tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30202256884836244862024-02-21T08:53:55.863-06:00Zathras' Wrong ToolMy Year OffZathrashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05038422869388120566noreply@blogger.comBlogger107125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3020225688483624486.post-47853576484035997732010-11-29T09:45:00.003-06:002010-11-29T09:51:25.800-06:00Probably done.I haven't posted in over a month, and while I could (honestly) say it's mostly by choice, there certainly was a degree of laziness involved as well. I've soured on the idea of a blog as a place for my more private musings, and most of the rest of what I post I simply don't have the energy for. While it would be nice to have consistent updates about Nathaniel and such, but most of the people who would be interested see him fairly regularly, and much of the posting seems to me to be pretty pointless. Perhaps it's just recent mood (dark) putting a blot on things, and perhaps I'll get around to starting a new blog which could hopefully be more about Nathaniel than my own musings at some point (if I can get Stephanie to post on it, it might actually be viable) but for now, I think this is done.Zathrashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05038422869388120566noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3020225688483624486.post-29281000325162994692010-10-26T09:00:00.006-05:002010-10-26T09:18:17.205-05:00Go Team Venture!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://animatedtv.about.com/library/graphics/go_team_venture.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 345px; height: 257px;" src="http://animatedtv.about.com/library/graphics/go_team_venture.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>It has been since about 1999 that I watched a show and actually looked forward to seeing the "Next time, on XXX" at the end of an episode. That long since Babylon 5 went off the air and there hasn't been a show since that I look forward to like the Venture Brothers. Sure I enjoy shows like Mythbusters and a few others, but they're not shows where the plot continues across episodes; where there's an arc. Venture Bros. doesn't really have a long-term laid out arc like B5 did, but it does have a continuity that I appreciate (something I always loved about the Tick cartoon show -- how the moon continued to have CH carved into it from an episode where Chairface decided to use a huge laser to carve his name in it.) The show's primary theme is failure, and it focuses on a washed-up dude who is living off his father's legacy. A father who was a famous super scientist, but not a great father, and who died while the main character was in college. A lot of the show seems a conscious parody of Johnny Quest, and although I didn't watch much of Johnny Quest as a kid, I do still see the parallels. This show is perhaps the real life Johnny Quest forty years later (in fact, there's a character who is clearly Johnny Quest in the show who is a strung out junkie.) The theme of later consequences of adventures and failure really resonates with me for some reason. Anyway, the show is on hiatus (again) until later November, when the one-hour season finale will air, and then it'll be God knows how long until the next season airs. Hopefully not too long. And hopefully the show is picked up for at least a fifth season, if not more.tvZathrashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05038422869388120566noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3020225688483624486.post-74653108413158996942010-10-19T09:52:00.002-05:002010-10-19T18:41:23.147-05:00Out of sight, out of mind.Stephanie worked yesterday and Sunday, and it was the second and third times that I drove the new car. And only the fifth or sixth that I actually rode in it. It's not that I'm angry or jealous about it at this point or anything, I just noticed it when we were going to swimming last week. The point of it is that all this while it just hasn't really occurred to me that <span style="font-style: italic;">we have a new car.</span> To a certain extent I suppose I was aware that if I needed to go somewhere I could take Nathaniel in the Subaru, and even considered it a bit from time to time. The point, though, is that it just wasn't something I thought about until this weekend when I drove it. Despite what I wrote earlier, I just haven't thought about it at all. I suppose that's a good thing since I was worried about jealousy. have thought some about what sort of vehicle to get myself when/if that time comes, though. I've seen a lot of the two-door Honda Insights, which are intriguing, although I haven't had good luck with Hondas, and then I wondered if there would be a Smarte Car Hybrid (or if it would just make more sense to do an electric vehicle.) There have been some articles recently about plug-in cars and fully electric vehicles, and the word is that around 2012 they will be far more available. While they're going to start only on the west coast, I can only hope that by 2014 or so we'll have them more available around here. Probably not, but with some luck, there will be some nice small hybrid for my purposes, or maybe I'll be at a place where something fun will be realistic. Like a 1973 BMW 2002. I guess that's the difference between my definition of "fun" car and most peoples'. Most people would think of something like an Audi TT or a BMW coupe. I think of a forty year old German family sedan which I saw on an old episode of MacGyver and fell in love with. Oh well.Zathrashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05038422869388120566noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3020225688483624486.post-74092462278729821272010-10-12T21:02:00.002-05:002010-10-19T09:37:59.668-05:00My son has brown hair.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgacqKWvvD25G6yhr8bZG9bVhSRqwbURbK2psU8g1weAaKg_TNuwDL5efztvgFSsn2JPIC6fsIjsYKX8W3TPSzUrj9pAm-XYcNaF3E_V4S10T1aFL4xXDv9qRjoR6nJOjKhRopWuUoBaCs/s1600/Nathaniel+32+189.JPG"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 356px; height: 238px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgacqKWvvD25G6yhr8bZG9bVhSRqwbURbK2psU8g1weAaKg_TNuwDL5efztvgFSsn2JPIC6fsIjsYKX8W3TPSzUrj9pAm-XYcNaF3E_V4S10T1aFL4xXDv9qRjoR6nJOjKhRopWuUoBaCs/s320/Nathaniel+32+189.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5529758800392689682" border="0" /></a>I'm not sure why this should come as any sort of a surprise to me; I mean, it's visible literally every single day. Every time I look at him (or at least, so long as he's not actually wearing a hat at that precise moment, and then only a really nice warm hat) I can see his hair, so why is it that when I looked at him while he was sitting on my lap (reading books) today that it struck me suddenly that he has brown hair?