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!
“It is not hatred that is wrong, it is hating the wrong thing that is wrong. It is not anger that is wrong, it is being angry at the wrong thing that is wrong. Tell me your enemy, and I will tell you what you are. Tell me your hatred, and I will tell you your character. Do you hate religion? Then your conscience bothers you. Do you hate the wealthy? Then you are avaricious, and you want to be wealthy. Do you hate sin? Then you love God. Do you hate your hate, your selfishness, your quick temper, your wickedness? Then you are a good soul, for ‘if any man come to me… and hate not his own life, he cannot be my disciple’ Luke 14:26”
"I just finished reading "Dark Side of the Sun" by Andrew Dymond, a Farscape novel. I thought at first that it was a lousy Farscape product that would have been a decent to middling stand-alone novel. But in the end, w/ no grasp of the characters, a habit of favoring description over action and dialogue, and a viscous tendency to fill pages with endless one line paragraphs, I say poo. A waste of my time."
"Never ignore the insticts of a coward"
9:19 am "@ job fair"
"2 comments: One, job fairs bring out a boatload of desperate people, myself included. Waited in line an hour & they said it would be the same or worse all day. You're doing swell Mr. President. Two: Not the greatest interview of my life, which is sad since the bar is set rather low. I had to prompt him to bring up anything other than my current gig, which is least impressive part of the resume by far. What a lousy way to kick off the 1st day of freedom (aka school year)."
"Any damn fool can predict the past. - Larry Niven"
August 28th
@ diner w/ family celebrating the last day of summer vacation"
FANTASY DRAFT
Sad Sack Slapjacks
1. (8) Michael Turner
(Atl - RB)
2. (14) Peyton Hillis
(Cle - RB)
3. (26) DeSean Jackson
(Phi - WR)
4. (38) Mario Manningham
(NYG - WR)
5. (62) Sam Bradford
(StL - QB)
6. (74) Cedric Benson
(Cin - RB)
7. (86) Lance Moore
(NO - WR)
8. (98) New England
(NE - DEF)
9. (110) Jay Cutler
(Chi - QB)
10. (114) Brandon Jacobs
(NYG - RB)
11. (122) Johnny Knox
(Chi - WR)
12. (134) Rob Gronkowski
(NE - TE)
13. (146) Rob Bironas
(Ten - K)
14. (158) Marcedes Lewis
(Jac - TE)
15. (170) Derrick Mason
(NYJ - WR)
16. (182) Arizona
(Ari - DEF)
"On my lunch yesterday I finished reading "Dune Messiah" by Frank Herbert. Once again, I walked away stunned by how effective Herbert was at creating the universe of Dune, right down to the different language and speech patterns. I greatly enjoyed it."
"I just saw a radar pic of hurricane Irene. Whoa. To anyone on the East coast, take care. Our prayers are w/ u"
"22 to 9? Holy 27 rings Batman. The Yanks set a MLB record with 3 grand slams in a single game Thursday."
August 25th
"BTW, RIP Aaliyah, ten years on . . ."
The Journal-Sentinel is going to publish a column I wrote about the 10th anniversary of 9/11. It'll be published in the Sunday edition of 9-11-11, the first time my writing will appear in the hallowed Sunday 'Crossroads' section."
August 24th
"Need went deeper than proscription - Frank Herbert, Dune Messiah"
"kids and lisa are @ a local bookstore enjoying a back to school storytime"
YaYa got a new haircut today:
August 23rd
"While the world seems all giddy-goo over the likely fall of Gadhafi, I call B.S. You're ditching a known but neutered bad guy in exchange for a bunch of hoodlums who will - I'm sure {giggle} - install a fair, democratic gov't that is pro-US & believes in equality of the sexes, the right of Israel to exist, &freedom of speech. OR they'll install a Sharia (Islamic) gov't that'll serve as the Iraq for the next generation of American soldiers. Either/or. What a crock."
"A few nights ago we finished up season 1 of "Better Off Ted". It was a very funny, very well written show that deserved more than the chance it received."
"I watched the Mexican horror film 'Cronos' last night, the 1993 directorial debut of Guillermo del Toro. I liked it, and actually thought it was very sweet at times."
August 20th
""Haters are confused admirers who can't understand why everybody likes you" Paul Coelho"
"Watched the '76 horror flick "Audrey Rose" starring Anthony Hopkins. Awful, boring, and lame."
On why she became a writer: I didn't want to work. It was as simple as that. I distrusted work, disliked it. I thought it was a very bad thing that the human race had unfortunately invented for itself.
'Dinner for Schmucks' was hit and miss, w/ a few laughs and not a whole lot more to offer. PBS's contemporary 'Sherlock' is grand and a credit to the character. And there's no loser on "The Amazing Race" as even the eliminated teams experience sights and experiences I can only dream about.
I have friends on FB who strongly believe otherwise, but I feel that the anti-vaccine movement is a serious threat to public health. To find that one of the cornerstones of that movement is not only a discredited study, but a deliberately fraudulent one, cements that notion. Sadly, as per a CNN.com article "[believers are] not going to let the facts dissuade their beliefs that MMR causes autism"
Jan 6th
I rented 'The Last Exorcism' expecting a lousy film. I'm happy to say I was wrong. A disillusioned preacher asks a documentary crew to film him during an exorcism, so that he can reveal his profession to be a scam. Obviously it doesn't go as planned,but throughout you're never sure if the girl is possessed, mentally ill, crying out for help, a victim or a con herself. Very scary at times and solid throughout. Bravo.
