What's Old is New Again (Part 2)

(Read also Part 1)

FRIDAY

The Friday night meet-and-eat was to be held at the Foundry building, on the World's Fair site. I haven't been back in the Foundry since it was the Strohaus at the 1982 World's Fair, so I was looking forward to returning and seeing what it was like. My wife L., being the social butterfly that she is, had been several times for other events and assured me it was a lot different. No more German oompah bands? No strudel? No chicken dances? I don't wanna go.....

But I bravely went on. I'd heard Motley Crue or somebody was having a concert on the lawn at the Fair Site that night as well, and feared for the parking but apparently the fact that it was on the other side of the park, combined with the fact that most Crue fans these days need walkers and ride public transportation, parking problems never materialized...

We arrived, the sky sparkling clear and barely hinting at dusk. Pulling up near the entrance, I noticed other couples leaving their cars and making their own ways to the front doors. I glanced around, hoping -- and not hoping -- to recognize someone. I didn't. There were several sets of people I didn't recognize at all.

Now we had a small class - 242 at graduation, I believe - which was the smallest class our school had had in decades. Contrast that with the class that graduated 4 years later, it had the most. Which meant I thought surely I would recognize someone. There was a line entering a door at the side, and being the good automotons that we humans are we joined the line. Still didn't recognize anyone.

"Oh, Lord," I thought, "This is going to be horrible."

After a few moments, a little kid (?) stuck his head out the side door, peered up and down the line, and hollered, "Is everyone here for the Farragut High Reunion?"

Huh? I timidly raised my hand, "No, Central High".

"Oh," he said, waving us in excitedly, "Come in this way."

Well, no freakin' wonder. I'm in the wrong reunion.

We moved past the line of unfamiliar 30-somethings in fancy outfits and proceeded inside. Yes, indeed, Farragut High Class of '84 - all 14,431 graduates - was having their reunion at the same time and place as ours. Compared to them, our class looked like the kids table at Thanksgiving. But I digress.

Instead of trying to do a play-by-play narrative, I'll just do the stream of consciousness high points:

• Met up with Danny, one of my best friends. He'd emailed me earlier that day that he was looking forward to being there. Danny has one of the funnies and dryest senses of humor I've ever known. I used to sit in the back of English class and crack up at his deadpan jokes, at our teacher's expense. He was a little taller, and a little chubbier, but still the same guy.
  
  
• "Whoa...who was that? WHOA...I remember her now --- WHOA, she did NOT have those back in high school...! ("must stop staring...must stop staring...")
  
  
• Saw Jack and Hal, both who played baseball with me in rec leagues and we were all coached by my dad.
  
  
• Ok, this is getting weird.
  
  
• Lots of hand-shaking, some perunctory hugs.
  
  
• Man, it's loud. No music, really, just drinks and chatter - it's hard to hear.
  
  Or is that just my own hearing? Uh oh.
  
  
• Kelly and her husband live in Virginia, and had left their house boarded up because of Hurricane Charley - they were leaving tomorrow to go back and re-batten down the hatches. They would miss the dinner the following evening.
  
  Her husband eerily reminded me of Christopher Walken. He was very nice, but I've always thought of Walken as ubercreepy, so it was disconcerting at first.
  
  Kelly took digital pictures all over.
  
  I didn't recognize her at first, because she now had blonde hair - in school, it was brown. I actually thought she was one of our exchange students at first (sorry, Kelly) :)
  
  
• The jocks came, the cheerleaders came - all in a gaggle, as usual. Some things never change. One group of ladies arrived in a pack, chattering and giggling among themselves the same way they'd done twenty years ago.
  
  
• I couldn't get over just how good everyone looked. Sure, there were some wrinkles, and paunches, and this is that was sagging a bit but everyone just looked good. It's hard to descibe. I'll talk more about that during the 3rd part.
  
  
• I was disappointed that there was no music - it would've made it more difficult to hear, but I still missed it.
  
  
• We had a buffet dinner that was very good.
  
  
• Laura seemed to enjoy herself, and eventually parked to chat with Jack's (see above) wife for the bulk of the evening. Not having grown up in East Tennessee, she didn't know anyone in particular.
  
  
• I was also disappointed in the no-shows. Beth had been stuck in New York and let me know earlier in the day that she would miss this evening, but would be back for sure the next day - that was fine. But the ones who didn't make it back at all were some of the ones I was most looking forward to seeing. And some even still lived in Knoxville, or in the area.
  
  Tom, one of the organizers of the event and my fellow delegate to Boys State in 83 informed be that there were about 10-15 other classmates who couldn't make it that night, that would be there the next day. That's good.
  
  
• I told a lot of people that same things - what I was doing now, what I did in college, showed them pictures of BrainyBoy and GiggleGirl at the beach. It was fun hearing other peoples' stories but retelling my own time after time got old after a while ;)
  
  
• Amusingly, we got crashed. A lady wandered in, and rushed over to me - "Barry! Remember me?" I looked at her face with that old, "Ummmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.....yes I know you! it's great to see you! who the hell are you!?" look, until she showed me her name badge. Her name was Kristi, and had gone to Gresham Junior High with a number of us way back even farther in time - the late '70's. She had transferred out to Farragut High when starting high school, and had stepped in to see if she recognized anyone she knew in Junior High. There were about three girls I had little-kid crushes on in Junior High, and she was one of them. Amazing what coincidences can happen. :)
  
  No, I didn't tell her, that.
  
  
• Overall the evening was great fun, but for me even upon getting ready to go, I could tell the party was just getting started. The awkward, "Gee, how are you - great to see you - so what've you been up to?" stage had been entered, and passed by most of us there. Tomorrow night at the Country Club we'd already be past the awkward first moments and be ready to remember why it was we liked...
  
  ...and disliked...
  
  each other in the first place.
  

We got home fairly late, L. went on to bed. Quiet house, no kids. I stayed up for a while but when I laid down, faces and names and stories kept going through my head.

It took a long while for sleep to come.

Next: Saturday Night, at the Country Club with my date

There's a Bird in my Wall

...and it's flapping around driving me crazy. That or it's a squirrel that's climbed in from the outside and gotten trapped.

It's happened a couple times here before - some critter crawls in through a hole somewhere and gets trapped inside a hole in the wall that divides my computer desk (where I'm typing this now) and our bedroom.

scritch...scritch...scritch...

I keep waiting for it eventually to dig through the drywall and poke its head out at me.

What's Old is New Again (Part 1)

I haven't had much time to write about my 20-year class reunion much since last weekend. I wish I'd started sooner when the memories and impressions were fresher, but work and home life got in the way. I'll try to start some stream-of-consciousness blogging and see where it takes me. (that's an AP English inside joke right there. Laugh, Beth ;))

Background: I was a fairly typical geek in high school. An arts geek, though, mostly. I did band, chorus, and drama as much as possible as well as AP (honors) english and math. I enjoyed school - I really did - but on its own terms. In other words, whatever my high school offered to me as an incentive or enticement to excel or enjoy, I took it and that's all I needed. I didn't party. I didn't drink, or smoke. I went in, did my work, saw my friends, enjoyed the school and went home. On Friday nights there were football games where I marched at halftime, we went to Mr. Gatti's on Clinton Highway after the game for pizza, and then I went home.

I also never went out with anyone in high school. Quite simply, I didn't know how. I had a crush on several girls while I was there but they were always unrecognized and unreturned - a fact which caused no end of teen anguish. (This is early 80's anguish we're talking about, here, not early 2000's anguish. If it were today I'd probably have shot up the school). But I gazed from afar and continued what I was doing.

After graduation, I went to college and got my BA in Theatre, got married, started a career, had two kids and started a blog. (interesting bio, huh?)

Fast forward 20 years past graduation. I've kept in touch with only one person, really, since graduation. The above-mentioned Beth was one of my best friends - smart, independant, a little wild (well, she was wilder when not around me, but I caught the fringes of it) and possesses a fierce passion for horses. Other than her, I simply stepped on with my life and new circles of friends.

We had a 10-year reunion back in '94, which was fun, but even 10 years out is not a lot of time for major life changes. I had no kids yet, had been married only two years. Similarly for others that returned.

This time I knew it would be different.

Around the first of the year I started looking at my calendar and wondering. I wasn't a class officer, and never had any responsibilities for starting things up so I sat and waited. Eventually, I was contacted by a representative for a professional Reunion company that arranged these things professionally. The date was set in mid-August, and I made reservations for my wife and I to attend.

