News!!!

Finally, after a couple of weeks that seemed like forever, we have news!! Today I opened yesterday’s mail (I have to get better about that) and we had a letter from the National Visa Center. The letter was dated August 26th and said that our case was forwarded to the U.S. Embassy in Seoul, South Korea.

If I have my timelines down, this means we could be getting a call as soon as Tuesday – and most likely by the second week of September. If the call comes Tuesday I’m not sure we’ll be able to catch a plane by next weekend… It depends on flight schedules…. and human schedules… but we will sure try!!  

Of course, as we expected, this is timed perfectly with the baby shower that so many of you are joining us for next Saturday. Assuming we get the travel call on Tuesday, and assuming we are able to get flights out and hotels reserved next week (that’s a lot of assumptions), then we will try to fly out on Saturday evening so we can go ahead with the shower as planned. I’m really looking forward to seeing you all at the shower, so we’ll definitely do our best to work around it!

We are super, crazy excited!!! We’ll be running around this weekend trying to prepare as much as we can for Jaden’s arrival… it is highly likely that we won’t have the crib in time, but the company that we ordered it from (USA Baby) was kind enough to offer us a loaner crib until ours comes in. We’ll call them this weekend to see about picking it up sometime next week so that we can at least have the nursery set up. 

The rest of our weekend we will spend baby-proofing the house (lots and lots of window shade cords to take care of), and I’ll be preparing as many of my lectures that I can in advance so that I don’t have to worry about that while we are on our trip. We’re also hoping to go to the state fair in our town tomorrow. I have never been to a state fair before. It’s hard for me to believe there really is such a thing; I’ve only seen them in the movies so I keep wondering if we’ll get there and hear “SOOooiee!” I’ll keep all yooz New Yawka’s posted. LOL

Hopefully I’ll have more to report on Tuesday  — Have a wonderful Labor Day weekend!

The Class of 2012

Since today is my last weekday of ‘freedom’ before classes begin I thought it appropriate to talk about the class of 2012. This is the first time *ever* that I will be teaching freshman. I have been given the charge of teaching a “Freshman Year Experience” course for freshman that think they might want to enter the business field; some of which think they are interested in finance. Let’s hope I don’t scare them.

In preparation for teaching freshman for the first time I was led to the Beloit College Mindset List for the class of 2012. They have been putting this list together for the past 10 or so years to give professors a better idea of the frame of reference from which the entering freshman are viewing their first year at college. I find most of the list interesting, and some of it surprising. I’ll summarize a few of the points made about the class of 2012 (for those who are interested in the entire list, I include a link at the bottom of this post).

The list begins with an idea of what the newspaper headlines were focusing on at the time the students entering with the class of 2012 were born:

“Rising fuel costs were causing airlines to cut staff and flight schedules; Big Three car companies were facing declining sales and profits, and a president named Bush was increasing the number of troops in the Middle East in hopes of securing peace.”

Sound familiar? If these students picked up one of those birthday cards detailing ‘the year you were born,’ they’d probably think they were in the Twilight Zone. Then again, they may not even know what the Twilight Zone refers to.

Here’s more from the list:

“Students entering college for the first time this fall were generally born in 1990… For these students…

Harry Potter could be a classmate, playing on their Quiddich team…

GPS satellite navigation systems have always been available…

Shampoo and conditioner have always been available in the same bottle…

Gas stations have never fixed flats, but most serve cappucino…

IBM has never made typewriters…

They have never been able to color a tree using a raw umber Crayola…

The Tonight Show has always been hosted by Jay Leno…

Caller ID has always been available…

The Hubble Space Telescope has always been eavesdropping on the heavens…

98.6 F or otherwise has always been confirmed in the ear…”

For the entire list, click here.

The gas station happens to be my personal favorite. What’s yours?

Two posts in one day – can you believe it?

LOL. Actually this will be a quick post. No news, unfortunately. I just happened upon a website with some gorgeous pictures of South Korea, the temples, dragonflies, flowers, parades – you name it, it is probably here. I put the link on the right toolbar listed under South Korea as (South Korea photography), but here it is if you want to peruse some of what is there now: http://www.pbase.com/dbh

Enjoy!!

Hello… who is it??????

Greetings everyone. I am on day – - oh, heck, I have no idea – - I lost count. I just know that if the phone keeps ringing and it’s not the agency telling us that we can travel as soon as we can pack, get plane tickets, and get to the airport to head on our way to Korea…. I’m going to end up having heart failure. I have never, ever spent so much time staring at caller-id before in my life. 

