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Everyday Life
How much sleep do you get every night?
Posted on Oct 27, 2008 6:05:36 PM  |  By KristinVanOgtrop

This is in my top five questions I wonder about everyone I meet, along with how much caffeine they drink, whether they ever yell at their kids, if they regret marrying the man they did and what sort of relationship they have with their mothers. But the sleep one might genuinely be the most interesting. We are in a bad sleep place at the van Ogtrop house for reasons that I won’t get into for fear of completely embarrassing one of my children. But the last few weeks have been hit or miss—I liken it to the movie The Village,...

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Observations
Things you think will change your life that actually don’t
Posted on Oct 23, 2008 12:54:06 PM  |  By KristinVanOgtrop

--a slow cooker --a new car --a long-dreaded conversation with a loved one --better running shoes --online shopping --cutting back on caffeine --a really expensive mattress --cleaning out the garage --a wash-and-go haircut --spell check

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Everyday Life
What Did You Not Get Done This Weekend?
Posted on Oct 20, 2008 1:32:44 PM  |  By KristinVanOgtrop

If you are like me, you end every Sunday with a slight sinking feeling because your to-do list for the weekend actually was not based in any sort of reality when you consider your actual life. Well, sometimes it is a sinking feeling and sometimes it is a full-on temper tantrum, depending on the Sunday, how much sleep you got the night before and how loudly the kids complain about what you’ve made for dinner. You would think that by middle age I would have gained the wisdom to keep my weekend to-do list short enough that I do not...

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Everyday Life
Even More Pests In My House
Posted on Oct 14, 2008 8:13:00 AM  |  By KristinVanOgtrop

OK, I live in a 107 year-old-house, meaning among other things that there are lots of holes and cracks and countless other sneaky places where animals can get in, either for a short visit or a long stay. A bit of that I can deal with. But I swear these days my life feels like an episode of Wild Kingdom , there are so many unwelcome creatures living with me. In our four years in our current house, we have had: --squirrels in the walls --mice in the basement, naturally --some sort of bird, maybe a dove, under the eaves...

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Everyday Life
Have You Stopped Spending Money?
Posted on Oct 10, 2008 9:48:51 AM  |  By KristinVanOgtrop

Yesterday I went shopping for fall clothes for work, which is a big event for me because 1) I hate shopping generally, 2) I hate shopping for clothes specifically and 3) everybody knows that you are not supposed to be spending any money any more. Except on food and, if you absolutely have to, gas, but you’d really be better off walking everywhere. I have a framed New Yorker cartoon in my office from 2001, the last time we all stopped spending; it is by Marisa Acocella and depicts a woman handing over her credit card at a boutique. The...

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Observations
A few items that are definitely not included in the Manual for Adulthood
Posted on Oct 7, 2008 8:23:37 AM  |  By KristinVanOgtrop

--surly drugstore clerks --a sudden, mysterious hole in the roof --drain flies --out of control, opposing-team parents at a kid's soccer game --people who lie to your face at the office --mold on the basement wall --the desire to continue to produce children, even after age 40 --a dead skunk in the pool --a child whose very good friend is a bad influence --a cat who gets too old to use his litterbox --close friends who have completely different political views from your own --coworkers who think they need to cc you on every email --waking up at 3 a.m....

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