Then the introspection started. What would they look like? How do I look compared to them? There were a number of nice-looking guys in high school and, judging from the attention I received 20 years ago, I was not. You start taking a look in the mirror. How's the gut? Not so bad...I certainly didn't weigh 200 pounds in '84 like I do now, but hey, it's distributed like it should be expected. A 6'2" frame and fairly broad shoulders help.

I look at the face. I've had a beard for several years, but no one has ever seen it really. A beard screams "old guy" though in some ways. What to do? Got it - goatee! (shave, shave, trim, trim). Done. Hey, sporty ;) What else?

(looks at pasty white skin)

Oh.

Hilton Head in early July! Fun in the sun! Took care of that real quick. (ouch)

Ok, feel a little better.

Time slipped by, and the date approached. Then a bad thing happened. Our high school quarterback, best-looking guy in the class and all around swell guy that everyone would be looking forward to seeing again...well, he died. Click the link to where I've talked about it already.

Beth came to town briefly to see some people and pay her respects. We got together with another classmate and caught up briefly.

Wait a minute. My friends don't die! That only happens to other people, not us. We're not getting older, we're not. Really....

I wasn't very close to him, but Beth was, and I felt badly for her. Mortality isn't an easy thing to recognize and accept.

However, it's simply another thing you have to embrace as part of life. Scary, yes, but always there.

Well, now it's last week. Friday and Saturday nights were approaching fast. I was checking the website that listed people returning. Some names I was surprised would be there were there, and others I really looked forward to seeing were not. What would we talk about? Current events? I didn't look forward to spending the weekend talking about politics, terrorism or war. The Olympics Opening Ceremonies were friday night - would we talk about that? Hurricane Charley was currently pounding the Florida coast - heavens, would the main topic be the weather??

The nerves began in earnest. I'm not a good person in crowds of people I'm not very familiar with. I'll talk your ear off if you walk up to me, but to initiate a conversation can be torture sometimes. What about the people I really didn't know that well? Would I be able to discuss deep philosophical theories with them? Would they still think I was the tall gangly band geek?

Ok, Barry - screw your courage to the sticking place. Kids are at the grandparents'. Get dressed, cause it's time to go....

Next: Friday Night, the first evening

Friday's Feast

Appetizer
What does the color pink make you think of?

Are you kidding? I have a four-going-on-five-year-old girl. Pink is Barbie. Barbie is Pink. Resistance is Futile.

Soup
Name something you have lost but later found.

I was going to say something really bold and philosophical here, but let's just say my cats.

Salad
In 3 words, describe this past week.

Mentally, physically exhausting

Main Course
What are you obsessed with?

Childhood nostalgia - old Saturday morning TV, etc.

Dessert
What kind of perfume or cologne do you like to wear?

Sorry, I don't.

Website Plug

One of the newest of our Rocky Top Brigade members is Cathy from Domestic Psychology.

Cathy lives in Knoxville (which is always an indicator of a greater intellect) with her husband and two four children. I've really enjoyed reading her site since she joined, and I recommend you make her one of your daily reads as well. Enjoy.

More Happy Thoughts

If it weren't for the happy thoughts, I'd have nothing to post.

My happy thought for today is that a wonderful friend of mine won a Covenant Platinum Award today, honoring outstanding seniors in Knox County.

Congratulations, Joan!

Please Make It Stop

Spent all day preparing for a Senior Citizens awards banquet tomorrow. Being the evil genius that I am, I'm running the teleprompter for the speakers. which requires a deft touch, keen intellect, technical know-how, razor-sharp reflexes......and the ability to realize -- after many minutes of puzzlement, frustration, reconfiguration and frantic phone calls -- when the monitors are turned around backwards.

I'm a freakin' genius.

And that's my happy thought for the day - I love it when a plan comes together.

Happy Thought

Take The Challenge

I'm tired today. So very, very tired.

My happy thought for today is that I'm still alive, I breathe, I exist, I have blood pumping through my veins.

Fore! Going on Five!

Spent part of the morning and afternoon shooting video at the Patricia Neal Golf Classic for the Patricia Neal Rehabilitation Center.

It's hot, but it's a dry heat ;)

Oh, did I mention it was this hot chick's first day of Kindergarten?



(No, no, I'll be ok......)

Happy Times

Take The Challenge

Friday and Saturday - immersing yourself completely in memory, friendship and nostalgia makes me happy because I love remembering where I've been and the things I went through to get to this point.

Sunday - Spending time with my kids after they've been with grandparents since Thursday makes me happy because it reminds me of the glory of the here and now.

Monday - Sending your daughter off to Kindergarten and son to Third Grade makes you ecstatic about their future...

The Reunion

Well, it's over. I really want to give a full report, but I can't get the time right now. Hopefully sometime this week.

Suffice to say:

Extreme nervousness
Surprise
Antsy
Nausea
Nostalgia
Frustration
Laughter
Photos
Purple Rain
Shock
Wistfulness
Melancholy
Exhaustion


More later...

Run Away!!! Run Away!!!

Evacuate? In Our Moment of Triumph?

Plus Live Action Shots of Charlie in progress (maybe)

Boca Grande, FL is where I worked for two weeks back in February as Musical Director for Best Little Whorehouse in Texas. I met a lot of good folks down there, and there are some beautiful old (and expensive) houses. Wishing them all the best of luck and good health as the hurricane passes through.

UPDATE (3:15pm): Looks like the Eye of Charles is going to pass right over Boca Grande as it nears landfall around Fort Myers. Take a look:

(Image removed due to passing of hurricane inland)

UPDATE 2 (8/16) Sorry about that, it's spelled Hurricane Charley. And Boca Grande got nailed, but no loss of life or injuries that I can tell. Go to top link above to see some of the damage.

Save the Liver!

TV chef Julia Child dead at 91



In honor of the passing of popular culture's truly great icons, I bring you the transcript to the great Dan Ackroyd's Saturday Night Live sketch.



Oh, wait - this just in. Food Network cooking personality Emeril decided today that in tribute to the late Ms. Child, he would proceed to fry his own giblets.

Happy Moments

Take The Challenge

My happy moment for Friday is a) finding my high school annuals, prepping for the reunion tonight, and b) getting an unexpected email from one of my old friends who will be there tonight. I haven't spoken to him in years, and it will be great to see him again.

Welcome to the Rocky Top Brigade!

Here are our new recruits:

Eric at Argus, Doug at Dropstones, Kate at Tennessee Talk, Cathy at Domestic Psychology, John at What Can Brown Do For You?, and Michael Silence of the Knoxville News Sentinel at No Silence Here.

Blogroll has been updated. Here's the code to put the RTB Blogroll on your site:

<script language="javascript" type="text/javascript" src="http://rpc.blogrolling.com/display.php?r=bc437d5b4878268597cc4cb373738dc1"></script>

Every so often, one of our Rocky Top Brigade members hosts the Volunteer Tailgate Party, a bi-weekly compendium of the best and brightest posts of our members over those two weeks. If any of the new folks (or anyone at all) is interested in hosting the Party, please check the Calender and let me know.

Welcome everyone!!!

Friday's Feast

Appetizer
Who is your favorite news anchor/reporter? Why?

Of the national ones, I prefer Tom Brokaw from NBC. He's always seemed to be the most genuine and explains things with a lot of pathos. Oh, and I stop whatever I'm doing whenever Kelly O'Donnell comes on the screen.... ;)

Soup
Name 3 foods that are currently in your freezer.

1) About 350 Kids Frozen Dinners
2) Frozen Mozarella Sticks and Potato Skins from Applebees
3) A Bag of Hash Browns I bought about a year-1/2 ago because when I was in Las Vegas I had a meal that came with Hash Browns, but they had a special kind of seasoning and were spectacular. I wanted to try and recreate them here at home, but never have. I don't know if they're still edible or not...

Salad
If you were to have the opportunity to name a new town or city, what would you call it?

BumblyBurg!

Main Course
What will most likely be the next book you read?

The next major book I will read will probably be the final book of Stephen King's Dark Tower series, called "The Dark Tower" (natch). It comes out in September, just before our Disney trip.

Of course I'm always reading something, so it won't actually be the very next book I read. Big Orange Michael brought me a ton of books when he came to visit last week.

Dessert
What's the first thing you notice about the opposite gender?

Their face.

Chitty Chitty Whiz Bang

Here's a really cool little story about how Dick Van Dyke has fallen in love with Computer Graphics animation.

Happy Time

Take The Challenge

What makes me happy today? As much as I love my wife and my kids, tonight I get an evening off. They're out doing other things all evening, so it's just me, myself, and Knoxville Tennessee.

