songbird's crazy world

Becca and her date: posing in the dress:

I always knew I'd fll in the parking lot at my train station. I just didn't expect it to happen on a bright, sunny morning. that parking lot is a nightmare in the middle of winter. after a storm it's a sheet of ice, more suited to the antics of Michelle Kwan or Scott Hamilton than to the average commuter. I am very, very careful when I walk through that lot in the dead of winter. so what happened today? I parked in the main lot, as usual. The tracks, platform and station house are across the street from the main lot. I stepped off the curb ot cross the street and felt my ankle twist. next thing I knew, I was face down on the asphalt. got up, made sure nothig was broken or bleeding, and continued on to the platform. but I have bruises all over my right side and my knees and wrists hurt -- they took the impact of the fall. what a way to start a weekend.

my daughters' pediatrician sent out a letter last week that he had closed his practice. this came from out of the blue, when we were at his office just six weeks ago there wasn't a hint that he might close up shop. he didn't sell his practice to another doctor, he simply closed his doors and sent a letter to his patients after the fact. he's still a fairly young man, in his 50's, so i have to assume something bad happened... I met this doctor the day Jen was born. he's the only pediatrician my girls ever saw. he's the one who was there on the worst day of my life, when Becca was five months old and had such a bad case of bronchiolitis I thought....well, he kept me calm that day, got me her through it.... my daughters are 18 1/2 and almost 17,the last time we saw him, he said he'd continue to treat them until they graduated from college. guess they have to graduate to an "adult" doctor now. I will miss his kindness and compassion, his calmi...

and I am involved on a very local level....my synagogue's board of trustees. we're the governing body of the synagogue, elected by the congregation. ever hear the maxim "when you have two Jews in a room you have three opinions"? whoever came up with that one must have been sitting in our board room. dear G-d, the arguments that go on there.... I was a t a board meeting tonight. I feel like I've been put through a grinder.

and Jen took another step into the adult world today. Jen's 18th birthday was in November, 3 days AFTER one of the most significant presidential elections in our nation's history. today is the day New York school districts hold elections, we get to vote for our school board officials and our annual school budget. my baby voted today.

(1) Just as I got used ot having Jen away at school, the school year is over, and now I'm readjusting to having her home for the summer. (2) One of Becca's jobs as president of the Spanish club was to give a speech at tonight's induction into the Spanish Honor Society. She had to make that speech in Spanish. (3) Jen had the pleasure of judging this year's tryouts for the high school cheerleading team. Go Colts! (4) I had to make another presentation in synagogue last Saturday, this time for a bat mitzvah. I am actually starting to feel comfortable addressing the congregation from the bima . (5) Becca and I went to a college admission event yesterday and we're going to another one on the 27th. She thinks she knows where she'd like to apply "early decision", though that may change as we get closer to the fall. (6) Tomorrow is the local school board election. It occurred to me tonight that Jen is registered to vote and can actually vote for the ver...

This will be the third year that our school district will hold a Relay for Life. Our first Relay, in 2007, was a huge success. We camped out at the high school all night, raised a huge amount of money for the American Cancer Society. It rained last year, and most Long Island Relays were cancelled. We held ours in the high school gym (it ended at midnight) and raised a ton of money. They lined up the luminaria on the bleachers, spelling out the words "hope" and "cure". (click on photos to enlarge -- some day I'll learn how to resize photos to fit the blog). you can donate in my name here .

and we had a house full of people. 8 adults and 5 kids. the girls and I live with my parents and 2 of my sisters. my other sister and my aunt came out to the house. my sister's best friend Jenn has become my parents' 5th daughter, and her 3 boys have become the grandchildren/nephews/cousins. a house full of people and no major drama or trauma. just talking and laughing and eating. it was a good day.

remember this guy? David Cassidy was my first real teen idol. I mean, I really liked Davy Jones when I watched "The Monkees", and I thought Bobby Sherman was cute. But David....that was true love. I got to see the object of my affection every week on "The Partridge Family". I bought the albums, the book covers, whatever my mom would let me buy. I memorized all the words to all the songs, I'd sing along tothe albums, then go outside and pretend my front porch was a stage... I cried because I never, ever went to a David Cassidy concert. it wasn't until many, many years later that I got to see David in person. David and his brother Sean, along with Petula Clark, were starring in a Broadway musical, "Blood Brothers". (what a remarkable talent David is, how sad that being a teen idol almost ruined everything for him.) what a night it was, finally seeing the man who won my heart so long ago.

I wrote about Becca's upcoming prom experience. didn't realize at the time... last night Jen came home from college for the summer. today she met up with her former boyfriend. he's a year younger than she is, currently a high school senior. guess who's going to prom? yep, Becca and Jen are both going to our school prom, they're even riding in the same limo.

here she is, sitting on my printer! (click on the photo to enlarge)

I can't believe how much fun I had this weekend. My ex and I drove up to Rhode Island Saturday afternoon to pack up Jen's room, and drove home yesterday. Her last exam is tomorrow morning, and she'll be home tomorrow night. We took her out to dinner, to a chain restaurant called Cello's, and we took her out to breakfast to a local place, a hole-in-the-wall called Phil's, which has the best eggs and pancakes in the state. we drove around the neighborhood surrounding her college -- it's farm country, and we saw cows and sheep behind those stone walls and fences. We saw the dorm where she'll be living next September -- upprclassmen have much nicer accomodations than freshmen. and I got to see a lot of father-daugher interaction, the type of thing I didn't really see whn the girls were younger because Drew and I were always so hostile towards each other. Jen and Drew have the same sarcastic sense of humor, watching them bounce zingers off each other wa...

must come home again now that it's may. Drew and I are headed up to the campus this weekend, we drive up tomorrow and come back Sunday. We'll pack up most of Jen's belongings, leave her there with just the bare necessities. Her last exam is Tuesday, and she's coming home as soon as it's over. I cannot believe how quickly her first year of college flew by. More importantly, I cannot believe how much college has changed her. she's focused now, determined to reach her goal. She's poised and confident and capable and oh-so-mature.the other day I simply had to tell her how proud I am of all she's accomplished and all she is becoming. Yes, i am getting a little teary-eyed right now, and "sunrise, sunset" is playing in my head....so cliche, but so true.