Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Happy Birthday Lexi!
Some pics from Lexi's 3rd birthday party. Had some of the kids from her daycare over, as well as some folks from work.The kids got Strawberry Shortcake tattoos, and they all loved them.
Then we ate cupcakes and I went back to bed.
Thursday, February 07, 2008
Monday, February 04, 2008
Vampire Weekend
Been hearing a lot about this band lately, Vampire Weekend.
At first listen, I immediately thought of Bishop Allen. Then I checked out their new album on iTunes. I still think Bishop Allen, mixed with Paul Simon.
Not a bad thing.
I don't know that this first album is going to cure cancer, but I think it's worth a few listens. Maybe a nice spring/summer album to chill to.
Hello, vampire weekend.
At first listen, I immediately thought of Bishop Allen. Then I checked out their new album on iTunes. I still think Bishop Allen, mixed with Paul Simon.
Not a bad thing.
I don't know that this first album is going to cure cancer, but I think it's worth a few listens. Maybe a nice spring/summer album to chill to.
Hello, vampire weekend.
Sunday, January 27, 2008
Funny Comments
I was reading a post on the Consumerist.com and scrolled down to read the comments, which are pretty typical for such a website. The consumerist is a place where you go and tell your retail nightmares. Then, in the comments section, half the readers call you a moron for shopping at places like Best Buy in the first place, while the other half yell at the first commenters to tell them to give you a break.
Anyway, the post I was reading was about a deaf woman who went through a drive-thru at a fast food place, and pulled around to the window because she couldn't hear anything through the speaker (natch). The manager told her she had to order through the speaker, and he wouldn't let her order from the window. So I read the first couple comments, then came this gem:
" BY MIKEMAR42 AT 02:38 PM
Anyway, the post I was reading was about a deaf woman who went through a drive-thru at a fast food place, and pulled around to the window because she couldn't hear anything through the speaker (natch). The manager told her she had to order through the speaker, and he wouldn't let her order from the window. So I read the first couple comments, then came this gem:
" BY MIKEMAR42 AT 02:38 PM
If I was def I would go inside to order, it would be simpler and easier for both parties involved. I wouldn't make a big deal about it. This is just complaining not discrimination. If I was def I wouldn't expect special treatment everywhere I went. I usually go in to order anyway because they fuck you at the drive thru. THEY FUCK YOU AT THE DRIVE THRU THEY ALWAYS DO IT. THEY KNOW YOU'LL BE A MILE AWAY BEFORE YOU NOTICE. THEY FUCK YOU AT THE DRIVE THRU, EVERY TIME."
I hope you found it as funny as I did. It's funny because it's true. If you stop a moment to check your order, they give you nasty looks. I've even had employees say, "It's all there". Only to check the bag and find that something was indeed missing. Multiple times. St. Louis was the worst for this. You'd almost get stabbed by the employees for doubting them, though they were never surprised if you did find a mistake.
I dunno, I couldn't stop laughing at this.Wednesday, January 23, 2008
I'm taking the day off
No reason, just took a day because I had some vacation built up. Wanna know a little secret? It kind of blows.
Is it age that makes free time go twice as quickly as it used to, or is it the children? Anyway, here's a recap of my day so far.
7.45 - Lexi wakes up and comes in to watch cartoons.
8.00 - Lexi goes in to wake up Noah
8.30 - Take kids to daycare. Sit and talk for 20 minutes.
9.00 - Go to Goodwill. I go here a lot, but today felt off. I didn't get a good night's sleep last night, so my junk sorting is a little off. I half-assedly look through books, jackets, shoes, spend most my time looking at picture frames -- my newest obsession, then shirts, pants and sweaters. Nothing. I'm pretty much wasting time until 10.00 when most stores open.
9.50 - Hit McDonalds for a breakfast burrito and a sausage biscuit. Got a medium Coke. Of course coffee would have been the right choice since I was tired, but I have a coffee conundrum at a drive through, in that I need it really sweet, lots of cream and sugar, and I don't want to inconvenience them, but I don't want to stick my own 6 sugars in either, so Coke is easier.
