The Unused Room...

Yeah, I have about a million things to do... Today however, I didn't much feel like doing any of them... I did download a song by Gene Watson that I have been listening to all day long though, and in fact still am... I know some people don't understand that, but whatever... So we have this room in our house that is pretty much never used, it's between the laundry room and the sitting room and the kitchen, wow! The floor plan of this house SUCKS! I've tried to correct it, but there is only SO much I can do! Anyway, I used to have a wall of photos in there, but had to take them down a year or so ago for some reason, so I decided to put them back up today... Off I went to Michaels to get some frames... We used to have a photo wall there, but have to update the photos and the frames... So that is what I did today...

Finally done!

I LOVE walls of photos!! I'd cover them all if Carolyn would let me... :)

So that's what I did today. Now I'm either going to go to bed or go see what the guys are up to. Marci dropped Canyon off earlier and the kids have been having a blast, but at their age you have to keep an eye on them! :)

Movie Reviews...

Okay, so hopefully if I WASTE my time watching an unwatchable movie, I'll save you the trouble of doing the same thing! So I'll update this as we watch each film...

*The Invisible: UNWATCHABLE!! Although we just spent the past 3 hours watching it... Yeah, it takes us a while to get through a movie because of all the breaks to get more firewood, smoke a cig, get another beer, get something to eat, tend to the kids, etc... :)

Next up: War...

7:42PM...

Well, we didn't watch War, we ended up watching the Wendell Baker Story... Wow! I suppose if you have ABSOLUTELY nothing else to do, watch it, but if you have ANYTHING else to do, it's not one to waste your time with. Matter of fact, it was stupid. On to watch War... I wonder if that will be any better?? I doubt it, but whatever, I'm not doing anything today except watch movies and lay around, plenty of work to do the next two days, although to be honest, I would rather have worked than watched the last two movies, we'll see how this one goes... :)

10:03PM...

Wow!! War is so stupid you can hardly make it up! So now I've spent the day watching these HORRIBLE movies! Whatever, now I am going to go watch Swordfish, because I know I like that one!

So Anyway...

Not much going on here... It's a pretty miserable day, wet, cold and snowing... They say we'll get 1 - 3 inches, but I don't think it will stick because the ground is not cold enough, we'll see though. The biggest 'struggle' is keeping the kids from tracking in the mud because they insist on going out in it, but they are pretty good about taking their shoes off and leaving them by the front door, hopefully that keeps up!

What are you going to do with your $800 or $1,600 that the government will soon send you? Not that it's anything new, the government has been 'buying' it's way out of recessions since the Great Depression. I'm not necessarily against giving 'tax rebates' to the people who actually paid taxes, but the VAST majority of the people who get them don't pay any tax at all! I'm certainly against income redistribution, which is exactly what it is! Take from the rich and give to the poor, of course if a Democrat is elected, there will be MUCH more income redistribution than there currently is... Good old socialism or Marxism, whatever you want to call it... Tax the rich, that is the mantra of every one of the Democrats who are running, not that the Republicans have done any better, they have spent money like drunken sailors over the past 7 years... Here is a fun chart that most people simply have zero clue about:

Many refer to them as the 'evil rich', because face it, poor people and people who don't have much don't much care for the 'evil rich'... So let's take from the rich and redistribute it to the 'less fortunate'. 'Less fortunate'?? Give me a freaking break, get off your lazy ass and do something... You'll never have anything laying on the couch watching TV, playing video games, surfing the internet and spending every dime you make on all the 'stuff' people like to buy and bring back to their 'boxes'... Of course you rarely hear that, it's mostly the tired rhetoric spewed by the likes of John Edwards about 'two Americas' and the 'class warfare' he keeps yammering on about... People are so stupid these days and so poorly educated that of course they buy into the whole thing, but people aren't getting any smarter, so I suppose it will continue... Well, I could go on and on about that topic... I'm sure everyone wants to hear about it! Whatever, I'll take my $1,600 dollar tax rebate, because it is a rebate for me as I actually DO pay taxes, and LOTS of them... :)

Speaking of laying around watching movies, I suppose that is what we are going to do for the rest of the day! So I better go start the fire and get started! :)

Our First Snow...

Yeah, Yeah, Yeah...

