I attend a Zumba class on Tuesday mornings at the Wisconsin Athletic Club in West Allis. It's awesome. Zumba itself is fun, especially if you like to dance (which I do), and especially if you like Latin dance (which I do). I'm not a good dancer by any means, but I do have rhythm, and I just love shaking my booty - literally! But what I like most about this class is the instructor, Karen. She is enthusiastic and energetic, and I can tell that she enjoys teaching. She's encouraging without being condescending or bitchy, which I've found is a rarity for aerobics instructors. She also makes me laugh during class, which naturally makes the class more fun.
As Karen says, "Smile! It burns more calories!"
Monday, April 11, 2011
Summer tease
It is a beautiful day in Milwaukee - temperatures in the 70s and generally sunny. Of course, thunderstorms are predicted for this afternoon and, because of the 20-30 degree temperature swing, there is a possibility of tornadoes. Awesome. But I'll take it, bad weather and all.
I am beyond ready for summer. I am ready to put away the sweaters and sweatshirts and winter jackets, and break out the shorts and flip flops. I am ready for summer fruit and grilling. I am ready for a night at Miller Park (where the Milwaukee Brewers play) with the roof open. I am ready for the ethnic festivals, Summerfest, and the Wisconsin State Fair. I am ready for the best time of year in Milwaukee, the time of year that brings in voluntary visitors because Milwaukee is just that fun in the summer.
No more teasing, warm weather. It's time for you to move north and stay in Milwaukee. Just like me.
Friday, April 8, 2011
It's the hottest fires that make the hardest steel
Do you remember the Super Bowl commercials from this year? I only remember one:
I lived in Michigan for three years, and my years there overlapped with the bankruptcies of Chrysler and GM. I got goosebumps when this commercial directly addressed the critics, the politicians, and the American public when it notes that story you've heard about Detroit and about the American auto companies was "written by folks who have never even been here."
My husband and I were directly affected by the turmoil in the auto companies, and we knew many families who were affected as well. I can't describe how incredibly stressful that experience was. Well, maybe I can describe it: It was pure hell.
I'm not going to detail all that I felt, and all the BS I heard from people I counted on to support my husband and me while we were going through one of the most difficult experiences of our lives. At least not today. And frankly, I don't want to hear your opinions about it either - unless you were there, you'll never fully grasp how devastating those Congressional hearings and newspaper stories and backhanded comments really were.
Instead, I want to honor the sentiment of that commercial and show you the Detroit you haven't seen, what the newspapers didn't show you...
What a city that has been to hell and back knows about the finer things in life.
What I love about these pictures are not the pretty flowers, although I do love the pretty flowers. No, it's where I found these beautiful flowers...
... In the shadow of the General Motors headquarters.
I don't remember seeing these images on the news, do you?
I didn't especially enjoy living in Michigan, but it's a part of who I am. I learned a lot about myself from the experience, just like I learned a lot from being a housewife in Charlotte. The lessons were quite different though.
Charlotte taught me about marriage and partnership. Michigan taught me economics and politics.
Charlotte reminded me to cherish my friends and family who I didn't get to see very often. Michigan reminded me of who I could count on when the going got tough.
Charlotte helped me acknowledge my weaknesses. Michigan helped me find strength I didn't know I had.
But most of all, Michigan taught me to be resilient. Like the auto companies, and the people who worked for them or with them, I went through hell and back in Michigan. I was damaged certainly, but not broken. And like the city of Detroit, I knew that despite the turmoil I experienced, there was something beautiful growing inside me that I would would one day uncover.
Charlotte gave me time to heal. Charlotte helped me find the beauty.
Now that I'm in Milwaukee, I'm ready to incorporate those lessons I learned from Michigan and Charlotte. I'm not the same person I was when I last lived in Milwaukee. Or maybe I am the same person, but now I just understand who this person is.
I am strong. I am passionate. I am intelligent. I am flawed. I am compassionate. I am an educator, a social worker, and a new kind of housewife. I make my own rules.
I lived in Michigan for three years, and my years there overlapped with the bankruptcies of Chrysler and GM. I got goosebumps when this commercial directly addressed the critics, the politicians, and the American public when it notes that story you've heard about Detroit and about the American auto companies was "written by folks who have never even been here."
My husband and I were directly affected by the turmoil in the auto companies, and we knew many families who were affected as well. I can't describe how incredibly stressful that experience was. Well, maybe I can describe it: It was pure hell.
I'm not going to detail all that I felt, and all the BS I heard from people I counted on to support my husband and me while we were going through one of the most difficult experiences of our lives. At least not today. And frankly, I don't want to hear your opinions about it either - unless you were there, you'll never fully grasp how devastating those Congressional hearings and newspaper stories and backhanded comments really were.
