(if you can't see the whole image, just click!)
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Friday, January 23, 2009
Amazing View Of The Inauguration
Just for a moment, throw out the political views and agendas involved, and just take in the scope of this week's Inauguration.
The estimates of 1.8 million people seem to be agreed upon, and the visual spectacle of seeing all of those people in one place is a powerful sight.
Undoubtedly, nearly everyone there was packing some sort of camera... Certainly there were professional and press photographers lining the entire perimeter.
One such photographer used a robotic camera mount called a Gigapan to stitch together 220 shots to make a monstrous, 1,474 Megapixel image that you can zoom through, pan around, take in the massive event in amazing clarity.
For more details on how the picture was created, go here.
Thursday, January 22, 2009
I'm Secure Enough To Admit It
My nephew The Donald (or El Donaldo, to our Spanish speaking friends!) recently made the bold, brave move of admitting that he's a Miley Cyrus fan. I related to that post, because I really enjoy a lot of Miley's music too... Maybe not quite to the extent that The Donald does - his Miley Glasses are rosy enough that he even likes her ill-conceived cover of "Girls Just Want To Have Fun," which I thought would be great when I saw it on the track listing, but about fifteen seconds in, was reaching for the skip button.
But his post raised an issue that I am actually quite passionate about, and that is how important it is to recognize quality and talent wherever they are, even when you're the minority in an ocean of people groaning that it's fake, lame, terrible, phony, or worse. His key points are valid whether you like Miley Cyrus' music or not. She wrote or co-wrote nearly all of her last two albums, and has sold out concert halls with a fervor that doesn't happen much now that The Beatles have broken up... Come to think of it, The Beatles, in their heyday, had an awful lot in common with young Ms. Cyrus. Their core audience was positively rabid in their adoration, and their core audience's parents insisted that they were talentless hacks.
Please don't threaten to hang me on the cross of culturally sacred cows... I'm not saying Miley is as good as The Beatles (though I'd rather listen to her, any day!) - I'm just saying that the passion amongst her fan base is something that you don't get very often in this day and age, where everything is so on-demand that nothing really builds any sort of anticipation, and therefore, there's never really much to get excited about.
But I have digressed from my original intent for this post - it's almost like I'm out of practice at actual writing, after two months of posting nonstop tidbits of baby news and pictures! (don't worry, more of those will be coming soon...)
Okay, so against the backdrop that I just set up, I get extremely annoyed by things like this:
Okay... Let's see now... When I first heard of the Jonas Brothers, I figured they were a manufactured-for-TV fake band. Then I heard their remake of the Little Mermaid song, "Poor Unfortunate Souls." It was a pretty respectable re-interpretation of it, and I figured that even if they're fake, someone was making them sound good.
My opinion got bumped up several notches when I heard "S.O.S." It was on heavy rotation on the local college station I listen to, and it was an extremely catchy song. I bought their self titled CD for use at the elementary school's Halloween dance in 2007, and ended up playing half of the album, by request. To my amazement, all the songs I played were good!
Normally I'm a total credit reader. I'll scour over the booklet from a CD, taking note of the writers, producers and musicians... but for some reason, I never looked at the JB notes. It wasn't until their current album, "A Little Bit Longer" came out, that I really looked into them.
The first thing I noticed is that the AllMusic Guide gave it a 4-star rating. This caught my eye, because they tend to be rather conservative with their reviews. So I hit up my good friend, Wikipedia. There, I found that they are indeed, brothers with the last name of Jonas. I also learned that they were hardly manufactured. Nick Jonas started out as a Contemporary Christian solo artist, and on one of his demos, his brothers sang backup with him. Poof, the Jonas Brothers were born.
Okay, I am not a happy little cheerleading fanboy here, but Nick Jonas is three months older than my son Andy. At the age of 16, he has written and performed two albums of excellent material. Actually, there have been four albums, including his original solo album... But I'm just focusing on the ones that have made them household names. Looking at the writing credits, he and his brothers co-wrote every song on the new album, and all but the two covers from the previous album.
But it's not just about the songwriting. A few weeks ago, on Dick Clark's Rockin' New Years Eve with Ryan Seacrest And Some Kind Of Robot Pretending To Be Dick Clark, there were several musical guests. Taylor Swift proved that she should never, ever be allowed to sing live. Let her lip sync, for the sake of all those within earshot. Lionel Richie phoned in a medley of his hits... I was beginning to think that maybe since it was so cold in Times Square, nobody would sound good. When the Jonas Brothers took the stage, I was very concerned that they'd justify some of the negativity aimed at them. But no, they did an outstanding set! Vocals in tune, music played tightly... and it was actually LIVE! (unlike the why-do-they-even-exist pussycat dolls, who lip synced.. badly...)
I'm sorry, but to have all that under your belt within three months of your 16th birthday doesn't happen without a rather large helping of a little thing called TALENT!! You may not like the style - after all, it's cool to hate things that people actually like - but the people who claim they have no talent are really just exposing themselves as the purveyors of haterade that they are.
My favorite song on the new album is "Can't Have You," which starts off with a very moody sounding piano and drum loop. It would sound right at home on one of the GOOD Depeche Mode albums. Of course, once it hits the chorus, they go for the straight up pop hook, then blend the two on the subsequent verse. Oh, and that song was written by Nick Jonas. Alone. No help from his brothers, or any other professional writers.
