The Howard County Fire Department made another unscheduled trip to my house a couple of weeks ago while I was at the LCY event.  The last time they were there, our new black cat had gotten himself high up in a tree and couldn't figure out how to get down.  He was so high that we didn't have a ladder that got more than a third of the way up to where George was meowing. So we put the fire fighters to good use by having them rescue our cat out of a tree.  How cliche!

This time, things were no less comical.  Our nanny, Leslie, had just run outside to get something out of the car when she heard the door close behind her.  Thinking nothing of it, she got the stuff from her car and went to go back into the house.  Unfortunately, when she went to open the door, the knob wouldn't turn.  Staring back at here from the other side of the glass window was Caden, the 2 year old.  Somehow, he had locked the door and locked out Leslie.  No problem, she'll just try the sliding glass door.  That's almost always unlocked.  Survey says.....XXX!  By now, Leslie is totally freaking because the 2 year old she is in charge of is in the house by himself.  He isn't crying, except for when he gets his arms stuck in his coat that he is trying to take off.

So Leslie tries everything she can to get into the house, but has no luck.  So she calls the high school to have Craig sent home immediately to deal with an emergency.  So he gets home and tries the code to get into the garage door.  No luck.  By this time, the Fire Department has shown up after receiving a frantic call from Leslie.  Thinking he has the code wrong, he calls Colette and asks her what it is.  While he's asking her, she hears a bunch of people in the background.  "Yeah, that's the fire department" was what he said in a calm voice.  Of course, that totally freaked Colette out and she calls me to make sure she had the code right. Of course, I was talking with the Ytria folks about their product line.  They certainly got a chuckle out of it. Wouldn't have mattered what the code was because the battery on the remote had died!  So she calls me back to ask me what she should tell them to break to get into the house.

As I am going through my mental list of how much my new windows cost to replace, she gets the good news that the fire department was able to jimmy the front door open without damaging anything.  Leslie rushed into the house only to find that Caden had curled up on the floor and gone to sleep while watching a Baby Einstein DVD. So much for him being totally freaked out.

In the end, the only thing damaged was Leslie's psyche.  Hopefully, that will be the last time something like this happen, but I am not holding my breath.

Colette and I felt like we were coming out of a fog this weekend when we headed out to BJ's to stock up on household products. We usually shop there about once every 3 weeks, but I couldn't remember the last time I had been there. Ever since the start of 2008, I have felt like I was walking through a hazy nightmare. As I mentioned in a previous entry, Caden has been sick for almost 2 months and both Colette and I were at our wits end. We no longer thought about trying to have fun or planned to go places, but rather coasted through the day, hopped up on caffeine and aching for a full nights sleep. It's amazing what you can do on autopilot when the survival instinct kicks in. I didn't think it at the time, but it was probably a very good thing that I didn't make the pilgrimage to Orlando for Lotusphere 2008. I am not sure what my wife would have looked like when I got back or even if she would have let me back into the house.

In any event, both of us are starting to feel as close to normal as we can with 4 boys running around the house. The reason for our renewal can be summed up in one simple word - diagnosis.  After continued fevers in February, I took another trip to the Nighttime Pediatrics office last Thursday. This was the second late night trip in a week and we were there at the bequest of our pediatrician to have a urinalysis test. Caden was such a trooper during the catheterization procedure, he only squirmed a little, and, in less than 10 minutes, we had a positive test for white blood cells in the urine.  Eureka!  We had something we could actually treat. From the first dose of the antibiotic Supramax, the real Caden started to emerge in leaps and bounds. By Tuesday, he was back to his normal, busy body self.  He had been sick so long that we had almost forgotten what he was really like  Be careful what you wish for cause you just might get it.

One of the thing we got at BJ's was a new steam cleaner. Our old one, a Bissel ProHeat POS, stopped wanting to suck up the water it deposited on the carpet.  Not a good sign considering how much we paid for it and the fact that it was less than 2 years old.  After investigating all of our options online, Colette decided that the Hoover Steam Vac All Terrain was the machine for us.  Sounds like something that might be able to clean up your yard after taking care of the carpets.

Note:  Cleaning products and gadgets are one of Colette's obsessions. If it's on TV and it looks like it will clean something in our house, she will want it. Her pride and joy at the moment is our Dyson vacuum cleaner that is as good as it claims to be.

After a simple assembly, Colette fired it up and went about cleaning the carpet in the family room. Of course, being the helpful husband that I am, I took the baby downstairs and played Guitar Hero II. I didn't want Caden to get in her way!

I have to say that the carpet looks 100 times better and the smell of food that Caden dropped and then ground into the carpet is now gone. Time will tell if the new machine has the durability to withstand the kind of use it will get in our house.

Although I haven't written much about it, Jackson started wrestling this season. As I expected, it was a pretty rough year, especially since he was the smallest and youngest kid in the league. At 5 years old and a whopping 35 pounds fully dressed, he was usually wrestling kids that were at least a year older than him and 5 - 10 pounds heavier. Regardless, he approached each match with enthusiasm and was always upset if he had to miss practice. And these weren't your normal soccer or basketball practices. Rather, they were 2 hours of heavy conditoning, drilling and live wrestling.

Going into the last dual meet of the season, I had almost given up hope that he would get a victory this year. He had one close match earlier in the season, losing by 2 points in a 6 - 4 decision. Still, I was encouraged by his improvement in the wrestling room and was hoping he might be able to get a favorable match up before we put on the soccer cleats. I was a little surprised when I got to the match on Saturday and saw that he was matched up with a kid who was in the weight class above him. Expecting another thrashing, I was quite surprised when the following occurred. If Jackson's opponent looks a lot bigger, don't try to adjust your screen. He out weighed Jackson by 12 pounds.

One of the guarantees in life is that there will be times when you will be humbled while you least expect it.  You might be a helluva developer, but then you take a look at a simple app on OpenNTF and understand that you still have a lot to learn.  You might be able to put the rock in the hole with the flick of your wrist, but that won't keep your 12 year old son from whooping you in a game of H.O.R.S.E.  You might be able to consistently get 4 stars on the Hard level of Guitar Hero III, but your 8 year old niece in pig tails kicks your butt in Faceoff and she's playing on Expert level.  Such an event happened last night at my house and, thankfully, I wasn't the one being humbled.

For Christmas this year, my sister, who is 5 years my junior, bought Jackson, the 5 year old, a game called No Stress Chess.  The purpose of the game is to painlessly teach someone how to play chess.  Along with a regular chess board and pieces, it comes with a deck of cards that contain a name of a piece, a picture of the piece, and the rules around how a piece can move.  This allows new players to get an understanding of how the pieces move without having to worry about the strategy of game play.  To play with the deck of card, you simply take turns drawing a card and you move which ever piece is shown on the card.

From the time the game was first played. Jackson loved it.  He would often try to "help" you play your turn and was a pretty good winner and loser, most of the time.  About a month ago, I discovered that both the iMac and Vista came with Chess games.  Once I showed Jackson they were on there, he would cycle between playing chess, Webkins, and Nick Jr.  Of course, I moved the settings down to "George Bush" level so that he was able to win a large portion of the time.

So my sister stopped by last night to see the kids and, of course, Jackson wanted to play a game of chess.  She agreed, but she stipulated that they had to play a real game of chess, not one with the cards.  I was in the other room when they started and I could her my sister try to give him pointers.  I told her to quit it and just let him lose if he makes a mistake.  Then I started hearing him say 'I got you' when he'd take a piece of hers.  "Whoops, I didn't see that" was uttered from her lips a couple of times.  About 10 minutes later, I hear that although he forgot to say 'Check', he had in fact gotten her in Checkmate.  She was none too happy about the situation and readily agreed to a rematch.  This time he let her be white, but started trash talking almost from the get go.  At one point, he got her looking at one part of the board and sneakily captured her queen, almost shouting 'I took your Queen!'.  Although he never got her in checkmate, she was down to 2 pieces and finally had to surrender.  Very Humbling!

Jackson went from not knowing anything about the game of chess to being able to beat my sister, who has been playing regularly with my dad, in a span of about 8 weeks.  Sure, maybe he got lucky and she was off her game from the constant taunting by a kindergartner.  Colette said that he was saying all kinds of not nice things to the iMac this weekend due to the fact that I had increased the skill level without him knowing.  He didn't like the fact that he wasn't able to e asily beat the computer every time.

What's really going to be interesting is to see how my dad reacts when Jackson beats him for the first time.  My dad is not the most gracious loser in the world, especially when it comes to games of strategy.

There are times in your life that you just wish would never end and there are other times that just make you want to end it all.  The past month was closer to the latter than the former, that's for sure.

Our youngest, Caden, is normally a very healthy child, but that was not the case this month.  We were attending one of Jackson's wrestling matches and Caden was being his busy self, getting into everything he shouldn't.  All of the sudden, he stopped playing and wanted to sit in mine my and Colette's lap.  Very unusual!  Then the temperature started to rise.  It peaked at 104° F and stayed there for the better part of 12 days.  On day 6, we arrived at the Emergency Room at 6 AM after having survived the 4th straight night of no sleep.  We went in for precautionary reasons, since we were pretty sure it was just a nasty virus kicking his butt.  They took blood and mucus samples and sent them off for testing.  After a round of normal ibuprofen and all negative results, we headed back home to suffer through the weekend.  The fever was still there on day 10, so into the radiologist we went for a chest x-ray.  You haven't lived until you've tried to get a sick kid to hold still for a chest x-ray.  By day 12, the fever was much milder and the drugs worked at keeping him cool much longer.

During the first week of sickness, Colette made it into the office for 4 hours and I was able to get about 12 hours worth of work done.  So much for storing up that vacation for something fun in the summer.  So Caden got well in time to have his second birthday party on the 20th.  Overall, things went pretty well, if not a little subdued for one of our shindigs.  The Nathan's cocktail weenies in Iron Chef' General Tso's sauce were a HUGE hit that required no effort.  The only negative of the party was that one of my niece's girls and one of my nephew's showed up not feeling so hot, and of course Caden played with her for a large portion of the party.

Everything was OK until Wednesday night when Caden started to have a stuffy nose and a little bit of a cough.  By Friday, he developed another fever to go with his full blown head cold.  Things didn't get any better by Tuesday, so it was off to the doctor's office again.  The nurse practitioner said it looked like someone had taken a red magic marker and colored the inside of his ear.  Yep, Caden had an ear infection.  We started him on amoxicillin, but he still never made it back far enough to go back to the baby sitter's house.  At least this time he had a problem that drugs could actually help heal.

All told, Caden was only well enough to be around others for 7 of the 21 non-holiday weekdays in the month.  While .333 might be a great batting average in the majors, it sucks when you are trying to get real work done.  Here's to hoping that February is much better in the health department.  I am not sure it can possibly be any worse, short of having something that requires a long term hospital stay.

As some of you already know, I started a new position today.  No longer am I a full-time employee for a big company.  As of Friday, I am a hired gun again doing contract work for whomever wants to hire me.  For the foreseeable future, I will be working on a contract for one of the many multi-lettered government agencies in Washington, DC.  Yes, this means that I will no longer be able to work in my jammies all day long, at least for the time being.  Once I get the situation under control, I will be working remotely for a portion of the time.

For the reason behind the change, well, that's very simple.  I was made an offer I couldn't refuse.  I wasn't looking for a new position, but, like the rest of us, was willing to listen to almost anyone who wanted to make an offer to me.  With both my wife and I working, I was able to listen to more offers that didn't include the complete benefit package.  This was one of them.  I am not positive what this new position will entail for me, but it will be good to get back out and interface with clients on a regular basis, even if it means I have to shower on a more regular basis. 

Another side effect of the change is that I am more open for short term projects.  If you are looking for someone to come in and help in pinch with development or administrative issues, give me a holler and I might be able to help out.  If it's in the DC-Baltimore area, so much the better, but I am willing to listen to any one who wants to make the call.

I have come to the conclusion that being the mother of 4 boys makes some things inevitable. The other day while I was at work I received a phone call and some instant messages from Sean. He was trying to reach me because Caden (our youngest who will be 2 in January) had fallen at the babysitter's house and busted his head open above his left eye. Sean was trying to decide whether or not he was going to take him to the emergency room or try and glue his head back together himself. Let me just say that Sean needs to stick to IT and not try to be a plastic surgeon. Can you tell that we have been through this before? Let's see....the 10 year old (Kyle) has busted his head open twice and the 5 year old has done it once. The funny thing is that our kids all seem to do this in the time between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Kyle holds the award for worst timing by splitting his head open one year when we were walking out the door on Christmas Eve to go to church, instead we went to the ER where they glued him back together and gave him a huge teddy bear. I have a feeling though that Caden with his "No Fear" attitude is going to be a frequent flier of our local ER. I am happy to report that we have a great facility near us that has a separate pediatric ER and Sean and Caden were in and out of there in less than an hour. Also, thank goodness for medical glue. It has saved us numerous stitches and probably will save us more in the future.

