Toys in the Attic

Dilemma

2007-03-30T13:08:00.000-04:00

So here's the thing...
I'm starting to fall in love with my wordpress account (which I run through my Linux account on my domain). At the same time I'm falling out of love with Blogger. I don't run my blogger through blogspot because frankly blogspot is torturous, and I just like having stuff on my own domain...remember that controlling thing?
So I'm starting to think about closing down my 'blogger' and just using my 'wordpress'.
I'd slowly have to aggregate (wonder if I using that right) all of the archives into the wordpress files.
Basically this means that I'm going to stop the dual-posting on both sites and just post new things on the wordpress.
I'm imported all my links of my bloggy friends, so really the only thing that's changing is the link to my blog...
So if you are reading this...I hate to put you through the hassle of changing your template and re-linking so if you want, feel free to just drop me- I promise not to be offended. We all need a fresh start. You might not like reading me (or now 'hearing' me) blog and hey, I can't blame you. So consider this a de-friend, get out of jail free card.

IF however you'd like to keep going and reading (and listening), well clearly you've got a problem with masochism, but I thank thee...
So just change your link to http://photoblog.stamant.org/blog/ and then heck it'll be like nothing ever changed at all (except yet another new look and name change). You also might get an annoying email announcing the change because I do that from time to time. Oh and when I comment on your blogger it might still have my blogger profile (cuz that's just easier).

so'okay...I'm turning off the lights now here...there'll still be furniture and stuff for awhile, once I actually move everything out it will vanish, but that'll take a while (heck this blogger thing is over 4 years old...I have almost 400 posts to move...I should have hired some movers.

Remember: http://photoblog.stamant.org/blog/

Goodnight sweet blogger, and flights of angels sing thee to thy rest!

JibJab

2007-03-30T01:42:00.000-04:00

If you've never ridden the JibJab train, you should...
This is the latest piece of brilliance...
It's just so damn true it hurts

What We Call the News | Send To Friends | Funny Animations at JibJab

Flying Solo

2007-03-30T01:05:00.000-04:00

Lazy Girl

Originally uploaded by AmericaninCanada.

Shell is doing some painting at her parents' house this week and because of some appointments I had today she got a late start, so she decided to stay overnight.
This meant that I had Gracie all by myself tonight. There's been a couple of nights I've done the night by myself, but probably not in a long while.
With Shell's normal work schedule when she's on a project she usually doesn't get home until after supper time, so in the evening I generally leave the two girls alone so they can have some quality uninterrupted mommy-daughter time. If I'm in the room, Ginny Grace tends to maintain her normal daytime daddy-clinging, so basically I want them to have as much unfettered bonding as possible.
This also means that Shelley handles the nighttime rituals- books, jammies, bottle, teeth, and saying 'night-nights' to the puppies and me. So I'm just not used to those, and GG is not used to having me do them. It makes me a wee nervous.
After dinner I was sitting in the living room getting ready to watch the Leafs game and GG wandered to the back of the house...and got really quiet. Quiet in the 'too-quiet' way. I went to investigate.
GG is a serial-door closer. She closes any door she can. So I was none too surprised to find the hallway door closed. One layer of soundproofing. Then I noticed our bedroom door closed as well. A second layer. Brilliant child!

As I approached the door I could hear the television in the bedroom and her jabbering. She had turned the TV on and had the hockey game on (it was the last channel I was watching) and she was sitting on the floor talking to Dixie.

Just the two of them. An eighteen-month old and her patient big sister doggy, plopped on the doggy bed, having a grand old time without a care in the world.

I wandered in and sat on the bed content to let them enjoy their own human-canine bonding. I never thought THEY needed the same kind of treatment that any other pair in the house needed. She was petting Dixie on the head, giving her kisses on her nose, leaning in and giving her hugs (which to Gracie consist of just laying her head sideways and saying 'aww'). The she pointed at Dixie's eyes and said "Eyes, Dada"

A new word...cool! New words come about one a day or so now. We've got a list. Shell keeps a list of everything which is good because blogging and pictures are the only backup I have for my lax memory. Her vocabulary is up to close to 40 words so we're on a good pace I think.

She looked at me through the bars of the foot of the bed and spent the next few minutes in her 'Hi Dada, Hi Dixie, Hi Wo-wo (her name for Willow)' routine. I told her that when she's a big girl and sleeps in a big girl bed, Dixie could sleep in the bed with her. "But", I warned, "Dixie snores".

"Snore", she said.

ooo...another word! Where's the list?

Well she clearly knows what 'eyes' are, but she's just mimicing on 'snore'...but that means the instant mimicing is upon us.

This is key.

This means someone in the family with a reputation for somewhat of a 'potty mouth' *coughshelleycough* has to be on the best of behavior, lest more colorful words get added to the 'list'.

