Images - Lakeside

Another photo from our hike around Harris Lake. (Taken 01/15/07)

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)

"Stooop it Daddy"

I've been enjoying my time at home. It is nice to spend time with my wife and boys. I love all of my boys, but I end up posting more about Can because he is still in that period of his life when he does new and funny things. I've noticed that when I'm working on the computer he usually sneaks in about every 10 minutes and climbs up on my lap, sits there for a minute and then wanders off to continue playing. I love that he comes in to check on me. I also love to tickle him during his visit. He giggles in the cutest way and if I tickle him enough I can get him to say, "stooop it daddy," in his own high-pitched bubbly way. It warms my heart. I'll miss this when I'm back at work every day.

I've moved lexicon augmentation to its own blog

I've decided to shift my lexicon augmentation posts to their own blog in order to make this blog less cluttered. The words will be posted in the right column but you will have to click on the word to get the definition.

Can is pitching a fit

The other day Can opened up the fridge and pulled out a jug of eggnog and started chugging. I'm not sure where he got this idea, but I thought it was pretty cute and so I took a picture.


Now he is pitching a fall down on the ground, legs flailing fit because we won't let him drink from the milk jug. Its not as cute, so I didn't take a picture.

Can in his new slippers

Mom asked me to edit her out, but I really wanted to show cute Can and his Lightning McQueen slippers.

Time to make the donuts

The boys after making donuts on the 23rd.

Images - Tall trees

I love to stand and look up at the tops of the tall trees in the forest. They look so majestic way up there. (taken 12/17/06)

What was so bad about 2006?

This morning I heard a radio DJ make a comment that left me shaking my head. I can't remember the exact wording he used, but he was basically saying that he hopes that 2007 isn't as bad as the past year. He didn't specifically name any of the problems that he was bemoaning, but I was left with the impression that he was talking about how bad things are in America with Bush and the Republicans at the helm.

I just don't see why people think that 2006 was such a bad year. The left has everybody brainwashed into thinking that things are really bad in America right now, but I bet if you looked at the lives of most Americans, they are doing pretty well. Overall, the economy is great. We have plenty of food and clothing. More people own homes than ever before. We have access to more electronic gadgets than we could really want and way more than we need. From the world's point of view, life is pretty darn good in America. Sure we are at war but it really doesn't have a very big impact on the lives of most Americans. I bet most people don't really think about it except when the main-stream media throws out another biased report about how bad things are in Iraq. Compare this to other wars that America has faced in the past and you'd hardly know we were at war. Instead of 8000 dead per month, as in WWII, this war averages ~50 deaths per month. I am sorry to see any brave young men give up their lives, and I honor those who put themselves in harms way to keep the war off of our shores. But even with the war, which started long before 2006, life is good in America. I wish that people would stop buying into the left's American sob story and recognize how good we have it.

Update (01/01/07): I just came across a couple of articles (1 and 2)related to this subject. A good line from the first one:

Democrats were more likely than Republicans to have a negative view of the past year, and were less likely to feel optimistic looking forward.

"Looking back on the follies of the year ahead"

Lileks makes some humorous comments about the scary reality we face in the coming year. Here's a sample:

North Korea returned to the negotiating table and announced it wants a Playstation 3 and a ham sandwich. Also a pony. Talks broke up when the Americans refused to supply a Playstation because they bought North Korea an Xbox last time, and it just sat in the closet.

Images - Gone South

As the leaves fall from the trees, the old birds nests in the back forest stand out. (taken 12/17/06)

Lexicon augmentation - disquisition

dis·qui·si·tion /ˌdɪskwəˈzɪʃən/ Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[dis-kwuh-zish-uhn]

–noun

a formal discourse or treatise in which a subject is examined and discussed; dissertation.

---

[Origin: 1595–1605; <>disquīsītiōn- (s. of disquīsītiō), equiv. to disquīsīt(us) (ptp. of disquīrere to investigate; dis- dis-¹ + quaerere to seek, ask) + -iōn- -ion]

from dictionary.com

Lexicon augmentation - antediluvian

an·te·di·lu·vi·an /ˌæntidɪˈluviən/ Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[an-tee-di-loo-vee-uhn]

–adjective

1.	of or belonging to the period before the Flood. Gen. 7, 8.

2.	very old, old-fashioned, or out of date; antiquated; primitive: antediluvian ideas.

–noun

3.	a person who lived before the Flood.

4.	a very old or old-fashioned person or thing.