10.00 - Check out the new video game store I saw last week. I felt bad for the guy working there, he's been open 3 months and the place was empty, so I had to buy at least one game to make him feel better. Sucks being such a people person.
10.45 - Make the crucial choice not to go to the Guitar Center, but instead home so I can take a nap. But first I check out the Guitar Center website to see what I missed. Video games I can justify, since I play them regularly. Guitars are a little harder, since I have several, and they're all in the garage and never get played. But what's a day off for if you don't buy a new guitar or something? Am I right?
1.00 - My alarm goes off. I only wanted a quick nap so I wouldn't waste my already flying-by day.
1.30 - Still hitting snooze. Think about getting up. Finally jump out of bed to check something out on the internet.
2.14 - Still on the internet, writing this post. Formulating my plan of attack for the rest of the afternoon. It pretty much involves making the bed, cleaning the dishes from last night, then the tough choice -- Do I go to the grocery store for stuff for dinner, or can I scrape something together. I'm resolving right now to scrape something together. I think I have enough for some soup, and I'm taking a personal day, dammit, not a grocery store day. This is a tougher choice than it sounds, as the Missus took a personal day last week and stayed home all day cleaning the house on her day off. Oh well, that's her choice. Did I mention I'm going to make the bed? Crisis averted.
2.17 - I need to play some video games before my time's up. I think I'll go do that for an hour, start some soup, get the mail, and maybe play games interspersed with checking on the soup.
2.18 - I'm getting up now. Wait, I think I've figured it out. Why days off are shorter now...because the kids get home at 5. Before kids you had all day and all night, now you just have all day. How dumb of me not to think of this before.
2.19 - I'm getting up now.
2.20 - Things I learned from the internet today :
1. It's a shame about Heath Ledger. I thought he was a great actor and seemed like a decent guy.
2. I'm changing my candidate for president. I want Kucinich and Thompson in '08. Have you seen their wivs? Hubba hubba.
2.21 - I'm getting up now.
Is it age that makes free time go twice as quickly as it used to, or is it the children? Anyway, here's a recap of my day so far.
7.45 - Lexi wakes up and comes in to watch cartoons.
8.00 - Lexi goes in to wake up Noah
8.30 - Take kids to daycare. Sit and talk for 20 minutes.
9.00 - Go to Goodwill. I go here a lot, but today felt off. I didn't get a good night's sleep last night, so my junk sorting is a little off. I half-assedly look through books, jackets, shoes, spend most my time looking at picture frames -- my newest obsession, then shirts, pants and sweaters. Nothing. I'm pretty much wasting time until 10.00 when most stores open.
9.50 - Hit McDonalds for a breakfast burrito and a sausage biscuit. Got a medium Coke. Of course coffee would have been the right choice since I was tired, but I have a coffee conundrum at a drive through, in that I need it really sweet, lots of cream and sugar, and I don't want to inconvenience them, but I don't want to stick my own 6 sugars in either, so Coke is easier.
10.00 - Check out the new video game store I saw last week. I felt bad for the guy working there, he's been open 3 months and the place was empty, so I had to buy at least one game to make him feel better. Sucks being such a people person.
10.45 - Make the crucial choice not to go to the Guitar Center, but instead home so I can take a nap. But first I check out the Guitar Center website to see what I missed. Video games I can justify, since I play them regularly. Guitars are a little harder, since I have several, and they're all in the garage and never get played. But what's a day off for if you don't buy a new guitar or something? Am I right?
1.00 - My alarm goes off. I only wanted a quick nap so I wouldn't waste my already flying-by day.
1.30 - Still hitting snooze. Think about getting up. Finally jump out of bed to check something out on the internet.
2.14 - Still on the internet, writing this post. Formulating my plan of attack for the rest of the afternoon. It pretty much involves making the bed, cleaning the dishes from last night, then the tough choice -- Do I go to the grocery store for stuff for dinner, or can I scrape something together. I'm resolving right now to scrape something together. I think I have enough for some soup, and I'm taking a personal day, dammit, not a grocery store day. This is a tougher choice than it sounds, as the Missus took a personal day last week and stayed home all day cleaning the house on her day off. Oh well, that's her choice. Did I mention I'm going to make the bed? Crisis averted.