Tranquility Base

2007-03-29T03:35:00.000-04:00

Well I've gone and done it...the Eagle has landed...at Tranquility Base

Podcast #1 should be available soon, but you can if you so choose listen to the first podcast directly on my site.

Once I get the information from iTunes I'll pass it along and then you can just subscribe to it (for free of course) and then it will just download whenver there's a new one.

Now available at iTunes

I'm begging for feedback and mostly questions, questions, questions to fill up the time on the next installment...so send all that to:

TQBasePodcast@yahoo.com

I'm thinking that I might eventually shift all my blogger archives over and just have the one sight...wordpress is just so lovely and helpful.

Anyways...I hope you like listening to my voice better than I do!!

Cheers

Wowzers

2007-03-27T21:30:00.000-04:00

Um...wow...Shelley's Grandma apparently just gave us a check...a sort of advance on her inheritance to save some tax money...let's just say...we've been thrown a huge life-preserver out of the blue...

If you ever wanted a visual representation of the word 'gobsmacked' being in our living room a few moments ago would have done the trick...

Still absorbing...

More later...

Questions of Podcasting

2007-03-26T10:39:00.000-04:00

Have you ever listened to a podcast?
I listen to a bunch of podcasts.
If I had a podcast would you listen to it?

What sort of things would you want to hear in my podcast?

I ask these questions because I'm thinking that I blogged before most people I know, and before everybody else gets their own podcast eventually, I thought maybe I'd start a podcast.
I'd love to eventually have guests on it. I enjoy a conversation about an interesting topic. Basically I'm a curious person. If I meet someone at a party I tend to pepper them with questions, because I'm interested in things I don't know, or partially know.

I was trying to think of a good name for my podcast...any suggestions?
I was leaning to Tranquility Base, because it's my favorite word, but I'm wondering if that's really a good name for a podcast.
I have to find my microphone today...

Dueling Numbers: 416 versus the 905

2007-03-26T00:54:00.000-04:00

Ever increasingly, a divide has erupted in the Greater Toronto Area.
For those outisde of Toronto, it is the city against the suburbs.
For those in the GTA it's known simply as the 416 versus the 905.
416 is the phone interchange for Downtown Toronto and some of its surrounding communities, 905 is phone interchange for the rest of the Greater Toronto Area.

The 905 prefix is used quite liberally (if you'll pardon the ironic pun) to incpororate some areas in the Hamilton areas, but mainly, what is considered the focus of 905 is the largest of the cities the immediate west/northwest: namely Oakville, Mississauga, Brampton, much of Halton Hills, Peel, and other regions.
While this definition is by no means perfect it is central to the lingering political disputes between the two regions- Toronto proper and the Greater Toronto Area.

The tension has reached critical mass in the latest Ontario budget. In recent decades the 905 area growth explosion has outpaced most infrastructure. The current highway system is poor by everyone's agreement, while the needs of social services to the large segments of immigrant populations in these subburbs has put a strain on the 905. Meanwhile, the 905 has in a sence been subsidizing social services costs to the 416.

This latest budget has apparently broken this chain- with the 905 receiving a huge boost in provincial monies, while the city is now facing a short fall in their social servce budgets.

To those in the 905, it is long overdue. To those in the 416 it is the provincial government turning their back on their most loyal voters.

The 416 is largely, almost solidly Liberal voting, whereas the 905 is less tied to one party, has grown increasingly small 'c' conservative leaning in recent elections and thus Ontario Liberals face a great dilemma: Help secure the 905, in the hopes it can increase its presence in those ever growing ridings (only to get larger as businesses move out into the 905 to take advanatage of available land and lower poperty taxes; or risk alienating their strongest base in the 416 by forcing them to raise property taxes to make up the social services shortfall.

It is to be sure a complicated calculation, only to become more complicated if, as Toronto Mayor David Miller suggests doubling the property tax increase twice the rate of inflation (1.5% to 3%). Studies done such as those by firms like REALpac have analyzed just what sort of effect this all will have on the two regions.

Michael Brooks, Executive Director of REALpac: This can have significant negative effects on the City of Toronto's economic growth, because when it comes to work, increasingly, employers are choosing to locate offices in the 905 region, due to its dramatically lower tax rate."

With businessness moving out, and more monies needed to make up the gap, will more middle income workers follow the suburban flight, leaving Toronto a city of a shrinking middle class unwilling to pay higher proerty taxes, on already higher assessed homes??

In a game of winners and losers, or new versus old, Ontario's politicians seem to be banking on the expanding growth of the 905 and the dwindling fortunes of the 416.

The Daily Show Takes On The Gonzales Scandal

2007-03-24T05:17:00.000-04:00

The Daily Show has been really strong of late which is probably due to the fact the Bush Administration is giving them so much good material...

sigh

2007-03-23T23:32:00.000-04:00

Kim knows why...just...just...*sigh*

I'm glad my wife and child were not around tonight to see a grown man cry...I'm a Cubs AND a Leafs fan...why must I willingly submit to so much heartbreak? Is this my karmic exchange for the good parking I always get at the mall?