---

[Origin: 1640–50; ante- + L dīluvi(um) a flood, deluge + -an]

from dictionary.com

Christmas morning part 3

Christmas morning part 3

Christmas morning part 2

Christmas morning part 2

Christmas morning part 1

Christmas morning part 1

Can licking cookie

Just a cute video of Can licking a very big Christmas cookie.

Save me from the madness

A typical night at our house. Poor Mom!

Another great Orson Scott Card article

"As with Rome, the American military has been the wall behind which a system of safe trade has allowed an extraordinary degree of specialization and therefore mutually sustained prosperity."

"Our enemies and most of our "allies" and many of our own citizens are working as hard as possible to bring the whole thing crashing down, though that is not at all what they intend. They just haven't learned the lessons -- the principles -- of how great economic empires are maintained.

They only look at the political dogmas du jour and spout their platitudes. People like me are ridiculed for seeing the big picture and learning the lessons of history."

In this article, Card examines the role of the Roman armies on the fall of Rome and ties this into the US army and its role in maintaining the civilization we know today.

Early Christmas Eve donuts

Since Christmas Eve is on Sunday this year and we've been invited to some friends for dinner, we decided to do the donuts tonight.

Best lights in the neighborhood

Well, almost. We tied for first prize in the neighborhood lighting contest. I think the other guy has more lights, but lots of them are just prefab light sculptures. The crazy part is that I didn't even know we had a neighborhood lighting contest. Danae's holly bushes (to the left and right) were a great touch, but I think that the Dr. Seuss tree brought in the prize. If you saw my first pictures you'll note that the rope lights on the tree were added later. What a stroke of genius. The $25 home depot gift card paid for half of what I spent this year to upgrade to two stories worth of icicle lights.

Lexicon augmentation - valetudinarian

valetudinarian-
1.an invalid.
2.a person who is excessively concerned about his or her poor health or ailments. –adjective
3.in poor health; sickly; invalid.
4.excessively concerned about one's poor health or ailments.
5.of, pertaining to, or characterized by invalidism.

from dictionary.com

Images - Stimulated moss

Moss with fruiting bodies in the backyard forest. (taken 12/17/06)

"Can eat smiley"

Some of the girls from church brough Mom a birthday cake. It was chocolate with "happy birthday" written in green, yellow and blue icing. It also had a smiley face with chocolate chip eyes. Mom put the cake on the counter and then went upstairs to wrap some presents while I ran to the store for a few last minute things. Had to get some eggnog for Santa Claus. Everyone knows how much he likes and needs the stuff. I also needed to get about a gazillion birthday candles for the cake. When I came home, this is what the cake looked like. When I asked what happened I was told that Can said, "Can eat yellow and blue. Can eat smiley."

Cute can video

His brothers do this in your face to be annoying. From him, its just cute

Lexicon augmentation - ersatz

ersatz-
1.serving as a substitute; synthetic; artificial.
2.an artificial substance or article used to replace something natural or genuine; a substitute.

from dictionary.com

Peace on earth

Good video. Peace doesn't come cheap or easy and it requires the intervention of angels, both mortal and immortal.

"Romney is different...he’s a profoundly decent man"

Dean Barnett posted a good essay on Hugh Hewitt's blog about Mitt Romney. He used to work for Romney and he discusses the fact that Mitt is a genuinely good and conservative guy. Now facade necessary.

"I knew Romney was special a decade before my brethren in the conservative punditocracy came to the same conclusion. But it is worth noting that I came about the conclusion the same way they have – from first-hand exposure to the guy.
As every reader of this site knows, I don’t find our political class to be particularly impressive. I find them intellectually incurious, pathologically ambitious and morally unmoored. The Democrats are worse than the Republicans, but it’s not a runaway.
But Romney is different. First of all, he’s brilliant. When you spend even a little time with him, you see how his mind attacks a problem from every conceivable angle. This requires an intellectual curiosity and an intellectual industriousness that is foreign to nearly all of our politicians.
Second, he’s a profoundly decent man. All that stuff about what a perfect family he has and how committed he is to it isn’t a crock. And he’s really nice – his affability is no Clintonian act."

He points out that to meet Mitt Romney is to know that he is special. I've seen similar comments before from people who met him in person, like when I went to meet with some Southern Baptists earlier this year. My fellow Latter-day Saints and I would recognize this as the fact that he is worthy of the companionship of the Spirit of God, but others just see that there is something special about him.