What should I do with myself? Any suggestions?

GoldenBoySchlagerGateUpdate

How's that for a title? :)

Well, Knoxville and Knox County politics are ugly, tricky things. Take a dollop of good-old-boy, stir in a snifter of downtown snobbery, a peck of hillbilly, a smattering of religious influence and mix in a large helping of money and you have Knox politics.

Oh, and you also get Mary Lou Horner. Gawd bless her.

But it's funny how tables can turn. Only a couple of years ago, Knox County Executive Mayor Mike Ragsdale was running unopposed - unopposed!! - for his position. Democrats couldn't muster anyone with enough, um, er, gumption to run against him and Republican Mike sailed into the job on the wings of eagles.

Today, the feathers have come of the wings a bit.

Thumbing through today's Metropulse, Ear to the Ground has this story that's circulating:

"A group of people upset about the wheel tax and the direction of county spending has begun to bombard the sheriff with e-mails asking him to “save” Knox County by running against County Mayor Mike Ragsdale."

I ask, where were these people two years ago when nobody ran against him for County Executive Mayor?

It's also typical of those under the influence...er, I mean who want to have influence in local politics to use the "sky is falling" tactic to enact change.

"OMILAWDY! A WHEEL TAX! WE'RE DOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMED! Garb the gerbils and head fer the basement, Martha, hit's a twister!"

I have really nothing against Ragsdale. I didn't know a whole lot about him before the election (why learn? He's unopposed!), but so far he's seemed a decent enough sort. He doesn't run with scissors, and plays well with others (Knoxville Mayor Bill Haslam - a big change from the last 16 years). However, it's amusing that the people who are wanting to oust him from now didn't seem to be anywhere around when he was elected.

The wheel tax is unpopular, yes. It's probably unfair to those in lower income brackets. But is it the kind of thing to want to toss someone out of office? Hardly.

Now, that said, this kind of thing can't possibly help Ragsdale's image:

Harber throws his weight around Knox County (Frank Cagle, Metropulse 08/12/04)

"Tyler Harber is becoming a living legend in Knox County politics. The 23-year-old special assistant to County Mayor Mike Ragsdale has, in recent weeks, accused the most popular female officeholder in Knox County of throwing bitch fits, collected $42,000 from a campaign working “pro bono” and has threatened to shut down a restaurant owned by Mike Chase because they wouldn’t serve him another cocktail."

Also reported by Betty Bean at the Halls News, which I mentioned a few days ago, Young Master Harber has apparently been a bad boy lately...

A probation officer for the county and - according to him - a "special assistant" to the Mayor, his penchant for Goldschlagers caused a bit of an uproar at Copper Cellar. He threatened to get the waitress who cut him off fired, call the health department for a surprise inspection, shut the place down, and, um, possibly even breathe on them.

Never fear, once Sherrif Hutchison and County Executive Mayor Ragsdale caught wind of this fellow's shenanigans he was suspended for three days from his job. Yeah, that'll teach him.

All kidding aside, Harber is 23, owns some political consulting firm called "National Public Strategies", and worked on the campaigns for Ragsdale and some of colleagues such as Billy Stokes (who just got trounced in the State Senate primary to Jamie Hagood). This campaign work resulted in some conflict-of-interest accusations related to his county job.

I've read Frank Cagle's column above, those in the Halls News and also in the News Sentinel and I can't quite figure out how someone as young as 23 can accumulate this much influence and political responsibility. 23! When I was 23, I was a couple years out of college and still trying to figure out what I was going to do with my life.

Maybe he's smart, maybe he's got some good qualifications, maybe he just has great connections and influential friends. I don't know. But if his track record is any indication of his influence in Knox County government, it doesn't speak well for County Executive Mayor Ragsdale in who he chooses to run his (and his friends') campaigns.

Can you tell I hate the title County Mayor? I thought you could.

Thinking Cap Thursday

Thinking Cap Thursday

What do each of these 3 things have in common?

1. The Mouse that Roared - Dr. Strangelove - The Pink Panther

Peter Sellers Movies

2. Pile Driver - Sleeper - Suplex

Wrestling Holds

3. A Steer - A Wether - A Gelding *Spelling correction... lol... this is what happens when you try and type to fast LOL*

Kinds of horses?

4. Fishing - FInish - Dotted

Types of Lines

5. Woody Allen - Sidney Pollack - John Hughes

Movie Directors

6. Charging - Blocking - Traveling

Basketball infractions

7. The Presidential Inauguratioin - The Olympics - Leap Year

Things that happen every four years (or so)

8. Pennsylvania - Reading - Short Line

Monopoloy Railroads

9. Mr Robinson - Gumby - Buckwheat

Eddie Murphy characters from SNL

10. Finger Stalls - Dress Shield - Quiver

Hmmm...things with arrows?

11. Spiral - Compound - Greenstick

Types of fractures

12. Golf - Time - Cosmopolitan

One-word magazine titles

13. Merald Knight - Edward Patten - William Guest

Have no idea. They're actors, but..?

14. Grete Waitz - Joan Benoit - Miki Gorman

Nope...

15. Silver - Trigger - Mr Ed

Famous movie/TV horses

16. Elizabeth Taylor - Natalie Wood - Melanie Griffith

Actresses...but what in common?

17. Always - Jaws - Nuts

One-word movie titles

18. Bribane - Darwin - Hobart

Scientists?

19. Butt - Cock - Breech

Parts of a gun

20. Ross - Crazy - Elmer's

Types of glue

Hey that was fun - kinda like playing $20,000 Pyramid ;)

What's Up With Me?

I'm in a funk.

Can't explain it, really. The normal blargage is still around me: construction on the highway into work. Uncertainty from world events. Fed up with politics and politicos and poliblogs and anything connected with it. Work's tedious but eventful. Will UT find a Quarterback? And other things...

Same old, same old.

I just recently returned from Hilton Head - I should be happy! happy! happy! Well, I am. Sorta.

Could be any number of things, really. I think it boils down to two:

1. My 20th-Year Class Reunion is Friday and Saturday.
   
   I graduated from Knoxville Central Hight School in 1984, fresh and wide-eyed - ready to take on the world. My high school days revolved around two things: arts (band, chorus, drama) and academics (AP English, Trig, History).
   
   I went to my 10th-Year Reunion, well, 10 years ago. A lot of people were there - a lot weren't. I learned that one of my friends has since died. Several had changed - a lot. Quite shocking, in some cases. Some were pleasantly much the same. Some were even better. More than a few of the particular people I hung out with weren't there at all.
   
   So I'm not sure what to think about this weekend. Beth, one of my best friends from high school is coming back for sure. My wife's unable to attend the Saturday night banquet, so (with her blessing and trust) I'm actually going to "escort" my friend Saturday night so I'm looking forward to that.
   
   Just uncertainty. Another friend died not too long ago. Several others will not be there at all. A lot of others will be there that, frankly, I never really knew that well. Will I enjoy myself, renewing old acquaintences and actually sparking new ones? Or will I sit staring at the walls, wishing it were over?
   
   Ok, the real question. What will they think of me? We're all 37-38-39 years old, ten years older than the last time, twenty years since some have seen each other. Do I measure up? Will I impress? Will my hairline scare them? ;) Will some of them scare me? Who got plastic surgery? Botox? Boob jobs? Beer bellies?
   
   Will we actually have anything to talk about besides Bush/Kerry, imminent terrorist disaster, or the upcoming UT football season? I don't know.
   
   Guess I'll find out :)
   
   
2. School Starts Next Monday
   
   Now, I've gone through three "first day of school" rituals with BrainyBoy (v8.5). He's started third grade, and it's old hat for him this time. I haven't met his teacher yet, but don't anticipate any problems. He's a great student, a great kid (if a bit headstrong) and will excel.
   
   But then there's my little girl. GiggleGirl starts kindergarten.
   
   Same school as BB - they'll be there together, every day, brother and sister.
   
   Why does this bother me? I didn't have a problem when BB started kindergarten. "Ok, cool, nice uniform - gotcher backback? - all smiles - let's go!"
   
   But, she's, like....it's GG. She can't go to kindergarten. She's not old enough. You can't be that old. Not yet. Not her.
   
   She turns 5 in September. Can't she stay 4? Just a little while longer?
   
   They wear uniforms at her school - she has some "skorts", and navy blue jumpers. They're all freshly washed (thank you, thank you) and ready for her to "dry run" try on sometime today or tomorrow.
   
   I don't want to see. I'm not sure I can take her looking like a young girl, instead of a little girl.
   
