I Endorse... Fatherhood

It is a nice feeling, being a dad. What I'm saying is, since my wife was put on bed rest and now with having to care for the baby, I have taken up the role of bringing my 3-year-old (the songbird... a new name, because she is always singing) to daycare.

Now I did not like this, or want this... It was out of my way to work, adding 30 minutes to my trip (one way), plus I'm really not a "morning person". Turns out that neither is the songbird. So we have two people that hate mornings together in the mornings. Sounds like Broadway's next hit.

Anyway I'm resigned to facts. That I will take my daughter to "school" until the new year. And that is ok, I mean nobody is going to give me a fat check or an award, but we for the most part got down to a routine, that works for everyone. So on one particular morning, one where we are early, which is not very often, I pull into the drop-off area and we have 5 minutes to kill.

So I turn on the CD player, take the songbird in my lap, and just jam. She shows me her moves, I show her mine, and we are for the most part inside a moment that will soon end, but for that brief moment there is nothing else that matters. Not work, not school, not sisters, or mothers or anything else. Just us, jamming out to one song. That is why I love being a dad.

Look at Me... I'm Riding a Motorbike!!!

So we went to Beaufort, ate at Plum's (my wife's favorite), and then went to Wal-Mart, because the selection over there is not at all like it is over here. I can't figure that one out, but I don't try anymore and that isn't what I really want to talk about.

This guy, on a motorcycle, like mirrored me the whole way home. It didn't matter if I was going 45 or 70, this person stayed right in my blind spot. From Beaufort to Bluffton... he stayed there. And it wasn't like he had cruise control, because I tried to go way to slow or way too fast, he just liked me. Like really, really liked me. I was just happy when we got to a place where we could turn off and be rid of him. He was even doing some tricks. My guess is he wanted somebody to see, and since we were going the same direction, why not me?

Dumb luck I guess.

The End

Maybe I'm just being a little off right now, or maybe not, but I may decide to go ahead and put a end to the BlogJam... Why? If you look around, nobody is blogging. That is crazy. I know it is a funny time of year, there are all kinds of reasons for it, there is shopping, and Christmas trees and dinner to cook and you have to work and I'm sure 1000 other things that I have not listed.

Having nothing to say should never be one of them. Blog about how you don't like dirty dishes, or how you do like babies, or vice-versa. What I'm trying to say is there is a litany of things one could write about. How you choose to write about it is the difference between "I walked down the hall" and "I journeyed through the vestibule dimly lit by the night light". What I am trying to say is, you might not think it is all that special, but you can make it special, depending on how you write it.

Some of you are busy, I understand this. But then again, it has been months since I've seen anything from you. My very, very loose requirements are, post once a month, if you can't find the time to do that, well then so long. I mean, if you are having some kind of "thing" and you plan on posting more.... later on then drop me a line hatterlives@hotmail.com.

I am always looking for new members, new ideas, new anything. So far, I've got very little to show for it. Please prove me wrong, this blog, there goes the neighborhood, will always be open... I think. But I fear the days of the BlogJam are numbered. I hope I am wrong, but you just never know...

No Movie... No Nothing

In light and respect for everything shopping... there is no movie or anything else. I'm sure you understand that more likely than not I'm in a turkey-coma right now, and you should be in one to. :o)

The Anti-Anthem

I think of this song as an anti-anthem to Black Friday. I know that is not really what the song is about, but to me I can't help but think it is...



I was talking to my wife, and she didn't get it. I guess what I mean is instead of a girlfriend... you have a toy that you cannot find to purchase, or Christmas spirit that is gone, that sort of thing. It is gone, and there really isn't anything you can do about it.

Happy Thanksgiving & Black Friday! No movie, but everyone is too busy to worry about it right?

Well Don't Count on Him to Be There

I Endorse.... Looking Like a Dork

So as you may already know I'm a fan of Guitar Hero. It is fun, and it helps me with my recovery, and who wouldn't like it really? Something has come to my attention however... you look like a complete dork when you play it. That's OK I mean, as long as everyone is having fun, right?