Being a product of the 80s, I was always into making mix tapes. Since tapes have given way to CDs and iPods, making a mix for myself or someone special isn't as hard as it used to be, but it's still just as important. Nothing can get your workout flowing like a well laid out list of songs. But in reality, the mix tape is all about expressing one's feelings for another person, whether that be a newly found love or a love that's possibly leaving. So without further adieu, here is my Ultimate Get Him/Her Back CD Playlist:

1. All Out of Love (Air Supply) "I'm lying alone with my head on the phone, thinking of you til it hurts"
2. Baby Come Back (Player) "I was wrong and I just can't live without you"
3. To Love You More (Celine Dion) "She won't love you like I will"
4. Don't Let Him Steal Your Heart Away (Phil Collins) "Tell me what else can I do but say I was wrong"
5. I'll Be There For You (Bon Jovi) "I pray to God you'll give me one more chance"
6. It's No Good (Depeche Mode) "Don't say you're happy out there without me, I know you can't be cause it's no good"
7. Unbreak My Heart (Toni Braxton) "take back that sad word goodbye, bring back the joy to my life"
8. Hopelessly Devoted To You (Olivia Newton-John) "my heart is saying don't let go"
9. You Were Meant For Me (Jewel) "Cause it was happy or I was sad and it made me miss you oh so bad"
10. I'm the Only One (Melissa Etheridge) "and I'm the only one who'll drown in my desire for you"
11. Right Here Waiting for You (Richard Marx) "whatever it takes or how my heart breaks"
12. Making Love Out of Nothing at All (Air Supply) "But I'm never gonna make it without you, do you really want to see me crawl"
13. Always Something There to Remind Me (Naked Eyes) "and I can't help recalling how it felt to kiss and hold you tight"
14. It Must Have Been Love (Roxette) "it was all that I wanted, now I am living without"
15. Hard to Say I'm Sorry (Chicago) "After all that's been said and done, you're just a part of me I can't let go"
16. Always (Bon Jovi) "you see I've always been a fighter, but without you I just give up"
17. At this Moment (Billy Vera and the Beaters) "if you'd stay, I'd subtract 20 years from my life"
18. Can't We Try (Dan Hill and Vonda Shepard) "I love you so much baby, that it tears me up inside"
19. Careless Whisper (Wham) "should have known better than to cheat a friend, waste this chance that I've been given"
20. Don't Let It End (Styx) "loneliness fills me up inside cause I'm missing you"
21. How Am I Supposed To Live Without You (Laura Branigan) "didn't come here for crying, didn't come here to break down, just a dream of mine is coming to an end"
22. How Do I Live (LeAnn Rimes) "if I had to live without you, what kind of life would that be"
23. I Don't Wanna Live Without Your Love (Chicago) "I could never make it though my life if I had to make it on my own"
24. If I Could Turn Back Time (Cher) "you walked out that door i swore that i didn't care, but i lost everything, darling, getting there"
25. Please Don't Go (K.C. and the Sunshine Band) "that I am gonna miss your love the minute you walk out that door"

So you think you have a song that is a better choice? State your case in the comments and say which of the current songs should be replaced. If I agree with you, I will make the change.  Be Warned - Silly suggestions will be ridiculed greatly and most country songs will be completely ignored.

Below is a picture of a bug that has been literally kicking the chit out of Caden since Saturday.

Today is the first day that he was able to get back to being normal.  I think he was actually happy to be taken to the sitter's this morning.  I think he's really gotten sick of being at home.  I wonder if he was as sick of getting his diaper changed 15 times a day as I was of doing the changing.

On a more positive note, Jackson starts wrestling tonight.  This will be his first practice and he is so excited that he's been telling anyone who will listen that he is wrestling.  It will be interesting to see what happens when he gets thumped for the first time, but at least the kids will all be his size and not 20 pounds heavier and 5 inches taller.  I think I am going to have to break out the video camera to capture some of these moments.  If you have never seen the mighty munchkins wrestle for the first time, you haven't seen something that will make you laugh and is still a positive thing at the same time.  It's almost a guarantee that during a match, both kids will stop, let go of each other, and look at the coaches or referee to see what they should be doing.

I received this in my email today and thought I should probably share it with everyone.

Hi All....Sorry to take a moment of your busy lives but I would appreciate all of you sending at least one card to our wounded soldiers recovering at Walter Reed (The address is below) ...On the news last night, NBC reported that this year was the deadliest for our soldiers and that means even more wounded to me...

Thanks in advance for your help with this!

Holiday Cards for Wounded Warriors

Our wounded warriors need to know we care. When you are making out your Christmas/Holiday card list this year, please include the following:

Any Recovering American Soldier
c/o Walter Reed Army Medical Center
6900 Georgia Avenue, NW
Washington,D.C. 20307-5001

Regardless of how you feel about what's happening overseas, the people receiving these cards are paying a far greater price for their country than most of us can ever imagine.  So take a second and add one more address to the list of cards you are already sending out.

The same goes for say, a lift pump remover. Each time a toilet is flushed, the waste goes to the treatment plant to be processed. The first place it enters in the plant is the lift pump chamber, which is about five stories high. If the pump breaks, that five-story chamber fills with human waste. When that occurs, a person wearing a protective full-body suit and a breathing mask enters the chamber and swims through tons of human waste to tie a cable to the top of the pump so it can be lifted and everything filtered out.

How would you like to be his kid on Take Your Kid to Work Day?  There are just some Dirty Jobs that are just not on my radar of acceptable careers.

We've always known Jackson was small and his check up yesterday confirmed it.

At 5 years and 2 months:

your child is 34 pounds, and that is at the 4th percentile for weight.

your child is 40.5 inches, and that is at the 6th percentile for height.

Try our Children's Growth Chart Percentiles Calculator again.

The only thing big on his body is his head, which has always been in the top 25%.  He needs all that room for his freaky math brain.  Oh well, yet another one that won't be supporting me by making millions in the NBA.  On the positive side, he grew 1.5" and gained over 10% in weight in the past year, so the pediatrician was happy.

Kipper

It's been over 10 14 days since it happened and I still am not able to write about it without losing any semblance of control, but I think I really need to get it out there.  So please excuse any water spots on this post as I wasn't able to type and catch the tears at the same time.  It's taken many tries over a number of days to finish this entry, so I hope it isn't too discombobulated.

It all started with what we thought was a twisted ankle on the last weekend of June.  We were all in the back yard and he was running around like normal, but stopped suddenly and limped over to my wife and I.  Since he was coming up on his 9th birthday, I thought that he had just twisted and ankle or stepped on something.  Thinking nothing of it, we continued on our normal routine.  Unfortunately, things progressed steadily downhill over the next week and a half to the point where I thought I needed to take him into the vet.  He didn't mind having his front right leg touched, poked, and prodded.  He did whimper a little when you pulled the leg forward, but nothing too alarming.

So the vet visit was uneventful, yet not cheap.  After just an external exam, the Dr. Bob indicated that he thought it was probably something in the shoulder that was hurt.  He gave Kipper a shot of anti-inflammatory and gave me a prescription to give him each morning on his food.  He said he would have his office call me in a week and see how things were progressing and sent me on my way $150 lighter in the wallet.  At this point I still wasn't concerned because Dr. Bob had a lot of experience with sight hound and I was confident that he would tell me if it was anything serious.  He gave me the normal guilt trip about not taking better care of Kipper (translation: coming to the vet more often to spend my money), but didn't say anything that set off alarm bells. 

I was good about giving him the medicine, but he wasn't great about eating his food.  Ding Ding Ding!  While he would eat what came off the table, he wouldn't eat much of the dog food.  Then I noticed that his shoulder seemed to be very misshapen, some parts were swollen and others were sunken.  Ding Ding Ding! The whining started to be a constant thing and he stopped using the leg almost all the time.  As the days passed, the leg started to swell, but still wasn't shy about letting me touch and squeeze it.  Other than going outside to relieve himself, he didn't move around much at all.  Ding Ding Ding! 

The office called a week later and things weren't any better, so they wanted to bring him for x-rays and blood tests.  The estimate I was given was $600-750 to put him under and do the tests.  I finally decided to do a little reading on the Internet and see if the issue Kipper was having was a common one.  Part of me was hoping that it was something that was racing related, but most of me knew it wasn't something good.  Page after page documented almost exactly what happened to Kipper starting with the minor limp.  The prognosis was always the same, osteosarcoma or bone cancer.  Our worst fears were coming true.

Not really trusting Dr. Bob any more, I went another vet to see what he had to say.  Knowing what I knew going in, I was a complete basket case.  I could barely get a hold of my self to register him or answer any his questions.  He confirmed my diagnosis of cancer, but he tried to give me some hope by saying it might be a less aggressive kind.  In any event, we needed to make a decision about treatment within the next week.  I knew that we had to make a decision even sooner because I was not able to get any sleep with the constant whimpering coming from Kipper.  I had taken to sleeping on the couch on the ground floor so that h e wouldn't try to go up the stairs to my bedroom.  It also let Colette get a little more sleep that she was with him in the room.

The normal protocol for treatment include amputation of the limb effected and chemotherapy.  Estimates on the web ranged from $3K - 10K, with no guarantees of survival.  With 4 kids and stairs all over the house, I just couldn't see use being able to care for Kipper if we chose to amputate.  Besides, we both believed in quality over quantity, and Kipper's quality of life was not real good.

So the next day, I went to the local Amish market to get Kipper a last meal.  I figured I would get him a nice, big steak and grill it up for him.  As I was trying to make a decision, I walked around the poultry counter and noticed the perfect last meal for a greyhound....rabbit.  I had never cooked rabbit before, but I was sure that he wouldn't be complain.  Later on that night, I oiled Bugs up, added seasonings, and threw him on the grill.  Cooked on low for about 20-25 minutes and he was ready to be served.  Colette and I took turns pulling the meat off the bones and Kipper ate every last piece that we offered.  Considering the rabbit weighed over 4 pounds, that was quite an accomplishment.  After all those years on the track chasing a mechanical bunny, it was good to be able to give him the real thing.

The final trip to the vets was incredibly painful.  At least I was smart enough to bring a stack of tissues with me this time.  In the end, I couldn't bring myself to be in the room.  We said our good-byes and we went out one door while he went through another.

At this point, I have to point our exactly how wonderful the people at Patuxent Valley Animal Hospital were to us.  First, while we discussed options, there was never any pressure to change our decision or guilt laid on us for not trying more.  In fact, they did not ask us to pay or do any paper work on the way out, sent us a condolences card signed by everyone in the office, and billed us what I consider to be a very reasonable amount.  From now on, we will be taking all of our animals there and recommending them to all of our family and friends.  The demeanor of Dr. Louis West and his staff was exactly what I want from a vet and their pricing will make routine visits something I don't dread.

After reading Phil's list, I figured I should put mine out there. Of course, I had to pick myself off the floor and wait for the laughing cramps to subside. I know the list won't be as ecclectic as Nathan's or John's, but I think it's pretty good. Of course, I know it's only supposed to be 5 songs, but I just couldn't help myself. I have marked my ultimate top 5 in bold.

• Zoo Station - U2 (Achtung Baby)
  
• Welcome to the Jungle - Guns N' Roses (Appetite for Destruction)
• Thunder Road - Bruce Sprinsteen (Born to Run) This album also has one of my favorite last songs of all time in Jungleland.
  
• Don't You (Forget About Me) - Simple Minds (The Breakfast Club Soundtrack)
• One Headlight - The Wallflowers (Bringing Down the Horse)
• Speak to Me/Breathe - Pink Floyd (Dark Side of the Moon)
• Beds are Burning - Midnight Oil (Diesel and Dust)
• Possession - Sarah McLachlan (Fumbling Towards Ecstacy)
• I Don't Care Anymore - Phil Collins (Hello, I Must Be Going!)
• Hotel California - The Eagles (Hotel California)
• Vertigo - U2 (How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb)
• Closer to Fine - Indigo Girls (Indigo Girls)
  
• Where the Streets Have No Name - U2 (The Joshua Tree)
• Angry - Matchbox Twenty (Mad Season)
• Never Let Me Down Again - Depeche Mode (Music for the Masses)
• Smells Like Teen Spirit - Nirvana (Nevermind)
• Lay Your Hands on Me - Bon Jovi (New Jersey)
• Radio Song - R.E.M. (Out of Time)
• Who Will Save Your Soul - Jewel (Pieces of You)
• Let's Go Crazy - Prince and The Revolution (Purple Rain)
• St Teresa - Joan Osborne (Relish)
• Damn I Wish I Was Your Lover - Sophie B. Hawkins (Tongues and Tails)
• Spiderwebs - No Doubt (Tragic Kingdom)
• Runnin' With The Devil - Van Halen (Van Halen)
• Sunday Bloody Sunday - U2 (War)
• Baba O'Riley - The Who (Who's Next)
• Breathe (2 A.M.) - Anna Nalick (Wreck of the Day)
• I'm the Only One - Melissa Etheridge (Yes I Am)
• Real World - Matchbox Twenty (You or Someone Like You)

I am sure there are more out there that I missed from my collection, especially the ones on vinyl that I don't have converted to MP3.