<br />Setting aside the point that I just noticed this, it's still a little strange to me because my hair is black, and I thought that was supposed to be dominant. My parents both have black hair, and my dad is Indian, so how did Stephanie's lighter brown come through? Who knows; maybe it will darken over time but it's just a little odd to me.<br />I wonder sometimes about my views on appearance. On the one hand, I know that I obviously care very deeply about how someone looks, but I also know that when asked to describe someone I'm absolutely useless. Despite having some (usually unidentifiable by most people) non-white ethnicity, I tend to not notice race in most cases, but when I do I'm very aware of it. All the women that I've dated are white, and most of the women that I find attractive are white (which is not to say all.) When we studied anything having to do with race in law school, I found myself rather conflicted, finding the issues considerably more complicated than most people like to admit (on either side.) <span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span></span></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiCWoEemeoX33aDmCyyLVuBSuWncCKpVD73wZ9Wq3ETOpOzKNNGcFXY55s9ywApzpBz7VtWR7K8jxep4N-f7Ff2PZzJxzNx7GOXQNfQAngBp4vZZZptatsE-ZwAAHoqCvvaREbq_Ze4II/s1600/Nathaniel+32+233.JPG"><img style="float: right; margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiCWoEemeoX33aDmCyyLVuBSuWncCKpVD73wZ9Wq3ETOpOzKNNGcFXY55s9ywApzpBz7VtWR7K8jxep4N-f7Ff2PZzJxzNx7GOXQNfQAngBp4vZZZptatsE-ZwAAHoqCvvaREbq_Ze4II/s320/Nathaniel+32+233.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5529764833211745586" border="0" /></a>I find the thought that I don't notice racial things most of the time to be somewhat comforting, but I also know that it's a bit of a false sense of things, and it's really more of a case of simply not noticing things around me to the extent that I probably should. Details are something that I've always said I'm good with during job interviews and such, and I've always thought it to be true, but I'm also bad with names, descriptions and people, so it's kind of a toss-up as to which one of those things is going to win out when I actually begin practicing. I'm hoping that the ability to remember details about a case will be the thing that helps rather than the inability to remember the <span style="font-style: italic;">name</span> of the case being the thing that causes me problems. We'll see.Zathrashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05038422869388120566noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3020225688483624486.post-83268928440240969202010-10-11T11:21:00.003-05:002010-10-11T16:35:04.029-05:00Von Hansen's Meats<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://el-zaribah.org/mcrun/images/vonhanson.gif"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 395px; height: 389px;" src="http://el-zaribah.org/mcrun/images/vonhanson.gif" alt="" border="0" /></a><br />Last night we had Stephanie's parents and sister and her husband over for dinner. It gave us a chance to burn up a lot of the wood that we've accumulated over the summer as it falls from the big maple tree in the back, and to try out the Von Hanson's meats that I bought. I got some chicken, bacon swiss patties and some blue cheese burgers. They're pre-made patties which have the cheese/bacon put in the ground meat. They were delicious. The best part of it is that they aren't actually much more expensive than regular meats would be. It's about $5-6 per package, and each package is about a pound, so the price is actually right about what it would be to buy ground beef and blue cheese and make it myself, or in the case of the chicken, it might be cheaper than buying chicken and bacon and swiss cheese. And it's tasty. I have a feeling I'll be heading there more often now, and will dig out the George Forman to make them in the winter. Those blue cheese burgers were damn good.<br /><div>Von Hanson's has about fifteen stores, all in Minnesota except for one in Arizona. If you're near one, I suggest you check it out. Beyond the foods that I mentioned above, there are also Pizza burgers (burgers with Mozzarella cheese inside,) stuffed pork chops, brat burgers, home made brats (and beer brats,) chicken-bacon-swiss brats, shrimp, and various and sundry other readied meats and kabobs. Finding a good butcher is something that is really key in a new city, even if I've lived here all my life, I know it to be true. Now if only Nelson's Cheese Factory still made the same great variety of cheeses as I remember as a kid (although the store is still awesome in its current incarnation.)<br /></div>Zathrashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05038422869388120566noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3020225688483624486.post-5826394193342869042010-10-07T16:28:00.008-05:002010-10-07T17:00:40.226-05:00New update with Lemon Fresh Scent ... and PICTURES!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKEWY2PBDeZdGD5zUzQSBSrZyOxjDjrPrRA-7Lb3LjLmGDLtm7pIMPCnp2lITuj5xMCiMv_DYKWzi09FNe7Ns2X2K-V8mbIcEW2-jI2DbtTI4FCcjD3aVmtyGtLkFgONlWc8rEWg-uTT0/s720/2010-09-26%2012.41.06.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 720px; height: 540px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKEWY2PBDeZdGD5zUzQSBSrZyOxjDjrPrRA-7Lb3LjLmGDLtm7pIMPCnp2lITuj5xMCiMv_DYKWzi09FNe7Ns2X2K-V8mbIcEW2-jI2DbtTI4FCcjD3aVmtyGtLkFgONlWc8rEWg-uTT0/s720/2010-09-26%2012.41.06.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br />It's been absolutely beautiful here for the last week and a half or so. Getting up to around 70 degrees (or higher sometimes) and sunny. It's given us a lot of time to play outside, which is Nathaniel's favorite thing to do. As soon as he wakes up in the morning it's "bye-bye," meaning I want to play outside. He got a nice sand and water table from my parents for his birthday, which is one of his favorite things, and he also likes his little slide/sports climber, although it's a little less exciting these days since we've been going to the playground at Hillcrest, where there are much bigger slides.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIRdeIHJqfrvjPaBo6DRhek6FREs9iRJTnRkEvP0PoY5P0kCAu_eDt_OoUpiEq8Et1Mo4rktgXMpcTTZt7O5QBucJwX3TjaINtO4BnuXXmmXZwix4Q8NezxIANh8FwfYPHuem7OAuxf_M/s720/2010-10-05%2013.43.14.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 720px; height: 540px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIRdeIHJqfrvjPaBo6DRhek6FREs9iRJTnRkEvP0PoY5P0kCAu_eDt_OoUpiEq8Et1Mo4rktgXMpcTTZt7O5QBucJwX3TjaINtO4BnuXXmmXZwix4Q8NezxIANh8FwfYPHuem7OAuxf_M/s720/2010-10-05%2013.43.14.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7xMrrwCsnTBnmj_HySS7ldZxCmFDdySmTFDbEeEzPj9JErljGE-BvNWHRwpwxWvSs_0zIIu_CgWi0ktdSVzLpbyECrxbSxwzFyNDqs3ku2EspQ6XUdP6U3XGi2kosllM1K_GqE-lMvik/s720/2010-10-05%2013.43.17.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 720px; height: 540px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7xMrrwCsnTBnmj_HySS7ldZxCmFDdySmTFDbEeEzPj9JErljGE-BvNWHRwpwxWvSs_0zIIu_CgWi0ktdSVzLpbyECrxbSxwzFyNDqs3ku2EspQ6XUdP6U3XGi2kosllM1K_GqE-lMvik/s720/2010-10-05%2013.43.17.