Today is Grover's birthday.
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No more shortcuts!
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The view from Ellis Island to our next stop - The Statue of Liberty
Third Tourist Stop: The Statue of Liberty.
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Beautiful. American. Freedom.
.Fourth Stop: The Letterman Show. We sat in the front row at the Letterman Show today and saw Senator Obama and Lebron James. Seriously, it was fantastic. I got in the spirit of television and acting, constructing myself completely bi-partisan. I think I was made, though, when I was the only one cheering and clapping when he asked the crowd how they felt about Sarah Palin.
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We weren't supposed to take pictures inside the theater, so this is a shot I took from my camera phone right before a security guy came and threatened to take the battery out of my phone.


Here is the picture I took last week.
God, bless America. .
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We have never needed it more. 
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(7) Plant Shock.
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The bigger the plant, the more shock it experiences during a move. This plant used to be full and beautiful. My husband says that I've killed it before (by simply moving it across the room) and it came back, and he believes I'll bring it back again. Nevertheless, I threaten it daily with trash pickup, and trash pick up occurs 4 times per week here in Hoboken.
(6) Sedating and Traveling with Your Pets.
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The kitties are not good travelers. Period. They also don't like to be trapped in the bathroom when there is heightened activity throughout the house. Additionally, Haydn gets car sick from in-town driving. This is a terribly out-of-focus picture, but I think the point is clear. Even his third eyelid is up from the sedative.This doesn't quite convey how sick he actually was, though. My husband came quickly out of the bathroom at one point, standing in front of the door blocking me from entering. "I just want you to know that Haydn is really really sick. I just found him laying with his head in his own pee." I was frantic! The sedation medication is funny. Even though he weighs more than Wayne, he can't take nearly the dosage she can. (Yes, Wayne is a girl. Happy to tell you why if you want to know.) I hope I remember that for next time!
(And no, Lisa, I consulted an attorney, and this accidental poor mothering on my part doesn't give you parental rights to Haydn.)
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(5) Exhaustively Searching for Necessary Items.
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All of my underwear was hiding in an unmarked box for several days. I hadn't wanted to label it because I was too embarrassed. Well, obviously I'm telling YOU, so I must have gotten over it. Next time, I'm going to write it in big bold letters!
I also lost my cell phone during the packing process. It was a terrible disaster. I didn't have Lisa's number memorized, and I was in a state of panic! I finally found it and had missed 15 calls. What has this world come to that losing a phone could be so traumatic.
(4) Packing Precious Items in Black Trashbags.
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I lined a box with a black trashbag before carefully loading my yarn stash inside. In an effort to give the movers as many boxes to take away as possible, I pulled out the sack and sat it to the side. I then proceeded to collect trash in black trashbags. A few days later, I heard the trash truck coming down the street and almost canned my hobby all together.
(3) The Previous Tenant's Home Decor and Maintenance.
I knew before moving in that I was going to re-paint the red master bedroom in a more muted color. I planned to paint the room the evening between packing and delivery. Instead, I spent the entire night priming the room (4 times!), and had to finally stop and get the apartment ready for the delivery. No sleep between starting to pack and finishing delivery. I think it was 40 hours before I went to bed.
And I don't think I need to say much about the owner's home maintenance than what this picture of the air filter conveys.
I went to Dallas again, this time with my husband. My nephew turned one month old while we were there. He's a doll, and we're terribly proud of him. I'm making him a new blanket, at the request of my brother. Camouflage. They're so silly. They have a number of camouflage baby items. I have to wonder, though, if they get too many camouflage items, won't they have trouble finding them?
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