After making the mistake of not taking REALLY comfortable shoes to Lotusphere, I decided to invest in a good pair before heading to Dublin for ILUG.  As much of a clothes horse as I am, I, thankfully, do not have a shoe fetish.  So we headed to The Walking Company at the mall and I picked up my first pair of shoes specifically bought for comfort.

In the end, I decided on the Austin from Keen.  They were the only ones that I could stomach as far as appearance went and they were really comfortable when I tried them on.  After a week of walking around Dublin, I must say that these are probably the best shoes I have ever owned.  Colette and I walked every where and my feet NEVER hurt.  This is a far cry from some of the other shoes in my closet.

If you are searching for new shoes, I would highly suggest checking out Keen's line of shoes.  They are not cheap (mine were about $90), but you really have to ask yourself how much are your feet worth.  Knowing what I know now, I hope that Keen's shoes get a little prettier, cause I think I will be a customer for a long time to come.

Update:  I forgot to mention that Colette was the one that forced me to get a new pair of shoes before ILUG.  She less than subtly pointed out to me that I had left that fact out.  Thank you honey, you were right!!!

Colette and I turned in our applications on March 8.  For those of you keeping track, that was more than 10 weeks ago. To their credit, the State Department has created a web site that allows you to track the status of your application.  For the last 7 weeks, it has said that it 'currently being processed'.  In the end, after many calls into the NPIC, we had to go down the the passport office in Washington, DC last friday to get our passports.  Once there, we waited in lines like at the MVA, but were able to walk away with a passport for Colette after 4 hours or so.  My passport had actually finished the night before and was being FedExed to me.  It arrived Saturday morning while I was coaching my son's U6 Soccer team.

Here are some things I learned while going through the process:

• Although they say you should have your passport back in 10 weeks, don't believe them.  If you are planning on taking a trip out of the country in the next year, apply for your passport now.
• As of right now, you only need a passport for Mexico and Canada if you fly there.  If you plan on making a run for the border in your GTI, you only need your driver's license.
• If for some reason, you passport hasn't arrived and you are leaving within the next 3 weeks, start calling the National Passport Information Center at 1-877-4USA-PPT (1-877-487-2778) every day.  The numbers to hit to get through to a live person are 1-3-1.  If after a couple of seconds, the system tells you that all representatives are busy, hit 9-3-1 to get back into the line.  Repeat the 9-3-1 until you hear ring tones or classical music.
• There are 2 sets of people that answer the phones, the ones at the call centers and the ones at the task force.  If your passport hasn't arrived within 3 business days of your departure, the task force personnel are the only people who can make you an emergency appointment at a regional passport office.  You can tell which queue you are in by what you hear when you are waiting for someone to pick up.  If you hear classical music, it's a call center.  If you hear ring tones followed by a message that you need to hold on for the next available person, it's the call center.  It's a complete crap shoot as to which queue you get in when calling the main number.

Last month, we traded in our 2002 Toyota Sienna XLE for a 2007 Toyota Sienna Limited. The lease was up on the old van and it was in need of some repairs that I just didn't want to deal with. As much as I liked the old van, the new one has all the good points of the previous vehicle plus a ton of new extras that I just love.

• Instead of needing to remove the back seats to get more cargo room, the rear seats fold down into the floor. This was a big selling point for me as we were regularly (weekly) removing/installing the seats in the old version.
• The windows in the sliding rear doors now roll down. This is a great thing during the nice weather, especially for the kids. With all the windows down and the moon roof open, I can almost imagine myself in a 2 seater convertible as opposed the mini-van that I am really driving.
  
• Each of the back windows have a sun screen that can be manually raised and lowered. The baby likes this feature the best.
• The DVD entertainment system is now fully integrated into the audio system as opposed to the after market add-on we previously had. The DVD resumes it's play when the car is restarted, especially useful on trips with the kids when we need to stop for gas. The audio system itself is quite nice and puts out enough power to drown out the cries from the back seat drivers. I haven't subscribed to XM yet since I don't have to make a daily commute, but the AUX jack is a nice way to get my music out of my iPod.
  
• The in-dash satellite navigation is a nice to have, although I haven't gone any where that I have needed to use it yet. But being a geek, I do love having more buttons to push.
• The radar assisted cruise control does a nice job of keeping your feel off the break when driving in traffic. It automatically slows when you get to close to a car and will resume the set speed when the idiot gets out of your way. The sonar is extremely helpful when parking to make sure you get as close as possible. The rear view camera was very easy to get used to and is probably my favorite new feature.
  
• Thankfully, they have added adjustable lumbar support for the driver. This was sorely missing in the last van.
• The turning radius for this van is nothing short of phenomenal. It might actually be smaller than my Matrix. Quite amazing and very useful.
• Everything is automatic. The tailgate will open and close automatically. The moon roof will completely open and close without having to keep the button held down. The windows can be closed or opened after turning the car off, but before opening the driver's side door.
• I know it's a really small thing, but the switch for the interior lights is right on the main console and clearly labeled, off, door, and on. No more trying to guess!
• The run flat tires are a nice to have, but I do have to wonder how much they will cost to replace. At least I don't have to lug around the weight of the spare all the time.
  

While I do love most of the things on the new van, I do have a couple of gripes:

• The addresses in the mapping software are off. Not by much, but enough to be annoying, especially when it puts my house a block from where it should be. Hopefully, I will be able to get an update soon that will resolve these issues.
  
• The DVD navigation via the front screen is disabled once the car has been taken out of park. I can understand not allowing it to be used while driving, but once I put the car back in park, please allow me to use it again.
• I wish I could turn off the navigation and show the current radio station and the messages it is sending out across the entire screen. Sometimes I just want to know the name of the song and artist.
• I want the pockets on the back of the front seats instead of the silly hooks.
• The sunglass holder needs to be a little larger. I am always afraid of killing my Oakleys when I stick them in there.

I am almost speachless when it comes to how to respond to this story:

Benjamin Houghton had fewer reasons than most to fear the surgery he'd scheduled at the West Los Angeles VA Medical Center to remove his potentially cancerous left testicle.

For one thing, the 47-year-old Air Force veteran and father of four already knew that he could function normally with a single, healthy testicle.

For another, he was getting his surgery in a system that has prided itself on its pioneering efforts to prevent medical errors. One top VA official said the VA's approach to safety is considered "a benchmark by healthcare organizations throughout the world."

But in Houghton's case, the hospital missed the mark. Last June 14, doctors mistakenly removed the right testicle instead of the left, according to medical records and a claim filed by Houghton and his wife Monica, 39.

If this happened to you, how much would you sue for?  Is there a number that could compensate for this kind of loss? 

I know it's pre-Lotusphere week, but I have an issue I have been struggling with, so I thought I would throw it out there and see if anyone has a good idea or two for me.

Our house is approaching 20 years old and a bunch of maintenance has been done to it.  The problem I am having is that the screw holes in the door jams and doors have become enlarged from having the screws removed and replaced over time.  This has caused the screws to be loose and work themselves out of the wood over time.

Does anyone know if there is a product that I can use to remedy this situation?  I am thinking of some kind of filler that I can spray into the holes that will keep the screws in tight.  Any help at all would be very welcomed.

My 9 year old son, Kyle, is completely enamored with anyone in a uniform.  If we ever go to any event, he will see them out and proceed to talk their ears off until it's time to leave.  At a recent wrestling tournament, he found a couple of police officers and started the conversation this way:

I see you are drinking some coffee. *pause*  Where's your doughnuts?

A friend of ours was working the concession stand nearby and had to sit down he was laughing so hard after hearing this.  Even the cops had to take a minute or so to compose themselves. 

Chris and Jack were kind enough to tag me, so I guess I have a few smaller skeletons in the closet that I can share:

1. I was in a Handbell Choir in High School - After 5 years of playing clarinet in the school band, I was a little reluctant to continue on when I got into high school.  I was never very good at taking the time to practice (EVER!) and didn't see that changing anytime soon.  The only thing that kept me in the first row in middle school was my ability to sight read.  Then my band director gave my name to the choir director at the high school.  While he was there trying out kids for his choir (17 straight 1s at States), he did a quick audition for me to try out of his Handbell Choir.  After a number of weeks of early morning practices before school, I made the choir as only the second freshman to do so.  We played at a number of DC area events and traveled to Orlando and Toronto to play in front of churches there.  There were more than a few memorable events during my time in the choir.  Splitting my tuxedo pants while bending down in my first concert as a freshman, walking out after playing an entire set and puking in a church bathroom in Orlando, and playing 3 of the 5 Grade 5 pieces of music for our last concert my freshman year.
2. I have 2 tattoos - A Mickey Mouse one on my right shoulder blade and a Celtic Eternity knot cross on my left shoulder blade.  The wife has a matching eternity knot cross.
3. I first dated my wife when we were 15 - I was a 105 lb. wrestler at one school, she was a wrestling stat at a rival school.  I thought she was quite cute, she thought my butt looked good in my singlet.  So began our sometimes tumultuous relationship that has spanned over 21 years.  There is not enough space here for me to write our whole story, but, if you really want to know and have some time, buy me a drink at Lotusphere and I will try to tell the truth and nothing but the truth.  Of course, I like it so much better when the wife tells it and I simply get to give color commentary.
4. I am a clothes whore and know more about fashion and jewelry than a straight man should - They say the first step in recovery is admitting you have a problem, but seeing an overflowing closet isn't a problem for me.  It's the empty ones that have issues.  In the last year or so, I have started to clean out some of the old clothes in favor of some more updated threads.  I still have 2 drawers full of t-shirts, but they don't all have Mickey or something geeky on them.  Of course, my wife still complains that I take up over 2/3 of the closet space.....in the house.  And when it comes to jewelry, the wife just tells me to get whatever I think is best.  Her engagement ring, which I designed, never fails to get fave comments from the jewelers whenever we get it cleaned.  Over the years, I have developed my eye to the point where I can usually tell the color of a diamond within 1 letter.
5. I moved to California by myself for a Notes Administration job when I was 25 - They made the offer and I said yes.  I was 18 months into my professional career and decided to take a chance on some new surroundings.  I had lived in Maryland all my life and decided to make a change just to see what would happen.  I left Maryland on Jan 2, 1996 and arrived in the bay area 5 days and over 3,000 miles later.  The move to a place where I didn't know anyone taught me to be able to rely on only myself, if necessary.  A good attribute for a Notes professional who is usually the only Notes expertise in a company.  I am back in Maryland now, but the lessons I learned in Cali are still with me.

Next on the hit parade are Curt, Duffbert, Alan, John, and Steve.  Good luck.

The gluttony at Christmas time is always a sight to behold. Every year, we start off with good intentions to keep things reasonable, yet they always tend to get out of control. I must have been a really good boy, cause I got a lot of good stuff.

• Best Present - All-Clad Stainless 12-Inch Chef's Pan - This beauty has been high on my wish list for quite a while. I can't wait to put it to use.
• Most Surprising Present - Salt Keeper & Finishing Salt Set - I have looked into finishing salts in the past, but never thought I was good enough to warrant the cost. I can't wait to try them on my next steak. And they do look great when I put them on the table. So snotty!
• Sure to Share Present - U2 by U2 - A must have for any real U2 fan. This is a huge book that the wife and I will be looking at for years.
• Simple, But Useful Present - Amco 8402 Rub Away Bar 4-in. - Great for getting rid off nasty smells that accumulate on your hands. Also a sure conversation starter when noticed by guests.
• Manly Kitchen Tool Present - Grill Press - Much more manly than wrapping a brick in foil.
• Natural Born Killers Present - Oakley Whisker - Pewter with black iridium polarized lenses.  I have been whining about not having sunglasses for quite a while.  I guess I can pick something else to whine about now.  This is my first pair of polarized lenses, so I will have to see the difference it makes.
  

All in all, not a bad set of presents, even if there isn't a gadget among them. Hope you haul was as good as mine.

Sometimes it's just too easy to find an article to write about.  MSNBC provided me with this gem.

Having regular and enthusiastic sex, by contrast, confers a host of measurable physiological advantages, be you male or female. (This assumes that you are engaging in sex without contracting a sexually transmitted disease.)

I added the emphasis myself.  I mean, who really wants to have unenthusiastic sex?  If having a valid, scientific reason to help you convince your partner to get jiggy with it wasn't enough, the following side effect will make any man smile:

Better teeth: Seminal plasma contains zinc, calcium and other minerals shown to hinder tooth decay. Since this is a family web site, we will omit discussion of the mineral delivery system. Suffice it to say that it could be a far richer, more complex and more satisfying experience than squeezing a tube of Crest — even Tartar Control Crest. Researchers have noted, parenthetically, that sexual etiquette usually demands the brushing of one's teeth before and/or after intimacy, which, by itself, would help promote better oral hygiene.

