When we finally left the April weather behind last week, we had a lot of catching up to do. We had so much fun it’s hard to believe that there are so few photos to document it. That’s mostly because the best photos can’t be posted here since there are some under-21’s and over-70’s who read this blog and would either be curious or appalled about the goings-on.
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Last Thursday night, Karen and I went out to Naked Fish to celebrate our upcoming birthdays. During the meal I found out that Mah-Jong at Lana’s had been cancelled and everyone was heading to Samba. I couldn’t convince Karen to join me, but it’s been so long since the ladies cut loose at Samba that I just had to go. Why not?

Friday afternoon, Lana had invited the mommies to hang out at the pool. Because I was lucky enough to have an extra pair of hands at home and a company policy that allows us to take every other summer Friday afternoon off, I had several hours of mommy-time without having to feed, wipe, or yell at anyone. Sheer bliss.

Friday night we went to the weekly Concert on the Common, which almost didn’t happen this year because of the budget (or lack thereof). We saw all the usual peeps and it was a beautiful night. Michelle inspired me to find the foldable picnic tables I have around here somewhere, by dragging a big cooler, a giant Chinese feast, and a table for 4 to the concert.

Saturday night was the annual adults-only party at Lana & Larry’s, and they invited us to bring the kids over in the afternoon to burn off some steam in the pool. We jumped at the chance. The adults-only party was a lot of fun, thanks to great company, good food, plenty of vodka, instructional wall art in the pool cabana, and a giant inflatable penis pool floatie. I was having a perfectly normal conversation with Tara when she suddenly said, “Is that a penis?” Me: “Yes.” Tara (nodding like she knew it all along): “Hm.” Not shocking or even surprising at this point, but still a conversation starter. .

Here are some concert photos:

And a few from the adults-only pool party:

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When the lines between your personal and professional life are as blurry as mine are, you learn to take efficiency to new levels. I’m truly the queen of multi-tasking and I’m obsessed with using every spare second to get something done. I will literally put food in the microwave for 30 seconds and then look around to see what I can wipe down, sweep up, or scrape off in the time remaining before the beep. Honestly, if I’m not doing something, I fall asleep. That doesn’t mean that I’m ultra-organized and have my act together…it’s a constant struggle to deal with the bare minimum of what needs to be done. There are currently 98 items on my to-do list (work & personal combined). I’m serious.
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This summer, Adlani and Aliya are in Summer Scene in the morning, and Norah has classes at the Y. After lunch they head upstairs for a couple of hours of R&R (Rest & Reading) before Ben comes home between 3 and 3:30 and takes over. That leaves the hour between bus arrival and rest time for me to see what I can do simultaneously with making peanut butter sandwiches.

Most weeks I’m lucky enough to have an extra pair of hands during the day to help with them, but there have been random days that I was on my own and today was one of those days. When I picked Adlani and Aliya up at the bus stop, Norah was asleep in her car seat which allowed me to respond to all of my open emails and voice mails while I was waiting. I drove home and we all unloaded the mountains of crap that I was carrying around in my car.
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My car is always disgusting. The sad part is, it’s a company car. That means that it should be presentable enough to drive a coworker, customer, or visiting dignitary somewhere. Luckily I can often use the “I’ve got 3 car seats in the back” excuse, but I’m pretty sure I’d be fired if anyone actually looked in my car. The stuff that we unloaded today included 2 boxes of OLD (1990’s) Door & Hardware magazines, none of which had any of my articles in them. There were also 6 diapers and a changing pad, a game of Sturbridgopoly, a folding travel toilet (yet to be used), a butterfly net, 5 umbrellas & 2 raincoats, 5 lawn chairs and a picnic blanket/poncho, 4 ice scrapers, 3 packages of filters for a vacuum cleaner we threw away last year, and TONS of other stuff.
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After we got it all out of the car, we hit the drive-thru at Kelly’s and drove to Scrub-A-Dub. We went through the car wash and then turned the grossmobile over to 5 professional crumb removers and we sat outside and ate lunch. A half hour later, the car is done and so are we.
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A) I didn’t have to make lunch, listen to bickering, or clean up after lunch.
B) The kids think going through the car wash is a special treat.
C) IR pays for 2 car washes per month so I only have to pay for the balance ($20).
D) My car is now CLEAN! REALLY clean! There’s still special sauce on the ceiling and chocolate ice cream on the seat, but what the heck. In a few days it will look like we’ve never once been to Scrub-A-Dub but until then I like to just sit in the driveway and inhale the scent of carpet shampoo. Aaaahhhh.
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There were so many activities at the end of the school year that I got way behind on posting photos. The Absolute Finale was held at the Eagles All-American Grill because of the ongoing crappy weather. As an aside…the grill has decent food, decent prices, and a big basket of toys for the kids to choose from, but if you arrive with a group of 40 people you’ll have time for a 6-pack before dinner. I’m not complaining…just preparing you for the possibility.