Adams-"If all religion and all morality should be over-thrown"

"If [the] empire of superstition and hypocrisy should be overthrown, happy indeed will it be for the world; but if all religion and all morality should be over-thrown with it, what advantage will be gained? The doctrine of human equality is founded entirely in the Christian doctrine that we are all children of the same Father, all accountable to Him for our conduct to one another, all equally bound to respect each other's self love."
John Adams, early 1800's, a comment he made about Mary Wollstonecraft's book "French Revolution" as quoted in "John Adams" by David McCullough, pages 619.

Its too bad the secularists of today feel that they created the doctrine of human equality and therefore we no longer need the "superstition" of religion to support an absolute morality. Like, somehow we can all make up our own relative morality and equality will somehow fall out of the resulting morass of arbitrary value systems. Talk about superstition!

Lexicon augmentation - banal

banal-
devoid of freshness or originality; hackneyed; trite

from dictionary.com

Images - Creeping up

One of the many types of vine I find attempting to take over the forest. (taken 12/17/06)

Why do evolutionists feel so threatened by creationists

A friend, and fellow conservative/Christian/scientist, pointed me to an American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology website, where they have a link for a symposium titled "Teaching the Science of Evolution Under the Threat of Alternative Views". He pointed out the use of the word "Threat" and asked the question of why are alternative views a threat in science. After all, if we as scientists do not allow ourselves to question current theories, we will inevitably theorize ourselves into an erroneous corner from which we cannot escape. The need to think critically about all of the science I encounter was pounded into me while I was in graduate school. After all of science is really just a set of theories that approach fact, but never quite get there. However, most scientists only preach about thinking critically until their favorite theory is questioned and then they turn militant in protecting their intellectual constructions. I can understand people who believe in the creation feeling threatened by evolution because it attacks their faith. I don't quite see why the evolution zealots are so up in arms about people who want to maintain faith in a creation. Is it because science is the only faith they have? I think a big part of the problem is that most scientists are so vain that they cannot stand to have their wisdom placed below a God whom they cannot comprehend. Are we building ourselves a scientific tower of Babel?

Pre-war liberal article on why war with Iraq was justified

I haven't read this article yet, but it sounds like it is worth a read. Hugh Hewitt suggested it as a pre-war article where a liberal details the reasons why we need to go to war with Iraq.

Matt Damon digging holes

Hugh Hewitt blogged on Matt Damon's recent Hardball appearance . It sounds like another case of a famous person selectively editing reality. Kinda like he's making a movie and trashing the facts he doesn't like.

Images - The Christmas oak

Nope, Dec did not take this one. I actually did this one by myself. These leaves are on the oak tree I transplanted from the forest behind my house to my backyard. There are only a few leaves still left on it , but likely not for very much longer. To a Michigander like myself it is very surprising that there are any leaves, considering we have less than a week until Christmas. Speaking of which, these leaves fit right into the holiday color scheme. (taken 12/17/06)

Lexicon augmentation - miasma

miasma-
1.noxious exhalations from putrescent organic matter; poisonous effluvia or germs polluting the atmosphere.
2.a dangerous, foreboding, or deathlike influence or atmosphere.

from dictionary.com

"Yellow bus" has now mutated into "white-yellow bus"

Now I know that Can is just messing with me. Mom brought the kids to Chapel Hill last Friday for a departmental Christmas party. While they were here they passed one of the blue and white buses that I ride to the park-and-ride lot and Can got to see it. When I met them coming in from the parking lot he said, "daddy white-blue bus." I grinned and said, "yes, daddy white-blue bus," thinking that I had finally won the argument and he was accepting that I ride a blue bus not a yellow bus on my way to work. This morning, as he was sitting on his mommy's lap trying to return from dreamland to reality, he started mumbling something that I couldn't hear very well. I moved closer to try and catch what he was saying and I heard, "daddy white-yellow bus." Aaargh. "Its not white-yellow bus, it is white-blue bus," I responded. That only got him going and he began chanting, softly at first but then louder and louder, "daddy white-yellow bus, daddy white-yellow bus..." I did the only thing I could, under the circumstances. I grabbed him and gave him a big fuzzy bearded kiss and said, "daddy softy face," before making a break for the front door. As I was closing the door behind me I heard him say, "NO, DADDY POKEY FACE."