Try reading that and not look like a cheshire cat.  Of course, the study was probably commissioned by men who wanted something more than just the annual birthday snoggin.  The Greaseman would be proud. Talk to the Judge!

Researchers in Canada have found evidence in mice that the autoimmune attack causing type 1 diabetes may be triggered by abnormal nerve endings in the pancreatic beta cells.

The scientists found that in mice that usually develop type 1 diabetes spontaneously, removing these defective nerve endings prevented the mice from contracting the disease.  The study was led by Hans Michael Dosch, a scientist at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, and published in the latest issue of the journal Cell.

This is the most exciting news surrounding Juvenile Diabetes in my lifetime.  Here's to hoping they come up with a cure in the next 5 years.

Link to story

and run around with your head cut off.  It seems that I have been doing too much of the latter and not enough of the former, but things should be better now.  Other than a trip to my favorite wine store, I have finally finished all my Christmas shopping, although I am still on the look out for a couple of odds and ends that are not must haves.  I hope Colette likes what I got her because at least one of the gifts is not returnable!  As usual, I have set a budget for myself before buying anything and then completely ignored it when I was actually doing my shopping.  It's so much tougher to stick to a budget when everything is paid electronically.

I am not exactly sure what our plans are for Chrismas eve and day, but I hope to run around as little as possible.   At least I am not going to be traveling hours on the road to visit out of town relatives.  It's not the visiting of the people that bothers me, it's the hours spent on the road when I should be at home relaxing with the family.

Caden's just about walking.  He's cruising around the furniture something fierce and letting go and taking a step to transition to far away stationary objects.  His mobility is starting to be something we really have to worry about, although he doesn't take off down the hall like Jackson used to.  Instead, he likes to stay close to where I am working on the computer and try to pull the power cord out of the laptop or bend the screen down so he can see what daddy's doing.  Oh so much fun! 

We have 3 birthday parties to go to this weekend, I am getting an early jump on the annual holiday weight gain.  Actually, I don't gain much weight, if any, during this time of the year.  I am usually too busy in the kitchen to take time to partake of all the goodies.  Working from home this year might be a little different, but I really don't think so.

I do need to take some time this weekend to work on the Lotusphere presentation.  John and I have set a deadline for Wednesday to finalize our outline and determine what exactly we want to cover.  I was waiting for the session list to be published before finalizing our topics.  It seems that while there are a couple of other sessions concerning blogging, ours is the only one to be looking deep into the inner workings of the Domino Blog template.  That has definitely ratcheted up the anxiety level and is making me want to do even better.

I also need to take a look at my OpenNTF apps and see where I can extend them.  I have been thinking about a way to extend the ASND Export Facility to the web, but I got to come up with a clean, fast, scalable way to sort a document collection.  Following the good advice of Wild Bill, I am not going to start coding anything until I have it architected correctly in my head.  Once that piece is done, I will be able to sort the results without relying on Excel.  It will allow me to expand the functionality for the other export formats that are supported.  I also have a couple of other simple apps and one monster application that I want to get out in the open before Lotusphere.

I uploaded a bunch of new pics of the kids for all the friends and family that read this site.  Isn't it amazing how far one Oreo cookie can go?

Some day soon, I will get a break. I will win the lottery or just have enough time and money to actually take a vacation some where that requires me to get on an airplane with my wife, with or without the kids. But until that fabulous time arrives, it seems the chit will keep piling up at an ever alarming rate. Of course, I don't have any one else to blame but myself for most of it, but that doesn't make it any easier to handle.

Colette started back to work yesterday. She'd been off about 10 months for Caden's birth and was hoping to make it an indefinite leave of absence, but financial situations made that impossible. On the positive side, she is now working for Novavax, which is currently developing a vaccine for the Avian Flu that is poised to make trouble around the world. I haven't gotten all the details yet, but their method seems to create a very stable vaccine without the use of chicken eggs! If you have a bit of money lying around waiting to be invested, you might want to do a little research on Novavax.  If the clinical trials go well, they should be raking in the money from all the governments in the world.

On the negative side, the line between my work and home lives all but disappeared.  This week is going to be the worst by far since both boys are with me most of the day.  Starting Monday, Caden will be going to a sitters house from Noon - 5 every day.  We were lucky enough to find an almost perfect situation for our day care needs.  Caden will be going to Miss Polly's house, which is in the neighborhood next to ours.  Even better is the fact that Colette and her sisters have known Miss Polly for quite a while, so there is already a huge comfort level there.  Finally, Caden is going to be the only baby in the house, so he's going to be spoiled beyond all belief.  Some days, it's better to be lucky than good when looking for services.

Last Friday night was the Pre-Homecoming Spaghetti Dinner for the RHS Booster Club.  Not wanting to attend another dinner that just sucked, I volunteered to cook.  Of course, it was just me and a bunch of women back in the kitchen.  I was in charge of making a monster batch of my Caesar dressing and putting together a spaghetti sauce that didn't suck.  Unwilling to just doctor up an existing sauce, I made a sauce from tomatoes (sauce, crushed, pureed, and paste), onions, garlic, olive oil, and Italian seasonings.  In the end, both items turned out very well and the 400+ people that attended the dinner had nothing but good things to say.  And, I must say, I did get a huge kick when people just referred to me as Chef.  I guess if I wasn't doing well in my current career, I would probably try to head into the culinary arts.  Not sure how well I'd do at it, but I think I would enjoy myself.

Now I just have to come up with a menu for next Tuesday's annual Halloween Party.  I saw a number of interesting recipes in the latest issue of Cuisine at Home that I might try.  Thankfully, my new fryer arrived yesterday.  About a month ago, my DeLonghi deep fryer went belly up.  It had been limping along for a while and it finally just gave up and killed the switch to turn it on and off.  I tried to continue cooking without it, but you never really know how much you use something until you don't have it to use.  I just can't go back to baked french fries after having piping hot peanut oil at my disposal for the past 3 years.  The new DeLonghi fryer is a little more advanced than the last one, but I will reserv e judgement on it until after the party.

While this information is not public yet, I expect it to be released this week. It falls right in line with the other revelations this week:

• First, Foley resigns abruptly after being caught sending emails to underage mail pages under his tutelage.
• Foley's lawyer says that the congressman has been checked into a (Scientology?) rehab clinic for his closet alcoholism.
• Apparently, Foley decides to bring everything out of the closet by admitting he is gay. After listening to some of the comments about the way he dressed, anyone who actually knew him already was already aware of this.
• Finally, Foley threw his religion under the bus by accusing a former priest of molesting him.

It's just logical that by the end of the week, the truth about Foley's horrifying ordeal at the cold, slimy hands of other world beings should be in the public domain. I just hope he can some how work through all these problems and become a contributing member of pedophile community.

Of course, watching the political fall out from PageFuckingGate has been extremely entertaining in a dark, satirical manner. I wouldn't be surprised to hear that the GOP (Gang O' Pedophiles) gets it's butt kicked in the elections in November. By the way the other Republicans have been distancing by from Speaker Hastert, I expect to hear that he is stepping down as Speaker of the House or at least not running for re-election. AIDS patients in the 80's got a warmer reception. It's going to be all but impossible for Hastert to convince anyone that he didn't know anything about the hanky panky that Foley was playing with pages, regardless of what the truth is. Foley's former CoS has indicated that he came forward over 3 years ago with concerns over Foley's interaction with the pages. Even leaders in the Archdiocese can be heard gasping at that length of time.

The best part about this whole scandal is that it is yet another black mark on the self-righteous Christian Coalition run Republican party. Sure Clinton was getting a blow job in the oval office, but at least Lewinsky was an adult! I just want the GOP to get back to the true republican agenda, one based on fiscal conservatism, instead of trying to turn America into a Christian Fundamentalist State.

Jackson has his first soccer practice last night.  He's on a team of 9 boys and girls, ages 4 - 7.  He is by far the smallest kid out there (by probably 6" to one of the girls) and probaby the youngest, but did that cause him to hesitate at all?  Not in the least.  He did so much better in an organized practice that I would have thought.  He was no worse than the rest of the kids and he did a good job of actually listening to the coach.  At the end of the practice, the team had a little scrimmage.  Basically, someone got the ball started in one direction they all ran around it until they went out of bounds.  For some reason, only my wife and I were laughing at the spectacle on the field.  And the best part of the whole thing was how much he talked about it all night long and how he said he has so much fun.  I can't wait for the first game next weekend.

The title of this post might seem a bit out of character for my blog, but after reading it, you'll understand why.  That being said, if you are a bit on the squeamish side when it comes to preventing the birds getting with the bees, you may want to turn back now.

Last Friday, I went in to permanently set the number of children I will ever have too what it is today.  Yes, ladies and gents, I went under the knife and got a vasectomy.  Even hearing the word makes most men cringe.  But the results are much better than buying birth control the rest of your life or, heaven forbid, yet another munchkin running around taking control of the TV while I am trying to watch football.  Below are some of the nuggets of information that I have learned from the experience:

• There is nothing more ego deflating than having 2 female nurses lay you back on a paper lined table with a hospital gown pulled up above your waist.  No matter how impressive you think you are, to them you're just another dick waiting to be fixed.
• Betadine in a squirt bottle at room temperature is really freaking cold when applied to your privates.  The least they could have done was warm it up a little.
• The procedure itself is relatively painless.  The only thing that hurts even a little is the needle for the local anesthetic.  I sort of felt when the doctor was slicing into me, but it was only pressure and no pain at all.  From the time I got on the table til I was getting dressed to go home was about 20 minutes.
• Nobody looks good in the gauze underwear they put you in afterwards.
• As a precaution, I took a dose of Tylenol before I left for my appointment.  After I left, I went straight to the Pharmacy and filled my prescription for generic Vicodin.  As soon as I got home, I took one before the local had a chance to stop working.  I took another pill before I headed to bed that night.
• ICE! ICE! ICE! As bad as it might sound, apply ice as soon as possible.  It keeps the area numb all night and significantly reduces any pain.  I never thought I would elect to put ice in that area of my body, but it did help.  Just don't put your laptop on your lap while applying the ice because it will melt the ice very quickly.
• You are going to lose sleep the first couple of nights because every time you turn over in bed, you will wake up.
• The doctor was right about the pain.  It feels just like someone kicked you or hit you in the balls.  Normally, that feeling subsides overtime, but this pain goes on for a few days to a week.
• Going down stairs is much more painful than going up them.  The railings in handicap stalls are a God-send.  Sudden movements should be avoided if possible.
• Don't worry about not being able to have sex for a week.  It will be at least that long before you even think about letting someone else get close to that area of your body.
• There will be some swelling (not the good kind) and quite a bit of bruising, so your privates will be even less attractive than usual and you will be walking like you have a load in your pants.

At the end of the day, it's no where near as traumatic as I expected and far less invasive than having the wife take care of it on her end.

4 years ago today, my son Jackson was born.  Life has been quite an adventure ever since.  He will be entering preschool this fall in preparation for Kindergarten next year.  Due to changes in the birth date cutoff, he will be one of the youngest kids in his class.  And it pretty much goes without saying that he will be one of the smallest, not that his size has ever limited him.  We have also enrolled him in an Under-6 soccer league.  I will be very interested to see how he reacts to an organized sport as opposed to just going out an kicking the ball in the yard.  He's either going to absolutely love it or hate it, there will be no middle ground.  If he likes it, I just hope he's good enough not to get frustrated by a lack of ability.  If past experience is any indicator, I think his determination and single minded persistence will help him greatly.  I know it annoys the crap out of me when he wants me to do something for him.

And if all that was going on at home wasn't enough, the other developer at my company was on vacation this week, so I was handling all the support calls and enhancement requests.  The first week he was out, the volume from the PMs was relatively light, but it got out of hand this week.  It is so utterly frustrating when you are in the coding groove and have to stop to solve a production issue.  It usually takes me 15-20 minutes to get back into the groove again once the problem is solved, which is a productivity killer.

So after all the stress of the week, I finally find time to go work out on Friday to relieve some stress.  I have been hitting the gym 2-3 times a week since about mid June and am starting to see some results.  I may not have lost any weight (not that I am trying to), but I am definitely stronger, so something must be happening.  Anyways, I was on my last set of benches when I felt a white hot pain run through my neck.  I stopped working out right away and went home and put ice on it, but the damage was already done.  I spent the whole weekend looking like a whiplash patient.  You really don't understand what a big deal being able to turn your head is until you can't do it.  Try driving without being able to look behind you.  The stiffness finally started to subside on Monday, but there is still residual pain in my neck this morning.  Looking up is the one thing that makes me twinge still.  I was still able to get 2 trips to the gym this week, but I think I am going to rework my exercises from being mainly power-lifts (squat, bench, dead-lift) to being more bodybuilding exercises that work on one muscle at a time.

There was one interesting side effect from Caden's surgery.  Since we were unable to put him in the walker or exersaucer, he spent a lot of time on the floor.  In the past week, he has gotten significantly more mobile.  While not quite crawling yet, he rolls all over the place and is starting to get into the other kids toys.  Their lives will never be the same.