2.17 - I need to play some video games before my time's up. I think I'll go do that for an hour, start some soup, get the mail, and maybe play games interspersed with checking on the soup.
2.18 - I'm getting up now. Wait, I think I've figured it out. Why days off are shorter now...because the kids get home at 5. Before kids you had all day and all night, now you just have all day. How dumb of me not to think of this before.
2.19 - I'm getting up now.
2.20 - Things I learned from the internet today :
1. It's a shame about Heath Ledger. I thought he was a great actor and seemed like a decent guy.
2. I'm changing my candidate for president. I want Kucinich and Thompson in '08. Have you seen their wivs? Hubba hubba.
2.21 - I'm getting up now.
Friday, January 18, 2008
Dullard
If I could string together all the posts I've written and deleted because they were stupid, it would stretch from Portland to Seattle (assuming you use a giant font).
Anyway, that means you've only been reading the cream of the crop. And that is very, very sad.
Just wanted to let you know I'm straining my brain to think of something good to write about, but I can't.
Anyway, that means you've only been reading the cream of the crop. And that is very, very sad.
Just wanted to let you know I'm straining my brain to think of something good to write about, but I can't.
Sunday, January 13, 2008
Politics and Shopping
Been watching the POTUS race a little more lately. Still liking Obama, still disliking most everyone else.
Hillary seems too mean, too cold and calculating. She really needs to chill a little. It's a fine line between being a powerful woman and being a hoity toity bitch. Ask my mother.
All I really, really care about is not having another republican in the White House. I think it's nice to mix it up and switch the parties around every now and again. I've just had it with this whole cloud of whatever it is that's been hanging over our heads for years. I don't think someone like Romney is going to change that, despite saying that he's the 'candidate of change'. Or who isn't saying that these days?
On an entirely unrelated note, what's up with bad customer service everywhere I go? I'm sure it's because I work at a retail store that values good customer service above just about everything else, but I'm appalled at the bad habits that I continually run across, especially at national chains that have plenty of money and power to make it otherwise.
Hillary seems too mean, too cold and calculating. She really needs to chill a little. It's a fine line between being a powerful woman and being a hoity toity bitch. Ask my mother.
All I really, really care about is not having another republican in the White House. I think it's nice to mix it up and switch the parties around every now and again. I've just had it with this whole cloud of whatever it is that's been hanging over our heads for years. I don't think someone like Romney is going to change that, despite saying that he's the 'candidate of change'. Or who isn't saying that these days?
On an entirely unrelated note, what's up with bad customer service everywhere I go? I'm sure it's because I work at a retail store that values good customer service above just about everything else, but I'm appalled at the bad habits that I continually run across, especially at national chains that have plenty of money and power to make it otherwise.
Thursday, January 03, 2008
Tuesday, January 01, 2008
Sunday, December 30, 2007
What I'm doing for 2008
Of course I have new years resolutions. Who doesn't? What self-respecting, red-blooded American citizen-being wouldn't take advantage of this time to say what they want to do better in the next year? I don't plan on actually following through on any of them for longer than a day or two, but we'll see. A day or two spread out over a year isn't really so difficult.
1. Post more on my blog
2. Stop swearing so much
3. Stop swearing so much in front of the kids
4. Stop swearing at the kids
Damn, that's already getting up there. Now for some random things I'd like to do:
5. See more shows, movies, etc.
6. Have more dates with my wife. Which means getting more babysitters. Which is fine, but means putting an effort into things. I was saving 'making more of an effort' for 2009, but as long as I'm here...
7. Vote more. I did actually vote in the last local election. But it was for school board members, and since I know nothing about the candidates, I wrote in my own name. That's why I probably shouldn't even be wasting anybody's time.
8. Read more
9. I'd love to play more Canasta. Nobody really gets into that though. Maybe online?
10. Do more around the house. Last year I concentrated on the backyard, which was probably a bust. It's a muddy mess right now. We'll see if any of the new grass took. I haven't cleaned the gutters in over a year. The house needs to be re-painted. I re-did the deck, but half-assed, so slapping a coat of waterproof paint doesn't actually fix rotten deck boards. The fence is falling apart in places too.
