Bodies World and Date Night

***WARNING: Long post, no pictures. None were allowed in the exhibit, but if I would have taken my camera, I would totally have taken a picture of the $2.99 gas downtown like the lady next to us in traffic did! Under $3 is AWESOME. ***


We finally went to the Bodies World Exhibit last night. Thanks to my mom, the gracious and patient babysitter, we got to extend it a little and go out to a grown up dinner afterward.

The exhibit was really interesting. Alan said his favorite part was explaining things to me and watching me go "Oh! That makes sense!". He taught me what they do when they intubate someone, and where they cut for a surgical crike (I have no idea how to spell it or what the full term is).

I think my favorite part was the guy bent in kind of a triangle. His legs looked like he was trying to do the splits, and then they had removed his organs and put them all in his hand so you could see what the whole bundle looks like. I didn't know the top of our lungs sit so high; I knew a little about how it all fit together, but I learned lots more about it. I also didn't know our kidneys sat so high up.

I told Alan my least favorite part was all the slides and cross-sections. They were very hard for me to get a good, understanding visual on. He said that was what made it hard to read CT scans. I can totally see how that would be a problem!

The section on the physical repercussions of smoking was more than sobering. I have to admit, even though I've seen it all before and I have always been a dedicated non-smoker, it makes me wish my loved ones didn't smoke. They have a set of smoker's lungs, a set of lungs ravaged by emphesema, and a set of lungs full of cancer. There is also a slide of a foot with arteriosclerosis, which smokers are more prone to experience. Overall, that part was really nasty and I'm so glad I don't do that!

I got to see a knee, how the joints and tendons and bone all fit together, and what it looks like when something goes wrong. I have a better mental picture of the struggle my friend Ashlee is having with her knees, and I know what they will do if she has to undergo a total knee replacement.

I learned that all the Bodies World exhibits have a different focus. There are three or four out there making the rounds, and this particular one focuses on the heart. I had no idea that athlete's hearts are larger; I didn't know exactly how the stent my uncle got last year works; I didn't fully understand the LVAD (left ventricular assist device), even though we had to take a class on them at work in case we take any medical calls where one is firing. I could go on. I really learned how my family's history of heart disease affects the physical structure of my heart. I learned what most likely happened when a second uncle (not the uncle with a stent) died very suddenly last year. As opposed to having Alan explain it or draw a diagram (seriously--he always does that. He's good at it, but there's nothing like the 3-D sight of an actual heart), actually seeing it helped me understand a lot more. I'd like to say it will inspire me to take better care of myself, but I don't know on that one yet.

Overall, I would recommend it to anyone who is interested in going. At $22 a ticket (there are coupons around for $2 off, but if you order tickets online, they charge a $2.50 convenience fee), I would say don't go unless you're at least vaguely interested. There is nothing disgusting about any of it. I understand the controversy on the section that shows what an embryo/baby looks like from conception on through. However, I think it's just people trying to find an excuse not to go. It's true, the adults that donated their bodies had a choice; I am seriously doubting any of the parents who have donated their babies bodies to this had an abortion to do it, and they were the mouthpiece for their child, who unfortunately didn't survive. To the people who are loud and proud about not going because they don't want to see that, I would say this: get over yourself. That's a lame, sheltered excuse not to go. That part made me a little sad, as it does whenever I hear about a friend who has suffered a miscarriage or a child who didn't survive for whatever reason. But the bottom line is that none of us get out alive; unless you have a personal experience that would make the exhibit difficult to view, what you could gain will be far more important than what you are avoiding.

So, removing myself from the soapbox, and continuing... we had a great dinner afterward at Market Street Grill. We had each only been there once, several years ago, and we had a lot of fun. We were both adventurous. Alan tried sturgeon (which was really good, by the way. It's way sturdier than your typical fish as opposed to being flaky, and it had a really mild flavor that was well-complimented by the sauce it was served with), and I tried their signature dessert called sabayon. It was basically whipped cream and berries over vanilla ice cream and a sabayon sauce. I can't remember exactly what was in the sauce, but it had a light citrus flavor to it and was very good. I haven't had dessert or a treat since last Friday in anticipation of gorging myself on chocolate fondue. (We had been planning to go to The Melting Pot and their wait was too long--I didn't make a reservation because I didn't know how long we would be in the exhibit). I must be getting a little healthier, because by the time dessert came around at Market Street, most of what I ate was the berries, and a little of the ice cream and sauce.

It was good to get out for a while and feel like an actual couple again, instead of just overworked parents or passerby in the same house. This was the first day we've had off together since the beginning of October (the 5th to be exact, when we went to the hockey game), and I would say it was a day well spent. Thanks, mom, for getting sassed around by Mason for a few hours so we could go play!

Lockdown

I'm not sure I've mentioned this, but one of Mason's new favorite things is to go out in the back yard and play with the dogs. Our back yard is fenced, so it isn't such a big deal to let him out there when windows are open and we can hear him all the time. It's kind of nice that my four years of hard work with puppies and the baby are paying off in that they can entertain each other for a bit while I do dishes or whatever else I'm working on. I don't dare go much further than the kitchen, though because he also wants to get dog toys out of uncovered window wells (an idea only perpetuated by his dad).