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a> That playground is nice in that it has a smaller playground for smaller kids as well as the main one. You'd think he'd enjoy the smaller playground, with the steps closer to his size, and the smaller slides, but he's much more interested in trying to clamber up onto the side of the playground where the bottom step is about even with his sternum. He's fearless with the slides too, demanding to go down the biggest ones on the playground, and often doing so so quickly that I have to leap off the side of the playground to catch him as he reaches the bottom, and sometimes tumbling over backwards if I'm not fast enough. He also loves to play in the sand, both at the playground and in his sand table, although luckily we've pretty much managed to stop him a. throwing it, and b. eating it. It's funny, because he was fearless with the slides and flying down them long before he was willing to try to stand up or walk on his own. He hates the swing, which is not really surprising since he also dislikes being swung around in one's arms overmuch (although he does enjoy running around in my arms.) <div><br /></div><div>Now that he *is* walking, though, he really wants to go fast and far. For a while we walked up and down the sidewalk in the front with his Tonka truck in front of him, running as fast as he could and sometimes falling down when we hit a bump or a crack in the sidewalk. Now, we tend to just walk (thankfully most of the time holding daddy's hand) up and down the sidewalk looking at all the cars going by and saying "Vroom!" at them.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfbfcMklopkTXUrNKXnguX0IJKN2DY4MFMz9-2Y1hFpPiyoNWxsEewVfd_L6vjbu79HEDwJptWB8jZi3Njxh-q3rnVdzg-h1SL7l_A73Tq9shu5UIP-BGdhNlOHOA9dxU0HtaIdSlWoT4/s512/Nathaniel%2031%20247.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 384px; height: 512px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfbfcMklopkTXUrNKXnguX0IJKN2DY4MFMz9-2Y1hFpPiyoNWxsEewVfd_L6vjbu79HEDwJptWB8jZi3Njxh-q3rnVdzg-h1SL7l_A73Tq9shu5UIP-BGdhNlOHOA9dxU0HtaIdSlWoT4/s512/Nathaniel%2031%20247.JPG" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /><br /></div><div>I shouldn't say we walk "up and down" the sidewalk, because we both walk, hand in hand <i>down</i> the sidewalk, but when it comes time to turn around, he decides that really means it's time to let go of daddy's hand and keep going, usually faster. I'm kind of worried about what we're going to do when winter comes around, but hopefully we'll be able to entertain him indoors, and since we have the new car (and thus the Subaru available for trips) we might be able to take advantage of some open gym time at the rec center.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizpZZLd0vqP6-iZuC_YV0VNX9HgnDSlfSkNsPGu-RD3laCP0BK0wkpT6kyzfj4X_H7lNJNHUle8u7HqeSmErZCAMjexPGUFUNPaNqCptF9BYzVTw0aNeNnt4sn9dg8iw4Y1ZY3caOVNf0/s512/Nathaniel%2030%20035.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 384px; height: 512px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizpZZLd0vqP6-iZuC_YV0VNX9HgnDSlfSkNsPGu-RD3laCP0BK0wkpT6kyzfj4X_H7lNJNHUle8u7HqeSmErZCAMjexPGUFUNPaNqCptF9BYzVTw0aNeNnt4sn9dg8iw4Y1ZY3caOVNf0/s512/Nathaniel%2030%20035.JPG" alt="" border="0" /></a><br /></div>Zathrashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05038422869388120566noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3020225688483624486.post-5038846493399093772010-10-04T09:28:00.002-05:002010-10-04T09:44:00.714-05:00Separation at ECFELast week was week three of ECFE. It was also the first time that we separated--adults in one room, kids in the other. It starts with us playing in the room as we have for the last couple of weeks, getting the kids comfortable with their surroundings, and then we say goodbye and let them stay with the teachers and the other kids for a while. Nathaniel didn't seem to have any problem when I was first leaving. He wasn't interested in even looking at me or paying me much mind when I said "Daddy's going to go bye-bye," just continuing to play and look around the room for new toys. When I'd left and was watching through the one-way mirror, he was watching the other parents leave and saying "bye-bye" to them as they went out the door. I was relieved that it had gone well. Then within ten minutes of us being in the parents' room, we got a call that he wasn't doing too well and so I brought down Leo and his pacifier. When we went back at the end, I could see him walking around the room while one of the teachers blew bubbles, his pacifier hanging from his overalls by it's leash. He absently put it in his mouth, and then let it fall. <div>I felt like I shouldn't have brought the thing down to him. I should ahve let him have Leo and then if he still needed it brought the pacifier. He does so well at home just having it in the car or stroller or at nap times. I don't want him to start using it more regularly. The teacher said that it was a big help, but I don't want him to be using it every time he needs to calm himself down. I want him to have other strategies for that. We'll see how it goes next week, but I will have to actually assert that if I can and hope that it goes better as he has done it once before.</div>Zathrashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05038422869388120566noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3020225688483624486.post-23353593035490696272010-10-03T10:28:00.001-05:002010-10-04T09:26:36.707-05:00New car.We bought a new car last night, a Prius. I'm sure I'll be happy with the car, but I'm nevertheless pained by the amount of debt incurred, and worried about having made the right choice. The Prius ended up a good five grand more than the primary other option at which we were looking, the Nissan Altima. The Prius will save us a lot on mileage, and with Stephanie's job that actually figures to be a significant consideration; she drives a good 1000 miles per month, and the Prius gets more than twice the MPG (51 to the Altima's 23 in city driving.) But I'm just never one to enjoy spending money. I could have won the Powerball and I'd still be hemming and hawing over this kind of purchase especially, but also the PS3 that I've been trying to decide on for over two years now. I've decided that I want that over the XBOX, but that doesn't mean that I'm ready to spend the $300 on it. I'm just adverse to spending money when I know I will have some degree of buyer's remorse. For the PS3, it's always goign to nag whether it was worth the price. For the car, I'll always doubt if we should have gone with the Altime (or the Sonata.) I hope that means that I'll be good with money over time. But I kind of doubt it.