Trying to shoot the bird

It's time for travel shots so we're shooting the bird. (SHOOT the bird, not SHOW the bird! Although that's probably what Drew wants to do about his typhoid shot.) Yes, he needs a typhoid shot for travel to Turkey. Why aren't immunizations such as this covered under medical or prescription insurance? I'm astounded that insurance companies will cover the procedures, hospitalizations, doctor visits, prescriptions, etc. necessary if one contracts the disease, but not the less expensive preventative measures. Go figure.

That's my rant for the day. Now it's off to get the prescription. Cheerio!

May 29th

This is Drew with Mammo and Pawpaw outside their home in Boerne, Texas. The photo was taken in the spring of 1998. We said good-bye to Pawpaw several years ago and are getting ready to lay Mammo beside him this week. How perfect that they be interred next to one another for all eternity on their anniversary, May 29.

So we're off to Texas tomorrow. Texas to Turkey - Drew will be soaking up all sorts of culture (pronounced cul-chuh) in the span of 2 weeks!

Onward!

Passport [to knowledge] in hand.








(What? Did you really think I'd let him show off the real one while we were in DC?!)

A terrific Thursday

SCORE! Drew's passport application was accepted! Hip, hip, hooray! We had a lovely and relatively uneventful experience at the passport office and then went on a celebratory tour of DC. Heck, the kid was sprung from school for the day so a tour was definitely in order!

Here you see us post passport in back of the Capitol. The buses were transporting guests for the National Police Memorial Dedication. We caught a bit of the ceremony and it was quite impressive. From there we trekked around the building and explored the Library of Congress. My little bookworm was in heaven! Then we wandered through the Longworth House Office Building, catching up with Congressman Chris Van Hollen and getting a tour of the Capitol from one of his staffers. It was quite a day! Many thanks to Congressman Van Hollen and also to Congressman Steny Hoyer for his help with Drew's passport.

I almost forgot ... we left the passport office and turned right. At the first corner we ran in to a colleague I hadn't seen in over a year! It was providential. How great to catch up with Andrea, if only for those brief minutes.

Passport photos for a turkey

We did some high math tonight and figured out Drew leaves for Turkey in 26 days. Gob-gobble! (That's "eek!" translated from turkeyese.) I don't know which is worse - the fact that we had to employ high math techniques to determine there are only 26 days remaining, or the fact that there are indeed only 26 days. Forgetting, of course, the fact that we were able to easily translate turkeyese to English, 26 days is not a lot of time.

A few things got checked off the list this weekend. Most notably, the passport photos. See left. (You could look right but that's an older photo of me. Older as in 14 months ago.) The photo montage on the left is my turkey at 13, almost 14. He even shaved the night before so there's no 'stache shadow. Bonus!

Wait. This is my kid???? What happened to the toddler trying to balance on chubby legs? What happened to the elementary school kid with the big cheeks and Harry Potter glasses? What happened to the kid who used to get in trouble for reading in class? Or the boy who fell off a rope swing and broke his arm? He's growing up, isn't he?

The turkey got a little burned

Drew and I had Thanksgiving dinner with friends one year and they basted the turkey with soy sauce. It was quite good. While the bird looked like it spent too long in a tanning booth, it had a wonderfully crisp coating, very juicy meat, and a delectable flavor. That's how today feels -- I may not look great, I'm definitely feeling a bit singed around the edges, but the insides are in tact and just as lovely as always. (At least I hope they were always lovely!)

By the way, Drew's passport application is complete. I just need one of the documents notarized and we will be able to go to DC next week to make the appeal. Cross your fingers!

Oh, and the soy-basted turkey metaphor above ... it was either that or say that these past couple weeks have felt like playing dodge ball with the devil! Either way, I'm singed around the edges. ;-)

Getting ready to fly the coop

Don't ask me why, but my mother has always called Drew "bird." It might be "Drewbird" or just "bird," but it means I live with a real life turkey. A turkey who is getting ready to fly the coop this summer.

The "bird" leaves for Turkey on June 8 and will be gone for 11 days. It didn't sound like a long trip until we started figuring out what he needs to take. Then we started calculating what needs to be done before presenting his boarding pass. Ouch! Enter The List: passport, immunizations, new shoes, a larger suitcase, bug spray, guide books, a trip to a Turkish restaurant to check out the cuisine, currency exchange, camera, things to do on the plane(s), lessons on what not to say to your friendly customs agent, a list of things to bring back to mom ... and the list goes on. Flying the coop takes preparation!

Consider this period our Turkey Advent. I just wish the stores would have similar sales.

Would you like some rice with your turkey?

This is such a great idea! For every vocabulary word you get right, freerice.com donates 20 grains of rice to the UN program to end world hunger. Check it out here: http://www.freerice.com/ Exercise your brain, learn something new and help your fellow turkeys, um, humans. Drew and I donated over 1,000 grains of rice tonight. It was a quite a mesencephalon experience. ;-)

Enjoy, and don't forget to let us know what word stumps you!