On Wednesday, I had a consultation appointment to make sure that Caden is our last child.  The procedure is scheduled for August 25 and is not something I am really looking forward to, but having another child is NOT an option.

The final event occurred yesterday morning. My niece, Shannon, had her second baby, another girl.  Karaline Nicole weighed 6 lb, 8 oz and was 19 1/2 in long.  Both mom and daughter were in good health.  The funny thing about her being born yesterday was that August 12 was previously known as her daddy's birthday.  I can't imagine a better birthday gift than the arrival of a new child.

It's been quite the whirlwind of a past 2 weeks.  We got our new family room furniture (sofa and chair-and-a-half) from La-Z-Boy delivered on Sunday (July 30).  We went with one of the stock microfiber fabrics in a dark, ruby red (M881208).  To get ready for the delivery, we had to move the futon down to the playroom in the basement.  No big deal, but the doorway leading downstairs is only 30 inches wide, so nothing fits down it.  So I had to take apart the futon frame.  It took me a while to figure out how to do that since we had bought the futon over 6 years ago and it had never been disassembled since.  Well, I finally figured out the least number of bolts to undo, and once i had it apart, one of the pieces was broken.  Of course, the frame has a lifetime guarantee at a store that isn't open on Sunday or Monday and I was taking it apart at 10 PM on Saturday night.  Luckily, the guy at Futon Furniture in Elkridge had the part I needed and I was able to get my futon back together in time to use it Tuesday night.

I needed to use it Tuesday night because the painters showed up to start painting on Tuesday.  We are having our bedroom, upstairs hallway, and foyer painted for the first time since the house was built.  At least that's the way it looks in the hallway.  The reason we are not doing it ourselves is that the ceiling over the steps is a cathedral and there was no way in hell I was going to get on scaffolding on the stairs.  There are just some things that I am willing to pay a professional to do.  The foyer, staircase, and hallway are being painted a green and having a lighter shade ragged over top.  In the bedroom, we went with a light blue called Cloudless and are having the room striped with a darker shade in the same family.  With just one coat on, the change is already amazing and I can't wait for the ladies to finish it completely.  It will be so nice not to see all the kids fingerprints all over the walls.

Wednesday was a very traumatic day in Caden's life.  He had surgery to repair a birth defect called hypospadia.  I won't go into the gory details, but it's a problem that only little boys get and it something that makes all the men who hear about it flinch involuntarily.  Anyway, the surgery went fine, but was longer than we had originally anticipated.  The doctor who performed the surgery, Dr. Ranjeev Matthews, said the surgery went quite well and explained to us all that needed to be done for him post-op.  Without going into all the gory details, Caden was wearing 2 diapers for a week and a half, but came through everything fine.  I think this was the first time any of my children actually work a size 4 diaper.

Since this week was the hottest week of the summer, it was only fitting that the window installers from Vytex showed up on Thursday to install the windows.  It is amazing to see how quickly windows can be replaced by people who know what they are doing.  In all, we had 15 windows and a sliding glass door replaced.  For the price I paid for the windows, I am very happy with them, especially the new sliding glass door and the bay window we had put into the kitchen.  It's great that Jackson can now easily open and close the door to the deck.  The bay window in the kitchen replaced a double window that was already there.  It's amazing how much that opens the space in that area.  They were able to get all the regular windows replaced in about 2 hours, but the bay and door took the rest of the day to do.  They caulked the inside and out and returned on Friday to cap the outside of the windows with new vinyl and put shingles on the bay.  I was able to save some shingles from the recent roof install, so the shingles on the bay match the new roof exactly.  The only complaint I have about the installers is that they didn't clean up as well as I would have liked.  I have found a large number of screws and pieces of vinyl around the yard and am going to have to probably use a lawn vacuum in the fall when the vegetation dies.

And speaking of roofs, I forgot to mention that my roof was replaced about a month ago.  I love the new look of the architectural shingles in a deep charcoal black.  What's really amazing is that 4 guys were able to remove the old shingles, replace my attic fan, and install the new roof all in a single day.  The new attic fan (the old one died) made such an immediate difference upstairs, much more than I would have thought possible.  Although the roofers install the new fan, they didn't hook it up to the electricity.  Since I am pretty comfortable with electrical wiring, I was able to get it running in about 15 minutes, even through all the sweat pouring out of my body.

I was thinking about how often we are defined by things we own.  This is especially true about our cars.  Here is a list of cars that I have bought since I first got my license.

• 1978 Dodge Omni 024 (used)- Yellow and Black Auto, I was able to fit 10 students in it once in order to get everyone to McDonald's.
• 1988 Toyota 4x4 Pickup - Red 5 Speed, Was my baby through the college years.  Upgraded it with an Sony 10 Disc changer, 33" tires and lift kit, and grill guard and roll bars.  There are many a day when I miss this truck
• 1995 Acura Integra SE - Green 5 Speed, My first car I bought on my own after getting a real job.  I just parted with it after 135K miles, 2 cross country trips, and many memories.  It might have been the perfect small car.
• 1997 Mercury Mountaineer (used)- Black Auto, Bought because Colette couldn't handle driving a minivan.  Last time I listened to a lame argument like that.  On a positive note, this SUV had a great ride and amazing turning radius.
• 2002 Toyota Sienna XLE - Denim Blue Auto, Most practical car for us.  Got the DVD player for trips to the beach and it more than paid for itself that first 3 hours filled by silence from the back seat.  Would definitely buy this again.
• 2006 Toyota Matrix - Pewter Auto, Fun, but very practical.  4 doors and hatchback for easy trips around town.  I only have 3200 miles on it since I got it in early Feb, but things have been good so far.  I do miss the get up and go of the Integra when I am trying to pass, but the ease of driving an automatic more than makes up for it.

I am not sure what it tells about me, other than I am not responsible for more than just myself.  I keep holding out hope that I will win the lottery and be able to get the Porsche 911 Turbo that I know I so richly deserve.  :-)

I have not been real motivated to write in here in the last week or so, but I feel I need to make amends for something I missed.  The Friday before last (June 23) was my wedding anniversary.  While the number achieved is a nice one, it doesn't compare to the one that was passed in December.  That anniversary marked 20 years since Colette and I first met and dated.  To think about a number that large still amazes me, especially when I think back to all the stops and starts we had in our relationship.  I won't bore you with the details (to be honest, I just don't have the time to write them all down), but if you ever meet the both of us, get a drink and ask us about our story.  It's always better when we tell it together because it keeps both of us honest and we help each other remember all the facts.  Little did I know how my life would change when I met that cute little wrestling team manager from a rival school at a wrestling tournament.  I guess it was a good thing that I placed 1st that day.  To mark the event, I finally got around to giving her a pair of diamond stud earrings.  I had been thinking about getting her some for a while and was finally able to get her the size I wanted to be able to afford.

Unfortunately, the reason I was able to afford the earrings was that my jeweler was going out of business after almost 60 years.  Mazer Jewelers of Baltimore officially closed its door on June 30.  It was a family business that had been operating since 1947.  The son, Stanley, had taken over the business and had decided to close the downtown location after the passing of both his parents, 10 months apart.  I have bought a number of piece from him over the years, including Colette's engagement ring and our wedding bands.  He indicated that, since he no longer had to support his parent, he was going to take some time off and enjoy himself before opening a new store in the Baltimore suburbs.   I am sure that I will make the trip to the new location when it opens.

School has officially been out for 2 weeks, so that means the kids are bored beyond belief.  Craig spent the last 2 weeks taking drivers education classes.  Although he can't get his learner's permit for a couple of months, this was the only time he could take the class before next summer.  With diabetes camp and football practice starting in mid-August, there was just no other time available.  Such is the life of a 3 sport high school student.

Kyle just returned from a week down at the beach with his grandmother, an event I don't think he will be repeating any time soon.  It's amazing how clueless some people who used to be parents are when it comes to dealing with kids.  This is especially true when it comes to serving meals.  I know that he enjoys Hamburger Helper now and then, but every night?  Give me a break.

Jackson is in dire need of structure in his life.  I just hope to be able to make it through the next 2 months without killing him.  Thankfully, he will be starting a 5 day a week afternoon preschool in September.  He loved day care when he went prior to Caden's birth and I hope he will be just as excited about his new school.

Caden is continuing to develop at a nice steady pace.  He's so much more responsive now, which makes him much more fun to play with.  Of all the kids, he is probably the most laid back as a baby.  Nothing much seems to bother him, short of hunger and dirty diapers.  We have been putting him in the exersaucer and walker for the past month or so, and he really enjoys it.  He's doing so much better in his balance that I don't have to support him much at all when he's standing and hanging on to his gym or my fingers.  Of course, he looks hilarious standing up because he is so short.  He can't sit up by himself or crawl, but he certainly is getting the hang of being on 2 feet.

The self induced torture has begun in earnest this past week.  After a seriously long hiatus, I have started back into the gym.  Against my and my muscles better judgement, I have start working out with my father.  He seems to forget how long it has been since I did any real powerlifting and had me squatting and deadlifting my first week back.  I forgot just how much pain I could be in from doing simple little exercises.  Hopefully, things will be less painful this week.

In case it might be hard for you all to believe, I was some what of an athlete when I was younger.  Besides wrestling and soccer, I also competed in powerlifting competitions in my teens and early 20s.  Although it's nothing too tremendous, while competing in the 123 lbs class, I was able to squat 300 lbs, bench 195 lbs, and deadlift 330 lbs.  Not to shabby for a skinny geek.  I think I still might hold a Maryland State record in the 114 lbs class for the 14-15 age group for bench.  Not sure what the number was, but I can tell you I was no where near 114 lbs.

I just wondering what would be the effect of an Ark on the average neighbor? Now, here's a guy going to work, 7 o'clock in the morning. Noah's next door neighbor, and he sees the Ark.
Neigh: Hey! You up there!
Noah: What you want?
Neigh: What is this?
Noah: It's an Ark
Neigh: Aha You wanna get it outta my driveway? I gotta get to work...Listen, what this thing for anyway?
Noah: I can't tell you Hahahahaha!
Neigh: Well, I mean can't you give me a little hint?
Noah: You wanna a hint?
Neigh: Yes, please
Noah: How long can you tread water? Hahahahaha!

My father was a big Bill Cosby fan and growing up (get ready, I am going to date myself) we used to listen to albums of his performances.  My favorite one is Bill Cosby Is A Very Funny Fellow Right!.  It contains the classic 3 part skit with Noah and the building of the Ark.  It is these skits that come to mind whenever we get the rain like we have gotten over the past couple of days.  While we were in desperate need of some rain, I think that a few too many people were overly zealous in the prayers and rain dances.  The Baltimore-DC area is currently stuck along a right of Low pressure trough that is causing torrential down pours to occur every so often.  In the last 24 hours, we have received over 8 inches of rainfall and that is a conservative estimate.  Some places on the Delmarva peninsula received over a foot of rain in less than 12 hours.  In case you're keeping track at home, that's about 3 months of rain.  Needless to say, I think we have erased any deficit that we might have had this year.

The really interesting thing is to see the effect it is having on the transportation in the area.  A number of Metro stations have been closed due to flooding, the Beltway in Virginia was closed in both directions because a river was going across it, a number of Federal agencies closed the doors to their buildings because of flooding, and the underground garage of a hotel in DC looks like something was playing with the guests vehicles like my son plays with Matchbox cars.  I know we are a magnet for movie sets but since when did we sign up for the sequel to "A River Runs Through It"?  I am so glad that I didn't have to get up this morning and slog through all the traffic just to be able to do the same thing I am doing from home. 

If the suicide bombers supposedly receive 72 dark eyed virgins when they enter the afterlife, does the same thing apply to the females who blow themselves up in the name of jihad?  I am not sure, but from what I have heard bantered around by the women I know, that is not exactly what they would call a reward for a job well done.  It's more like a punishment akin to going through puberty all over again.  No, that's not it!!  What if it's even worse.  What if the martyr receives 72 female virgins to pleasure themselves with, no matter what their sex is.  Can you imagine the look on her face when she pulls aside the tent flap and see a bunch of naked ladies waiting for her?  And if it's a couple who love each other and decide to blow themselves up together, do they separate when they cross over and head off with their harem to get their rocks off alone?  Not exactly something that would be appealing to most couples I know.  These are the types of conversations that made me marry her in the first place.

The wife and I are in the process of doing some major and minor remodeling of the home and yard.  The first piece has already been accomplished, namely the removal of 3 HUGE Bradford Pear trees that lined the driveway.  Although the provided nice shade, they had grown way too big and were starting to cause issue with the roof of the garage.  Not to mention the fact that a number of my feathered friends used them as housing and made daily deposits on the cars parked under them.  It was amazing how quickly the contractor, McTavish's Tree Service, was able to remove the trees and get the stumps ground down.  They also removed another nondescript tree that was overhanging the deck and cleared out a bunch of debris along the back of the property.  The did all this without trashing my newly planted tomato and hot pepper plants.  I asked them to leave behind all of the mulch, 2 truck loads full, for me to weigh down the weeds along the back of the yard.  Hopefully, the mulching and industrial strength weed killer should do the trick.

