oh maybe not even an optimist, but more of a fatalist. What's going to happen is going to happen, I can't control that, all I can control is how I react to it, how I remember it, how I plan for it, etc. Of course, I'm still in this crazy place where 3 of the 4 major parts of my life are undergoing massive changes (and in case you worry, home life is the one constant in all of this), so I can't let myself worry too much about the things I cannot change - there are just too many changes to worry about without going utterly insane. And insanity isn't as much fun as it may sound. Gary and Rowan are at the Cookie Kick Off tonight, for the big rally to start the local Girl Scout Cookie sale. Her troop is trying to sell enough to finance a troop to a campout at Six Flags, which just thrills her (I'm jealous *I* can't go, but the timing doesn't work out for me to chaperone, and part of my putting her in a separate troop was to allow her time to be just one of the crazy girls, not be the leader's daughter). Of course, we already have to pay half of the cost this month and are warned that even if they don't' sell enough, they'll still go, they'll just need to hand in more money. Rowan loves her leader and I'm pleased with her as well, but it's amazing how completely different two troops can be, that's for sure! I think lots of people think all GS troops work the same, but really, nothing could be further from the truth (hah, I just typo'd that as "trooth" - troop truth). GS has so many different things girls can do at each level, and basically no requirements for any of them, it's amazing how different they can be. (At the same time, it's also amazing how many things are done "because we've always done it this way" even if the troops one town over do it a different way.) Anyhow, Gary must be ready to run, the event is held in a local Mall, which ends up wall-to-wall with Girl Scouts and their leaders and parents, and even though men can be Girl Scouts (and Gary is one!), let's just say the female:male ratio is pretty skewed toward the females. We've all gone in the past, but he's just ditched Rowan and me and browsed stores - can't do that this year! (It's a long convoluted story why I'm not there as well, but I'm rather enjoying it ;-)) We had a nice, reasonably quiet, xmas. Rowan's main gift was a pair of guinea pig brothers. Even Gary has become smitten with them (I'd be a little more fond of them had one of them not emptied his bladder TWICE on me this week). She's finding that the responsibility of caring for a pet isn't always convenient, but so far, it's still met with enthusiasm. We got them with me well aware I might at times have to step in and assume care of the piggies, but the intent is for Rowan to do almost all of their care. She still needs reminders, but we'll see how that comes along as she gets used to the routine. She still wants a dog (ha!), though, so she's trying to prove she can take care of a living creature, I think. Not that that will help her plea for a dog, but I'll use what I get! We went to First Night in Worcester (second oldest First Night in the country, yet again, Worcester is second to Boston, but boy are we excited about being second. It's a strange, strange town. Second strangest, no doubt. ;-)). This was one of the most packed First Night's I've attended. Of course, it also was one of the few that wasn't either raining, sleeting, or about 89 degrees below zero. It was the first year I really had a hard time because I wanted to see several things at the same time, and really wanted to see several of the "after the kids leave" performances (they do a 7pm fireworks show for the kiddies, then it becomes more of an adult affair, though there are certainly lots of kids and families around. But since Rowan normally goes to bed at 7:30, and when the fireworks went off we hadn't had dinner yet, it wasn't to be). We ended up spending our entire time in the Art Museum, which totally whetted Gary's appetite to view the art (it's not as if we'd never been in there before, but all of the sudden he was interested in it, go figure). We saw Ballet, made crafts, saw a sword fight, then headed out for the fireworks. The downside of Worcester's first night (besides not being able to say it's the first... and being misnamed, because am I the only person who goes utterly insane each year complaining that it's actually the LAST NIGHT of the year?! The thing ends at midnight, so you can't even use the little slab of the first "night" [morning, people, that's what the AM means!] to count. Who the heck named this thing? Oh, right, Boston. Damn those attention grabbing misnoming first comers!). Er, wait, where was I? Oh, right, the downside is that everything is spread out pretty far, and the events are scheduled to start on the hour, and usually end with not enough time to get from some venues to others. They do have a shuttle, but it takes this most ridiculous long route around everything so you could well be on it for half of the time you wanted to be at the next event. Maybe when the new Courthouse opens they'll be able to use it for a venue. That could bring a lot of events to one building with a bunch of rooms, and the Art Museum isn't too far. There's really no reason to have anything in City Hall (besides it being free, I'm sure); it's an old crowded building that is pretty darn uninviting (despite the spiffy new windows). The other thing that always confused me is that there's nothing outside during the event besides the fireworks (and bowling in a tunnel, we've never seen this oddity up close, though). There were a couple of street vendors, but really, if we can brave the outside for the annual tree lighting (a new event started last year, done again this year, so it must be annual!) in early December, why can't we at First(LAST) Night? Street performers, music outside, ... well, anyhow, I wish there were more things outside, because it would make the whole thing seem more alive when it's cold out (when people are only seen outside rushing from site to site), and give more options for those who don't want to run from one site to another to enjoy while they proceed at a more leisurely pace. Here's an embarrassing flashback: I "attended" First Night 1989 (Last night 1988) briefly while waiting for... oh, the shame... a New Kids on the Block concert. I was almost 15, and it was the first time I'd been out without the family on New Year's, so I felt all grown up. Until I got downtown and everything looked deserted because everyone was already in buildings and I had no clue what the schedule of events was, so I just wandered the street feeling sad and lonely. Wow, that's downright pathetic. I don't even remember if I ended up going to an event or just headed over to the concert really early or what. I actually don't remember going TO the concert, though I remember a few parts of it. Gah, even then, I was so over the NKOTB, but I'd agreed to go with my "best friend" when the person she was going to go with ended up not being allowed to go and she was stuck with the extra ticket (and having to pay for it). Then *she* ended up canceling for some reason at the last minute. Hrmph. And the concert was just... loud. Painfully, painfully loud. So, anyhow, here's Rowan showing off her career aspirations: (Go, click on the picture, go read the story underneath it, it's priceless. She's priceless. And darn expensive!)