7 Quick Takes, vol. 92

1. Welcome back, Carpal Tunnel (not). I first developed tendinitis and carpal tunnel my sophomore year of college, when I was preparing for MTNA’s young artist competition. Some experiences are so formative that you don’t even reflect on all the changes that occurred because of them. I’ll just focus on one—the relationship that my hand issues facilitated with a massage therapist here in town. Coming early as it did in my “career,” it really opened my eyes to the idea that sometimes, the doctor is NOT the right person to call when you need help. Maybe sometime I’ll talk about massage, because that word conjures the wrong image. For now, it means I’m doing lots of extra stretches and wearing Ace bandages to bed, and praying it doesn’t become debilitating.

2. This weekend is my parents’ 40^th anniversary. Happy anniversary, Mom & Dad! My sisters and I are planning a party, and as I am the closest one to home, I’m also housing guests this weekend. It’s so fun to be able to host cousins I’ve been close to since we were Alex’s age! Yay, Chrissy & Laura!

3. I grew up with a last name beginning with “S.” In twelve years of school I developed a healthy resentment for alphabetical order—enough that I vowed I would marry someone with a name at the top of the alphabet. Well, I did it! Only as I walked down the aisle feeling self-satisfied, I didn’t realize that alphabetical order no longer has any impact once you’re out of school. (Sigh.)

But…that’s not exactly true.

4. Last night was Kindergarten registration. Being the mamarazzi that I am, I grabbed our new camera (not the SLR I’ve been dreaming of, but a good, cheap one to hold us till we can save the $$) on the way out the door. I don’t know what I was expecting, but anyone who’s registered a child for school is probably laughing at me right now.

5. It…was…NUTS. We had a new parent meeting in the cafeteria, during which my little ones went exploring and flirting and my kindergartener showed himself to be apparently incapable of sitting still. (Not a good sign!) Thank Heavens, they began in alphabetical order, and we were the third family to get called to head over to the registration area. Thank Heavens, because by the time we left, the place was an absolute madhouse. And now I can say: Whew! I am so glad I’m at the top of the alphabet!!!

6. I could go into more detail (the camera never even made it out of the bag), but maybe I’ll save that for a motherhood moment and go with two quick & easy “best of”’s instead: The best serious post of the week, where Jen talks about the meaning of life, and how different it looks from the way we imagine. The word “tired” leapt off the screen on a morning when I had laid in bed for an extra half hour, thinking it couldn’t possibly be time to get up yet. And when I started reading, it was like she had written it for me.

7. And a weekly funny to wrap it up with…the best commercial I saw this week. HA!