Julie Pippert: Using My Words

Tip was smarter and Teddy was sweeter. They had heard it since a time before memory. Sweet and Smart or Smart and Sweet. Either way it should have been a name of a magazine for teenaged girls or a brand of hard candy or a sauce for crispy duck. The teachers in their elementary school said it when the boys were a grade apart. ... "Tip is one of the smartest little boys this school has ever seen," the teachers would confide when Doyle came in for conferences. "But Teddy is just so sweet." --- Ann Patchett, Run And, in so saving the most precious comment for the end---best for last--we reveal what we value most: sweet. The truth is, I think, that the majority have a taste for sweet, but fewer have a taste for smart. That's how I always knew my sister was better---because she was prettier and sweeter. Like Tip and Teddy, we were Smart and Sweet, Smart and Pretty. She had layers, outward assets. I was just smart. Smart got you in trouble. It made you ask questions th...

Each Christmas we buy rosemary, a small tree, in a little plastic pot, with a red or gold bow. It's a tradition Jon and I began a while back and I don't recall exactly why, which is ironic since rosemary is for remembrance. Every year we buy it and every year I try to keep it alive and plant it. Every year I fail. Except last year. Last year I managed to keep the rosemary alive. It thrived and grew, fragrant and full in its pot. I kept saying I needed to plant it but wasn't sure where, and felt worried that transferring it would end my happy steak of luck with the herb. Then we lost Bubba . As a memorial to him, we decided to plant a garden with his grave. Now the rosemary had a spot and a purpose. It has flourished there, too, along with the beautiful hibiscus---golden, of course. This year, so far, until today I have forgotten to buy rosemary. Another small fetch of irony. Or not. Perhaps I have let go of what I was trying to remember, or perhaps having finally succeeded ...

Today was the Winter Party at Patience's school. Here are the girls making reindeer sandwiches: The teacher and I had a little tete-a-tete as the kids went through the fun stations. I mentioned the ink incident. She asked if Patience had shared what Those Boys Did with scissors. I said yes. She was very cute about it. Then she asked if I had seen Patience's letter to Santa that she wrote in class. She said it was the funniest letter because...well, see for yourself: Translation: A cat and 3 kittens. (She means REAL ones.) And a dog and puppies. (Again, real ones.) Bunkbed And for my sister to calm down. Please Santa Claus, make my sister calm down. Love, Patience She and I laughed and laughed. I got home, read the letter, and laughed and laughed again. Then I had Patience read it to me, and kept my giggles to myself, no mean feat, especially when she added, "Because That Child is way too busy for her own good." Copyright 2007 Julie Pippert Also blogging at: Using My W...

I will share a little family history today. I am usually more circumspect. However, for a tiny glimpse into a bit of a why about me and this month, I will share this story. It's never the whole story or the only story, and it's never only about me, the writer. However, I've written it as completely and honestly as possible, although I'll admit to editing a bit out of respect of privacy. That Christmas I felt ebullient. If emotions could make you glow, I shined brighter than the lights on the tree. I was in love. Big time love, grown-up love. Going to the chapel and gonna get married love. And he had agreed to spend Christmas with me. I set aside the fears and worries about bringing him home to my extended family. He was so wonderful I knew they'd suddenly morph into the amazing, loving, close-knit and welcoming family I always wished I had. How could they not glow in his presence, too? This was only the second time I'd brought a man to meet my extended family. T...

It starts right after Thanksgiving and sometimes even before: the gift wish list. I start getting them from others and others begin requesting them from us. What do you want? What do the girls want? It's an impossible question for me to answer. I want world peace. I want my kitchen cabinets refinished. I want my half bath downstairs finished. I want a new bathtub. A new patio. A major purge of the girls' closets. My kids to grow up happy and healthy. Someone to install my new outlets for me so I don't have to do it (and yes thankyouverymuch I know how). I want a personal chef who is completely organic and will make us go vegan three times a week. I want my new flooring in. I want to make sure every child has a place to live that is safe and access to health care. I think you get the gist. I don't think you can find these things at a mall or put them easily in a box. So I struggle for things to tell people and I struggle against my intense dislike of wish lists. I realiz...

I had a different post entirely queued up for today but then yesterday two news articles crossed my desk and I wanted to make sure that you were informed, on the off-chance you hadn't heard about this. The first I read at one of my "read every day and write for when I get the time" blogs (I will be posting there today about the second item, H.R. 847): The Political Voices of Women . BlueBloggin (out of Texas) shared this AP news article: Bush Vetoes Kids Health Insurance Bill By JENNIFER LOVEN Associated Press Writer WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Bush vetoed legislation Wednesday that would have expanded government-provided health insurance for children, his second slap-down of a bipartisan effort in Congress to dramatically increase funding for the popular program. It was Bush's seventh veto in seven years - all but one coming since Democrats took control of Congress in January. Wednesday was the deadline for Bush to act or let the bill become law. The president also...

Part 1: How I resemble the Grinch Every One in the world liked Christmas a lot... But Julie Pippert, who lived south of Houston, Did NOT! Julie hated Christmas! The whole Christmas season! Now, please don't ask why. No one quite knows the reason. But I think that the most likely reason of all, May have been that the month was simply too small. For, you see, when the month of December rolled round, She had birthdays and parties and demands abound. Buy plates, hats, gifts, and balloons. The guests are all coming, the party's too soon! Her head spun in circles, she looked quite a fright, Mopping and sweeping, polishing her home perfectly right. Juggling Christmas and Birthdays should be a joy, But all Julie could say, with a sigh, was, 'Oh boy!' She struggled to execute every single detail, Endlessly rechecking her phone and email. It seems RSVPs are in short supply this time of year, She had no clue at all who meant to come here. Not to mention the holiday open house and ...