Ultranormal

Category: family

  • Less Than Lucid Musings

    I’m fighting a wicked sinus infection. Jen and Max are at church, and I’m sitting here with the laptop, wrapped up in my blanket, watching Meet the Press and reading my favorite blogs.

    I’ve been thinking recently about why personal journals and blogs fascinate me. For me, it’s the chance to get a glimpse into lives of people I’d never meet otherwise. Whether it’s a freelance translator in France, a college librarian in Texas, a single web designer in Minneapolis or any of the other dozen and a half blogs I check out on a mostly daily basis, I enjoy seeing the pieces of their lives they share through their sites. Most of them are much better writers than I am, and have no problem sharing their feelings on the topics they discuss.

    These people are strangers. They’re strangers who in a lot of cases I consider friends, even though we’ve never met or done more than exchange a couple e-mails. It’s another strange witness to the power and mystery of interpersonal interaction on the internet.

    I’m going to go make some hot chocolate and lay down. I can’t stop coughing, and I think my face is going to pop.

  • Vacation, Vacation, Vacation!

    I’m off all next week and then two days the week after. It’s one of the perks (I guess) of being overworked: lots of unused vacation time. I had 160 hours of time I had to use before the end of the year, so I’m doing my best to use it. Updates will be lighter (maybe) next week, as I gear up for TurkeyDay!

    I’m going to try to be involved in most of the cooking this year, just to get comfortable working with a turkey. I helped last year, but I wasn’t real comfortable. This year is the year to get into it and really make it work. Yeah! Turkey!!

    Can you tell Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday? It’s better than Christmas, Easter, Halloween, Arbor Day – all of ’em. I’m not even sure why. I just love it.

  • Little Singing Sensation

    Max is two. He’s my son. So, use that information however you need to in order to process this story.

    Max has been singing a lot lately. Jen got him this little music set with a tambourine, two maracas and a little clapper thing. Max has taken to beating on the tambourine and singing a little song. He’s also started singing this song whenever he doesn’t have anything better to do. I was taking him home from the fam’s house last night and Max started singing in his carseat. I turned off the radio and tried to figure out if he was doing a song he’d heard before. I didn’t recognize the tune, but I did notice the structure. There are verses, a little chorus and a definite melody, which just amazes me. He’s TWO! He doesn’t talk much yet. Still, he knows the alphabet (and if forced, or thinks no one is looking) will say letters. He knows the planets and can point them out. He knows the difference between the moon and the stars. He can draw shapes and some objects (like a house, a bird, etc). And, if the little guy weren’t amazing enough, he composes little songs in his head!! And better yet, if he’s at home with his instruments, he’ll finish a verse, yell “Yay!” and do a little Max bow/courtsy.

    How did I get so lucky?

  • The Whole Story Finally

    Finally, here’s the Pic-couch-nic story. Jen had the great idea this week that she and I should have a romantic picnic in our backyard yesterday during Max’s nap. She went out and got veggie dip, yummy chocolate cake, a rotisserie chicken and fresh sourdough bread. She put Max down while I was in the shower, got the food ready upstairs and put the blanket out.

    Then, things got interesting. When I got out of the shower, I heard Max fussing. I went in to check on him, and it was pretty easy to see the boy wasn’t ready to go down for a nap. So, I took him downstairs. Jen, ever the improviser, decided to scrap going outside. SO, we had a lovely little pic-couch-nic. It was great: no bugs, no hard ground, and Max got to join us!

  • It’s one of those days

    It’s one of those days where I feel like a punching bag. It’s to the point that I expect people to say “Yeah, I suck, but that’s ok because Kevin will make up for it and make it aaaaa-aaaall better.”

    I think I plan on failing, just screwing up royally just once. Maybe they’ll leave me alone then.

  • Halloween Max

    Max went trick-or-treating for the first time last night, and had a ball. Jen took him around our block and hit a dozen or so houses. Then, I took him over to my family’s house, and he hit a few more. He was more interested in handing out candy and playing with his Uncle Steve. He’s a cutie… check out his pre-trick-or-treat pic I took right before they got bundled up and headed out.

  • In the same vein as

    In the same vein as Alison’s List, the five people I’d most like to have dinner with (they have to still be alive) Who would you like to have dinner with?.

    1. Garrison Keilor
    2. John Stockton
    3. Philip Greenspun (which isn’t fair, because I have had dinner with him)
    4. Bela Fleck
    5. William H. Macy

       

  • Hello, my name is Kevin.

    Hello, my name is Kevin. I am a compulsive upgrader. I admit it. I like to have the latest software, even if it means compiling it myself. There, I said it. I’m now in the process of building the latest Mozilla release for my new Mac (running YellowDog, of course). I also downloaded AOLserver and the latest PostgreSQL driver from OpenACS. Why? I’m a chronic upgrader. Gotta do it.

  • Announcing an Upgrade in the

    Announcing an Upgrade in the Punk Department: Not sure how I did it, but after my WIFE beat me in the Punk Score, I went back and took the test again. Now, instead of 5% Punk, I’m now 8% Punk. How Punk Are You?

  • Jen’s dad is on his

    Jen’s dad is on his way home. We had a great time while he was here, and Max loved it. I wish he could have stayed longer.

    I took the day off on Friday (hence my silence here). We decided to go find this German restaurant in West Virginia we missed going to last time Jen’s dad was here. We took a great drive down Route 7 from Leesburg to West Virginia through the rolling hills and the pastoral beauty of changing leaves, farmland and small towns.

    We made it to the the Bavarian Inn and Lodge in beautiful Shepherdstown. It sits on a hill high above the Potomac River. The view was gorgeous. Since it took us less time to get there than we thought, we let Max stretch his legs and run around. He took off over the well-groomed lawn, climbed up and down the stairs, and explored the grounds. Then, we had lunch, which was kind of a disappointment. We we seated and instantly became aware of the fact that Max was the only patron sitting in a high chair, and that Jen and I were the only diners under the age of 45. There were matronly old ladies wearing hats, old men in sweaters and their middle aged children leading them around by the hand saying, “Yes, mother, the ladies’ room is this way.”

    The food fell into a category I’d call “upper-class cafeteria”. The food was “ok”, but bland and not up to a setting like that.

    To make up for it, we stopped on the way home and picked up a freshly made apple pie from an orchard on the way back.

    On the way home, I felt more like a father and protector as I ever had before. They slept, and I drove. Their safety was in my hands. It was a strange feeling to realize that Jen and Max are my responsibility to provide for them, keep them safe and healthy.