The brothers are just hitting their stride. I'm fully aware that their next album could be the one where they try too hard, and their empire implodes on top of them, but I sure hope not. It seems like there's a lot of good songs still to come.
My name is Mike Brinkerhoff, and I like the Jonas Brothers.
But his post raised an issue that I am actually quite passionate about, and that is how important it is to recognize quality and talent wherever they are, even when you're the minority in an ocean of people groaning that it's fake, lame, terrible, phony, or worse. His key points are valid whether you like Miley Cyrus' music or not. She wrote or co-wrote nearly all of her last two albums, and has sold out concert halls with a fervor that doesn't happen much now that The Beatles have broken up... Come to think of it, The Beatles, in their heyday, had an awful lot in common with young Ms. Cyrus. Their core audience was positively rabid in their adoration, and their core audience's parents insisted that they were talentless hacks.
Please don't threaten to hang me on the cross of culturally sacred cows... I'm not saying Miley is as good as The Beatles (though I'd rather listen to her, any day!) - I'm just saying that the passion amongst her fan base is something that you don't get very often in this day and age, where everything is so on-demand that nothing really builds any sort of anticipation, and therefore, there's never really much to get excited about.
But I have digressed from my original intent for this post - it's almost like I'm out of practice at actual writing, after two months of posting nonstop tidbits of baby news and pictures! (don't worry, more of those will be coming soon...)
Okay, so against the backdrop that I just set up, I get extremely annoyed by things like this:
Okay... Let's see now... When I first heard of the Jonas Brothers, I figured they were a manufactured-for-TV fake band. Then I heard their remake of the Little Mermaid song, "Poor Unfortunate Souls." It was a pretty respectable re-interpretation of it, and I figured that even if they're fake, someone was making them sound good.
My opinion got bumped up several notches when I heard "S.O.S." It was on heavy rotation on the local college station I listen to, and it was an extremely catchy song. I bought their self titled CD for use at the elementary school's Halloween dance in 2007, and ended up playing half of the album, by request. To my amazement, all the songs I played were good!
Normally I'm a total credit reader. I'll scour over the booklet from a CD, taking note of the writers, producers and musicians... but for some reason, I never looked at the JB notes. It wasn't until their current album, "A Little Bit Longer" came out, that I really looked into them.
The first thing I noticed is that the AllMusic Guide gave it a 4-star rating. This caught my eye, because they tend to be rather conservative with their reviews. So I hit up my good friend, Wikipedia. There, I found that they are indeed, brothers with the last name of Jonas. I also learned that they were hardly manufactured. Nick Jonas started out as a Contemporary Christian solo artist, and on one of his demos, his brothers sang backup with him. Poof, the Jonas Brothers were born.
Okay, I am not a happy little cheerleading fanboy here, but Nick Jonas is three months older than my son Andy. At the age of 16, he has written and performed two albums of excellent material. Actually, there have been four albums, including his original solo album... But I'm just focusing on the ones that have made them household names. Looking at the writing credits, he and his brothers co-wrote every song on the new album, and all but the two covers from the previous album.
But it's not just about the songwriting. A few weeks ago, on Dick Clark's Rockin' New Years Eve with Ryan Seacrest And Some Kind Of Robot Pretending To Be Dick Clark, there were several musical guests. Taylor Swift proved that she should never, ever be allowed to sing live. Let her lip sync, for the sake of all those within earshot. Lionel Richie phoned in a medley of his hits... I was beginning to think that maybe since it was so cold in Times Square, nobody would sound good. When the Jonas Brothers took the stage, I was very concerned that they'd justify some of the negativity aimed at them. But no, they did an outstanding set! Vocals in tune, music played tightly... and it was actually LIVE! (unlike the why-do-they-even-exist pussycat dolls, who lip synced.. badly...)
I'm sorry, but to have all that under your belt within three months of your 16th birthday doesn't happen without a rather large helping of a little thing called TALENT!! You may not like the style - after all, it's cool to hate things that people actually like - but the people who claim they have no talent are really just exposing themselves as the purveyors of haterade that they are.
My favorite song on the new album is "Can't Have You," which starts off with a very moody sounding piano and drum loop. It would sound right at home on one of the GOOD Depeche Mode albums. Of course, once it hits the chorus, they go for the straight up pop hook, then blend the two on the subsequent verse. Oh, and that song was written by Nick Jonas. Alone. No help from his brothers, or any other professional writers.
The brothers are just hitting their stride. I'm fully aware that their next album could be the one where they try too hard, and their empire implodes on top of them, but I sure hope not. It seems like there's a lot of good songs still to come.
My name is Mike Brinkerhoff, and I like the Jonas Brothers.
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Checked Out
Unlike many babies, Danee's not a big fan of her car seat.
Sunday when we got home from church, I went to lift her out of it, and saw that she had burrowed down and was hiding from the world!
Sunday when we got home from church, I went to lift her out of it, and saw that she had burrowed down and was hiding from the world!
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Saturday, January 17, 2009
We Finally Got Registered!
Ever since we announced that we were adopting our sweet baby girl, everyone we know has been asking us the same question:
"ARE YOU GUYS OUT OF YOUR MINDS??" "What do you need?"
