We're Having A Baby.

This is not our baby, but we have one just like it.

This will be baby number 3, due for release in September.

We don't know the sex yet, but if it's a girl, her name will be Mary Katherine. The Wife has always loved this name, but never had a chance to use it. If it's a boy, well, I'm not sure, I've run out of family names. Any suggestions are welcome.

Needless to say, we are very excited.

Not The Cos, Ned.

Carlos Mencia Stealing Jokes From Cosby - Click Here for more great videos and pictures!

Bells On has more on Mencia stealing jokes.

There's A Party In My Mouth, And Everyone's Invited!

Is your morning, tooth-brushing routine not as rockin' as you'd like?

I give you...

The Tooth Tunes tooth brush plays a song for two minutes (the recommended amount of time for brushing) when you touch the brush to your teeth.

NPR's Steve Inskeep loves it, maybe a bit too much.

A commercial, for a musical tooth-brush, that's clearly been influenced by an Apple commercial, that itself, was influenced by science fiction novels that explore fascism in the future, is a little weird.

What's My Congressperson Up To?

This comes by way of Congress.org

March 26, 2007

Recent Congressional Votes -
* Senate: Budget Resolution, FY2008
* Senate: Preserving United States Attorney Independence Act of 2007
* House: Gulf Coast Hurricane Housing Recovery Act
* House: U.S. Troop Readiness, Veterans' Health, and Iraq Accountability Act

Upcoming Congressional Bills -
* Senate: U.S. Troop Readiness, Veterans' Health, and Iraq Accountability Act
* House: Budget Resolution, FY2008

Recent Senate Votes

Budget Resolution, FY2008 - Vote Agreed to (52-47, 1 Not Voting)

The Senate approved this $2.9 trillion budget resolution that sets spending priorities for the 2008 fiscal year.

Sen. Richard Durbin voted YES.
Sen. Barack Obama voted YES.

(Administrator's note: Only two Republicans voted Yea. No Democrat voted Nay. Anyone know what the Republicans problem is with this?)

Preserving United States Attorney Independence Act of 2007 - Vote Passed (94-2, 4 Not Voting)

The Senate passed this bill that would prohibit the attorney general from filling U.S. attorney vacancies for an indefinite time period.

Sen. Richard Durbin voted YES.
Sen. Barack Obama voted YES.

(Administrator's note: Those two Nays? Chuck Hagel (Interesting, considering the noise he's been making) and Christopher Bond. McCain and Biden, Not Voting. Pretty slick.)

Recent House Votes

Gulf Coast Hurricane Housing Recovery Act - Vote Passed (302-125, 6 Not Voting)

This House bill would require the government to replace public housing that was damaged by Hurricane Katrina.

Rep. Peter Roskam voted NO.

(Administrator's note: Again, only Republicans voted Nay.)

U.S. Troop Readiness, Veterans' Health, and Iraq Accountability Act - Vote Passed (218-212, 1 Present, 3 Not Voting)

The House passed this $124 million emergency supplemental bill that provides funds for military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan and sets a timetable for withdrawing troops from Iraq.

Rep. Peter Roskam voted NO.

(Administrator's note: Time lists $20 billion in Pork attached to this one. Nice. I'm not sure exactly how I feel about timetables, it would seem to be something easily dispensed with if things were bad enough.)

Upcoming Votes

U.S. Troop Readiness, Veterans' Health, and Iraq Accountability Act - H.R.1591

The Senate is scheduled to take up this emergency supplemental spending bill.

(Administrator's note: Time to chill in Senate for awhile Bill H.R. 1591)

Budget Resolution, FY2008 - H.Con.Res.__

The House is scheduled to take up this $2.9 trillion resolution setting budget priorities for the upcoming fiscal year.

(Administrator's note: Same resolution the Senate just "agreed to" above. I suppose the House must vote on it for passage, though that seems backwards... (struggling to remember U.S. Government class...)

To Undermine, Or Not To.

Veep Cheney has been pounding this drum for quite some time. We are all aware of his selectivity when it comes to pronounceing something as 'undermining' the troops.

• Lack of sufficient armour on both vehicles and body. Not undermining.
• Voting Democrat? Undermining.
  
• Failing to staff qualitfied civilians for Iraq reconstruction? Not undermining.
• Debating, or critisizing, the Presidents war plan? Undermining. (Hell, Rummsfield would say that is akin to being a Nazi sympathiser.)

These are just acouple I can think of off the top of my head. The list goes on and on, much like, I fear, Cheney's evil undead soul will.