Well according to some among us (the teenager) I get extra dorky when Van Halen songs come along. And I admit that in order to keep up with Eddie Van Halen, I'm required to do... more. Make faces, hunch over the guitar, swing with a little more force, I have to just to move my fingers fast enough. Look at the videos below, and you'll understand. I mean hell, the man is a god. At least a god of the electric guitar... To me anyway.

Sweet Potato Souffle

First of all, I really don't know why it is called Souffle but it is really good (and calorie laden and so not diabetic friendly... but it only comes around once a year).

Ingredients

* 6 sweet potatoes (or you can use the canned stuff, about 3 big cans)
* 1/2 cup brown sugar
* 1 can condensed milk
* 16 oz container of marshmallow fluff
* 1/2 cup melted butter
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 2 eggs, beaten
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1/4 teaspoon Nutmeg
* 1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon

Topping

* 1 cup dark brown sugar
* 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
* 1/3 cup melted butter
* 1 cup chopped pecans

You mush up the potatoes in a mixer, with all the stuff above, mix it all up real good, and pour into a buttered dish (13X9), then in a bowl, add all of the topping ingredients together, and sprinkle over the top, let bake @350 for about 30 minutes, and viola your sweet potato never tasted better. I make mine the day before, as it frees up the stove for other things. :o)

Broken Light

The light at Simmonsville Road is broken. Well, not all the way broken, but at least intermittently broken. If you are on Simmonsville and you want to get on Hwy 278, you may already know this. You have to wait (so far) for 2 cycles to go. Basically, I think the sensor that is on the road by Walgreen's is messed up. If you get someone in that lane, who is not very aggressive, or putting make-up on, or talking on their cell phone, or just not paying attention, the light will turn green for the Kroger/Wendy's crowd across the street, which typically has 1-5 cars, and the other side, the Simmonsville Road side, could have 10-15 cars, and gets nothing at all.

This is fine... when you are not late for work, but otherwise sucks. Because in all honesty, traffic on Hwy. 278 is given like 6 minutes per cycle whereas The Simmonsville Road people are given maybe 1 minute. And that is as it should be, if the light is working properly. Maybe I just need to find a different way to go... or does anyone know who I contact about the problem?

Ever Get One of "Those" Phone Calls?

So I get a phone call, middle of the morning, it is my wife, and she says... The car battery is dead. Great, "I'll be there in just a minute honey". Now I should back up, because Honda (the maker of my car) told me they thought the battery was going dead about a month or so ago. They tried to tell me, but I would believe them not really... well that isn't so either.

I had planned to go get the battery checked by Auto-Zone or whatever, but things just kept me from doing it. And so now I pay the price. The really weird part is, this car is only 3 years old, most batteries are good for 5, but that doesn't help me now.

I rush away from work, go get a battery, and meet my wife where she is parked at Hallmark/Kroger. I brought my work tool kit with me, because I was sick and tired of not having the right tools, and work is so much better at making sure you have everything you would need. Well, not really because everything on my car is metric, and what do I have? Standard. I am howling inside, because this is my curse, to always not have what I need to do a job.

Also I should note that Honda makes their batteries out of gold, because they are so expensive and they don't have a handle on them, probably as a theft deterrent. I eventually get the battery loose and out and put the new battery in, but lord have mercy, it could have gone a little smoother, just a little. Maybe, at least next time we'll have a handle, that is if nobody steals it... lol

And Now... Something Really Stupid

I think this is ridiculous...



Why? Because you could pick up some Chinese, in 10 minutes. At least around here. Is it cheaper? Maybe, but then everyone has to eat the same thing. Not worth it in my opinion. And a talking panda bear... WTF?!?!

Not So Classic Film Friday: Star Trek

Why did I pick this movie? Well, I think, or hope, that one day we will look at this film as a classic. Plus it just got released to DVD this week. The movie, in case you have not seen it, is a new beginning, for all your favorite Star Trek characters. How is this possible? Someone has gone back in time... and royally messed everything up. So you have Jim, Bones, Spock, Scotty, even Mr. Sulu, Chekov and Uhura are all there.