4 goals in like 8 1/2 minutes...

*sigh*

I promise to post something of import later...for now I've got to clean the tears off the floor

Bon Voyage

2007-03-23T20:02:00.000-04:00

My dear friend Lauren, the Aussie (by also Canadian) princess, has started her 7-month long trek through Europe with her beau, Henry.
I am: jealous, happy, scared, hopeful, misty-eyed, and proud.

If you think 'the internets' are a scary place, filled with spooky people, I contend, it is also a portal that allows you to meet beautiful souls you might not otherwise meet on your journey.

One of the most beautiful I've ever come across is Lauren.

We met her in an on-line group about 7-8 years ago. We finally met her a year later in person when she came to the States on vacation and we hung out together in Colorado and then later in Salt Lake. She did the 8 plus hour car trip from Denver to SLC..TWICE!! with me. She visited again last summer and Ginny Grace instantly fell in love with her too. So she's got the whole family under her spell.

A Case Of The Empty Empties

2007-03-23T02:18:00.000-04:00

Note: I had a very long and funny post that was eaten by Blogger and ultimately unable to be recovered...that really sucks. It was hysterical. No really. You'd have laughed yourself silly. Some of you would have hurt yourself from laughter and might have pursued legal action against me...maybe it's a good thing it was eaten. But really...you should have been there...

I thought we needed to shake of the dingy dark winter days with a little shout out to spring. Here's a shot of a day lily from Shelley's garden last summer...maybe it will bring a glow to your world.

The warmer weather brings out the hippies.
Last night as I was walking back to my car from the library, I passed a house and the marijuana smell wafting from the windows nearly threw me back a block.
It was so intense that I was fairly certain that the house was either hosting a spontaneous concert by The Wailers, or someone living there had the world's worst case of glaucoma.
I'm not a prude, and I was certainly no choir boy...I just think it's a little excessive to turn your fireplace into a walk-in bong.

My apologies to the hippies in the audience. I'm just not very hippy, though I did sort of marry one. Sure, she seems straight-laced but she's got latent hippy tendencies. She did live in Portland and San Francisco after all...those ARE the West Coast affiliates of Sodom and Gomorrah right?

It's gotta make you wonder, btw, why did Sodom get something named after it but Gomorrah...zippo. Come on Gomorrah, represent yo!

I lived in San Francisco too, but it didn't really have any lingering affects.
I did try to wear flowers in my hair once, but I don't have any hair so they sort of fell on the ground...I guess I could have taped them on...but then the song said nothing about visiting San Francisco and scotch-taping flowers on your head, so I think I made the right call.

When I got home last night, Shell and Gracie were in the bedroom playing.
She was probably teaching her some hippy stuff like ultimate frisbee.
Shut up!
Sorry

Anyway, she said, "Gracie, come see who's here".
GG walked around the corner, saw me and her eyes lit up. She got a huge smile and ran up to me, threw her arms up at me and said "Hi Dada".
It's enough to make a grown man cry.
Maybe I am a hippy after all...hippies cry a lot. Alan Ginsberg would sob for hours. Ken Kesey was a puddle of tears 24-7, well when he wasn't seeing monkeys talking to Jesus.

Hmmm...'Bong Hits 4 Jesus'...now I know why he needed all those loaves and fishes!

The girls are gone now. They went away for the weekend to Tim's house.
Probably getting their freak flags on!
Shut up, I said!
Oh yeah, I forgot...I was totally baked

So I'm all alone in the house, me and the dogs. I'm just wandering room to room. I don't get it. I was alone, basically, for 30 plus years...why am I suddenly lost without a giggling toddler and a busy-bee wife hovering about me? I've double checked to see if Shell pinned a note to my shirt in case I got lost. No such luck, but to be on the safe side I probably shouldn't got outside.
Plus what would I do? Hug a tree?
What if the tree hugged back??

My apologies to all the hippies out there...I love you all...just stay away from my Oreos.

Blushing

2007-03-22T13:44:00.000-04:00

Today I became an official artist.

The fact that someone liked a photograph of mine so much they wanted to pay me for it is beyond my comprehension.
I had to pinch myself a couple of times...I think I'm bruised now.
I had to make some decisions that I never had to make before- like how much to soak a friend- luckily that friend is amazing and kind.
I also had to make a decision about how to set an appropriate number for the prints...I chose 17 because it's my number.
I...I...am fairly speechless.

Every Picture Tells A Story, Don't It?

2007-03-20T17:13:00.000-04:00

[This photo has been sold as a limited edition signed print. The first of 17 prints has been sold.]

