Other uses for mylar balloons (the only kind allowed in my house)

1.  Tie a jingle ball on the bottom of the balloon string and the cat will chase it.  And chase it.  And chase it. (Jupiter's iniative).



2.  Target for high snap kicks.  If you happen to be a bendy 8 year old practicing karate moves.  For me, not so much.

The Blue Board

All household members have successfully punched through the blue level martial arts practice board.

Even me.

Je suis francophile

So for all these years, one of my favorite parts about traveling to Quebec has always been just hanging out in the hotel room and watching French language TV (and the one memborable time I was watching English language news and suddenly watching a girl from my high school French class presenting the weather from Burlington VT.  My sister was mad I woke her up for that but not for French Scooby Doo).  I also like stocking up on French language picture books (prompting at least one customs agent to think we were teachers), and that stuff.  But really; I could spend days in the hotel room watching TV.

Then I bought a car in Saco.  One day when I had a very early car appointment, I by default gained control of the TV remote in the waiting area. And discovered French language TV that didn't require me to buy hotel room nights. (The waiting room in the car place also has large amounts of morning sun and wonderful singing acoustics, but Jupiter hates it when I sing at the car place). I'd forgotten that York county Maine gets Canadian French TV on regular cable.  I thought about moving to York County. Now we always get the early appointment, and spend an hour watching French language tv while the car gets a new headlight bulb or fresh oil. With any luck; this is cheaper than actually driving to Montreal. Not always, but sometimes.

Then the internet dawned on me.  Specificially, that TV stations have websites.

Yes, now I can watch French language TV (the cartoons are right at my verbal comprehension level) in my very own home, without having to get my car fixed. In all my spare time, of course.

Never fear; I will still have to go to Montreal to buy books and Kindereggs. And climb to the top of Mont Royal (which now has very nice steps to climb to the top).


Just in case anyone (besides me) wants to watch French language cartoons:
http://www.radio-canada.ca/jeunesse/videos/

MaineCat

I am so very grateful that I can request items from an entire network of libaries in Maine, and not just my town library or the library where I have my card.  I am also grateful for online card catalogs, which allow me to do my library browsing from home after bedtime and have the books (from both my library and all the other libraries too) put behind the circulation desk; so I can just ask for them at checkout (after raiding the shelves of the children's section; and sparing the library patrons the joy of listening to Jupiter ask a zillion times if we're done yet, when I am looking for something for myself.

And for all this, they don't even charge a fee.

Amazing.

Thank you, PPL and all the Maine libraries.

If I won the lottery tonight....

Tomorrow I would be on a plane, traveling to a sunny deserted beach with palm trees, and in all probability sleeping while lying in the sun.  Also in all probability; getting a horrible sunburn.