11. Stop using the kids as an excuse for why I don't get things like home improvements done. It is true though--since the wife and I only have one day off together, I'm alone with the kids on my other day off. And they're not too good about playing quietly while I clean the gutters.
12. Stop using the kids as an excuse for why I don't get things done.
13. Start putting the kids to work to get more things done. They can't do gutters, but they can probably pick up rocks.
14. Lose 20 pounds. Of course most people have this on their list. In my case I'm being modest, I should probably lose 30 pounds.
15. Stop making lists.
1. Post more on my blog
2. Stop swearing so much
3. Stop swearing so much in front of the kids
4. Stop swearing at the kids
Damn, that's already getting up there. Now for some random things I'd like to do:
5. See more shows, movies, etc.
6. Have more dates with my wife. Which means getting more babysitters. Which is fine, but means putting an effort into things. I was saving 'making more of an effort' for 2009, but as long as I'm here...
7. Vote more. I did actually vote in the last local election. But it was for school board members, and since I know nothing about the candidates, I wrote in my own name. That's why I probably shouldn't even be wasting anybody's time.
8. Read more
9. I'd love to play more Canasta. Nobody really gets into that though. Maybe online?
10. Do more around the house. Last year I concentrated on the backyard, which was probably a bust. It's a muddy mess right now. We'll see if any of the new grass took. I haven't cleaned the gutters in over a year. The house needs to be re-painted. I re-did the deck, but half-assed, so slapping a coat of waterproof paint doesn't actually fix rotten deck boards. The fence is falling apart in places too.
11. Stop using the kids as an excuse for why I don't get things like home improvements done. It is true though--since the wife and I only have one day off together, I'm alone with the kids on my other day off. And they're not too good about playing quietly while I clean the gutters.
12. Stop using the kids as an excuse for why I don't get things done.
13. Start putting the kids to work to get more things done. They can't do gutters, but they can probably pick up rocks.
14. Lose 20 pounds. Of course most people have this on their list. In my case I'm being modest, I should probably lose 30 pounds.
15. Stop making lists.
Saturday, December 29, 2007
New post
No, not this one...the one below it. Just a little note...what I wrote is about 1/20th of what I wanted to write. But sometimes it's not best to wait until midnight to post something, especially when your wife is trying to sleep and you're keeping her awake with the pounding keyboard. Anyway, I just wanted to get something up here so my mom will have something to read next time she checks my blog.
Love you mom!
Love you mom!
Where in the world...
In anthropology, there is much use of the word cosmology. In studying so-called primitive societies, cosmologies help explain the relationship of human beings to the rest of the universe and are therefore closely tied to religious beliefs and practices (thanks Dictionary.com!). It's a word I hadn't hear before taking my first anthropology course in college, but it's a topic I've been thinking about ever since.
The latest thing to get me thinking about this was a post at the Great Whatsit. This post, to be specific. As it goes, I had written my own comment to this post, but deleted it at the last minute. Deleted it because a) nobody cares what I have to say on the subject, and b) I have a great place to post stuff that nobody cares about on my own blog without having to mess up someone else's.
Anyway, here's my take on the whole thing: My cosmology only extends to my daily life for the most part. I don't care much what's going on outside my own home, outside my work, or what goes on that doesn't affect me in a daily capacity. I know, I'm sticking my head in the sand, and I do it willingly. I guess what's been worrying me the most lately is that I've been doing it for the past 13 years or so and I figure it's got to catch up with me sooner or later.
Now, this sort of view definitely has its perks. I don't have to worry about politics. I don't have to worry about voting, and if I do decide to vote, I don't worry if I don't like the outcome. I pay attention to the news enough to know what's going on in the world (because you obviously have to pay attention if you're going to keep your Jeopardy skills honed). I just don't get worried unless the bad news is in my home town.