<div><br /></div><div>This car is for Stephanie. She'll be driving it the most (which was true of the Subaru too, I guess, but perhaps more so for this one; we'll see.) A big part of the thought process was about her work situation, from mileage to dealer location, and I am feeling a bit jealous that she'll be driving the new car so much more. It will be nice to have the Subaru around for backup when it gets too cold to walk Nathaniel up to ECFE comfortably, and to get around even when I'm just watching him, to the grocery store/errands whatever (especially as my parents gave us their car seat for it, so that we can have one in both cars). I don't anticipate using it much, probably similarly to the Corolla when we borrowed that a couple years back. It will be nice to have that option. But I'm still jealous of the new car, and then I started to think about getting myself a new car (in three to five years) and trying to think what kind of car I'd want. Part of me wants to say a flashy/fun kind of small car, but I know in reality I'm just too practical to enjoy spending money on that kind of thing (tens of thousands of dollars in rapidly depreciating sheet metal--or more likely fiberglass) so I'd probably end up getting another Prius, or perhaps a different sedan. An Insight or something. By that time, perhaps there will be more hybrids available. But more likely than any of that, would be that we get a van. By that time we'll be thinking about more kids and need the space for car seats and such, and so it's unlikely that I'll be able to get a new car for me until the kids are in the process of going to college. Or at least the latter stages of high school. Perhaps it will be different if my work situation changes and it's just not practical for me to ride the bus in to downtown Minneapolis (or wherever I end up.) But for now, I see myself being able to get a new car for me to drive in about twenty years.</div>Zathrashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05038422869388120566noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3020225688483624486.post-55372026389942569982010-10-03T08:59:00.003-05:002010-10-04T09:10:21.554-05:00Devi's visitMy godmother Devi was visiting us over the weekend to see Nathaniel. Apparently she received our picture that we sent out (12 month photo) and decided she had to come. She arrived on Thursday, though, so it was a little bit tougher due to ECFE. And he made it tougher by not napping in the morning, so he was tired for the meeting, but was still generally his happy self. Seeing Papaaaa and Soniya didn't hurt. We had to leave relatively early on Thursday, but we had a good Friday and even managed a short visit Saturday morning before she had to go. We did lunch at Little Szechuan where Nathaniel loved to look at the fish in their tanks, and dinner at Peninsula (where Devi had gone on Thursday afternoon but wanted to go again.) <div>I had dressed him in some of my old clothes on Thursday, but Devi didn't see me enough at that age to recognize them, but I did get a comment about the cool "retro" clothes that he was wearing at ECFE. I said it wasn't so much retro as "original" and were mine when I was his age. I think I ought to write more about ECFE and how the first separation there went.</div>Zathrashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05038422869388120566noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3020225688483624486.post-44692300819688187182010-09-25T17:09:00.006-05:002010-09-25T17:33:21.712-05:00Update on a few thingsNathaniel has now gone to two ECFE classes. They've gone as well as could be expected. He's done pretty well with not taking toys away from the other kids, and while at his age you can't expect much active joint-play, he's always been interested in watching other children. The songs are, of course, inane and slightly insipid, but that's about right for the age group in question. It's stuff that I know they will enjoy, and it's amazing to me to watch Nathaniel's face as the group around him sings "and Nathaniel's here today, and Nathaniel's here today, yay Nathaniel!" or "The sign today is Water, the sign today is water, high ho a derio, the sign today is water." He's quite interested in what's going on and just taking it all in. The classes are on Thursdays.<div>This past Thursday went quite well. Stephanie had to leave at least as early as usual and Nathaniel got us up in plenty of time as is normal, but then I had to try to adjust his schedule so that the class doesn't come at the absolute worst time. It's scheduled for 12:30-2:30, which is, of course, right in the middle of lunch and then nap time. So instead, I've tried to keep him awake until about 10:00 so that we can have an early lunch and hopefully be ready to nap when we get home without getting too cranky. It went well, and I think it's going to work for the long term. It might even end up being the regular schedule rather than just on Thursdays. We'll see how he takes it. </div><div>But he ate well, he slept for acceptable lenthgs of time, and was not cranky for the most part. Even when Stephanie came home for around five minutes before going out again to a retirement party, he still was in good spirits and ate well, played calmly, read books and was agreeable in getting ready for bed (even if he didn't actually fall asleep until after a good hour of rocking.) I could do with more days like that. Far too often I end up feeling like I"m doing a horrible job because he's cranky, or I feel like I'm not giving him enough attention because I'm reading or browsing the web while he plays in the living room. I worry that I'm being too selfish in hoping he naps so that I can have an hour or if I'm lucky two to myself. (I haven't been able to bike in weeks and weeks for uncertainty in how long he'll nap.) If he remains this reasonable, I think things will be Ok.</div><div><br /></div><div>Last night Jake and I went to Town Hall to watch the Twins game. I'd been wanting a night off away like that for weeks, and it finally came and it went pretty well also. The game was a bit of a bust, we lost 10-1, and my Walleye Hoagie was very disappointing given my wonderful memories of it, and there weren't any good seasonal beers or cask ales, but the beer was still good, and the ability to just be away, talk about nothing and reminisce for three or four hours was really nice. I brought home a growler of Hope and King Scotch Ale too, and look forward to having a chance to break it out and drain it.</div><div>The Twins were <i>supposed</i> to have Carl Pavano pitch last night, but having re-jigged the rotation to get the playoff order they want, it was Francisco LIriano. Which wouldn't have matter the least to me, had I not earlier in the day shaved a magnificantly ridiculous Pavstache in honor of his start. I will continue to sport it today (and we'll see for how long) as he pitches this evening instead.