The Annual Christmas Party at Chuck E Cheese

Tonight was Grandma Jeanne 's annual Christmas party at Chuck E Cheese, which was combined with Jaspare's 78th birthday celebration. A great time was had by all!

My German and Polish children, born and raised south-siders (and Catholic to boot) don't like a Friday fish fry..... Where have I led them astray Lord!? Send me a sign so we can get them on the right path of beer batter and rye bread holiness!! - Lisa

Please Lawd May Her Taste Improve

When I was stopped at an intersection downtown, I rolled down the window & gave a young beggar a dollar.

"He. Is. CUTE!" YaYa said.

"The homeless guy?

" Yes. Admit it, he was cute." she said.

"He's either homeless, an addict, or a conman" I said. "Nice to see you have good taste in men."

My Day

YaYa & I went to Marquette to buy two books for the upcoming semester. Cost? Around $300, plus the cost of a parking ticket. Then we picked up Smiley and went to visit Louise, followed by a stop at Toys R Us, where I ran into Mike C. The kids were shocked I knew someone, because I am, of course, a social leper. Finally a stop at Walmart, where the last scooter was taken by a huge woman with no cane/crutch/brace, which certainly gives her priority over the guy hobbling around on a crutch and a surgically repaired hip.

But - Joe McIntyre is on Angel from Hell on Fox!

:(

Bad accident on 8th and Oklahoma, a crumpled minivan. Multiple ambulances on the scene. You could hear a woman inside scream in pain as you drove by. Say a prayer for her.

Rene Angelil

 René Angélil, the husband of Celene Dion, has died at age 73. RIP.

 did my theatre demonstration with Beatrice six minutes ago and i'm still shaking. i think i did well though

- YaYa

My Thoughts - Presidential Aging

Every eight years we get media stories about how the pressure of the Oval Office has aged the President - how  he turned gray & wrinkled as a consequence of the job. While I agree it's a horribly stressful life, that's ridiculous. The fact is most Presidents enter office at the latter stage of middle age, and 8 years on the beach in Bocca would still see their hair gray & their face age considerably. Good grief people, do YOU look the same as you did in 2008?

Wrong Answer Mr. President

Junie and the American Girl Dance

LK needed an American Doll for her dance class. Yeah, I know, right? But knock-offs are allowed and so we picked up a doll from Walmart and delivered it to her in class. If you were in New Berlin last night, you might have seen my wife cuddling with a doll as she drove down National Avenue.

My Hip

After two real good days with the hip, it's nothing but a world of pain this morning. Lisa keeps saying my expectations were too high, and that I'm doing great, but right now I'm in a woe is me/all is lost kind of mood. I'm sure I'm pleasant company.

The Martian

I watched this on Smiely's recommendation (he saw it in the theater with his friend Evan). Great movie. Rent it!

Good News

After physical therapy I stopped and weighed myself at a Dr's office down the road from my house, as I have every week for over a year. I was worried that after 3 weeks of inactivity my weight would soar; in the 2 wks before surgery I'd gained 8 pounds after eating my pain and anxiety. Instead, I've LOST nearly 3 pounds, and am down 66 pounds overall. I'm still a "before picture" and I need to get active again to lose the weight and preserve the hip. But that scale took a lot off my mind today.

The Last Samarai

It completely romanticizes the passing of a brutal and feudalistic culture best left in the dirt, but if you can forgive that it's one hell of a movie. Tom Cruise, as usual, was great.

A Brutal Night

Brutal night with the hip, the start of which coincided with a trip to Office Max for supplies for YaYa's portfolio. If you think the veneer of civilization was thin in Lord of the Flies, you should have heard my response to a sales clerk who merrily suggested I hobble to three different aisles and thus save her the trouble of knowing her own store's layout.

David Bowie

RIP music legend David Bowie. He was as good as advertised.  :(

Get Your Priorities Straight

In America you can rape and kill a woman, then burn her body, and have millions cheer for you based on a half-assed documentary. But hold a football with the laces in on a cold winter's day in Minnesota and the net fills with calls for your death. #ScrewedUpPopulace #Vikings

The Equalizer

More bad parenting on my part,as I let YaYa and LuLu watch, but this was a great (and bloody) movie. Some great camerawork too. I think Denzel might just be the baddest movie hero I've seen yet.

Sucess!

YaYa and I just managed the impossible: we trimmed the nails on all but one of Custard's paws. I think she drew some blood in retribution, but it's telling she trusted us enough to be held in the first place.

Winner Winner Chicken Dinner

I won $4 playing Powerball. That's $949 million less than I expected, and a net loss, but I'll take it.

Kneel Then Meal

Post-Mass dinner of homemade french fries, ground round hamburgers infused with Worcestershire sauce, topped by lettuce, mushrooms, pepper jack cheese, pickles and 1000 island dressing on a butter grilled sesame seed bun.

The Green Inferno

A gruesome movie, but not a bad one. And it led to a lot of discussion about female genital mutilation.

An Update on Lisa's Knee

We just left the hospital after Lisa's MRI on her injured knee from when she fell shoveling snow. They said it would take 35 minutes. It wound up being an hour and a half.

A Hip Setback

I'm back on crutches, having been scolded by the physical therapist for jumping to a cane too early. Truth be told, it is easier on the hip this way. But as a compromise, he said it'd be OK if I just used one crutch.

Amen