Math Bowl vs. Birthday: Last week, the Math Bowl competition (why, yes, I am the proud parent of a mathlete!) was canceled due to snow. I didn’t get it at all. In fact, we went out to dinner that night 20 minutes away and didn’t have a problem at all. When my daughter called to tell me it was canceled, she was devastated to tell me that it had been rescheduled for my birthday! The disappointment in her voice was so nice to hear. She truly wanted me to have a better birthday than sitting at an academic competition. What she doesn’t get is there isn’t anywhere I’d rather be than watching my children do something (and excel—1st place in district, 8th place in state) they love.

Ice Skating vs. Broken Bones: It was a grand birthday overall, let me tell you. After the Math Bowl, after dinner, after the kids were in bed I managed to drop a cabinet door on my foot while putting away their toys. It hurt, but I went to bed. By morning it was bruised, but not too bad. By noon, after a busy day, it was all kinds of purple, swollen and hurting pretty good. I, of course, waited until the next day to call the doctor. She saw me, but couldn’t decide. Doc said I would be okay to wait the weekend if I wanted and come back for x-rays if it didn’t get better. Upon finding out that I would probably have to have “bone pictures” on Monday (I didn’t), Brenia yells “But I have ice skating class on Mondays!”

Pothole vs. Landscaping: My activist opportunity of the month came after several weeks of frustration over a huge pothole in our neighborhood. I spent a month playing the apathetic game, assuming the city already knew about it. It occurred to me that maybe all 50 families affected were assuming the same thing. I visited the city’s website and learned all about the Public Works Department’s partnership with INDOT. It went on and on about the landscaping in the median and new roads. I thought that was a bit much since they couldn’t manage to maintain the current ones. I emailed the Director of Public Works about the issue over the weekend. On Sunday night, I received a response thanking me for bringing it to their attention. He said he spent the afternoon driving the city and cataloged all potholes, giving the one I referenced a Priority 1. They filled it the next morning! The cynic in me figures it was already on the books, but the political side of me wants to believe I made a difference.

Next Up: Anyone want to place bets on the winner of Reading vs. Houseworks?