<a href="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs672.snc4/61216_439811638317_514003317_5250764_6142591_n.jpg"><img src="http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs672.snc4/61216_439811638317_514003317_5250764_6142591_n.jpg" border="0" alt="" style="cursor: pointer; width: 540px; height: 720px; " /></a></div>Zathrashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05038422869388120566noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3020225688483624486.post-77040492582539531402010-09-25T16:29:00.002-05:002010-09-25T17:04:57.379-05:00Star Trek and Star WarsI recently picked up a few Star Trek episodes from the library. They were in a set of "Fan Collectives" meaning that it was a theme of Time Travel across four of the series (Enterprise was not included.) I was a big TNG fan back in the day, but now I can't really get myself to watch reruns even. It's not the case with other shows which require a difficult suspension of disbelief, and it's not about the writing, because there are certainly some good episodes; I just can't stand them any more. It's strange. Anyway, I also got Star Trek III: The Search for Spock, and something struck me while I watched it. The difference between Star Trek and Star Wars... and by extension the prequel trilogy as well. <div><br /></div><div>The models show a big difference. Star Trek models, indeed Star Trek in general has a very clean, sterile look. Star Wars in general has a very dirty look. Used, battered, etc. I think that lends itself to seeming more realistic. In a world where peopel are exploring planets, things get dirty and used. I realize that the idea of a perfect future like Star Trek includes magical cleaning things, but give me a break, it's just too much. I was startled to see that ILM interviews in the special features of the ST:III DVD echoed precisely this, comparing their model-making process to those for Star Wars and for Alien(s.) </div><div><br /></div><div>Then I thought about the prequel trilogy. Everything looks much cleaner. I'd previously thought that perhaps, even though the CGI was quite good, and at times indistinguishable from model work, that was what had bothered me about the prequels, but I think I hadn't quite hit on it with that. What bothered me wasn't that it was all CGI, but rather that everything seemed much too clean and shiny for Star Wars. It's in keeping with the chronology; the prequels take place during the height of the Republic, when things <i>were</i> shiny and new; clean and kept up, but it still just doesn't have the same feel. And I think that's what actually bothered me about the CGI, and what made the prequels have so much of a different feeling and simply a lack of the <i>magic</i> that was inherent in the original trilogy, where you had the sense of a greatness lost, and could see remnants of it. I'm a sucker for lost technology and stuff like that, loving that discussion in <i>The Lost World. </i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span></div>Zathrashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05038422869388120566noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3020225688483624486.post-4291580509568690862010-09-16T20:06:00.003-05:002010-09-16T20:22:54.455-05:00So it's been like eight years since I updated this...Been forever since I posted on this blog, and a part of that has been the weight I feel of trying to make an update after such a long hiatus. Of course, this is the same dilemma for a number of things. If you wait too long for something, and are intimidated by the wait, it just gets worse and harder to start. So I figured, best to just post. But then it comes to actually writing something, and even with all that's been going on, I just can't seem to get the energy to write anything of any interest. I've been suffering from some depression/malaise/listlessness the last several weeks, and that hasn't helped. Anyways, I'm hoping that merely by making an update I'll be more likely to begin updating again. Also, I'm thinking that I might be better about it if I don't feel like it has to be every day again. So we'll see how it goes.Zathrashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05038422869388120566noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3020225688483624486.post-15297523849680375842010-07-22T14:23:00.002-05:002010-07-22T14:27:08.824-05:00Yesterday was Nathaniel's second to last swimming lesson for the session. Although they started while I was gone in South Africa, I've quite enjoyed going to the last two or three of them. He likes the water for the most part, although he gets cold after only about 15-20 minutes in the water, so the 25 minute length is about right. His favorite is jumping into the water from the sides, although he also enjoys playing with a ball sometimes as well. He's not too interested in the actual swimming aspects as yet--stretching his arms, kicking his legs, etc.--but he does splash sometimes when asked, and although not intentionally to try to transport himself he does kick a fair amount at times. I think the main goal of the exercise at this point is to acclimate him to the water itself, so that he's not afraid of it down the line. The major goal of that is getting his head under water. We try that two or three times per week, and of course he gets all shocked every time it happens. The instructors say that it's usually worse for mom and dad than for the kids, so we have to keep a happy face whenever we do it. By last night he was definitely reacting better than when I first got there. The first time, he decided he no longer trusted mommy and had to have daddy for a little while. Now, he recovers fairly quickly and is ready to start playing again. Progress.<div><br /></div><div><br /></div>Zathrashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05038422869388120566noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3020225688483624486.post-51844109479262936232010-07-21T09:43:00.000-05:002010-07-21T09:49:39.845-05:00So it's been a long time since I've updated this blog, and I'd like to say it's because I've been busy, and I have had my share of things going on, but there's really no other reason than laziness for the lack of updates. I am going to try to be better about updating what's going on.Zathrashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05038422869388120566noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3020225688483624486.post-71076355455229341482010-07-01T09:20:00.002-05:002010-07-01T09:26:48.465-05:00Back Home<div>I got home late morning on Monday. I've been trying to get back into the swing of things back home since then, but it's been a bit of a struggle. Part of it is the number of things going on, part is the jet lag (33 hours with two hours of sleep and a seven hour time difference) but I think a part of it is simply having been gone for so long. Nearly four weeks of being away really upset my rhythm, making me feel like I don't know what I'm doing at home.