Just have to share this one

I love love love to hear Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah". Lots of stars and groups have covered the tune: Rufus Wainright, an acapella group from MSU, KD Lang, John Bon Jovi. Its kind of hard not to sing the song well, it's so full of emotion. But I've got to tell you, this version by 4 very famous Norwegian pop singers has moved me to tears. Wonderful, just wonderful.

101 Things in 1001 Days

The Mission: Complete 101 preset tasks in a period of 1001 days.

The Criteria: Tasks must be specific (ie. no ambiguity in the wording) with a result that is either measurable or clearly defined. Tasks must also be realistic and stretching (ie. represent some amount of work on my part).

Am I up to the 101 Things in 1001 Days challenge? Hmmm... I love a good challenge, and this one is a doozy. I'll have to think hard about my list, though.

I can't claim credit for this idea - it came from this site, but it's a great idea, isn't it?

If I start on this list today, my ending date will be June 11, 2010. That seems like a long way off, but you know, just yesterday it seemed like I was coming home from the hospital with my son, and he's nearly four now. Like the commercials say, life comes at you fast.

If you'd like to do the challenge on your own, here's how I calculated my date. I'll post my list as soon as I come up with it.

And to end the week on a high note

A group of bullies at a high school decided to pick on a new kid because he wore a pink shirt. They called him "gay" and threatened him with a beating. Word got around, and the next day, two seniors bought a buttload of pink shirts and handed them out to half the student population. Read the story here.

And you thought this stuff only happened in the movies....

Swirling

The child psychologist from Tony's special ed school just called. She wanted to discuss Tony's breakthroughs, and some of what she and the teachers have been observing. We're coming up on 6 months since he started there, and it's time for Tony's first official in-depth evaluation. The big one, since they've had a chance to really get to know him.

She also gave me her recommendations and insights, and asked me for permission to do another full diagnostic session on Tony. I said "Of course" and then I asked why. Is this common? Yes, it is, but there's more. She wants a confirmation on a preliminary diagnosis. Then she said the word.

Autism. They think Tony is autistic. Yes, he's made progress, but there are still too many red flags. The full diagnostic would include a speech therapist, who could sort out basic communication issues due to speech delay from the other issues he's presenting.

I knew this was probably coming, but still, it's hard to hear.

Have you met my daughter, the kid?

My daughter doesn't quite fit in. A lot of her friends are too busy trying to be fifteen instead of six. They like dancing to hip hop or High School Musical while duplicating Fergie's latest moves, they worry about their hair, they're all clothing and shoe freaks. Bella could care less about all that for now (thank goodness - it saves me a fortune). I'm sure that it'll turn with a vengeance eventually, but right now, she just seems to enjoy being a kid. She'll be packing her backpack with a water bottle, pirate map, stuffed animal, six marbles and a plastic stethescope to go on an adventure, and her friends are next door practicing on a "runway" in the backyard with full makeup and loads of bling.

So she likes being a kid. Revels in it, even. I think that's wonderful. There's plenty of time to be a hottie and worry about impressing the world. Why bring that on yourself before you have to?