   Don't grow up too fast...
   
   'k?
   

All I Want For Christmas Is...

My two front teeth...

Happy Moments

Take The Challenge

Seeing this story on TV this morning:

Bill Cosby's HU freshmen settle in

"A June newspaper article about two high school seniors living on their own in Springfield, Mass., caught Cosby's eye. Two months later, the teenagers featured in the article, Loren Wilder and Jimmy Hester, along with their friend, Wesley White, were escorted to Hampton University by Bill Cosby, with the promise of an all-expense-paid education.

The three, who intend to try out for the university's football team, impressed Cosby with their ability to succeed without parental support. When they arrived on campus, they made pledges - not to forget where they came from, to work hard and to inspire one another.

"Look, you can't get any better than that," said Cosby, smiling."

(This story is from the Hampton Roads, VA Daily Press - I saw the story on the Today Show, but couldn't find anything about it on their website)

The story on TV profiled the two boys that Cosby was impressed with - and they impressed me too. Basically abandoned by drug-using parents when they were 14 and 15 they stayed in school, played football and graduated with honors.

I'm hopeful that these three young men will succeed in college. Of course, college is much different than high school and there will be a lot different temptations to fail - without the home support a lot of new freshmen count on, the road will be rough but I hope they succeed.

Cosby has been the target of controversy lately in his calls for more active and responsible parenting in poorer minority communities. This is one way he's showing he's doing his part to help - by holding successful kids up as an example of what other can do when they raise themselves out of their own situations.

A personal note: in my experience in Theatre, I've run across several people who have either worked with Bill Cosby in the past, or known stories about him. A lot of them are unflattering, and don't quite fit with the "lovable father" persona he's built for himself. I don't know if they're quite accurate or not, but maybe these actions will help dispel those images. I hope so.

But seeing three kids go to college - three smart, ambitious, eager kids, who did not have the opportunity before - really makes me happy.

So there. :)

The Final Spoon Post

Ok, I thought the spoon thing was kind of funny.

Apparently not.

Tonight, tonight

Tonight I walked the dog. Well, actually the dog walked me. She's kind of big.

Washed some clothes, grilled burgers on the George Foreman. Read the paper.

Put the kids to bed, and now I'm sitting here writing this.

Someone alert the media.

Happy Thoughts

I'm happy that, um, well, I get to listen to tunes on my PC.

I'm having a bit of trouble coming up with different happy thoughts every day. What does that say about me?

Take The Challenge

Random Musings of the Day

• True Happiness:
  
  Me: So, do you know where you get to go on Thursday?
  
  Gigglegirl: To Grandma and Grandads!!! (my parents)
  
  Me: And spend the night, and where do you get to spend the night Friday night?
  
  Gigglegirl: Grandma and Grandads!!! (getting more excited)
  
  Me: Yep. And THEN! And THEN, on Saturday, you know where you get to go and spend the night and part of Sunday?
  
  Gigglegirl: (thinks for a moment) Mimi and Pop's!!! (my wife's parents)
  
  Me: Uh, huh. And THEN!! (I get real close to her face) Do YOU know where you're going on Monday for the first time??
  
  Gigglegirl: (ponders for a second, then eyes light up, and she squeals, jumping up and down) KINDERGARTEN!!!!!!!!
  
  That, my friends, is happiness.
  
  

  ---

  
  
• Goldschlagergate!
  
  
• Several hours later, I saw another fire engine near the airport - this time, fortunately, headed away. Well, unfortunately for those it was actually responding to, but you know...
  
  
• Is it also any less masculine of me to admit I tried out on of those home-dance PlayStation game things last night. We had dinner at the home of some friends of ours, and they have a 14-year-old daughter. She showed us how it works, and of course I had to show them how it was really done. All 6'2" of me.
  
  

  ---

  
  
• Is it any less masculine of me to say I really enjoyed splurging on new clotheses for my 20th High School Reunion this weekend? New suit, pants, shirt, sport coat...
  
  
• It's never fun to see a fire engine, lights and sirens blazing, headed toward the airport.
  
  
• The Super-Exciting Season Finale to THE 4400!!!
  
  Eh.
  

UPDATE: For Leslie - see link to Playstation game above.

Welcome to the Family

Michael Silence of the Knoxville News Sentinel now has his own blog.

Michael's been covering the Knoxville and Tennessee blogging beat (hey, I like that) for a while now. He's provided some of us with some good exposure in the newspaper, and helped bring legitimacy to our online world of opinion, news and fluff.

News Sentinel blogger makes online debut (Registration Required)

"Staff writer Michael Silence debuts his Web log, "No Silence Here," today on the News Sentinel Web site, KnoxNews.com.

'I'd like this to be quick, funny and informative,' Silence said. 'Initially, I plan to provide daily samples of what Tennessee bloggers are talking about, a sort of one-stop online barbershop highlighting what our neighbors are talking about.'"

The website address for Michael's blog will be posted later today, and I'll update as soon as it's available.

Welcome!

UPDATE: Here it is: http://web.knoxnews.com/silence/.

35 Questions

By unpopular demand, here they are.

1) WHAT COLOR ARE YOUR BEDROOM WALLS?

I have no idea. Beige? It's always dark when I'm in there.

2) WHAT BOOK ARE YOU READING NOW?

Unity, by S.D. Perry

3) WHAT’S ON YOUR MOUSE PAD?

At work: A picture collage of all the websites Hatamaran and I operate here at the health system. We put it together a couple of years ago as giveaway to educate the employees about our new corporate intranet.

At home: I don't remember, but I have a great one that has a picture of me and my son on it when he was about 2. It doesn't work really well as a mouse pad (the trackball slips) but I always keep it nearby. There's an identical picture on my wall.

4) FAVORITE BOARD GAME?

Trivial Pursuit, then Monopoly.

5) FAVORITE MAGAZINE?

The New Yorker.

Not really. I just put that up to look sophisticated.

6) FAVORITE SMELL?

Hot buttered popcorn popping.

7) FAVORITE COLOR?

Green.

8) LEAST FAVORITE COLOR?

Of the remaining primaries/secondaries, probably yellow. If you want to dig deeper I don't like aquamarine or magenta.

9) HOW MANY RINGS BEFORE YOUR ANSWERING MACHINE PICKS UP?

Three. I wish I could set it for more because sometimes we each think the other's got it, and then it picks up before either can get to it.

10) MOST IMPORTANT MATERIAL THING IN MY LIFE?

Photos and videotapes of out kids growing up.

11) FAVORITE FLAVOR OF ICE CREAM?

Black Cherry from Kay's Ice Cream.

12) DO YOU BREAK THE SPEED LIMIT DAILY?

Yep. But not severely.

13) DO YOU HAVE A STUFFED ANIMAL IN YOUR ROOM SOMEWHERE?

You're asking the father of two little kids whether there's a stuffed animal in the room?? The better question is whether's there's a stuffed animal in my chair, or the bed. Or on the stairs.

In my office here at work....um, yes. My lionfish from the Ripley's Aquarium. His name is Stewart. Oh, and a, um, tribble. He doesn't have a name.

14) STORMS - COOL OR SCARY?

Thunder - don't care, kinda cool. Lightning - can't stand a glimpse. Any possible remote threat of tornadoes - I'm under the sink.

15) FAVORITE DRINK?

Iced tea, from Back Yard Burgers in Knoxville. Ok, any iced tea.

16) WHEN IS YOUR BIRTHDAY?

December 30.

17) FAVORITE VEGETABLES?

Green Beans

18) IF YOU COULD HAVE ANY JOB, WHAT WOULD IT BE?

Full-time artistic director for a theatre, that would allow me to direct shows as well. Any inquiries welcome.

19) IF YOU COULD HAVE ANY COLOR HAIR, WHAT WOULD IT BE?

I'd just be happy to have more hair, thanks.

20) HAVE YOU EVER BEEN IN LOVE?

Yes.

21) TOP THREE FAVORITE MOVIES (IN ORDER)?

1 - Star Wars
2 - Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan
3 - Back to the Future

22) DO YOU TYPE WITH YOUR FINGERS ON THE RIGHT KEYS?

What right keys? Are we making some kind of value judgement on keys, now?

Wait, I'm confused. Do I type on the right keys instead of, like the left ones? Then my sentences would look like this:

hi nn in onl i om m ih hn. (This sentence was written only with keys from my right hand)

Or do you mean do I punch the right keys at all? If I didn't, they'd look like this:

astru fhatj tkeuetka tuas;yio a; thqw

This doesn't make sense...

23) WHAT’S UNDER YOUR BED?