Tomorrow, the two oldest start selling girl scout cookies, so let us know starting tomorrow how many cases you'd like, LOL. $3.75 a box this year, & worth every penny for the opportunities they allow girls locally and globally! Did you know that Thin Mints are 2nd only to OREOS in nationwide sales?!! Now imagine if Girl Scouts sold their thin mints more then just one month out of the year! Thin Mint domination!!
Jan 8th
U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords has died after being shot during a mass shooting in a store in Tucson, Arizona, law enforcement source tells CNN. NOTE: the report was wrong. She survived. Many others did not, including the 9 yr old granddaughter of former MLB manager Dallas Green.
We watched SALT last night, and I liked it a lot. It was a fun and decently intelligent thriller. Angelina Jolie, while a blonde and therefore not as hot as usual, was great as a suspected Russian sleeper agent. She's earned the crown of best ever female action hero . . . although, come to think of it, I can't think of another candidate.
Jan 9th
No time to say this yesterday, as I worked 'til 10, but congrats to the Seahawks, my 2nd favorite NFC team. It was a pain to follow the game at work, gleaming bits of info from customers, but I can't argue with the result
Jan 10th
'Leaves of Grass' was a bore, a truly pretentious turd of a film. There was the woman who answered questions by reciting verses of poetry, the discources on philosophy, needless gore & 'Parent Trap' FX. That enough for ya? OTOH, "The Invention of Lying" was pleasant enough, it's atheist plot notwithstanding. How a man can work alongside Jennifer Garner & not believe there's a Creator at work is beyond me.
I learned that I shouldn't get high to come up with ideas. I should come up with ideas and then get high to reward myself. - South Park "A Million Little Fibers"
RIP Dick Winters, the WWII officer featured in the series Band of Brothers
Jan 11th
We couldn't find a babysitter (6 months today!) so we took Ginger w/ us to lunch at Olive Garden. Subpar service but good food, and Ginger was an angel. She's gone from Thug to darling over the last few wks, and right now she's the apple of my eye. BTW, thanks Pam & Tre for the OG GC.
A man who fears suffering is already suffering from what he fears. - Michel de Montaigne
MySpace has cut its staff in half
A 6,000 year old wine press has been found in Armenia
Jan 12th
Aww man. RIP David Nelson of Ozzie and Harriet
Jan 13th
I love Jimmy Stewart's office in the movie 'Bell, Book and Candle'
"I felt awestruck, affirmed in my belief that there were no bounds to ingenuity when it met the curve of need." - Keith Hollihan, 'The Four Stages of Cruelty'
Jan 15th
A friend just asked to borrow $ from me to get a tatoo on her foot. Correct me if I'm wrong, but we *have* met before right? Asking Dan Slap- to pay for a woman's foot to be marred is like asking the Pope to wizz on the Bible.
The tat in it's final location. Work by Zoe's Vicious Circle on Howard Ave.
I finished Keith Hollihan's 'The Four Stages of Cruelty', a novel about the CO's & inmates of a max security prison. It's a good story, & Hollihan is a talented stylist. IMO the bks biggest handicap is its cover, styled to look like the panels of a comic bk. It gives a completely wrong impression of the contents & I'm sure many people have walked on by it w/out a second thought.
"Bad temper is an indication of a man's character; every man can be judged by the things which make him mad." Archbishop Fulton Sheen
One Brett Favre stat no one ever talks about: in his career Farve has put his hands under another man's ass over 20,000 times. (h/t Mick Lexington) For dinner I made a huge pot of Zuppa Toscana from a Olive Garden knock-off recipie I found online. I tweaked it by adding chopped fennel and using half and half in place of 2/3rds of the required heavy cream. Quite deeelish. Now Lis and the newly tattooed Chris are out celebrating the latter's bday w/ a mutual friend, & I'm sitting down for the Packers playoff game vs Atlanta.
Tramon Williams' is gonna have to change his name to Sherman, 'cuz he done burned Atlanta!
We watched 'Barry Munday' last night, an indie comedy about a man who loses his testicles and then learns he knocked up one of his last conquests. It's a very sweet but dry film, w/ a few scattered LOL's, and Lisa liked it a lot. I wasn't as thrilled, but it was OK. Of course, the subject matter begs the question: would they make a comedy about a woman who loses both breasts to cancer? Same diff right? Ah, the double standard at work.
Bleepin' kids are all over me while Lisa's at the mall. No, you can't go on the computer. No, you can't watch a movie down here. You have the entire 2nd floor, TV and all. Use it. And don't complain. You are a guest here. That's right, a guest. A guest for 18 long years, but a guest all the same. It's my house & my toys, so pbbbt! Dec 30th
Two pics of YaYa's new perm:
NY Eve
Fyi Adalbert alum - I just saw Sr Kathleen. She says Sr VIrginia's lung collapsed yest. She is in St Lukes but not doing well.
Here's some photos taken during a recent Girl Scout tour of Palermo's Pizza factory.
Jan 1st
A writer only begins a book. A reader finishes it - Samuel Johnson
A sincere RIP to Barney Miller star Steve Landesburg. Dietrich was my favorite character on that great sitcom.