I haven't felt like blogging much lately, and therefore haven't... :) I'm trying to get all these projects around here done so it will all be complete come Spring, which is right around the corner I might add!! I'm GLAD though, because I HATE cold weather! Not that we get much of it, it was in the high 60's for the most of last week, although it is now dipping back down into the 40's and I'm sure it will get colder before it is over, but I see the light at the end of the tunnel!! :)

I did get a call a few hours ago from my neighbor telling me I better get over there because Chance hurt himself on the trampoline, so that was quite the adrenaline rush I must say... Because that was the extent of the phone call, I said I'd be right over, and hung up and flew over there expecting who knows what... LUCKILY there was more blood than damage, and once the blood was cleaned up, it was just a little gash on the back of his head. I guess they were jumping on the thing and Chance was 'showing Tanner something' as he put it, and it didn't quite turn out the was it was supposed to and he hit his head on the bar that goes around the thing instead of the canvas... He is fine though, but wow! We are just getting over dealing with his tooth thing! He gets his temporary braces off tomorrow, but he has to have a root canal done next week on that tooth that came out, so that should be fun for him - NOT!! I'll keep you posted on how that goes...

I'm FINALLY getting ready to slap that deck together, I had the lumber delivered last April to build the thing... Of course I had it delivered BEFORE we decided to put the pool in, so I guess that is a good excuse as to why it isn't done yet... :) Of course some of the post holes I have to dig, not that I'll be doing it by hand or anything, are RIGHT where the electric, phone, etc come into that house... So I called 811 so they can come out and mark where they actually are, I wonder if I'll have to move the posts over?? I can just see me severing the electric cable with the power auger, sparks flying and me electrocuting myself... Well, hopefully that doesn't happen... :) I can't imagine though that slapping the deck together is THAT complicated, we'll see how that works out...

Now of course we have the Michigan results in, and which one of these morons running for the highest office in the land do you want to see in the White House? I don't think any of them get it, nor do the great unwashed masses either! I think Pat Buchanan sees it though:

Subprime Nation...

People don't get it... With ANY of the Democrats, they want to spend 50 - 150 billion more dollars in entitlement programs that we can ill afford. No one seems to realize that the baby boomers are all about to retire and Social Security will kill us, on and on I could go, but Pat pretty much spelled it out, but no one seems to care... I'm still trying to decide who I want to vote for, but it will soon be down to two and it will be much easier to decide... I just hope the choice isn't TOO painful!

Well, I better go put the kiddoes to bed, hope everyone is well!

Questions...

Okay, so as many will know, Petra said to answer the questions, so I have... With the exception of the ones that were specifically for her... :)

1. Would you rather die of hypothermia or guillotine? Why?

I would MUCH rather die by guillotine because I can’t STAND being cold!! I'd rather be beaten to death, or pretty much anything else rather than freezing to death!

2. You have a long trip to make. You can ride a camel or a mule. Which would you choose and why?

I’d go for the camel because camels can travel for days without food or water.

3. Someone is making a movie about your life. What is the title?

Umm… That's a hard one. "What One Man Can Do, So Can Another: The Story of One Man's Journey Through Life"... I'm SURE it would be a huge hit! :)

4. You have done a great service for your country. They have given you the privilege of making one law of 50 words or less. What would it be?

Effective immediately! Anyone who gets any sort of government handout (I’d list as many as I could without going over 50 words), forfeits their right to vote!

5. You are an astronaut. You have your choice of destinations; any planet, moon, or asteroid in the solar system. Which one and why?

Perhaps I’d go check out Pluto to see why it is no longer considered a planet… :)

6. They are putting you in charge of a nostalgic TV network that shows only old TV shows that are no longer being made. What are some you would choose and why?

Seinfeld and Dallas... I'd just have an hour of Seinfeld and then an hour of Dallas, over and over and over... I'm sure it would be a HUGE hit! I'd watch it! :)

7. What is the most beautiful thing you have ever seen?

I suppose I'd have to go with the birth of my children as well. I have seen many, many, many of God's beautiful creations all over the world and they come in a close second...

8. If they were going to give you any country you wanted to be absolute ruler over, except the USA, which would you choose and why?

Saudi Arabia. Just for the oil of course, I'd sure do a lot of different things than they do with the $$$.

9. You have volunteered for an experiment where they are going to put you on an island paradise for a year to see how people get along with each other. There will be cameras everywhere broadcasting everything that happens to the entire world, assuming anyone is interested enough to tune in. You get to pick 9 other people to go with you, but they can not be related to you. Who would you pick and why?

I'd find four people who would go and exchange their work for the opportunity to actually spend a year in paradise, that takes care of the whole food prep, firewood, shelter maintenance, water, etc... The other five? I'd try to find five people who I could actually carry on a conversation with without my eyes glazing over while attempting to feign interest... If I was ABLE to find five such people, I guess they would be good enough... :)

10. You just won the lottery. Unlimited funds are now at your disposal. What would you buy first?

Tickets to a secluded five-star resort in a tropical climate... I'd immediately fly down there with my family and spend the next month planning on what I would do with the money... Not that I would need a month, but why NOT a month? :)

11. Someone has just given you an internet blog site on which to post anything you want. What is it going to be?

Well, like Petra said, I already have one, and DO post whatever I like... I'd be interested to know who actually asked that question... :)

12. What is one big goal you want to accomplish in 2008?

Finish all these projects I started last year and did not QUITE get finished!!!