Monsters. And cats. Boxes of clothes and feathers.

24) WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE NUMBER?

Five. Where are we going with this?

25) FAVORITE SPORT TO WATCH ON TV & IN PERSON?

Um, er, um...football. No, BASEBALL!! BASEBALL, I tell you!!!

26) WHAT IS YOUR SINGLE BIGGEST FEAR?

Failing as a parent. Not doing something I should have done in a critical (or even non-critical moment) due to inattention or stupidity.

27) FAVORITE CD OF ALL TIME & RIGHT NOW?

Right now my favorite CD is O Mickey Where Art Thou. Of all time, probably Sports by Huey Lewis and the News.


28) FAVORITE TV SHOW OF ALL TIME & RIGHT NOW?

All Time: Star Trek
Right Now: 24, The Dead Zone

29) HAMBURGERS OR HOT DOGS?

Both. Either or. You name it.

30) THE COOLEST PLACES YOU’VE EVER BEEN?

* The point of the eagle's beak at halftime of the '85 Sugar Bowl in New Orleans.
* Kayaking off the coast of Barbados just before swimming with the sea turtles
* Rain Forest and Dormant Volcanoes of Dominica and St. Lucia
* Standing at the altar and seeing the doors open at the back of the church, letting in the blazing setting sun that silhouetted my moments-to-be-wife as she came in to the sanctuary.

31) WHAT WALLPAPER AND/OR SCREENSAVER IS ON YOUR COMPUTER RIGHT NOW?

Wallpaper: Darth Vader conceptual art from SW:ROTS (work)
Whales in flight from Fantasia: 2000 (home)

Screensaver: EPCOT slide show (work)
Regular starfield (home) (I used to have a Spiderman animated screen saver at home, but it kept crashing the PC)

32) DOES MCDONALD’S SKIMP ON YOUR FRIES & DO YOU CARE?

Don't care. I don't eat at McD's any more.

33) FAVORITE CHAIN RESTAURANT?

Back Yard Burgers, Chili's

34) IF YOU HAVE A BOY (OR HAVE ANOTHER BOY) WHAT WOULD YOU NAME HIM?

Probably Joshua. Long story.

35) IF YOU COULD LEARN TO PLAY ONE INSTRUMENT OVERNIGHT, WHAT WOULD IT BE?

The cello. I lurve to hear a solo cello, and would dearly love to learn to play it well.


And one to grow on:

36) WHAT IS THE NEXT BIG EVENT COMING UP IN YOUR LIFE?

My 20-year High School Reunion.


(Seen at Michael Totten's)

Happy Weekend

The Continuing Saga...

Saturday: Spending time with family, and watching thousands of tiny rubber ducks race float amble down the riverfront.
Sunday: Spending time with old friends
Monday: Not spilling my coke when the lid popped off while I was driving to work. (Ok, that's weak but the day is young. Maybe something else will make me happier later in the day...)

Take The Challenge

Spam Subject Line of the Day

"It Depends on You Lunatic Torsion"

-- discuss the sociological and ethical ramifications thereto..

(Runner-up: "Take a Look Eggplant Pigeonfoot")

Pigs are Flying...

And Michael Totten has done a meme.

Should I do this one, too? I report, you decide (in the comments).

REAL Sunny Day

I take it all back.

Today is gorgeous.. Sunny, not too hot.

Things is good, and I'm happy again :)

Take The Challenge

SPOON: The Continuing Crisis - Day 4

This is your crisis update center.

The latest reports have indicated the fabric of space around the Spoon is slowly unraveling. Our intrepid gully dwarf victim photographer had been forced threatened asked nicely to sneak in and take some pictures:

This was taken just prior to the disturbances...



Then something started to happen - the air began to heat up as the Spoon started to glow...



Glurp tried to run, but his courage held fast (plus I told him he could have my Doritos) so he managed to snap up one more picture before things got out of hand...



My so-called ally Glurp cut and run after that, and is still hiding under the refrigerator (don't ask me how he managed that).

I fear I have angered The Spoon. Perhaps later I will venture in again and check.

Perhaps not...

Friday's Feast

Appetizer
Who are 3 actors/actresses that you think are totally overrated?

• Will Ferrell
• Jack Black
• Halle Berry

Soup
Admit something. Anything.

You like asking the easy questions, don't you? Ok.

I admit I'm way too judgemental about people sometimes. It's for (of course) the best of reasons, because all I want to do is help them, and make them happy. But sometimes I estimate their need/happiness on surface impressions and don't dig deeper.

There. Happy?? *hrmph*

Salad
If you could take back one thing you've said in your life, what would it be?

The softballs continue...

Can I take back my answer to that last question?

Oh.

Ok, I wish I hadn't said to my wife (then she was my girlfriend) during an argument that maybe she'd be happier if I just wasn't around. That was the only time anything I said really made her cry, and it's always bothered me.

We made up :)

Main Course
What symbol would best represent your personality?

Maybe those scales like Libra - I always want everything to balance out and be all right. I'm a peacemaker and mediator.

Dessert
Choose a free gift: a daily back massage, dinner at a restaurant twice per week, or a brand new book twice per month.

We already do the last two fairly often but a daily back massage would be absolute heaven. (are you listening, L?)

Theatre Thursday

Week 12 - Didn't I see that on TV?

Starsky & Hutch is the top selling DVD this week. With that in mind, this week the topic is TV shows that have been turned into movies.

1) What movie based on a television show is your favorite?

Well, the Star Trek movies are obvious, but other than those probably The Fugitive for dramas and The Brady Bunch for comedy.

2) Your least favorite?

Sit-coms are pretty formulaic to make interesting movies, unless they're played up for heavy satire (Brady Bunch is the prime example). Any of those I don't care for. Although I am interested in seeing Nicole Kidman as Samantha Stevens in the new Bewitched (but Will Ferrel as Darrin leaves me cold).

3) What television show would you like to see turned into a movie?

I would love to see a really good, quality Gilligan's Island movie. There's been one in the works for a while (I think a younger Jim Carrey might've been fun as Gilligan) but it hasn't seen the light of day. Then, of course, there's the long-awaited but never-will-be-realized Land of the Lost movie.

*sigh*

Bonus) Should the actors that portray these characters on TV also be used in the movie? Or would you like to see different actors?

Well, of course if the movie is made long after the series it doesn't make sense to use the original actors (unless its a continuation of the series). But I like when they make cameos, like in Lost in Space.

The 4400

If you missed any of the episodes of this great 5-part miniseries on alien abductees returning home, USA is showing the whole series in a marathon Sunday afternoon beginning at 4pm EDT.

The series finale starts immediately following at 9pm.

Spoon Update: Day 3

The spoon remains, lording over the restroom with sovereign rule.

I swear it's moved a little. It may be developing a burgeoning sentience.

Apparently our office custodial staff is giving it a wide berth. Probably with good reason.

More updates as they become available....

Sunny Day

Since it's been clammy, wet, rainy and downright miserable all day - there's darn near nothing to be happy about.

So what makes me happy? Remembering being a kid, sitting in front of the TV watching Sesame Street. And the fact I still remember some of those songs by heart.

This happy thought is brought to you by the letter "K", the number "7", and The Challenge.

UPDATE: My better (?) half informs me that I neglected to mention a happy thing. A friend of mine from church is coming by this evening to finish replacing the hardwood floor entry to our house. A project he started a couple months ago, but had to stop when we ran out of wood and couldn't find any more that would match. He tracked it down, bought it, stained it and is installing it tonight.

Gratis.

Cause that's the kind of guy he is. I'll find a way to pay him something, or make a donation somewhere. But that makes me happy :)

The Spoon is Still There

It mocks me.

What Makes Me Happy

Listening to: Millennium Celebration Album.

We visited Walt Disney World as a family in October of 2000, in the midst of the Millenium Celebration. Some of the experiences we had were set to this music, and it never fails to bring back great memories of that trip when I listen to it.

It's such relentlessly cheerful, optimistic music - especially in light of what would happen 11 months later.

Take The Challenge

Testing Meme Propagation In Blogspace:

Add Your Blog!

This posting is a community experiment that tests how a meme, represented by this blog posting, spreads across blogspace, physical space and time. It will help to show how ideas travel across blogs in space and time and how blogs are connected. It may also help to show which blogs (and aggregation sites) are most influential in the propagation of memes. The dataset from this experiment will be public, and can be located via Google (or Technorati) by doing a search for the GUID for this meme (below).