I ventured out today to look for a job and also to take some pictures of this awesome Croatian Centre they built in the country. It was a beautiful blue sky sunshine day perfect for some photos (except for the bitter cold wind).

With my luck of course I pick a day where they've parked a giant yellow dumpster in front of the place- I guess to remove some stuff in the construction process. I took some pics but had to keep the lower half of the building out of the shot.

This was only the start of my bad luck. On the way back, about a mile from the Centre, I saw a distant snow covered pond. I pulled off the side of the road and found a spot from which to shoot. Got a couple of good pics and headed back to the van. That's when I found out that the door somehow locked behind me with the van running...whoops.

I walked across the street and knocked on the houses with no answer from either place- even though they had cars in the driveway. So I wandered back out to the roadside and eventually flagged down someone and asked to borrow a cell phone. I called Shell who had a nice laugh at my expense. She and GG came to rescue me.

When they arrived I was pretty frozen. Shell took pity on me and decided to take me to lunch before she and GG went to Maria's for the evening...

I'm still kind of thawing out.

The Color Of Love

2007-03-21T17:43:00.000-04:00

100_8338
Originally uploaded by AmericaninCanada.

At the moment it's 5:30pm and I'm at the library. I'm tired and class really knocked me out. It seemed for the first hour it was left up to be to be the soul voice within the class.

Sometimes that happens. Everyone else is afraid to speak up, to perhaps make a mistake, to say something stupid.

I figure, 'heck I say stupid stuff all the time...it's nothing new for me' so up I pipe and away we go. Occasionally I'll get lost, that's when I delve into philosophy. Even most of my professors really don't know a lot about philosophy. And when even *I* don't know what I'm talking about...I can sound like I do. It's a gift. The gift of a pompous ass.

Anyway, it tends to wear me down.

I've been working on some stuff for my big paper, but I was a little put off by getting my first small paper back today. I didn't get the mark I was looking for and frankly I can't understand why. He didn't give me a lot of criticism, nor did he really point out any obvious flaws- just merely commented on 'not seeing it'. But that was the problem- the paper was a totally subjective analysis of our favorite science-fiction movie. How can that be objectively critiqued?

So I'm sort of down.

I went through my blogroll, which is even more depressing because there are so many great writers out there. (I hate you all) Okay not really, but yes. Parts of me hate you. The jealous, envious, ego parts. The rest of me loves you.

I'd pack up and go home now but a) I have to walk 4 city blocks in the rain to get to my car and then b) sit in traffic because it's rush hour in Toronto...

So now I'm blowing off steam, afraid to leave this computer because they get gobbled up like mid-20th century central European states by the Germans and I don't have the energy right now to do anything but appease.

But despite my whining I'm actually quite happy today. I'm just saving all my happiness for later when I'm comfortable in my jammies and warm bed.

That last sentence should have sounded less sensationalistic but I'm not about to erase it.

Looking at photos now. I like this one today. There's just so much whimsical evil in my daughter's eyes...I know she gets that from me. Well the whimsy she gets from me, the evil is soooooooo her mother.

Just kidding honey...

Maybe I should have saved that joke until I was inside the house...she could probably change the locks on me before I made it home.

Damn!!

Um...honey? You're so pretty....

(that's an inside joke)

Anyone got a doghouse I could sleep in?

On Wisconsin....D'oh!

2007-03-19T20:24:00.000-04:00

The Wisonsin upset destroyed my brackets, which to be honest were suffering before anyway...

[Click to see the large size...if you dare]

Princess Grace

2007-03-18T22:24:00.000-04:00

Princess Grace
Originally uploaded by AmericaninCanada.

Last night while my father-in-law and I watched the Leafs game, Shelley and Ginny Grace went with Shell's mom over to see Great-Grandma Amos.

Grandma Amos is almost 92 and still sharp as a tack.

She did however have a little spill a few weeks ago and so Shell wanted to go see her and allow her to spend a little time with her great-granddaughter.

I think it's pretty wonderful that GG has two Great-Grandmothers.

Since growing up I only had one grandparent at all, my grandmother Wenonah, having any 'grands', not to mention 'great-grands' is to me a real blessing.

Apparently Ginny Grace, who is normally shy around everyone, was unusually spunky at Great-Gramma's place, doing all her tricks, babbling, and even showing Great-Gramma Amos that she can blow her own nose in a kleenex.

They came home from their visit all full of laughs and smiles.

They also came home with a gift from Great-Gramma Amos for GG's college fund...a really, really, nice gift...with lots of zeros. Apparently all the great-grandkids are getting a similar contribution and with 4 of them..that's a fairly hefty sum.

Ginny Grace is too young to understand the generosity...but we aren't.

I've said numerous times I married into an amazing family- last night was proof in spades.