I was able to get the last of my plants and seeds into the ground today, so all I am waiting for now is the fruits of my labor.  In all, I have 28 tomato plants, include 2 patio variety that I have in containers, 6 hot pepper plants, 2 watermelon mounds, 2 cantaloupe mounds, 5 zucchini/squash mounds, and 3 cucumber mounds.  Before you get all excited about coming over to raid the my garden, I must tell you that I have not had great results the last couple of years.  This year, I tried a couple of things that should remedy this situation.  First, I tested the soil and found that the main garden plot was severely in need of some phosphorus, which I replenished with Bone Meal.  Then, I went to my local ACE Hardware store (I love that place) and got some weed block landscaping fabric to help keep the weeds out.  This has worked well in the past so I am trying it again.  I also purchased 3 additional soaker hoses, so that all the veggies can be watered without a sprinkler.  This should help the tomatoes the most since they tend to frown upon getting their leaves and fruit wet.  Finally, I went back to basics and stuck to mostly tomatoes and peppers.  I have done other things in the past, like lettuce and eggplant, but they have just distracted me from what I really needed to pay attention to.  I will be sure to put up some pictures in the next couple of weeks, once the plants get to a respectable size and are bearing some fruit.

Next on the list is getting the roof replaced.  I had priced out roofers in the fall, but didn't have the funds to get the necessary work done then.  Now that the money is available, the roofer we had chosen is coming by this weekend to allow us to choose a color for the architectural shingles.  Once that's done, he will be able to get the roof done in approximately 2 - 3 weeks.  The work itself should only take a day or so, but scheduling his time is going to be the restriction.

In the meantime, we are getting estimates from a number of companies that install vinyl replacement windows.  Our windows are original to the house and are in dire need of replacement.  When the wind outside moves the shade while the window is closed, it's time for a new window.  ; So far, we have gotten estimates from Sears Home Improvement (the initial high end and a second, more reasonable solution), Homeview Contractors, and See-Thru Windows and Doors (Republic).  I have at least 3 other companies coming out to show us their wares before we make a decision.  From what I have seen so far, this is going to be more costly than I originally expected and might require use to put off some additional remodeling that we had thought about doing.  If you have any experiences with getting replacement windows installed, by all means, please share them in the comments.  If you have a contractor in the Baltimore-DC area that you think I should either use or avoid, please let me know also.

As if on schedule, Caden's first tooth appeared yesterday.  He's been miserable for the last 3 days with severe congestion and a low grade fever and now we know why.  Colette noticed the speck of white yesterday morning and we confirmed it at his 4 month check up in the afternoon.  Since his ears and lungs were clear, the doctor went ahead and gave him his shots, which didn't make him any happier.  I will say one thing for Caden, even though has been miserable, he hasn't been crying much more than usual.  It's just that it's tough for him to sleep and he's quite restless even when he is asleep.  We've put him into the bouncy seat to keep him semi-upright which helps him breathe better.

His checkup went very well.  He weighed in at 13 lbs, 2 oz, which is a solid gain of 3 lbs, 10 oz in 2 months.  He also grew 3 1/2 inches to 25 1/2 inches in length.  While he may never make the NBA or even a high school basketball team, he is in the 75th percentile for the time being.  His head continued a steady growth, although it pales in comparison to Jackson's at the same age.  He didn't seem to be bothered too much by the shots, but the areas on his thighs were a bit tender last night.  All in all, things are going pretty well for him.

My wife made me sit down and watch a story on Oprah last week.  You have to see it to believe it.  It will make you think twice about saying something is impossible or that you just can't do it.

Flightview is what the Internet and self service is all about.

With Live! you get flight status updates without having to hit refresh and since it is in this popup window it doesn’t interfere with your surfing. You also get to control the zoom level and weather options. The earlier you start during a flight, the more value you will get from Live!

Although most of the material on the site is targeted at the travel industry providers, it does provide a free tool for tracking the flight of any plane in the continental U.S.  But for those of you who have loved ones that travel a lot, it provides an easy way to track the actual progress of the plane, including position, altitude, speed, heading, and type of plane.  It can also overlay weather conditions and will show you if a flight gets diverted.  Way Kewl!

There is no better resource for learning how to draw cartoon characters than Preston Blair's Animation (Book 1).  The first edition of these books contained a number of well known characters that were used to teach aspiring artists how to draw.  Unfortunately, subsequent editions had to be redrawn using generic characters after studios like Warner Bros. sued for copyright infringement.  Thankfully, the ASIFA-Hollywood Animation Archive has found a copy of the first edition, scanned the book, and made them available to everyone on the internet.  The book has been posted in two parts.  Be warned: each page contains a number of very large images and takes quite a while to load, even over broad band.

If you're looking for another site to help teach you how to draw, take a look at all kinds of stuff.  The author, John Kricfalusi, has lots of great examples of fantastically drawn cartoons throughout history.

Rocky posted this on his blog and I wanted to chime in.  I had originally started this as a comment to his post, but it got too big, so I copied it over here:

Here is my path of computer work and employment in becoming the Lotus Geek I am today:

• Got my first game console, Atari 2600, in the late 70s and as hooked completely
• Played around with BASIC on my Commodore 64, but didn't do enough to even call it programming
• Got sent to a computer camp at a local community college in middle school, wrote some FORTRAN, and went back to playing sports when I got home
• Mowed a few lawns in the neighborhood, just enough to keep me in candy all summer long
• Electrician's apprentice at 14, my first introduction to the real Manuel Labor.  He and I didn't hit it off very well especially considering I was wasting my summer vacation getting shocked.
• Kitchen prep and line cook for Jaspers in Greenbelt.  Another 40 hr a week job for the under-aged.  Got my first taste of "real" money when I got my raise from $3.40 to $3.90/hour.  There has got to be a better way!  At least I got to learn a lot about making food.
• Instead of going back to work at Jaspers the next summer, I decided instead to take a pay cut and work at a new local deli/restaurant called Yogurt Jungle in College Park.  Little did I know that I would call this place work for the next 7 years.  I did everything except manage the place, from serving up food and frozen yogurt, to making the secret Caesar salad dressing, waxing the floor, and delivering food to hungry college kids.  The pay was less, but the atmosphere was much better and I actually got to interact with the customers first hand.
• Took the one computer class offered, Computer Math, where we wrote programs in Basic and Fortran on the green screen terminals.
• Next door to the Jungle was Wings Over College Park.  I spent some time working at both places.  It was hear I learned how to make a variety of chicken wings, including classic buffalo.
• Spent my first few years at University of Maryland trying to avoid the computer curriculum.  Started in Electrical Engineering (too nerdy for me) then went to Architecture (can't draw a straight line) and then to Biology and Zoology (no money in it).  Finally wizened up and took some real computer classes and thought about a career doing truly geeky stuff.
• Spent 2 stints around Valentines Days and 1 just prior to Mothers Day boxing roses at RoseExpress on K St in DC.  I answered an ad in the Diamondback and worked over 40 hours in 3 days.  I went from knowing nothing to being one of the people to check the boxes of roses before being sent out for delivery.  I still remember driving a large truck to National Airport to pick up flowers being shipped in.  I lost track of the person I was following, but was still able to find my way to the right place in the airport, get onto the grounds, get the flowers, and get back without any help.  I still don't know how I did that in the days without a cell phone.
• Retail Clerk at Aeropostale.  Still have a Paddington Bear coat I bought while working there.
• Desk Manager at Marland Athletic Club.  My dad had this idea that he would be good at running a gym, but figured out that you can't really make money at it unless you do some of the unscrupulous things that the major gyms do.  Ran the computers there and also wrote a newsletter surrounding nutrition and fitness.
• Intern at Marriott International working on the IT Helpdesk.  My first corporate position, I  worked with about 5 or 6 other guys installing hardware and software on Windows desktops.  At the time, Marriott was a Novell Netware 3.x, Lotus SmartSuite, cc:Mail, and Notes shop.  This is where I learned the difference between playing with computers and doing it for a living.  It is also where I gained over 25 pounds in 6 months of sitting behind a desk and eating Dunkin Donuts every morning.  Got pulled off the Helpdesk by the Notes Administrator to help with the roll-out of Notes v3.0c to a number of the larger hotel properties.  Notes came on 28 3.5" 1.44 MB HD floppy disks
• Left the DC area for a consulting gig at Chiron in Emeryville, CA.  Downloaded something called Domino 1.0 for Notes 4.5. Blew away my manager by showing him his Notes databases accessible via a web browser without any additional programming.  Sort of!
• After a sting at HP in Palo Alto, I moved to Atlanta to take a contract at Coca-Cola supporting their implementation of SAP.
• Back home to the DC area to continue working with Notes/Domino for a number of large companies in the Baltimore-DC area.

Well, that's about it.  Hope I didn't bore all of you.

Most of the time, I like to think of myself as something more than a mere Dad.  I mean, I know how to and do most of the cooking in the house, tend to be a better shopper than my wife and always pride myself on sending my kids out in something that doesn't make them look like a complete Dork.  But every now and then, I am either too tired or too distracted and make a whopper of a boo-boo.

Such was the case today when I dressed Jackson.  It's becoming increasingly warm here in the DC area this week, so I decided I would put some pants on him.  I opened the normal pants drawer, but didn't spot any shorts, so I looked around to see where the wife had stuck them.  I spotted what looked like a pair of jean shorts and, without a second thought, stuck them on him and sent him downstairs to play.  I even remember thinking to myself that my wife wouldn't complain about them being too short and showing his knees.  Of course, I really don't understand that line of thinking.

A few hours later, she came back home from running some errands and started questioning my intelligence as soon as she stepped through the door.  Her only clue as to what I had done wrong was for me to take a look at what my son was wearing.  Even after he walked through the door, I couldn't understand what she was talking about.  In the end, she had to explain it to me: I had put the baby's jeans on Jackson as shorts.  That's right, I had stuck 3-6 month size jeans on my 3 1/2 year old as shorts.  Taking a second look at him between fits of laughter, I could see now that the pants were a little too narrow through the leg, but hit him perfectly in length.  I am not sure what is more comical, that I actually put them on him or that they fit him around the waist!

Needless to say, I will be ridiculed about this for some time to come.  It is episodes like this that keep my humility in check.

In other family news, everything is going well.  Caden is going through his 3 month growth spurt, which means he wants food every 2 hours.  This has been going on for a week or so and is beginning to get back to his normal eating pattern.  Everyone else is healthy and itching for the warmer weather to get here.  Craig's JV lacrosse team is doing pretty well and I have seen a huge increase in his performance level over last year.  Colette and I did some measurements at the beginning of the month and will be working toward getting into better shape by summer.

Think anyone will mistake them as brothers? Believe it or not, these picture were taken using the same towel. Jackson was about 7 weeks old while Caden is about 9 weeks old. Not sure I will ever be able to disown them in public. LOL

It's amazing how deluded many people are when it comes to their own abilities.  The longer I am alive, the more I pay attention to the people who don't toot their own horn and ignore the people that say they have all the answers.  On the whole, I think most people's abilities are conversely proportional to the amount they talk about how great their skills are.  The problem is that sometimes the very arrogant people are justly confident in their skills, and that leads us to believe that arrogance equals competence.

In short, the study showed that the researchers' predictions were spot-on. Participants scoring in the bottom quartile grossly overestimated their test performance and ability, and analysis confirmed that this miscalibration was due to deficits in metacognitive skill (the capacity to distinguish accuracy from error). Those who were incompetent tended to suspect that their abilities were unequal to the tasks, but the suspicion often failed to anticipate the magnitude of their shortcomings. As predicted, training the participants on the subjects in question increased their metacognitive competence, and allowed them to better recognize the limitations of their abilities.

This article questions some of the conclusions of the study, if only to be protagonistic.  I have often wondered how some people that I have had to work with ever got hired in the first place.   The funny thing is that once an incompetent person is given some of the skills, they start to understand just how bad they were before.

In some ways, I think this illustrates the difference between MS' and IBM's collaboration offerings.  MS is constantly telling you how good their solution is, yet we know that it's not fully baked and it doesn't compare favorably to Domino.  IBM, on the other hand, knows how good Domino is, so they think that their solution will speak for itself and that they don't have to toot their own horn.  The problem is that you really never know how good or bad a perspective employee or IT solution is until you hire/buy it and then it's too late to take what's behind door number 2.

I try not to generalize when it comes to making negative comments, but the French are a special case.  Their arrogance leaves the door open for all ridicule that I want to throw at them.  This story on MSNBC.com is a perfect example of what makes them such easy targets.

BRUSSELS, Belgium - President Jacques Chirac said on Friday he had been so shocked to hear a fellow Frenchman speak English at a European Union summit the previous day that he had felt compelled to leave the room.

“I have to say I was profoundly shocked to see a Frenchman express himself in English at the (EU) Council table. That’s why the French delegation and myself walked out rather than listen to that,” Chirac told reporters.

