Published writer, compulsive reader, Old School Whovian, Match Game enthusiast, NKOTB fan, data hoarder, and - surprisingly, given that list - married with four kids. Welcome to my take on life, fatherhood, entertainment, and whatever strikes my fancy. Enjoy!
Thursday, June 30, 2011
MySpace was sold
Myspace was just sold for $35 million to a group that includes Justin Timberlake. While that sounds like a lot to you and me, the current cover story in Bloomberg quoted an asking price of $100 million, and mentioned that *that* figure would be an embarrasing loss for their ownership. Wow.
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Playing Columbine
A days ago we watched "Playing Columbine", a film about the video game "Super Columbine Massacre RPG!". It was made by the vid game creator, and it lacked a narrative thread, instead piecing together endless soundbites justifying the game on artistic and constitutional grounds. (2 its credit, there were three dissenting views)
I agree that in theory it could have been an expression of art created w/ a desire to spur debate, but I call B.S. I think he made it knowing it was in poor taste but thinking it would have an intimate audience. When it blew up and he lost his anonymity he was more than happy to embrace the role of "constitutional martyr" and milk the attention.
Monday, June 27, 2011
My Day
Wrote and submitted a column, got word back it's accepted. Hung out with my friend Tre for a few hours, now off to get Lis and the kids from day camp.
The Bigamist
Today I watched The Bigamist, a 1953 drama starring Edmond O'Brien, best known for his role in D.O.A. It wasn't Big Love, but it was a pretty good flick.
And for the record, if I had to choose between Joan Fontaine and Ida Lupino, I'd be a bigamist too.
Sunday, June 26, 2011
An Interesting Conversation
Just spoke to a woman who survived the Depression, had a son born with a birth defect she was told would kill him before his fourth bday (he's 53 now), had a hospital perform the wrong operation by mistake, and has survived 11 strokes over the yrs. She said she is literally working on a autobio called "So you think your life sucks? Try mine"
LOL Snooki
Tonight I found this slipped into a novel written (yeah right) by Jersey Shore's Snooki: "Dear Reader: Congratulations! Just by opening this book your stock in life has gone down. I suggest you drop it right away and re-evaluate. [With] your best intentions at heart, R."
Saturday, June 25, 2011
The KIllers (movie)
Just emailed my column to In a rare daytime opportunity to watch TV, Lisa & I watched "The Killers" with Ashton Kutcher and Katherine Heigl (sp?). I know it was panned by the critics, but we both thought it was cute and a fun watch.
Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson
After a hiatus of nearly 30 yrs, I finally finished reading 'Treasure Island'. I don't know why I had such a hard time of it as a youngster, as the prose is to the point & surprisingly modern to my ear. A fine adventure tale; I enjoyed it. I also appreciated that it was a '47 Grosset & Dunlap editon w/ both b&w & color illustrations - that's a great addition to any bk & a practice I regret has gone out of fashion.
FB April 25th to May 10th
April 25th
the new Nook update is out! Apps increase from a handful to 139! Now it not only wups the Kindle, it makes it put on makeup and call Barnes and Noble "big daddy"
April 26th
13:01 Since I worked all weekend and Lisa was up north on Saturday, our Easter is *today*. Took the kids to Mass at 8:15, big dinner at 4:30. Ham is in the oven, kielbasa in the slow cooker, potatoes peeled and cut, hard boiled eggs peeled and ready for . . er, deviling. Desperately hoping for a nap b4 the final push . .
19:28 outside Stonefire Pizza waiting to conduct a Craigslist purchase of kids clothing. Big scary man alone outside kids play area = not most well thought out meeting place
I love playing "Old Cannon" a simple little 'physics' game where you attempt to knock down castles using only 3 shots from an old cannon. Smiley, oddly, aced every level while I struggled with a few :)
22:34 chilling w/ my friend erv, who just got out of the hospital (complications of diabetes)
RIP Poly Styrene (born Marianne Elliot), who has died of breast cancer at age 53.