Because of this guy, Nero a Romulan... that goes a little crazy, we get to see all of our friends all over again. I never really felt like, "Oh, what they need is William Shattner in the movie". Mainly because they choose the right story to tell, and really we need somebody young anyway. But Lenard Nemoy does make an appearance, as Spock, so it does really all tie together.

This was "THE" movie of the summer, and I can definitely tell why. It has everything, love triangles, fighting, outer space battles, space aliens, even a few chase scenes, and a planet blows up or rather implodes... seriously, it has it all.

Our personal favorite is Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy. He is probably the most like the original, but in a good way. Like an old crotchety man... anyway this will be a classic, one day.

Not My Manliest Moment

Weird how when doing something does not equate with saying you'll do something. What I mean is, doing it and saying you're going to do it, are two completely different animals. I got reminded of this the other day while at work. I almost never post on what I do at work, that is on purpose. I find that it really doesn't help (or hurt... hopefully) and it can make for some weird situations, so I make it a practice to never write about work.

Anyway we were up on the roof, with a ladder. a really long ladder at that and we had to cross a section that required a "jump" to get to the other side. It looked small. like more of a hop, or really a step... but then came the actual doing part. I call it a jump. All I could think about was my family and what would happen if I died doing something this ridiculous? But it needed done, and we did it. Hell I didn't even climb the ladder either.

But I did hold it so that the other guy could climb it. And something happened. I don't know if it was the sun glaring down or what, but I was just a few inches from falling like 20 feet, which would probably hurt something awful, and I could no longer look up and keep a steady hold on the ladder. I had to look down, otherwise I would feel weak in the knees.

I can't really describe it, but there is something profound about your legs turning to butter when you are high up, and inches away from falling to your (perceived) death. I am not crazy about heights, I mean I'll do it if it must be done. Heck climbing a 6 or 10 foot ladder doesn't bother me, but anymore and I get antsy... add more, like say a balcony or rooftop and a ladder, forget it. I don't know why but it is just that way.

Available at Wal-Mart... for $1

I Got Ripped Off, Maybe

So we went to the Christmas in the South over the weekend. Which was good, I mean we went somewhere, and stimulated the economy. I think it is a step above a flea market, but hey, you just never know. Anyway we went, we bought, we got pooped out.

Before we left, we saw this hammock chair. And my wife just had to have one... sorta' I mean we all need something to say is ours, and ours only. She had this vision of it up on our balcony. So I say it is hers.

Now I know we paid way to much for it, but that's the thing about going to these type of shows, you don't know how much they've ripped you off until it is too late. But we are happy with it anyway. It does some "stuff" that cheaper ones don't and hopefully that money we spent will do more for our own country, instead of China... Just hoping that the guy we bought from doesn't get his from China.

So this is my 3rd weekend in a row that I have something to do on the weekend.

1st is was the clean out the dryer, perform feats of amazing contortion, and cursing

2nd was to paint the balcony you see pictured above, at least the underside (I know from this angle, it is not painted) which involved a ladder (because it is on the 2nd story) , also some contortion, but mainly reaching and painting, and curses.

And finally this, which doesn't seem so bad right? It isn't, but it is... It involves making a hole, and the stud finder would not work on the plastic, (yes there are a few extra holes now) and screwing a really fat closed loop wood screw at a funny angle. And of course cursing because I never have what I need to do a job. It is my bad karma I guess, I have to find ways to engineer a way around it. Which I did, and everything is good now. My wife, when not having to deal with the baby, can sit and relax, in her hammock chair. Proving that life really is good.

One of Us

This past week marked a few milestones for the littlest in our group. First off she lost her umbilical cord. This makes it possible for the next picture...



A bath. Yeah it ain't very pleasurable, is it kid? But it was your first, well sorta'... Your first bath at home anyhow.