13. What is your greatest regret?

Buying the house I currently live in...

14. What is your greatest lesson learned thus far?

Never trust anyone. (excluding family of course, well MOST family)

15. What ONE book (aside from Bible) would you take to a deserted island?

The Count of Monte Cristo

16. What ONE food item would you take? (Pretending that no matter what it was you would live)

Is Michelob a food item?? If not, I suppose I'd take a fruit of some kind, either watermelon, apples, grapes or bananas... I might get tired of it after a year, but I guess you'd get tired of anything after a year... :)

17. What do you fear the most, if anything?

I don't fear anything other than God... There are things I don't like, but fear?? No.

18. What is a character flaw?

I don't have any.

19. A character strength?

I'm one of the only people I know who doesn't play games, calls it like it is (or as I see it) and stands up for what I believe no matter the cost. I think that qualifies as a strength... :)

20. Who is your hero?

I don't have any heroes. I have people I respect, although not very many, heroes?? No, I don't have any.

Dwight Yoakam - It Won't Hurt/Today I Started Loving

Yeah, I haven't felt much like blogging lately... :)

So I thought I'd leave you with this song! Of course pretty much anything Dwight sings is pretty good... At least I think so anyway... :)

Not A Lot Going On...

Other than work, etc... :) I've had a lot going on at the office the past few days, other than that, I've just been watching the political proceedings and trying to decide if I even like any of them... I did clean the gutters out today... :) Our movie watching marathon is OVER! Thankfully, I can't believe I sat there and watched as many as we did over the holidays! Now it's time to get back outside and finish the pool house and the deck so that we can enjoy it come Spring! So I'm sure I'll have photos of that upcoming... LUCKILY it was nearly 70 degrees today and yesterday, hopefully the trend continues, because I HATE cold weather! So I really have nothing of any importance to blog about, I DO hope Obama beats Hillary tonight, we'll soon find out, I love this stuff! Politics that is... So I'm going back to watching the results come in... Hope everyone is doing well! :)

Our Next President...

I really don't care much for ANY of the candidates that are in the race, but we have to choose one of them... :) Of course come February 5th, it will be down to two, possibly three if someone runs as an Independent, and this year Super Tuesday will be the largest to date...

I think it really all boils down to who is actually electable, I also think this is an important election for our Country. One thing that really irks me though is to hear some of the candidates running around calling our Country a Democracy, when in fact we are a Federal Republic, so I think they should automatically be disqualified to even run, but I don't make the rules... :)

Here are the candidates stances on the issues:

2008 Presidential Election Candidates on the Issues...

More detailed views on a few key issues...

A HUGE deal with me are the ones who refuse to answer questions! Clinton comes to mind, she won't even bother to answer them at all, and when she does, they are scripted. I think that Clinton would be VERY bad for us, she is a calculating, dishonest and evil person who only cares about power and money, half the nation hates her, so we as a nation would be polarized again for at least the next four years if she won. I was SO glad Obama beat her in Iowa, and I hope he does the same in New Hampshire...

Edwards is a fool, he doesn't even realize that he is not electable, and keeps running around spouting off about class warfare, which is laughable in and of itself, loser, could never win...

Giuliani I don't think could win nationally. I know a lot of people like him, but he has a lot of baggage. I don't like the fact that every other word out of his mouth is 9/11. I think 9/11 and the security of our nation is a VERY important issue, but there are a LOT of other things to deal with as well... I don't think he could win...

Huckabee... Where did this guy come from?? Sure he won Iowa, how could he not have?? He would NEVER win nationally, and therefore is not a contender. Let's try and keep religion out of politics there Mike. We don't even have a clue what his stance on Iran is, he is against background checks when you buy a gun? Why? A constitutional amendment against same-sex marriage?? Really?? Of course that and the whole abortion thing will be the Republicans downfall, can't we leave that out of the race to the White House and leave things like that up to the Supreme Court where they belong?? The Republican base doesn't want to, and that is why they will likely lose. I'll pass on this moron...

McCain doesn't have a prayer either, he is too old for starters... Just go back to being a Senator John, matter of fact why not just retire?? His campaign finance reform bill is a disaster and has created far more corruption than if it had just been left as it was. His plan for amnesty is nauseating... I don't think he has a prayer either...