Well, there is a downside to his new independence. He can open the front and back door and let himself in and out. He usually chooses times to do this when it isn't a good idea--when the resident grown up is in the bathroom or while it's raining outside. I can't count the number of times in the last couple of weeks I've been upstairs doing housework when I hear the front door or back door pop open and Mason helps himself to a dose of freedom.



All manner of discipline has not been enough to keep my outside-lovin' kid from opening the doors on a whim. The top of my fridge is full of toys, movies have been revoked and treats denied. So we finally resorted to lockdown. The more I think about it, I'm kind of impressed we made it this long without this.

Back Door

Front Door

Tag: Six Compulsions

So, Shani tagged me. If I tag you at the end, thank her for this. I left you the link to her blog so you can do exactly that. I'm sure she won't mind some snark. Her post about Halloween sucking made me happy. I'm glad I'm not the only one who feels that way! (And Shani, just for your peace of mind-- this is the first year Mason will be going trick-or-treating. He's wearing the same monkey costume I bought last year. I'm that cheap and I hate Halloween, but it's only fair that he gets candy for wearing his "monkey sweats". I'm screwed next year when I try to come up with a clearance costume again, because my luck falls on the side that says it won't be the right size or won't get here in time, and I refuse to pay full price for a holiday I think is pointless. I hope Amber doesn't disown me for saying any of this.)

Anyway, this tag is simply to list six of my "OCD tendancies". I had a bank customer once who's daughter was diagnosed with OCD, and he said he disliked how people used the term for their compulsions because, at the age of seven, OCD was actually taking over her life. So because I try not to use that term, I changed it. This may be #6 if I can't think of something else.



1. As I have previously posted, if I am under a blanket, it must be arranged just so. I cannot have the end with a tag by my face. I literally can't sleep with it that way. I also can't rest comfortably if it is improperly folded or if the edge isn't pulled up under my chin.



2. My husband's eyebrows must stay groomed. I literally will not look at him if he's messed them up just to mess with me.



3. Stuff has to be straight. By stuff, I mean pictures, both on the wall or placed on a table or our dresser; Alan usually doesn't need a level when he hangs something. I will make sure it is straight. The kitchen table legs must to line up with the lines on our linoleum. I had a specific place for everything down to the paperclip holder on my desk at the bank. Even paper left on my desk had to be stacked and placed perpendicular to everything else. If the stack wasn't tidy, I would have to fix it. Staples must be placed in the corner, long side to the short side of the page. The paper stack must be perfectly neat before I staple it. (I was no good with office work, and have learned to let most of this go since now there's virtually no chance I will sit at the same desk two shifts in a row). Towels must be folded corner to corner. This continues with virtually everything in my life. Don't laugh at me when you get your Christmas card. I make them, and don't even get me started on how they have to line up when I fold them... honestly, I could go on for at least another paragraph this size. I'm neurotic.



4. Doors that are supposed to be shut must be shut. Part of this is mom mode, but if you want me to kill you, leave a cabinet open after you get a glass out of it. I'm not joking.



5. As I have also posted before, I must put items away as I'm finished with them when I'm cooking. This is at its worst when I'm baking. By the time the cookies are ready to be shaped, every ingredient is put back in the cupboard or fridge. Afterward, see #4. By the time the cookies are baked, the dishes I used are washed. This also goes for the beginning of the cooking process. I will totally bleach down my kitchen before I cook something, especially treats for someone else. Unfortunately, this high degree of motivation does not necessarily apply to the rest of my house or the other instances I'm in the kitchen.



6. I LOVE Ziploc bags. (Jill, my Lia Sophia lady, has talked me out of using them as a jewelry box.) I use them for open baking products, open cheese, basically anything in the fridge that has been opened and replaced for multiple uses, everything we ever pack (even to go camping), etc. This could actually be expanded to include almost all bags. I usually don't wrap gifts, I purchase a bag (and heaven help me if the tissue paper isn't straight, see #3). And can I tell you how much I am loving the 'go green' bags from the grocery store? They are currently holding anything in my house from retired sippy cups to the items I take to work to the tulips I so desperately need to plant before the first real freeze.



So, I tag any of my fellow weirdos who are willing to participate. I haven't had great success with naming specific names in tags, so I'm not going to willingly obligate anyone else to it. Except maybe Nicol. You're it!

Boredom

Get your own Family Sticker Maker.

I think these are lame on car windows, but I didn't have anything more exciting to post. I've been totally absent in the picture-taking department and we've been fairly devoid of exciting activity. But I will be back later to post a tag.

52 Weeks to a 96 Hour Kit

I had a couple of people ask me to compile this stuff into one document for their perusing pleasure, and it's done. That's probably a good thing since I've apparently given up on posting it for now. I fully intend to finish posting it, I just haven't had much time to keep up with it. So if you would like a copy of what I've put together and you hadn't already asked for it, please email me at twoandthreebees at gmail dot com and I will send it your way.

A Daily Exchange

Dad: Mason, what does a crocodile say?

Mason: Snap (giggle). Snap that monkey right outta the tree!

Dad (to mom): What?

Mom: It's a song. You know, three little monkeys swinging in a tree... along comes the crocodile, quiet as can be... the first monkey says "You can't catch me!".. and SNAP that monkey right outta the tree.

Dad: Well that's morbid.

Mom: (shrug) Hey, the last monkey lives. What are you gonna do?