Before we brought her home, we had already arranged all of the immediate needs - Crib, Cradle, Changing Table, Car Seat, Bottles... And I knew that once we brought her home, we'd suddenly realize all the things that we'd forgotten, so we decided to hold off registering anywhere until after we brought her home.
Well, by now she's been home almost a month, and we definitely have some shortcomings in the "Stuffs" category. On top of that, two groups of Cindy's friends (one from the School and neighborhood, and one from Church) have finally pinned her down and told her that she's going to have baby showers. So far, she'd been holding them off by saying that we didn't really know what we need yet, and have so much stuff going on with the Holidays and assorted similar reasons. This week, the appointed leaders of the two groups put their feet down, named a date, and said "Go Forth And Register!"
So Go Forth And Register we did.
We hit up both Target and Babies R Us, and learned that there is a huge difference between a store with four aisles of baby stuffs, and a store entirely devoted to the same stuffs. It took us a lot longer to get through Babies R Us, but having been ordered to get it done, we soldiered on through it.
The end result: We now have wish-lists at both stores, as well as their respective websites. I've had a heck of a time looking them up through the normal methods, so I'm gonna cheat and put the direct links here.
(Just click on the logo to go to our registry at that store)
Now, here's the deal though. It's awkward doing this... We both feel really weird asking for stuff, when we already feel like simply having Danee is the biggest blessing we've ever received. We're putting this registry information up at the requests of people who have asked us to do so. We are in no way ASKING for gifts - the love and support we've gotten through the comments here, the phone calls, the visits, the meals, the free babysitting, has meant more to us than any material items ever could.
Thanks for all the support! And thanks for making it to the end of this - I think it's the wordiest post I've done in quite a while, but it feels good to actually take the time to write something again! As a reward for sticking with it, here's a pic I just took of Danee in Grandma's arms. Cindy and her mom just left to take Mom back to the airport for her flight home, so she gave Danee a farewell feeding and snuggle. Danee had just downed one of her biggest feedings yet, so she was starting to snooze it off!
Before we brought her home, we had already arranged all of the immediate needs - Crib, Cradle, Changing Table, Car Seat, Bottles... And I knew that once we brought her home, we'd suddenly realize all the things that we'd forgotten, so we decided to hold off registering anywhere until after we brought her home.
Well, by now she's been home almost a month, and we definitely have some shortcomings in the "Stuffs" category. On top of that, two groups of Cindy's friends (one from the School and neighborhood, and one from Church) have finally pinned her down and told her that she's going to have baby showers. So far, she'd been holding them off by saying that we didn't really know what we need yet, and have so much stuff going on with the Holidays and assorted similar reasons. This week, the appointed leaders of the two groups put their feet down, named a date, and said "Go Forth And Register!"
So Go Forth And Register we did.
We hit up both Target and Babies R Us, and learned that there is a huge difference between a store with four aisles of baby stuffs, and a store entirely devoted to the same stuffs. It took us a lot longer to get through Babies R Us, but having been ordered to get it done, we soldiered on through it.
The end result: We now have wish-lists at both stores, as well as their respective websites. I've had a heck of a time looking them up through the normal methods, so I'm gonna cheat and put the direct links here.
(Just click on the logo to go to our registry at that store)
Now, here's the deal though. It's awkward doing this... We both feel really weird asking for stuff, when we already feel like simply having Danee is the biggest blessing we've ever received. We're putting this registry information up at the requests of people who have asked us to do so. We are in no way ASKING for gifts - the love and support we've gotten through the comments here, the phone calls, the visits, the meals, the free babysitting, has meant more to us than any material items ever could.
Thanks for all the support! And thanks for making it to the end of this - I think it's the wordiest post I've done in quite a while, but it feels good to actually take the time to write something again! As a reward for sticking with it, here's a pic I just took of Danee in Grandma's arms. Cindy and her mom just left to take Mom back to the airport for her flight home, so she gave Danee a farewell feeding and snuggle. Danee had just downed one of her biggest feedings yet, so she was starting to snooze it off!
Friday, January 16, 2009
Thursday, January 15, 2009
She Did It!
After falling for a trick question on her first attempt, yesterday Ellysa again ventured into the depths of the DMV, and emerged victorious with her License to Learn to Drive!
She was ready... SO ready...
And last night, since she was going to church for youth activity night anyway, we got there a little early so she could, for the first time, meet The Clutch. She did really well, stalling it a few times, but quickly learned important Clutch Concepts, like pushing the clutch in whenever you need to hit the brake...
I've actually been dreading this moment for several years, but after trying to teach our niece Chelsey to drive last summer scared the crap out of me, I figured I would either be somewhat desensitized now, or would have a much greater level of appreciation for Ellysa when she started driving and did things well.
Well, she really did! After the activity, I let her drive around for another 20 minutes or so, and she made several laps around the parking lot. I had her stop, and then restart on a slight hill, so she could feel the need to keep the car from rolling backwards... I had her park, so she could give Reverse a try... For a first timer, I am very proud of her!
But what's a first drive without some comic relief? After doing really well, and getting some confidence, I told her to go down one side of the parking lot, and park it, so I could take over and drive us home.
I TOTALLY know why those official driver's ed cars have a brake pedal on the passenger side for the instructor... In a quick moment of Oopsitude, she hit the gas rather than the brake, and...