Please join the test by adding your blog (see instructions, below) and inviting your friends to participate -- the more the better. The data from this test will be public and open; others may use it to visualize and study the connectedness of blogspace and the propagation of memes across blogs.

The GUID for this experiment is:

as098398298250swg9e98929872525389t9987898tq98wteqtgaq62010920352598gawst

The above GUID enables anyone to easily search Google or other search engines for all blogs that participate in this experiment, once they have indexed the sites that participate, which may take several days or weeks. To locate the full data set, just search for any sites that contain this GUID.

Anyone is free to analyze the data of this experiment. Please publicize your analysis of the data, and/or any comments by adding comments onto the original post (see URL above). (Note: it would be interesting to see a geographic map or a temporal animation, as well as a social network map of the propagation of this meme.)

INSTRUCTIONS

To add your blog to this experiment, copy this entire posting to your blog, and then answer the questions below, substituting your own information, below, where appropriate. Other than answering the questions below, please do not alter the information, layout or format of this post in order to preserve the integrity of the data in this experiment (this will make it easier for searchers and automated bots to find and analyze the results later).

REQUIRED FIELDS (Note: Replace the answers below with your own answers)

(1) I found this experiment at URL: Pretty Purple Princess

(2) I found it via "Newsreader Software" or "Browsing the Web" or "Searching the Web" or "An E-Mail Message": Browsing the Web

(3) I posted this experiment at URL: http://lasthome.blogspot.com

(4) I posted this on date (day/month/year): 04/08/04

(5) I posted this at time (24 hour time): 09:03

(6) My posting location is (city, state, country): (local city) Knoxville, TN, USA)

OPTIONAL SURVEY FIELDS:

(7) My blog is hosted by: Blogger

(8) My age is: 37

(9) My gender is: Male

(10) My occupation is: Webmaster

(11) I use the following RSS/Atom reader software: N/A

(12) I use the following software to post to my blog: Blogger

(13) I have been blogging since (day, month, year): 01/03

(14) My web browser is: Mozilla 1.7

(15) My operating system is: Windows 2000

Random Musings As The Day Goes On....

• Apparently my day was not very muse-worthy..
  
  And the spoon is still there.
  
  
• There's a spoon in the bathroom. I don't know why it's there, but it is.
  
  
• Went to dinner at Steak 'n' Shake last night. BrainyBoy (v8.5) told us that "when he was little" he used to think he had a different tube in his throat for every kind of food to go down. A carrot tube, a green beans tube, etc. And when something "went down the wrong way" that meant a carrot went down a green beans tube by mistake.
  
  Somehow the fact that an 8-year-old is remembering silly thoughts he used to have when he was younger makes me want to burst out laughing and hug him. It also makes me feel old. Again.
  
  GiggleGirl said there were, however, three tubes. One of the air, one for the food and one for drinks. When I informed her she was very close, that food and drink went down the same tube, she scrunched up her face and went, "Ewwwwwww". I then continued to explain the whole milkshake/blender effect that happens when food and liquids mix together in her stomach. I don't think she appreciated having that little anatomical fantasy quashed.
  

What Makes Me Happy

Take The Challenge

What makes me happy?

Watching GiggleGirl dance.

Just Waiting...

I'm waiting to see what South Knox Bubba has to say about this recent letter to the editor in Metropulse (scroll down to "A Right-Wing Green?")

"Well, it’s pretty much a historical fact that since the 1960’s, the residential use of coal for heat has been virtually eliminated, and the vast majority of businesses in the region no longer use coal to heat or produce electricity. Also, those few coal fired plants still operating which continue to burn coal to generate electricity have filters installed to clean their emissions—something that was absent during the first half of the 20th century...

...So then has the pollution created by coal burning also been virtually eliminated. Hence, air quality in East Tennessee has improved, not worsened, in the last thirty years or so.

...The same holds true for auto emissions. Simply stated, most cars on the roads today have anti-pollution equipment installed on them, as opposed to the first seventy or so years of the 20th century, when anti-pollution equipment was not required on autos."

And there's more.

What with historic eviscerations of TVA from SKB (here, here, and here to name a few), I'd expect him to be all over this one...

Bubba and I haven't seen eye to eye on a lot this past year, but on this issue he's right on top of the correct info. I hope to see what he says about it...

(On further reflection...) I don't know, maybe this guy is really being satirical in his letter and is actually making fun of the people who think everything is A-OK. I read it through a couple of times, and it still seems he's being serious. If he's not, I apologize for my density.

Find a Happy Place!!! Find a Happy Place!!!

Take The Challenge

Pretty Purple Princess blog has challenged bloggers to post one happy thought each day in August. I'd especially challenge those bloggers who mostly post unhappiness and cynicism on their sites.

Since I just heard about this today, here are mine for today and yesterday.

8/1) I'm happy that I have a great family, even though my kids drive me nuts

8/2) I'm happy that my faith strengthens with time.

(Thanks to Michael for bringing this to my attention)

Bomb Wrap-Up Stinks

Car explosion was suicide or accident, source says (The Tennesseean, 07/30/04)

"The Williamson County man who died in a massive car explosion last week in a parking lot at Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center probably died either by suicide or by accident, a source close to the investigation said.

Since the July 20 blast, there has been no indication that anyone other than William Glen Young, 43, was responsible for the mysterious blast that took his life, the source said."

Ok, so the authorities (who presumably know more about this kind of thing than me) are convinced that this chap wasn't murdered. Well, I say it still stinks like yesterday's diapers.

Why was his car parked way out in the middle of a huge parking lot? What kind of accident could trigger such a massive explosion? I don't quite buy this, but that's ok because I understand the police can't release every lead they have.

Now that it doesn't seem to be terrorism, I'm not as concerned.

Meanwhile, I just thought this exchange was odd...

"They have not disclosed details of interviews with Young's wife. This week, a woman who identified herself as the mother of Young's wife would not comment when reached by telephone."

Ok, so obviously mom didn't phone them (why would she if she had no comment?) so the paper must have tracked her down. If they did track her down...why did they say "she identified herself as the mother of Young's wife, if they already knew who she was to track her down? That doesn't make sense. Ah well.

Devil Ducky - A True Hollywood Story

Had lunch with the Curmudgeoness today, and lo, I have looked upon the Devil Ducky and survived to tell the tale.

Well, it was apparently Devil Ducky's even more evil younger cousin 'cause this one was sorta clear and had a keychain growing out of its little Ducky butt. Poor little guy's not going to float anytime soon with the ball and chain hanging off of him. I suspect mob involvement.

He had his evil eye on me the whole lunch - sat there glaring at me, like, "Go ahead - pick me up, I dare you. I'll squirt you, I will I will..." Grrrrr... Actually it might be possessed. He belongs back home with his little possessed brothers and sisters.

I'm very worried about Leslie. She's much, much less curmudgeony than she tries to make herself seem on her site. Actually she's quite friendly and fun - a "pay no attention to the (wo)man behind the curtain) kind of person. Well, I do hear she's a terror when she's had too many Apple Martini's, but hey, it was just lunch...

Guess the Quote

1000 BarryPoints to who can guess where the quote is from above...

No Googling allowed...

(Hint: It's from a TV show)

Misty, you may be disqualified... ;)

UPDATE: 08/02/04 - It was from Friends: The One After the Super Bowl

Friday's Feast

Appetizer
Name 3 things that you think are beautiful.

1. The sound of kids laughing
2. The first few bars of a concerto, and the last few bars of a symphony
3. A week of vacation ahead of you :)

Soup
What was the last concert you attended?
It has really been a long time since I've been to any kind of concert. Probably Amy Grant.

Salad
What is one thing that frightens you about getting older?
That the number of days to come are getting smaller. Also forgetting.

Main Course
Tell us about one of your funny quirks or habits.
I find I'm unable to concentrate with more than one person talking at a time nearby, or a person and a loud TV. It makes me crazy, and I get very nervous. I also have what I consider to be a special aptitude for empathy. My wife's confirmed this many time. I can usually tell, not necessarily what emotion someone is feeling but I can share emotional states with other people. If someone is feeling upset, but putting on a brave face I can sense it and adjust how I interact with them. Thus I have tons of patience for people who are looked down on (and consequently, little patience for the ones looking down on them).

Dessert
If you could extend one month to 50 days (instead of the normal 28, 29, 30, or 31), which month would you want to lengthen?
I would want 19-20 more days of spring, so April or May. Or if it's still warm, 19 more days of October.

Theatre Thursday

Week 11 - My Life.

This week the topic is YOU.

1) If there was a movie to be made about your life, what actor/actress would portray you?