To some extent, my world view encompasses Washington as well as Oregon, so if I'm going to choose an identity, it's as a Pacific Northwester. But that's it. That's about as far as it goes. What's going on in California? Don't much care. Washington D.C.? Doesn't worry me. Bush stole the election? Not going to change the world for me. I do understand that it will change the world for others, so I'm not saying that you shouldn't care...I'm just saying that it doesn't bother me.
Same with religion. I grew up going to church every Sunday. When I decided it wasn't for me, it was a relatively clean break. Now I don't think about it. I don't worry about what church is right, who's going to hell, or what I'm going to do on Sunday. It's no longer a part of my world view.
There are definitely some subjects that I'll have an opinion on, however. Pedophile priests are bad whether I believe in religion or not. Bush is always going to lose the fight against words. I might vote for Obama this time if I do decide to vote. And if I decide not to vote, I don't bitch and moan about the outcome. I understand that I can't say anything if I don't vote. One guy's gonna cut taxes and the other's gonna raise them? Ok by me. I'm gonna pay them either way, just tell me how much I owe. I know Americans are fat and lazy and talk too loud when they're on vacation. Still doesn't bother me. I don't identify myself as one of those. Even if I get fat and lazy (not a far stretch), I'm gonna whisper when I'm in Europe. But the American identity isn't a part of my cosmology.
Is this world view wrong? I don't think so. As I mentioned before, I do worry that it's going to backfire one of these days. Maybe the next president will decide to put everybody with my name in prison. Then it will be too late, and I'll wish I had done things differently.
At least I'll have time to revise where I fit in.
The latest thing to get me thinking about this was a post at the Great Whatsit. This post, to be specific. As it goes, I had written my own comment to this post, but deleted it at the last minute. Deleted it because a) nobody cares what I have to say on the subject, and b) I have a great place to post stuff that nobody cares about on my own blog without having to mess up someone else's.
Anyway, here's my take on the whole thing: My cosmology only extends to my daily life for the most part. I don't care much what's going on outside my own home, outside my work, or what goes on that doesn't affect me in a daily capacity. I know, I'm sticking my head in the sand, and I do it willingly. I guess what's been worrying me the most lately is that I've been doing it for the past 13 years or so and I figure it's got to catch up with me sooner or later.
Now, this sort of view definitely has its perks. I don't have to worry about politics. I don't have to worry about voting, and if I do decide to vote, I don't worry if I don't like the outcome. I pay attention to the news enough to know what's going on in the world (because you obviously have to pay attention if you're going to keep your Jeopardy skills honed). I just don't get worried unless the bad news is in my home town.
To some extent, my world view encompasses Washington as well as Oregon, so if I'm going to choose an identity, it's as a Pacific Northwester. But that's it. That's about as far as it goes. What's going on in California? Don't much care. Washington D.C.? Doesn't worry me. Bush stole the election? Not going to change the world for me. I do understand that it will change the world for others, so I'm not saying that you shouldn't care...I'm just saying that it doesn't bother me.
Same with religion. I grew up going to church every Sunday. When I decided it wasn't for me, it was a relatively clean break. Now I don't think about it. I don't worry about what church is right, who's going to hell, or what I'm going to do on Sunday. It's no longer a part of my world view.
There are definitely some subjects that I'll have an opinion on, however. Pedophile priests are bad whether I believe in religion or not. Bush is always going to lose the fight against words. I might vote for Obama this time if I do decide to vote. And if I decide not to vote, I don't bitch and moan about the outcome. I understand that I can't say anything if I don't vote. One guy's gonna cut taxes and the other's gonna raise them? Ok by me. I'm gonna pay them either way, just tell me how much I owe. I know Americans are fat and lazy and talk too loud when they're on vacation. Still doesn't bother me. I don't identify myself as one of those. Even if I get fat and lazy (not a far stretch), I'm gonna whisper when I'm in Europe. But the American identity isn't a part of my cosmology.
Is this world view wrong? I don't think so. As I mentioned before, I do worry that it's going to backfire one of these days. Maybe the next president will decide to put everybody with my name in prison. Then it will be too late, and I'll wish I had done things differently.
At least I'll have time to revise where I fit in.