Her nervous giggle was really cute, and helped keep my calm... It was (obviously) dark, so I didn't get to see if there's any damage, but I'm thinking other than some scrapes on the front bumper, we got off pretty easy. And luckily, the handrail for the stairs she almost climbed was spared!
Good job on your first drive, Ellysa! I'm proud of you, and I love you!!
She was ready... SO ready...
And last night, since she was going to church for youth activity night anyway, we got there a little early so she could, for the first time, meet The Clutch. She did really well, stalling it a few times, but quickly learned important Clutch Concepts, like pushing the clutch in whenever you need to hit the brake...
I've actually been dreading this moment for several years, but after trying to teach our niece Chelsey to drive last summer scared the crap out of me, I figured I would either be somewhat desensitized now, or would have a much greater level of appreciation for Ellysa when she started driving and did things well.
Well, she really did! After the activity, I let her drive around for another 20 minutes or so, and she made several laps around the parking lot. I had her stop, and then restart on a slight hill, so she could feel the need to keep the car from rolling backwards... I had her park, so she could give Reverse a try... For a first timer, I am very proud of her!
But what's a first drive without some comic relief? After doing really well, and getting some confidence, I told her to go down one side of the parking lot, and park it, so I could take over and drive us home.
I TOTALLY know why those official driver's ed cars have a brake pedal on the passenger side for the instructor... In a quick moment of Oopsitude, she hit the gas rather than the brake, and...
Her nervous giggle was really cute, and helped keep my calm... It was (obviously) dark, so I didn't get to see if there's any damage, but I'm thinking other than some scrapes on the front bumper, we got off pretty easy. And luckily, the handrail for the stairs she almost climbed was spared!
Good job on your first drive, Ellysa! I'm proud of you, and I love you!!
Monday, January 12, 2009
Ellysa Has Successfully Turned 16!
As I pulled into the driveway after work this evening, I saw the door of Ellysa's new car close... And as I was walking in to the house, I heard its engine start up... And I chuckled to myself, because I remember doing the same exact thing! Sitting in my car, starting the engine, dreaming of the day I would get my license and be able to actually drive it... Tomorrow after school, she'll take the test for her permit, and then after dinner I'll be giving her her first lesson on the finer points of driving with a clutch!
But first, she just wanted to soak up the ambiance of her little blue Mazda.
I came inside, and saw that in today's non-Ellysa related news, we had received a wonderful gift basket of baby goods as a gift from the company I work for!
Very cool stuff, and I LOVE duckies, so it's a great bunch of clothes and stuffed things!
We went out to dinner tonight, so Daneekins had her very first babysitter... The honors went to a really good friend from church named Jennifer. Jennifer is now the proud owner of our chickens, as well. She's been wanting to get some hens for years, and with all that's been going on around here, the girls were being quite neglected. So now she's spoiling them rotten, and for a couple hours tonight, she did the same for out sweet tiny girl.
She thoroughly enjoyed her time with the little angel, and we were so glad to be able to go out to dinner in full confidence that she was still being surrounded by love!
Then it was off to the Sakura Japanese Steak House, for food, presents, relatives and fun! Cindy's brother and his family joined us, and the evening also served as a trade-off point for her mom, who likes to split her visits between our two families.
When we got back home, I went to get some milk for breakfast in the morning, and also to fill up the van for Cindy. I made it about 50 feet, when the van sputtered and came to a halt. Wow. Completely out of gas! Just minutes earlier, it had delivered us home from our evening, with a baby who was ready to be fed! I couldn't believe how blessed I was - and though I don't even remember the last time I ran out of gas, and it's never a good thing, I'd much rather have it happen right outside my house - to have first, gotten my family home safe and sound, and then, still be right in front of our house, so I could easily run to the garage and grab the gas can.
Now there is milk for tomorrow's breakfast, the van has a nice, full tank, Danee has a nice full tummy, and I've got to get to bed.
One last thing though...
Remember the camera I got in my "Bag o' Crap" that arrived on New Year's Eve? The cable I ordered for it arrived today, and once it was plugged in long enough to put some juice in the battery, it works great! In fact, every picture in this post was taken with that camera! Not bad for a buck!!
But first, she just wanted to soak up the ambiance of her little blue Mazda.
I came inside, and saw that in today's non-Ellysa related news, we had received a wonderful gift basket of baby goods as a gift from the company I work for!
Very cool stuff, and I LOVE duckies, so it's a great bunch of clothes and stuffed things!
We went out to dinner tonight, so Daneekins had her very first babysitter... The honors went to a really good friend from church named Jennifer. Jennifer is now the proud owner of our chickens, as well. She's been wanting to get some hens for years, and with all that's been going on around here, the girls were being quite neglected. So now she's spoiling them rotten, and for a couple hours tonight, she did the same for out sweet tiny girl.
She thoroughly enjoyed her time with the little angel, and we were so glad to be able to go out to dinner in full confidence that she was still being surrounded by love!
Then it was off to the Sakura Japanese Steak House, for food, presents, relatives and fun! Cindy's brother and his family joined us, and the evening also served as a trade-off point for her mom, who likes to split her visits between our two families.