Here's a new one from today's Chicago Tribune, that probably falls in the, 'Not undermining' catagory.

When Lt. Dave Moore visited infantry units in the remote, rugged mountains of Afghanistan late last year, the Navy medical officer was surprised to hear from many soldiers and Marines that they had lost significant weight.

After conducting more than 150 interviews with medics, officers and troops on the ground, Moore concluded that the portable rations called "Meals, Ready-to-Eat"--long derided by troops, but valued by the Pentagon for their indestructibility--were not doing the job, causing the soldiers to shed pounds that they very much needed.

"The standard Meal, Ready to Eat (MRE) does not provide adequate nutrition for dismounted operations in this type of terrain," said an excerpt of Moore's classified report, which was released by the Marine Corps Center for Lessons Learned. "Many Marines and soldiers lost 20 to 40 pounds of bodyweight during their deployment. At least one soldier was evacuated due to malnutrition and a 60-pound weight loss."

Dr. Andrew Young, a researcher at the U.S. Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine at Natick, said "The MRE is designed to provide the caloric needs of the largest percentage of war fighters," he said. "The issue is operational constraints that are imposed on the warriors that prevent them from consuming the optimal calories."

R.I.P.

Tagged!! My Current Favorite Seven.

I dared Flannery to tag me, and what does she do, she tags me!

Seven songs I've been into lately.

Victoria - The Kinks
Jesus, Etc. - Wilco
Simple Pages - Weezer
Pulled Up - Talking Heads
You Got Me (Featuring Jill Scott) - The Roots
Do You Realize - Beck and The Flaming Lips
Hung Up - Madonna
Good To See You - Neil young

Attention Cat Lover!

Meow Meow, Kitty, Meow Meow.

My friend Heidi, a veterinarian student at Colorado State, has a cat that needs a home. I'll let her tell you about it.

Here's Loki. He's the cutest and sweetest cat in the world and needs a new home!

He was brought into CSU's CCU after having his jaw broken by a dog. Owners had no money and wanted to euthanize. They said he is a amazing cat but couldn't afford it. So they signed euth and relinquish papers. He's only 1! My friend Christa and I are on a quest to save him. The humane society let us put a wire in his jaw to stabilize it and I found a good foster home for him so he doesn't have to go to the shelter.

Even with a broken jaw he was loving on us. Now that it's fixed he's really showing his personality. He lives with another dog and cat at the foster home and seems to like both. Even after the dog attack! And his roommate is a Rhodesian so she's no small puppy. He's just one of those special ones I couldn't see losing and want someone to have an amazing friend in Loki.

Let me know if anyone is interested in this handsome boy.

If you are interested, I would be happy to forward contact info.
Thanks.

Ten Years After Tag.

10 years ago------------------------------------

1.) How old were you? 23

2.) Where did you go to school? I was still an undergrad at I.S.U.

3) Where did you work? I think I was working at a men clothing store in a mall in Bloomington, Normal. J.Riggin's? Maybe? Those years were hard on my memory.

4.) Where did you live? A charming place called, The Bungalows. A four unit apartment complex dominated by I.S.U. theatre majors, in Normal, Illinois.

5) Where did you hang out? A bar called The Gallery. A coffee shop called The Koffee Kup. My porch.

6.) Did you wear glasses? If I wanted to live.

7.) Who were your best friends? Shelton, Dave, Tim, Quinn, Brendan, etc...

8.) Did you play any sports? Do theatre dept. softball games count?

9.) How many piercings did you have? Zero.

10.) What car did you drive? No car at this time.

11.) Had you been to a real party yet? Oh yeah, you don't get to your sixth year going to class.

12.) Had your heart broken? Yeah, but who's hadn't.

13.) Single/Taken/Married/Divorced/Bitter: Single/bitter.

----------------5 years ago----------------------

1.) How old were you? 28

2.) Where did you go to school? I was taking an acting class.

3.) Where did you work? A truly terrible place called, The Transcription Company, in Burbank, Ca. We created scripts from unscripted interviews, transferred hard copies of scripts to computer, among other things. If you are familiar with the play, The Adding Machine, it was kinda like that.

4.) Where did you live? In a scummy apartment complex, just north of Hollywood Blvd, on Whitley, Hollywood, California. Not good times.

5.) Where did you hang out? A dive bar called Fuel on Wilcox in Hollywood, or on Hollywood Blvd. begging for change.

6.) Did you wear glasses? See answer to Part 1, #6.

7.) Who were your best friends? See answer to Part 1, #7.