Monday, December 10, 2007
Favorite Cheeses
I like cheese.
I like cheese a lot.
If you add some cheese to a recipe, it becomes good. I like ham and cheese the best. There are no two other flavor combinations that taste as good as ham and cheese I think. Maybe whiskey and Coke. Peanut butter and jelly being a distant third.
Have you ever had Stilton cheese? It's like bleu cheese times 20. I've only had it a few times, and I'd been drinking or I never could have eaten it. But it's really good. I keep meaning to buy some but I don't drink much so I'm always afraid it's going to go bad before I get a chance to drink enough to eat some (pretty ironic, I know, since it already is bad).
Bleu Cheese is my favorite kind of salad dressing. I've been loving it for like 20 years now. When I was a kid it was French and Bleu cheese, but now French is a distant memory and it's just the BC. If a restaurant doesn't have BC I pretty much won't have salad. It's good on top of steak as well.
Gouda is another favorite. Comes from living in Germany near the border with Holland, where Gouda is the ubiquitous, inexpensive cheese that everybody loves. Like cheddar here. I prefer smoked Gouda most, but then again, I like just about any smoked cheese. Especially with ham.
Pepper Jack is awesome. I didn't discover it until later in life. It gives things a zest they might normally be missing. I made a recipe the other day for a kind of tortilla/chicken layered casserole, using nothing but pepper jack for cheese. It was a mistake. I should have put some orange cheese in as well. But it was zingy.
Swiss is another I didn't like as a kid so much, but got used to in Germany. If I'm having a sandwich, Swiss is what I'm wanting to be having on that sandwich. It's easy to get a lousy Swiss though.
You probably haven't heard of Provel cheese before. It's a mix of Provolone and Mozzarella that is specially made in St. Louis. They put it on their pizzas there and it has a special taste that is unique to the city. Provolone is good on sandwiches too.
Asiago is great too. Ranks up there along with fresh parmesan. Love it on bagels.
Myzythra, if you haven't had it, is awesome grated over some freshly made spaghetti. Brown a stick of butter first (just cook it over low-medium heat for like 20 minutes until it turns brown, but not grainy). Then top it with the grated cheese.
Dubliner - One of my new favorite cheeses. Kind of in the Asiago/Parmesan vein. Great with a baguette.
Cheddar, Colby, Jack -- those are all good too. Not really favorites though.
Canned cheese - Heaven!
I like cheese a lot.
If you add some cheese to a recipe, it becomes good. I like ham and cheese the best. There are no two other flavor combinations that taste as good as ham and cheese I think. Maybe whiskey and Coke. Peanut butter and jelly being a distant third.
Have you ever had Stilton cheese? It's like bleu cheese times 20. I've only had it a few times, and I'd been drinking or I never could have eaten it. But it's really good. I keep meaning to buy some but I don't drink much so I'm always afraid it's going to go bad before I get a chance to drink enough to eat some (pretty ironic, I know, since it already is bad).
Bleu Cheese is my favorite kind of salad dressing. I've been loving it for like 20 years now. When I was a kid it was French and Bleu cheese, but now French is a distant memory and it's just the BC. If a restaurant doesn't have BC I pretty much won't have salad. It's good on top of steak as well.
Gouda is another favorite. Comes from living in Germany near the border with Holland, where Gouda is the ubiquitous, inexpensive cheese that everybody loves. Like cheddar here. I prefer smoked Gouda most, but then again, I like just about any smoked cheese. Especially with ham.
Pepper Jack is awesome. I didn't discover it until later in life. It gives things a zest they might normally be missing. I made a recipe the other day for a kind of tortilla/chicken layered casserole, using nothing but pepper jack for cheese. It was a mistake. I should have put some orange cheese in as well. But it was zingy.
Swiss is another I didn't like as a kid so much, but got used to in Germany. If I'm having a sandwich, Swiss is what I'm wanting to be having on that sandwich. It's easy to get a lousy Swiss though.
You probably haven't heard of Provel cheese before. It's a mix of Provolone and Mozzarella that is specially made in St. Louis. They put it on their pizzas there and it has a special taste that is unique to the city. Provolone is good on sandwiches too.
