My Day

 This has not been a great day. Still 8 hours left to stem the tide.

 WR Donald Driver has chosen to retire. Have a great life Donald!

Sinister

Also on Monday: "Sinister", a horror movie with Ethan Hawke. He plays a true crime writer who uncovers sadistic home movies of entire families being killed, thus exposing what appears to be a previously unknown serial killer. Unfortunately, that's only sorta-kinda the case, and you get the feeling this isn't going to end well. 

Scary? I covered my eyes a few times during moments of lost-manhood, and I have no hesitation in saying its the creepiest soundtrack ever. It didn't help that one of the murder sites featured my street address (!) which was repeated over and over in one scene just to make me squirm. 

For some reason, when we went to bed that night, our computer TWICE turned on for no reason in the middle of the night, waking us ala the movie. After the second time I unplugged it from the wall and huddled under my blanket, literally praying it wouldn't somehow turn on again and prove that we were F*ed. LOL Grade: A+

58 degrees and solid rain yesterday, up to 6 inches of snow and freezing temperatures today. Mother Nature is so crazy I'm surprised I never dated her.

A First!

 Today I took Smiley to get his first ever library card!

Lincoln

On Monday I watched Spielberg’s “Lincoln”. Daniel Day-Lewis deserves all the accolades that come his way; wow, what a performance. As to the movie as a whole: I think it carries itself well enough to appeal to a general audience, but you need to be a history nut to properly relish it. After all, a movie about the passing of a constitutional amendment is not a shoot em up, and at times even I was a little “speed it up pardner”. What it does well – exceptionally well – is highlight Lincoln’s genius, his ideal combination of idealism and practicality, velvet glove and iron fist. Even as he argues for a gentle reconciliation, he exposes Civil War South and its apologists for what they were: the enslavers of an entire people, willing to betray oath and nation to protect their wealth - at enormous loss of life - under the masquerade of “state’s rights”. Grade: A

A Walk

I took advantage of the 40 degree weather and walked the kids home from school today (~1.5 miles), the first time we've done it since October. The oldest three kids did fine but Junie. . . whoah nellie was she a pain in the butt. She was not pleased.

An Update on the Fridge

Socialist just left. We got the refrigerator door rehung. The metal pin that secured it on the bottom had broken off, and the odds of finding a replacement part quickly were slim. Then I noticed that the other end of the door held the parts needed to move the hinges to the other side of the door - including a spare pin. We pilfered it and got it back in place. Total cost: $10 for his time.

One of those days

Dinner was great: meatloaf made by Lisa and Junie, mashed potatoes peeled by YaYa and broccoli cut and seasoned by Smiley. At the table the kids were polite and friendly and it was just generally a great time.

And then . . . when putting the leftovers away our refrigerator door FELL OFF. I don't know if it's fixable, but I've got it jerry-rigged until Socialist can take a look tomorrow. 

And then . . .  YaYa reported that I'd left my wallet and checkbook in my pants when I put them in the wash. Good thing I have no money to my name or their complete annihilation might have upset me.

I swear, you live in a sitcom. - Fred

 5 books, 27 movies so far in 2013

Remix

Just listened to the new New Kids on the Block single "Remix (I like the)". Maybe it'll grow on me, but I don't think it's their strongest effort. On the other hand, it's Joey and Donnie centric, which was an unexpected and pleasant surprise.

 

50 Years

The 2nd Hunger Games movie will be released on the 50th anniversary of JFK's assassination (and both are Friday's). I find that disturbing. In happier news, the following day will mark the 50th anniversary of Doctor Who!

45 years

 I regret I didn't do the math sooner, but this past Monday (January 21st) marked the 45th anniversary of my Dad's arrival in-country for his tour in Vietnam. Thank you for your service Pop!

Hell in a Very Small Place

Recently I finished reading Hell in a Very Small Place: The Siege of Dien Bien Phu  by Bernard B. Fall.  Fall was a noted historian of the Vietnamese wars of the mid-20^th century, and Hell . . . is his famous work on the French defeat that ended their rule in Southeast Asia.

All failures, especially ones as massive as Dien Bien Phu, breed blame, and every mistake seems to glow in the dark in hindsight. Most of the time I take these critiques with a grain of salt, since they are rarely obvious in the moment; if they could see the cliff ahead of them, who in their right mind would choose to keep walking?

Dienn Bien Phu, however, bucks that trend.