Romney looks like a President, but I don't think he has a prayer either, and I think it IS largely due to his being a Mormon (not sure why I capitalize that, I think they are a cult)... If I was running against him, I'd just play those South Park clips about Mormons over, and over, and over... Probably wouldn't have to do much else... He could end up being the Republican candidate, but I doubt it...

Thompson?? Please, this lazy moron doesn't have a clue... He has no chance of winning, THANKULLY!!! I used to think he might be good, until I've seen him in action, or non-action that is, since he announced...

Obama... This is who I will vote for. Do I believe in everything he does? ABSOLUTELY not!! I don't think any of the Rebuplican candidates have a prayer though, and if it's either Obama or Clinton, I'll take Obama every day of the week! I also think he is the ONLY candidate who can and has reached across the aisle, and not only been welcomed, but gladly! I think if he is the Democratic candidate, he will win by a landslide, the likes of which we have not seen in years. People like me, who never in a million years would vote for someone who believes the way he does, would vote for him just because they are tired of the polarization in Washington and just want to see something start getting done!! Rather than all the bickering and partisan politics...

So there you have it, my stance currently on what is going on with the race to the White House... Things change though, and November is a LONG way off, so my opinions could as well... We'll see... :)

Eagles-The Last Resort

Man, I forgot about this song!! I haven't listened to it in 15 years, but how true! This used to be one of my FAVORITES!

Tick Tock...

"If a nation expects to be ignorant and free...it expects what never was and never will be." — Thomas Jefferson

Chance and Tanner

Happy New Year!!!

I trust everyone had a great night!!

Mine started off with a bang! I forget exactly how it even happened, or who told me about it, but I think it was Chance... I spent I think the fourth or fifth night this year in the emergency room... Carolyn and I were watching a movie, and during one of our frequent intermissions, Chance came into my office and his mouth was bleeding, after checking, turns out they had been playing hide and seek, and Chance's hiding spot was the top shelf of the closet in the room across from my office. Well, when he went to get down, he fell and literally ripped his eye tooth right out of his mouth, dislocated one of his permanent teeth and tore his lips up in the process... Tanner found his tooth and brought it to me... So we called his doctor, and off to the ER we went... LUCKILY one of our neighbors had called right as we were leaving and told us to put the tooth in a glass of milk and they would be able to save it, she was right! So they did put his tooth back in, and he had five stitches on his lip, but other than that he was okay...

The "doctored up" Chance...

They did tell me they wouldn't play hide and seek anymore, I didn't for some reason tell them that actually playing the game was an issue, I guess I was too tired, who knows... So I guess it's off to the dentist in the AM for Chance if they are open, if not, then the next day... They put that plaster on his teeth to hold them in place until we can get to the dentist, we'll see how that works out!! I hope everyone else had a much less eventful and much more exciting night!! Not that it wasn't exciting or anything! Happy New Year!! :)

2007 Review Part III

I have ZERO clue why it won't let me just post these all on the same post, but it won't and never has let me... So I had to do three posts... :)

August - in Monterey for Titus and Jackie's wedding!

August - Titus and Jackie Goodling!!!

September - I FINALLY finished the entertainment center that I started in April... Well, I use the term finished loosely because I still need to put the doors on the bottoms, and I STILL haven't touched up that wall where I had to move the thermostat... :)

October - this is about as far as we got on this whole project, there might be a few other things that got done, I'll get back out there in the next month or so and complete it so it will be ready come Spring!! Next year though, from Spring on, you'll find me sitting at that bar there with my computer watching everyone swim, while joining them occassionally... :)

November/December - The FINAL project of the year, I decided to redo the kitchen, which Carolyn absolutely LOVES I might add! So she didn't mind that it took me a month and a half to actually get it done... :)

2007 Review Part II...

June - was the month the "project from hell" started... :)

June - was also the month the kids got to start swimming!

July - I started the pool house, or at least started the actual framing, the "prep work" was started MUCH earlier...

August - this photo is out of place, but I HATE the way blogger deals with photos, so this is where it shall stay! Anyway, I got MOST of the outside work done on the pool house that month! Still a LOT of work to do though... :(

July - we went to San Francisco for a few days, then on to Monterey... :)

2007 Review Part I...

January - didn't take many pictures for some reason, we went ice skating though... :)

February - was the month the kids just HAD to have instruments, and here it is nearly a year later and they still don't know how to play them... Perhaps lessons this next year?? :)

March - I didn't spend the WHOLE month on it, but that is one of the things we did that month...