We just finished another horrendous day (two in a row baby!) by watching 'Easy A' w/ Emma Stone. It's a comedy about a high school girl who capitalizes on her (unfounded) reputation as a slut to gain popularity, then has to face the consequences of her actions when the line btwn reality and fiction starts to blur. It started off slow, but picked up steam. Very impressed by Stone.
Dec 23rd
'Bear', a 2010 movie directed by John Rebel, was just . . . yeah. I'm not sure who should be more embarrassed, the folks responsible for creating this drivel, or yours truly for thinking "well, crap, at least *they* managed to get something produced. What does that say about my own talent?"
Dec 24th
If a train is coming @ you, closing your eyes won't save you. But if u look right @ it, you at least have a chance to jump. - I don't remember the source
I finished Andrew Vacch's 'The Weight', which I quite liked six weeks ago when I was 50 pgs in. Then, through no fault of the book itself, I had to finish it in blocks of 20 or 30 pgs over a month long period. By the end I resented the hell out of the novel. Couldn't stand to even look at it. Anyhow, it's the last bk I'm reading in '10. I'm done read out for the year.
Joey McIntyre and his wife are expecting their 3rd child. Congrats!
Lisa and I are watching "It's a Wonderful Life" on NBC. It remains my favorite movie ever. No contest - there's not a scene that doesn't make me smile and/or cry. Just seeing it on the screen makes this awful Christmas week nearly tolerable.
Christmas Day
A record crowd of Christian pilgrims is celebrating Christmas in Bethlehem. The Pope has also offered prayers urging courage for Catholics in China. My prayer's are with them too; Christians must remain strong in the face of the adversity this world presents against them.
Today, while walking to buy some much needed booze, I found a brand new copy of the 600 pg Polish poem "Pan Tadeusz" by Adam Mickiewicz just laying in the snow. Huh. What are the chances that a) a book nut b) a Polack c) someone both familar with the poem and a fan of it would rescue it from the elements on Christmas Day?
Dec 26th
Happy Boxing Day. I spent Xmas PM making a dinner of ham, potatoes, green beans, and (1st x ever) homemade bread pudding. The latter was greeted with gag reflexes by the kids, but Lu & Smiley wound up liking it. Then, w/ our friend Chris over it was a nt of 'Survivor: Vanuatu', 'Kitchen Nightmares', & Anne Francis in an episode of 'Honey West'. Hope u all had a great & peaceful Christmas.
Until the recent discs from Netflix, we've only seen two episodes of any Survivor (the Richard Hatch finale and this yrs result show). Now, we're hooked. I can't believe how insanely competitive I get, rooting for this contestant or tribe o...ver the other.
BTW - LOVED the abrupt about face that got the snooty but incredibly delictable Ami booted from Vanuatu. Great TV.See More
"Read not to contradict and confute, nor to believe and take for granted, but to weigh and consider" - Francis Bacon Sr (quote on a leather book weight Lisa got me for Christmas)
"Nothing shows more thoughtlessness than the idiocy that it makes no difference what you believe; it all depends on the way you live. On the contrary, we act on our beliefs; our ideas are motorsprings in action; if our thinking is bad our actions will be bad." Archbishop Fulton Sheen
@ the barber w/ Smiley and there's a ten yr old crying during his haircut. Nut up dude.
"You don't see your own children grow unless there's a new one to remind you how tiny they come." - quote from The Searchers, by Alan LeMay
During today's trash TV (Maury, etc) there were many ads encouraging people to sue drug companies for X, Y & Z. Here's my 2 cents: if a drug is tested & approved by the FDA, then drug companies should be exempt from litigation related to side effects. Sound harsh? Then make the approval process tougher. Of course, folks already think the process is too long, but the public always finds *something* to complain about. It really is a choice between those two options.
I'm making traditional Hungarian Goulash for dinner. It's the first time I'll ever eat it, much less create it from scratch. I saw the recipe on 'America's Test Kitchen' & had to try it. Beef, paprika, bay leaves, vinegar, 2.5 hrs in a dutch oven, etc - I hope I didn't take on too large of a task.
I rented 'Furry Vengence' w/ Brendan Fraser & Brooke Shields for the kids. They luv it, & I admit LOL'ing when the racoon peed in Fraser's mouth.
9:32 pm: The goulash? Good schtuff Maynard.
August 18th
Study, drill and technique do not stifle talent - they free it. (Fame [2009], a pretty decent flick)
We watched the movie "Extract" last night, starring Justin Bateman, Ben Affleck, and the hot brunette from 'That '70's Show". It was a pretty good comedy, and certainly worth a Redbox rental.
I look good tonight. It's times like this I wish I had a twin brother, just so I'd know what it's like to stand alongside true beauty.
Ah, the culture of snark and pointless hate rises up again, this time to point out how games like Farmville aren't 'real' games, and how they're on the way out. Because remember boys and girls, if a video game appeals to an audience wider than males under 40, it must be crap!
August 19th
Gizmo, the cat we inherited from my wife's Aunt when she passed away in June, stole a 2# bag of shaved ham Lisa had just put on the table. I recovered the torn/chewed bag from the basement floor a few minutes later. Ghetto little beast. In other news, something you don't see every day: two dragonflies bumping nasties in the backyard. It was quite the sight for the kids.
