So I’m supposed to be volunteering at the Extreme Makeover set. Midnight to six am.

Clearly, I’m not there.

However they have promised me a choice shift tomorrow at the house for the reveal! (I realize a promise at this point isn’t worth a damn thing, but the potential is pretty exciting for me!)

So, hopefully, twelve hours from now I’ll be on the site when the Frisch family first sees their new home. God willing and all that.

Who knows, maybe you’ll see me on TV in a few weeks. I’ll be the tall one in the blue shirt oogling the guys in turnout gear.

Just kidding.

Okay, not really.

Honestly, I’m just excited to be able to help.

I’m sure that most of you are familiar with Crzegrl/Emily.

I’ve never made it a secret that I’m in awe of her.

This 9/11 video post is just… Well, I’ve watched it twice and I still can’t find words that adequately describe how I feel.

To everyone who puts on a uniform, from the bottom of my heart, thank you.

I think I’ve mentioned (a few times maybe) that Extreme Makeover Home Edition has come to Toledo.

Maybe once or twice. Or three times. Who knows. I’m a fan… What can I say?

I am set to volunteer on Saturday night into Sunday morning (the big reveal is shortly after my shift ends on Sunday… BONUS!). I was supposed to work last night but I was sicker than a damn dog. Rather than show up green I bowed out gracefully. *sigh*

So… This late afternoon – early evening we ventured out to the Extreme site.

Keep in mind that it’s only day two.

We were greeted with this:

An hour long wait for the bus that takes you to the neighborhood the house is in. Good God that’s a mouthful. The kids hung in there and I was impressed. I should have seen the crowd and realized I was in over my head. But no. Not me. More on that in a bit.

When you step off of the bus you’re greeted with this blanket release. Basically anything you do or say can be recorded and used on the show. Or any other show. So don’t do anything you wouldn’t want your Mother to see you do on National TV. At this point I decided that it would be *bad* to rip my shirt off in Ty’s presence. No Epi Gone Wild moments today.

You have to think about the kiddies you know.

ISOH/Impact is collecting donations for disaster relief. I believe the donations are heading to Haitian children affected by the recent hurricane devastation. The family that the house is being built for has adopted five children from Haiti and three from Toledo. The donations have overwhelmed the organization… Several PODS units have been packed to capacity. They were turning donations away tonight when we left.

We managed to catch a local news reporter delivering a live report from the site. Since my Step Dad is the Chief Photographer for the same station and both of my kids have been on the news more than once, they were less than impressed.

Here’s where things got very interesting. I don’t have any pictures that can convey what this neighborhood has been transformed into. Picture this. You live on a nice little street in a middle class neighborhood. On a typical day there are kids playing everywhere, the noise of traffic is audible but still a distance away.

Compare that to this. Your normally fairly quiet neighborhood is overrun by THOUSANDS of people. A queue line is set up with metal gates, people are trampling your yard, standing in your driveway, taking pictures of your neighbors house. Cement trucks, construction crews and random people stroll around. Flood lights blanket your house at ungodly hours. The quiet is gone. Your normally peaceful nights are replaced with the constant sound of trucks, folks laughing and talking, and the sound of hammers pounding nails.

I love the idea behind this show, I really do. But at the same time, I’d probably elect to spend the week at a friend’s house. Either that or I’d charge folks to stand on my formerly green lawn.

This is as close as we got the the actual house. It’s hard to believe that a little more than a day ago there was another home standing here.

If you look really hard (and squint your eyes and stick your tongue out and point north), you’ll see a white splotch within the white circle I so skillfully drew in photoshop. That splotch belongs to the hardhat worn by none other than Paulie. This guy:

It took us an hour to make our way up to within twenty feet of the fence they had set up. Rather than scar my kids for life (the crowd was kind of intense, as someone who is a veteran of some crazy concerts where I sat general admission, I’m willing to admit that) we hung out for a few minutes and headed back in the general direction of the bus. At one point I lost Future Cardiologist and just about lost my mind in addition. He was two feet in front of me. In front of a 400 lb woman on a hoverround holding a “Marry Me Ty” sign. We retreated to the relative calm of yet another line. This time to catch the bus that would shuttle us back to the parking lot where we could finally sit.

We chilled out. Which is good because I was ready to die at this point. Feeling like crap and dealing with large crowds do NOT mix. Don’t let the smile fool ya.

We ran into a friend from my former employer. She was taking her kiddies to see the site. I tried to express to her how insane the scene was that way, but she didn’t seem to notice. I didn’t want to spoil the fun for her girls.