Instead, I want to honor the sentiment of that commercial and show you the Detroit you haven't seen, what the newspapers didn't show you...
What a city that has been to hell and back knows about the finer things in life.
What I love about these pictures are not the pretty flowers, although I do love the pretty flowers. No, it's where I found these beautiful flowers...
... In the shadow of the General Motors headquarters.
I don't remember seeing these images on the news, do you?
I didn't especially enjoy living in Michigan, but it's a part of who I am. I learned a lot about myself from the experience, just like I learned a lot from being a housewife in Charlotte. The lessons were quite different though.
Charlotte taught me about marriage and partnership. Michigan taught me economics and politics.
Charlotte reminded me to cherish my friends and family who I didn't get to see very often. Michigan reminded me of who I could count on when the going got tough.
Charlotte helped me acknowledge my weaknesses. Michigan helped me find strength I didn't know I had.
But most of all, Michigan taught me to be resilient. Like the auto companies, and the people who worked for them or with them, I went through hell and back in Michigan. I was damaged certainly, but not broken. And like the city of Detroit, I knew that despite the turmoil I experienced, there was something beautiful growing inside me that I would would one day uncover.
Charlotte gave me time to heal. Charlotte helped me find the beauty.
Now that I'm in Milwaukee, I'm ready to incorporate those lessons I learned from Michigan and Charlotte. I'm not the same person I was when I last lived in Milwaukee. Or maybe I am the same person, but now I just understand who this person is.
I am strong. I am passionate. I am intelligent. I am flawed. I am compassionate. I am an educator, a social worker, and a new kind of housewife. I make my own rules.
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
Random Milwaukee observations
1. It's been almost a month, and I haven't smelled yeast from the breweries yet.
2. Highway 100 is actually 108th Street.
3. There are no Spanish restaurants here. There are tapas places, but not authentic Spanish restaurants.
4. If I liked fish, I'd be in heaven with all the fish fry specials. Since I hate fish, I wish they'd replace a fish fry with a Spanish restaurant.
5. For a state known for its cheese, I've been very disappointed in the cheese selection in the grocery stores. Smoked mozzarella please!
6. It's still cold. It's April and it is officially Spring, but I still need a sweatshirt every day. I may need another Caribbean vacation soon.
7. My neighborhood and local shopping area are much more diverse here than in Charlotte, and that's a good thing.
8. I can find my way around with no problem, but I can't remember where most stores are. For example, I have no idea where Michaels is, but if I'm told it's at Moorland and Bluemound Road, I have no problem finding it without my navigator.
9. I'm pretty sure I-94 near Franklin was under construction when we left Wisconsin five years ago.
10. The first time we had friends over, it was like we'd never left. This really is home.
2. Highway 100 is actually 108th Street.
3. There are no Spanish restaurants here. There are tapas places, but not authentic Spanish restaurants.
4. If I liked fish, I'd be in heaven with all the fish fry specials. Since I hate fish, I wish they'd replace a fish fry with a Spanish restaurant.
5. For a state known for its cheese, I've been very disappointed in the cheese selection in the grocery stores. Smoked mozzarella please!
6. It's still cold. It's April and it is officially Spring, but I still need a sweatshirt every day. I may need another Caribbean vacation soon.
7. My neighborhood and local shopping area are much more diverse here than in Charlotte, and that's a good thing.
8. I can find my way around with no problem, but I can't remember where most stores are. For example, I have no idea where Michaels is, but if I'm told it's at Moorland and Bluemound Road, I have no problem finding it without my navigator.
9. I'm pretty sure I-94 near Franklin was under construction when we left Wisconsin five years ago.
10. The first time we had friends over, it was like we'd never left. This really is home.
Monday, April 4, 2011
15 minute dinner
Despite all the times that I have moved over the years, I still forget how long it takes to get truly settled in a new place. I've unpacked the main parts of the house, but the basement and the attic remain full of taped-up boxes that really need to be unpacked or repacked. I've been methodically working through these boxes over the last couple of weeks, but I reached the point where I needed some help from my husband, so we spent the weekend digging through all the crap boxes of precious memories and lost treasures. We were so busy that it soon was six o'clock on Sunday night and we were both starving.
In Charlotte, six o'clock and starving meant that I'd cook the Dream Dinners entree I had defrosting in the refrigerator, and we'd be eating in 20 minutes. In Milwaukee, not so much. No Dream Dinners. No meal prep places anywhere I can find. No dinner help.
Excuse me while I get a tissue.
I'm starting my new job in a couple of weeks (yay!), but I'm going to have an even longer commute than I had in Charlotte (boo!). I know I'm going to be exhausted when I get home, especially in the first few weeks, and getting dinner on the table is going to be a challenge. And while I find cooking relaxing, I find grocery shopping stressful and I find clean up even more stressful, and that's not what I want after coming home from a long day at a new job.