April - finally finished the "circle", and for anyone who had been over to our house prior, they could confirm that it was a MESS! We used it as a burn pit for about 3 or 4 years...

May - FINALLY finished the front yard, which ALSO had been an eyesore for a few years ever since Titus and I 'tore' it up a few years ago... :)

Nope...

Nothing going on that is... :) I've pretty much done nothing since Christmas Eve except go through almost a full rack of firewood and watch movies with Carolyn... There aren't that many movies out there that are even watchable though, but we have suffered through some:

*Bug - possibly the stupidest movie I have ever watched, not even sure why we continued to watch it, but we did...

*Ghost Rider - barely watchable, but if you have ABSOLUTELY nothing else to do...

*Eastern Promises - mildly entertaining, although slow going at first...

*Next - again, mildly entertaining...

*Safe Harbour - if you like Danielle Steele then this is about the same as the rest of her books, something you can catch on Lifetime pretty much every few hours though...

*Transformers - I saw the previews and thought I might like it, it was however another of the stupidest movies I've ever seen, although not NEARLY as bad as Bug...

*The Kingdom - pretty lame as well, although I didn't turn it off for some reason...

*Wild Hogs - this one I did NOT finish watching, not sure though how I managed to sit through Bug and not this one, wow!

*Perfect Stranger - another almost unwatchable flick, but I sat through it for some reason...

*Mr. Brooks - we actually liked this one... :)

I think we actually watched a few others, the names of them don't exactly pop into my mind right now though... Now I've got to try and find some for tonight, but the issue is I don't think there are any more out there that I even WANT to bother watching, we'll see what I find on my way home from the office...

Happy New Year's Eve!!!

Funny...

Road Trip...

So we were wondering what to do during Spring Break and we decided to go the route Titus and Jackie did and rent an RV and take off... We found a site where people that own RV's rent them out... We found one like the one pictured that is available when we want it, but we will go look at a few of them before actually picking the one we want to take... :)

Our planned route... Of course I'll be like Chevy Chase planning where we want to stop and the places we want to visit before we actually leave, but that is one of the fun parts of taking such a trip... :)

Merry Christmas!!

I hope everyone had a GREAT day with friends and family! As usual, the kids were up and ready to GO! Of course I told them to empty their stockings while Carolyn and I got ready... Joshua came over around 9:00, and of course there was the usual, where are the batteries, can you open this, how does this work... :) Then Carolyn fixed a great lunch for us, I did grill the steaks, but that is about it, and it was raining, so I had to open the garage and pull the grill right inside the garage to even cook them, NOT that I'm complaining, because we do need the rain! :) Cory and Jessica came over and had lunch with us, then we opened more presents... Then Joshua left to go to Marci's and we headed over to Nate's parents house where we exchanged more gifts and socialized for a bit before heading back home... Now I'm actually working believe it or not... :( I do get to work from home, but have to cover for pretty much the entire globe until midnight, hopefully nothing breaks! :)

Ready to tear into the presents!

Family shot...

Chance and Tanner... I neglected to get them any games for it though thinking that, "Hey, it comes with five games!"... Needless to say, the five games it comes with aren't exactly that fun!! So I suppose I'll have to go get them some games for it tomorrow... :)

Cory got Jessica this dog for Christmas, and it is SO little, it looks like a little fur ball walking around. The kids LOVED it! So did Carolyn, now Carolyn wants one of them... :)

Cory opening his gifts...

Hope everyone had a great day and Merry Christmas!!

I Did It...

I didn't think I would get it done, but I did...

There are a few things that aren't done, but whatever, I'll get to those later...

A bonus, I nearly got the 'other room' done as well!!

Yes Petra, I did "whip" the plate holder together as well!! :)

Tick Tock...

Christmas Eve... Not sure about everyone else, but I have three people who are getting VERY excited! Hopefully people take time though to explain the TRUE meaning of Christmas, I'm sure not many do though...

To a LOT of people, Christmas IS about gifts, food and socializing... Sad, but that is what it has turned into. Christmas is about giving though, but for way too many, they forget about the most important gift that was given... Hopefully everyone has a GREAT day, I'll be attempting to finish that kitchen since we DO have people coming over for dinner tomorrow. We'll see how that works out for me... :)

I Can't Wait Till This Is Done...

Many are running around trying to get 'last minute' Christmas stuff done, me? I'm trying to get this kitchen done for Carolyn! I'm almost done though, believe it or not! Tomorrow I'll get the dishwasher, sink and ice maker working, and other than that, it is nearly done! Whew!!

Merry Christmas!!

Just wanted to wish everyone a Merry Christmas who may be traveling! Hope everyone has a safe trip and a very Merry Christmas!!

