Frugal Failure

Last week I was doing errands in the afternoon and I wanted to stop by this used clothing store by my house. My inlaws were watching Lyra and I'd had them park in our spot since the snow makes parking extremely challenging here. So I parked at a meter and went into the store. I proudly scored a pair of jeans for $12 and left to find I'd missed the meter by several minutes and got a $25 parking ticket.

Saturday I found two used pairs of pants for Lyra for $4.50, then walked by a futon store where all the people who work there had pooled all their kids stuff into a big room. I bought her a big bag full of toys and a pair of overalls and more for $5. Later I was an usher at a benefit concert at the Somerville Theater. This allowed me to meet new people as well as to see Faces on Film, The Neighborhoods, and Mission of Burma all for free. Until I got back to the car. The meters in that lot apparently go until 8pm, not 6pm. $20.

Yesterday I drove my used car that has served me well for many miles and years now, and the key just wouldn't come out of the car at all. We tried every kind of wiggling and jiggling, silicone spray, etc. New ignition: $300.

Sigh.

Lyra's Word World

Lyra has been in her nap talking on her way to sleep. She started yelling her own name, which I've never heard her do there, so I started trying to type what she was saying. She has the book Goodnight Moon in the crib with her. "Emmy, Caru, Mama, Leeli" are friends of hers. "boocoo!" is what peekaboo sounds like to her. I think Nicky is the name of a boy in another book near her crib. This is what I got:

mommy fish mommy boy? no boy? Lee-RAH Lee-RAH! ducks? veemaga wa. Lee-RAH way-bye. Warooah. Mommy? phone? mommy? Nap. Weeohrah. No boy. Mommy? Bo? oh ow oh. Emmy! Caru! Mama! Leeli! Moon! Moon! Down. (laughing) boop boop boo. Moon? Ay moon. Bah? ba ba. baby? ring. rah. Nah. no. Num Nap! nap! nap? no. nap. wee whoa ah, wee wewe wee oh wee! wee! wee! om WEE! WEE! bash, bash. Voooo, Gooo, voooo, mommy. Oh mommy okay. No? okay. Moon? veee? moon. moon? Moo moo moon. No. Nicky. Ball. Ball? Ball. Wash? whoa, going? weep weep, ducks. wwwww-why. ducks? www-why doi doi whooo- ly, LEERAH, mommy, LEERAH LEERAH! Ah ah moo moo. Meee, up! Mee up! Buk. Bux. Caru? Mama? shu shu mee ma. lada. Whoo woo! Open! Shut! Mowey? No go. Off. Biff? no. wok wok wok. wok wok. WOK! Beep beep. Moon. Boocoo! Knock knock.

(some of the repetitions must be imagined in various pitches.)


We had lunch together after music class and she said "baby!?" when a baby meeped somewhere in the restaurant. I said "oh, did you hear a baby?" She nodded emphatically. "Mommy! baby look?" she asked, and so we went and looked at the baby. She's getting pretty close to sentences.