Thank GOD we retreated when we did. I can only assume that the crowds will just be getting worse as the time goes on.

In all, it rocked.

A few things going on in this poorly framed and blurry shot. One, I am wearing an Ohio State sweatshirt, which means that hell has actually frozen over. Two, I’m racing cows on the Wii and losing to my three year old.

Extreme Makeover Home Edition is in town this week… I’m volunteering. (I *might* have mentioned that before, just copy and pasting what I have as the caption on the envisage blog.)

At Your Cervix: Quote of the day

I don’t know who said it originally, but a brilliant quote from At Your Cervix (which may be the best blog name EVER).

I’m afraid that I’m a little too freaked out to word this eloquently (like I’ve ever been eloquent in the past)…

Future Cardiologist has to be to school by 0815. The Little Girl does not take kindly to this as she has to go with me to take him and she’s not typically awake until nine. So needless to say I was juggling one boy who didn’t want to go with one girl who was crying and in general just being a pain in the backside.

And I hadn’t had my coffee yet. *sigh*

I drag them out to the car. She Who Rules’s bedroom window faces the driveway. I notice immediately that her screen is pushed up and her window is open.

My first thought: What the HELL?
My second thought: Oh my GOD someone tried to break in. HER room. My THREE YEAR OLD’S room.

Instant panic.

My third thought: Thank God that A) She was in bed with me again and not in her room and B) the secondary window locks were set, so her window only went up four inches. It’s little consolation.

I’m going to go cry now. And probably check to make sure that all of my windows are secure.

A text just came through from a former coworker.

Spanky: “Hey, I just took someone to St. Money Bags because her pimple wouldn’t stop bleeding. INSTANTLY thought of you.”

Wonderful. Thank you, Spanky. I really appreciate that. :)

If you aren’t familiar with TOTWTYTR, you really should head over and check him out. This post is brilliant.

Too Old To Work, Too Young to Retire: The Lesser Known Relative

You finish the first part of the sentence in red with your own unique response.

1. My uncle once caught me reading about a court case he was a part of.

2. Never in my life have I run the naked mile

3. When I was five my parents put me in Catholic School. (Same here, Hammer)

4. High school was an introduction to “Inner city public high school 101″

5. I will never forget to brush my teeth in the morning.

6. Once I met the lead singer to a certain 90′s hair band. It wasn’t very impressive.

7. There’s this boy I know who has been known to rock a flight suit.

8. Once, at a bar, a drunk boater licked my leg and then absconded with my friend’s shoe. Totally disturbing.

9. By noon, I’m finally awake.

10. Last night I knitted blankets for an orphanage and said two rosaries. Okay, no, I didn’t.

11. If only I had a million dollars. Then I wouldn’t have to eat Kraft Dinners. (Ten points to the first person who gets the reference).

12. Next time I go to church will probably be Christmas. Good Catholic girl that I am.

13. What worries me most right now would be finding another job. Preferably something I don’t despise.

14. When I turn my head left I see a washer and dryer.

15. When I turn my head right I see a wall. With a breaker box on it.

16. You know I’m lying when I say, I don’t care.

17. What I miss most about the Eighties is my obnoxiously long curly hair. And mall bangs. I had monstrous hair.

18. If I were a character in Shakespeare it would be… Good lord I have no idea.

19. By this time next year I will be working on becoming who I am.

20. A better name for me would be again, I have no idea.

21. I have a hard time understanding why people can be so stupid.

22. If I ever go back to school, I’ll finish it. Finally. Then I’ll turn around and start it all over again.

23. You know I like you if I make any effort to communicate with you. I try to not surround myself with people I don’t like.

24. If I ever won an award, the first person I would thank would be my Mom.

25. Take my advice, never do anything you wouldn’t want to have to explain to the Medics.

She Who Rules gave me a flower today… The highlight of my day. Thanks, Baby.

Post Script: The Pictures and Pie project is now known as Envisage365.

(Edited to add a little more information…)

Aaron Frisch, a Toledo Firefighter and Paramedic, his wife, Jackie Frisch, an Ordained Minister, and their 11 children, 8 of which have been adopted.

Aaron and his partner were attacked during the riots in the North End a few years ago. His ambulance was the one that was assaulted by rioters throwing bricks, injuring him and his partner.

His wife has some health problems, involving a hole in her heart. They haven’t gotten very specific with more information yet.

They have 11 children, as I said. 13ABC just said that they are ALL boys. Five were adopted from Haiti, three from Toledo, and three are biological children.

Let me say that again. 11 kids, eight adopted, ALL boys.

Good Lord for that reason alone they deserve a new home.