So I took another look today at the I171H approval and it seems that CIS received the I600 on July 22nd, but didn’t approve it until August 7th. Somehow I had myself believing that it was approved on July 22nd (wishful thinking!) – so my calculations are slightly off. That means that this Thursday will be 3 weeks since the approval, and according to the agency if we fit into the ‘average’ category we will have another week or two before we get “the call,” affectionately known as “TC” on the Korea adoption boards. 

I was sincerely (and selfishly) hoping that it would work out that we could go the first week of classes. This is possibly why I convinced myself our approval date was 2 weeks earlier. It would be so much simpler for me to go that week for a number of reasons, one of which is that there is not one college student in this universe that actually pays attention to anything a professor says on the first day of class. They are too busy figuring out which class is next, where the class is being held, how to get to the building, picking up the syllabus, making a judgement call as to whether this class seems like too much work to add to an already overwhelming schedule, determining which professors they like the best, dropping those they don’t like and adding those that they do like, changing their schedules around to match with their work schedules…. etc, etc. etc. So it’s pretty much a “Hi Professor, nice to meet you, give me the %@$! syllabus, and I’ll see ya next week!” 

In short, the first week of class isn’t a horrible one to miss, if you have to miss any. After that it gets stickier, and it screws up the entire schedule that you spent so much time putting into the syllabus in the first place. All the left-brained students hate it when the schedule gets messed up, so we try not to change the schedule at all, if possible. (All the right-brained students never realized there was a schedule in the first place, so they are usually okay.) 

The other reasons are also selfish, so maybe I should shut up – (but I can’t…  bloggers plight) – for instance, Neville is stuck going away for a week if we are not heading to Korea soon – and it’s not something that is really fitting well into our lives right now for a number of big reasons. Alas, we will manage, as we always do, but it really begs the question as to whether or not there are some things in our lives that we need to give serious reconsideration to, especially with our precious one so close to being home (yes, this is purposefully nebulous – sorry to those who have no idea what I’m talking about. If you PM me I’ll fill you in on all the gory details).

So I see I just went off on tangent number three  - odd numbers are considered lucky in Korea so three tangents seems like a good place to stop….

I wonder if anyone else is jumping out of their skin every time their phone rings this week?

10 more days

Recently my brother-in-law was talking about how hard it is to go back to work after being off for two weeks. I feel his pain. Possibly ten times over. I haven’t taught since May 5th, when I had my last class. So I have been ‘off’ nearly 12 weeks, if you don’t count doing research (which most people don’t).

If I did not own a calendar, the knot in my stomach would tell me that I have little time left before classes begin again.  The nightmares have started.  I dream that I wake up to suddenly realize that classes start TODAY and I haven’t even completed a syllabus, no less a lesson plan for the first class. 

Generally I am prepared for classes. Neville tells me that I prepare too much. It’s not like I haven’t heard it before.  It has been the general consensus of my colleagues as well. No matter how many times I’m told that I’m doing too much, and no matter how hard I try to just do whatever is necessary to get by, I just never feel prepared enough. I tend to spend every waking minute doing ‘just one more thing’ for my classes. (Come to think of it, that’s pretty much how I run my entire life.)

This is the fate of a professor who cares too much. I care whether or not my students enjoy class and whether or not they learn something. I care whether or not they like the textbook, and how much they have to pay for it. I care whether or not they stay awake during class and whether or not they study at home. I care whether or not they do well on exams. I feel responsible, to a certain extent, for how well they perform in the class. Of course, I do realize that they have to put in the effort as well (I’m not stupid — just caring), but that is my only relief in the entire caring nightmare of my chosen career.

This has created a conflict for me: It was very difficult for me to balance my teaching duties with my dissertation research and writing. I wanted to be prepared for my classes, and preparing for class is what I default to if there’s no ‘plan.’ So I had to be careful to make a weekly schedule with enough time set aside for the dissertation, or I’d wake up on Sunday to find the week gone without a word written in my research. 

This conflict created tremendous anxiety. The guilt over spending more time than needed in one area while not getting to another area eats away at me. It is the source of my nightmares. It is a good part of the reason my stomach aches the week before classes start. 

By now you’re saying “But Luna, you’ve finished your Ph.D. – the dissertation is no longer a factor,” and you are correct. That anxiety has given way… the dissertation is finito. Yet there is a new factor now. A wonderful, amazing, lovable, anxiously anticipated factor — Jaden.

For the first time in my life I can understand why people don’t want to work. I want to stay home and spend every minute that I can with him. I don’t want to have to leave him to go teach classes. I don’t want to have to prep for teaching and go to meetings and hold office hours. I want to enjoy every waking moment with my son when he comes home. Alas, I can’t. So the anxiety is here to stay.