When we got back home, I went to get some milk for breakfast in the morning, and also to fill up the van for Cindy. I made it about 50 feet, when the van sputtered and came to a halt. Wow. Completely out of gas! Just minutes earlier, it had delivered us home from our evening, with a baby who was ready to be fed! I couldn't believe how blessed I was - and though I don't even remember the last time I ran out of gas, and it's never a good thing, I'd much rather have it happen right outside my house - to have first, gotten my family home safe and sound, and then, still be right in front of our house, so I could easily run to the garage and grab the gas can.
Now there is milk for tomorrow's breakfast, the van has a nice, full tank, Danee has a nice full tummy, and I've got to get to bed.
One last thing though...
Remember the camera I got in my "Bag o' Crap" that arrived on New Year's Eve? The cable I ordered for it arrived today, and once it was plugged in long enough to put some juice in the battery, it works great! In fact, every picture in this post was taken with that camera! Not bad for a buck!!
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Saturday, January 10, 2009
A Very Sweet Sixteen!
Ellysa got up this morning, and immediately started doing her Happy Dance...
But why?? Why would a girl who's turning 16 on Monday be doing her Happy Dance on Saturday Morning??
Well...
Her parents got her a pretty cool birthday present... and since her stepdad doesn't get to be home during the week until after dark, the photo op was WAY better to do it now... Ya know, because visibility really matters when your present is sitting in the front yard!
(nothing happens in our yard without Kitty walking on it)
It's a 5-Speed, so we had to explain that you gotta push the clutch in to start it...
And it started right up!
A quick hug from Grandma, who is up visiting this week...
And then I got to give her her first ride around the block in her NEW CAR!!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ELLYSA!!
But why?? Why would a girl who's turning 16 on Monday be doing her Happy Dance on Saturday Morning??
Well...
Her parents got her a pretty cool birthday present... and since her stepdad doesn't get to be home during the week until after dark, the photo op was WAY better to do it now... Ya know, because visibility really matters when your present is sitting in the front yard!
(nothing happens in our yard without Kitty walking on it)
It's a 5-Speed, so we had to explain that you gotta push the clutch in to start it...
And it started right up!
A quick hug from Grandma, who is up visiting this week...
And then I got to give her her first ride around the block in her NEW CAR!!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ELLYSA!!
Thursday, January 08, 2009
Good Help Is Hard To Find.....
Of course when the job at hand is snuggling a soft, sweet, warm baby girl.....
Who can blame anyone for sleeping on the job???
This happens to me too, girls!
Who can blame anyone for sleeping on the job???
This happens to me too, girls!
A Good Read
Back in April, I did a fun, '80s Name That Tune contest, which was won by an old online friend of mine from the '90s, who I'd just recently re-connected with. This friend's name is Greg Bulmash, and you've probably seen his name on an email that makes the rounds every few years - a job application to McDonald's, or sometimes Walmart, where the applicant is very flippant, sarcastic, blunt, direct and generally hilarious. The email forwards usually claim that the kid got the job because his wit and humour impressed the manager.
Well, the email is fake, and it began as a humour column that Greg published back in the '90s. I was on his mailing list back then, so I can smugly say I was there when the magic started. In case you'd like to see this whole phenomenon explained more clearly, just click here.
Anyway, Greg - like me - is a new father, and is finding himself up at odd hours with his new baby. This extra time has given him the ambition to publish a novel he's been working on. He's been putting up two chapters per week, with the new sections coming in on Mondays and Thursdays. As of today, Chapter 11 is as far as it goes, and I have to say I'm hooked. I sent the link to The Donald (or El Donaldo, as he's currently known) and he got hooked too.
So I'm going to see if I can drum up a little interest for it here, because it really is a good story so far!
What is it about?
Greg has a hard time answering that, because he feels that any synopsis he gives out is also a spoiler for the story... So I'll just say that it's about Vampires. But unlike the recent vampire craze, and actually most vampire stories I can think of, this one isn't directly aimed at, nor written by, a woman. This is a guy's vampire story, but just as many guys enjoy Twilight, I don't see any reason that women wouldn't enjoy this book.
Just be aware going in, there is occasional strong language, and an "adult situation." Then again, that last Twilight book had a warning not to let kids read it, so if you treat this with the same filter, you should be fine.
The book is called "Hell on Five Dollars A Day" and it starts here. Happy reading! If you like it, and get hooked, leave Greg a comment to encourage him to keep it coming!
Well, the email is fake, and it began as a humour column that Greg published back in the '90s. I was on his mailing list back then, so I can smugly say I was there when the magic started. In case you'd like to see this whole phenomenon explained more clearly, just click here.
Anyway, Greg - like me - is a new father, and is finding himself up at odd hours with his new baby. This extra time has given him the ambition to publish a novel he's been working on. He's been putting up two chapters per week, with the new sections coming in on Mondays and Thursdays. As of today, Chapter 11 is as far as it goes, and I have to say I'm hooked. I sent the link to The Donald (or El Donaldo, as he's currently known) and he got hooked too.
So I'm going to see if I can drum up a little interest for it here, because it really is a good story so far!
What is it about?
Greg has a hard time answering that, because he feels that any synopsis he gives out is also a spoiler for the story... So I'll just say that it's about Vampires. But unlike the recent vampire craze, and actually most vampire stories I can think of, this one isn't directly aimed at, nor written by, a woman. This is a guy's vampire story, but just as many guys enjoy Twilight, I don't see any reason that women wouldn't enjoy this book.