Today we had a few adventures as well. We went to the town library and got some books. We were sitting in the kids section reading a story about Mog the Cat when the power went out. Grace was unfazed by the sudden outage and just gathered up her things and walked over to see Beezus and the other guinea pig whose name escapes me at the moment- they live at the library in their little guinea pig cage.

The power came back on before we left, but then went off again later when we got home. We only live around the block from the library so it was a neighborhood temporary blackout I guess.

We also made our first foray into the world of EBay. Yes, it's 2007 and we've never done anything on EBay...we are behind the times a bit I guess. Shell has some stuff she wants to see if she can sell. Some crafty bits that might not be appropriate for The Galloping Goat Gallery like scarves and some odds and ends. She also wants to sell some expensive dress she bought a few years ago. When she told me how much she paid for it I think I suffered a mild coronary. I don't think I've paid THAT much for my entire "wardrobe". (I put the word 'wardrobe' in quotations because it's pretty laughable to call my collection of clothes a wardrobe- or even a collection...but I digress.)

She's got a couple of tiaras too. I don't know...women need them I guess. Gracie decided to model one for us.

I had a flashforward to her getting married.

And I think I had *another* coronary.

How will I ever break it to her that she's not allowed to get married until she's at least 45?

The Roundabout

2007-03-18T01:00:00.000-04:00

Self Portrait with Shades
Originally uploaded by AmericaninCanada.

Let's be frank...I don't like my having my picture taken.
In part that is why I enjoy taking pictures...I don't have to be in them.
I think that is my defense mechanism: control.

I'm not controlling because I enjoy control, it's not in other words an aggressive controlling (though it might take that look and feel).

Somethings I try to control for practical reasons. For instance I get extremely carsick so I prefer to drive since it lessens the queasiness. Shelley has reluctantly given in to this- yet another reason why I love her. Power struggles can be pretty devastating.

Then there are the times the control is less practical. For instance my dictatorial power over the radio. I hate listening to music I don't like, so I either listen to sports talk radio or a CD (that's a twinning control, over my spouse AND the stupid program directors on music radio stations).

Sometimes this control can get out of hand. For instance (I'm for instance-ing a lot), if I go to a bar or restaurant that has a jukebox, I'm pumping change in there like its a slot machine.

Yes I understand that by exhibiting my control in such a setting I'm merely forcing the very thing on others to which I'm rebelling...but I'm not here for you to make such sense to me...I'm enjoying my insane troll logic, thank you very much.

What does any of this have to do with, well, anything?

I'm not sure.

I took this picture of myself today as we got set to go to Shell's parents house for dinner.

There are a few things to note about this picture. The first being that I took it at all. For someone who doesn't like their own appearance all that much, taking one's own picture would seem on the surface to be twisted. And this is true.

Another thing to note is that I'm not smiling. Why? Well I don't smile.
I mean I smile in theory. Occasionally in practice. But it's spontaneous. Smiling for a camera is not spontaneous. In fact it is wholly fake. Now it isn't that I'm not above being fake, it's just that smiling for a camera makes the fakery that much more obvious.

Yes, I'm this neurotic.

But in a cute way.

Not really.

The last thing to note is that despite my own visage-self-loathing, the one aspect that I think is the tiniest bit attractive about myself (this sentence is making me throw up in my mouth a little) is my eyes. At least that's what people who have been in the position to comment, albeit sometimes uncomfortably, upon my appearance have mentioned most. So isn't it a bit strange that the one thing that might be remotely interesting about myself is thusly covered up completely??

These are the things I think about at 1am when I'm supposed to be playing softball but am not.

So where was I? Oh yeah. Me!

This whole post disgusts me. And yet I'm oddly compelled to continue.

When I consider myself, and my picture I feel deeply sorry for my wife who must answer variations on the question, "Why did you marry a hitman?"

Which I guess is marginally better than the question, "How did that grizzly bear learn to drive?"

I'm suddenly aware of the fact I've just disparaged the mass of grizzly bear population who did nothing to me in the first place.

If you happen to be a grizzly bear reading this, I'm deeply sorry for offending you and your 'kind'.

This long-winded post is a roundabout way of telling you about my Saturday...and I haven't really done that much in that direction have I??

Perfect Catch

2007-03-17T14:23:00.000-04:00

I just don't rememeber what I did for fun before I had a kid.

Bracketology

2007-03-17T11:38:00.000-04:00

bracket1stround
Originally uploaded by AmericaninCanada.

Well the first round was pretty standard for me. I went 23-9 (by the way I don't know why they didn't highlight ALL the winners and losers?...maybe after round two). One reason I did so poorly is that for the first time in years there were no 12 v 5 upsets. The 12v5 game is always good for a couple.

I *WAS* sweating the Wisconsin game. They were down for a long time and I have them winning it all. That would have been a HUGE blow to my bracket.

Pause To Think

2007-03-16T22:14:00.000-04:00

I have a weakness for intelligent women.

