I'm sorry... it has been too long since my last post, but work has been murder. you don't want to hear about, so I'm skipping it.
Today something happened that reminded me how families are made. A family is not a group made of blood relations, it is a group that has made a commitment together to grow and love and all that good stuff.
Today my son and I were coming back from lacrosse practice. I was listening to one of my favorite podcasts, Grammar Girl, and she was discussing recent AP Style Guide releases. Among the discussions of Tweets v. Twitter, there was an update on the full spelling of c-section.
Apparently, it is now okay to spell "Caesarean" as "Cesarean." As she was saying that, I caught my son peeking out of the corner of his eye to see my reaction, which was me flapping my arms, rolling my eyes, and muttering, "Jesus Christ! The barbarians have taken the city!" I had to laugh because he knew me well enough to know I would be all pissed off about that.
When I asked him why he looked over, he said, "Well Dad, when I heard that, I knew you would be all pissed off, I just wanted to see how badly." He continued, "I know how you love history and grammar and all that stuff, and I knew that one would get your panties all in a twist. I mean c'mon, you even try to have proper spelling and grammar in emails and text messages!"
Even Lily gets into the act. the other day we were in the car together coming back from vacuuming out the car, and I was teasing her by saying I wanted to get my nipples pierced (the guy at the car wash has some whacked-out piercings). She was all grossed out and said, "No way Dad, that's gross! Besides, its not you." I asked her what is me, and she said, "You should buy a nice book. One of those fancy leather ones you like. Like a Shakespeare one."
She knows me too well.
So I guess the kids ARE paying attention. Plus their insights and responses made me laugh. I think I know them, but they also know me.
We must be a family!
Showing posts with label life. Show all posts
Showing posts with label life. Show all posts
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Saturday, November 22, 2008
Lacrosse - the great sport
Is there any sport out there better than lacrosse? I doubt it.
Lax is faster than football, more physical than basketball, and less boring than baseball. I mean seriously, what can be better than a stick, a ball and a helmet? Nothing.
I did not have lax when I was little - the only time I saw a lax stick was in the encyclopedia. It was that strange Northern sport that all the private school kids played - and Native Americans.
Somehow, I got my son into lax, and he really has enjoyed it. So have I. There is hardly a better way to spend a Spring day than pacing the sidelines watching Natick put the hurt on another town (hopefully).
Nowadays, we have indoor lacrosse and Fall lacrosse - which my son plays, but not going too nuts on it. Don't want to burn him out, you know, it should still be fun.
While lax is growing leaps and bounds in popularity, it is still small enough in many towns that a kid can pick it up in middle school or high school.
So I recommend giving lax a try - scrounge some equipment. Grab a stick and go out and give it a toss. It's a blast.
Lax is faster than football, more physical than basketball, and less boring than baseball. I mean seriously, what can be better than a stick, a ball and a helmet? Nothing.
I did not have lax when I was little - the only time I saw a lax stick was in the encyclopedia. It was that strange Northern sport that all the private school kids played - and Native Americans.
Somehow, I got my son into lax, and he really has enjoyed it. So have I. There is hardly a better way to spend a Spring day than pacing the sidelines watching Natick put the hurt on another town (hopefully).
Nowadays, we have indoor lacrosse and Fall lacrosse - which my son plays, but not going too nuts on it. Don't want to burn him out, you know, it should still be fun.
While lax is growing leaps and bounds in popularity, it is still small enough in many towns that a kid can pick it up in middle school or high school.
So I recommend giving lax a try - scrounge some equipment. Grab a stick and go out and give it a toss. It's a blast.
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Jury Duty, Part 2
So I was impaneled for the trial.
It was not bad, the jusdge was really good at explaining the case and what was expected of us. You know, being on jury duty is some pretty heavy sh*t - you are deciding the fate of someone with a decision that can affect them for the rest of their life.
It was a drug case. A pretty big drug case. They have to bring in all the evidence and show it to you.