Dreaming Of A White Christmas...

Well, I'm not, but my kids are...

I doubt we'll have one though. It's been rather warm lately, although it has been getting cold lately. If you call in the 40's and 50's cold!! I do! I would MUCH rather be hot than cold! I MUCH prefer the 80 and 90 degree weather here in the summer, I would rather take clothes off and turn a fan on than have to bundle up! Anyway, the day started off innocently enough, the job I have, things slow to a crawl until about mid January... Today one of the A/C motors blew and caused the temperature in the data center to go up to over 90 degrees. Of course there is hardly anyone at the office, but I had facilities prop open the data center doors and move in spot coolers, and it took the HVAC tech about an hour to get there, meanwhile servers were dropping due to the heat left and right. They FINALLY got it fixed and I was able to go back to doing not much of anything...

I took the kids to the store earlier to spend the money their Aunts and Uncles had sent them, and the trip that normally takes about five minutes took about twenty! Ugh! I see all these people running around, the traffic, the lines and I'm like, why did you wait till the last minute?? We've been done for a week now. So about the only thing I have to do over the next few days is finish some things around the house. I HOPE I don't have to leave the house for the next four days! I'm sure I might have to go down to the grocery store or something, but that will be it for me!

I hope everyone is enjoying the Christmas holiday! I do love this time of year (except for the chaos that ensues because everyone waits till the last minute), and I just might take my kids out to see the lights in the neighborhood right now... :)

Funny...

How True...

Tanner and Bo...

Tanner just LOVES Bo!

Ditto!

Yeah, we do have jeans for the boy without holes in them, but for some reason they INSIST on wearing the ones with holes in them!! :)

I wasn't too keen on the idea of getting a dog, but I've kind of taken to Bo! He is such a crazy dog though... He thinks he is SO big! The other dogs in the neighborhood start barking, and he is SO funny, he sits in one of the flower pots we have by our front door and barks away! Little knowing that the dogs across the street would eat him for lunch and want more... He has turned out to be a good dog though, and now that it is winter, he is so fluffy with his winter coat. When I pick the kids up from school and come home, he is usually sitting in that pot and the kids get a huge kick out of it! So I guess we did the right thing by getting Bo! The kids love him to death as well... :)

Christmas School Parties...

Whew! Everyone had a BLAST it seems, but can't say that I'm not glad it's over! Taylor's party started at 8:30 this morning and Chance and Tanner's parties both started at 10:30... I'm the room dad for Chance's class, so I didn't get to spend much time at Tanner's party, although I did pop over to his class a couple of times...

Taylor making a gingerbread man... Her class made those and made some jingle bell necklaces and also ate breakfast... Carolyn and I both went to her class party, then Carolyn had to go to the doctor... After her party I actually went home for about 30 minutes, luckily we live right down the street from the school.

Tanner's class made gingerbread houses, which looked rather messy, good call on the table cloths! I'm actually not exactly sure what else they did as when I would pop in, it was basically, "Hey Tanner! Having fun? That looks great! Well, I'll be back in a bit!" :)

For Chance's party, one of the kids dad is a magician, so he did a magic show for the first 20 mintues or so. The kids seemed to enjoy it a lot! Then the pizza arrived for lunch, so passed out the pizza, drinks, etc... When they were done eating, we had them all make Christmas tree ornaments which they seemed to enjoy! (Carolyn and I got the idea when we took the kids to Michael's last week. It was the "kids craft" for last Saturday, which was good, because I had ZERO clue what to have them make, so it required no thought on my part! :)

Now I am back at home with Taylor and Tanner, Chance wanted to stay at school because his class is watching a movie as I type! Carolyn is out shopping and I SUPPOSE I might go try to wrap that kitchen up, we'll see how that works out for me... :)

Wow!

Okay, so I haven't been blogging much lately, but whatever... I've got this new assignment at work and it turns out I don't know much about Citrix, but I'm having to learn QUICKLY because the only other guy that supports it with me went to NY for the week and I'm on my own! So it's been a huge learning curve, but I'm a quick study! :) NOT that it consumes ALL my time, I want to know who first suggested watching Arrested Development because I've spent the past two hours watching episodes on Hulu... I'm done now though, WHY I do that, I'm not sure.

Then there is the whole "Holiday Party" thing for the kids, turns out not many parents are interested in participating, so Carolyn and I are running around trying to make sure that gets done! We actually ran into Chance's teacher today at Michael's while we were there getting the stuff for the 'craft project' for his classes party. I think she was playing hookie actually, I'm sure she needed a break... She WAS buying stuff herself for the class, so good for her! :) So we decided the craft project would be to make Christmas Tree ornaments, we'll see how that goes over!