There's nothing better (dare I say: sexier) that a woman who can knock your intellectual socks off.
As some of the veteran blog readers know, I'm a political junkie and one of my recent obsessions is Bloggingheads. Two (generally reasonable) people debating issues of the day. If watching two fixed heads talking about Plame-gate, the Iraq War, realism versus neo-conservatism, is your bag then you should check it out. I recommend searching for the entries involving the founders Bob Wright and Mickey Kaus- they're the best.

Anyway, because of Bloggingheads I've found a couple of really interesting new voices- 2 somewhat conservative and 1 moderate- and they're all women. I've now added them to my blogroll and if smart women make you weak-kneed like me I recommend you give them a read.
Ann Althouse is a University of Wisconsin professor, Garance Franke-Ruta is an editor at The American Prospect, and Dr. Helen, is a forensic psychologist, and wife of blogger Instapundit (Glenn Reynolds).

Too Much Information

2007-03-16T19:44:00.000-04:00

Jebus but this is a long (well I guess it's two long) memes...but what the heck

1. Can you cook?
Yes...I suppose
2. What was your dream growing up?
To play baseball
3. What talent do you wish you had?
I want to play the piano...piano dudes are suave.
4. Favorite place?
The 5th tee box at the University of Utah golf course
5. Favorite vegetable?
The carrot
6. What was the last book you read?
The Conservative Soul, by Andrew Sullivan
7. What zodiac sign are you?
Scorpio
8. Any Tattoos and/or Piercings?
My ear is pierced but I think it has grown over
9. Worst Habit?
forgetting to shave for a week at a time
10. Do you personally know anybody on Blog?
On my blog list I know: my wife (duh), Tim, Artsy Mom, Nicole, Elise, Laura, and Barb
11. What is your favorite sport?
golf- first among many
12. Negative or Optimistic attitude?
I'd like to think I'm optimistic...but I have doubts
13. What would you do if you were stuck in an elevator lift with someone of the opposite sex?
Why, what did you have in mind???
14. Worst thing to ever happen to you?
It's probably too painful to talk about
15. Tell me one weird fact about you:
I'm made of space-age polymers
16. Do you have any pets?
2 dogs- Dixie and Willow
17. Do you know how to do the macarena?
Um....you bowl the water first, then put it in, cook until tender, add the cheese??
18. Is the sun shining where you are now?
No, the sun is shining a few million miles away
19. Do you think clowns are cute or scary?
Clowns make people sick
20. If you could change one thing about how you look, what would it be?
One thing??
21. Would you be my good angel or bad angel?
Probably a bad angel pretending to be a good one
22. What color eyes do you have?
Blue
23. Ever been arrested?
No
24. Bottle or Draft?
I like my Corona IN the bottle
25. If you won £10,000 today, what would you do with it?
probably try to figure out how many pounds in the Canadian dollar?
26. What kind of bubble gum do you prefer to chew?
I only chew gum when I'm playing ball and I have no preference
27. What's your favorite bar to hang at?
The monkey bars
28. Do you believe in ghosts?
I think I saw the ghost of a old Ute woman once...it's a bit of a story
29. Favorite thing to do in your spare time?
Movies
30. Do you swear a lot?
Not 'a lot'
31. Biggest pet peeve?
We don't keep pet 'peeves'...they make a real mess and you have to keep 'em chained up all the time
32. In one word, how would you describe yourself?
Sacrilicous

and another:

WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE?
My first name comes from a Vietnam buddy of my Dad's who died, and my middle name is my Grandfather's middle name
ARE YOU AN ONLY CHILD?
No
DO YOU LIKE YOUR HANDWRITING?
Hate it
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT?
Roast Beef
DO YOU HAVE KIDS?
One little monkey, currently playing a little Fisher-Price horn and making quite the racket
IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU?
That question frightens me on several levels
DO YOU USE SARCASM A LOT?
Nooooooooo....
DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS?
Yes
WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP?
No chance in hell
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL?
Capn Crunch
DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF?
Not if I can help it
DO YOU THINK YOU ARE STRONG?
My wife says I have 'super-strength'
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM?
Butter Pecan
WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE?
Their smile...hopefully
RED OR PINK?
Red
WHAT IS THE LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT YOURSELF?
My general jackassery
WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST?
My friends in the US
DO YOU WANT EVERYONE TO SEND THIS BACK TO YOU?
Sure
WHAT COLOR PANTS AND SHOES ARE YOU WEARING?
Not wearing pants (I'm wearing shorts people, calm down) and no shoes
WHAT WAS THE LAST THING YOU ATE?
Steak and rice
WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW?
BloggingheadsTV
IF YOU WERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE?
Hopefully not one of the ones the dogs eat
FAVORITE SMELLS?
napalm in the morning
WHO WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE?
My mom
DO YOU LIKE THE PERSON WHO SENT THIS TO YOU?
I took this off of Ange's blog...she's a peach
FAVORITE SPORTS TO WATCH?
football, hockey, golf, baseball, basketball...do you see where this is going?
HAIR COLOR?
*sniff*...hair??
DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS?
No
FAVORITE FOOD? ,br> spaghetti
SCARY MOVIES OR HAPPY ENDINGS?
happy endings
LAST MOVIE YOU WATCHED?
The Sentinel
COLOR OF SHIRT YOU ARE WEARING?
grey t-shirt
SPRING OR WINTER?
fall!! HUGS OR KISSES?
kisses
FAVORITE DESSERT?
cheesecake
WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING?
Guns, Germs, and Steel (which was a gift from Ange & Tom)
WHAT IS ON YOUR MOUSE PAD?
My mouse
WHAT DID YOU WATCH ON TV LAST NIGHT?
Smallville
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE SOUND?
my daughter laughing
WHAT IS THE FURTHEST YOU HAVE BEEN FROM HOME?
West Germany (when it was West Germany)
DO YOU HAVE A SPECIAL TALENT?
I play the harmonica
WHERE WERE YOU BORN?
San Diego