8.) Who was your crush? My pregnant fiance.

9.) How many tattoos did you have? One. My mother's family crest.

10.) How many piercings did you have? Zero

11.) What car did you drive? 1990 Oldsmobile.

12.) Had you had your heart broken? No, life had made it quite unbreakable.

13.) Single/Taken/Married/Divorced/Bitter? Engaged.

----------------------NOW------------------------

1.) How old are you? 33

2.) Where do you work? Jury's Bar in Chicago.

3.) Where do you live? Elmhurst, Illinois.

4.) Who are your best friends? See part 1, #7

5.) Where do you hang out? At home with the kids.

6.) Do you wear glasses? Yes, for the last time, I have to.

7.) Who is your crush? Just my kids.

8.) How many tattoos? One, see part 2, #9.

9.) What kind of car do you drive? 1999 Dodge Intrepid.

10.) Has your heart been broken? Not so much.

11.)Single/Taken/Married/Bitter? Married

Curious Phil

Flannery's UberCute post, and Megan's curious post, flipped a slow switch in my head. I used to occasionally ask people questions, sometimes drunk at a bar too. You know, conversation starters (read: annoying), like, "If you could have written any song, what song would it be?" A buddy of mine once said, without even thinking about it, "Surrender, by Cheap Trick."

I thought that was a pretty good answer. Rockin' song, kinda wise and fairly punk, plus I had never heard that answer before.

Me? If I'm anything, I'm cliche, so I'd say, "A Day In The Life," by The Beatles. I'm no expert, but to me, it's the perfect pop song. Universal alienation, modern existentialism. It's catchy, and you can sing along with it.

What song would you want to have written?

Playtime 03/08/07

We spent today at the Lake View Nature Center in Oak Brook Terrace. Philip had a field trip there, so I grabbed some literature and found out they are open to the public, for free, and they have animals. Kids love animals. I love free. Open to the public is obligatory or we couldn't go.

Philip and I took some pictures of our day.

Like his heart when discovering, broken.

Portrait of the Artists Little Brother #1.

I wonder if he was trying to get the distorted glasses seen through a bowling ball sized ashtray.

Family refrigerator, Artist's accomplishments.

Portrait of the Artists Little Brother #2.


Artist's dinner tray.

Portrait of the Artists Little Brother #3.

The current exhibit at the Nature Center is Sand. Sand, and the animals that live in it. Obviously, that includes these feral, suburban youths. There were a bunch of insect toys in the sand, and every once in a while a child would unearth one and surprise themselves. A few mad dashes out of the sandbox in terror at a millipede.

We were met there by our friend, Ava.

Sand everywhere!

George the rabbit and Patrick.

Parental Philosphy

Pet Peeve 2000 Diana Ong

So, the comments for my post on kids and t.v. watching lit up like a Christmas tree. I think part, emphasis on 'part', of what made the subject attractive to comment on was the 'pet peeve' factor. I happened to stumble upon something that people feel strongly about, television. I am obviously less concerned about my children's t.v. consumption than others might be. But it got me thinking, what am I a hard ass about, with regards to my kids.

Or, more importantly, what are you a hard ass about? What are your pet peeves?

I'll stick with the subject of my kids for now, but feel free to add your own, in regards to my kids or not.

We do not believe children belong in restaurants. This has a lot to do with me being a career server and having to serve rude children, but I also don't think it is fair to ask children to behave themselves in a restaurant, and I think it is rude to the other people dinning to ask them to put up with my screaming child.

The Wife and I demand politeness from our children. (This also has a lot to do with me being a server.) We don't always get it, but nothing gets under my skin more than rudeness in children. We require, please, and thank you. We require, excuse me, and I'm sorry.

You got any you want to share?

Shhhh. You hear that?

It's silence.

No kids.

My Uncle Herb and Aunt Mare took the kids last night.
I just woke up out of habit, I'm going back to bed.

See, I can do this.

Though I'm the at-home-parent, The Wife usually handles this stuff. The joke always is, when Mom is away, no baths. This is solely to make her nervous.

The post bath tools for cleanliness.

That's a good boy.

Heart Of Darkness.

So The Wife left for work yesterday morning. The difference, from any other day, is she didn't come home. No. She hasn't left me. But if you want to start a pool, I'd take sometime next year as her walk out date.

Kidding...I love you, Honey. And I know you would never leave me...never...ever...leave me...

The kids and I are on our own for four days.

Pray for me.

