Images - True Can

This photograph captures the Can that we see and love every day. His whole face lights up when he smiles, and he does this often.

Images - Forest for the Trees

Snow day

I still have to work today, but the kids got the day off. They are running around deliriously throwing snowballs at one another, crazy with the idea that we actually have snow. As you can see, we have been buried under at least three-fourths of an inch of snow and it is still coming down. Before it is all done, we may have as much as a whole inch. We're hoping that the Governer will declare a state of emergency so that we can get our fair share of federal government disaster relief money.

I was a little worried about he commute (Note how the treacherous the roads look) but I managed to make it in. There actually were a couple of wrecks along the way. I can't figure out how they managed to do it, because even in the spots where there were microscopic amounts of slush on the roads, they weren't slippery. One of the wrecks was an SUV. I figure that it was some idiot with four-wheel drive fever. In an effort to show off his four-wheel drive capabilities he decided to take a bend at 80 mph, never mind that he would never have gone 80 around the same bend in "good" weather.

Images - In a Forest Alone

I don't know if this tree created its own isolation through a light-blocking canopy, but it just sat off of the trail on its own despite being in the middle of a largely pine forest. I am reminded of the Christmas story about the the beautiful pine tree that kept its foliage all winter long while scoffing at the ugly old winter oak for giving up all of its leaves to shelter tiny cold birds and animals.

Images - Four Ducks in a Row

We went on a hike at Harris Lake during our MLK break. (Taken 01/15/07 at Harris Lake, NC)

"Wise and happy or stupid and miserable"

In a New Years Eve devotional President Hinckley gave youth the following counsel

"Don't make the kinds of mistakes that will bring regret. You can be wise and happy or stupid and miserable. The choice is yours."

Seems pretty straitforward and remeniscent of Jacob's counsel in the Book of Mormon.

"O be wise; what can I say more?"

Images - Pet Moss

The kids have been collecting pet moss lately. Dec is showing me his pet named Porcupiney.

Images - Lizard in the Palm of my Hand

We have at least five of these guys living on our playset. They are all different sizes and change color to blend in. I caught this one in the later afternoon and after I got him settled down, he was happy to sit in my palm where it was warm. I had to encourage him to crawl back onto the playset.

Marcus Belgrave's Octet: A Tribute to Louis Armstrong

We went to a see the Marcus Belgrave Octet perform in concert last night. His show was mostly a tribute to Louis Armstrong and was very enjoyable and entertaining. This was the second in a four part concert series for which we purchased tickets last year from the Town of Cary. The rest of the audience was almost as entertaining as the musicians. There were about 500 people and I would put the median age at around 63. We were amongst the very few people under 40 and there were only three others around our age at the front in the VIP section. We get to sit in the section because we bought tickets for the whole series, but we feel a little out of place without grey hair and walkers. It was real fun to see these little old ladies bobbing to the beat and singing along as the band played Armstrong hits like Blueberry Hill, Old Man Mose and Hello Dolly. Marcus and the trombone and alto sax players got down off of the stage to march around the room as they played When the Saints Go Marching In and they had a troop of geriatrics parading after them, bouncing to the rhythm. It was a delightful scene and I was left to ponder what music from my youth will inspire me to get up and dance as my mortal years wane. As humourous as last night was, I think it will be even funnier to see us as old-timers bee-bopping to Girls Just Wanna Have Fun by Cyndi Lauper.

Still hatching

Can had a hard time hatching this morning. Mom brought him down all wrapped up in blankie and he wasn't inclined to change things. I tried tickling his toes that were sticking out of the blanket, but he just tucked them up inside.

Eat the food I give you or starve

I don't understand why my children won't eat the food I give them. Last night, before heading off to a women's book group, my wife made turkey sandwiches with pita bread and pepper-jack cheese. In the context of the sandwich, the cheese wasn't spicy, but Dec and Sul wouldn't touch the sandwiches on the chance that it might be disgusting. Mad's encouragement that it wasn't so bad, didn't even phase them. Of course, Can didn't eat the waffle and syrup that was offered him either. He got waffle because he eats little else, when he does eat, and we have no way to coerce him into eating anyway. With the bigs, at least we can threaten the loss of video games or no dessert. I tried the "nothing else to eat for the rest of the night" line and they jumped at the chance to avoid the pita, perhaps thinking that I would forget before the night was through. Without Mom's support for battle and given the rapidity with which they accepted my initial terms, I could see that there was no way I would prevail in getting the food down their throats, so I ended up throwing away the pita sandwiches (and the waffle). I briefly considered giving them a "we'll put them in the fridge and you can have them for breakfast" but I knew that I would not be around when they were pouring big bowls of sugar coated cereal and mocking me for my tyranical statements, so I just let the food go to waste. Later, as we were doing the dishes for the meal that we didn't really eat, I came across Mad's lunch box and realized that it still had food in it. Upon opening it I found an untouched ham sandwich, on regular bread, and a container of fruit. As expected, there were no cookies, donuts, granola bars or pretzels left. Unfortunately, the ham sandwich had been sitting around all day and so I didn't feel it was safe to save it for tomorrow's lunch. Another meal in the trash. By this time I was pretty fed up, so I left it on the counter for Mom to discover and I decreed that he would get only a sandwich and fruit tomorrow for lunch. I just don't understand why it is so hard to get kids to eat. I bet that if they went a week without food, they would love a little pita and pepper jack. Of course, then they would be living with foster parents when the state took my kids away for trying to teach them not to waste food.

