Songs In My Head - Early 90s positive rapper edition
Pu’ Sho Hands 2Getha - Me Phi Me
August 27th, 2007 - Posted in songsinmyhead | | 0 Comments
Playground John Wayne
On Saturday, Whacko almost got into a fight with a kid on the playground over his sister’s honor.
Two kids who were a little older than Whacko were playing some kind of game. They’d get close to Dot and say “Ahhhhh, monster!” and run away from her. Not a particularly nice thing to do, but nothing that was going to harm her. This didn’t stop Dot from taking offense. As she was holding forth to me about how mad those boys were making her, Whacko came up and listened quietly.
After a moment he says, “I’ll handle this.”
He marches up behind the bigger of the two kids, probably a foot taller than he is. He follows the kid all the way around the equipment and up the ladder towards the slides, giving him the 1000-yard stare the whole time.
When the kid stops, Whacko puts on his best Aanakin-is-about-to-murder-the-Separatist-leaders demeanor and says “Stop calling my sister a monster.” Of course, it’s Whacko, so it sounds more like, “stop calling my sistow a monstow.”
By this point, they’re about 20 feet away, and I don’t hear any more of the conversation until I hear Whacko say “I know Tae Kwon Do” and the other kid kicks the air to show that he at least thinks he knows it, too.
Part of me wanted to see what would develop, but I formed a quick mental image of someone tumbling off the playground equipment and instead took the opportunity to say, “Time to go home, guys.”
On our way back to the van, I told him that I knew he was a good kid, but did he remember the first rule of Tae Kwon Do? (The first thing they teach the kids in the younger classes is never to use Tae Kwon Do to cause trouble or hurt others). He grins and says, “I know, Dad. I was just doin’ psychs.”
August 16th, 2007 - Posted in Parentgeekness | | 0 Comments
An adventure
Our adventure to Lincoln unexpectedly got split into two separate adventures.
First, the TaeKwonDo tournament. We travelled to Lincoln, NE for the Midwest regional championships, and the boys did us proud.
Yakko got first in his group in both forms and “sparring” (sparring, for yellow belts, consists of doing their one-step exercises back and forth, with the one the judges decide did a better job moving on face the next kid).
Whacko got third in his form. The lasting lesson we’ve learned now is “don’t send the 5-year-old out onto the floor with a full water bottle.” He spent nearly half an hour sitting in his group, and we could see from the stands that he was drinking every few minutes. He got through his form admirably, and then had to sit (and drink) while they went over the sparring rules, and then sit (and drink) while getting his pads on. This was all too much, however, and we think that by the time he actually faced an opponent, he was thinking more about a potty break than he was about getting a strike in. Thus, sadly, he was dispatched in short order in his first round of sparring. He almost immediately talked to the lead judge, and had to be accompanied off the floor to the restrooms.
That aside, though, we had plenty to be proud of. They both did a great job, and they both had some hardware to show off to the grandparents. Our biggest worry going into this was that one would do well and one wouldn’t. We didn’t want it to become yet another thing for them to fight about. As I noted to Yakko in hopes that he wouldn’t gloat, Whacko’s green belt means more is expected of him, he’s younger, and actual sparring is obviously more difficult than trading one-steps. Both kids were good sports about it, though, and there wasn’t too much rivalry.
The second half of our trip wasn’t quite as smooth.
We were on pace for a completely successful trip, headed back from Lincoln and passing north of Omaha, when we suddenly lost power steering in the van. We managed to pull off into a gas station parking lot, but it was apparent as soon as I got out that we weren’t going any farther. So after a few phone calls made it apparent that no help was coming on a saturday afternoon, we got Grandma and Grandpa to come get us. Grandpa and I came back monday and got the thing towed to a nearby service shop. Here’s where something–luck, or providence, or synchronicity, or whatever you want to call it–kicked in.
It just happened that the nearest place (nearest who answered their phone at 9 AM) was a transmission shop. It just happened that they looked at the transmission as well as the water pump that had gone out. He showed us the problem spot while it was on the rack, and it left little doubt: If the water pump hadn’t made us stop, there were some serious problems with the transmission casing (and a differential, which might mean more to you than it does to me) that would have essentially wrecked our poor van completely during the long, desolate run from Omaha to Sioux City.
So here’s the endorsement: if you need to give your custom to gas station or service station on the northern end of Omaha, I’d heartily recommend the helpful folks at the Cubby’s on Mormon Bridge Road or the AAMCO transmission shop on 72nd.
June 26th, 2007 - Posted in Homelife, Parentgeekness | | 0 Comments
Who says baseball is boring?
The counter-argument to “NASCAR is boring” is, of course, that when you get a good crash it makes it all worthwhile. Similarly, even people who are bored with baseball can appreciate when–once a year or so–a manager completely and utterly loses his mind chewing out the umpires.
Phillip Wellman, the manager of the AA Mississippi farm team of my beloved Braves, had that moment tonight. It really is a classic.
June 2nd, 2007 - Posted in baseball | | 0 Comments
Belts, Summer
The whole family (well, except for Dot) tested and earned their next belts this past weekend in TaeKwonDo. Whacko is now a green belt, Yakko has his yellow, and Mom and Dad are senior green. UPS didn’t get the new belts to us in time for the awards ceremony, so we have no pictures.
