Get your charity donations in before Thursday if you itemize on your taxes for it to count against 2008 income.
Go to www.charitynavigator.org to check out the financials of any one that you are interested in. (yes, piss-poor grammar - so shoot me).
As for me, I support:
1. Women's rights, so I contribute to Women for Women International
2. Education, so we send $$ to our alma mater (DH and I went to the same school)
3. The local food bank will get some cash, but they also get some of my weekends.
4. Goodwill gets my kids' outgrown stuff
5. DD wants to contribute to the local Humane Society as well. I'll match her contribution to help teach her about giving.
6. The local PBS station (love the Red-Green show!)
Charities have been hit hard with the Wall Street nuclear bomb. Please, remember someone!
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Thursday, December 25, 2008
Merry Christmas!
DD woke up at 4:17 am (why, oh why am I cursed with kids who wake up early?).
Presents unwrapped before 7 am. Kids loved the gifts. DS is wearing his new Star Wars sweatshirt. DD still has yet to beat me at Othello...I may have a few years of experience on her playing it. ;)
Christmas dinner was in the oven by 7:30 am: made the pie first (blueberry, and of COURSE a homemade crust!), prime rib roast was in the oven by 8, green bean casserole (not the usual one, this one is cheesy and spicy) started in the crockpot at 9, and the potatoes were being boiled at 11. This year, I did NOT overcook the prime rib - got it out when it was 135 degrees (missed last year, it ended up being medium-well. pooey)
Dinner is now finished, bellies are full. Second glass of wine being consumed. Pie is waiting for the bellies to empty somewhat. Whipping cream is in the fridge, awaiting its time to shine.
Best present: news that a partner has agreed to terms and the contract is in the mail to her. She can start in March. Woo Hoo! I can last 2 more months of near continuous call - I'm paying another doc in town to take a few days/month...I have to get away from the hospital. I even have 4 consecutive days off starting today!
Life is looking up...
Presents unwrapped before 7 am. Kids loved the gifts. DS is wearing his new Star Wars sweatshirt. DD still has yet to beat me at Othello...I may have a few years of experience on her playing it. ;)
Christmas dinner was in the oven by 7:30 am: made the pie first (blueberry, and of COURSE a homemade crust!), prime rib roast was in the oven by 8, green bean casserole (not the usual one, this one is cheesy and spicy) started in the crockpot at 9, and the potatoes were being boiled at 11. This year, I did NOT overcook the prime rib - got it out when it was 135 degrees (missed last year, it ended up being medium-well. pooey)
Dinner is now finished, bellies are full. Second glass of wine being consumed. Pie is waiting for the bellies to empty somewhat. Whipping cream is in the fridge, awaiting its time to shine.
Best present: news that a partner has agreed to terms and the contract is in the mail to her. She can start in March. Woo Hoo! I can last 2 more months of near continuous call - I'm paying another doc in town to take a few days/month...I have to get away from the hospital. I even have 4 consecutive days off starting today!
Life is looking up...
Monday, December 22, 2008
Baby, It's Cold Out
That was the headline of the local newspaper on the day I was born. February in Michigan tends to be like that.
Sure fits today, though. We're hovering around 0 degrees here, freezing our toukas off. At least we haven't lost power. My office lost power on Friday, so we canceled the afternoon.
I'm hunkering down at home, drinking coffee and trying to get motivated to wrap presents. Today is normally a surgery day for me, but no one wants surgery this week - although I operated every single day last week. This day is a gift of free time, which is a rarity for me. Next week, I have a ton of surgeries before the new year - December is always a busy month for the OR, people want to have surgery before they have to meet the deductible again. January is always a slow surgery month. Because of that, I usually try to get a vacation then.
Not looking forward to driving to Michigan later in the week.
I hate winter. Why did I stay in a fly-over state, when I could have moved into the south? I hate cold, I hate snow, I hate ice.
Sure fits today, though. We're hovering around 0 degrees here, freezing our toukas off. At least we haven't lost power. My office lost power on Friday, so we canceled the afternoon.
I'm hunkering down at home, drinking coffee and trying to get motivated to wrap presents. Today is normally a surgery day for me, but no one wants surgery this week - although I operated every single day last week. This day is a gift of free time, which is a rarity for me. Next week, I have a ton of surgeries before the new year - December is always a busy month for the OR, people want to have surgery before they have to meet the deductible again. January is always a slow surgery month. Because of that, I usually try to get a vacation then.