Images - Sandy Hands

Saint Mom and Sickly Can

We are not Catholics and the Latter-day Saints don't require three miracles and death to achieve sainthood, but Mom definitely earned the appellation of a saint after last night. I, of course, slept through most of it. I'm told that Can was up crying about every half-hour for a several hours last night. I was only aware of this when Mom let out an exasperated sigh at about 3:00 in the morning as Can woke up yet again. After coming to the realization that his crying was not some part of my strange dream, I decided to go and check on him. As I came to his bedside he kept saying, "a'quee bwoken, a'quee bwoken." Miraculously, I was blessed with the Gift of Tongues and promptly interpreted his cry to mean that his Lightning McQueen slipper had come off and he couldn't get it back on. As I put the slipper back on I realized that he felt warmer than he should have, so I aroused Mom to administer some acetominophen. He seemed to stay asleep for the rest of the night. I was aware of his blessed restfulness because I was unable to return to slumber, myself. I tossed and turned until after 5:30, when I fell back into a restful repose just in time for the alarm clock to wake me up and tell me to get out of bed. Ahh, the joys of parenthood.

Radical Islamic facists

Here's a good short piece explaining who our enemies are in the war against radical Islamic fascists.

All of us would prefer years of repose to years of conflict. But history will not allow it. And so it once again rests with this remarkable republic to do what we have done in the past: our duty.

Sleepover, PS2 and wheelies

Well we managed to get rid of Mad for the night. The problem is that it was an exchange sleepover, and we got the loud end of that deal. So far we've managed to survive through dinner time and chased them up into the bonus room for a fun filled evening of PS2 and movies.

Sul's little friend got heelies for Christmas (you know, the shoes with wheels in the heels). Of course Sul wanted them for Christmas and we made him pitch in to buy a PS2. Certainly Couldn't afford a PS3. Funny little side story about the PS3. While I was taking back the first PS2 we bought (we originally got a used one and then decided that it was worth $30 more to feel comfortable that it would last for a little while), a guy was in with his daughter asking about game systems and the kid at the counter (maybe 20) was trying to convince him to get the PS3. He says, "Its only $647," to which the guy responds, "I didn't pay that much for my first three cars." The kid at the counter makes some smart alec comment back that I can't remember, and I wanted to say, "You probably still live at home. If all you have to spend your money on is video games and fast food, $647 doesn't sound like much." I settled for a chuckle. As the guy left the store his daughter (~9) said, "See dad, that's why I need to get allowance." I laughed out loud and said, "it would take a long time to save $647 in allowance." As I'm checking out with the new PS2 the counter-kid says, "we really need to get you into a PS3." More loud laughing. Pay the guy with tears in my eyes. Anyway, back to my original story. So, we conviced Sul that he might get wheelies for his birthday and he should help pitch in to get the PS2 since he would play it anyway. Now whenever he is around his friends who have wheelies, he somehow convinces them to let him borrow them. So, he ends up rolling around and bumping into people and things, while his friends get to wear his stinky-old flat-soled footwear.

Christmas with Dec

I'm trying to get some pictures from Christmas morning posted for the family and friends. Dec liked this toy when he got it and has had LOTS of fun building with it. Well, I should say that I have had lots of fun building the little ball depicted on the front every time Dec smashes it while having LOTS of fun playing with it.

Learning to read and learning to read tarot cards

Dec's teacher sent home a note saying that they had reading tests for his kindergarten class and he has not only passed the first two levels but is reading where he is supposed to be by the end of the year. That isn't too bad for less than half-way through the year. While Mom was telling me about this, he just sat there with the biggest grin on his face. I love to see my kids feel good about their accomplishments.

As I was looking through Sul's homework, he had a fill-in-the-blank vocabulary worksheet that taught about forcasting the future. Interestingly, it was mostly about fortune telling and included a discussion of tarot cards and tea leaves. Hmm. Not sure I'm happy with that lesson.

Images-Waiting for release

I can almost hear these leaves saying, "We were once beautiful. We have served our purpose. Now we are just waiting for our release from this life." In their own way, they are still beautiful.

Adams-"If I did not believe in a future state, I should believe in no God"

I believe in God and in his wisdom and benevolence, and I cannot conceive that such a Being could make such a species as the human merely to live and die on this earth. If I did not believe in a future state, I should believe in no God. This Universe, this all, this [totality] would appear with all its swelling pomp, a boyish firework.

John Adams, early 1800's, from a letter to Thomas Jefferson as quoted in "John Adams" by David McCullough, pages 625.

Images - A felt fungus

I saw this mushroom along a greenway near Bond Lake. It looked so soft. (taken 12/23/06)