Me and Little Phil, A Sad Goodbye. Part 1

(I teased this story, but I'm a slow writer and once given an assignment, I tend to shut down. So, I'll release it in parts.)

In January of 1999, I was finishing up my postgraduate studies in Slackology, with an emphasis in Beach-Bum lifestyles, down in Key West. To make ends meet I would wait tables on the breakfast/lunch shift at Blue Heaven.



Blue Heaven was my Harvard. An outrageously successful place that served good food in a "real" Key West atmosphere. The staff was made up of a variety of eccentric souls. Most had thrown up their hands in disgust at whatever life they had led before, preferring happier times on the island.

When I say "real" Key West atmosphere, one of the things I mean is, there will be chicken's everywhere.

One day, during some down time on my shift, I noticed a small chicken moving about on it's own. It was bigger than a newborn, having lost it's yellow feathers for brown, but what was unusual was that it was alone. Most baby chickens stick very close to their mother hens, especially one as small is this. The more I watched, the more its isolation became obvious. Chickens are violent animals, as this one approached other chicks, or chickens, it would receive a brutal peck to the head from any nearby adult. It would wander from hen to hen, looking for food or a place to cuddle for warmth, but each trip became more dangerous. It eventually sat down, alone, and chirped loudly. Sadly.

I went into the kitchen, grabbed a bowl of potatoes and some bread. At the first offering, it scampered off, so I left a few crumbs on the ground. After I had backed-up, putting myself between it, the food, and the yard full of chickens, it came over and had a bite. Must of us have gone through this dance. A bond is formed as trust sets in. After eating from my hand, it jumped into my lap as I sat there, turned twice, fluffed his feathers and sat down. Cute.

We weren't very busy, but I had some work to do, so I scooted it off me, stood up, and wandered out onto the floor. Nothing going on, everyone good. I drift into the server station. My colleague Jeff, a gay, violent drunk, in his mid forties, missing parts of three fingers and given to inappropriate physical come-ons, brought my attention to the floor at my feet.

"Looks like you got a friend."

The chick had followed me and was now nestled between my shoes.

"I guess I do."

Things that Are Everywhere In Places I have Lived.

Key West Chickens.

The picture above was taken on the floor of my restaurant Ricky's Blue Heaven, in Key West. In the chairs are customers, dinning on their breakfast. You've got two roosters, one hen, and a little chick to the hen's left on the right of the picture. The photo isn't really accurate, there are a lot more of them, in the restaurant and all over the island. The chick is either, much faster than it's sibling's, or the lone survivor of a much larger group, which might also indicate it's speed.

I have two Phil specific stories of tragic relationships I shared with two chicks. One ending in a sad goodbye, the other in a violent goodbye.

Which would you like to hear?

Parental Philosophy.

I watched a lot of t.v. growing up.

My kids watch quite a bit of t.v. I do not think that t.v. is intrinsically bad. As far as the programing for kids these days, I consider it far superior to the t.v. that I grew up on. I know we had Sesame street, 3-2-1 Contact, Mister Roger's Neighborhood, etc., but nowadays, everything is educational, and encourages child participation. If Malcolm Gladwell, in his book 'The Tipping Point', is to be believed, they are rigorously tested for maximum educational impact. Hannah/Barbera is garbage (despite Scooby-Doo's current popularity) compared to most Nickelodeon shows. Noggin', an all day preschool age kids programming schedule, breaks down the specific benefits of the show about to air, whether it be language skills, communication, shapes, numbers, and so on.

I try to subscribe to the philosophy, moderation in all things. Like I said, I don't mind them watching t.v., but how much is to much? I'd appreciate your feedback on this.

I'm not here to judge, so I'll go first. The Boy's probably average between 5-7 hours of t.v. a day, while awake and active for 12-13 hours a day. This is exclusively kids programming on PBS, Nickelodeon, Disney, and Noggin. That I'm writing this post tells you I think it might be too much, but it is also the middle of winter. I do think I do a good job of getting them out of the house 2-3 hours a day for specific kids activities (bookstore, friends house, library, school) outside of day-to-day errands. Plus, there is general playtime (fort building, toys, etc.), book-reading time, numbers, and alphabet work.

Anywho, let me know what you think.

Taking A Break.

So this blog thing has been really cool. It has reacquainted me with old friends, and the writing of those I read is entertaining and often teaches me something.

So, thanks to ya!

I'm gonna take a break for awhile. I'm to busy, and I'm just gonna get busier over the next month.

If you happen to stumble across this blog, please check out my links. You might learn something, or find an old friend too.

See you all later this year.

Look What I Made.