So how am I going to make dinner every night? Yes, I understand I can cook in advance. Yes, I will use my crockpot. Yes, I understand I can get takeout on the really busy nights. Yes, we can go out to dinner. But all of those options either cost more than they should, aren't as healthy as home preparation, take too much time or energy, and/or will make my house messy.
Back to Sunday night. We were starving and I needed to get something on the table quickly, but after our pizza on Friday and another trip to Kopp's on Saturday, I also wanted something light and somewhat healthy. We had leftovers, but neither of us was in the mood for leftovers. That's when I remembered our go-to quick and healthy dinner: tortellini salad.
Tortellini salad is just a regular salad with cheese tortellini on top, and it's one of our favorite meals. It's also one of the meals that I can get on the table in fifteen minutes, and I almost always have the ingredients on hand because there isn't a specific recipe. I buy tortellini (or ravioli works too) when it's on sale and throw it in the freezer, and we usually have various salad ingredients in the house. My tortellini salad usually consists of romaine lettuce or spring mix, grape tomatoes or chopped tomatoes, cucumbers, gorgonzola, and whole wheat three cheese tortellini, and tossed with balsamic vinegar and EVOO. If we have leftover chicken, I'll throw that in too, but it's not necessary. Tortellini cooks incredibly fast and yet I can still chop all the vegetables and make the dressing in the time it takes to cook those little pasta nuggets.
I very easily could have thrown a frozen pizza in the oven or made a turkey sandwich with baby carrots - and we do eat those things- but tortellini salad felt more fulfilling and more dinner-like. Even though it's a salad, it still feels like a real meal because there's pasta, and pasta and a salad feels like dinner. Plus it has gorgonzola cheese, and that makes it fancy. Because I said so.
These are the types of dinners I need to have in my arsenal for my return to work - meals made with ingredients I have on hand (or I can easily stock up on in advance), that have some nutritional value, and that I can have on the table in 15-20 minutes. And really, doesn't every housewife need a list of 15 minute meals for those days when the kids have soccer practice or the end of day meeting ran late or you're just plain ol' exhausted from a day of cleaning and shopping and running errands and unpacking boxes of junk that never should've been moved? I know I do.
What are your 15 minute dinner ideas?
In Charlotte, six o'clock and starving meant that I'd cook the Dream Dinners entree I had defrosting in the refrigerator, and we'd be eating in 20 minutes. In Milwaukee, not so much. No Dream Dinners. No meal prep places anywhere I can find. No dinner help.
Excuse me while I get a tissue.
I'm starting my new job in a couple of weeks (yay!), but I'm going to have an even longer commute than I had in Charlotte (boo!). I know I'm going to be exhausted when I get home, especially in the first few weeks, and getting dinner on the table is going to be a challenge. And while I find cooking relaxing, I find grocery shopping stressful and I find clean up even more stressful, and that's not what I want after coming home from a long day at a new job.
So how am I going to make dinner every night? Yes, I understand I can cook in advance. Yes, I will use my crockpot. Yes, I understand I can get takeout on the really busy nights. Yes, we can go out to dinner. But all of those options either cost more than they should, aren't as healthy as home preparation, take too much time or energy, and/or will make my house messy.
Back to Sunday night. We were starving and I needed to get something on the table quickly, but after our pizza on Friday and another trip to Kopp's on Saturday, I also wanted something light and somewhat healthy. We had leftovers, but neither of us was in the mood for leftovers. That's when I remembered our go-to quick and healthy dinner: tortellini salad.
Tortellini salad is just a regular salad with cheese tortellini on top, and it's one of our favorite meals. It's also one of the meals that I can get on the table in fifteen minutes, and I almost always have the ingredients on hand because there isn't a specific recipe. I buy tortellini (or ravioli works too) when it's on sale and throw it in the freezer, and we usually have various salad ingredients in the house. My tortellini salad usually consists of romaine lettuce or spring mix, grape tomatoes or chopped tomatoes, cucumbers, gorgonzola, and whole wheat three cheese tortellini, and tossed with balsamic vinegar and EVOO. If we have leftover chicken, I'll throw that in too, but it's not necessary. Tortellini cooks incredibly fast and yet I can still chop all the vegetables and make the dressing in the time it takes to cook those little pasta nuggets.
I very easily could have thrown a frozen pizza in the oven or made a turkey sandwich with baby carrots - and we do eat those things- but tortellini salad felt more fulfilling and more dinner-like. Even though it's a salad, it still feels like a real meal because there's pasta, and pasta and a salad feels like dinner. Plus it has gorgonzola cheese, and that makes it fancy. Because I said so.