Adams-"Go on and improve in everything worthy"

"Oh, that I am always be able to say to my grandsons, ' You have learned much and behave well, my lads. Go on and improve in everything worthy.' Have you considered the meaning of the word "worthy"? Weigh it well... I had rather you should be worthy possessors of one thousand pounds honestly aquired by your own labor and industry, than of ten millions by banks and tricks. I should rather you be worthy shoemakers than secretaries of states or treasury aquired by libels in newspapers. I had rather you should be worthy makers of brooms and baskets than unworthy presidents of the United States procured by intrigue, factious slander and corruption."
John Adams, 1812, an excerpt from a letter to his grandson John Smith quoted in "John Adams" by David McCullough, pages 608-609.

I hope to be able to say similar things to my sons and grandsons someday and I hope that they have similar feelings of what is "worthy".

Lexicon augmentation - dreck

dreck-
1.excrement; dung.
2.worthless trash; junk.
3. merchandise that is shoddy or inferior. [syn: schlock]

from dictionary.com

Images - Remnants of fall

Another of the pictures that 5 year old Dec took in the woods behind our house. (taken 12/17/06)

Lexicon augmentation - hector

hector-
1. to treat with insolence; bully; torment.
2. to act in a blustering, domineering way; be a bully.

from dictionary.com

Al Gore must be right!

It was so warm today that we opened our windows to try and warm up the inside of our house. We went out for a walk and the boys decided to wear shorts and short sleeve T-shirts while riding their bikes. Its gots to be global warming! Somebody save us from all the cows!


After posting this I saw on the news that we had a high of 71 degrees today. This was a new record and beat the old record of 70 degrees. The average temperature for today is 53 degrees. It is predicted to get to 74 degrees tomorrow, but the recored is 77 degrees so we probably won't beat that one.

Images - Dec's Pincone

My five year old Dec took this picture while we were out walking in the woods behind our house. (taken 12/17/06)

Lexicon augmentation - sagacious

sagacious-
1 keen in sense, perception
2 a: of keen and farsighted penetration and judgment : discerning
b: caused by or indicating acute discernment
Synonym - shrewd

from Merriam-Webster

A new greeting

The yellow bus/blue bus exchange between Can and I has developed into something of a greeting. The other day I came home from work and Can was sitting on the potty. He couldn't see me come in the door, but when he heard the door open he yelled out from his place on the porcelain throne, "DADDY YELLOW BUS." I of course responded in kind with a hearty, "NO, DADDY BLUE BUS." Then yesterday morning after he woke up, his mommy was carrying him from his bed. Through bleary eyes, he spied me said, somewhat less enthusiastically, "daddy yellow bus." I kissed him on the head and said, "good morning," to which he responded "daddy pokey face."

Lexicon augmentation - folderol

folderol -
1 : a useless ornament or accessory : trifle
2 : nonsense

from Merriam-Webster

Adams-"Our electioneering racers have started for the prize"

"Our electioneering racers have started for the prize. Such a whipping and spurring and huzzaing! Oh what rare sport it will be! Through thick and thin, through mire and dirt, through bogs and fens and sloughs, dashing and splashing and crying out, the devil take the hindmost."
"How long will it be possible that honor, truth or virtue should be respected among a people who are engaged in such a quick and perpetual succession of such profligate collisions and conflicts?"
John Adams, early 1800's, an excerpt from a letter to Benjamin Rush quoted in "John Adams" by David McCullough

As applicable today as ever. I'm sure most candidates for public office today do not respect honor, truth or virtue in their comments about their opponents.

Lexicon augmentation - vizard

vizard -
1 : a mask for disguise or protection
2 : disguise, guise

from Merriam-Webster

Adams-"Is the present state of the national republic enough?"

"Is the present state of the national republic enough? Is virtue the principle of our government? Is honor? Or is ambition and avarice, adulation, baseness, covetousness, the thrist for riches, indifference concerning the means of rising and enriching, the contempt of principle, the spirit of party and of faction the motive and principle that governs?"
John Adams, February 6, 1805, an excerpt from a letter to Benjamin Rush quoted in "John Adams" by David McCullough

These questions are as applicable today as they were when John Adams asked them in 1805. I have to admit that I often allow the "spirit of party" to influence my own thinking in regards to our nation's government, although, I try to maintain my views based on virtue as a guiding principle. I like to believe that President Bush feels the same way, but I do not have the same view of most of members of the Congress.

Pictures with Santa

Our 2006 Christmas tree

Our beautiful 2006 Christmas tree (don't tell anyone it is the same fake tree as last year).

