When is it time to go?

I'm sooooo not getting anything of consequence done today. Well, work-related, that is.

Louisiana has come knocking. They're the ones who approached me about the job at the conference. I've been back and forth with them today, making travel arrangements. They are paying airfare, car rental, hotel, and meals for me to go visit them for a day-long interview. I'm going shopping for interview outfits, to make me look the part of She Who Knows What She's Talking About. I mean, I *do* know what I'm talking about....I just have to make sure I look not only like an Expert, but also like the Expert They Want!

I just have to lose this chipmunk cheek in a few days. No, I don't mean hitting the gym! I've managed to come down with stones in my salivary gland. OUCH! Hydrocodone pills and lemon drops are my friends lately. Such bad timing. Go away, go away, go away....

So, I've found a nice realtor to show me around Baton Rouge for a day. The housing market looks doable for us. I just don't know anything about the city. What's where? What areas are family-friendly? And I'll say this flat-out, even though it isn't politically correct.... what areas of the city are *white* family-friendly?

I mean, let's be honest here. Some parts of a city that size are not receptive to those in the fairer spectrum of skin color. I need to know which schools are safest for my kids, who are about as fair-skinned and naive as they come. This move would be a MAJOR change for us. All things must be positive. If my kids end up threatened, not accepted because they are the wrong color, this will be a huge mistake for them.

Don't get me wrong here. I know some of you out there are saying, "Yeah, Blogget, we read between the lines here. You want a white neighborhood. You racist." Not so. I'm anything but a racist. I don't care what "race" the neighborhood is. My criteria are:

I want a safe neighborhood.
I want a house that isn't going to need a lot of upkeep (in other words, no money pits!).
I want schools that challenge my kids academically and prepare them for college, but also give them the extracurricular outlets they need.

I need to get to know Baton Rouge and how my family would fit into it. I might not be offered the job, but I like to be prepared. If you know anything about Baton Rouge, drop me a line!

And speaking of safe neighborhoods....my current one is becoming less so. I was out of town recently and my mother drove my car. I have two remotes for locking/unlocking. On cold mornings, I start the car with one key and depfrost the windows, but I lock it with the other key. No sense leaving a running, unlocked car in the driveway.

My mother doesn't think this way.

She left it unlocked and went back in the house for a moment. In that time, three things disappeared from my car. My sunglasses clip, the auxillary device cord, and -- this one hurts -- my motion-sensitive C3PO. He hollers things like "We're doomed!" when you accelerate and such. Nine different phrases. Absolutely hysterical. The theives ripped him off the dashboard Velcro and made off with my little 3PO, too. My mother feels awful. I'm lucky to have a car at all, I suppose.

They left behind my Minnie Mouse antenna ball, fluffy stuffed tiger, and bright green mirror nice. BF says that means it was a techie-dork guy who doesn't have a girlfriend.

This morning, I found a lottery ticket carefully folded and placed on our trailer in the driveway. Someone wants us to know they were there. Creepy.

Maybe it *is* time to move....