Is the kitchen done yet you might ask? No! I think Carolyn is about OVER it though, the kitchen we have downstairs is not that big, so I will HAVE to get that done soon!

We are done shopping though, I haven't sent out my cards yet though! I have them all on my desk though ready to go, I just have to address them basically, so they are ALMOST done, so if you don't get it until AFTER Christmas, hey, it's the thought that counts right! :) I'm sure I'll get them out tomorrow though, unless I decide to watch two more hours of Arrested Development that is... We'll see! :)

How True...

Gift Giving...

Is it REALLY that difficult?? To hear some people talk about it, you would think that they would rather die than have to actually finish the dreaded chore of making sure that they get the right gift for everyone... I hear it at the office all the time, people gather around the break room talking about what they are getting who AND what they think they expect in return!?! Huh?? Is that what it is all about? To some, yes! Some moron the other day attempted to start a conversation with me about this topic while we were standing at the urinals... HUH?? Wow! First off, do I have a sign on me that says I enjoy idle banter?? Secondly, hello, why do you want to start a conversation with me while we are relieving ourselves?? The attempt at conversation abruptly ended though when he looked at the 'I can't Fing believe you are trying to talk to me' look on my face... Anyway, I know some people fret the entire season about the whole prospect of gift giving and gift receiving... Most of the people who do that, don't even appear to enjoy a single aspect of the season, and are likely miserable as hell throughout it and likely are quite relieved when January 1st arrives, but then they also likely start planning either 'revenge' for the people who didn't give as they think they should have or planning the 'gotta do it better' next season because that 'person' outdid me this year... Stunning really...

How about gift cards? That is the topic that got me thinking about the miserable, pathetic fools who don't bother to enjoy the season, but fret about it the entire time... It started with this article:

Gift cards are not gifts...

Wow!! And Miss Manners can kiss my ass too! Although, I wouldn't even bother reading that one if I were you, I MUCH prefer the article written that slams her about the whole concept:

Some language may not be appropriate to some readers... :)

My thought on the topic is, we don't give to receive, EVER! Carolyn and I do give Christmas presents, but we have NEVER expected anything in return, it wouldn't be a gift then, would it?? If you gave and then expected something in return, why not just each person go buy their own crap?? I don't get it AT ALL!

How about all the commercials? You MUST give gifts to your landscaper, barber, mail carrier, paper boy, blah, blah, blah, blah... Sure, it's nice if you want to, but HAVE to?? Yeah, whatever! I'm all about being kind to everyone, and I am to people whose services I use, but I DON'T feel as if I have to do shit because some moron who thinks they know about etiquette or manners tells me I have to... Idiots!!

I think people like that should take a HUGE chill pill and start enjoying the things that go on during the Christmas season. The family activities, the festive moods, the house at night when just the Christmas tree lights are on, driving through the neighborhood with the kids, listening to them ooh and aah about the various lights people have out, and of course the reason for the season, telling the story about Christmas! I doubt the 'people' who fret about the season SO much over the whole gift giving/receiving thing though EVER do actually enjoy it at all, and it's kind of sad really...

Alrighty Then...

So yeah, I've not posted regularly in a week or so, but I haven't felt like it... :)

What have I been up to you might ask? Or maybe not, but who cares, I'll tell you anyway... Well, there is the whole kitchen thing going on, and it's ALMOST done, but not quite, but then, I'm NOT very good at finishing those last few details... Kind of hard not to in the kitchen though, so I'm sure it will be done in the next few days, we'll see! I must say though that it looks a helluva lot better than it did! No, I don't have any pictures yet, soon though, soon...

Why do I insist on putting those ... after sentences?? I have no idea, I just do! :)

How about the "Holiday Parties" at the school? Okay, first of all, I don't like the term holiday party, or winter party, or whatever it is they want to call it, but that's what they call it because of a VERY small minority of people who love to run their noise holes incessantly about it and the VERY large majority who prefer for the most part to keep their yappers shut and just seeth inwardly that it is happening... Anyway, I'm the room Dad for Chance's class, so I wonder how many will chip in for that? We'll see, I sent the notes out today asking for help, but if I have to do it all myself, I'm sure I'll be fine. Luckily Taylor's class has their party at a different time, because no one volunteered to help, so I guess I will... Luckily there are a few parents who volunteer in Tanner's class as their party is the same time as Chance's class...