April 27th
On a lark I watched "GI Joe: The Rise of Cobra". For a big budget popcorn flick, it was fine. Better than I expected really, tho' the Flash Gordon technology was tiresome. So was the acting. Channing Tatum seemed to think he was hired to imitate Mark Wahlberg's worst traits, while Marlon Wayan's signed on for a degrading minstrel show performance.
April 30th
Today marks 36 years since the Fall of Saigon.
Watching the Channel 10 Auction with Lisa and LOL at all the crappy artwork and tschotcke's (sic) they're peddling.
May 1st
After a miserable day at work yest I finished CJ Sansom's "Dissolution", a Tudor era mystery featuring King's Commisioner Matthew Shardlake. I liked it quite a bit, but admit to becoming irrationally angry at some of the Reformist actions/thoughts expressed through the character. Also, I guessed the murderer's identity - but not until about 20 pgs before it was revealed. A good read and recommended.
Pope John Paul II was named 'Blessed' today, a step below Sainthood. God bless him, what grand news! I love John Paul, and look upon CNN's reporting of protests as nothing more than anti-Catholic bigotry in action.
May 2nd
Just back from Parker's 1st ever Tiger Cub Scout meeting!
<---- perhaps the only man to ever complain to a Scout leader that his son's meetings conflict with watching Dancing With the Stars
May 3rd
For $3 I bought an old hardcover copy of "Little Orpan Annie and the Gila Monster Gang" (Harold Gray, published 1944) and loaned it to YaYa at 5 o'clock. She just came downstairs to return it, having finished the 248 pg bk. Just in case she was full of it, I skimmed the last two chapters and quizzed her, & she aced it. Well done, Danny Jr.
Seriously, how many times does this have to happen to me before I take the hint? Do NOT handle jalepeno peppers and then use the restroom *unless* you wash your hands first. I tell you this to spare you pain greater than any other . . . shoot me now.
May 4th
So, the Prez is cool with lifting the ban on photos of American KIA's, and w/ releasing photos of alleged abuse by our military - but he won't release a photo of OBL because he's afraid of offending our enemy. [crickets chirp] Wouldn't that be the same enemy that drags bodies through the street and beheads reporters on camera?
Gas in Chicago inching towards $5 a gallon. (I've seen $4.44 confirmed in print)
[gas prices peaked that day or the next before moving downward]
May 5th
Something's gone goofy here. I woke up with shooting pain from my wrists up to my elbows, and I barely had the strength in my hands to take apart the bikes this morning & replace their inner tubes. It's prob this flu that's been making the rounds, but I feel like an old man, and I still have a workday ahead of me . . .
[oh man, did I feel awful. Just awful, for about 48 hours. But I made it work both days]
May 7th
Don't linger on moments of no consequence, and don't rush over moments worth examining
RIP Sada Thompson, 83, actress best known from "Family"
Now that Obama has essentially sanctified Bush era polices by keeping Gitmo, using info obtained by EIT, and pre-emeptively attacking targets wherever they appear, I expect it will be harder for the Left to attack him on those points without looking like a complete hypocrite.
RIP, Claude Choules, the last known WWI combatant, age 110 - and thank you.
May 8th
Today was a perfect day, just the kind of day you'll jump to relive when your life flashes before your eyes. Just perfect :)
May 9th
Whaaaa??? Arnold Schwarzenegger and his wife of 25 years, Maria Shriver, have separated
I just finished 'Last Men Out: The True Story of America's Heroic Final Hours in Vietnam" by Bob Drury and Tom Clavin. The book focuses on the Marine detatchment at the Saigon embassy, the last group of American's to exit Vietnam. Very compelling, and written in an easy and entertaining manner. Recommended.
May 10th
10:20 am - ok, about to exit the car and walk into an interview. Wish me luck
Interview went well (I think) lasting for 45 minutes and eventually involving the owner himself. Nice to wear a shirt and tie again, if only for a morning.