My niece Caitlin made the freshman volleyball team!! It's been proven that High school athletes:* make higher grades* get into less trouble* graduate at a higher rate* drop out less often* have higher GPAs than non-athletes. Now she is a high school athlete, and I couldn't be prouder of you Kay kay!! - Lisa, with a monster 'ditto!' from me
Whenever someone says "I'm not book smart, but I'm street smart", all I hear is "I'm not REAL smart, but I'm IMAGINARY smart" - Carlos Harmon
A local station chopped Snoop's rap out of Katy Perry's "California Gurls" & I mean CHOPPED - as abrupt a change as you''ll ever hear. Another station edited out 'crackhead' in "You're Love is my Drug" - presumably because the Crackhead community might take offense. I suppose these r the same yahoo's that flip over the cover of Rolling Stone on newstands to protect our fragile little eyes. G'damn morality police.
And more radio drama, this time a reverse discrimination phenomenon: a local 'black' station crudely edited out a white singers contribution to an R&B song {Fergie's parts of a Black Eyed Peas tune. EDITED OUT OF HER OWN BANDS SONG}. C'mon - can't we all just get along?
'Slap Chop' is a kitchen gadget sold on late night informercials. Someone got the idea of making a rap video out of the spiel. If you've seen the commercial, you'll be LOL.
Nine bleeping losses in a row [for the Brewers]. Macha has to go. Not because he's the worst manager ever, or because replacing him will magically save the season. He should go because in baseball fans *believe* it will make a difference, and the fans pay the bills. This is even more true here in Milwaukee, where the dramatic Rogers/Kuehn switch took us all the way to Game Seven. So - who's the eventual replacement?
Lost didn't tape this week, for whatever reason, but I finally just finished the episode on ABC.com. GREAT GREAT episode, a wonderful lead-in to the series finale this Sunday.
re: the sinking of a S. Korean naval vessel: "The truce prevents Seoul from waging a unilateral military attack." Are you kidding me? North Korea TORPEDOED one of your warships and KILLED your citizens. I'd say the truce is worth jack shit.
May 21st
Lisa & watched a show on Ruby Ridge; what a needless waste. Then, we watched testimony from OR v Beagley, a case of alleged negligent homicide against parents who refused med treatment for their 16 yr old son. IMO, another case of the gov't overstepping its bounds. Gov't doesn't shrink or remain stagnant, it perpetually grows, like a cancer. I shudder to think what burdens our great-grandchildren will live under.
Yikes! The Girl Scouts just charged my card $200 towards summer camp - that'd be $200 I can't spare - despite the fact that I took care of that bill months ago. They've reversed the charges ("for now") but I need to redo some of the paperwork (?!) for the camp. Apparently a large chunk of the application was lost, & so their computer records are incomplete & I was charged as part of a mass billing . . .
Read the best books first, or you may not have a chance to read them at all. - Henry David Thoreau
Babysitting my (soon to be) Godson TJ. Took him for a walk in the stroller with Lu and Ginger, stopped at a local playground, then spent time in the backyard. He seemed the happiest outdoors, breaking into huge grins for Lisa & the girls. Now he's asleep in the bouncer, but he's been a little grumpy. From experience I'd say he's teething or constipated. Or he's po'd about the Brewers losing AGAIN; Lord knows I am.
May 22nd
Yest. morning Ginger's babysitter (a family member) suddenly tried pawning her off on another relative. When I heard this I called and asked about the sudden change of plans. She claimed this was what we'd agreed on [so not the case] "It's the information I was given," she said. "From who?" I said. "The President of Wakey-Wakey-Make-It-Uppy?"
I just walked Ginger and LuLu to the gas station so Lu could spend some spare change on candy & whatnot. On the way home she pumped her fist. "Yeah!" she said, seriously giddy. "Daddy I've never spent my own money at the gas station. This was great. THE best moment of my life." :)
While at the Dollar Store today I ran into a Milwaukee man who was featured on "Hoarding: Buried Alive" He was there w/ his two foster children. I asked if he'd been on 'that TV show', intentionally avoiding its name, and he said yes. His kids got very excited & said they were stars & wanted to make a movie now. I said I was glad the show helped him and we went on our way.
Cleaned the house all afternoon, capped by MAJOR fit by YaYa a few minutes ago. The kid deserves an Oscar, honest and truly. What a freakin' drama queen; you'd mistake her fits for outakes from Hostel. Alas (for her) we didn't give in and made her clean our room & take out the trash. Unfortunately alll the dust of the cleanup set off a major asthma attack for Lu, but she's back in action now.
I think it's sad that a real-time Brewers publication brags about having in the lead in the bottom of the ninth, then fiinshes the post with "Let's hope the Brewers can hang on!". Yeah, let's hope. Geesh, things went south here quickly, didn't they? {they lost the game lol]
[reacting to horrible anti-Christian comments on a scientific article about Copernicus} As usual, the anti-religious zealots swamped the comments on this article. Note that they only seem to attack Christianity; perhaps because we won't cut off their head if we find their notions heretical.