</div><div>As for the results, I had a blast during all four games, but despite being able to really look on the bright side of losing in the round of 16, this morning I'm really feeling the disappointment of it. It's four more years until the next world cup, and it's a bit depressing to think that it will be so long before the next really meaningful game. Qualification is two years away, but the hex is even farther. There's a friendly against Brazil in August, I think, so hopefully there will be an air of optimism after the decent World Cup performance. Maybe we can find some forwards. It would be cool if Charlie Davies were able to play in that friendly and showed himself as back to his best.</div>Zathrashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05038422869388120566noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3020225688483624486.post-88348539003360883832010-06-21T11:35:00.001-05:002010-06-21T11:37:26.964-05:00Greetings from Cape TownThe internet availability in this country is shocking, considering how built up and rich the country is the fact that there is little to no internet availability in most places is totally incredible to me. I feel very cut off, but at least I've got email on my blackberry to keep me connected a bit.<br /><br />I've been journaling on paper and perhaps I will transcribe or scan the pages when I get back.Zathrashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05038422869388120566noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3020225688483624486.post-67407903580394269572010-05-20T21:14:00.002-05:002010-05-20T21:33:55.314-05:00All changeIt's funny how things change with a kid. I don't mean the obvious stuff, the stuff you expect to change--free time, eating, sleeping, cleaning etc. I mean things that I didn't really expect to change. Things like books and tv and movies that I enjoy. I just finished reading a series by Timothy Zahn, the <span style="font-style: italic;">Dragonback</span> books, which were really quite enjoyable, and I really did have a good time reading them, getting sucked in relatively quickly after re-reading the first book. But the series ended with the main character receiving a message from his dead uncle about his dead parents. For whatever reason that has set me off into a sleepless night of thinking about all kinds of things, beginning with thoughts about losing parents, and the life of a child who has lost parents at a young age (in the case of this book 3 years.) Michael Lewis told a story about having a movie ruined for him and his wife because (shortly after their child was born) a child was abducted from a public swimming pool while the father was underwater. He talked about how absurd the plot was, but that nevertheless it was just too much for the two of them. Anyways that's set me off initially, but it's spread into an overall simple depression. It's impossible to describe the feeling, or explain it, but I just have spent much of the day feeling on the verge of tears for no apparent reason; it just comes in waves and can be caused by something odd or nothing at all. Like the clips in America's Funniest Home Videos of children running from animals that really worry me -- Ostriches, kangaroos, etc. dangerous animals, animals that small children should not be able to get so close to, especially without very close supervision.Zathrashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05038422869388120566noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3020225688483624486.post-28686255905724422132010-05-17T20:55:00.002-05:002010-05-17T21:01:32.039-05:00Today was always going to be tough with the long tiring weekend behind us. NAthaniel made sure to get us up early, but we were able to get him to sleep in a little bit when I took him down stairs and sat in the recliner for a while. even after he woke up, he was tired enough to just lay with me while I watched QuickPitch with half an eye and a finger on the fast forward button. He didn't take much of a nap today, but he was in a pretty good mood anyway. We took a walk in the early afternoon and then another when Stephanie got home, going to the bank to deposit our tax refund, bar stipend, birthday and graduation money. All told, it came to over $10,000. I'm still trying to decide what to do with the money that I got, but since my dad has said that he'll help me to go to South Africa, I have a feeling that a good portion of that money will be going to help me fund that trip. Lodging, food, tickets, etc. still need to be covered, even if the flight itself is not an expense I have to worry about (and thank god for that, since they're at least $2500 in the best case scenario.)<br /><br />Anyways, going to try to go to bed a little early tonight since I'm so tired. Tomorrow Nathaniel will be going to his oma and opa's so that I can do some work for my dad and porbably meet with Andy to try to figure out some of the world cup stuff. Hopefully I'll be able to get a good deal done tomorrow. I want to get back to writing my other blog too, because I've really enjoyed a few books lately, and want to write down my thoughts about them.Zathrashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05038422869388120566noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3020225688483624486.post-6012994039319327532010-05-17T20:23:00.002-05:002010-05-17T20:33:56.745-05:00Graduation today. It was a whirlwind, with a lot of standing around out int he sun for what felt like eternity, before an emotional entry into the auditorium. I wasn't quite ready for the entry and all the people in there--it was packed with everyone watching us enter, everyone showing the pride that I'm sure we all felt. Not only that, but my transition lenses were dark, making it a little bit trickier to negotiate the ramp as well. <br />After the ceremony, we went to the Glockenspiel with my parents, grandparents and Stephanie's parents and grandparents. The last time that group was together there was when Stephanie and I got engaged. It was good, and I had Schnitzel, but we ended up having to run home because Nathaniel had a huge explosion in his diaper. We cleaned him up as best as we could and drove him home in just a diaper, got him in the tub and cleaned up before the others came over. <br />After they left, it was a big let down for me; not because they left, but just because I'd been going on inertia for the whole day and then the itinerary was over. We were all tired, but I felt a deeper melancholy because of the ceremony, and the end of law school.