Just be aware going in, there is occasional strong language, and an "adult situation." Then again, that last Twilight book had a warning not to let kids read it, so if you treat this with the same filter, you should be fine.
The book is called "Hell on Five Dollars A Day" and it starts here. Happy reading! If you like it, and get hooked, leave Greg a comment to encourage him to keep it coming!
Wednesday, January 07, 2009
Random Crap
Once again, I'm typing this with a tiny baby on my chest... She just drank a couple ounces, and has yet to burp. I think she's intentionally holding them in, or letting them out silently, so that I'll keep holding her!
There are a bunch of bloggable thoughts swirling around my head right now, so I'm going to fling a few of them up on the wall and see if they stick...
First, inspired by the title of this post, I just realized that I never posted my latest Bag o' Crap goodness from Woot! I scored this most recent bag on December 11, but then with all the excitement of bringing Danee home and settling in, I forgot to talk about it here. I'm surprised by that, because it was a pretty decent haul this time.
First, the box was a pretty good size.
First peek!
A Bag o' Crap tradition is counting how many bags of Texas Air you got. This was a great haul, with 21 bags of Lone Star Breathing!
Second peek, without all that air in the way...
Wow, not bad at all!! I should mention, when the Bag o' Crap arrives, it's an event the whole family gets excited about! Kaylee, Andy and Tyler were very eager to model my treasures.
In addition to the 21 bags of air, I received two red, white & blue baseball hats, which were instantly confiscated by the kids, an ipod travel charging accessory kit, which I gave to Ellysa's friend (I don't do apple, so it was worthless to me), a 2nd handset and charging base to an AT&T multi-handset cordless phone which seems like it would be a really nice phone if I had the MAIN base, that would make it actually work, and to top it off, a Samsung digital camera that regularly goes for around $200! It briefly powered on, but appeared to have a dead battery, and no cable to charge it with... But that's why they make Ebay! Six dollars later, I have a cable on its way to me, and hopefully the camera will work once it's charged. Oh yeah, the "bag" in the "bag o' crap" was a pretty respectable camera bag, which if the camera works, will probably be used to hold the camera!
(end random thought number one)
(begin random thought number two)
Still with me after all that crap? Good! As I mentioned in my last late night post, Danee had another weigh in yesterday. She initially tipped the scale at 4 pounds, 15 and a half ounces. Juuuuust shy of 5 pounds. Then she drank a bottle, so the doctor said "Hey, let's weigh her again!" and this time she came in at 5 pounds, 1 ounce! Our little rockstar is finally a 5 pounder!! And she looks SO CUTE!! She has gotten chubby, chubby cheeks, half a dozen chins, and as I exclaimed when changing her diaper tonight, she also has roly poly thighs!!
(wow, I don't think I've ever written out "roly poly" before - it looks wrong! Good thing I'm too tired to care!)
That's it for this edition of Random Crap... Danee's back in her bed, and once again I have a date with the racketball court at 4:45 in the morning. So I'll leave you with a picture of 5 Pounds of Babyluvs, and I'm off to bed!
There are a bunch of bloggable thoughts swirling around my head right now, so I'm going to fling a few of them up on the wall and see if they stick...
First, inspired by the title of this post, I just realized that I never posted my latest Bag o' Crap goodness from Woot! I scored this most recent bag on December 11, but then with all the excitement of bringing Danee home and settling in, I forgot to talk about it here. I'm surprised by that, because it was a pretty decent haul this time.
First, the box was a pretty good size.
First peek!
A Bag o' Crap tradition is counting how many bags of Texas Air you got. This was a great haul, with 21 bags of Lone Star Breathing!
Second peek, without all that air in the way...
Wow, not bad at all!! I should mention, when the Bag o' Crap arrives, it's an event the whole family gets excited about! Kaylee, Andy and Tyler were very eager to model my treasures.
In addition to the 21 bags of air, I received two red, white & blue baseball hats, which were instantly confiscated by the kids, an ipod travel charging accessory kit, which I gave to Ellysa's friend (I don't do apple, so it was worthless to me), a 2nd handset and charging base to an AT&T multi-handset cordless phone which seems like it would be a really nice phone if I had the MAIN base, that would make it actually work, and to top it off, a Samsung digital camera that regularly goes for around $200! It briefly powered on, but appeared to have a dead battery, and no cable to charge it with... But that's why they make Ebay! Six dollars later, I have a cable on its way to me, and hopefully the camera will work once it's charged. Oh yeah, the "bag" in the "bag o' crap" was a pretty respectable camera bag, which if the camera works, will probably be used to hold the camera!
(end random thought number one)
(begin random thought number two)
Still with me after all that crap? Good! As I mentioned in my last late night post, Danee had another weigh in yesterday. She initially tipped the scale at 4 pounds, 15 and a half ounces. Juuuuust shy of 5 pounds. Then she drank a bottle, so the doctor said "Hey, let's weigh her again!" and this time she came in at 5 pounds, 1 ounce! Our little rockstar is finally a 5 pounder!! And she looks SO CUTE!! She has gotten chubby, chubby cheeks, half a dozen chins, and as I exclaimed when changing her diaper tonight, she also has roly poly thighs!!
(wow, I don't think I've ever written out "roly poly" before - it looks wrong! Good thing I'm too tired to care!)
