I am back!

 F lines:

F- I am going to add a third job. I am going to cut hair.

Me- Boys or girls?

F- Black, white , boy, girl I don't care. And when I am older, I will add tattoo artist.

F- Who invented the internet? Was it the guy with the kite?

F- No man can finish this size Gatorade in a day.. and I am 6 (he did though because camp is outdoors and it is 95 degrees).

F on floating on his back in the pool: I need someone who is a grown up or like a grown up so i feel safe and don't tense up and die.

V to his brother J-  How come you had a girlfriend for one day? (It was more like 6 weeks)

Me- That's not nice.

F- Yeah but what happened?

F after a very long piano piece at his first concert: He was almost brainwashed me.

F- This sausage makes my taste buds sparkle!

F- I wish we could go back in time because last Halloween party was epic!

F- You cannot judge by smell; it may smell like a cow's but but tastes like a rainbow.

F- Were trees a thing before time had a name?

F- If I  look at something and blink, I memorize it in my brain.

Weird Alphabets..

 F- Does anyone in our family know how to read Japanese?

F Sr. No.

F- Then how do we read that thing that was mamá's grandfather's (the torah)?

Me- I need to move or I am going to get a ticket. I see a police man over there.

F- That is just a mall cop; he is outside of his car drinking coffee.

As I read about summer camp (day camp at school) for F

F- I wonder what cabin I will be in.

Me- It is not that kind o camp. You do not sleep there.

F- People say it lasts two weeks!

Delayed Quotations...

 To V: Do you want to be rich? I can knock out all of your teeth!

To me: 

How come you haven't smiled yet?

Are you sad about work?

Maybe you should be a teacher again

All pumped up:

I feel like I could kill a coyote... I did 97 push ups!

I want a little sister..

Firstable, they are playful.

Second able P (baby cousin) can play w them.

The third one she can sleep with us.

The fourth one is they are cuddly.

My bellybutton hurt.. it's sensitive. 

I am also sensitive with feelings. 

If boo-boos didn't disappear i would be one big boo boo

I have had 152345 boo-boos, which is possible on 5 and three quarter years.

There is no such things as magic! They are just atoms. 

One by V commenting on abuelos' art collection:

That's a good painting (A huge painting of The Colon theater)

(on a more abstract one): What a waste of a canvas. The canvas probably costs more than the artist ever made.

I wish we could go back in time because last Halloween party was epic!

You cannot judge by smell- it may smell like a cow's butt but tastes like a rainbow!

Long Time No Post

 No real excuse other than life.

It has not been so hot.

The wonderful parts are that we moved back to NYC and that all of the kids are healthy. 

In the last month and a half my father in law and Paul Farmer died. Suffice it to say that these have been huge losses that take up every minute of the time we did not have.

J's school turned out to be a military prison and I am now scrambling to get him OUT and into a decent public school for next year.

M needs to motivate and activate and get into college mode.

My job is less than good and I am paralyzed. In early January I was definitely quitting; COVID swabbing was preferable. Now I am almost certainly doing nothing of the kind; I have no more bandwidth to do anything. I will stay stuck. Cute at 46. I will do my best and try to learn and in 6 months or a year motivate to leave.

On a happier note, here are some recent F lines:

Abuelo R-your name sounds like Ravioli. I am going to call you Ravioli.

After a day at the beach, pool, and playground..

Me- ¿No estás cansado?

F- I am 2% tired.

Do you know there is no such thing as magic? It's atoms!

Can I have a chocolate chip cookie?

Sure.

Like 19.

F Thoughts

 Was anybody alive when Papi had hair?

F to F- Papi, you have a TikTok issue. 

F- On Mondays and Tuesdays I will work construction and Fridays and Saturdays I will do heart surgery. On my days off I will watch the news to see if coronavirus is stopping. 

You can fix almost anything. You can fix sinks, a toilet clog, he can make a TV (points to F putting legs on TV), he can sell anything, he can drive anything, he can carry heavy things, he can fix electric city, he can fix paintings, best omelet cooker in the world.

I learned to play "Harry had a little lamb"

We Made It!

 No real time to accurately document all of the trials and tribulations that it took to make it here.. but we did it. Thanks to PA family, the IRREPLACABLE L, MIA family, NY family etc the kids are having a great summer while F and I work like MoFos (think driving UHAUL from MA to NY twice in 2.5 days, moving two HUGE loft beds during a hurricane downpour etc etc) to build a cozy home in front of a construction site on a lovely block in the middle of Harlem. It has been intense. If I get the last job that I applied for (fingers crossed), we will be on our way to a real life.

Here are some F quotes for your entertainment:

This am at CVS: You have to admit you are going to buy me that (toy) car, when I turn 7.

When looking at a toilet adjustment for toddlers: I do not need that because I have a big butt and I cannot lie.

When I am 14 can I please change my name to AY-TON?

V, in reference to I do not remember what: That is just for older people or people who have 5 kids:)

F, the Smart Ass

 Me- Stop it or you are going to get in trouble.

F- I love trouble!

A friend- I like your Italian (red, green, and white) pajamas.

F- They are not Italian, they are Mexican!

F- What does that sign say?

Me- Read it.

