I found a new band!

i was skimming through Youtube videos looking for something by Van Morrison when i stumbled upon this cross-referenced band, Quoting Napoleon. i think they're really good, so i'm giving them a mention here.

They formed in March 2006, and are an alternative band from Portland, Oregon. The music is acoustic, driven mainly by the lyrics, but i think the sound is great. They aren't signed to a label, but they have a cd entitled "Rise and Fall". If you're interested, you can give it a listen here:


http://cdbaby.com/cd/quotingnapoleon



In my humble opinion, it is worth the time to go there and listen - this is the first album i've ever bothered to purchase online, it's that good.

If I could choose my own birthday song ...

... this would be it.

I'm 44 today, and it feels really good. For the first time in my life, I am truly satisfied with what and who I am, and what I have in my life. For those of you who know me, you've probably already figured out what this is about. But I'm going to say it here anyway, cos it's my blog and I can.

I have a job I enjoy and most of the time, I am happy to get up and go to work. I have a (relatively) supportive family and friends, and an absolutely wonderful young son. My health is improving after a long time being on rocky ground, and the only thing I have still hanging over my head is simply a matter of time before it's fixed. I've come to terms with my hearing loss. I've adapted to my physical limitations. Isn't that what everybody does every single day, anyway?

Finally, and THE reason that I am able to sustain a positive view of things, is my Mac. On the worst of days, He is there for me, holding me in His arms and soothing me with the reminder that all things pass. On the best days, He's right there to celebrate with me. He is constantly building me up and even when I'm a whiny baby, or an insufferable bitch, I know His love is constant.

I may be 44 and beautifully imperfect, but life doesn't get any better than this, I'm sure. I love You, Mac. Thank You for loving me.

IT'S GRADUATION WEEK.

It's report card day, last day for the kids, third-to-last day for teachers, and then I'm FREEEEEEEEEEEE! *brief jig* Nine weeks from the regrettable necessity of re-entering the work force. ?? weeks from my radiation treatment (still don't have a date for that). And three weeks from our first ever vacation with Mac. Dear, darling Mac ... Oh yeah, I'm excited about that. *smiles and sighs* But that isn't what this post is about.

In September, my little boy will be starting school. Kindergarten. And yesterday, he graduated from Pre-school. I look back and wonder where all the time went between the day i first saw his face and this day. I'm not a big believer in all the extra "graduation ceremonies" we have added to our children's school careers, because I believe that it reduces the importance of the real "graduation". But I am a firm supporter of my child and always will be, so yesterday, there I was, front row, poised with my camera along with all the other "mommies", anxiously awaiting my son's big moment.

What can I say about a graduation ceremony for 4 and 5 year olds? It was mercifully short, with little pomp and even less circumstance. Out of roughly 40 children (no way I was gonna accurately count that many over-excited little bodies), only three dissolved into tears, and only one refused outright to cross the "stage". It was controlled chaos and gave me an even deeper reverence of daycare teachers, along with the firm conviction that they are grossly underpaid, given the importance of their job. I would, a million times over, tackle a classroom full of attitude-ridden teens before I could ever do what they do.

My son and his 9 "Best Friends in the Whole World" received their certificate from their pre-school teacher who, I am convinced, is the best pre-school teacher on the planet. Nothing has convinced me more of the importance of a good daycare system than this woman who has nurtured my son since last spring.

Over the course of the past year, she has worked with them on such things as phonics, reading, math skills, french, science, art, music, appropriate classroom behaviour, American Sign Language and disability awareness, personal safety, as well as constantly reinforcing sharing, taking turns, kindness, manners, dealing with emotions, environmentally conscientiousness, volunteerism and lots more. She has taken them on outings at least once a week, alternating between community outreach and educational activities. Cooking classes, library visits, "reading" to seniors at a local home, planting flowers outside city hall, pottery classes at a local art studio, swimming lessons, ringuette tournaments, dog shows, concerts and plays, they've done it all with Donna. My son has been incredibly happy and secure in her class and it is going to be a very difficult thing to leave behind at the end of the summer







She shook each sticky little hand and then, kneeling, hugged them and spoke softly with a personal message for each child. I found myself getting all teared up, and was a bit embarrassed until I noticed that most of the other parents were blinking back tears, too. There is nothing so touching as witnessing a rite of passage of your child and, regardless of how I felt about a pre-school graduation, I wouldn't have missed it for the world.