It isn't that the French chose to build their camp on the floor of a valley, surrendering the high ground to the enemy. It isn't that the base was in the middle of nowhere, making reinforcement and supply dependent on air power, which in turn relied on an air force that was short on numbers.  It isn't that the rationale behind building the camp expired before the battle began. It isn't that the French refused to properly fortify the base, or that they knew going in they’d be radically outnumbered. It isn't that the two senior generals in charge of the effort hated one another, or that the base was built, not only on a valley floor, but on a valley floor subject to up to 5 feet – feet! – of rain during part of the year.

It’s all of the above, and more. Hindsight, schmindsight, this promised disaster from the start, and it delivered.  

And yet . . . .

Against incredible odds, the base held from mid-March of 1954 to the first week of May, inflicting terrific losses on the Viet-Minh.  The leadership on the ground – excluding the debacle of the first attack – was largely superb, given the situation, and the determination and grit of the garrison won my respect. For seven weeks they fought pitched infantry battles nearly non-stop, sometimes losing and regaining a hill in the same night. They fought on short rations and under an unending artillery barrage, sometimes in water and mud up to their waist. The battlefield was a stinking cesspool layered with thousands of dead. The military hospital, built to accommodate forty-four wounded, now serviced a thousand or more at a time. A wound was not a guaranty of rest; given the dire situation and the manpower shortage men fought on having lost a limb or an eye.

When the battle was over, the suffering was not; they were marched to prison camps that amounted to death camps. In the end, less than 20% of the POW’s survived to return home.

Fall makes a convincing case that American intervention, in the form of massive air strikes, could have, if not forced a victory, at least staved off defeat. Written in the ‘60’s, he is contemptuous of Eisenhower’s refusal to intervene and imparts a strong moralistic tone to his argument. I think he is wrong.

Perhaps an American intervention could have stemmed the tide. But having just exited the Korean War, intervening on behalf of a colonial power (one with no viable strategy for success) and risking another shooting war with China did not, and does not, give the appearance of sound policy. The fact that it “may” have eliminated the need for America’s war a decade later is irrelevant; not only is that far from certain, it presupposes that the American conflict was inevitable or necessary. I’m with Ike on this one.

A great book. I strongly recommend it.

Grade: A+

AT&T Sucks

I cannot put into words how much AT&T sucks. My bill has doubled in the last month as promotions end, they promised to call me back Monday regarding a billing issue and never did, I have been transferred today from India to the Deep South, back to India and finally to someone with a  generic, Midwestern accent. (she was no help to me, but at least I could understand her). Oh, and in between they accidentally disconnected me. Yikes.

American Idol

I'm watching Idol w/ Lisa, and let me tell you: I have developed a major crush on Nicki Minaj. Cute, sexy, funny, and the *clear* leader of the pane by force of personality and intelligence. As for the fight with Mariah, she's right: they are obsessed with pigeonholing these singers and forcing them into a mold, and kudos to her for calling out the pompous and dull Mariah. As Lisa said in a text to me "w/o Nicki I'd b yawnin"

The Following

Watched the pilot of Kevin Bacon's "The Following". A little formulaic, plus I'm sick of Poe being misused as a demented inspiration, but I'll continue to watch the show. As for Maggie Grace . . . .welllll, the woman tries, I'll give her that.

:Shiver:

Wind chill of -25 degrees (F). It's f'ing Stalingrad out there.

Medieval Madness

Saturday night was my step-father-in-law's 75th birthday party at Organ Piper Pizza. In the arcade there I found something Carlos H and Dale C might remember: a Medieval Madness pinball machine. True talent doesn't fade with time, and soon not only was I making that machine my [redacted] I had a group of fans watching my performance: kids, teens, and even a cute blonde. I earned two free games and strutted away, giving the games away to my adoring crowd. It was, somewhat sadly, the premier athletic accomplishment of my life. BAM!

Congrats to Lu!

Congrats are in order for LuLu and the Cudahy Girls Basketball Club, who finished 3rd in the Oak Creek Shootout Tournament yesterday!

Congrats!

Kudos to Entourage's daughter Meadow for her MLK Day essay, which won an MPS contest and was published (with her picture) in the Journal-Sentinel.

A Great Quote

"History doesn't repeat itself - at best it sometimes rhymes" - Mark Twain. One of the smartest quotes of all time.

Cloud Atlas

I watched "Cloud Atlas", the Tom Hanks/Halle Berry movie based on the great book by the same name. It's a long film with characters and storylines inter-weaved across centuries. I liked it, even if I think it would have been better served by trimming a few scenes, like the Cavendish adventure. I don't quite understand why the film was ignored by the Oscars. Worst case scenario it's an ambitious film with stunning visuals, and certainly worth a nod in (at least) a technical category.