I seem to consistently operate at a high level of anxiety. Maybe it is just my destiny… persistent high anxiety…. or maybe, just maybe, the real estate market will turn around and our situation will change. Until then, we remain unwilling land barons, and I face the start of the semester. The happy ending to this story is that I face it with a gigantic smile on my face, knowing Jaden will be home very, very soon.

A short article about a Korean adoptee: IMO worth reading

There is a terrific article at this link:

http://www.rainbowkids.com/ArticleDetails.aspx?id=602 

It is an article written by a Korean adoptee about her experience meeting birthmothers in Korea when she traveled there as an adult. Hopefully by the time you are reading this the link will still be active (you never know with these things…). The article at the above link was reprinted from Chicken Soup for the Adopted Soul, which I didn’t even know existed until now.

No news is good news…?

As of today we haven’t heard anything more than the last update I posted. I was hoping for some information this week but it didn’t happen. I am thankful that we are fortunate to at least know that there is a light at the end of the tunnel and we expect to be traveling within the next 2-4 weeks. That is a lot more than some of my friends can say, as they are still caught up in the difficulties being faced by the parents waiting to adopt from Vietnam. I think of them every day.

This weekend my parents held a gathering with a few cousins since it has been many years since we were all able to get together. I wasn’t able to make it to the last one (long story for another day) so it was really terrific to be able to be there and spend time with everyone. Some I hadn’t seen in ages. We had such a beautiful day and it was a lot of fun. All of my cousin’s little ones are so adorable. I don’t think I have laughed that much in ages. The things kids will say and do….

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Five simple things you can do…

Now it isn’t like I have nothing else to do, but once we started the process to adopt, I started to think more about the future – what is the world going to be like when our son grows up? Will global warming be irreversible? Are the climates going to change so drastically that everything about the way we live will need to adapt? Is the earth doomed before our children even get to college?  

So I’ve been thinking, what little things can we do to improve our environment for our children, and their children, and so on? There has to be any number of steps we can take that are simple, easy, and inexpensive. Any ideas? Here’s a few that I came up with:

Five simple things you can do to save the environment and improve the size of your wallet:

1. Save water: Turn the faucet off while you’re brushing your teeth. If your faucet delivers 2-4 gallons of water per minute, and you brush your teeth for the recommended 2 minutes at least 2 times each day that amounts to (2×2x2=) 8 gallons of water to (4×2x2=) 16 gallons of water down the drain. In only two minutes!
2. Save a tree: Use fabric napkins instead of paper napkins. We stopped using paper napkins a couple of months ago, and I don’t miss it. Actually, I prefer it this way. I never have to turn to paper towels because I’ve run out of napkins. We have a dozen really inexpensive fabric napkins for ourselves, and then another bunch (of nicer ones) that we use for company. We just throw the napkins in with the towels when we do laundry. Easy as pie. Not only is it good for the environment, but it saves on the grocery bill too.
3. Save a tree: Cut back on paper towel use. Take all those old cotton t-shirts, sheets, and anything else lying around that isn’t needed anymore and cut them into conveniently sized rags. Leave a stack of them in the kitchen and each bathroom. When there’s a spill, sop it up with a rag and throw the rag in the laundry with the towels. On the rare occasion there’s a really gross mess to deal with, you can use the crummiest of the rags to clean it up and then toss it when you’re done. Now you can get rid of that annoying paper towel holder that just takes up space on the countertop.
4. Reduce energy consumption: Only do full loads of laundry. This will be easier now that you have all those rags to wash. One full load of laundry uses less energy than two smaller loads of laundry.
5: Reduce energy consumption: Unplug appliances, computers, and TV’s when not in use. According to The Green Book this accounts for 10 percent of energy use in the home. 10 percent!! Compute approximately one-tenth of your monthly utility bill and that’s what it is costing you to have these things plugged in. The easiest way to accomplish task when you have a number of electronics in one general area (DVD, TV, VCR, etc.) is to put them all on a master switch (a wall switch or one of those power strips) so you only have to hit one button to turn everything off. Remember to unplug the toaster oven and coffee pot when they are not in use. Your utility bill will thank you. 

Anything we can do, no matter how small, will start to turn things in the right direction in the aggregate. The more people that choose to do one more thing to help, the greater the overall effect will be. 

I’m sure there’s many more ideas out there. Any suggestions? Feel free to comment!