I have never seen so much pot in my life in person (alright, I really have not seen much pot at all, but this was a lot of pot!) - I am talking about compressed bales of it the size of a milk crate and heavy enough to make the floor shake when they dropped them.
Then there was the kilo of coke - wrapped in foil just like you see on TV - a brick. And the machine guna nd all the rounds of Soviet ammunition for it. This guy was ready for anything, except for the cops, I guess.
It was kind of a sad story. Hi dad had died when he was young, so his mom was working to support all her kids and he started running with a bad crowd and missing school. Eventually he dropped out and started dealing drugs. My guess is he made a decent amount of money.
The evidence was pretty strong and he was convicted of some very harsh violations. My guess is he is going away for a very long time.
I wonder how much of this could have been avoided if someone had taken him under their wing back when his dad died to try and help him through that.
Now, his life is wasted and we are paying a lot of mony to incarcerate hime for well over 20 years. That could be a lot of money put to services instead of giving him 3 squares and a bed.
It was not bad, the jusdge was really good at explaining the case and what was expected of us. You know, being on jury duty is some pretty heavy sh*t - you are deciding the fate of someone with a decision that can affect them for the rest of their life.
It was a drug case. A pretty big drug case. They have to bring in all the evidence and show it to you.
I have never seen so much pot in my life in person (alright, I really have not seen much pot at all, but this was a lot of pot!) - I am talking about compressed bales of it the size of a milk crate and heavy enough to make the floor shake when they dropped them.
Then there was the kilo of coke - wrapped in foil just like you see on TV - a brick. And the machine guna nd all the rounds of Soviet ammunition for it. This guy was ready for anything, except for the cops, I guess.
It was kind of a sad story. Hi dad had died when he was young, so his mom was working to support all her kids and he started running with a bad crowd and missing school. Eventually he dropped out and started dealing drugs. My guess is he made a decent amount of money.
The evidence was pretty strong and he was convicted of some very harsh violations. My guess is he is going away for a very long time.
I wonder how much of this could have been avoided if someone had taken him under their wing back when his dad died to try and help him through that.
Now, his life is wasted and we are paying a lot of mony to incarcerate hime for well over 20 years. That could be a lot of money put to services instead of giving him 3 squares and a bed.
Monday, October 27, 2008
Jury Duty - Part 1
I have been recently called to jury duty. My first thought was, "Ugh! What a drag!" But as I thought of it a little more, I realized that this is my responsibility to our republic and our Constitution.
I mean after all, we are coming out of the shadows of the Bush administration, where the executive branch has made a huge grab for power, and had tried to ignore the legislative branch as much as possible. This is what happens when people elect someone who is so stupid and incurious as to not be able to understand or investigate our own system of government. And Palin is another one - she cannot even name a few Supreme Court decisions that she thought were bad. HELLO! Ever hear of Plessy vs. Ferguson... Dredd Scott? Sheesh! What a frickin' idiot!
But I digress.
What other branch of government lets the People share the basic power of their position? I don't hear the Executive Branch saying, "Hey you, come on over and tell me what to do about the budget." I don't hear the Legislative Branch say, "Hey you, come on over and tell me how to vote directly." But the Judicial Branch says, "Hey you, come on over and make the decisions for us. We will provider some guidelines, and make the decision on punishment, but the actual decision of guilt or innocence is up to you." That' s some pretty heady shit there.
So I did not try to weasel out too much, and I was pleased to get in on a short trial - a couple of days.
More on the duty, next time.
I mean after all, we are coming out of the shadows of the Bush administration, where the executive branch has made a huge grab for power, and had tried to ignore the legislative branch as much as possible. This is what happens when people elect someone who is so stupid and incurious as to not be able to understand or investigate our own system of government. And Palin is another one - she cannot even name a few Supreme Court decisions that she thought were bad. HELLO! Ever hear of Plessy vs. Ferguson... Dredd Scott? Sheesh! What a frickin' idiot!
But I digress.