 2013 tally to date: 4 books, 21 movies

Earl Weaver

 RIP Earl Weaver, age 92

Stan Musial

 RIP Stan The Man Musial, age 92. Baseball - and the world of harmonica players - will miss you.

Oh Boy

The school had standard lice checks today, and while LuLu was being examined her teacher asked the nurse:  "How did you learn to be a lice checker?"

To which the nurse replied- : "I grew up in South Milwaukee". 

Priceless.

Tired of people who lie to make themselves feel better. Just tell the truth, plenty of people can relate to the truth. For instance, car accidents....notice how it's never really anyone's fault? Well here's a confession: I once hit the person in front of me because I was looking down in my lap putting a sauce packet into a taco. Now that's a fault to an accident. I learn from my mistakes, not lie about them. - Lisa

Boxing Day 2012

It’s a Boxing Day Tradition for Team Slap: each year on the day after Christmas we take a road trip. 2012’s destination was supposed to be the Cave of the Mounds, but financial concerns scratched that trip. Instead we headed down to Gurnee to dine at the Rainforest Café.

I’d been there before a couple of times, but I must not have been paying attention, because I had no memory of how cool it was. Robotic jungle animals sit just out of reach (we dined near the tigers). There’s a ceiling of stars. Jungle vines hang from the ceiling. Giant aquariums grace the entrance to the dining room. Every 15 minutes a crash of thunder is heard, and ‘rain’ falls in the jungle areas.

The company was great and the food was yummy!

We ended our meal with their signature desert, a mountain of brownies and ice cream topped off by a sparkler. Deeeeeelish!

What a great Boxing Day, even if it wasn’t the one we had planned.

 

Dear Abby

 RIP Pauline Phillips, better known as Dear Abby, age 94.

American Idol Season 12

My verdict on American Idol Season 12? So far Keith Urban might as well not be there for the impact he has, Mariah Carey has no personality, unless you count the occasional bit**yness, Randy is still Randy, and against all odds, Nicki Minaj is shaping up to be not only an endearing and effective judge, but a highlight of the show.

The Chuck E Cheese Christmas Bash!

Last week Monday (1/7/13) my Mother-In-Law held her annual Christmas outing at Chuck-E-Cheese, a holiday present for the kids in our circle. As usual, it was a blast, and we stayed until 9 pm!

 The day was best recorded by the 'sketchbook' booth at CEC. I don't know what technology it uses, but I LOVE that program. 

Here's Junie/Ginger and her friend Tempe

Junie and her Grandma

Junie and her Mom

Here's two of my beautiful ladies - YaYa and her Mom

Lisa and her entourage

LuLu and Meadow

Me and my lady

Here's Smiley, and Smiley and Lisa. 

Speaking of Smiley, he won the annual contest to win the Gingerbread House (this year a tree) that my mother-in-law crafts and places in a glass jar handed down from her mother. Smiley was thrilled to win it, as it has been all but owned in recent years by the Entourage's kids! 'Bout time we got to taste the treat (and btw, LuLu would scream at me if I didn't mention she'd helped Grandma make it)

The Layover aka Abducted

The only high point of the last 36 hours was watching "Abducted" (also known as "the Layover" an awful film in which Lauren Holley plays a hospitality mogul kidnapped by sex traffickers in Detroit. There's no nudity in the film, very little blood, and absolutely no story worth watching. BUT it does have a great, unintentionally hilarious line: "I'm not saying you're all hags, but at best you're Detroit Pretty". Worth the price of the rental right there.

So Far

So far I've spent the first day and 1/3 of my days off coughing up a lung or passed out in bed. I should have called in over the weekend when this thing hit and been done with it, but noooooo, I am a prisoner to my childhood and refuse to skip work/school unless I'm dying. Which, at the moment, it feels like might just be happening.

It's All We Have Left

As our culture and our nation continues its slide into full Suckassyness, one bastion of our grand past still stands tall: The Match Game.  Where have you gone Gene Rayburn, a nation turns its lonely eyes to you (woo woo woo).

