The Model UN

Today Smiley and Junie presented their UN projects at the Tripoli Shrine Center downtown, and I had a chance to attend as a chaperone for Smiley's class..

One oddity: during a cultural fashion show Mexico was announced as a European nation not once, but twice - and the show was run by teachers!

Anyway, the hall was packed and the festivities went until six PM! Congrats to them both!!

The Ghost Sign is becoming . . . a ghost

This ghost sign on 19th and Lincoln was a favorite of mine in childhood. I photographed it twelve years ago during a visit to my parent's house. Now, there is little to be seen of it (even if you ignore the overgrown trees)

Very Much the Truth

Yup.

Life

Not the best, but it attempts to buck predictability and is certainly worth a rental

Empathy

Empathy is overrated. If I survived it, you can too. You'll pardon me if I don't think it's the end of the world.

Welcome!

The Puerto Rican Orthodox Church has entered into communion with the Catholic Church.  Welcome!

The Gong Show

I'm watching the new Gong Show. I have fond memories of the old version, which at one point featured my FB friend Tom Willett. This is equally pointless but fun. Kudos to me for recognizing Mike Meyers in costume as the host.

Stacey

We picked up our  niece from the airport!

Sitting on my porch, watching the rain.

It's been exactly thirty minutes since we ordered here at Omega, there's still no food, and the nearby tables swear like they're paid by the obscenity. So, basically every late night visit to a restaurant I've ever had. 

Update: food was great when it arrived tho

Aaand,  coming home from the bike ride we realized I'd locked up the house .  . .but left the keys inside.  So for the moment we're stuck on the deck lol.  Hope Lisa likes sleeping under the stars lol

Update: I called The Holder of the Spare

Camp Time!

This afternoon Melissa and I dropped the girls off at camp. If you're friends with YaYa or Lulu it'll be a bit before they're back with their beloved phones. Lisa and I celebrated the quiet house with a long nap then a brisk 20 minute bike ride as the sun set.

Accurate

RE pro-refugee George Clooney moving from London back to the US because of safety concerns: family first, then ideals. I'll give him a pass.

A complaint

A rare public complaint: you may remember that on Lulu's birthday we went to the Avalon with a gift certificate and the card had no value.  It had been given as a gift by an upstanding parent of a friend with proof of purchase.  To their credit the theater honored it and even gave OJ another,  smaller gift certificate for the trouble. Today we returned and they would not honor that gc,  saying IT had no value! After an obnoxious managerial powwow the manager said we must have used the card (this was our first time back) but then honored it with a not so subtle implication that we were dishonest.  I shop local and am loathe to go elsewhere, but I will NEVER purchase or accept a gc from them again,  and I strongly urge all of you to practice the same caution.

Spider-Man: Homecoming

LuLu treated me and Smiley to Spiderman: Homecoming this afternoon.  I didn't love it,  although Smiley liked it more than I did. It started out cute, then became ponderous and pointless,  only to sharpen after the genuinely tense scene on the way to the dance. Way too much time tying Spidey into the MCU, at the cost of the story.  (wth was up with the Iron Man Lite Spidey suit??) Michael Keaton was great,  Zendaya was useless,  and Holland fit the role just fine.

Head to head,  DC wins this round with Wonder Woman.

My Thoughts

Take care of yourself and you are better equipped to take care of your family.  Take care of your family and you can better help your community.  Take care of your community and your city improves.  Take care of your city and your nation is stronger.  The stronger the US,  the safer the world.  These aren't platitudes,  they are #truth.

Troubling Medical News about Smiley

Got some bad news this afternoon. My son Smiley had a mole biopsied and the test came back malignant. We have an appointment July 17th to remove the skin/tissue around it and I'm assuming biopsy that. We will know much more after that appointment. Your good vibes and prayers are appreciated. My kids name and "cancer" in the same sentence has me scared, but we are also staying in good spirits and expecting a swift and conclusive solution. Thankful to Dan who had enough sense to get Smiley's moles checked. Because of that, it was found early!!  - Lisa

Work was hard. By the halfway point Smiley dominated my thoughts and I was in quite the funk.  Intellectually I know he'll be OK, but my mind defaults to anxiety. I wish the appointment was sooner and this was done.

RIP Joan Lee

Classy of DC

Waiting

Waiting with LK for Smiley to finish drum class.

A Summer Storm

Power was restored at 12:26 am. It feels like another storm brewing. This just happened.

Ouch

I think I did get concussed from that bop on the head. I never went to the doc, but through the 4th I was dizzy every time I stood up. As a precaution I curbed any strenuous activity, but it's been 36 hours since the last spell (still got the bump )and I'm itching to go on a decent bike ride.

A Bunch of Who

Pyramid at the End of the World is the seventh episode of this season of Doctor Who.  Mighty fine,  but (spoiler) don't think I didn't notice they had the American surrender first (well, after the UN  but that went beyond saying) No coincidence that,  and bollocks.

"Empress of Mars" is one of the best standalone episodes of New Era Who.  What a hoot  - and a nod to the 3rd Doctor to boot!

"Eaters of the Light" was another good standalone, albeit with the superfluous "I'm gay" scene mandated by the servants of PC. Good on the Doctor for checking that ridiculous anti-Roman speech: too bad about the indoor toilets; enjoy your thatch huts.

The two part season finale was very impressive, albeit a bit deflated by BBC spoilers in the lead-up. Missy finally endeared herself to me, Nardole got his due, and the end was blissfully free of deus ex machina solutions. In fact, it was not a true end, but merely a pause in the action, a realistic outcome that was a nice change of pace. Spoiler: that doesn't apply to Bill's exit, which was fairy tale bs. I'm sad to see her go; she was 12's best companion by far. The return of the 1st Doctor was, naturally, welcome.

Facts

Yesterday I pointed out that a racist quote attributed to Lincoln was in fact composed in a letter TO him in 1862 by a man concerned Lincoln would free the slaves. I do not understand the desire to besmirch someone long dead, especially someone who accomplished as much in his life. Was Lincoln racist by the standards of 2017? I'm sure. But by the standards of 1862 he was a dangerously colorblind man. God help us all when the citizens of 2167 judge us by the criteria of their world.

AP World History

In the good news department, YaYa passed her AP World History exam with a score qualifying her for college credit!