May 23rd
"They're not vampires. Like I said, they're fish from space." - The 11th Doctor
[on plans to outlaw drop-side cribs] What a perfect storm of crap: a gov't that doesn't know its boundaries and a group of yahoos taking a *miniscule* sample size and using it to dictate policy to the masses. ALL my kids slept in drop-side cribs and not once did we have so much as the faintest hint of trouble; then again I took more time assembling the crib than I did putting up my HDTV, which is probably the difference here.
80 degrees outside, a backyard baking in the sun, a kiddie pool set up and in full use - and Ginger comes outside wearing a swimsuit, snow boots, and a winter cap with tassels.
Lisa said something very insightful. She said that since Kate Gosselin is so damn stiff and difficult to watch on her gigs on DTWS, Entertainment Tonight, etc it's proof that her persona on J&K+8 was genuine. "She isn't a good enough actress to fake being real," Lisa said. And you know, she's right.
If all economists were laid end to end, they would not reach a conclusion.- George Bernard Shaw
RIP Jose Lima
A moment ago Smiley was crouched in the sandbox. He was barechested & tan, with khaki-army(ish) pants slung low, & his blonde hair was in a near crewcut. He was filling a containter with sand, & on his face was a barely disguised look of fatigue/contempt for his lot in life. I laughed. "Jeez Smiley," I said, "You look like an extra from Platoon. All you need is a cigarette dangling from your mouth & a chopper overhead"
Too much chaos here to watch the Lost series finale in 'real-time', so I'm DVR'ing it. I'll watch it once the kids and the Mrs. are asleep, so I can enjoy every second. One near disaster: Lisa walked into the living room to find the kids had shut off the recording of the pre-show to put on Disney. Lousy buggers!
I spent some time w/ a friend before watching Lost, and he p*'d me off by blasting Lost as 'mainstream' (as if that's an insult) and all but an opiate of the masses. Here's what I think: I think anyone who watches 'The Cleveland Show' and literally LOL's at the lame, mildly racist 'comedy' is someone whose opinion on TV matters for poop.
Came home from work and, wanting to get some repairs done on the porch roof, promptly sliced my thumb on a utiity knife. Don't worry, I stopped the blood flow - by accidently crushing a tube of asphalt sealant while I headed inside, thereby covering my hands, forearms, & shirt with a layer of black tar that took 20 minutes to scrub (75%) off. Ah, well. Saved me a stitch or two I suppose.
Jody Gerut hits for the cycle! Congrats to Jody, the first Brewer since Chad Moeller to accomplish the feat. [btw I was at the Moeller game in 2004 w/ my friend Carlos - I caught two foul balls!]
"Big, big mistake. Huge. Didn't anyone ever tell you there's one thing you never, ever put in a trap. Not if u vaulue your continued existence, if you have *any* plans about seeing tommorow. There's one thing you never put in a trap . . . ME." The 11th Doctor, "The Time of Angels"
Milw's top mental health adminstrator *intentionally* houses female patients with known, violent male offenders to 'reduce violence'. This would explain the # of sexual assaults at our mental health complex. So would this: the adminstrator is a man who uses his position to punish & degrade women for the sake of his sick masturbatory fantasies. Given that his actions have destroyed the trust in our mental health system, and led to sexual assaults and the violent rape of a pregnant woman, he needs to face criminal charges, for negligence or whatever else they can scrape together. Once he belongs to Jerome or Rick or Mr. Big, let him argue his stance about the 'lesser' violence of sex. assualt.
May 9th
This morning my mother-in-law took Lisa out for breakfast. When Lisa said it wasn't right that her Mom pay for the meal, and certainly not on Mother's Day, this was her Mom's response: "Don't worry about it. In twenty years when you're changing my diapers, I'll Just take an extra dump and call it even."
May 10th
RIP Lena Horne
re: a negative critique of Betty White's SNL episode: This critic is on crack. Of course many of the skits exploited her age - Duh! She's 88 years old. What are you supposed to mine for comedy, her thoughts on social security? It was the first SNL I've watched in years and I thought she did marvelous. She has such great comedic timing, and that kiss - McGruber is a lucky man!
May 11th
The Big Ten has extended offers for the following schools to join the conference: Missouri, Rutgers, Nebraska, and Notre Dame. I think Nebraska would be a nice fit, and I guess Rutgers expands the B10 reach into the NY area. I'm told MO is a fertile recruiting ground for the Badgers, so screw adding them, and I'd pass on the Irish. We'll see how it turns out.
Jury duty all day, then came home to horrible children. Seriously. Horrible. Children. I sent them all to bed just after six with no supper. If they're lucky and actually show some compassion and regret, they might qualify for meals by June. July is more likely.
May 12th
Tuesday's Glee was a downer, wasn't it? Quadraplegics (sp?), John Mellencamp and Kurt going all boo-hoo over a Dad who CLEARLY loves his son despite their differences. Nut up kid. Ah well. Neil Patrick Harris guest stars next week. Should be a hoot.
Finally saw last night's Lost. I'll cop to being a little confused, which is unusual; sometimes what I 'know' turns out to be wrong, but I always walk away with a gist of it down and a decent theory in my head. I'll need to mull this one over.
May 13th
If you're in need of a good (albeit violent) drama to fill up your TV screen, take a gander at 'Justified' on FX. I've watched the first 8 episodes via On Demand and I've enjoyed every show.