<br />I never really have had a lot of friends, but in law school everyone was drawn together with the intenisty of the experience and the common experiences that I could talk with most of the people in my class if I happened upon them at school for a good while comfortably. There were some who I'd speak to at length, but who I wouldn't necessarily seek out outside of school, and it is sad to me that I no longer have the chance to just go and have that social aspect of showing up at school, walking around the subplaza and finding someone to talk with for a few minutes. And beyond that, Calder and Ivy are now leaving for Vegas. As I said, I haven't ever had too many friends; I usually have just one very good friend at a time, with whom I spent most of my time. Brent, Ben, Dan, and of course my girlfriends and now my wife. But it is difficult when that person drifts away, leaves town, or whatever. I know that we'll still talk and hopefully we will actually do a lot of consulting with each other both on legal matters and on our possible venture. But I never have been good about calling people on the phone, and I always feel much more comfortable talking to someone in person. This has me leaning towards getting a PS3 (rather than an XBOX) in order to perhaps have some online gaming that we could do together. But more research is needed.Zathrashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05038422869388120566noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3020225688483624486.post-22664317384381115532010-05-16T23:02:00.001-05:002010-05-17T20:53:16.272-05:00Drove up to Duluth today for Erin's graduation. Nathaniel slept nicely on the way there, and was happy to see everyone when we got to Erin's apartment. He and I hung out there while everyone else went to the ceremony. He slept for about half an hour before waking up, but he went back to sleep for me for a nice long nap so long as I held him. I did just that for over an hour while I finished my book, and then we headed down to canal park to beat the parking crunch we expected later. Turned out there wasn't much difficulty parking, but Nathaniel and I walked around for a bit. I didn't feed him at that point because he hadn't given me any indication that he was hungry, and I was just sort of out of it from the change in routine, so when we got to the restaurant, he was very hungry. I was just heading to Caribou to get some hot water to make him a bottle when Stephanie called to tell me that they were done early and at the restaurant already. We fed him there, and then he had another bit blow out in his diaper.<br /><br />When we then headed home, he was tire,d but not really happy with getting in his car seat again. I played all the lullabies I could think of on my iPod -- Sweet baby James, Goodnight my Angel, etc. and finally got him to sleep. He slept until about Forest Lake when we had to stop for gas. When he woke up there, he was really mad about still being in his seat and expressed his displeasure loudly, but after expressing it for a while, he seemed content to wait until we got home, or at least was so tired that he started putting himself back to sleep. We got home late, but not as late as we'd feared given that it was the fishing opener.Zathrashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05038422869388120566noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3020225688483624486.post-84018340490774579272010-05-14T20:16:00.002-05:002010-05-17T20:23:16.200-05:00Today I helped Calder and Ivy pack up their apartment. It was a lot of hard work up and down the stairs to their third-floor apartment, with a number of heavy things, but thankfully unlike the last person I helped move, nearly everything was already packed--there was no wrangling of hangers and shelves of clothing. <br /><br />Piper was happier than I've seen her for much of the time, smiling and laughing at me a couple of times, and seeming to enjoy the company of her grandparents. Calder gave me his laser printer, which we reminisced about him bringing in to school during finals 1L year. It iwll be nice to have a printer at home again (I've got four, but the others don't really work well because I use so little ink they dry out after about five pages.)<br /><br />LAter on, I went out looking for a tie to match Nathaniel's so that we could dress alike for graduation tomorrow. I went to what felt like sixteen different places before finally finding somehting close, and bought it. Then, when I got home, I discovered that I didn't have a shirt that was the right shade of blue. IT was too late to go looking for another shirt, and graduation is early in the morning, so I am borrowing a shirt from my dad. The problem is that it's a size medium with a very tight collar. I'm going to have to pin it and hope for the best. Still doesn't quite feel real that it's tomorrow, probably partially because I'm so disconnected from the majority of the goings on at school. I didn't feel anything in particular towards high school or college graduation (I didn't even go to my college gradaution) but I think this one is more meaningful, as I've said before. We'll see how it goes, starting early in the morning.Zathrashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05038422869388120566noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3020225688483624486.post-55251540324418686542010-05-13T20:12:00.002-05:002010-05-17T20:16:07.780-05:00Target Field PartyWe took a tour of Target Field today, and it was a very nice stadium. In fact, I'd go so far as to say that it didn't feel like it was in Minnesota--it felt like the kind of ballpark that you experience on a trip to somewhere nicer. As I said a number of times "It's a nice thing they did with my money." <br /><br />We got to see that extraordinarily expensive sections, including those for which you have to pay $1200 for the privilege of buying tickets, and also got to see some neat memorabilia, including Kirby Puckett's gold gloves and Harmen Killebrew's first contract (signed by his mother since he was 17 at the time.)<br /><br />The party itself was ok; good food, and we spent much of the time talkoing with Calder and Ivy, who are leaving town right after graduation. I've really been not thinking about that because it bums me out.Zathrashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05038422869388120566noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3020225688483624486.post-88477415673765107712010-05-11T22:20:00.002-05:002010-05-11T22:28:38.460-05:00More pictures for Nathaniel today as we went to get his portraits taken at JC Penny. He was really moving around a lot, and trying to explore the studio a bit, which made the pictures a little harder, but there were still a number of good shots and we got a few good ones ordered. <br />Afterwards, we went to look at recliners since the one in the basement is broken; it leans to the left and forwards, and when you rock, the glider portion hits the base. We went to Schneiderman's furniture and found a good one, which we bought. I was reluctant to go ahead and buy it; I hate spending that much money before really looking around at other stores and options, but it seemed to be a fairly good price and the chair was nice. I now seem to have found it available online for less, so I need to look into the shipping cost and whether I can get it matched where we bought it. Tomorrow I'll need to go pick it up in Burnsville. David is going to help with that. <br />It's going to be harder to move than the current chair, though, and it's definitely going to be harder to sit forward in it, so the cables from the PS2 are going to be an issue. I looked into it and should be able to get a cordless one for $15 at gamestop, so I will have to plan on that soon. I also have to decide what I'm going to do as far as PS3/XBOX or something else with the money I got for my birthday, but I'm uncertain what I'm going to do at this point. There's those options, a home server, and a dozen others including socking it for the world cup which is still a slim possibility.