Lump passed her in-school eye test today, scoring a 20/50 in each eye. That's normal for a three year old. By 4-5 years old it should be 20/40, then 20/32 by age six.
the new Nook update is out! Apps increase from a handful to 139! Now it not only wups the Kindle, it makes it put on makeup and call Barnes and Noble "big daddy"
April 26th
13:01 Since I worked all weekend and Lisa was up north on Saturday, our Easter is *today*. Took the kids to Mass at 8:15, big dinner at 4:30. Ham is in the oven, kielbasa in the slow cooker, potatoes peeled and cut, hard boiled eggs peeled and ready for . . er, deviling. Desperately hoping for a nap b4 the final push . .
19:28 outside Stonefire Pizza waiting to conduct a Craigslist purchase of kids clothing. Big scary man alone outside kids play area = not most well thought out meeting place
I love playing "Old Cannon" a simple little 'physics' game where you attempt to knock down castles using only 3 shots from an old cannon. Smiley, oddly, aced every level while I struggled with a few :)
22:34 chilling w/ my friend erv, who just got out of the hospital (complications of diabetes)
RIP Poly Styrene (born Marianne Elliot), who has died of breast cancer at age 53.
April 27th
On a lark I watched "GI Joe: The Rise of Cobra". For a big budget popcorn flick, it was fine. Better than I expected really, tho' the Flash Gordon technology was tiresome. So was the acting. Channing Tatum seemed to think he was hired to imitate Mark Wahlberg's worst traits, while Marlon Wayan's signed on for a degrading minstrel show performance.
April 30th
Today marks 36 years since the Fall of Saigon.
Watching the Channel 10 Auction with Lisa and LOL at all the crappy artwork and tschotcke's (sic) they're peddling.
May 1st
After a miserable day at work yest I finished CJ Sansom's "Dissolution", a Tudor era mystery featuring King's Commisioner Matthew Shardlake. I liked it quite a bit, but admit to becoming irrationally angry at some of the Reformist actions/thoughts expressed through the character. Also, I guessed the murderer's identity - but not until about 20 pgs before it was revealed. A good read and recommended.
Pope John Paul II was named 'Blessed' today, a step below Sainthood. God bless him, what grand news! I love John Paul, and look upon CNN's reporting of protests as nothing more than anti-Catholic bigotry in action.
May 2nd
Just back from Parker's 1st ever Tiger Cub Scout meeting!
<---- perhaps the only man to ever complain to a Scout leader that his son's meetings conflict with watching Dancing With the Stars
May 3rd
For $3 I bought an old hardcover copy of "Little Orpan Annie and the Gila Monster Gang" (Harold Gray, published 1944) and loaned it to YaYa at 5 o'clock. She just came downstairs to return it, having finished the 248 pg bk. Just in case she was full of it, I skimmed the last two chapters and quizzed her, & she aced it. Well done, Danny Jr.
Seriously, how many times does this have to happen to me before I take the hint? Do NOT handle jalepeno peppers and then use the restroom *unless* you wash your hands first. I tell you this to spare you pain greater than any other . . . shoot me now.
May 4th
So, the Prez is cool with lifting the ban on photos of American KIA's, and w/ releasing photos of alleged abuse by our military - but he won't release a photo of OBL because he's afraid of offending our enemy. [crickets chirp] Wouldn't that be the same enemy that drags bodies through the street and beheads reporters on camera?
Gas in Chicago inching towards $5 a gallon. (I've seen $4.44 confirmed in print)
[gas prices peaked that day or the next before moving downward]
May 5th
Something's gone goofy here. I woke up with shooting pain from my wrists up to my elbows, and I barely had the strength in my hands to take apart the bikes this morning & replace their inner tubes. It's prob this flu that's been making the rounds, but I feel like an old man, and I still have a workday ahead of me . . .
