I like to think of Mother's Day as a pacifist-feminist holiday, a la Julia Ward Howe: [link]

But then, possibly I am just grumpy because nobody made me breakfast this morning.

mr. flea and the children are now True Athenians, having seen Michael Stipe at EarthFare today! The children were (unsurprisingly) oblivious, and mr. flea just did a mild double-take. Apparently he's short, but as I said, pretty much everyone is short to mr. flea.

I don't tend to make a big deal of Mother's Day mostly because my mother has always had a habit of driving me and my sister batshit insane with the stress of getting her the "perfect" gift which is never quite perfect enough anyhow.

True to form, she's disappointed in me again this year-- the perfume, while her favorite, she was meh about receiving and she's annoyed that the other package I had sent didn't get there in time. Gee, so sorry, Ma, that those pesky floods in Tennessee overwhelmed delivery services and prevented your package from arriving on time.

That said, because I'm so mellow about it, I tend to really enjoy days like today. Went to the bookstore, the farmer's market, took a lovely drive, walked around a nearby town, poked into galleries, ate dinner at an Irish pub, and the weather was glorious.

Works for me, regardless of the day.

This is the most exciting baseball series I've seen all season! Sorry, javachik.

Sorry, Tom! Giants come back to win!

Also... ::runs around the room high-fiving Suzi and Raq:: Dallas Braden pitched a perfect game! Only the 19th in baseball history.

His mom died of skin cancer when he was in high school so he was raised by his grandmother, who was in the stands while he threw his perfecto. The media asked for a quote. She said, "Stick it, A-Rod!"

We've had a crappy day. We were at the fields all day for a doubleheader with Emmett's tournament team. We were "playing up" - that means, playing against older players. And they just annihilated us 20-1 in the second game. These guys were hitting major league bombs in all directions. Very discouraging, plus we played two games through an on-and-off drizzle.

JZ's brother, Chris and his fiancee Angela came to the games and kept us company as we huddled under the eaves of the snack shack. The sun finally came out, Matilda napped and woke up to throw up for the first time ever. But it wasn't the last time today. She's still got a "sad stomach" as she phrased it.

We took refuge at EM's house for a bit until Matilda was empty. We're home now, watching Princess and the Frog and about to eat some TJ's cheese pizza. Long day with little to recommend it.

But I'm happy for Dallas Braden.

Guys like Dallas Braden are one reason I love baseball.

Guys like Dallas Braden are one reason I love baseball.

He's got a little curly mustache tattooed on his finger that he holds under his nose!

And poor Matilda... I hope her sad stomach improves.

And A-Rod's a total dick. He made his "congratulations" on Braden's game All About Him:

"I've learned in my career that it's always better to be remembered for some of the good things you do on the field, and good for him," Rodriguez said before facing Boston. "He threw a perfect game. And, even better, he beat the Rays."

Gee, so sorry, Ma, that those pesky floods in Tennessee overwhelmed delivery services and prevented your package from arriving on time.

On a similar but different note, Kelly's fiancee is awaiting Navy orders for his next school - San Diego or Virginia. But those orders come from Tennessee, so everything is delayed right now.

NSM. She's throwing up bile.

Thanks, Kat! Love the polky dot one!