Organic Cleaning Part 1: Vinegar the great

As promised yesterday, I’ll try to post a few of the more organic solutions I’ve been using around the home to clean with. I started out by naming this blog ‘Organic Cleaning.’ Then I realized I was writing so much about vinegar that I’d probably have to do more than one blog on this topic! So here we are with Organic Cleaning Part I: Vinegar.

Vinegar is one of my favorite all-purpose, around-the-house and outside staples now. I either use straight vinegar or a solution of 50/50 vinegar and water. I have it stored in spray bottles at my kitchen sink and in every bathroom. Vinegar is also a disinfectant. Click here to get more information on using vinegar as a disinfectant.

I’ll list some of the more common things I use vinegar for (as well as caveats) here…

I spray my shower lightly with the 50/50 solution after I shower to prevent soap scum and mineral build-up, making cleaning a breeze. When I clean the shower, I use baking soda and vinegar. I either sprinkle some baking soda on the tub and then wipe it down with a washcloth soaked in vinegar, or I spray it down with vinegar, then sprinkle baking soda and use a damp rag to wipe it down. Works wonderfully. 

Vinegar acts as a disinfectant. Before I eat vegetables or fruits with edible skins, I wash them off and then hit them with the straight vinegar.

I add a 1/2 cup to the rinse cycle of my laundry to keep whites staying whiter. I accomplish this by putting the vinegar in the fabric softener receptacle in my washing machine. Vinegar also acts as a fabric softener, so I eliminated dryer sheets from the drying cycle. It is important to make sure you don’t over-dry clothes. Over-drying is part of what creates static cling, especially when lycra, nylon, or polyester are present. 

Vinegar is great at removing mold and mildew. I had some green growing on my deck where the sun can’t reach it so I sprayed with vinegar, waited a few moments, then wiped it up with a towel. It hasn’t grown back.

Vinegar can be used as a weed-killer instead of the nasty chemicals they sell in the stores. It’s safer for our environment too. ) I just spray straight vinegar on the weeds and wait a few days – voila. When doing this I have to be careful not to spray it directly where I’d like to keep the grass or allow my plants to grow – vinegar can affect the pH of soil and make it difficult to grow anything. Driveways, walkways, etc. are the types of places to use this as a weed killer.

I use vinegar instead of glass cleaner on mirrors, windows, glass, etc. It is a great glass cleaner. I use straight vinegar but you can also use the 50/50 solutions. If working in a delicate area (e.g. the glass on a picture frame), I spray it on the rag first then wipe. If you try this method and you’ve been using store bought glass cleaners for a while, it may take a couple of vinegar applications before all the residue comes off. Commercial glass cleaners contain some kind of chemical that leaves a waxy residue (I think it might be wax but I can’t remember where I saw that). Once that residue is gone, you’ll have shinier glass and mirrors than ever before.

Things to be aware of:

The vinegar smell dissipates shortly after using it. When spraying in the shower I find it more pleasant to hold my breath while spraying then immediately walk out of the shower. I’ve read that you can infuse the vinegar with natural oils, but I haven’t done this as the smell doesn’t bother me that much, and it really does go away. The less ingredient mixing I have to do, the better.

I use WHITE vinegar only. I buy the regular household strength (5%) solution. I make sure the bottle says the vinegar is “made from grain”, otherwise it may be petroleum based. Heinz sells made from grain white 5% vinegar in giant jugs at places like BJs’ and some supermarkets. These are what I pick up. They last a long time, even with 5 spray bottles hanging around the house.

As mentioned above, if you have been using lots of chemically-based cleaners in your house you may find the first couple of times you use vinegar that there is a film on the things you clean. That will go away eventually.

DO NOT USE VINEGAR on calcium based stone such as marble or granite. They can cause staining (as can any acetic food such as lemons and fruit juices). You can use it to clean the grout between tiles, but make sure it is diluted and rinse thoroughly afterwards otherwise it can start to break down the grout.

There are hundreds of other ideas for uses of vinegar in one of my favorite reference books: “Vinegar: Over 400 Various, Versatile, and Very Good Uses You’ve Probably Never Thought Of” by Vicki Lansky. I highly recommend it. Everything is indexed to make it easier to find. I also recommend “Green Housekeeping”  (also sold as “Organic Housekeeping”) by Ellen Sandbeck. Many of the cleaning tips I use now I found in these two books while I was researching greening up my house. 

I also just happened upon a website located here, that claims to give 1001 uses for vinegar although I have not checked it out thoroughly yet.

Of course I need to add the disclaimer that you have to use these tips at your own risk, because what works for me might not always work for you.

Happy greening!!