The Puppet Mistress

2007-03-16T14:06:00.000-04:00

The Puppet Mistress
Originally uploaded by AmericaninCanada.

A day of mixed emotions.

On the one hand is the terrifying reality that there's no money coming in after today. No job yet for me, and no word on a new project for Shell. The weight of the unknown is heavy.

On the other is relief that my wife will actually have a break from the grinding production schedules, long commutes, and deadlines. She's worked so hard and has not really had any kind of vacation in 4 years.

That's the real paradox at the moment. Time but no money with which to enjoy it. Rather than some money but no time to enjoy it.

Last night she grabbed me in the kitchen, sort of fell into me, wrapped her arms around my neck and said, "wouldn't it be great to go somewhere nice and warm and just do nothing".

She wants one of those all-inclusive vacations where you don't have to worry about anything, it's all set up ahead of time.

We're doing our taxes this weekend. Maybe we'll get a nice surprise and get a fat return and if so, we can survive the break AND we'll take that vacation yessiree!

But that will need some finger crossing and number crunching (hey those things I'm REALLY good at).

But for today, I just want to celebrate my gal. Here she is hard at work at the old studio.

When I was writing my post(s) yesterday, I was thinking about what I'd say today on her last day. I didn't want to repeat the mushy of yesterday. So I started looking through some photos and thinking and it dawned on me....

When I brought Shell back to Canada in the spring of '02, she went to the studio to let them know she was back in the country and without a project.

She soon got the clown show and she's been steadily doing a variety of shows since. Almost 5 years. That's actually kind of remarkable in her line of work considering all it takes to get from point a to point b in television production.

In fact when she came back from working on Phantom Investigators and The PJs in the States, to Canada, the studio was in a completely other building. Now they've moved to a third. But the bulk of that five years was spent there on that 5th floor, day after day.

I'm so proud of her. I hope I get to take her someone warm and sunny and soon.

The First Kiss- A Follow-up Story

2007-03-16T01:10:00.000-04:00

Zilla begged for details in the comments section, and even offered the story of her and Mr. Z's first kiss. So, if everyone promises to play along and comment about your first kiss with your current significant other I will share this story.

I asked her tonight whether she remembered our first kiss, and she said "Oh yes, of course I do"...which has to make a guy feel good. But then she qualified it, "I remembered it because it was so different and better than the last boy I'd been dating."

Alright, at least I'm 'better' that's a plus right?

"Please to explain?"

She remarked that her last boyfriend before me had 'sharp lips' where I apparently had, 'soft lips'. Having never kissed myself I'm taking her word for it.

At the time she was renting the room at a house in Daly City from a guy who did armatures in stop-mo. So we spent most of the time in her room, sort of holed up like college kids in a one room apartment. Dixie took to me instantly, but she was a little jealous of my hanging around the bed area (it really was the only place to sit honestly).

It was evening and she'd made me a wonderful dinner and we were having wine and talking. We talked a LOT back then. There's some legendary stories of our talking for hours on end. Anyway, we were sitting on her bed and she was sitting up, and I was sort of laying down in her lap. I was exhausted after all...long flight, long walk at the beach, long drive back to the house etc.

She claims now that she had to make all the moves because I was just too much of a chicken. But hey, I AM a boy raised in the south, and my Southern gentleman just don't 'make moves' like that unless they are positive. The fact that I'd flown there, was laying in her bed in her apartment in her lap apparently wasn't enough of a clue. I'm also slow. I don't have 'moves'

Shell says I'm 'easy to fall for' which is why she always raises an eyebrow when I have so many young female friends at school. "yes dear all the 22-year olds are soooo hot for me!" I sneer.

