garbage and gardens and parties and more

I could write about this--what it's like to have people use our neighborhood as a dumping ground. I could also write about the community garden we're starting just down the block. I could write about the party we had on Friday to entice people into living here. And I could write about how unlikely it is, given the economy, racism and classism, that people will actually buy into our neighborhood anytime soon.

I probably should write about those topics, but I'm not going to today.

Today I'm celebrating (with a cup of tension tamer tea) that Julia is taking a nap. She's been on a nap boycott, and nothing pushes me to the brink more easily than an afternoon without naps. I become an irrational beast. I would like to say that I go with the flow, but no, I don't or can't or won't. I will waste an entire hour or more trying to get my kid to nap. The ways in which that time could be spent are innumerable. And yet, today, there I was again coaxing a nap, ever so slowly, out of my girl. It took me 45 minutes, but here I am, triumphant.

With Julia down, I'm on to my next waiting game. I need Craig to spell me for a half hour, so I can drive to the Board of Education to find out whether or not Grace was accepted into the magnet Kindergarten. We can find no instances where a child from our neighborhood was denied entrance, however the school makes no guarantee. This brings me to another topic. I could write about the value of public education, but truth be told, if Grace is not accepted into Alex II, we will be sending her to a private Kindergarten.

And now feel free to hit me about the head with a paddle labeled "classist".

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3:01 pm

Big smile and a skip in my step. She's in.