You can see by the picture below, she is either very glad it is over, or she is high, whateve... as long as that water is far away from her.



She is gaining weight slowly (but surely) and all in all, she has become one of us. Which is what it is all about right?

We Are All Sick (Well Most of Us Anyway)

So I'm standing here... not really, but you know what I mean, and we have had a bit a of a scare, in the swine flu way. We never were tested, and the doctors say it is your average virus, but you can't say that to my wife. Basically it started with the teenager, because we all don't know what kind of gross cooties are crawling all over them. From there it went to the 3-year-old. And we started to worry a bit. Then my wife got it.

Not good, not good at all. So now it is me and the baby. I don't really get sick that much anymore, but when I was younger, when everyone else got sick, I would catch the cold two or three times over. So maybe that is karma looking out for me, maybe I got sick so much when I was a kid, I won't get sick so much as an adult. Maybe...

Meanwhile, the baby... well she has her own little antibodies and whatnot. Plus my wife is a borderline lunatic about being clean, washing your hands, using hand sanitizer, etc. thus protecting the baby even more. Though I remember some article somewhere saying that you were more likely to get sick from your baby than you were to make your baby sick, especially if you are breastfeeding. But I can't find anything to verify or refute that, so I will say what will happen, will happen, you can try to steer it in one way or another, but there is no way to know if your efforts were justified. But anyway, knock on wood, and hope I don't get it too.

New Weezer

Weezer has a new album out, it came out a week or so ago. The first song is (If You're Wondering If I Want You To) I Want You To. Here is the song... I'm still absorbing the CD, It seems a little too kiddish for me, but Weezer sings about strange things, so I'll let it play a while before I come to any judgment.



I will say this, Weezer makes their stuff available. I mean a lot of bands think that by making their music only available through them, that somehow they can control it. All that winds up happening is people like me can't really blog about it, and show a video. Which hurts the artist, not the blogger. Just sayin'

Classic Film Friday: Labyrinth

Here is a movie directed by Jim Henson and produced by George Lucas. In the geek speak, we have the potential the have an epic "nerdgasm" add to that David Bowie and well, you might want to get a napkin or something.

But seriously, Sara (Jennifer Connelly) is a teenager, going through teenage life. She resents having to watch her half-brother and while he is crying she wishes that the goblin king (David Bowie) would take him away. Well, be careful what you wish for, you might just get it.

So now Sara must travel the labyrinth to get her half-brother back. She makes new friends and enemies along the way. It is kind of like the Wizard of Oz, but with puppets/muppets and it is a bit darker. There is the David Bowie songs to think about too, though I don't remember any being very popular, still it is Bowie... I'll let you decide if you think it is good. Watched on the Roku.

I Endorse... Fire

I had a fire over the weekend. You know, inside the fire pit, roast some marshmallows kind of fire. It was at this time that I decided that life is full of these special moments... if we want to make them special. I was out there, stoking the fire with my teenager and 3-year-old. Reminiscing on fires gone by.

That is kind of weird right? But it is true. I think of places in my youth, like the backwoods or the creek or even later when I was an adult in northeastern Georgia. Granted it is much more organized than it was back then. We would just gather up brush, or a fallen tree or what have you. Now I buy the wood, who would have thunk it? But I do, and it is much more contained in my little fire pit than it ever was in times of my youth.

But the effect is the same. It is the calming of the fire, the forget everything else and just watch the fire, that doesn't really change, and yet I can't take my eyes off of it. Just sit back and enjoy the show. I hope that for my daughters the making of a fire is equally magical and undefinable. It just is. It can be that way if you have a fireplace, though it is not the same, and honestly, the amount of time you will use it doesn't seem to justify the cost, and if there is natural gas involved... forget about it.

But I do recommend you take that fire pit, or just dig a hole (saving the grass) and make a fire over the weekend. Even if you have to buy some wood like I did, It is one of the simplest pleasures I know of... one I don't think any of us should do without.