What other branch of government lets the People share the basic power of their position? I don't hear the Executive Branch saying, "Hey you, come on over and tell me what to do about the budget." I don't hear the Legislative Branch say, "Hey you, come on over and tell me how to vote directly." But the Judicial Branch says, "Hey you, come on over and make the decisions for us. We will provider some guidelines, and make the decision on punishment, but the actual decision of guilt or innocence is up to you." That' s some pretty heady shit there.
So I did not try to weasel out too much, and I was pleased to get in on a short trial - a couple of days.
More on the duty, next time.
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
A Cure for Disney-itis
Are you like me? The constant barrage of manufactured teeny-bopper musicians makes you want to puke? Do Hanna Montana and Hillary Duff and the Gang from High School Musical fronting generic bands make your skin crawl, but your daughters scream for more?
Well, I have a solution for you.
We went to the Jersey Shore for a weekend and caught an Irish festival that was in itself pretty crappy - lots of expensive, cruddy trinkets and Paddy Bands singing about getting drunk. But on a stage off to the side I heard a very nice little band starting up, so I grabbed the kids and went over. It turned out to be a band made up of sisters, all under 15, and playing their instruments (more than one at times) and singing.
They were the Raining Hearts, from Pennsylvania. And they were sincere and talented and excellent role models of hard working kids doing something that it looks like they love. They play traditional songs and write their own Irish-pop songs and are entirely captivating.
Their self titled CD - Raining Hearts - is only $10 - but only 7 songs, and does not do justice to their infectious tunes, but it is a good start, and a nice alternative to that Disney crap, especially for kids. Give it a shot if you want to try something in the car for the kids to listen to. Their CD is in heavy rotation in our household.
I am sure that there are other kid bands out there that are worth hearing, so give it a try and see what you can find. Let me know if you find something you like.
Enjoy!
Well, I have a solution for you.
We went to the Jersey Shore for a weekend and caught an Irish festival that was in itself pretty crappy - lots of expensive, cruddy trinkets and Paddy Bands singing about getting drunk. But on a stage off to the side I heard a very nice little band starting up, so I grabbed the kids and went over. It turned out to be a band made up of sisters, all under 15, and playing their instruments (more than one at times) and singing.
They were the Raining Hearts, from Pennsylvania. And they were sincere and talented and excellent role models of hard working kids doing something that it looks like they love. They play traditional songs and write their own Irish-pop songs and are entirely captivating.
Their self titled CD - Raining Hearts - is only $10 - but only 7 songs, and does not do justice to their infectious tunes, but it is a good start, and a nice alternative to that Disney crap, especially for kids. Give it a shot if you want to try something in the car for the kids to listen to. Their CD is in heavy rotation in our household.
I am sure that there are other kid bands out there that are worth hearing, so give it a try and see what you can find. Let me know if you find something you like.
Enjoy!
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Finding "My Time" during the day
As I may have mentioned - I am starting to play the cello again after 30 years. It is daunting, it is fun, it is tiring.
Oh, I guess I have not posted about it yet. So a brief history. Way back in the Dark Ages, I decided I wanted to play the cello. Its a big instrument, but it makes a lot of sound, and I think I was on a Spanish kick at the time (Pablo Casals still being the greatest living cellist). I also wanted to be a bullfighter when I grew up. Anyway, I started playing both at school and at the University of Texas String Project. I played for a few years and was passably good, but never great.
I finally stopped playing when I discovered girls and the cross-country team.
Fast forward 30 years.
I was playing Guitar Hero on the Wii (see my review of Guitar Hero III) and having fun, but felt like I wanted more control of the music - you know, really make music. Right then and there, I decided to take up the cello again.
So I called my mom, who has been keeping my old student cello for all those 30 years - I guess a mom's hope springs eternal - and she said, "Sure, I have it. Take it away!" So the next time I was in Texas, I packed it up, stuck it under the plane and brought it back home.
I found a teacher, Steve Laven, who is pretty cool and pushes me and is supportive. And we jumped into the whole thing. After 2 lessons and a week or so of practice, I have discovered that I remember a lot of practical music theory. My hands are stiffer. I need to cut my nails more. Playing a cello from a wheelchair is harder than before. But it is fun.