F- Mom Boss. Boss? I never knew you were a boss! You did not tell me!

 V to ?- You are so stupid.

Me- Do not say that.

V- Sorry. You are not so smart. 

F this am- What does respect mean?

A few minutes later- What does mature mean?

Ha ha

 J told F he could not watch tv, F said: Not my dad, sorry bud!

Coming to a Screeching Halt

 So fun to write an ENTIRE post and lose it. Super duper.

Anyway... I was writing about the END of our sojourn in MA. It has been a very strange parenthesis. I came here with a toddler, two second-graders, a sixth-grader, and an eighth-grader. I am leaving with kids who have been locked up for what will be 15 months. The toddler is now 5 and has a mohawk. He loves math and will be entering kindergarten. The duo will be in fifth grade. He has an earring and glasses. She has braces and glasses. They are both avid readers and incredible at backtalk. J will be in high school, broken fibula hopefully healed. M will have her swan song at camp and then dye her fire-red hair back to a natural color to enter her junior year. Things 1 and 2 will have to learn to navigate the subway, school work, and the city at large; the noise, the grime, the speed, the PEOPLE. I will drag the kids to old haunts and new; exposing them to all the city has to offer.  We will leave MA. I will not miss the expansive square footage we live in as most think. I will not miss the dearth of warmth, figurative and literal that envelops us on Drumlin Rd. I will miss our dear friends K and J terribly; they have been the very best of friends to us. I will miss my partner in crime at BC, C. I will miss the Newton public library. That is it. But I am forever grateful for this chapter. Enveloped in guilt, we survived the pandemic outside the city. I got to be a student in my 40s. I get an ACT II. I am grateful to F, the best partner I could ask for who has supported me logistically. emotionally, intellectually, and financially every step of the way. I am very nervous about starting a new career in health care during a pandemic with limited skills to boot. I am so excited to have the kids back in robust schools. Emotions are everywhere. But it is already May so we are approaching the three-year mark of our exodus from NY. We will be back before our 3 year anniversary. All I have to do now is pass my final exam, graduate, pass the boards, get rid of most of our belongings, find an apartment.. and move!

F Today

When L said it smelled like dog poo in the garden, by some dog poop: What do you expect? Magic? It is poo- it cannot smell like strawberries. 

When A would not let him sit in her usual spot at the table he complained: Did you pay for that spot? It is not yours!

She kindly responded that she would throw him down the stairs if he tried to take her spot. He retorted: I will throw you down a lion's throat!

F Lines

 Not only are my ninja moves diffiult, they are fun too!

After hearing the radio say - you know....-

I do not know anything about that, I only know math.

When he learned that L would not be sharing a room with him in NY: What will happen on Tuesdays (sleepover day)?

Today

 Me- Your breath stinks!

F: It is mixed with V's. 

This week...

 Me to A: Are you going to practice piano?

A: First I need to shove my breakfast down the hatch!

Me to A: What are you going to miss about living in Newton

A: Being able to walk down the street and not get kidnapped.

Me to F: What should we get L for her bday?

F: A microwave.

Me: Anything else?

F: A tv, hers is too small.

M: Any other ideas?

F: A bed, hers is too big.

Later when he say her gift bags: That does not look like you have a microwave or tv in there!

F: Can T(dog) babysit us one day?

F: When we play the game, we have the power to not suffocate!

F's Plans

When I am 18 I am going to get a septum piercing and blue and pink hair with a mohawk. And cobra tattoos everywhere. I am going to do push-ups every morning so I can be ripped! I hope that my hands and feet grow more. I am going to look so cool walking around. They won't see the mohawk because I will wear a helmet when I am building houses and I will have a mask so they won't see my septum piercing. I also want one eyebrow pierced. 

A Questions Curriculum

 From an email to her teacher:

Dear Mrs. Z,

Sorry to bother you but I was looking up I-ready to log in, and saw some surprising common questions that were asked about it. I am not a fan of I-Ready, but I do understand it is part of our 4th grade reading curriculum, so when I saw these questions I decided to dig deeper. It turns out the I-Ready diagnostic is not good for kids. In the files you will see below, the I-Ready diagnostic is, and I quote " A dehumanizing assessment that causes stress and is overall, useless with no benefits." "It is a big waste of time and does not teach anything to students."  I am curious to see if you have any thoughts on I-Ready.

Just wanted you to know.

Kindly, A

F's Inquiries

 When I told him he would have music in school next year, F: Is it jazz?

Me: No, I don't think so.

F: Is it smooth?

When I asked him what he wanted for breakfast, F: Oatmeal and yogur de tomar and perhaps some strawberries?

Inquiry

 F- Is M a woman?

F (sr)- She is a young woman.

F- Is mamá full woman?

F, The Sassy Student

L to F: Soy viejita, a veces se me olvidan las cosas.

F: Does your brain need a cane?

F to L: Can you not say that my break is 5 minutes? I always have 5-minute breaks.

L: ¿Cúantos minutos quieres? (Yes, she speaks only Spanish to him and he responds in English)

F: At least 7.

F on finances

Me to (big) F:  Our credit card is out of control, we spent X dollars on it. We need to slow down!

F: no, keep going, you are going to get rich soon!