Julie Pippert: Using My Words

The clerk told me the total and I flinched. Literally. We'd just finished gathering all the school supplies specified on the list for my oldest daughter, now in an upper grade of elementary. The expectations are much higher. And so is the cost. It's also a lot harder. Her questions are more complex, and her moods more mercurial. Once upon a time I could have gone to the store and bought the supplies for her. Now, however, she has a vested interest in this and all purchases, as well as many aspects of life…because in her mind, they all reflect on her. She sees herself in a new way. She's becoming self-conscious about the music she listens to, the clothes she wears, how she fixes her hair and accessorizes, the way she talks…everything. When did all this happen and what do I do? I swear five minutes ago she was just starting to talk! So, after shopping, I came to Facebook and stated that back to school shopping was a physical pain and added a few melodramatic OUCH c...

We humans have perfected the art of dehumanizing people for our own ends. We modern people have perfected the art of rationalizing this, even to the point that we believe it is Good and/or Deserved. Reality TV doesn't help, but, perhaps ironically, I think blogging does. In snippet situations--which abound in all areas of media and life these days, from text messages, to brief interactions, from hectic schedules to ideology condensed to a talking point--we can find our brief summaries of others reinforced. Blogs and other lengthier more personal interactions force us to pause and reconsider...if we let ourselves. It's so simple to sum up another person: she's organized, he's loud, she's a christian, he's a liberal, she's scary smart, he's so nice... We often even think of these things as compliments. But are they? Or are they oversimplified labels that in some way dehumanize the other person? Have we snapped people we know into lock boxes, never to be ta...

Okay so I have been on Spring Break. That means this girl likes to party all the time, which apparently doesn't include anything relating to blogging other than hanging out with bloggers in real life. Although party has a new definition these days and seems to cap off at 9:30ish, it's about quality not quantity. (I swapped out the image; the first one was freaking out visitors. We can't have that! So I subbed in a nice local beach shot instead.) In no particular order other than as they occurred to me, here are things I've learned so far this week while on Spring Break (which is not finished yet): 1. Men are freaking weird. Some of them are actually turned on by a woman eating an aluminum can. With her bare teeth. I have no words. Okay a few: I would never ever be turned on by a guy eating an aluminum can with his bare teeth. Not even if he wore a really low cut tank top. And was wet. And strongly resembled Adrian Paul. Not even then. 2. The mouse car makes good tim...

As many of you have probably figured out, Kyla is a good friend of mine. I've sketched a portrait with words about how I admire her and passed along awards. We've brought our kids together to play, with entertaining results of course. Patience has declared BubTar, "Good to play with and fun, even though he's a boy." Persistence thinks KayTar is neat, and loves looking at the photos that Kyla puts up each day. Kyla and I broke our stress together this past Saturday by having a lovely girl's day out, including being ladies who lunch and shop. If I spent some money on a lovely Jane Austen leather bound collection, it's her fault. ;) I'm going to beg advice from Mr. Tar about whether I ought to add another hard-drive or just invest in a new computer. In short, the Tars are real people to us, people we like and care about. We want the best for them. That can mean many things, but for KayTar, it means continuing health care to help her with her challenges....

There are many people to admire and who inspire. Historical people, famous people, revolutionaries, and peacemakers. When I think of who I admire, I often tend to think of women since they are frequently my role models and inspiration, especially now, since having children. When I sat down to think who I should profile, I came up with several versions of this post. I like them all but had a difficult time choosing. Should it be someone I know personally? A family member, such as my husband? My children? Someone from current or past times in my life? Or from the pages of news or history? In the end, it came down to feeling the best about profiling two people who are, so to speak, in my ballpark. I know them personally, they figure in my life currently, and I admire so much about them. Let me see if I can make you feel the love, too. ************************************************************************************** She's turned 40 now, not the first of our group of friends but no...

My husband's day on Friday began at 2:15 a.m. when the alarm went off. This means my day also began at 2:15 a.m. when he hit snooze and rolled over. The alarm went off at 2:16 a.m. and started its oh-so-pleasant escalation in volume, necessitating domestic violence on my part. It was less painful for my husband to turn off the alarm and get up, so he did. Then he drove out to his construction site for a 4 a.m. concrete pour (and don't call it cement, trust me on that one). This is what it looks like at a construction site at 4 a.m. You are thinking, "Wow, that is hands-down the most exciting photo I've ever seen on a blog!" I know. I'm all about the excitement. That's why I am going to ratchet it up a few notches with this: Oooh aaaah. UPC pipe. Have I dispelled the myth of the rich, glamorous life of an architect yet? 4 a.m. concrete pours and UPC pipe. Allegedly this concrete pour was scheduled to accommodate the girls' birthday. (I doubt that's ...

My Monday Mission today is to help a friend, step by step. As you may (or may not) know, Stephanie (aka LawyerMama ) has been hoping her celebrity crush Wil Wheaton will leave a comment on her blog. He did this for our friend Jenny, once. I have decided to throw my hat into the ring and help Stephanie achieve her goal, because that is what friends do, right? They help friends stalk celebrities. We're hoping more friends will join in. But you can leave your bag of duct tape, cutout magazine letters, Richard Nixon mask, and dime store cotton gloves at home. It's not that kind of stalking. (Wait, is that the Stalker Kit or the Bank Robbery kit? Hang on, let me check the labels...oh, oops! Bank Robbery! It's so easy to get those felonies confused. The Stalker Kit bag is the one you get at the military supply store. Right: empty plastic jug, canteen of water, MREs, bag of Twizzlers, and binoculars. Not even one supply in common. Sorry for the confusion. I'm still operatin...