Actually, the other evening I was practicing and I was concentrating on my bowing and had a wonderful moment of concentration on something that was not work, not chores, not kids or homework. It was a very pleasant time. A time of focus and removal from the day-to-day works and distractions of everyday life. Now, I feel all grouchy if I don't get some of my cello practice/away-time. It's like a little vacation in the living room.
I am curious. Does anyone else have some activity that they do that takes you away in a similar way?
Oh, I guess I have not posted about it yet. So a brief history. Way back in the Dark Ages, I decided I wanted to play the cello. Its a big instrument, but it makes a lot of sound, and I think I was on a Spanish kick at the time (Pablo Casals still being the greatest living cellist). I also wanted to be a bullfighter when I grew up. Anyway, I started playing both at school and at the University of Texas String Project. I played for a few years and was passably good, but never great.
I finally stopped playing when I discovered girls and the cross-country team.
Fast forward 30 years.
I was playing Guitar Hero on the Wii (see my review of Guitar Hero III) and having fun, but felt like I wanted more control of the music - you know, really make music. Right then and there, I decided to take up the cello again.
So I called my mom, who has been keeping my old student cello for all those 30 years - I guess a mom's hope springs eternal - and she said, "Sure, I have it. Take it away!" So the next time I was in Texas, I packed it up, stuck it under the plane and brought it back home.
I found a teacher, Steve Laven, who is pretty cool and pushes me and is supportive. And we jumped into the whole thing. After 2 lessons and a week or so of practice, I have discovered that I remember a lot of practical music theory. My hands are stiffer. I need to cut my nails more. Playing a cello from a wheelchair is harder than before. But it is fun.
Actually, the other evening I was practicing and I was concentrating on my bowing and had a wonderful moment of concentration on something that was not work, not chores, not kids or homework. It was a very pleasant time. A time of focus and removal from the day-to-day works and distractions of everyday life. Now, I feel all grouchy if I don't get some of my cello practice/away-time. It's like a little vacation in the living room.
I am curious. Does anyone else have some activity that they do that takes you away in a similar way?
Saturday, June 14, 2008
A new beginning - a new dog
We just got a new dog. A rescue doggie; 2 years old, mini-dachshund, very cute, very tiny.
We decided that we needed to give our old dog a rest from trying to play and run around and sleep on the bed, etc. After all, she is way up there - 15 years old, I think (maybe older).
A new dog is very exciting for the whole family. The kids like it because they are there from the beginning for this one. Lady, our old dog was already 5 years old or more before son #1 appeared, and even older when small brown child arrived.
Plus, a new dog is a new opportunity to do it right. Train her right, feed her right, just a new page to write on.
Actually, a new dog is full of so much promise. Like a baby, or a new book. You can't help but imagine what it will be like in a few days, a few weeks, a few years. Meanwhile, I have this little brown lump of fur snoring at me and looking up at me with those big brown eyes, and dancing around when I come home.
So off to the doggie lessons and around the block for a break and we will see what happens.
We decided that we needed to give our old dog a rest from trying to play and run around and sleep on the bed, etc. After all, she is way up there - 15 years old, I think (maybe older).
A new dog is very exciting for the whole family. The kids like it because they are there from the beginning for this one. Lady, our old dog was already 5 years old or more before son #1 appeared, and even older when small brown child arrived.
Plus, a new dog is a new opportunity to do it right. Train her right, feed her right, just a new page to write on.
Actually, a new dog is full of so much promise. Like a baby, or a new book. You can't help but imagine what it will be like in a few days, a few weeks, a few years. Meanwhile, I have this little brown lump of fur snoring at me and looking up at me with those big brown eyes, and dancing around when I come home.
So off to the doggie lessons and around the block for a break and we will see what happens.
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
As you may remember, I am growing my hair for locks of love and I am not one to have long hair ever. It is an educational experience.