That's it for this edition of Random Crap... Danee's back in her bed, and once again I have a date with the racketball court at 4:45 in the morning. So I'll leave you with a picture of 5 Pounds of Babyluvs, and I'm off to bed!
Monday, January 05, 2009
Some Danee Highlights
The first five days of 2009 have been very good to our little Daneekins!
She continues to eat, sleep, poop, pee and grow, and she also continues to worm her way deeper and deeper into our hearts!
I'm typing this after her 10:00pm feeding on Monday night, and am waiting for her to burp before laying her back in her bed. She occasionally doesn't cooperate on the whole burping thing, but I've learned through experience that it's worth my while to wait it out with her before laying her down. When she spits up, she does it right, with milk coming out of her nose and everything, and this tiny girl gets MAD!!
So, in the hopes of getting more uninterrupted sleep, I'm waiting a little longer to put her down so I can GO to sleep... And while I was feeding, snuggling and burping her tonight, I thought about some of the highlights since she came home on Christmas Eve.
I mentioned, and posted pics of her bath time - but it's not really possible to overstate how much this little girl loves taking a bath! Cindy gave her another one today, and said that she was just the happiest baby girl in the world - and I don't doubt it, because the one I gave her last week, was very much the same way!
Yesterday, we took her to church for the first time. Naturally, she was a total celebrity, with everyone wanting to see her, and in turn, everyone being shocked at how small she is. It's funny, because to Cindy and I, we've gotten so used to her, that she looks totally normal, and those 8+ pound babies just look freakishly large! (no offense to any full term babies - you're beautiful too, just bigger!)
At one point during church, I was sitting on a couch in the foyer, feeding a hungry little Danee. A mom, out walking her toddler around the building approached and smiled... I smiled back, and just kept on with what I was doing. Then Danee stretched out her arm, and the woman watching froze in place, and exclaimed, "That's a REAL BABY??" She then explained that she thought I was holding a doll, and most likely was "taking care of the doll" while my own toddler ran around the building. I laughed and showed her that no, my baby was indeed alive! She passed by my spot several more times, and each time, smiled big and shook her head in disbelief at our tiny little miracle baby!
One of the most interesting parts of the adoption process was that we had to specify a backup guardian for the baby, in case something happened to both Cindy and me. This was a really strange thing to have to think about, because with the other four kids, there's always their other parents as a built in backup plan. With Danee, however, it's all Mike & Cindy, all the time!
So we had to think about who we would feel confident entrusting our precious baby to, should such a tragedy strike. It didn't take long to choose my sister Linda and her husband Eric. Over the last few years, Cindy and I have grown very close to them, and know them as true examples of Christ-like living. Their four kids are continuing this legacy. Their oldest, Alicia (linked in the bloglist as our Niece Alicia) and her husband Daniel being two of our favorite people to hang out with! Linda and Erica's next oldest, Nathan, is in Germany serving a mission right now. Next up is Rachel, who is a senior in high school, a world class soccer player, and an absolute top-notch student. Their youngest, Kevin, is 14, and an amazing piano player, and is the owner of a voice that has no business belonging to a 14 year old! At our Christmas Eve party, he sang "O Holy Night," and stunned everyone with how incredible he sounded!
Anyway, looking at their track record, we had no qualms about asking Linda and Eric to be our backup plan for Danee. And, being the amazingly wonderful people that they are, they accepted our invitation and are now officially in place, although it is our deepest hope that they never need to step up to that role.
Last Saturday, we happened to be in their neighborhood, and thought they might like a little Danee time... Because really, who DOESN'T like a little Danee time?? They'd gotten to see her on Christmas Eve, and Linda even got to hold her briefly, but Eric didn't, and it was such a crowded and noisy evening that it wasn't a very good environment to get to know our new baby girl.
So Linda and Eric invited us in, and wasted no time thoroughly washing their hands and snagging little Babykins right out of my arms!
Luckily, Danee seemed to like them too, so everything worked out well!
Speaking of working out well, she has finally burped. I've laid her in her crib, where now she has the hiccups. She gets a LOT of hiccups. They're really cute, and I'm having a hard time not laughing out loud right now just listening to them! But I'm supposed to get up early tomorrow morning for racketball (I got a new racket for Christmas!!) so I'm going to run a quick spell check (typing with a baby in my arms, after all) and publish this so I can catch some sleep!
Tuesday morning is Danee's next weigh in, and we can't wait to see how much she's up to now - check back here to find out!!
(p.s. I should type with her in my arms all the time - other than ONE capitalization error, everything passed the spell check test!! Of course, I'm sure I'll re-read this tomorrow, and fix several dozen grammatical errors...)
She continues to eat, sleep, poop, pee and grow, and she also continues to worm her way deeper and deeper into our hearts!
I'm typing this after her 10:00pm feeding on Monday night, and am waiting for her to burp before laying her back in her bed. She occasionally doesn't cooperate on the whole burping thing, but I've learned through experience that it's worth my while to wait it out with her before laying her down. When she spits up, she does it right, with milk coming out of her nose and everything, and this tiny girl gets MAD!!
So, in the hopes of getting more uninterrupted sleep, I'm waiting a little longer to put her down so I can GO to sleep... And while I was feeding, snuggling and burping her tonight, I thought about some of the highlights since she came home on Christmas Eve.