[oh man, did I feel awful. Just awful, for about 48 hours. But I made it work both days]
May 7th
Don't linger on moments of no consequence, and don't rush over moments worth examining
RIP Sada Thompson, 83, actress best known from "Family"
Now that Obama has essentially sanctified Bush era polices by keeping Gitmo, using info obtained by EIT, and pre-emeptively attacking targets wherever they appear, I expect it will be harder for the Left to attack him on those points without looking like a complete hypocrite.
RIP, Claude Choules, the last known WWI combatant, age 110 - and thank you.
May 8th
Today was a perfect day, just the kind of day you'll jump to relive when your life flashes before your eyes. Just perfect :)
May 9th
Whaaaa??? Arnold Schwarzenegger and his wife of 25 years, Maria Shriver, have separated
I just finished 'Last Men Out: The True Story of America's Heroic Final Hours in Vietnam" by Bob Drury and Tom Clavin. The book focuses on the Marine detatchment at the Saigon embassy, the last group of American's to exit Vietnam. Very compelling, and written in an easy and entertaining manner. Recommended.
May 10th
10:20 am - ok, about to exit the car and walk into an interview. Wish me luck
Interview went well (I think) lasting for 45 minutes and eventually involving the owner himself. Nice to wear a shirt and tie again, if only for a morning.
Lump passed her in-school eye test today, scoring a 20/50 in each eye. That's normal for a three year old. By 4-5 years old it should be 20/40, then 20/32 by age six.
Friday, June 24, 2011
Thursday, June 23, 2011
The Artiste Gene
This drawing of two dancers hangs outside YaYa's classroom and bears her signature. At a recent conference with her teacher, we asked if she traced it. Nope, her teacher replied (well, she didn't say 'nope', as that term is reserved for obnoxious bloggers). But she did say that it wasn't traced, simply eye-balled by YaYa from a picture she provided.
I'm impressed. While I can't deny a way with words and thus The Power to Move Masses, I've always envied those people who can take the pictures in their head and sketch them on paper. If I had that gift, and I could purge some of the ingenious ideas floating in my noggin, life would grand for all.
They've obviously inherited an artistic gene from Lisa, who should be -given the right breaks - Martha Stewart version 2.
Here's a giraffe Smiley drew too:
Here's some great work by LuLu
and by the Lump
Great, huh?
I'm impressed. While I can't deny a way with words and thus The Power to Move Masses, I've always envied those people who can take the pictures in their head and sketch them on paper. If I had that gift, and I could purge some of the ingenious ideas floating in my noggin, life would grand for all.
They've obviously inherited an artistic gene from Lisa, who should be -given the right breaks - Martha Stewart version 2.
Here's a giraffe Smiley drew too:
Here's some great work by LuLu
and by the Lump
Great, huh?
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
A Foul Mood Indeed
Holy sh-t I'm in a foul mood. Dark, angry, and looking for a fight. Not a good day to be in my company.
OMG stop with the interruptions!
Leave it to Obama to interrupt prime time on a day when I'm in a foul, dark mood, now ratcheted up a notch by the Prez. It's old news Mr. President. It leaked all over the net. You're pulling combat troops from Afghanistan by next year, against the wishes of your generals and some of your staff. Well done. It's certainly not a ploy to seek re-election at the expense of our anti-terror policy. No sirree.
Discovery World
@discovery world, where not only have i mooned a nun, i am the most despised father among other visitors after forcing park to climb a ladder.
If I hadn't been given 6 free passes for Christmas, Discovery World would have cost me $86 today, not inc. $10 for parking. That place is NOT $96 worth of fun. It is not $50 worth of fun. Yet another way to economically segregate Milwaukee.
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Hallowe'en Party by Agatha Christie
I started Agatha Christie's "Hallowe'en Party", but I'm woefully unimpressed with the first two chapters. I may abandon it. Any yes, the odd apostrophe is in the title.
PBS'ing
LuLu and Smiley are watching Julia Child and Jaqcques Pepin (sic) with Lisa and asking 1000 pertinent questions.