Chirac said France had fought for a long time to ensure that French was spoken and used within multinational institutions, from the European Union and United Nations to the Olympic Games.

“It is not just national interest, it is in the interest of culture and the dialogue of cultures. You cannot build the world of the future on just one language and, hence one culture.”

God forbid a Frenchman make the measly concession to speak to a foreigner in their native tongue or, even worse, English.  How arrogant can you get?  I mean, I am all for keeping one's culture and history alive, but the French tend to take it a bit too far.  Maybe it wouldn't bother me so much if they didn't feel that their language and culture were superior to every one else's, but they do.  If you have any doubt, go to Paris and try to speak their native tongue to them and the look that crosses their face will say more than I ever could.

I have been sucked in to Season 5 of American Idol.  I try not to watch any of the reality shows, but this one seems to be a bit different than the rest.  Any ways, here are my favorites out of this year's group:

• Becky O'Donohue - Killer looks along with her twin and pipes to match.
• Kelly Pickler - Innocent girl next door who's story could be an after school special.
• Paris Bennett - Pedigree and pipes are second to none.
• Stevie Scott - Long shot girl with good vocal range and interesting training history.
• Chris Daughtry - Great Rock 'n Roll voice and a passion for music that shows.
• Ace Young - This year's Constantine, but with better looks and better vocals.
• Taylor Hicks - Should have been born a blind, black man with the way he moves and sings.
• Kevin Covais - Long shot guy who Simon didn't think would make it this far.

The girls sing first on Tuesday.  Game On!!!

Libby posted this on her site and I thought it might be fun to try.

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Well, I finally found some time to upload some pictures of Caden to my Flickr photostream. Things have been rather busy at the Burgess household, but I am planning on heading back to work tomorrow, at least for a little while. Colette is healing much better than she did after Jackson, thanks in part to the wonderful delivery method of the mid-wife. Hopefully, that will be a good pretense for how quickly she will be able to begin working out and resuming all of her regular routine.

Police reports, court records, interviews with law enforcement personnel, and other sources have put the lie to many key sections of Frey's book. The 36-year-old author, these documents and interviews show, wholly fabricated or wildly embellished details of his purported criminal career, jail terms, and status as an outlaw "wanted in three states."

In addition to these rap sheet creations, Frey also invented a role for himself in a deadly train accident that cost the lives of two female high school students. In what may be his book's most crass flight from reality, Frey remarkably appropriates and manipulates details of the incident so he can falsely portray himself as the tragedy's third victim. It's a cynical and offensive ploy that has left one of the victims' parents bewildered. "As far as I know, he had nothing to do with the accident," said the mother of one of the dead girls. "I figured he was taking license...he's a writer, you know, they don't tell everything that's factual and true."

Update - It seems that his publisher has seen the light and Random House is offering refunds to anyone who bought the book directly from them.

via The Smoking Gun

The study, which followed more than 1,300 adults over 2 years, found that those who consistently used a mobile phone or pager throughout the study period were more likely to report negative “spillover” between work and home life -- and, in turn, less satisfaction with their family life.

Spillover essentially means that the line between work and home begins to blur. Work life may invade home life -- when a parent is taking job-related calls at home, for instance -- or household issues may start to take up work time.

via MSNBC

BEIJING - Microsoft Corp. has shut down the Internet journal of a Chinese blogger that discussed politically sensitive issues, including a recent strike at a Beijing newspaper.

The action came amid criticism by free-speech activists of foreign technology companies that help the communist government enforce censorship or silence dissent in order to be allowed into China’s market.

At places like Auschwitz the killing was regarded as a means of healing Germany and curing it of the racial disease, thus leading to what has been called the "healing-killing paradox" wherein SS doctors could get around issues of moral and ethical conscience concerning their medicalized killing and experimentation because they equated killing with healing. Murder was to them a furthering of their commitment as doctors to the preservation and enhancement of life, as it was seen ideologically as purification (Lifton 224).

There is a vegetable oil called CASTOR Oil, which is sometimes used to get labor going or for other medicinal purposes. There is a petroleum product, i.e. motor oil, called Castrol Oil, which could be toxic. Please do not confuse them!

via Non-Pharmaceutical Induction

ROCKVILLE, Md. -- A Montgomery County judge ruled Tuesday that the act of mooning is not illegal in Maryland, clearing a man accused of indecent exposure after showing his buttocks to a neighbor during an argument.

via Washington Post

• The year started off with a bang for me as I finally got to attend Lotusphere. I was able to learn a lot and hook up with a bunch of very kewl people. John Cleese and Ray Ozzie at the same event, need I say more?
• My wife and I got pregnant again and we are expecting our next (and last) bundle of joy on Jan. 27, although Colette doesn't think she will make it that long. This was not an uneventful pregnancy due to the incident in week 12 and the recent development of Gestational Diabetes. All in all, she is definitely ready for this parasite to get out and join us in the real world if for no other reason than for her to be semi-comfortable in bed again.
• The boys (Craig 15, Kyle 8, Jackson 3) have all had relatively good years. Kyle finally got some new glasses so he can see what's going on in school, although he still can't hear worth a darn. Craig made it through Freshman year at Reservoir and had his first real relationship. As with most boys, we weren't aware that it was over until way after the smoke had cleared, but sometimes ignorance is bliss. Jackson made it through the year without a visit to the hospital or ER, which is somewhat amazing. His speech is still not completely intelligible, but he knows all his letters, upper and lower case, can count to 100, can spell his own name and recognizes the names of the kids in his class and people in his life, and spent so much time in the water this summer that I thought he might develop gills.
• Yet again, I have changed jobs and it has caused me to continue my growth as a developers and a person. The new position is a bit different since it involves working with the Feds, but the commute is so much better now that I get to take the train to work instead of fight traffic for 45-90 minutes each way. And I really like being able to do a Sudoku or play my PSP.
• I was lucky enough to WIn Second Prize in a Beauty Contest for my write-up of use for AJAX. I learned a lot this year about CSS, AJAX, and customizing Quickplace.
• I finally took some time and attended a cooking class. It was a very rewarding time and I can't wait to take some more in the future.
• This site turned 2 at the beginning of December with no fanfare at all. I have averaged 3 1/2 entries a week. Some of them were better than others, but I really hope to do a better job this year.

Duffbert has asked us all about what we plan to do in the next year so here are my goals:

1. Learn PHP and MySQL enough to develop a CRM for my brother-in-law's construction company.
2. Release a production version of my ASND Export Utility and come up with a logo for it.
3. Install either Solaris 10 or Linux on the Sunfire R280 and get Domino 7 up and running in my office.
4. Learn more about Domino and XML, Workplace Designer, Ruby on Rails and SOA
5. Bring a Caden into my family and give him all the love he can handle.

Finally, Laurette and Libby both had this list going, so I thought I might add mine:

• Four jobs you've had in your life: Food Prep/Deli Worker, Waiter, Helpdesk Technician, Lotus Notes Developer/Administrator
• Four movies you could watch over and over: The Princess Bride, Die Hard, Payback, Some Kind of Wonderful
• Four places you've lived: College Park, MD, Fremont, CA, Atlanta, GA, Laurel, MD
• Four TV shows you love to watch: Everwood, ER, House, Any Law & Order or CSI
• Four places you've been on vacation: Hawaii, Las Vegas, Europe (HS trip to London and Paris), Europe(College trip backpacking through Paris, Brussels, Interlaken, Nice, Plata de Piles, and Madrid)
• Four websites you visit daily: Bloglines, Comcast (my ISP), Phig Said What (just to make sure it's still running), Google
• Four of your favorite foods: Chocolate covered mints (Godiva Grande Mints, York Pepermint Patties), Chocolate Mousse(dark and without any whipped cream), Thrasher's French Fries, and Filet Mignon.
• Four places you'd rather be: On a beach in the Caribbean, Las Vegas, Hawaii, Interlaken

In the annual roundup, the journal's editors pointed to wide-ranging research built on the foundations of Charles Darwin’s landmark 1859 work ”The Origin of Species” and the idea of natural selection. Among the highlights: a study that showed a mere 4 percent difference between human and chimpanzee DNA, and studies documenting the splits in species of birds, fish and caterpillars.

via MSNBC

"For the sixth time in five years, federal courts have now blocked or struck down these state and local laws seeking to regulate the sale of games to minors based on their content, and none have upheld such statutes," ESA president Douglas Lowenstein said in a statement.

via Judge blocks California video game law | CNET News.com

Dramatic evidence of ID’s religious nature and aspirations is found in what is referred to as the “Wedge Document.” The Wedge Document, developed by the Discovery Institute’s Center for Renewal of Science and Culture (hereinafter “CRSC”), represents from an institutional standpoint, the IDM’s goals and objectives, much as writings from the Institute for Creation Research did for the earlier creation-science movement, as discussed in McLean. (11:26-28 (Forrest)); McLean, 529 F. Supp. at 1255. The Wedge Document states in its “Five Year Strategic Plan Summary” that the IDM’s goal is to replace science as currently practiced with “theistic and Christian science.” (P-140 at 6). As posited in the Wedge Document, the IDM’s “Governing Goals” are to “defeat scientific materialism and its destructive moral, cultural, and political legacies” and “to replace materialistic explanations with the theistic understanding that nature and human beings are created by God.” Id. at 4. The CSRC expressly announces, in the Wedge Document, a program of Christian apologetics to promote ID. A careful review of the Wedge Document’s goals and language throughout the document reveals cultural and religious goals, as opposed to scientific ones. (11:26-48 (Forrest); P-140). ID aspires to change the ground rules of science to make room for religion, specifically, beliefs consonant with a particular version of Christianity.

via ACLU of Pennsylvania

ION has created the world’s first USB turntable allowing you to convert your old vinyl collection directly to CD or MP3 with the included recording software. (NO SPECIAL DRIVERS NEEDED).

The ION USB turntable includes Audacity software for Mac/PC for recording as well as a trial of Bias Soundsoap 2 for cleaning and restoring vinyl.

via Engadget

We have agreed on the first name of Caden for the new baby. We are still discussing the middle name and hope to have it decided by Christmas. He is due to arrive in the world on Jan 27, but Colette swears he isn't going to make it that long. If you have any suggestions for middle names, please pass them along. And just to head off the loonies out there, I am not naming my son Domino, Notes, or Lotus. Not even Ray!!!!

The ENTP, like the ENTJ, is charismatic, outgoing, and intelligent. ENTPs are often quickwitted, clever, and genial; they typically display a highly organized, rational cognitive ability which makes them natural scientists and inventors.

ENTPs are creative, complex people who seek to improve their understanding of the natural world, usually by building armored fifty-story-tall robotic monsters with iron jaws and death-ray eyes, or by creating genetically mutated plagues that spread unstoppably across the land, turning all who are contaminated into mindless zombie drones. They are less likely to want to conquer the world than to destroy it utterly, reducing it to nothing but slag and rubble--though this is often merely a side-effect of their pursuit of knowledge.

RECREATION: ENTPs enjoy recreational activities which challenge them physically and intellectually, such as water skiing and porting Linux to their iPods. They are also fond of collecting gadgets like combination cellpone/PDAs and orbiting arsenals of brain lasers, which they may port Linux to as well.

COMPATIBILITY: ENTPs and ENTJs make natural companions, as the one's unspeakable hunger for power compliments the other's unspeakable hunger for knowledge. They do not generally build successful relationships with ESFJs, as ENTPs they are prone to behaving in inconveniently erratic ways, which pisses ESFJs off to no end; and because ENTPs simply do not know how to dress appropriately for formal occasions.

Famous ENTPs include Spencer Silver (the inventor of Post-It Notes), Robert Oppenheimer, and Dr. Jeckyll.

via The REAL Myers-Briggs Personality Types Made Relevant

The theory of intelligent design (ID) holds that certain features of the universe and of living things are best explained by an intelligent cause rather than an undirected process such as natural selection. ID is thus a scientific disagreement with the core claim of evolutionary theory that the apparent design of living systems is an illusion.

For those who believe different, let's take a look at one of the greatest travesties in the history of science vs. faith. In 1633, Galileo Galilei was put on trial by the Catholic Church for writing a book that openly supported the Copernican view of the solar system and universe.

Galileo's discovery of the telescope in 1609 enabled him to confirm his beliefs in the Copernican system and emboldened him to make public arguments in its favor. Through a telescope set in his garden behind his house, Galileo saw the Milky Way, the valleys and mountains of the moon, and--especially relevant to his thinking about the Copernican system--four moons orbiting around Jupiter like a miniature planetary system. Galileo, a good Catholic, offered "infinite thanks to God for being so kind as to make me alone the first observer of marvels kept hidden in obscurity for all previous centuries." Galileo began talking about his observations at dinner parties and in public debates in Florence, where he has taken up a new post.