It Is Just A Number

Happy Birthday

Sesame Street turns 40. Amazing that for most of it... I was alive. Here are some clips of "back in the day". Funny because the show's early days are not considered "educational" or whatever. Enjoy it all the same, Happy Birthday Sesame Street.

Double Bad Guy(s)

Just to add to the "You're a bad daddy" theme, the same day that I was a horrible daddy for not letting my kid eat a whole bagel, instead only offering a malnutrition laced half a bagel, later that day it comes time to go to bed. In the span of 2 seconds my kid goes from happy and sitting on my lap, to... Linda Blair, exorcist crazy.

I mean it was so bad, it was funny... and scary all at the same time. Funny because, everyone knows that once your bedtime comes, there is no getting out of it. Scary because she almost hit the baby in her blinded rage... twice. That is when I scooped her up and side armed her, still kicking, and screaming, and arms a wailing... to her bedroom. I know once it gets to this point, it just doesn't stop, it is going to be like this for awhile.

So my wife is taking care of the baby, leaving me to fend off the onslaught of everything a 3-year-old has to offer. There is a lot of Why's in there, but it is useless to answer them, because of the state she is in, I simply heard her back to her room. And this part is funny, if you were there, because trying to rationalize with an angry 3-year-old is like trying to rationalize with the wall, or a drunk, or an alligator... you simply can't. So in between the fits of rage and the why's and herding her back into her bedroom, we (my wife and I) can't help but laugh.

Maybe I am a bad daddy for laughing, but if something is funny... I laugh. And my wife too, in fact once I had my fill of 3-year-old hatred she took over, and I got to hold the baby... which was now awake because of all the ruckus and my wife is now the bad guy. And that is what makes me think that my marriage to her will stand the test of time.

When we both are the bad guy, united in our child rearing efforts, it is a good thing. And the next day? Our 3-year-old woke up and acted like nothing happened. And we all love each other in the end... until the next bedtime comes around. :o)

Good Daddy

You know you have them... those days when you wake up early ready to go, you are going to arrive early at work, maybe leave early too, and then.... it happens. Somebody takes those plans that you had for the day, crumbles them up, and leaves them in a wad, while you are left wondering WTF?!?

That person for me is a very cute, innocent (looking) 3-year-old. Now she doesn't mean to be "that person", she probably doesn't even fathom what "that person" is... but she is "that person" for me. You see it all started over a pair of socks and a bagel. Doesn't it always? Yeah, so the socks were too thick, thus causing a problem with the shoes. Rather than fight with her (my 3-year-old) I just went upstairs and got a different pair of socks, put them on her feet, and I didn't even make her pick up the old ones... because I thought I could still make it... I was wrong.

Next we move on to the bagel. A strange request, because usually it is a yogurt or an applesauce, but on my way upstairs, I ask my wife, who let me sleep, and has been up off and on all night, what is the deal with the bagel? She (the 3-year-old) says she wants a whole bagel, my wife said, hell to the no, give her half and then break it in half, that is what I always do... Well you can see there are conflicting reports there.

I bribe my way out of it. I tell her she can have a cheese stick (which she has everyday anyway) if she will take the half. She agrees, and everything is said and done right? Wrong. We get to daycare (what she calls "school") and she proceeds to tell anyone that will listen... "Daddy only gave me half a bagel."

So now who cares about getting to work early? I just want to go back and give my kid the whole bagel, let her waste it, and be the good daddy again.

The Beard (part 2)

I am getting a lot of comments of my beard. Some are not very positive, other are very positive. It is funny, simply because I didn't grow out my beard for anyone to say anything (good or bad). I grew it because I wanted to try something different. Now if I sport the ZZ Top beard or the handlebar mustache, then obviously I am seeking attention. But I'm not, not yet anyway.

My daughter says she likes the beard (the 3-year-old) she seems to think it is soft, which I guess it is in comparison to a face with a bit of stubble on it. My oldest seems unaffected by it, and my youngest knows nothing else but me with a beard. My wife offers me encouragement, she seems to like it, so it is going to stick around for a little while.