My latest discoveries:
If you have a lot of hair, it is harder to take care of
OK, you know all those jokes about getting blown off for a date because I have to wash my hair (not that I experienced any of those personally)? Well the concept, if not the veracity, has some foundation in reality. Hell, even with just a slightly longer mop up top, it takes forever to get it properly wet, and then there is getting the shampoo into it and all the scrubbing and the rinsing, etc. WHEW! I cannot figure out how women do it.
It's OK, I'll tough it out.
When your hair is short the grays are short, when your hair is long... the grays are long!
This is a bit of a shock - I have a crapload of gray hair. 'Nuff said.
Women are just as clueless about men's appearance as men are about women
Perhaps because I am still in the not obviously long hair stage, I am getting a lot of puzzled looks at the office and around town. A surprising amount of, "did you cut your hair?" "Something looks different?" "Are you losing weight?" (I wish), etc.
It must be human nature to notice a change globally, but not to be able to nail it down. So guys, when you get in trouble for not noticing a new dress, or new hair, or nails or lips (but not new cleavage, you should notice the cleavage), don't feel bad. It happens to women too, just men don't really care.
Keep track, more updates to come...
My latest discoveries:
If you have a lot of hair, it is harder to take care of
OK, you know all those jokes about getting blown off for a date because I have to wash my hair (not that I experienced any of those personally)? Well the concept, if not the veracity, has some foundation in reality. Hell, even with just a slightly longer mop up top, it takes forever to get it properly wet, and then there is getting the shampoo into it and all the scrubbing and the rinsing, etc. WHEW! I cannot figure out how women do it.
It's OK, I'll tough it out.
When your hair is short the grays are short, when your hair is long... the grays are long!
This is a bit of a shock - I have a crapload of gray hair. 'Nuff said.
Women are just as clueless about men's appearance as men are about women
Perhaps because I am still in the not obviously long hair stage, I am getting a lot of puzzled looks at the office and around town. A surprising amount of, "did you cut your hair?" "Something looks different?" "Are you losing weight?" (I wish), etc.
It must be human nature to notice a change globally, but not to be able to nail it down. So guys, when you get in trouble for not noticing a new dress, or new hair, or nails or lips (but not new cleavage, you should notice the cleavage), don't feel bad. It happens to women too, just men don't really care.
Keep track, more updates to come...
Thursday, April 17, 2008
Locks of Love
I've decided to give a try to growing out my hair and giving it to Locks of Love.
Now let me preface this by saying that I have never had my hair over my collar, so growing a 10-inch ponytail is quite a change.
But hell, I am 46 and I still have a great head of thick hair, only a little gray here and there, and I mostly work from home and my hair is not going to get any better. So why not? It will be a change, and I can be a bit of a rebel for once.
I went to the LoL website to see what was up. COntrary to popular belief, most of the kids getting wigs from LoL do not have Cancer, but rather have Alopecia Areata (sp?) - which is a disease where the body's white cells attack the hair follicles and cause hair loss.
Imagine being a kid or a teen and having all those body image issues and then losing all your hair. Devastating! I know that my daughter who has tons of lovely hair is always fussing with hers, and if she lost it, I would do whatever I could to make her comfortable.
So I am going for it. We'll see if I can really make this happen - I am in the annoying hair length now.
Now let me preface this by saying that I have never had my hair over my collar, so growing a 10-inch ponytail is quite a change.
But hell, I am 46 and I still have a great head of thick hair, only a little gray here and there, and I mostly work from home and my hair is not going to get any better. So why not? It will be a change, and I can be a bit of a rebel for once.
I went to the LoL website to see what was up. COntrary to popular belief, most of the kids getting wigs from LoL do not have Cancer, but rather have Alopecia Areata (sp?) - which is a disease where the body's white cells attack the hair follicles and cause hair loss.
Imagine being a kid or a teen and having all those body image issues and then losing all your hair. Devastating! I know that my daughter who has tons of lovely hair is always fussing with hers, and if she lost it, I would do whatever I could to make her comfortable.
So I am going for it. We'll see if I can really make this happen - I am in the annoying hair length now.
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