At some point she grew tired of my inability to make a 'move' so she leaned over and kissed me. I kissed back. Having spent so much time talking to her in the past 3 months or so, I knew kissing was 'big' for her. I was pretty sure Shell was taking me in stages: good to talk to, dixie likes him, won't be easily tossed to the rocks, knows how to eat with utensils...(kissing was next in the order, but near the top of the list).

Now truth be told, I can (and would) kiss my wife until my lips fell off. She's a great kisser, she can kiss at all the speeds. She's a kiss stylist if you will. To this day we debate which one of us really pursued the other. Maybe it was a little of both. Of course she had me at hello. I think it took a little longer, even passed that kissing. In fact if one must pinpoint it, I think the day she really decided she loved me happened months later.

I think the light in her room had burned out or something and I lifted her on my shoulders so she could reach it. Apparently being able to put a woman on your shoulders is a big deal to women. I think it represents something deeper, protection, power...I don't know. But when I set her back down on the floor she threw her arms around me and started crying. She asked me never to leave her.

Though it would take another 2 weeks for her to say the 'L' word, I think the moment on my shoulders secured my spot in her heart. I'm glad that thus far I've managed to stay there, and I'm not about to leave.

After all she asked me not to.

Six Years

2007-03-15T13:24:00.000-04:00

Hat
Originally uploaded by AmericaninCanada.

The 'ides of March' were a warning to Julius Cesaer that his life was about to end.

For me, the 'ides of March' were a warning that my life was just about to start.

Six years ago, on the 15th of March 2001, I met the woman who would become my wife.<.br>
I saw her first as she walked down the McCarron Airport terminal in Las Vegas with my friends Susan and Emma. Shell was an old friend of my friend James, and since we were all meeting in Vegas for the weekend, and Shell was living in Portland at the time (and hadn't seen James in over a year) she was joining us.

This picture was taken in the hotel about 15 minutes after I met her. How could I not instantly fall in love with that smile. Smiles are my weakness.

We shared a hotel room that weekend because neither of us, nor Emma, had someone to split a room with. We were, I suppose, forced to be together at first.

I'm pretty sure after the first day I was something like a lost puppy following her around. But she didn't seem to mind. The second night we all got dressed to the nines to head out to the casinos. She split off alone with me at one point in the Luxor. We were sitting side by side at the slots. She had a Tom Collins in her hand. Her eyes were sparkling, her smile brighter than all the neon in Vegas combined. She turned to me and smiled.

To this day she swears she knew from that moment I was in love with her- it took her longer- about six months, but for me it was truly love at first sight.

When I got home from Vegas I told my friend (and boss) Jesse that I'd met a woman I could spend the rest of my life with. It was a totally fleeting idea because she was going back to Portland and I was in Salt Lake- plus the fact that she didn't seem the least bit interested in me.

But about 6 weeks later she emailed me. We talked on the phone the next night, for about 7 hours. She hit me with a "you have a crush on me". I gulped and stammered.

About 3 weeks later I flew to San Francisco where she was living now working on a new project. She'd invited me to spend the weekend, I guess to see what might happen. We went from the airport to Cliff House and walked along the rocks- I think she was just making doubly sure of me again before she took me home and if for some reason I wasn't what she remembered she could throw me to the rocks below.

We held hands.

I should have kissed her.

To this day she pokes at me for not kissing her like I wanted to...she calls me a chicken. She's right.

I didn't last the day though without kissing her.

I might be a chicken but I'm not a stupid chicken.

This morning I said to her it doesn't feel like 6 years. It feels more like 6 seconds sometimes.

I'm not the world's best husband or partner. I fail a lot. She's been doing the lion's share of carrying the family while I wander through school and a new country. I'm scared a lot. She's my hero. I don't deserve her. But I'm glad I have her.

Experimental Post

2007-03-14T01:03:00.000-04:00

I took my sleep meds an hour ago...they have about an hour time frame.
They make me really drowsy and i'm trying to type with as much coherence as I can muster. Most of the members of my blog crew enjoy beverages as alteration experience, I don't use my meds for that. I use them so I can actually sleep at night-
How am I doing? (I think I was just answered by the fact that it took me 6 tries to add the question mark to the how am i doing question.
This experimental post has failed.
I think I'd need some sort of control group of startingly sober peeps sharing a blog with me while my sleep medicine creeped into my brain and made my finger touch typing fall from about a 55-60 words per minute to about 15 words a minute, most of them mispelled and one or two I'm strangely convinced aren't code for a pre-planned super-alien invasion force.

Yes yes I should sleep now. or atleast if i make it to the next room where the bed is...

tschüß

Ha! I couldn't have been THAT out of it since I remembered teh German word for so long AND looked up how to spell it with the correct characters from my keyboard.

So there

ahem, that last 'so there' outburst probably lost me a couple of cool points huh?