The Absolutes had a great season and coaches Pam and Michelle worked so hard to get the team shaped up into a synchronized scoring squad. Unfortunately, most of the girls will be moving to the U10 league or to the travel team next season, leaving Aliya and Reece to fend for themselves until Spring 2010.

Great job Absolutes!!!

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I ran across an article in this morning’s Metrowest Daily News about Barbieri’s own Alana Lipkin:
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http://www.metrowestdailynews.com/news/x1733144707/Framingham-sharp-eyed-shopper-files-legislation-against-supermarkets.
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The article references a 2006 People Magazine article about Alana (below). As annoying as it would be to stand behind her in line at the customer service desk, I do think the stores should be held to their policies. I have spotted price discrepancies several times and if I’ve had the time to wait, I’ve gotten a refund. I’m sure I’ve missed many more incorrect prices than I’ve noticed, so I guess it’s a good thing I’ve got Alana watching my back.

Your Grocer’s Worst Nightmare
Alana Lipkin Has a Way to Get Groceries for Free—Now Some Stores Are Kicking Her Out

Attention, shoppers! The cat litter in aisle 3 is … free! Those handi wipes? On the house! Diapers, crayons, canned yams? Take ’em!

Just one catch—you have to have the eagle eyes of Alana Lipkin, the Tiger Woods of grocery shopping. A single mother of two from Framingham, Mass., Lipkin, 45, takes advantage of supermarket pricing guarantees—which stores in many states have—that entitle her to keep any mismarked item she finds. She regularly walks away with hundreds of dollars of free groceries (her record for a single trip is nearly $1,300). Lipkin simply hunts for discrepancies between the price on items and the price on shelves and says her shopping savvy helps all consumers by holding stores accountable for sloppy pricing. “The average Joe is getting ripped off,” she says, “and chances are he doesn’t know.”

Stop & Shop and Shaw’s, Massachusetts’s two biggest grocery chains, have banned Lipkin, saying she exploits guarantees designed to prevent blatant overpricing. “She’s manipulating circumstances to take unfair advantage,” says Stop & Shop spokeswoman Faith Weiner, who claims Lipkin creates delays by having cashiers price items she doesn’t intend to buy. Lipkin says that instead of fixing the problem—which would stop her—”they chose the easy way out.”

On a recent shopping trip, Lipkin found a 40-lb. bag of dog food marked $9.69; the shelf price was $9.59. Because the store had posted a guarantee that mispriced items are free, the bag was hers. After three hours Lipkin checked out with 47 items worth nearly $300, plus a dollar for each error, per store policy. Lipkin keeps about a third of her haul, giving away and bartering the rest.

So is she a hero? Or just one of those people you always get behind in line? Lipkin insists she’s helping stores by doing what their employees should be doing—finding mistakes. “They don’t even have to pay me benefits,” she says, “and I’m probably more thorough.”

http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20060846,00.html
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