May 14th
Horrible news. Dano Plato's son, who by all accounts has strugged to deal with his mother's legacy in the decade since her death, has committed suicide. RIP.
A 42 year old actress has stepped forward claiming Roman Polanski had sex with her when she was 16. It should be noted that the legal age of consent in Paris, where the alleged sex took place, was (is?) 15. However, since she claims he forced himself on her, the age of consent is irrelevant. I'm not sure I buy the rationale behind her stepping forward now, but it certainly isn't good news for Polanski.
The Missouri legislature has given approval to strip Mark McGwire's name from the highway they named in his honor. What a sh*t move. Ugh. On the other hand, former Brewers manager Ned Yost has been named the manager of the KC Royals. Congrats to Ned, and all the best.
May 15th
So, let me get this straight: the Twins intentionally walked the bases loaded to face my man Arod, a HOF'er and notorious Twins killer. Brilliant. Congrats to ARod on the game winning shot, and for passing Frank Robinson on the all-time HR list. May 16th
Lisa was super po'd at me yest. So after work, w/ our kids dispersed to relatives, I took her out for dinner and drinks, followed by a moonlight ride by the lakefront. With her again loving the Dslap, I finally got down to enjoying Saturday night the way it was meant to be spent: w/ a new episode of Doctor Who on the TV. ;)
re: "Ashes to Ashes" I saw an episode of this show last night on the BBC and while it was very good, I thought it was awfully similar to "Life on Mars". Well, it turns out it's a spin-off. A female police detective is shot in the present day and awakens in 1982, where she leads a second life as a detective in that era. Putting aside the time travel stuff, it's a solid police procedural.
LuLu is seriously in love with Justin Beiber. She has posters on her wall, and she asked me to help her enter a Teen Beat contest to win his teddy bear. She's so cute - for weeks afterwards she'd ask me if she'd 'won yet'. :)
re: Taio Cruz's "Break Your Heart" I couldn't get this song out of my head yesterday, and caught myself humming it while a customer was droning on. Oopsie. BTW - Ludacris seems to appear on every song produced in North America. He's the Jude Law of the music biz.
May 17th
Milwaukee, stick a fork in [DJ's] Bob & Brian. I used to love 'em, and they did their schtick - blue collar/everyday Milwaukee Joe - better than anyone. But now they're rich, 50 yr old guys who live in the burbs; they're guys who have to google pop culture references, who refuse to play ANY music, & who pander to the stick-in-the-butt Zayban (sic). Enough. And please, don't even get me started on this 'Reheated' B.S. [where there show is repeated later in the day]
May 17th
To every yahoo that went around Milwaukee yesterday saying "Whoo-hoo! Summer's finally here!" - thank your karma for the fifty degree weather today. I 'preciate it. :)
"Constantly choosing the lesser of two evils is still choosing evil." - Jerry Garcia
Seven losses in a row for the Brewers, including an entire homestand. This team sucks right now. Yikes. Let's start a FB pool - barring a 180, I say Macha is fired by May 25th. [I was wrong; he lasted the season before being fired]
May 18th
Timbaland coulda stayed home - Justin carries this song. "I'll take two # 3's/ that's a whole lot of you and a side of me/now is it full of myself to want you full of me?/ . . . Do you like it well done? 'Cuz I do it well/'Cuz I'm well seasoned if you couldn't tell"
Last fall the city used stimilus $ to tear up my lawn. They replaced a functioning, intact gas pipe w/ more of the same, wiped out the small hill in front of my porch & destroyed my grass. I was set to cut the new lawn today for the 1st x - so naturally the city returned & dug it up AGAIN. They left a note on my door saying it was just to ck & see if they'd done the work right. America, your gov't at work.
I'm 12 ft into digging a 2ft deep/30 foot long drainage trench w/ no shade in sight. Anyone want to come over and help? For gosh sake's I'm a fat guy - I'll have a heart attack any second
"When I became a man I put away childish things, including the fear of childishness and the desire to be very grown up." - C.S. Lewis
The [BP] oil spill in the Gulf is horrendous, & the enviornment will suffer needlessly. But to those who claim this is *the* reason to abandon drilling: unless you live w/out a car, plastics, lawn mower, etc - YOU NEED OIL. We can continue to delude ourselves that letting other countries pump oil for us is somehow saving Mother Earth (?!), but its not. Plus all the economic & security reasons . . .
Just finished watching "Victory of the Daleks", ep. 3 of this season of Dr. Who. It features Winston Churchill, a devilish Dalek plan, and Spitfires (!) in a dogfight around the moon LOL. Grand. Good to see the new team jettison Davie's obsession w/ stamping out the Dalek race; this ep. made it clear the Daleks are back & here to stay.
Rented a movie but Lisa's already asleep & I'm pooped from digging. I might call it a night. Got a lot done in the yard (but not everything) the kids went to Home Depot for the monthly project w/ Grandma J, Lu went to a swim party, & we set up the sandbox & pool. Tonight Smiley's the only kid home. We've enjoyed the heck out of our 'quality' time w/ him. Life is good. It'd be better with $, but it's good all the same.
MAY 2ND
Helen Wagner, the actress who's played Nancy Huges on 'As the World Turns' since 1956! has passed away. She was 91. RIP.
