Ultranormal

Category: family

  • The Big Update

    So, I guess you’ve noticed that I haven’t updated in a while. I had last week off, and just didn’t feel like touching the computer for anything more than checking my mail for emergencies. Here’s an update of what’s been going on:

    • Monday and Tuesday: Sick. I’m still trying to kick my fantastic sinus infection.
    • Wednesday, 11/23: Jen, Mom, Steve and I took Max to see Monsters, Inc.. It was his first movie theater experience and Jen wanted to do it right. We got him a hot dog, popcorn and he shared our sodas. I was nervous about the whole thing, bringing a wild two-year-old into a dark theater just sounded like trouble to me. Boy, was I wrong! Max ate it up! He got so into the movie that he barely touched his food unless we put it in his hands. He was GREAT! He sat in his little booster seat wearing the sunglasses he stole from Steve, and just taking it all in. He got a little squirmy towards the end, but he just moved to Mom’s lap, then Jen’s, then back to the booster seat, and that was the end of the squirming. He was so adorable, I wish I had pictures.After the movie, I went over to Mom’s to do some baking. We made shoo-fly pie that didn’t turn out so hot (you know, there’s a direction component to recipes, and NOT just the ingredients? Good goin’, Kev). Then, we made an Annie/Kevin original. It was basically an Apple Brown Betty, but we made super-Crumblies for the top (the real win of the whole experience) and added cranberries (too many… tart city!! It was much better the second day after the apples had a chance to fight the tartness).
    • Thanksgiving: You know how I was going to help cook and all that jazz? Didn’t happen. I was still a little under-the-weather. I did manage to make the world’s best batch of mashed potatoes though.
    • The Weekend: We got TiVo!! (we actually got it Wednesday, but spent the weekend playing with it). It’s not as cool as I thought it would be, but it’s very very nice. I can now record Letterman and Conan every night, the Daily Show, Cowboy Bebop – you know, the shows you’d stay up and watch if you were still in school and could sleep in?. Lots of fun.

    There you have it… my fantastic week away from work. Now, it’s back to the grindstone…

  • 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?