A younger John Larroquette. Or maybe Scott Bakula.

2) What actor/actress would portray your love interest? Your best friend?

The love interest would be....the most beautiful and talented Hollywood actress you can possibly think of, of course! *

My best friend would be played by Alan Ruck.


3) What would be the title of your film?

The Right Thing

Bonus) What moment of your life would be the highlight of this film?

Any of the choices I've made in my life that involved doing the right thing over the thing that felt good at the time...

(* Disclaimer: My wife reads my blog)

Out of my League

Sometimes I get the feeling I'm incredibly lucky to have the job that I have, because I'm so woefully undereducated, underexperienced and undertrained to actually do it the way it needs to be done.

My job consists of creating, managing, designing and promoting the website presence of an 8,000+ employee health system and all its associated hospitals, clinics, treatment centers, programs, etc. etc. etc. Plus Hatamaran and I run the corporate Intranet (and with her short hair she's now even twice as efficient because her head tends not to loll to one side as much).

Spend a lunch talking with someone in a similar position at another company and see how they do it. Words are bandied about like "teams" and "departments" and "authority" and "cooperation" and "research" and "presentations to Executive Management of my Strategic Plan" when my days are spent just keeping loose threads from unraveling.

Her eDevelopment world is so different from mine. It has organization, it has polish, it has experience, it's professional.

I feel sometime like mine's held together with an old roll of duct tape and a string from an old kite. I put it together from scratch 7 years ago, and while the company's grown we've never really embraced the Internet as a health information and patient/consumer information tool. Oh, we start this program and that initiative but they all die slow, painful, horrible deaths. And it's always the same, after every year. And I can't do a thing about it.

You know, the 20-year High School Reunion is a week from next Friday and Saturday. Sometimes you'd like to have more to show for 20 years of college education and work experience than an big fat illusion.

Ok, feeling all lousy and lack-of-professional-self-worth here. Rant over.

Latest I Could Find on the Car Bombing

Few clues found yet to explain what led to car-bomb death (07/23, The Tennesseean)

This is the latest story I could find on their website. It does mention a couple new details I hadn't heard:

"After the blast, Young's body was found in front of his Land Rover. He was found without his pants, officials said. They were probably torn from his body during the blast, said Carlos Bauxauli, special agent for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Bauxauli declined to release further details on that matter."

That's just sad, really. In your final moments of life to lose your pants. How can they, though, get "torn from your body"?

"Officials said Young was in the driver's seat at the time of the blast, but somehow ended up in front of the car, on the ground, after the explosion."

This is a little puzzling, however. I'm no forensics expert, but if you can tell that he was originally in the drivers seat before the explosion, wouldn't you know how he ended up in front of the car? I mean, the question doesn't make sense. If you're puzzled at how he ended up on the ground, how could you have extrapolated where he was before? Maybe that's where his pants were...ugh.

"Explosives expert Rick Eley yesterday said it would be rare for a deadly car explosion to be the result of an accident or suicide.

He estimated that car explosions are set 99.9% of the time by someone intending to harm someone else, not themselves.

Instructions on building and detonating car bombs are readily available on the Internet and in books that are available at bookstores, Eley said. An accidental car explosion would be extremely rare, he said.

A suicide in Young's case would be an anomaly that would generate interest from explosive experts worldwide, Eley said."

This looks more and more like a hit, for lack of a better word. But then there's this:

"Residents of Cavalcade Drive in Franklin's Fieldstone Farms development said their lives were becoming normal again yesterday, the day after bomb squad dogs, law enforcement vehicles and media packed their small cul-de-sac to investigate William Young's house. ''All the vehicles are gone now,'' said Michelle Taylor, who lives two doors down from Young's house. Taylor said neighbors are ready to get back to their routines, noting the inconvenience of having 10 ATF, FBI and Metro police vehicles parked outside their houses.

Officials had street blocked off Wednesday. Taylor had to ask an official to move his car every time she wanted to go somewhere. 'It was still quite a circus here (Wednesday) night,'' she said of the search of Young's house. ''I know they took his computer. An ATF official made a comment to my husband that the computer system was so intricate and intelligent that it was scary.'"

That's interesting. While an intricate computer system owned by someone in Franklin is certainly not unusual, the fact that an ATF agent commented on it as being scary is.

I'll still keep my eyes open.

UPDATE: Then there's this misleading headline:

Little known about man killed in car bomb blast (07/23, The Tennesseean)

The article then proceeds to relate numerous intimate details about Young, his wife, and his child, gossip from the neighbors about a pending move to Nicaragua (that mysteriously doesn't check out), his work history, credit history, the family's financial history, plus some interesting tidbits about a Child & Family Services Investigation in 2001 and a 911 hangup in 2002.

Gee, it's too bad the Tennesseean couldn't find anything out about this guy. I'd hate to see what they'd print if they found out anything personal or embarassing...

Well, Maybe This Time (plus car bombs)

Last week I was invited to lunch by someone who's in a similar field that I am, although with a different local healthcare company. I ended up waiting 30 minutes at Riverside Tavern, then giving up and eating alone. When I got back to the office she called, wondering where I was. Turns out she'd gone to the Westside Tavern instead. Honest mistake.

Today we're trying it again at Macaroni Grill. Any other restaurants in town with a similar name I should be aware of?

Oh, and it's Italian twice in a row - last night we went to the new Johnny Carina's in West Knox County. Tons of food, and there are three to-go boxes of fettucine alfredo, penne pasta and spaghetti lounging in our fridge.

I love Italian. And so do you. Yes. No. Yes. No.

Yes.

*****

I've gotten a lot of Google and Yahoo! hits lately about the Nashville car bombing last week. I blogged about it here. I checked some of the other hits the searches found, and haven't seen or heard any progress on the investigation. Any Nashvillians heard anything lately? If and when I hear anything, I'll post it here to help out the folks searching...

TV Tuesday

Week 19 - Memories

This week it's about you and what you remember about TV!! :)

1. What's your fondest memory of something on TV?

Sitting with a big group of friends and watching "Star Trek: The Next Generation" premiere back in '87. I bought my first VCR that day so I could tape it.

Does my whole bloody life revolve around sci-fi? Sometimes it seems so...

2. What's the first show you remember watching regularly?

Probably "The Bugaloos" on Saturday Mornings back in the late 60's. They were followed closely by H.R. Pufnstuf, et al.

3. What is the (pick one: stupidest, saddest, silliest, most disgusting..) thing you've ever seen on TV?

One of the later episodes of "Farscape" had the most disgusting things I've ever seen, that still turns my stomach. One of the villains was able to mind-control our intrepid crew by using a device that PULLED OUT THEIR EYEBALLS about 4-5 inches in front of their face and clamped a chip onto their stretched out optic nerve. I will never be able to watch that epidode again.

~Bonus~ (From the hubby! LOL) What's the best series finale you remember?
The series finale for "M*A*S*H" was really 5 episodes strung together, and some of the plots had little to do with the other as the episode went along. But they were 5 really good episodes :)

The three modern Trek finales (TNG: "All Good Things", DS9: "What You Leave Behind" and VOY: "Endgame") were all good, but not spectacular.

I'm still mad I missed the "Mad About You" finale. "Seinfeld"'s was pointless and "Friends" was good, but predictable.

But the best? Johnny Carson's final regular episode of "The Tonight Show" - the one with Robin Williams and Bette Midler. (Bette sang a special version of "One More for the Road" to Johnny that we have on one of her albums.) True the following night's episode was the real finale, but it was just clips of the past. This was the true finale.

Sounds Familiar...

Eugene Volokh notes that Slate's "Kerry-isms" and "Bushisms" (short comments making fun of quotes from John Kerry and George Bush:

"I've criticized Kerryisms many times in the past; maybe I've reached the point of diminishing returns. But it just galls me to see this sort of stuff -- not substantive, not funny, just empty snideness descending into self-parody -- in a magazine of Slate's prominence and quality."

Funny, you know - that also describes a lot of today's political blogs and commentators. Skip around the 'sphere and most every site you land on that exclusively comments on the partisan political landscape - from whichever side, it doesn't matter - is using the same tone.

It's not substantive, it's not funny and it's just empty snideness. That's why party loyalty is a farce now, the conventions are a farce and nothing of true statesmanship is coming out of any of them.

But He Looked So Peaceful I Hated To Wake Him...

Man, 55, Found Dead On Couch in Ohio Hospital

"A man was found dead on a couch in a hospital lounge, and a nurse told police that no one had checked on him for at least 17 hours because he appeared to be asleep.

...