I'm trying hard not to be the snarky pre-2009 Danny, but the populace isn't making it easy. Before work I waited in a 7 person line at a convenience store. Along comes an elderly woman, who cut in front of 4 of us with her Hoveround. She shot us a glare and *announced* that she is elderly & hence will assume that spot. Hey, lady, why does it matter to you how long you wait in line? You've already got a seat.
MAY 3RD
Government does not solve problems; it subsidizes them. - Reagan
"What people say behind your back is your standing in the community." - Edgar Watson Howe
Unions in Greece are threatening to strike rather than agree to curtail gov't spending. BTW, I skimmed an article in yesterday's NYT claiming that part of the problem is that Greek citizens hide much of their income from the tax man, presumably leading to a short change of gov't funds. Of course, if taxes were fair there would be less societal acceptance of the cheating. Or not.
On this day in 1791 Poland established Europe's first national constitution - only the second such document in the world (after our own). Konstytucja Trzeciego Maja
LuLu just called from school asking for her inhaler. I know people from my school days are rolling their eyes and remembering me as a hypocondriac (sic), but things change. I've missed two days of work in 12 yrs, & while I'll keep the kids home to go see a concert or a ballgame, I'll be damned if they'll stay home for any illness that isn't fatal. But her asthma/allergies are becoming an issue . .BTW, her inhaler was in her backpack, right where I"d put it. She just hadn't seen me put it there.
"This'll be OK. I'll just do the thresome tonight, then break up with her. Bit ungentlemanly that, but then it's a threesome. Not exactly Romeo & Juliet, innit?"
The [Modjeska) youth theatre group has folded. YaYa audtioned for them a few years ago, and we have fond memories of several of their productions. Ugh. Dangit.
MAY 4TH
This morning's [tongue in cheek] status update from a FB friend & local cop: "I met a 14-year-old girl on the Internet. She was clever, funny, flirty and sexy, so I suggested we meet up. She turned out to be an undercover detective. How cool is that at her age?!"
lU had trouble breathing when she woke up & so they were late for school. The secretary gave them detention when I dropped them off, which set YaYa off in tears. Whatever. My kids have served more detention than all the members of the Breakfast Club put together. I consider it almost a badge of honor at that school - if you avoid it altogether you are,IMO, a meek and servile tool of the Man.
I'm done w/ the ditch for today, or more precisely the 10 ft part of it that runs in the narrow gap between my shed & the neighbors fence. Good news there - the neighbor came out and said his fence was encroaching on my lot by 14", and asked me to help him move it this weekend. So, if I don't finish by then, I'll have a lot more elbow rm to dig .
P--s on you AI for running overtime AGAIN and cutting off the end of Glee. Buy a g'damn watch already.
RIP Ernie Harwell
MAY 5TH
You know how I know Glee is a great show? Because every Wednesday morning I wake up to take the kids to school, think of the show I watched 12 hrs before, and break into a huge grin.
Cinco De Mayo is so different in this neighborhood. Back on Mitchell Street it was parties & fireworks & guys stalling traffic by driving around w/ huge Mexican flags hanging out of their cars and leaning on their horns. Here, there's not a whisper. I much prefer it, of course, but we did do one half-a*s but well intentioned nod to the event: the family enjoyed the take home Taco buffet from Taco Bell. BTW, if you think "going to Taco Bell had nothing to do with Cinco De Mayo", nuh-uh. Lisa pimped the idea all day as a cheap way to feed the family and discuss the holiday, and I finally caved. Not so cheap either, when feeding 6 people.
MAY 6TH
*spoilers* I finally got around to watching this weeks Lost. THREE principal characters killed off in a single episode - what other show would have the ba**s to do that? The death of the Kwon's was moving, as was Jack's last speech with Locke in the hosp.It was good to see Sayid shake off the 'fugue' - and wonderful to hear Jack named, however unofficially, as Jacob's successor. Wow.
Grim Reaper by Steve Alten will be released 10-10-10 *AND* will feature Bridgett, a friend of mine, as a character (two characters, actually) Leigh Nelson and Bridgett Deem. Her family Doug, Parker, and Autumn will be characters as well. You can pre-order copies now from Barnes and Noble!
MAY 7TH
Borders enters the E-Reader fray with the Kobo, priced $90 less than B&N's Nook.
[on the retirement of local newscaster Mike Miller] Danny Trivia: In 2005 I was late for a flight to DC and hurried down the aisle of a packed plane. I whacked Miller in the head with my carry-on as I passed him. He was clearly annoyed. Later when he saw me at an invite only GOP dinner he did an actual, classic double-take. That was the first and last time I've seen that action outside of a cartoon.
Where war and woe and wonder/Have been known frequently/And by turns bliss and despair/Have changed places suddenly
Smiley hooked his hands like a cat on the prowl & said "Claws it" over & over. He then started grabbing his, er, junk, still saying 'Claws' & pointing at the TV. 'Go pee," I said. "No!," he said, "Claws it 'en pee." "Pause the TV?" I said. "Yeesssss!" he said, & ran to the john. He gets his point across somehow/someway. He may not be able to speak well, but he apparently has the rhyming thing down pat.
"We have to believe in free will. We have no choice." - Isaac Bashevis Singer
APRIL 24TH
I had big plans in the yard for this day off, but it's been rainy and dreary all day. Lisa took lulU hiking with the Daisy scouts, YaYa is camping w/ the Brownies, Smiley is w/ Grandma, and Ginger was content with having the 2nd floor to herself. So I've spent *hours* watching the NFL Draft and finishing 'God's Spy', a novel by Juan Gomez-Jurado. Not the morning I had planned, but I'll take it.
"Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work." - Thomas Edison
Read Smiley "Just a Bully" ( G & M Meyer). I expected the PC "Boy is bullied, he stands up to him, Bully is Exposed as Coward & Backs Down". Nuh-uh. He FIGHTS him, wins, becomes a cool kid, & the bully becomes a target himself. More realistic, but yowsas, is that always a good thing? While you're at it, for 'realism' why not have him knock up his girl & get a job under the table to avoid paying child support? Jeesh.
Since the Nook has a built in MP3 player and access to Barnes & Noble's inventory, here's a little idea. Wouldn't it make a whole heapin' helping of sense for a user to be able to purchase and download music or whole albums to their Nook?
In retrospect, the day seem like a waste. After a morning spent on the NFL draft I dropped Lu off at a bday party, bought some soda, then returned home to watch a) Bucks-Hawks b)Lakers-Thunder c) bits of STL-SF (MLB) and d) an all-new Doctor Who. YaYa did watch Dr. Who w/ me, so I suppose that counts as 'bonding'. That salvages part of the day, right?
[re: Hawking's warning against contacting aliens] I would agree that it's short-sighted and dangerous to seek out a species w/ technology far more advanced than our own. Life isn't Star Trek. But that's not going to stop people from trying.
APRIL 25TH
"It's always a big day tomorrow. We've got a time machine. I skip the little ones." - Matt Smith's Doctor
[re: The Dr. Who episode "The Beast Below"] I have to revise my opinion of the episode. I missed some of Soffat's subtlety yest., and on a second viewing it really develops Smith's portrayal while telling you something about the Doctor himself. Matt Smith's quite good; more of a 'Old Soul' than Tennant, but with a dry and enjoyable sense of humor. I like him. I'm not digging his sonic screwdriver tho', or the high varnish look of the Tardis exterior.
Ladies, if your Facebook status is "It's Complicated" it's really not. It's simple, you have a sh*tty boyfriend/ husband, and you're co-dependent.
I think the joke [an allegedly anti-Semitic joke by National Security Advisor James Jones) is pretty funny. Common sense says there was no intent to malign Jews, since it was told in front of a pro-Israel group. There is a serious f*ing lack of humor in the world today; it's PC this, PC that. The Obama administration has been less than grand to Israel and they deserve criticism for that; but as for this joke - what the f* ever.
APRIL 27TH
The word I can never, ever seem to spell correctly: convenient
Productive day off so far. Wrote & submitted a piece to the Journal, spent some time w/ Lisa, took Ginger w/ me to Home Depot, just got done patching some cracks in our sidewalk and . . .well, sh**, I don't know the construction vocab: redoing a 3x3 square of 100 year old concrete that had cracked and caved in. Now, pending a disaster in the drying process, it looks as good as new. [fingers crossed]
Marriage resembles a pair of shears, so joined that they can't be separated; often moving in opposite directions, yet always punishing anyone who comes between them." - (Adam Smith) I used this quote in the best man toast at my sister's wedding.
YaYa and I had an argument this afternoon that matched one I had with my parents almost thirty years ago. Subject matter, volume, regrettable angry statements, you name it - it was eerily word for word at points. Afterwards she lost the glasses she's had for ONE day (found them later). We're good now but sh*t. That was depressing. On the plus side, the column I wrote this morning was accepted by the Journal.
AI was surprisingly good, wasn't it? From what we saw (we missed Mike's song) the weakest performance was Bowersox, and she wasn't 'bad' at all. There may yet be hope this season. OTOH, DWTS minus Kate just wasn't worth it. We fast forward-ed (sp?) it this week. Sigh. Maybe if Edyta was still on the show . . .
i Lisa watched today's Oprah on the DVR. In one segment a woman was happy to say she'd signed Oprah's ridiculous "contract" to ban cell phone use in a car (even w/ hands-free sets). How did the viewer break her 'habit'? Why, by cranking up the volume on her radio to eleven and singing along as she drove. Because THAT isn't more distracting than carrying on a conversation.
APRIL 28th
My latest column will appear in tomorrow's Journal-Sentinel. I'll post this again later just to be obnoxious, but you've been warned - buy one!
APRIL 29TH
We sent Lu to school today in her full Daisy Scout uniform. An hour later she called us from the office; there is no Daisy meeting today and she sticks out like a sore thumb. Oops. It's certainly not our worst error tho'. A couple of years back we sent both girls to school dressed to the 9's for Pajama Day and, well, I think you can see where this story is going :)
If you do the things you need to do when you need to do them, then someday you can do the things you want to do when you want to do them
Just finished putting a new (well, 'new to us') storm door on the back door. Now if only I'd remembered to buy a closer for it . . .
C'mon really?? This week the UN elected Iran to its Commission on the Status of Women, handing a four-year seat on the influential human rights body to a theocratic state in which stoning is enshrined in law and lashings are required for women judged "immodest." What a world.
APRIL 30TH
Richard Dawson on Match Game '74: "[Brett Summers] doesn't drink as much as she did. We slowed her down - we bent her funnel."