<br />Anyhow, it's time for bed.Zathrashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05038422869388120566noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3020225688483624486.post-22942041699870919902010-05-10T21:59:00.003-05:002010-05-11T18:13:57.064-05:00<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY2KJirVeRavz4k9ZckevM2BkcUBuW4EOkifxGUwDWqBhyJ1GC3Dk67OvJJF7Yoj__NzcLBwb2WOQBoXYbahoT3lnqZOicSpHiFbfTQGo-I1XvqxM5FoYLH4hMlZ9fX-aSyB-lsDY8mwA/s512/2010-05-10%2012.51.15.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 255px; height: 339px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhY2KJirVeRavz4k9ZckevM2BkcUBuW4EOkifxGUwDWqBhyJ1GC3Dk67OvJJF7Yoj__NzcLBwb2WOQBoXYbahoT3lnqZOicSpHiFbfTQGo-I1XvqxM5FoYLH4hMlZ9fX-aSyB-lsDY8mwA/s512/2010-05-10%2012.51.15.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>Nathaniel went to Gillette today to see an endocrinologist. We went in around 12:30 and got out close to three, but it actually went reasonably well. Dr. Sheridan was reassuring, and told us that there wasn't anything in particular that stood out to him as something to test for, something for which there were warning flags. Because Nathaniel has been hitting (or exceeding) all of his developmental milestones, and he's so active and is actually gaining weight (at a rate of about 5 grams per day) he's not overly concerned. This put my mind to ease at least a little, especially since we mentioned to him many of the things that were back of the mind concerns.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZDr8qfKjA5tyMf3k-0a8NBJ4lTGiQy1rbEfwd3oTinRyu4Oh81oMcQDTk80CAPdd8ZsZ5n1TVObH0DD0Xp3k_DKmrSbEZigFo0K0Ygd2T8S5JLd_g8ouiKgoAQG3m6Nkw5rW36_jgZ-4/s720/2010-05-10%2014.39.26.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 330px; height: 247px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZDr8qfKjA5tyMf3k-0a8NBJ4lTGiQy1rbEfwd3oTinRyu4Oh81oMcQDTk80CAPdd8ZsZ5n1TVObH0DD0Xp3k_DKmrSbEZigFo0K0Ygd2T8S5JLd_g8ouiKgoAQG3m6Nkw5rW36_jgZ-4/s720/2010-05-10%2014.39.26.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>What we did get done were some x-rays, a series of tests called "hemi-skeleton" which involved scanning the hand, arm, leg, ankle and foot all on the left side for some sort of bone-age calculations. <br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Nathaniel was really good for the whole of the visit; through his weight and height check, through the doctor's examination, and even mostly during the waiting times. He even laid still for the x-rays with only minimal holding from Stephanie and me. <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr8OBK5F1BWmBaeoOWWyNnYObYxhgn0XdA5YwNdLke3XjAbV6xFPm_auJeVrmy_afHfXnTxSpSvDSH-awFeF6MenFktw74J7CHjb1GcjbhVI_rirsiepWThojpcQ_jwoZo1Xt8yBEIK_Q/s512/2010-05-10%2014.32.41.jpg"><img style="float: left; margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; cursor: pointer; width: 306px; height: 407px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr8OBK5F1BWmBaeoOWWyNnYObYxhgn0XdA5YwNdLke3XjAbV6xFPm_auJeVrmy_afHfXnTxSpSvDSH-awFeF6MenFktw74J7CHjb1GcjbhVI_rirsiepWThojpcQ_jwoZo1Xt8yBEIK_Q/s512/2010-05-10%2014.32.41.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>He got to get a sticker after his weight check, and after considering Mr. Happy and Mr. Noisy from the Mr. Men, we settled on Mr. Bounce. I think it's appropriate. <br /><br />After that, we picked up my mom from school since Shireen still has her car and we were passing by, and Nathaniel got a chance to see (again) my 2nd and 6th grade teachers, with both of whom my mother works. He was hamming it up for them as well, before getting tired on the way home and then falling asleep basically without any help as soon as we got home.<br /><br />Finally, it was picture night for Edelweiss, so we got him all dressed up in his lederhosen and Stephanie got all her Fest tracht out as well. I also got my lederhosen and various other things on and we went to the Klub Haus for the group pics. It took a long time to get everything done, but Nathaniel, Jack and Callie all managed to behave themselves quite well, and for the most part they seemed to not be unhappy for the camera. Nathaniel even shared his Very Hungry Caterpillar rattle with Jack, although I'm not certain exactly how much intent there was to share; Jack just grabbed it when Nathaniel got close, but Stephanie is excited for Jack as a therapist that he did it, and for Nathaniel for sharing. <br /><br />Tomorrow he gets more pictures, as we're going to get his 10 month shots done at JC Penny, since we didn't do 9 month shots. Hopefully he'll ham it up just as he has been doing regularly for me and his grandparents for months.Zathrashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05038422869388120566noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3020225688483624486.post-55249686147440449912010-05-10T08:04:00.002-05:002010-05-10T09:41:24.829-05:00Today was mother's day and I didn't do a great job of making it a good one for Stephanie. She had to work, of course, but I should have done more for her when she got done. As it was, we got takeout from the Blue Door and ate with my parents. It was quite good food, but I feel bad that we didn't do anything specifically for her. It's just hard when I don't have a good way to get around.<br /><br />Nathaniel had fun with both of his grandmas on mother's day, visiting my parents for dinner (and a quick walk earlier in the afternoon) and then a little while in the afternoon he hung out at Stephanie's parents' house before I picked Stephanie up from work. He has been interested in faces for a while, and human forms in art as well, and today at my parents' house he was looking at this particular statue that my dad has up on the top of a shelf in the music room. He's been interested in the mask that hangs above our phone for the last couple of days, and he was quite insistant that he wanted to see that face at my parents', continuously reaching for it and trying to convince his grandparents to get it down for him. So we can add curator to the list of dentist, plastic surgeon, eye doctor, foot doctor and plumber to potential careers for the little guy.Zathrashttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05038422869388120566noreply@blogger.com0