Whereas you, Galileo, son of the late Vaincenzo Galilei, Florentine, aged seventy years, were in the year 1615 denounced to this Holy Office for holding as true the false doctrine taught by some that the Sun is the center of the world and immovable and that the Earth moves, and also with a diurnal motion; for having disciples to whom you taught the same doctrine; for holding correspondence with certain mathematicians of Germany concerning the same; for having printed certain letters, entitled "On the Sunspots," wherein you developed the same doctrine as true; and for replying to the objections from the Holy Scriptures, which from time to time were urged against it, by glossing the said Scriptures according to your own meaning: and whereas there was thereupon produced the copy of a document in the form of a letter, purporting to be written by you to one formerly your disciple, and in this divers propositions are set forth, following the position of Copernicus, which are contrary to the true sense and authority of Holy Scripture:

A Vatican cardinal said Thursday the faithful should listen to what secular modern science has to offer, warning that religion risks turning into "fundamentalism" if it ignores scientific reason.

Cardinal Paul Poupard, who heads the Pontifical Council for Culture, made the comments at a news conference on a Vatican project to help end the "mutual prejudice" between religion and science that has long bedeviled the Roman Catholic Church and is part of the evolution debate in the United States.

[...]

Poupard and others at the news conference were asked about the religion-science debate raging in the United States over evolution and "intelligent design."

Intelligent design's supporters argue that natural selection, an element of evolutionary theory, cannot fully explain the origin of life or the emergence of highly complex life forms.

Monsignor Gianfranco Basti, director of the Vatican project STOQ, or Science, Theology and Ontological Quest, reaffirmed John Paul's 1996 statement that evolution was "more than just a hypothesis."

"A hypothesis asks whether something is true or false," he said. "(Evolution) is more than a hypothesis because there is proof."

Rocky had a nice entry in August entitled Bush and Intelligent Design.

Intelligent Design is not a theory, nor is it scientific in any way. It is simply Young-Earth Creationism repackaged to be more palatable by politicians and parents who desperately want something to cling to that makes the structure of their BELIEF system more attractive. Remember, all of science - anything that is a REAL science - is based on the bedrock of the scientific method. In order for a theory - any theory - to be accepted by scientists it has to undergo the scrutiny of the scientific method. Theories that stand up to the scientific method are deemed useful and usable. Those theories that crumble under the scientific method are either revised and retested, or are discarded.

They are acting now because they feel emboldened by the country's conservative currents and by President Bush, who angered many scientists and teachers by declaring that the jury is still out on evolution. Sharing strong convictions, deep pockets and impressive political credentials -- if not always the same goals -- the activists are building a sizable network.

In Seattle, the nonprofit Discovery Institute spends more than $1 million a year for research, polls and media pieces supporting intelligent design. In Fort Lauderdale, Christian evangelist James Kennedy established a Creation Studies Institute. In Virginia, Liberty University is sponsoring the Creation Mega Conference with a Kentucky group called Answers in Genesis, which raised $9 million in 2003.

[...]

A prominent effort is underway in Kansas, where the state Board of Education intends to revise teaching standards. That would be progress, Southern Baptist minister Terry Fox said, because "most people in Kansas don't think we came from monkeys."

If you are a person who has kids in school, you really need to pay attention to what is going on in your school district. Make sure that science stays in the classroom and faith stays in the church.

The House Energy and Commerce Committee on Wednesday approved a measure ordering the switch to higher-quality digital broadcasts be finished by the end of 2008, setting up a clash with the Senate.
The House panel approved 33-17 a bill that would require television stations to end their analog broadcasts on December 31, 2008 so some of those airwaves can be used by emergency responders and the rest can be sold for wireless services.

via Reuters Article

• While I am all for interesting pairing of opening act and headliners, I really think the choice of Damian Marley was not a very good one, no matter how much critical acclaim he's had. Maybe it was the accent or the way the sound was mixed, but I couldn't understand a damn thing he sang.
• My seats for the concert were absolutely perfect for me. We were on the side of the stage, section 112, row H. We didn't have to look up or down or turn sideways in the aisles just to get a good look at the band. Being some what vertically challenged, I do not like to be on the floor for concerts anymore. I would much rather sit on the side and enjoy myself a little further from the stage.
• I never really noticed before, but none of the band members are very tall. In fact, they are kind of short like me. Just another reason why their my favorite band.
• Song selection at a U2 concert is always a double edged sword. They have been around long enough that you are never really sure which of their hits they going to play, but you will probably get some songs you didn't expect and not get one or two of your favorites. While classics like With or Without You and One can be pretty much counted on, I was thrilled to see them play Electric Co, Sunday Bloody Sunday, and Bullet the Blue Sky.
• The biggest thrill for me was the closing song. I was always disappointed that they made the change for the Zoo TV tour to not close with 40. It had become such a signature for them and their fans that I was sad to see it go. Well, they granted my wish last night and brought a huge smile to my face when they started in on 40 during the second encore. For newer fans or those who don't know the song, it is based on Psalm 40 and is only 2 verses and a chorus. The album version is listed at 2:35, but with the crowd singing as one, the song easily lasted 8 minutes long. It reminded me so much of the first time I saw them at RFK in 1988 in the pouring rain and the crowd walked out of the stadium singing "How long must we sing this song" long after U2 had left the stage.
• I think that even Bono was a little surprised how into it the crowd was. Most of the people were around my age and we all knew most of the words and thoroughly enjoyed singing along at the top of our lungs. It must be deeply satisfying to know that something you have created has touched people that much
• As a whole, they may be getting older, but they still know how to rock with the best of them. Bono's voice was still true and the music that was played was pure and simple. That's much more than I can say about many of today's bands.

Here is the song set that they played (courtesy of U2Station.com)

1. City of Blinding Lights
2. Vertigo
3. Elevation
4. I Will Follow
5. The Electric Co. - Send in the Clowns
6. I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For - In a Little While
7. Beautiful Day - Many Rivers to Cross
8. Miracle Drug
9. Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own
10. Love and Peace or Else
11. Sunday Bloody Sunday
12. Bullet the Blue Sky
13. Miss Sarajevo
14. Pride
15. Where the Streets Have No Name
16. One - Ol' Man River
17. Encore: The First Time (acoustic)
18. Stuck In A Moment You Can't Get Out Of
19. With or Without You
20. All Because of You
21. Yahweh
22. 40

All in all, it was one of the more enjoyable experiences in the last few years and I will certainly treasure the memories for some time to come.

Active
• Palmer, Carson QB
• Dunn, Warrick RB
• Portis, Clinton RB
• Houshmandzadeh, T.J. WR
• Smith, Steve WR
• Ward, Hines WR
• Cooley, Chris TE
• Dolphins, Miami TD
• Patriots, New England ST
• Kasay, John Active K

Bench
• Culpepper, Daunte QB
• Leftwich, Byron QB
• Jackson, Steven RB
• Parker, Willie RB
• Boldin, Anquan WR
• Jurevicius, Joe WR
• Rogers, Charles WR
• Smith, L.J. TE
• Bruce, Isaac IR WR

I am contemplating starting Joe J instead of TJ H due to TJ's hurt hand, but that will most likely be a last minute decision. Now, if only Portis could actually make it into the end zone, I would have a really nice team.

So now, on with the show.....

While on the musical front, the lunchtime DJ on a local Rock station asked people to write in with their All-time Greatest Concert lineup. Basically, you choose 3 bands that you would like to see in a single concert. The bands do not have to have similar music or don't even have to have existed at the same time. After some hard thinking, here is my list:

1. U2
2. The Eagles
3. Pink Floyd

Well, I actually went home about an hour and a half ago. And there is no home to go to. The apartment complex that I lived in, which is on the beach in Ocean Springs, is totally leveled. There's nothing there anymore.

My dad dropped by my birthday gift last night, a 6" Ceramic Chef's Knife from Kyocera. If you have never seen or held a ceramic knife, they are incredibly light, devilishly sharp, and relatively expensive. And unlike most knives, they are also extremely fragile. Through normal use, they will only need to be sharpened every 5 years or so, but don't drop it, or it will shatter like a ceramic bowl. Since this is my first ceramic knife, I will have to report back at a later date on the performance of it in daily use.

After checking with administration, we were scheduled to have the procedure later that afternoon at Hopkins and to meet with a Genetics Counselor. She was there to take our family history and explain to us exactly what the amniocentesis procedure entailed and what the results could tell us. Since both of us have a background in the sciences (Colette has a degree in Microbiology and 2 of my many majors were Biology and Zoology), the meeting was relatively short. We both understand rudimentary genetics and have done significant reading on the 'net, so most of what she said wasn't new to us. The amnio was a little more complicated than we expected because she was only at 16 weeks and there wasn't a ton of amniotic fluid around the baby. The doctor was really digging around to get to the fluid and Colette didn't complain once, although she did squeeze my hand something awful. Once the doctor was able to get to the fluid, she drew as much as she needed within a minute. Once she withdrew the needle, Colette's discomfort disappeared.

The counselor finally called today with the results. The genetic tests came back all normal. And Colette's streak of giving good directions to the Y swimmers continued. Well, at least we can now pick a boy's name with certainty and don't have to buy too many things before we bring him home. Colette's even a little relieved that's she's having another boy because she knows how to raise boys and wouldn't know what to do with a girl. I'll just have to teach one of the boys how to cook and how to shop at the mall.

The instructions are: Go to musicoutfitters.com, and do a search on the most popular 100 songs from the year you graduated high school. (You can do this by searching on the year you graduated). Bold the ones you actually like. (Understand that the word "like" in this case means, at the very least, "wouldn't immediately change the radio station from.") Pick a favorite. Underline that favorite. And Strikethru the ones you loathe. Italicize the ones you consider to be guilty pleasures.

Ridge Racer is a classic PS racing game. As always, you start in last place and have to move through everyone to win the race. The toughest thing for me is to not constantly move the PSP to try to get the car to turn like I want it to. The accompanying soundtrack is very good and the speakers on the PSP are excellent. Now, I just gotta figure out how to unlock some of the hidden cars and prizes.

Lumines is a Tetris-like puzzle game that I got from the kids for my birthday. It is highly addictive and provide some great graphics that are incorporated into the game. If you aren't careful, those graphics can distract you from the task at hand. Since I have only played it a couple of times, I have not tested all the features, but this definitely seems like a game that I will be playing for a very long time. I can't wait to be able to play this against someone else.

Alas, the PSP is not a perfect product. The main gripe I have right now is the glare occurs on the screen. Overhead florescent lights or even bright sun will cause a reflective glare that continually draws my eyes off the action on the screen. For me, the best way to play the PSP is in complete darkness. Other than that, I think the Sony has done an amazing job with this product.

Dear Sean -

Congratulations! You are the winner of the Sony PSP (PlayStation Portable) from last week's Proofpoint webinar, Digital Asset Security: Protecting Your Confidential Data webinar.

In reality, I didn't get past Congratulations! before ripping open the box to behold my new toy. I have been eyeing these up every time we've gone into Target, Toys R Us, etc., but had decided that it was no where near the top of the priority list. (The fun things rarely are!) I can't wait to see what all this thing can do. I am on such a high right now that I just might break into song.......

• Harry Potter and the Half-blood Prince (J K Rowling) - Excellent book. Going to make it tough to wait until the next, and last, book is released. Bring a tissue or two for the last 100 pages. Still a little disappointed in the cover, but I guess that's just nit-picking.
• The Day After Tomorrow (Robert A. Heinlein) - Found this book on a bookshelf at the beach house. Written in 1949, it is only 144 pages and a very quick read. It is extremely interesting to take a glimpse into the mindset of the time. A quick read and good for the beach. Bonus Find: In the middle of the book, there was an advertizement for Sports Illustrated. 'Tear out this card and treat yourself to 27 weeks overflowing with sport excitement, color, drama and humor......Please send me SI for 27 week and bill me later for $3.87'. Quite a bargain, I think
• On Food and Cooking (Harold McGee) - I received the revised edition as a Father's Day present. This is a serious book for anyone who wants to know more about the foods we eat and how they came to be. Nicknamed the "Bible of Food Science", it is not a cook book, but rather a text book about foods and the way they interact. I am still in the middle of this book and probably will be for some time.
• Velocity (Dean Koontz) - Another strong showing by one of my favorite authors. This one kept me guessing until the end, but I did have some inkling earlier on. As usual, Koontz's hero gets the crap beat out of him physically and mentally before the end comes. It was nice to see him step away from his supernatural thrillers to write one just about bad people. Reminds me of Intensity, although it is not as tough on the nerves.
• Glory Day (Robert A. Heinlein) - I was assigned this book in my Junior English class in college and found it again while I was at the beach. I couldn't remember if I liked it back then, so I picked it up again. So far so good, but I am only about 100 or so pages into it. If you read Heinlein, this is his one entry into the true fantasy realm as opposed to the science fiction he usually wrote.
• The Bartimaeus Trilogy, Book One: The Amulet of Samarkand (Jonathan Stroud) - Definitely not the same world of magic as Harry Potter. The star of the book is the djinni (genie) Bartimaeus and his very quick wit. I am on page 149 and hope to finish the book soon, but alas I am not the speed reading freak that is