These are the types of dinners I need to have in my arsenal for my return to work - meals made with ingredients I have on hand (or I can easily stock up on in advance), that have some nutritional value, and that I can have on the table in 15-20 minutes. And really, doesn't every housewife need a list of 15 minute meals for those days when the kids have soccer practice or the end of day meeting ran late or you're just plain ol' exhausted from a day of cleaning and shopping and running errands and unpacking boxes of junk that never should've been moved? I know I do.
What are your 15 minute dinner ideas?
Pizza craving: Satisfied.
Friday night, my husband and I went to Edwardos and I finally satisfied my pizza craving.
Yum. Yum yum yum yum yum YUM.
See that cheese oozing out of the side? That's what I craved for a year and a half while living in Charlotte. And three years in Michigan before that.
Cheese. Cheese topped with pizza sauce. And then some more cheese.
One piece and I was full, which was fine because now we have leftovers!!! Chicago-style pizza for days!
Me = Happy.
Yum. Yum yum yum yum yum YUM.
See that cheese oozing out of the side? That's what I craved for a year and a half while living in Charlotte. And three years in Michigan before that.
Cheese. Cheese topped with pizza sauce. And then some more cheese.
One piece and I was full, which was fine because now we have leftovers!!! Chicago-style pizza for days!
Me = Happy.
Friday, April 1, 2011
Clean all the things!!!
My house is immaculate! I cleaned all the things!
Not really. My house IS immaculate, but I didn't clean any of the things. I hired a maid service, and they come every other week and clean all the things. And you know what? I'm absolutely, completely, 100 percent okay with paying someone to clean my house, even though I am a housewife and I should be doing it myself.
In my career, I spent a lot of time trying to work on my weaknesses so that they were not impairments in my ability to do my job. And through my work with students with disabilities, and my own struggles with ADHD, I've also learned to accept limitations and/or find ways to accommodate learning or functioning differences. For example, my students who had difficulty reading were given text-to-speech software to read their textbooks to them. They gleaned the necessary information from the textbooks, just in a different way.
In my career as a housewife, I recognize I have many strengths, but cleaning is not one of them.
I tried. I made cleaning schedules. I told myself to clean one extra thing each day. I tried to put things away after I used them. And all that happened is that I got frustrated and mad because I couldn't do it, and the house just got messier and dirtier. I finally had to accept my limitations and figure out a way to accommodate them. I had to find my reading software.
Enter MaidBrigade. They clean my house for me while I am doing the sixteen other things I need or want to do in a day, and I give them a check for doing what I can't do. Yes, it's an additional expense. Yes, it's a luxury. But it's also stress relief for me. I have 32 years of life experience that tell me that I can't keep anything clean for an extended period of time (Hello! Tell-tale sign of ADHD! Blinking neon sign! Anyone?!?) Rather than listen to everyone tell me that it is my job as a housewife to clean the house and then ultimately feel like a failure at my job because I can't do this simple, normal task, I found my accommodation.
I found a way to clean all the things.
(Thanks, Allie Brosh, for my post title... AGAIN!)
Not really. My house IS immaculate, but I didn't clean any of the things. I hired a maid service, and they come every other week and clean all the things. And you know what? I'm absolutely, completely, 100 percent okay with paying someone to clean my house, even though I am a housewife and I should be doing it myself.
In my career, I spent a lot of time trying to work on my weaknesses so that they were not impairments in my ability to do my job. And through my work with students with disabilities, and my own struggles with ADHD, I've also learned to accept limitations and/or find ways to accommodate learning or functioning differences. For example, my students who had difficulty reading were given text-to-speech software to read their textbooks to them. They gleaned the necessary information from the textbooks, just in a different way.
In my career as a housewife, I recognize I have many strengths, but cleaning is not one of them.
I tried. I made cleaning schedules. I told myself to clean one extra thing each day. I tried to put things away after I used them. And all that happened is that I got frustrated and mad because I couldn't do it, and the house just got messier and dirtier. I finally had to accept my limitations and figure out a way to accommodate them. I had to find my reading software.
Enter MaidBrigade. They clean my house for me while I am doing the sixteen other things I need or want to do in a day, and I give them a check for doing what I can't do. Yes, it's an additional expense. Yes, it's a luxury. But it's also stress relief for me. I have 32 years of life experience that tell me that I can't keep anything clean for an extended period of time (Hello! Tell-tale sign of ADHD! Blinking neon sign! Anyone?!?) Rather than listen to everyone tell me that it is my job as a housewife to clean the house and then ultimately feel like a failure at my job because I can't do this simple, normal task, I found my accommodation.
I found a way to clean all the things.
(Thanks, Allie Brosh, for my post title... AGAIN!)
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