A few random thoughts as we enter the weekend...

First, the gripes.

Don Imus: Shut up, already, dude. Seriously. And why has this become such a huge debate topic? He wasn't fired due to censorship - and even if he was, public airways are federally regulated and therefore subject to censorship, whether we like it or not. Otherwise, Janet Jackson's cervix would've been pressed up against your television screen at the Master's golf tournament. Imus was fired due to financial pressure on the part of advertisers who didn't want to be associated with someone who, after 35 years in broadcasting, hasn't figured out that there are certain words and phrases that white people can't say without causing offense. This was not a learning opportunity for him; he already knew better, and just chose to ignore what he already knew. We all know he'll be rehired somewhere else plenty soon. And I still won't listen to him even then.

New England Weather: I have had enough of this. This is ridiculous. I can't even go home to my sister's 16th birthday party this weekend because of the combination of two storms, one due to hit NY on Saturday night so I won't be able to head home early on Sunday, and one due to hit here late Sunday so I won't be able to wait until later to drive home. The kids are going to be out-of-their-minds disappointed, Willem's going to be cranky because he was looking forward to a weekend of watching hockey playoffs uninterrupted, and I'm officially freaking out about our utter lack of plans for Paris, which oh-by-the-way is in FOUR WEEKS.

Softball Organizers: Thank you, thank you, thank you. I was concerned, given my need to be a supportive and cheery parent, that I would not be able to find a way to satisfactorily weild sarcasm around the activity. But by having my daughter's team-to-be sponsored by the H Poultry Company, my needs for positive reinforcement and for rampant teasing will be equally met. Goooooooo, Chickens!

Emergency Department Doctors: You don't have to like the patients. That's okay. You don't even have to be especially nice to them; minimal professionalism would be fine. But referring to a patient as "the big useless lump" does not fall into my definition of professionalism. Ya think that, maybe, just maybe, if someone is already in the emergency room, that perhaps hearing themselves referred to as "just another waste of my time" might not be therapeutic? And I guarantee that the 400-pound 20-year-old is already quite aware of her relative size without you mentioning her "unreasonable and insane obesity." I don't need you to make my job easier, but would not pushing my clients over the edge be a reasonable request?

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In happier news, a million congratulations going out to Mike and Maria (and Peter) for the arrival of Alice, and to Brendan and Sara (and Harrison) for the arrival of Emma!

And nooooooo, you all with your new babies, that doesn't make my uterus ache in the very least little bit... Not at all...

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And in an assault of cuteness - because, let's be honest, for a mommyblogger I really don't throw around all that much child-related cuteness here - I love my Jacob. Last night, when I was calling for pizza, Jacob was looking at the facing page in the phone book, which has a large blue wildcat pawprint on it. He said, "A clue! A clue!"

I asked, "What is the clue for?"

He said, "It's a clue to get me a pizza!"

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And because I can't have one cute kid without another, I was having a talk with Emily about how she needs to ask more of her friends at school whether they'll be attending her birthday party. Apparently, RSVP'ing is totally not-cool in New Hampshire. "We've only gotten like two responses," I told her.

"Yeah, but Rebecca called six times in one night last week. That should make up for some of the others," she said. And there's just something cool about your kid reaching an age when they are deliberately sarcastic instead of merely unintentionally funny.