Not looking forward to driving to Michigan later in the week.
I hate winter. Why did I stay in a fly-over state, when I could have moved into the south? I hate cold, I hate snow, I hate ice.
Thursday, December 11, 2008
12-11
Today would have been my dad's 60th birthday. He died a little over 3 years ago from stage 4 lung cancer (quote of the disease -"I went to the ER thinking I had pneumonia, left it with cancer!"). Cancer is a shitty way to die, BTW. I know, I've seen it both professionally and personally.
So I'm feeling a little philosophical today. I did some Christmas cards today - looking through my address book (the old-fashioned kind, where names are crossed out). I'm basically the matriarch now in my dad's family - I'm the oldest cousin not in jail. All of my grandparents are dead, my dad and his only sister are dead. There isn't much for me to go to in terms of the older generations.
My mom is still alive. Not healthy, but still alive. She's an only child. Two of her aunts/uncles are alive, albeit in the end stage of Alzheimer's. I doubt if they remember much at all. Many of the adults in my life as a child are now just memories. I look through my wedding album and many of the folks there are gone. Aunts, uncles, adult family friends. Gone.
Egads, I should have another glass of wine. I'm getting too depressing for myself!
So I'm feeling a little philosophical today. I did some Christmas cards today - looking through my address book (the old-fashioned kind, where names are crossed out). I'm basically the matriarch now in my dad's family - I'm the oldest cousin not in jail. All of my grandparents are dead, my dad and his only sister are dead. There isn't much for me to go to in terms of the older generations.
My mom is still alive. Not healthy, but still alive. She's an only child. Two of her aunts/uncles are alive, albeit in the end stage of Alzheimer's. I doubt if they remember much at all. Many of the adults in my life as a child are now just memories. I look through my wedding album and many of the folks there are gone. Aunts, uncles, adult family friends. Gone.
Egads, I should have another glass of wine. I'm getting too depressing for myself!
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Traveling and other stuff
1. Knee braces set off the security alarms in airports.
2. I did not put my liquids in a bag...and didn't get stopped either coming or going (all I had was toothpaste - no make-up, shampoo or anything like that).
3. Why is it that when I land, I'm at the far end of concourse A and my connecting flight is at the far end of concourse D? Every single time.
4. Having my cell phone turned OFF is a beautiful thing.
5. ABOG uses a very nice hotel. We definitely paid for it.
6. Guiness is a very good thing after taking the orals.
7. There is no better bed than your own.
8. Kids love the cheesy T-shirts that you can buy in airports.
9. Two days of no email is a very long time.
10. I'm so glad to be home.
2. I did not put my liquids in a bag...and didn't get stopped either coming or going (all I had was toothpaste - no make-up, shampoo or anything like that).
3. Why is it that when I land, I'm at the far end of concourse A and my connecting flight is at the far end of concourse D? Every single time.
4. Having my cell phone turned OFF is a beautiful thing.
5. ABOG uses a very nice hotel. We definitely paid for it.
6. Guiness is a very good thing after taking the orals.
7. There is no better bed than your own.
8. Kids love the cheesy T-shirts that you can buy in airports.
9. Two days of no email is a very long time.
10. I'm so glad to be home.
Monday, December 8, 2008
Sunday, December 7, 2008
Causing trouble
Sometimes, you just need to know who to contact. I had a patient the other day that I was very distinctly unhappy about her treatment from another doctor. I was talking to the nurse-manager of L&D, who encouraged me to email that doc's boss.
So I did. And I spontaneously decided to cc the higher-ups in admin. The next day, I was rounding on L&D. The nurse-manager came up to me and said with a smirk "Look at the hornet's nest you stirred up!"
Amazing what the cc line of email can do.
So I did. And I spontaneously decided to cc the higher-ups in admin. The next day, I was rounding on L&D. The nurse-manager came up to me and said with a smirk "Look at the hornet's nest you stirred up!"
Amazing what the cc line of email can do.
Monday, December 1, 2008
Is your mouth watering...
This is just a few of the 48 dozen cookies made last weekend during a cookie baking marathon.
Yum!
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