<p>PRJ – Glad you’re on this side of the surgery and mending!</p>
<p>Water leaks: there was the time our D came into our office and said, “I suppose you know the wall in the family room is all puffy.” No, actually, we DIDN’T know that!</p>
<p>Apples: we often sent fruit to our older D at college – apples, citrus (yes, from our trees) in the winter, but also pears from Harry & David. They got fruit in the dining hall but it was usually pretty mediocre.</p>
<p>Conversation: a little bit of post-euphoria crash? We’re getting more longish Skype calls, and text messages from the library. A big week of tests coming up; she was always relatively obsessive in preparing for tests, so I’m not worried, but who’s going to bring her cinnamon toast and tea?</p>
<p>I have been reading these posts for a while–it helps me put into context all that I and my D have been experiencing—since I wasn’t in on the conversation early on, I have just decided to remain a lurker. But this snippet from Everybody Loves Raymond had me laughing so hard (amazing that it’s so funny even in print—but I guess it’s because I can so easily conjure up the various characters saying these lines) that I just had to come out from behind the curtain and say thank you.</p>
<p>Welcome momiac, thanks for posting. Yeah, I could just hear Marie saying “pa-ehs” everytime someone would post about sending their kid pears. </p>
<p>I think the scene is so funny because we all seem to have someone in our lives who criticizes our gifts. With me it’s the inlaws…they feel compelled to tell us whenever they return our gifts (and it’s most of them) or that the flowers we sent didn’t look fresh or that the tin of popcorn tasted terrible. Husband is now required to be 100% responsible for gifts for his parents…then I can just think of Frank and Marie and laugh at their complaints instead of being ticked off by them.</p>
<p>missypie, are you sure you’re not married to one of my husband’s brothers? This sounds suspiciously like my MIL. Since it became husband’s responsibility to purchase gifts, he ended the complaints about gifts by not sending any more! </p>
<p>I don’t know about the rest of you, but I am feeling much more relaxed. D had a difficult first week at school but has found her niche and a good core group of folks with similar interests. At times I feel like I should be more concerned and I guess I do worry about some things- like is she remembering to check the class websites for assignments, and confirming grades are entered correctly, but have mostly restrained myself from reminding (okay nagging) her to do these things. Son’s second year seems to be starting off far better and yet I wonder- dare I relax? Things seem too good to be true!</p>
<p>Enjoying the thread on fruit. I sent fruit to S (apples) once. What a pain it was for the apple orchard here. Just not used to doing this I guess. Took several weeks before he received his apples. They weren’t in shipping the entire time just the orchard didn’t send them for several weeks. Still not sure why but I could only find the one orchard around us that would ship apples.</p>
<p>D hasn’t asked for anything to eat. I have sent a couple of care packages but I don’t even know if any of the food has been opened yet. Seems like the desserts at school are good. She told us last night that most of them have several desserts at dinner plus ice cream. Glad she is working out or that freshman 15 would be closer to 30 and on her tiny frame it wouldn’t look very good.</p>
<p>The only part of the food Son had complained about is the desserts (how much canned pudding can one eat?)…Sounds like that’s kind of a good thing. I don’t think it’s really dawned on Son how much freedom he really does have…at some point he’s going to realize that, having a car, some cash and a grocery store about 10 blocks away means that he could have Double Stuf Oreos on hand at all times.</p>
<p>I think the food where D is is really fairly good. She is picky and told us last night she had pot roast, boiled red potatoes, corn, and then several desserts. She said everything was good. I don’t think she is eating between meals like she would at home and she is working out with the team (although not competing yet because of an injury) so hopefully her clothes will continue to fit.</p>
<p>S when he comes home he gains weight and loses once he goes back to school. I swear his weight can very between 25 lbs depending on where he is for any length of time.</p>
<p>Missy… you completely crack me up. Where did you find the script? Too funny. I loved that episode as it came just when my husband was thinking fruit of the month would be a good idea to give his parents. Saved us a boatload of complaints AND money!! Inlaws sent us a cookie of the month thing for about six months a couple of years ago. Only problem was they sent a dozen incredible cookies every month and there were five people in our family. Almost made those last two cookies the most fought over thing in the house!</p>
<p>So there is now a NEW spot on the ceiling… cant figure out if it’s an “after shock” of some kind of if there isn’t another leak. Going to watch it for a day or so before calling anyone unless it seems to get worse. It has to dry out regardless before any fixing can get done, but it sure is ugly looking!!</p>
<p>Older D got skype and so I talked to her today via that. It was GREAT to see her, but I never really thought about the forethought that this new technology was going to mean for me! Who’d have thought one might appreciate a comb before picking up the phone! (and seriously, it’s more like “who’d have though a shower…”</p>
<p>My son’s biggest complaint about college food is that since the food service has gone trayless, he has to make multiple trips to serving lines to fill his bottomless stomach. Otherwise, he says the food is ok. He complains that it is repetitive, but I think it’s because he and his friends tend to sit in one area and they are too lazy to go over to the more distant serving stations with other options…so it’s their own fault. He did say the grapes and plums last week were really good…he took some back to his room.</p>
<p>I think trayless was smart. I bet there is a lot less wasted food. my D complains that she sees the food she wants, but they won’t serve it until exactly 11. She isn’t a “breakfast food” person. Told her to bring gifts to the servers, chat with them, find out about thier kids, and maybe that friendship will lead to getting the sandwich at 1145. But be genuine about it!!!</p>
<p>You know, once to start painting a piece of furniture, or change the curtains, you can’t stop. Its like the winchester mystery house. If I stop, I will die I guess. Drving husband crazy. He sees me with paint and just cringes. I am not a great painter.</p>
<p>Oh, and D texted me that “life is good”. Makes it all worth it.</p>
<p>Next week I start at the museum doing docent training!! And volunteering at a dog rescue place. Exercise and unconditional love</p>
<p>“Meh” might be about what my D would say about the food – sometimes good, sometimes not so good, and the attempts at “ethnic cuisine” (Asian, Mexican, whatever) not very convincing. </p>
<p>She did report that one of the late night snacks (available twice a week at 10 pm) of hot subs was really yummy.</p>
<p>I’m kind of against the trayless system (that’s what they have at Son’s school, too.) My theory is that it discourages kids from getting an entree and going through the salad bar…or maybe that would just be me…</p>
<p>Food is going to be a much bigger issue when we’re looking at schools for D…she’s so picky.</p>
<p>Missypie my D is very picky as well. That was one thing that we really did look at when we were looking at schools that I was interested in and she could care less. That being said I knew that she needed a place with choices for meals so if she didn’t like the main entree there was always something else. So far so good. She seems to always find something she’ll eat - or at least that is what she is telling us.</p>
<p>Missypie, that’s the gist of my son’s complaint. It’s just not possible to carry a main dish, a salad, a beverage etc w/o a tray. Not to mention getting silverware. He and friends have tried to do communal/family style ( for example, one got a ton of salad and some bowls, one got a heap of fried chicken, one got several slices of pizza, one got beverages) so that each had to go to only one station and stand in line only once, but they got in trouble with the “authorities.”</p>
<p>My son says the food is OK. The only problem from his perspective as the bottomless pit is that they close dinner at 7:30 (or 7). No chance for that second dinner. They do have trays – otherwise they would have to make several trips just to have the first dinner. Wouldn’t this create lots of extra traffic in the portals between serving and eating areas?</p>