Barking Mad

Big Day at St. Joseph's for Meg

This morning we head down to Standish for Meg's admissions and guidance interviews at St. Joseph's College of Maine, her first choice school.  She's pretty nervous but very excited at the same time.

It's not been the easiest road getting her to this point.  There have been several hiccups with her high school getting St. Joe's the correct paperwork in the manner and time frame they were supposed to.  It took me most of yesterday morning, speaking with people at both her high school and St. Joe's to get it all straightened out and make sure they had everything they needed. Hopefully as of 4:30PM yesterday, we think everything is as it should be.  *fingers crossed*   

Meg's guidance counselor at her high school seems to think she has a great shot at getting in.  That's really a good thing to hear.  Meg is not putting all her eggs in one basket though, so to speak.  She is keeping her options open and really likes The University of Maine up in Orono  a lot, so we have that as well as two other schools to consider should things not go her way at St. Joe's.  The only downside to St. Joe's is the enormous cost.  It is right up there with  other private colleges and universities and is pretty expensive.   But we're hoping we hear back about some of the scholarships she has applied for, as well as grants and other aid.

I think Meg's BFF is going to St. Joe's as well...and this is after applying to Harvard, and Bowdoin too.   I think Harvard was a little out of the way for Katie being that Anthony is stationed here in Brunswick, but like with Meg, there is always post-grad. Although Meg isn't quite ready, as an undergrad, for something like Harvard.  But I firmly believe that with enough hard work and dedication she can go anywhere....including Harvard!   I think post-grad is a given for Katie as she's going into the medical field and will be taking all pre-med classes in her undergraduate studies.  Meg herself is busy trying to decide between pursuing her BS in Nursing or working towards a Business and Marketing degree.  Whatever she decides she's going to do wonderfully and have a brilliant career ahead of her.

Good luck Meg...my beautiful, intelligent and amazingly funny girl!  You will knock their socks off today! 

Enough With the Spiders Already

It's a good thing we immigrated back to the U.S. when we did, otherwise I might be spending this Mother's Day (it's this coming Sunday in the U.K) dealing with this.

Creepy Mothers' Day Plants Culled

  Updated:09:49, Wednesday February 27, 2008

Thousands of Mothers' Day flowers have been destroyed after florists discovered they were infested by spiders.

A trademark creepy crawler

The bunches of roses and carnations were about to be prepared for Sunday's big day when shocked shop assistants realised they were crawling with spiders and infested with eggs.

A waste disposal firm was called in to take the blighted blooms away.

"When the van driver arrived at our waste depot to with the flowers, he looked terrified," said Biffa waste firm manager David Graham.

He said: "I've never seen a driver so keen to unload. We employ some big burly fellas but none of them were keen to go near this consignment.

"The blooms were absolutely crawling with the creepy things."

Experts say the spiders were common British house spiders and were completely harmless but still not the sort of surprise mums would have expected on Mothers' Day.

The florists, based in Birmingham, wanted to remain anonymous but have reassured mums that all the affected flowers had now been destroyed.

"It would have been a nightmare if mums had received the flowers on Mothers' Day, but thankfully that's now been averted," said a spokesman.

http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,91059-1307078,00.html

I can't even begin to imagine the kind of freak out the hubby would be dealing with had he brought me home a dozen creepy, crawlie, spider-infested roses.  He'd probably have to call 999 (the UK's equivalent of 911) and insist they bring a defibrilator along, because I'm telling you, that would be the end.  I'd lose it, totally and completely.  Brings to mind the following image:

(click to enlarge)

Ewwwwwwww - Let Me Count the Ways!

Post Secret , have you been out there and checked out the postcards?  If not, you MUST go.  Oh, well, those who belong to the Potty Mouth Police  probably should avoid the site at all costs lest it offend your delicate sensibilities.

This morning I was laying bed with the laptop (that sounds sorta kinky, but I didn't mean it that way...my tailbone is KILLING ME as is the associated pain, and it's just more comfortable to lay down sometimes that deal with the pain in the ass that is my tailbone...plus The Little Imp is busily wiling away the day at Montesorri today) and decided to waste more valuable time...time that I could have spent cleaning my toilets with a toothbrush, ironing the hubby's socks, or even *gasp* doing something constructive.  But alas, I decided to lollygag on the interwebs and went out to Post Secret .

For those of you that don't know what Post Secret   is, well, you write your secret on a post card and send it, ANNONYMOUSLY to the good folks at Post Secret  and they will obligingly scan it in and post it on their page for the ENTIRE FRIGGIN WORLD to see.  Awesome stuff.

I hadn't been out there in ages.  To be honest, some of the stuff can be a tad disturbing .  This morning though, not only did I find something utterly disturbing, but it made my skin crawl.  Ya'll know how I hate spiders, right?  Let me reiterate that....I FREAKING HATE HATE SPIDERS!  I don't care that they eat flies and other insects.  I'll buy No Pest Strips and Venus Fly Trap plants, or better yet I'll let The Little Imp have a fly swatter and let her spend her summers swatting flies...but I DO NOT LIKE SPIDERS.

I do not like them in my house. 

I do not like them on a mouse.

I do not like them in my car.

I do not like them in a bar.

But perhaps I might like them trapped inside an airtight jar!

Ok enough with the Dr. Seussness.  Back to what I was saying.

So, I'm trapsing around Post Secret and come across THIS!!!!

(click to enlarge)

What the crap?!?!?!?!