What else is going on? Well, I got assigned to a new task at work, so I have to learn about that, but it appears it's not that hard, so I DOUBT that is going to be an issue. I'm going through the kids Christmas "lists" deciding what we'll actually buy them, I guess Carolyn will get most of that done this weekend... I suppose the MOST important thing going on right now though is finding the time to watch Elf, because according to Andrea, it is a MUST watch film!! :)

Eagles - How Long

Wow!! What a song! Here is a question for you: who were the two original Eagles?? Okay, whatever... I'm not doing much this second, although I have been busy... Now who DOESN'T like the song????

Christmas Cards...

The Art Of Sending Christmas Cards

A considerable amount of strategic planning is required to ensure that maximum effect is gained from sending Christmas cards. Timing, size and quality are of paramount importance.

Sending Christmas cards too early is not only ineffective but can be humiliating for the sender. It reveals one's position, discloses the size and quality of card, exposing oneself to the possibility of a devastating counter-attack. On the other hand, a very late Christmas card runs the risk of negating the recipient's ability to respond, and reduces one's total card count.

It is certainly better to be on the early rather than late side, for the get-in-quick Christmas card sets the pace and compels the opposition to reply. It is a brave opponent who will respond with less than an equal-to or better-than card.

The next thing to understand is the value of size in Christmas cards. Important people, or at least people who think they are important, send big and important looking Christmas cards. This makes the recipient feel small; which is precisely what is intended. This can be quite costly, but usually worth it.

There is also a place for very small and/or very cheap Christmas cards. They imply bad taste, poverty or disrespect to the recipient, and will guarantee deletion from their Christmas card list. These are particularly effective for terminating pointless long term Christmas card exchanges with people like the Fanshaws you met in Torremolinos in 1976, and can't even remember what they look like anymore - or was it Benidorm?

First-time Christmas cards sent on impulse to recently made friends should be avoided, for they can have devastating consequences; like those nice Watson people you met in Benidorm. Whilst it might be a nice surprise to get a lovely card in return, you might not be very pleased when they arrive at your front door on Boxing Day - or was it Torremolinos?

Copyright © 1998 William Connor

I thought that was fairly humorous, and true for the most part... Do you send Christmas cards? Do you get them? After you send your Christmas cards, do you then send them retroactively because you received one? We pretty much just take our address list from my family and my wife's family and send everyone a card whether we get one or not. We didn't used to even send cards, so it has actually been a rather recent thing we started doing... I'm the world's WORST about sending stuff out in the mail! (Sorry if anyone is or has been expecting something from me and has not yet received it! I'm sure if you are expecting something from me it is within close proximity waiting to be mailed... :)

Speaking of Christmas cards, we got our first one in the mail today! I LOVE Christmas cards that are handmade, creative, include photos, etc!! I think cards that actually took time to make mean the most! They are the only ones we actually keep. If I get a card in the mail that I just happened to see at the grocery store in a bin marked 33% off, with just a scrawled name on it, into the trash it goes, I'm not interested... But that's just me, but that is why my blog is titled Matthew's Opinion... It IS my opinion, if you don't like it, don't read it... :)

Our first Christmas card, in the Christmas card tree holder... I LOVE it btw!! The card that is... :)

So Anyway...

I had to take Carolyn to the hospital this morning for an outpatient procedure (she is doing great and should be up and running around tomorrow), but while I was there for three or more hours, it amazed me how anyone can pretty much go anywhere in a hospital... Shortly after we first got there, I went to get coffee and smoke, and when I went back, I couldn't get back in because it said, "No admittance, Staff Only" on the door, I flagged down the nearest moron and told them I needed to go in, they let me in and asked ZERO questions! An hour or so later, I went out again, when I came back, I heard some woman explaining to some person that worked there that she needed in, I simply told them, "Me too", and tagged right along without a second glance from the person who had access... As I walked around, it became apparent that no one seemed to give a damn who went where... I know they are busy, but wow!!

So yeah, I didn't get much done on the kitchen today! I am taking tomorrow off though, so who knows??

I was going to post some other things about what I feel about things that are going on, but why bother? No one comments, so I won't...

He's Back!!

I thought he would let the freeloading, race pimps get to him, but it doesn't look like he did!!

Thankfully!! Because there is nothing else on in the AM that is even watchable!

Back At It...

Yeah, I've been kind of lazy for the past week, so it's time to get back at it! I've actually done nothing all week except lay around and watch movies. Carolyn wants her kitchen back though, and I do as well, so it's time to get it back together!!

I HATE painting!! But someone has to do it, so I started painting the trim...

I ripped that old counter out and built a new one, laying the tile on it...

I NEVER should have put those things diagonally, I've had to make so many cuts you can't make it up!! I thought I would finish it tonight, I didn't... :( I suppose I will tomorrow!