Whacko, as a new green belt, got fitted for his pads and sat in on his first sparring class. He was a little more tentative than we thought he’d be, but that’s probably just as well. We were worried he was gonna tear into the kid lined up across from him, but he was more preoccupied with how much his helmet itched.
Yakko is done with school as of yesterday. Because there are three kids to watch instead of two, that makes life harder on everyone except me. Not having to get him to school, I get to either sleep later or have extra time to get more accomplished in the mornings. I intend to do the latter, but will probably wind up doing the former.
This also begins Whacko’s last summer as a free kid. Kindergarten starts for him in the fall. We’ll hope he handles it better by then than he did at the meet-and-greet a few weeks ago. Growling at your kindergarten teacher might be an amusing story years down the road, but it’s not an optimal first impression.
May 25th, 2007 - Posted in Homelife | | 0 Comments
Skynet goes online
Ten years ago today, the computer Deep Blue beat Kasparov. It was the first time a computer had taken a full match from a human grand master.
(As an aside, The first Kasparov / computer match from the previous year was the first time I ever settled a bet by looking something up on the Internet. My buddy Cool didn’t believe Kasparov had won, and a Yahoo search proved me right.)
I “play” chess only in the sense that I know how the pieces move. Knowing the alphabet doesn’t mean you know how to read. But it seems to me that conceptually, there’s no reason to expect a human to play better than a computer. At any stage of the game, there are a finite number of possible outcomes, and that number gets smaller with every move. That’s the kind of thing computers do well. No one is stunned when computers factor huge numbers faster and more accurately than humans. Why should we be surprised when computers figure out better chess moves?
I guess if someone built a computer that could beat a top-notch Yu Gi Oh player, I’d be more impressed.
May 11th, 2007 - Posted in Uncategorized | | 0 Comments
Leave It To Beaver Letter
So on one of my tv blog sites I found this. It’s the contents of a letter from a Leave It To Beaver episode. 50 years ago when it aired no one could pause tv to read the letter so it didn’t really matter what was in it. Now thanks to the wonders of technology we get to read what bored prop people did. Check out the letter. It really is kinda funny. http://www.shorpy.com/leave-it-to-beaver
May 2nd, 2007 - Posted in Uncategorized | | 1 Comments
An update
A quick note to our loyal readers (er, that would be you, Lizz):
We have not given up on the site. Still here, still thinking about posting. Soon thought will become action. Action will become ones and zeroes. And those ones and zeroes will become words, right here in this space.
April 30th, 2007 - Posted in Uncategorized | | 0 Comments
Schultz Philosophy
The following is the philosophy of Charles Schultz, the creator of the “Peanuts” comic strip.
1. Name the five wealthiest people in the world.
2. Name the last five Heisman trophy winners.
3. Name the last five winners of the Miss America.
4. Name ten people who have won the Nobel or Pulitzer Prize.
5. Name the last half dozen Academy Award winners for best actor and actress.
6. Name the last decade’s worth of World Series winners.
How did you do?
The point is, none of us remember the headliners of yesterday. These are no second-rate achievers. They are the best in their fields. But the applause dies. Awards tarnish. Achievements are forgotten. Accolades and certificates are buried with their owners .
1. List a few teachers who aided your journey through school.
2. Name three friends who have helped you through a difficult time.
3. Name five people who have taught you something worthwhile.
4. Think of a few people who have made you feel appreciated and special.
5. Think of five people you enjoy spending time with.
The lesson:
The people who make a difference in your life are not the ones with the most credentials, the most money, or the most awards. They are the ones that care .
“Don’t worry about the world coming to an end today. It’s already tomorrow in Australia ” (Charles Schultz)
April 2nd, 2007 - Posted in Uncategorized | | 0 Comments
Stand By Me
So finally I got to share one of the best movies of all time and space with my boys. I was afraid that watching it again for probably the 543rd time would make me like it a little less or that watching it through the boys eyes would change it. It didn’t, it’s still an awesome movie. Yes I know all the words at one point in my life my niece and I could go almost half the movie without missing a line and that was even when we weren’t watching it. I did refrain from saying them along with just to keep Yacko from getting annoyed and leaving. I was surprised to see that Wacko liked it better than Yacko. But than if it’s not a sports movie it doesn’t rate on Yacko’s scale. I did cringe at all the swearing, constantly reminding the boys they couldn’t repeat what they heard, yet at the same time I know firsthand this is how 12 year old boys talk when adults aren’t around. Heck this is how 12 year old girls talk when parents aren’t around. The most enjoyable part of rewatching Stand By Me is the memories this movie brings. That trip to find the body was one that I will never forget. And being chased by the train, I swear I lost ten years of my life….. No not those kind of memories. The ones from having seen it. I wont admit to my age when I first saw it in the theater but I do clearly remember the day. It was a Sunday. I went to it with a friend after my niece’s birthday party. Mostly I have fond memories of watching it and quoting it in strange places or at secret times. So if you haven’t seen it or you just want to watch it again let me know. I’m up for number 544. Oh yeah, Corrina - Screw you, I got it!!!!!
March 25th, 2007 - Posted in Uncategorized | | 0 Comments