Asiago is great too. Ranks up there along with fresh parmesan. Love it on bagels.
Myzythra, if you haven't had it, is awesome grated over some freshly made spaghetti. Brown a stick of butter first (just cook it over low-medium heat for like 20 minutes until it turns brown, but not grainy). Then top it with the grated cheese.
Dubliner - One of my new favorite cheeses. Kind of in the Asiago/Parmesan vein. Great with a baguette.
Cheddar, Colby, Jack -- those are all good too. Not really favorites though.
Canned cheese - Heaven!
Sunday, November 25, 2007
Turkey Day Wrap-up
So we had a great weekend with the family around. My parents and my brother and his family. We ate our brined turkey (moistest bird in Oregon), ate our 10 pounds of mashed potatoes (seriously, we had to throw half of them away, we made so many), at our sweet potatoes (better warmed up), ate everything that was thrown at us then ate some more.
In between eating we played the Wii. Everybody loved it, the whole family was up and about playing Wii Sports. Tennis, golf, bowling, pool. The grandparents were squaring off against the grandkids, brother versus brother, husband vs. wife--if the Wii had been around the past couple hundred years we wouldn't have had any wars, we'd just be playing video games. That's how much it brings people together.
I bought a little gadget the other day called the Skip Doctor, or something like that. It fixes your cds, dvds, games, whatever's round and shiny--if it's scratched and doesn't play correctly, the skip doctor fixes it. This is especially useful around our house since both kids know how to bypass the child guard on the dvd player and get the dvds out. They then throw them around the room, rub sandpaper on them, skate across the rough sidewalk on them, do whatever it takes to scratch them up nice and good. Seriously, it takes about 2 hours from the time the new dvd is opened to look as if we'd had it for 10 years.
I even tried it out on an 18 year old cd I had, the best of the Velvet Underground. This was one of the first cds I ever bought when I was in high school. The case has been missing for the past 8 years I'm sure, so it's been run through the washer. Half the songs skipped half the time. Ran it through the skip doctor, and voila!, good as new. I heartily recommend it.
One thing I can't recommend is the Safeway store in Tigard on Highway 99 near King City. I was in there the other day with my Dad, buying a couple stuff. This little old lady was ahead of us in line, and the guy that was ringing her up started scanning our items as well. I wasn't paying much attention, so I assumed that her own transaction was finished. The lady tells him she hasn't paid yet and then I tell him he's scanning our stuff. The guy doesn't apologize to the her, doesn't even acknowledge he did anything wrong, just starts re-scanning our stuff to remove it from her transaction. She says something about wanting to look at the receipt because she wants to make sure he got the right stuff, and he says, "It's fine, I removed that stuff", in an assholish tone. Then as he hands her the receipt he says, "Thank you Mrs. Grawarshkisoundslikethat". She doesn't notice this because she's asking him a question about the receipt, but what a total prick. That's when I look at his nametag and read that he's the assistant manager.
Working in retail myself, I recognize that everybody can make a mistake. This wasn't a very big mistake either, but I also know that you apologize when you make a mistake, and you don't make fun of the customer and blow them off to downplay that you messed up. That's the kind of thing that loses customer. It's like they say, if you have a great experience at a store you might tell 1-2 people, but when you have a bad experience you tell at least 10 people.
Hey, assistant manager at Safeway, Stop Being an Asshat!
In between eating we played the Wii. Everybody loved it, the whole family was up and about playing Wii Sports. Tennis, golf, bowling, pool. The grandparents were squaring off against the grandkids, brother versus brother, husband vs. wife--if the Wii had been around the past couple hundred years we wouldn't have had any wars, we'd just be playing video games. That's how much it brings people together.
I bought a little gadget the other day called the Skip Doctor, or something like that. It fixes your cds, dvds, games, whatever's round and shiny--if it's scratched and doesn't play correctly, the skip doctor fixes it. This is especially useful around our house since both kids know how to bypass the child guard on the dvd player and get the dvds out. They then throw them around the room, rub sandpaper on them, skate across the rough sidewalk on them, do whatever it takes to scratch them up nice and good. Seriously, it takes about 2 hours from the time the new dvd is opened to look as if we'd had it for 10 years.
