Have you ever noticed

how cool certain features of computers are? How you come to rely on them being there? Rely on them so much that you pretty much forget that they are there until they don't work right? (Kind of like breathing?) Really, really cool features, like an "Enter" key? Seriously, how often do you use yours? I bet you don't even realize how much, it is so automatic to expect it to work. I can assure you, I had no idea until mine stopped working this week. Well, if I poke it repeatedly (and with a little bit of extra gusto than usual), it will work, but I am well aware that this is not a very good idea; apparently it will also work if I just push down hard enough on it. I, however, do not normally employ that method of keystrokes when using Miss Kaylee. I bet if the person she was named after was here, she could fix it. Since I really don't expect her to be stopping by for a visit anytime soon, I will be waiting for Hubband to get home next week to take a look. In the meantime, he has suggested I grab one of the keyboards out of his office to use. The keyboard is bigger than the computer, and noisier (no wonder I can hear typing above my head all day long). Plus there really isn't that much room for it on a permanent basis. Right now it is in my lap, but there are several other things that belong there instead. Fortunately, only one of them complains. DTY says we might be able to re-rout the "Shift" key below it to be an "Enter" key, but I am not sure my brain is up to learning a new keyboarding style.

Fortunately, it is able to move on to other topics, mostly for self-preservation.

Sometimes there are artifacts of our childhood that bring back great memories. It is interesting how we often acquire similar ones in our adulthood that become the childhood artifacts for the next generation. I am hoping that the one from my childhood will get to come live at my house someday. DTE has already told me she wants hers.

A little catching up and whirlwind traveling

I feel so behind the last few days. I have been helping put together a big social event at church, which went off well Saturday night. Food, games, intergenerational, two parish event. Stuff like that. Folks had a really good time and it was a lot of fun seeing several different retired folks and other adults being tutored in the fine art of Dance, Dance, Revolution by DTY and folks learning about Guitar Hero (DTE helped with that one). Mr. A had a lot of fun too. I will get a few pictures of that up at some point, but it might not be for a bit.
Mr. A went home Sunday. We thought really seriously about just keeping him here and all, but decided that maybe my brother wouldn't like that so much. That plus the fact that he is supposed to go to the Utah Shakespeare Festival with my mom in a week. Why do I have to keep sending him back? He has decided that walking Simon with his Uncle H is a great thing to do every night and sleeping out in the tent is a very cool thing (I wonder if he wants to come during winter break for the annual winter/snow camping in January?).
DTY and I get on the train by the banks of the Mississippi River Tuesday evening to pop out on the other side in Portland, Oregon, on Thursday morning. So I have a bit over twelve hours to finish this post, get some sleep, and finish up getting ready to leave for two weeks. I am taking Kaylee with me, but won't have connection until Thursday afternoon or Friday. So, you'll just have to wonder about stuff for a few days. ("Right lady, like anybody is really holding their breath until your next post the rest of the time!"). No promises on pictures while I am gallivanting about the West Coast, but I promise you'll get some after I get home.
So, a little more catching up to be done. Last week I took the three children to Greece and Pompeii for the day. It was really fun to see DTE all excited and pointing. I wasn't next to her, but I knew she was bopping her sister's knee and meaning, "I was there!" "I saw that in June!" when she was pointing. Pompeii was fun too, I got to do the "I was there" stuff as well. We had a really great time and all in all, it was a lot of fun.
I am off to sleep, and to see if Miss Sadie will venture outside now that the rain has slacked off. Heaven forbid her feet should have to step in a puddle!

I don't usually name things, but...

I just want to say that I am not the kind of person that names objects in my life. I don't name my car(s), my bike, or any of the appliances in my house. I have named my children and pets (and I did name my dolls and stuffed animals when was little). I have recently had to change this non-naming of inanimate objects in my life with the introduction of "my" own computer, as opposed to a "family shared"computer. (Please note that this computer is used by the whole immediate family, as well as the recent visiting family members, but it is still "my" computer.) I needed this computer to have a name so that it could communicate with the network in the house. Because I am the one in charge of running this machine, I named it "Kaylee" (I will point out to those of you paying attention, I already have a name). This week I got a MP3 player; this is a nice compact device and is an awesome electric pink color. (No, it is NOT an iPod; I am too much of a NPR junkie to bother getting something that would need an extra piece of stuff to make it useful to me.) Because this is such a cool and pretty little device, so closely connected to, and needing to communicate with, Kaylee, I have had to name it as well. Thus I have another named inanimate object in my life; this one goes by the name of "Shiny". (The network in our house has a name too; it goes by a particular class of spaceship.) I don't think this naming of things is going to have to go much further in my life, but I will add that if my next dog is the Newfoundland I have been wanting for over thirty years, don't be surprised if her name is Serenity, or maybe Serenity River.
Yep, you could learn a lot about me from just this post and I could learn a lot about the folks that read my blog based on any comments they might choose to post. If you feel a little lost about these names, it might become a little bit clearer in the next few days. I am going to figure out how to show you all what I got for Mother's day, and tell you why there are now three of them in our house. I am off to see if I have any perfect strawberries left in the refrigerator.