OK, I admit it. I'm still a total TV addict. I often feel like I use my brain so much
during the day that I really want to do something mindless at night and TV fits the bill.
My guilty pleasure is reality TV--Project Runway is one of my favorites. I still
watch Survivor though this season is pretty boring, comparatively. What can I say?
I'm a sucker for watching televised idiocy. I do love home improvement shows, too, though.
We really want to remodel our bathrooms soon so I'm in "idea-getting" mode.
This summer we went back to Toronto for vacation. It was awesome. It was really fun to visit
some old haunts like Hair of the Dog but also do some new things, too, like visit the Distillery
district. I got a second tattoo (a picture of the first one is in the section below). Here is
a photo of Barry and me in July 2006 at his mom's 80th birthday party. You can see my new
tattoo on my shoulder. Easy to cover up when I go to the schools!
I'm still working with the
Stevens Community Humane Society on their Board of Directors. I work with membership
and records and we also provide foster care for cats. We have several cats of our own (see below)
so sometimes this is a challenge--this summer we had 8 or 9 cats in the house at once!--but
it's very rewarding as well to nurse them back to health and to help find good homes for them.
Finally, the ongoing project for me is weight loss. It is a continual struggle to find
the time and motivation to work out. But I have discovered that without exercising I'll be
right back where I started! I am pleased with the progress. To date I've lost about 120 lb.
This can be seen if you compare me in this photo of Barry and me at our engagement party to the
one above from July 2006.
I'm working hard to keep the weight off and hopefully
lose even more. I feel healthier and stronger and I still get surprised once in a while
when I don't get out of breath just walking to my office. That was just typical of life
for so many years that I sometimes marvel at the difference.
Ruminations from 2004
We went on vacation this summer--our first "real" vacation. We went to Toronto and had a blast!
We visited the Royal Ontario Museum, the Art Gallery of Ontario, and we attended a concert by Great Big Sea.
They absolutely rock! I also got a tattoo--my tattoo artist said I was great at sitting still. Don't let them
fool you--it hurts. At least, mine hurt. Not all the time, but enough to make it memorable. Click here for a photo.
I have a nephew now, named Reid. He's growing up so fast!
The older I get, the more I value my sleep. I've always been a good sleeper--
according to my mother, even when I was a baby I slept through the night almost immediately.
But now I find that I'm completely loopy if I don't get my 8 hours.
As an educator, I'm very concerned about the current climate. Funding of K-12 schools and
higher education has eroded and there seem to be a lot of hostile statements about education lately,
especially teacher education. Is it somehow going to make classrooms more effective to let any
person off the street teach instead of putting trained teachers in classrooms? I get a little defensive
when a top aide to the president says he wants to blow up schools of teacher education and when the
Secretary of Education calls the teachers' union a terrorist organization.
Did you know a quarter pounder with cheese has 540 calories? French fries are terrible, too--a large fries has
520 calories! No wonder the U.S. is so chubby. You should
know that chicken mcnuggets have 250 calories. If you must have fast food, go with the chicken!
We have a new addition to the family--a black cat named Luna. She's polydactyl (has extra toes
on her front feet) and she's a real joy. I think three cats is still OK--if we start adding more,
my family will start to think I'm a "crazy cat lady." Click
here to see some photos of our cats.
Updates from 2002
I used to say that "Junkyard Wars" and "Trading Spaces" are my favorite shows. That's changed a bit as
they keep changing the hosts. Robert Llewellyn made Junkyard Wars and the new host of Trading Spaces
drives me insane with her attention-getting, "look at me" behavior. I still like the shows but not as
much as I used to. I also don't like reality TV nearly
as much as I used to--it's getting kind of boring. I still love "Charmed", though and my new favorites
are "Iron Chef" and "Good Eats"!
This summer I moved into my new home and got married. Big summer! Photos and other info from the summer
can be found at Barry's web site.
I've taken to watching the BBC occasionally on public television. I'm disappointed in how un-critical
the news shows are. It's very unpopular to question anything these days--I think that's dangerous.
Speaking of the news, in August of this year, there was one newscast where at least 50% of the air time
was consumed with discussing either the anniversary of the death of Elvis, or the PGA golf tournament
taking place in Minnesota. I think there are much more important things happening in the world that
could be reported.
Thoughts from 2000-2001
This is me. I have a godson named Logan. We like to read together. I also have an incredibly cute niece named Audrey. Here she is,having a ball.
Yes, I am a cat person. But I'm not crazy yet. I talk to them but they don't talk back.
Leo is the orange one and Newman is the brown one.
Update: On October 8 Newman was put to sleep. It
was one of the hardest things I've had to do. He had been sick for
six months, continuously. He had inflammatory bowel disease but
also something else that always remained a bit of a mystery in spite of
all the testing. Toward the end he was listless and in pain so I
knew it was time. But I miss him intensely. Leo was bummed out
to be alone so I now have a new kitten named Ender. He's about 4 months
old in these photos and is both playful and cuddly. It took less than
18 hours for Leo and Ender to bond.
OK, photos done. Here are some other pertinent facts about me.
My dad is a pastor of an Evangelical Free Church.
I also attend a Free Church and my faith is very important to me.
A lot of people call me "Micheline" instead of "Michelle". This is because it's my French name. One of my French professors
gave it to me in college to tell me apart from the masculine "Michel" who sat in front of me. And it was appropriate since my middle name
is Lynn: Michelle Lynn--Micheline. It's the name I always used when working at the
Concordia Language Villages
(which I did from 1989-1999).
I love anything chocolate--the more the better.
I detest borccoli and asparagus and green food in general.
I think our society has become way too driven by consumerism and marketing. I get sick of everything having a
product tie-in and think these mega-corporations should be broken up.
I love sites like Alternet
and
Adbuster
.
I admit to enjoying some reality TV like the Real
World and Road Rules and Survivor. But enough is enough.
All this reality TV seems to be going overboard to me. I think
Temptation Island was immoral.
I enjoy doing crafts--especially refinishing and painting my furniture (at least, that's the latest thing).
I read a lot for work--scholarly stuff--so I like
to take a break and read other things once in a while. I like Iris
Johansen, Gwen Hunter, Tami Hoag, and James Patterson a lot. Mysteries
and thrillers are nice easy reading.
I HATE BATS! The furry, flying kind. Especially
when they're in my house. Even though I know they won't hurt
me. There's just something incredibly creepy about a bat flying
near your head.
My favorite TV shows are
Junkyard Wars
and
Trading Spaces
on TLC. I get inspired to make over my house watching
Trading Spaces and Junkyard Wars is actually both fun and educational--I
learn a lot about mechanics and how things work.
Pet peeves: People who complain about not reaching
their goals but then are unwilling to work hard to reach their goals.
People who don't use their turn signals when driving. People who
are mean just for fun. People who rejoice in the misery of others.
People who put others down to make themselves feel superior. People
who are more concerned with their image than the substance of their character.
OK, I lied about the photos. One of my favorite artists
is French photographer Robert Doisneau, who photographed in black and
white and did most of his work in the '40's. These are some of my
favorite shots:
"L'Accordioniste"
"Fallen Horse"
"The Cellist"
"Hell"
"Picasso and
the Loaves"
"Sidelong Glance"
"Wanda Wiggles Her Hips"
Last, but not least, I enjoy the performances of
Pat McCurdy --famous in Wisconsin but nowhere else, really. He's funny,
irreverent, sometimes disgusting, always entertaining, and he lets you
sing along if you go to his shows. Check out some of his songs of the week
if you have the time.