I even tried it out on an 18 year old cd I had, the best of the Velvet Underground. This was one of the first cds I ever bought when I was in high school. The case has been missing for the past 8 years I'm sure, so it's been run through the washer. Half the songs skipped half the time. Ran it through the skip doctor, and voila!, good as new. I heartily recommend it.
One thing I can't recommend is the Safeway store in Tigard on Highway 99 near King City. I was in there the other day with my Dad, buying a couple stuff. This little old lady was ahead of us in line, and the guy that was ringing her up started scanning our items as well. I wasn't paying much attention, so I assumed that her own transaction was finished. The lady tells him she hasn't paid yet and then I tell him he's scanning our stuff. The guy doesn't apologize to the her, doesn't even acknowledge he did anything wrong, just starts re-scanning our stuff to remove it from her transaction. She says something about wanting to look at the receipt because she wants to make sure he got the right stuff, and he says, "It's fine, I removed that stuff", in an assholish tone. Then as he hands her the receipt he says, "Thank you Mrs. Grawarshkisoundslikethat". She doesn't notice this because she's asking him a question about the receipt, but what a total prick. That's when I look at his nametag and read that he's the assistant manager.
Working in retail myself, I recognize that everybody can make a mistake. This wasn't a very big mistake either, but I also know that you apologize when you make a mistake, and you don't make fun of the customer and blow them off to downplay that you messed up. That's the kind of thing that loses customer. It's like they say, if you have a great experience at a store you might tell 1-2 people, but when you have a bad experience you tell at least 10 people.
Hey, assistant manager at Safeway, Stop Being an Asshat!
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
Giving Thanks
Went shopping this morning for the thanksgiving meal. First we dropped the kids off at daycare, then the two of us went to the grocery store. It's very rare that we are off on the same day without kids, so it was kind of a nice break. Where'd we go next? Back to Crate & Barrel, because we just don't have enough stuff from there, and there's nowhere we'd rather be on our one day off.
We're brining our turkey this year. Seems to be the 'in' thing to do. Everybody's talking about it. I hope it works. The turkey was still a little frozen in the middle, so the Missus had to reach her hand inside and scrape out the gibblets and pull out the gross neck while getting frostbite and scratches on her fingers from the frozen icicles.
She made a small batch of mashed potatoes to check out the recipe, and they were good. I made a light lunch of turkey and gouda on a baguette and toasted in the oven.
Now just waiting for the parents to arrive, whereupon we'll go pick up the kids and try to relax while still fretting about all the preparations for tomorrow.
Woohoo.
We're brining our turkey this year. Seems to be the 'in' thing to do. Everybody's talking about it. I hope it works. The turkey was still a little frozen in the middle, so the Missus had to reach her hand inside and scrape out the gibblets and pull out the gross neck while getting frostbite and scratches on her fingers from the frozen icicles.
She made a small batch of mashed potatoes to check out the recipe, and they were good. I made a light lunch of turkey and gouda on a baguette and toasted in the oven.
Now just waiting for the parents to arrive, whereupon we'll go pick up the kids and try to relax while still fretting about all the preparations for tomorrow.
Woohoo.
Thursday, November 15, 2007
To keep you from being disappointed
Sorry for lack of updates (I feel guilty about this almost every day). Busy with Noah's first birthday party planning, Thanksgiving planning, excuse for not updating planning. Lots of planning, very little execution.
So here's a little video of Noah walking.
So here's a little video of Noah walking.
Friday, November 02, 2007
Sonny & Cher
You've kind of got to squint to see the resemblance. You might as well just call them hippies, but you get the general idea.
Noah kind of looked like a version of Sonny/Hitler/Jimi Hendrix. Of course, neither of them even had any idea what they were doing, and no, we didn't teach them to sing, "I've Got You, Babe". Maybe next year.
I kind of wanted to catch Cher in the "Half-Breed" phase, but we were somewhat limited in the costume choices as we waited until the last minute due to our San Diego trip.
Enjoy.
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