Monday, June 20, 2011
The Doorbell Rang
If you want an example of smooth, flawless writing that drops you into the story with panache, look no further than Rex Stout. I loved the opening of 'The DoorBell Rang', a Nero Wolfe mystery from late in Stout's career, when he went all lefty-loosy. Here he paints the FBI as a group of murdering fascist thugs. IIRC the book cost Stout many fans, inc. John Wayne. Not a great bk, but not a bad read, ideology aside.
Home cooking!
<p><span style="font-size: large;">For the warmup to the kid's dinner: a salad made of greens picked fresh from our garden!
Sunday, June 19, 2011
Father's Day 2011
Best part of Fathers's Day 2011: watching Terminator with YaYa and LuLu after a taco dinner. They seemed to enjoy it as much as I did back in the day, and I couldn't have been happier!
Saturday, June 18, 2011
A Yucky Day
Got home from wrk near midnight, went to bed close to 230. Dumb. Lisa got me up @ 6. Tried going back to bed @ 745 but was invited to Godson's 1st haircut. Didn't go, had to deal w/ near disaster @ Noah's Ark (girls are there on scout trip). Gave up on sleep. Sharpened/oiled mower, cut & trimmed lawn. Going to garden w/ Park, then make lunch, clean a bit, then hopefully nap b4 returning to work. Day sux.
Buried Prey
I finished "Buried Prey", the latest Lucas Davenport book by John Sandford. Very well done. Part of it is set in the distant past when Davenport's career began, but unlike the use of this technique in the latest Scudder novel (where it seemed a sign the character was too old to matter in the present), Sandford makes it work and work well. I enjoyed it a lot.
Thursday, June 16, 2011
A Chance Encounter
just ran into Dave Shore @ the Botanical Gardens. I rarely forget faces, and in fact we both recognized each other @ the same time. It was a friendly reunion. He thanked me for advice back in the day, commented on the lovely paint job of the hi, and mentioned the economy is tough.
Anyway.
There was a concert there that evening (the music of John Williams) and that allowed me to get in free with the kids. We didn't stay for the music. I had 3 kids under 8 with me, all of whom have a 7 pm bedtime. Had I stayed everyone else would have missed hearing a good show.
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Wish Me Luck
I should mention that I tossed my hat into the ring for a writing job of some significance. While it's a long shot of a long shot, I was happy to see that not only wasn't I rejected out of hand, the editor passed news of my interest up the ladder. So say a prayer, offer to fund a bribe, or just send good thoughts my way - whatever your preference, I'm grateful for the help.
Rain Rain Go Away
Tonight's rain reminded me of something Junie did a few wks ago. It was raining very hard, and she was reciting the "rain rain go away" ditty over & over. That's unremarkable - except for the increasing panic and frustration in her voice. To her it was a legtimate spell against the rain, & her tone revealed an absolute sense of betrayal that her magic had gone unanswered by the "powers that be".
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
My Thoughts - Anthony Weiner
On Weiner: I consider sex scandals to be largely "other people's marital problems". Whether it's Waren Harding, Arnold, or Norquist, it's their spouses business, not mine. I'll worry about my marriage & leave them to worry about theirs. But I'm not keen on lying to the press after the jig is up, & his decision to post pics via Twitter shows he has disturbingly poor judgement. Stay or go? Up to his constiuents, IMO.
A Reunion
Today I ran into grade school classmate Lisa Mattice for the first time since 1985. It was great to catch up for a few minutes. On the flip side, I fell asleep on the couch during The Voice and ruined the planned night w/ (my) Lisa. Even worse, I am now forced to listen to Jay Leno until I can locate the TV remote. *shiver*
Our Sentry Store is Closing
My Evening
outside in the yard, helping Junie write thank u notes for her teachers, bus driver & crossing guard. Meanwhile YaYa is off @ her 1st night of camp . . .
Breaking News
Breaking News: the WI Supreme Court has ruled that the collective bargaining law should be upheld.
Monday, June 13, 2011
Mad About You
watching Mad About You. We are 15 min in and Helen Hunt is on her 3rd vest of the show.