Confusion

So I want to share a picture to share with you all. Basically it is of a face, a confused face. My 1st one did it, my second one did it, and now my third does it too. It is one I am used too, and one I tend to reciprocate. Just saying'. Damn kids, Damn adults.

Classic Film Friday: A Ticklish Affair

The wife and I were watching TMC and this movie popped up. I think the funniest thing is how life imitates art imitates life. In this case it was the balloon-boy. Anyway, that is the end of the movie. Amy Martin (Shirley Jones) is the mother of three young boys, and the widow of a sailor. She is just going about her business when her son Grover is playing with signal and sends an SOS to the Navy Commander Key Weedon (Gig Young) unknowingly... you know how kids don't really think before they do anything.

So Key and Amy hit it off, and we are whisked away in a romantic love story. Uncle Cy (Red Buttons) and Tandy Martin (Carolyn Jones) provide some comic relief in this affair, but ultimately it is Grover who saves the day... by floating away on weather balloons. One interesting side note... I didn't know the San Diego zoo had a baby elephant and a Galapagos tortoise in there petting zoo. That may just be Hollywood... also they bough Mickey Mouse balloons there as well. Who knows. This is a fun movie, for kids and adults and we are glad we happened upon it.

I Didn't Vote

I must be honest. I didn't vote. There is a reason why, not that it matters now, but it didn't matter anyway. I didn't vote because the last time I voted it didn't count, or what I mean is... I was supposed to vote for the town council, but didn't and the town and the state didn't care. Maybe if I would have made a stink then , maybe I wouldn't have that opinion, but seriously, who cares? Not many.

Maybe I will some other time, but for now, I am happy in my own little world, with my wife and 3 kids and the business of all that... to worry about the city council, and after all, my vote doesn't count anyway.

Maybe if the candidates would have made their intentions known, or maybe if I bothered to look for them, but I honestly don't believe them anyway, so I didn't vote. Will I vote again? Surely. But they need to get this whole thing figured out, and they need to instill voter confidence. I'm still waiting on that. I have a feeling I'll be waiting a long time.

Cooler Than You

Wash Day

So my wife told me that the dryer makes everybody's clothes smell like mildew. I take a look, because that is what husbands do, and I do find a bunch of lint, but no definite problem of where the mildew smell is coming from. I take the hose (that is metal, because a plastic one would be a fire hazard) and clean it out, plus clean out the actual dryer. It is now completely clean.

Next comes the hard part. Putting it all back together again. It took the efforts of Chinese contortionist, plus a healthy dose of muttering and curses, and it finally got back together. Sorta'. I mean, it is not like the days when I was a kid, and we had a little separate room just outside the back door. Sure you had to worry about getting attacked from flying roaches (this was in New Orleans), but at least there was enough room to do what you needed to do.

It is all done now. I think. I mean I will have to run a few loads, see if everything stays together and see if the mildew smell ever went away.

3rd Shift

It is no surprise that the major "thing" round my house is the new baby. It is hard, to do things the right way. Like for instance, get any sleep. That is not to say, the baby doesn't get enough sleep, I think she is doing fine... It's the parents I'm talking about.

I get off pretty easy at this point. I don't have boobies, at least not boobs that make milk, so I'm safe for now. But I do try to watch her (the baby) while her mother (my wife) gets some sleep. I can't really figure out who sleeps, or how much, because of everything else. Like the toot factory my baby has become. And if she is not tooting she is pooping. You hear a difference of tone and substance... thus you know you have a "winner".

Anyway, I first thought that this was a carbon copy of my second daughter, I was thankfully wrong. Especially when it comes to noise, she takes all noise, even crashing dishes or... a sneeze, in stride. The second one would have a meltdown if anything (noise wise) upset her in the least. But when you talk about my 3rd if you ever want to visit with her, she works the 3rd shift. Which is fitting, since she's the third kid.

Gas or Something Else?

So.... I am just wondering. When a newborn, like mine is smiling at you... is it because of something deep that he/she will learn later.... or is it just gas?

Just wondering.