I mentioned, and posted pics of her bath time - but it's not really possible to overstate how much this little girl loves taking a bath! Cindy gave her another one today, and said that she was just the happiest baby girl in the world - and I don't doubt it, because the one I gave her last week, was very much the same way!
Yesterday, we took her to church for the first time. Naturally, she was a total celebrity, with everyone wanting to see her, and in turn, everyone being shocked at how small she is. It's funny, because to Cindy and I, we've gotten so used to her, that she looks totally normal, and those 8+ pound babies just look freakishly large! (no offense to any full term babies - you're beautiful too, just bigger!)
At one point during church, I was sitting on a couch in the foyer, feeding a hungry little Danee. A mom, out walking her toddler around the building approached and smiled... I smiled back, and just kept on with what I was doing. Then Danee stretched out her arm, and the woman watching froze in place, and exclaimed, "That's a REAL BABY??" She then explained that she thought I was holding a doll, and most likely was "taking care of the doll" while my own toddler ran around the building. I laughed and showed her that no, my baby was indeed alive! She passed by my spot several more times, and each time, smiled big and shook her head in disbelief at our tiny little miracle baby!
One of the most interesting parts of the adoption process was that we had to specify a backup guardian for the baby, in case something happened to both Cindy and me. This was a really strange thing to have to think about, because with the other four kids, there's always their other parents as a built in backup plan. With Danee, however, it's all Mike & Cindy, all the time!
So we had to think about who we would feel confident entrusting our precious baby to, should such a tragedy strike. It didn't take long to choose my sister Linda and her husband Eric. Over the last few years, Cindy and I have grown very close to them, and know them as true examples of Christ-like living. Their four kids are continuing this legacy. Their oldest, Alicia (linked in the bloglist as our Niece Alicia) and her husband Daniel being two of our favorite people to hang out with! Linda and Erica's next oldest, Nathan, is in Germany serving a mission right now. Next up is Rachel, who is a senior in high school, a world class soccer player, and an absolute top-notch student. Their youngest, Kevin, is 14, and an amazing piano player, and is the owner of a voice that has no business belonging to a 14 year old! At our Christmas Eve party, he sang "O Holy Night," and stunned everyone with how incredible he sounded!
Anyway, looking at their track record, we had no qualms about asking Linda and Eric to be our backup plan for Danee. And, being the amazingly wonderful people that they are, they accepted our invitation and are now officially in place, although it is our deepest hope that they never need to step up to that role.
Last Saturday, we happened to be in their neighborhood, and thought they might like a little Danee time... Because really, who DOESN'T like a little Danee time?? They'd gotten to see her on Christmas Eve, and Linda even got to hold her briefly, but Eric didn't, and it was such a crowded and noisy evening that it wasn't a very good environment to get to know our new baby girl.
So Linda and Eric invited us in, and wasted no time thoroughly washing their hands and snagging little Babykins right out of my arms!
Luckily, Danee seemed to like them too, so everything worked out well!
Speaking of working out well, she has finally burped. I've laid her in her crib, where now she has the hiccups. She gets a LOT of hiccups. They're really cute, and I'm having a hard time not laughing out loud right now just listening to them! But I'm supposed to get up early tomorrow morning for racketball (I got a new racket for Christmas!!) so I'm going to run a quick spell check (typing with a baby in my arms, after all) and publish this so I can catch some sleep!
Tuesday morning is Danee's next weigh in, and we can't wait to see how much she's up to now - check back here to find out!!
(p.s. I should type with her in my arms all the time - other than ONE capitalization error, everything passed the spell check test!! Of course, I'm sure I'll re-read this tomorrow, and fix several dozen grammatical errors...)
Sunday, January 04, 2009
Thursday, January 01, 2009
Q&A With Danee
Hi Danee! Today was an exciting day - it's the first day of a new year! Let's see if you can guess what else is special about today...
Okay, here we go! Dear, sweet, little Daneekins, can you tell me how old you are today?
Well, you're four WEEKS old, but that happened back on Monday. Do you know how many MONTHS old you are today?
Oh! You just said it!! How many months old are you today?
Yes!! Yay for Daneekins!! Let's have a nice, big round of applause for the teeny tiny preemie wonderbaby! Danee, is there anything else you'd like to talk about?
Awww... She's right! Counting weeks and months is hard for a little girl. And that's not all she's been working hard at. She's been chugging more food every day, working toward her next weight-check on Tuesday! She's also been perfecting the art of peeing so much you soak your outfit, which she's achieving Olympic quality results at!
Happy One Month Birthday, Sweet Baby Girl! We love you SO much!
And yes, it's sleepy time now!
Okay, here we go! Dear, sweet, little Daneekins, can you tell me how old you are today?
Well, you're four WEEKS old, but that happened back on Monday. Do you know how many MONTHS old you are today?
Oh! You just said it!! How many months old are you today?
Yes!! Yay for Daneekins!! Let's have a nice, big round of applause for the teeny tiny preemie wonderbaby! Danee, is there anything else you'd like to talk about?
Awww... She's right! Counting weeks and months is hard for a little girl. And that's not all she's been working hard at. She's been chugging more food every day, working toward her next weight-check on Tuesday! She's also been perfecting the art of peeing so much you soak your outfit, which she's achieving Olympic quality results at!
Happy One Month Birthday, Sweet Baby Girl! We love you SO much!
And yes, it's sleepy time now!
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