The First Two Books of 2012

Today I finished my first book of the year, ‘The Lawgiver’, a new novel by the great Herman Wouk. It’s the story, told in epistolary format, of the pre-production troubles of a film about Moses. The book was written by Wouk as a concession to his decades-long inability to finish a book on the Old Testament figure, and he and his wife are included as characters in the novel.  I liked it well enough, and Wouk seems technologically savvy despite his advanced age (he’s in his late ‘90’s) but don’t kid yourself. This isn’t in the same class as his masterpieces. What bothered me greatly was that for all the talk about how complex Moses was and how difficult a subject he is, very, very little of the book is given over to explaining why that is so, or to attempting to unravel that enigma.  Grade: B-+

I’ve also finished ‘Your House is on Fire, Your Children All Gone’, a novel by Stefan Kiesbye. It reads as a collection of interconnected short stories centered on a small group of children in post-war Germany. It has been widely acclaimed as a gem of literary horror, but while I found some of the stories well developed and chilling, most of them left me feeling empty.  I have to say, this one was a bit of a disappointment. Grade: B

2 Books In!

Started - and finished - my first two books of the year in the last 12 hours. Yeah, you read that right. I'm just that good. BAM!

R.L. Stine books dont count. - Justin F

Uh, they were Christopher Pike, thank you. - Me

I was gonna say Bernstein Bears, but I figured I'd give you a little more credit. - Justin F

Two Pics of the Kids

I took these pictures (actually, I think either LuLu or YaYa took them) in the van on Christmas Eve. Not the best quality, but worth a laugh!

Christmas Day 2012

Christmas morning the kids came down, as required, in their pj’s and looking photo ready. First to open a gift was YaYa, who received a beautiful hardbound sketch book!

Lulu was next. Alas, she chose to open a very small package, no doubt thinking it was jewelry of some sort. I’m afraid it was her least expensive gift, a cute pen I included at the last minute. She was still very gracious J

Then Smiley opened up his art set

Ginger opened a Rapunzel storybook from LuLu (she earned it as an award from her math tutor)

YaYa and LuLu, in turn, each opened up a brand new sleeping bag for them each to use on sleepovers!

Smiley then opened some Darth Vader slippers!

Ginger opened a Disney Rapunzel doll!

YaYa opened a monogrammed sketchbook

Lulu opened her ‘big’ gift – a Fijit interactive, alien looking thing. In lime green, naturally!

Smiley opened up a Star Wars Lego set

Ginger got a Barbie doll

YaYa opened a sketching/easel set

Lu opened a brand new pink and purple basketball!

Then Smiley opened his ‘big’ gift, a kids tablet known as an InnoTab2S!

After Lauren opened her art set, it was time for YaYa’s big gift – a 16MP shock-proof digital camera that retailed for nearly $300, but that we purchased new on closeout for $50. It’s better than my camera for pete’s sake!

Along with it she got a memory card too!

LuLu followed up by opening a brand new pair of roller skates!

Smiley opened up a Star Wars jigsaw puzzle and puzzle glue

While Ginger opened up her big gift – a Barbie closet!

Lu then unwrapped a pottery wheel and extra clay, just what she asked for!

Smiley then unwrapped a glow in the dark football, the ‘equivalent’ gift of the sleeping bags

Ginger then opened up an outfit that came with a matching ensemble for her doll!

Then she opened her ‘equivalent’ gift, a butterfly PillowPet

Finally, Smiley opened up a chirping cricket stuffed animal.

When I type all of the above out, it sure seems like an over-the-top Christmas. But it’s four kids remember. While we’ve never struck out or gone gonzo on Christmas in the past, I remember being largely dissatisfied with last year’s crop, and so we took pains to do well this year.

The kids all got one ‘big’ gift. They each got an art set of some sort, and a set of pajamas, and the sleeping bag/equivalent, plus a few extras. Careful long-term planning (and a K-Mart layaway) made the difference between a bust and a boom this holiday season.

So far the results have been good. Lu uses her basketball in the house all the time, to our annoyance. The InnoTab has been in constant use, as has YaYa’s camera. Ginger’s worn her outfit, and Lu made Lisa an ashtray with her pottery wheel and used the roller skates at Incrediroll; she also took her sleeping bag to a sleepover on New Years and decreed it “awesome!”. The art sets are all in use, although Ginger’s was too babyish and needed an upgrade.

So far – a hit!

Later that day, after a pancake breakfast with my father-in-law and his Lisa’s step-mom, and a good nap, we treated the kids to a movie at the Value Cinema (Frankenweenie), toured the decorated houses along Candy Cane Lane, and dined at McDonald’s.

A nice, relaxing, wonderful Christmas!

I hope yours was as well.