Nurse Lynette Chihil discovered Thursday morning that Johnson was dead. She told police that Johnson, who was fully dressed and curled with his face buried in a cushion, was discolored and cold, and that she had seen him on the same couch 17 hours earlier.

[His wife] Robin Johnson said she had not seen her husband since he left home Monday morning after an argument. Police believe he camped out at the hospital rather than return home. "

My sympathies to his family, but thank goodness that didn't happen in one of our hospitals. The PR nightmare would be off the scale.

It's amazing that, not just in a hospital but everywhere, we've inured ourselves to the lives of others. "Don't get involved", "just keep walking", "it's not my problem". We sometimes are so afraid of what another person might say to us, we don't strike up a conversation or smile and wave at a total stranger.

How many people passed by in that 17 hour period? I'd hate to know I was totally ignored for that long. What happened to the connections people used to have to one another?

Blog Quote of the Day

From CWill's Pen

"In the booth to my right [at an art fair], there is always an Amish guy selling baskets. He always brings along two or three of his 57 identical-looking sons, and they sell baskets on Saturday and then drive the buggy 25 miles back home that night. They all dress alike, obviously, in plain blue clothes with straw hats, and they are all unusually short and slight. The father has a long beard and the sons have longish curly hair, and they all speak with accents from whatever language it is that Amish people speak amongst themselves. The incident: A family with several little boys was browsing in the Amish guy's booth, and one of the little boys, who couldn't have been more than five, couldn't stop staring. After several minutes of puzzling over these strange people, the little boy went up to the Amish man and said:

"Are you elves?"

The Amish man paused for a long serious moment, considering this. Then he said:

"Well, not yet."

And the little boy went away, awed. "

You've Got to be Kidding Me

Ricky Williams is retiring.

Now normally this wouldn't cause me a lot of grief one way or the other. I used to live and breathe for the Dolphins, but after Marino retired I kind of lost interest, especially when the Titans moved into the state.

But this is too much. I drafted Ricky Williams AND Shaun Alexander in my Fantasy Football Draft - probably the best 1-2 Running Back punch in my league. And then the dreadlocked one goes and does something like this...

He hate me.

Just Another Day At The Office

Ho hum...

"A little song, a little dance,
Another win of the Tour de France."

It's Official!

Thursday, May 19, 2005.
T-Minus 299 Days and Counting.

Friday's Feast

Appetizer
Name something you've done that made you feel guilty.

I plugged in my hair dryer and plunged the entire NorthEast into blackout. Oops, my bad. No seriously...I, um, well, I feel to guilty to talk about it.

Soup
If you could get rid of one piece of furniture in your house, what would it be, and what would you put in its place?

I'd get rid of the cabinet we store our TV on and get a nice new entertainment center so all my DVD's won't be stacked up all over the place...

Salad
Imagine you've won a contest to be a featured guest on any television sitcom or drama show. On which one would you want to be a guest star?

"Enterprise" or "The Dead Zone".

Main Course
Create a cereal. Tell us what you'd name it and what ingredients would be included.

It would have to be cherry-flavored cuz that's my favorite flavor. That's it - 100% of the RDA of cherries, fortified with vitamins and iron. Part of this complete breakfast! Serve with a glass of milk, a glass of orange juice and two slices of toast.

Dessert
Describe the most memorable night of your life so far.

The night my son was born 8-1/2 years ago. I'll get back and describe it later.

Failure of Imagination

9/11 Panel Blames 'Institutional Failings'

"The Sept. 11 commission concludes that a "failure of imagination," not governmental neglect, allowed 19 hijackers to carry out the deadliest terrorist attack in U.S. history. The panel calls for an intelligence overhaul to confront an al-Qaida organization intent on striking again.

...

There was a "failure of imagination" to provide either Bush or Clinton with new options — particularly military approaches — to deal with al-Qaida, the official said. There also was a failure to adapt to the post-Cold War era, and people just kept trying the same kinds of things that didn't work, the official said."

See, if they'd just listened to me this report could've come out two months earlier. Lack of imagination was obvious, because apparently nobody could think of the truly far-fetched possibilities of terrorism.

Volunteer Tailgate Party - Vol. XXVIII

Michael of Big Orange Michael is hosting the latest Volunteer Tailgate Party, a monthly compilation of the best and brightest blatherings of the Rocky Top Brigade.

Theatre Thursday

Week 10 - Moments

This week's Theatre Thursday is dedicated to those Onscreen Moments that stay with you forever.

1) What moment from what movie still makes you laugh out loud - no matter how many times you see it?

In "Ferris Bueller's Day Off", when Mr. Rooney is sneaking into Ferris' house looking for the kid, and encounters his sister Jenny who thinks he's Ferris. When they come face to face, she screams and kicks him in the face, running away. That one gets me every time.

2) What moment from what movie still makes you cry like a baby - no matter how many times you see it?

"Mr. Holland's Opus", a) when Richard Dreyfuss sings 'Beautiful Boy' about his son, Cole, and b) when they hand him the baton to let him direct 'American Symphony' at the end.

3) What moment from what movie made you actually turn your head from the screen - either in fear, revulsion, or contempt for the fact that you actually paid money to see the film?

I rented "Spy Kids 3-D" for my kids - pretty much the whole movie made me turn my face from the screen. After the first two great movies, I couldn't believe this one.

But as for a moment, when either C. Thomas Howell or Jennifer Jason Leigh (I don't recall which) absently picked up a severed finger from a basket of fries and almost ate it, from "The Hitcher", got me.

BONUS) What is one single moment from a film that is indelibly etched in your brain? Not a scene or a sequence exactly, but three or four seconds from a movie that contain an image or phrase or concept that transcends normal movies?

In the original 'Superman' - Superman has pulled a dead Lois Lane from her car and she's lying on the side of the road. He crouches beside her, sobbing, shaking his head. As he begins to stand, Christopher Reeve looks straight up at the camera, snarls, and leaps screaming into the air. That one moment of rage and grief captured on film gets me every time.

Take a Moment and answer these questions, and you'll feel you've flown across the moon..

Yeah, That's Me - Tennessee Barry...

What Classic Movie Are You?
personality tests by similarminds.com

Nashville Car Bomb Doesn't Seem to be Terrorism - So Far

Neighbors identify man slain in Opryland parking lot explosion

"A man who was killed overnight when a sport-utility vehicle exploded in the parking lot of the Gaylord Opryland Resort and Convention Center has been identified by neighbors as William Glen Young, 43, of Franklin.

...

The home is in the sprawling Fieldstone Farms development.

...

The vehicle was parked in a remote part of the hotel's parking lot."

Soundind less and less like terrorists and more and more like a despondant lover or something.

UPDATE (07/22/04): Turns out the man who was killed was a neighbor of Donald Sensing and had a child in the same grade at the same school as Rev. Sensing's child.

For The Love Of God, Say It Ain't So

Report: Michael Jackson Father to Quadruplets

"With all we've heard about Michael Jackson, it would seem there would be nothing left to shock us -- until today. A published report claims Jackson is about to become a father again, and this time -- it's quadrulplets."

But wait, there's a break in the clouds:

Michael Jackson Denies He Fathered Quadruplets

'On Tuesday, Jackson's publicist Raymone Bain denied a report in Us Weekly that Jackson is about to become a father to quadruplets via a surrogate mother. "This is not true," Bain told Reuters, "and we are not going to further comment on stories of this nature."'

And the nation breathes a tentative sigh of relief...however, here is apparently the real story:

Michael Jackson Fathers Brood of Puppies

Now that one I can believe...

Six Word Story

Ernest Hemingway was once challenged to create a short story using only six words. After a while, he came up with:

"For sale: baby shoes, never used."

Ouch.

What can you do?

(Seen at Sheila's)

UPDATE: A bit cliched, but how about "What could possibly go wrong now?"

When Your Heroes Fall...

Lileks is a Marvel-phile (Registration Required)

"Superhero books. These form the bulk of [my] collection, and I'm proud to say they were all Marvel. Back then you were a Marvel kid or a DC kid. The latter was home to Superman, Superboy, Supergirl, Superdog, SuperChickenFetus, SuperBacterium, and so on. All were indestructible unless exposed to a green rock -- which, of course, every supercriminal had in abundance. (Probably from the Niger stockpiles.) Every other SuperWhatever issue had a "what if?" story: What if Superman married Lois Lane on planet Quesar VII and they lived underwater and had Supertwins? What if I don't read this drivel?

No, I was a Marvel reader all the way."

I feel similar to how I did when I heard Harvey Dent had gone bad...