Hypocrisy
2day Entertainment Tonight devoted a long segment to the intrusive & sometimes confrontational nature of papparazi. The example that compelled them to speak out? A cameraman who filmed Maria Shriver despite her request that she be left alone. ET delivered this spiel w/ a straight face & no sign of hypocricy - despite *playing (& presumably paying for) the Shriver vid themselves*. Gotta love the media.
In the Garden of Beasts
I finished Erik Laarsen's "In the Garden of Beasts", a narrative history of US Ambassador Dodd's tenure in Nazi Germany. The book was fascinating and compelling in the moment, but left me feeling empty. In the end there is no real story at work. Like most of us, Dodd's life is interesting as an anecdote here and there, but fails to accumulate the drama needed to fill 400 pages. An inferior work by Laarsen.
Gosford Park
Between loads of last minute laundry, I finished watching "Gosford Park", a Brit period piece/ murder mystery erroneously classified as a comedy by both BN & Netflix. I love the large ensemble cast and the way the script deftly weaves us into their lives with ease. But oddly, while I liked it a lot, I think it would bore most viewers w/ its slow pace and lack of action.
On this Day
On this day 100 yrs ago Robert James Murphy, a riveter working on the Titanic, died when his scaffolding collapsed. RIP
The tree out front goes "Adios!"
Since we moved into our house four years ago we've taken special notice of the city-owned tree in front of our house. While much of it seemed healthy (certainly healthy enough to generate piles of leaves and clogged gutters every autumn) one large branch was visibly dead, and as the years wore on more and more of the trunk appeared diseased.
A few calls for removal went unheeded, but a few weeks ago a city worker drove by and just happened to notice the tree. He got out of his truck to talk to me, then put in an order for the tree to be cut down. The crew showed up the day we departed for LuLu's trip to Fort Atkinson.
One guy went up in a cherry picker with a small chain saw. One by one he removed the large limbs of the tree, often lowering them to the ground with rope.
Other crew members carried the debris to a portable chipper.
Given Smiley's huge interest in botany and gardening, this was right up his alley and we sat outside and watched the proceedings until it started to rain. Lu joined us for a spell, but YaYa (claiming to mourn the tree) stayed in her room. The guy in the cherry picker waved to her when he was even with her window.
Much of the tree is still standing. The rest will be removed another day, and the stump ground down. A replacement will be planted in the spring or fall of 2012.
A few calls for removal went unheeded, but a few weeks ago a city worker drove by and just happened to notice the tree. He got out of his truck to talk to me, then put in an order for the tree to be cut down. The crew showed up the day we departed for LuLu's trip to Fort Atkinson.
One guy went up in a cherry picker with a small chain saw. One by one he removed the large limbs of the tree, often lowering them to the ground with rope.
Other crew members carried the debris to a portable chipper.
Given Smiley's huge interest in botany and gardening, this was right up his alley and we sat outside and watched the proceedings until it started to rain. Lu joined us for a spell, but YaYa (claiming to mourn the tree) stayed in her room. The guy in the cherry picker waved to her when he was even with her window.
Much of the tree is still standing. The rest will be removed another day, and the stump ground down. A replacement will be planted in the spring or fall of 2012.
Sunday, June 12, 2011
Saturday, June 11, 2011
He-Man
@ his adament request, I just woke up Smiley to watch He-Han on Qubo. In fairness to my parenting, by the first commercial break he will be asleep again in front of the TV.
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
True Grit
We just finished watching the remake of True Grit. The acting was wonderful, and the film closely follows the great book of the same name. Still, while I enjoyed the movie I was not overwhelmed with affection for it. Of all the Best Picture nominees I've seen, Social Network remains the clear *should have been* winner.
Taylor Swift - A Surprise for YaYa!
This evening we suprised YaYa w/ an early bday gift - a pair of tix to tonight's Taylor Swift concert! She literally screamed when we gave them to her. She's there now with Lisa. I hope they're having fun.
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