Lileks makes the Hitler/Ahmadinejad comparison more clear

Its not a completely novel thought, but Lileks states it well.

"It’s interesting: if the Holocaust “conference” decides that the Holocaust didn’t happen, well, then the justification for Israel is specious and founded on lies, and the mullahs are justified in redressing a mistake. I have the awful feeling that terms, conditions and justifications are being set right before our eyes, and the putative leaders seem unwilling to acknowledge what most canny observers infer.

It’ll all make horrible sense. In retrospect."

Why do so many people choose not to see the world situation for what it is? a certain scripture comes to mind.

"And others will he pacify, and lull them away into carnal security, that they will say: All is well..."

Which is right next to this one,

"For behold, at that day shall he rage in the hearts of the children of men, and stir them up to anger against that which is good."

Which explains the left's hatred of many things.

"Holy crap!"

Peter Boyle died last night. That's too bad. My wife and I love to watch "Everybody Loves Raymond," and one my favorite things is how Frank would always say, "Holy crap!"

Aah, return of the bus color exchange

It was nice to return home last night and find Can feeling better and full of his usual cheer.

This morning he and my wife were leaving to take a friend to the airport, so I decided to be preemptive. I asked if he was going to go ride the blue bus. He responded with a well-conditioned, "NO, YELLOW BUS."

"Ooh, pwetty lights"

I put up the Christmas lights on Saturday. We've had a bit of a cold snap (well, cold for NC) and I worried that I had waited too long, but the weather was nice to me. This is the first year I have put lights on the second story, and can I tell you, I don't know how roofers do it. I was scared to death sitting up on that roof. I've been up on a one story house and didn't mind that at all, but I was more than a little nervous on Saturday. I thought for sure that the ladder was going to tip over when I was getting off of it, or that I was going to slide right off the shingles. The scary part is that I have to go back up to take them down in a couple of weeks. This can't be worth it. The things we do for our kids. "And for my next trick, I'm going to lie down in the middle of the road and see how many cars I can get to swerve around me." Well, OK. Its not all for the kids. There is something manly about facing down death by gravity to string up all those wires with lots of little glass-encased electrocution and fire hazards. And hearing Can's reaction made it all worthwhile. "Ooh, pwetty lights."

Poor sick Can

Poor Can is not feeling well today. His coughing kept him, and his Mom, up for much of the night. This morning he looked pretty miserable as he sat in the corner of the couch with his blankie. He didn't want to play his computer game or watch TV. I couldn't even goad him into arguing with me about whether the bus I ride to work is yellow or blue. He has only ever seen the yellow school bus that his brothers ride and I can't seem to convince him that my bus is blue (actually white with blue stripes, but lets not make this complicated). This has turned into a daily farewell exchange, where I put my coat on and he asks, "Daddy yellow bus?" I respond, "No, daddy blue bus!" and he comes back with an emphatic, "NO, DADDY YELLOW BUS!!" I'm sure it doesn't translate well into blog format, but it is amazingly cute to see in person. Alas, this morning the poor boy couldn't even muster up the strength to complain about my pokey-bearded kiss much less argue about the color of mass transit in Chapel Hill.

We've already lost the war

The New York Times has concluded that we are not only losing the war in Iraq, but have lost it.

Articles like this, along with the wonderful Iraq Study Group report and the results of the recent election, are having an effect on the situation in the middle east already. From a recent article in Time:

"Some Iranian leaders and officials, including President Ahmadinejad, also believe that Iran now has the opportunity to deal with Washington from a position of strength, for the first time since the 1979 revolution."

If we have lost the war in Iraq then Iran thinks it has won. Not exactly the results we want to see. Obviously this is only a perceived position of strength, but its not the kind of perception that will help us in Iraq and in the greater war against Islamo-facism. Thank you to the NYT, the fabulous Baker boys and the ever loved Dems. True friends of the U.S.

The wonderful Iraq Study Group report, along with the results of the recent election, are having an effect on the situation in the middle east already. From a recent article in Time:

"Some Iranian leaders and officials, including President Ahmadinejad, also believe that Iran now has the opportunity to deal with Washington from a position of strength, for the first time since the 1979 revolution."

Not exactly the results we want to see. Obviously this is only a perceived position of strength, but its not the kind of perception that will help us in Iraq and in the greater war against Islamo-facism. Thank you fabulous Baker boys and the ever loved Dems.