Museum Trip...

So today we went down to Atlanta for "company day" at the High Museum of Art... I actually brought my camera too, but you weren't allowed to take pictures in most of the exhibits...

Kids in front of one of the exhibits...

Tanner and Taylor, it's kind of funny some of the stuff that is considered "art" though...

Another persons idea of art...

These are the ones that kill me though, there were only four pieces in the whole room, all different shapes and different colors...  Had names like "Green Curve IV", makes you want to locate the buyer...

Taylor getting her face painted, Chance and Tanner weren't interested.  They had various other "craft" things for the kids, but they weren't interested in those either... :)

Anyway, we had a good time and enjoyed the various exhibits and the lunch, although I'm not sure I would have actually purchased tickets myself to go... 

Yeah, Whatever...

Yeah, haven't really had anything to say lately, of course I DID have the flu!  Which sucks, I never get sick, but it kicked my ass...  I didn't do much of anything but lay on the couch, luckily no one else got it, yet... 

Other than that, not much going on.  We did get nine new baby hamsters, of course they are all gone now because the mom ate them, at least that's what Chance said happened to them...  Which is just as well I suppose, because nine could quickly turn into 47, then 275, etc...  I guess the kids "handled" them and apparently if the babies smell like "humans", they will get eaten.  I suppose it's just a matter of time though before there are more babies...  :)

No, I STILL haven't taken any pictures this year, I need to get on that!  It is "company" day at the High Museum of Art Atlanta on Sunday:

Website...

So perhaps I'll take some pictures there... :)  Does look pretty interesting, the kids seem fairly excited about it...  It's closed to the public, and there will be all sorts of "fun stuff" to do along with seeing all the exhibits, I'm looking forward to seeing 'The First Emperor:  China's Terracotta Army' myself, so should be a fun day...

Yeah, other than that, just waiting on Spring to FINALLY get here because I am so over being cold you can't make it up!  Soon Matt, soon...

Happy Valentine's Day Carolyn!!!

The Problem...

Are signs like this necessary??

Speaking of stupidity, really?? 

Yeah, the stupidity and ignorance of the average person is stunning really, and I don't think it will change.  I guess there probably always have been stupid people though, it's just that now people's stupidity is documented 24/7 and posted online for the whole world to see...  Speaking of stupidity, I think Scott Adams has hit the nail on the head regarding this "stimulus":

Ignorance Will Save Us...

Seven Spanish Angels...

Does it get any better than these guys?

Funny...

SO many people have kids that really have no business whatsoever raising children...  Perhaps they subscribed to this "parenting" magazine... :)

I'm Retiring...

Why is that you might ask?  Well, the conversation went something like this:

Tanner:  "Dad, doesn't 100 x 1,000 = 100,000?"

Me: "Yeah, why?"

Tanner:  "So all I have to do is sell 1,000 things for $100 each and I'll have $100,000?"

Me:  "Yes, I suppose so."

Tanner:  "Well, I'm going to go get started making something to sell then."

Me:  "What are you going to make?"

Tanner:  "I'm still figuring that out."

Me:  "Good luck with that son."

Tanner:  "How hard can it be?"

Me:  "True."

So I suppose I may not retire RIGHT this minute, but you never know... :)  It really is that simple though, happens every day.  That's what I love about kids.  The innocence and the optimism.  Too bad so many people get jaded so early in life, it shouldn't be that way.  I suppose it has a LOT to do with people being told:  "You can't do that."; "That isn't possible."; "That will never work."; etc for most of their lives.  Which is why I always tell my kids, "You can do whatever you want, anything is possible and don't let anyone tell you otherwise."  More people should do that...

Anyway, not much going on here other than life...  I'll just be glad when winter is over, it nearly is, but we are supposed to be getting some of that ice and snow here in the next few days...  Won't be long though and I'll be firing up the pool heater and getting ready for Spring!  Have I mentioned that I LOVE Spring??

No, I still have no photos to post, not sure why I don't take many pictures this time of year, probably because I'm too freaking cold all the time!  :)  Friday is the Valentine's dance at the kids school though, so perhaps I'll take some then.  Who knows, I may even get that new camera for my birthday, which may motivate me to take more photos!  We'll soon see on that one... :)

Hilarious...

Okay, maybe not 'hilarious', but I thought it was pretty funny... :)

Death In The Family...

Which is why I've not been blogging... Actually, the kids all decided they wanted some fish and half of them died, but it sounds like a good enough excuse to me... :) So they are still learning how to "raise fish", I just keep telling them that the strong will survive...

Yeah, other than that, not much going on. I'd post some pictures, but I haven't taken any in forever, I don't even know where my camera is although I think it is on the back of the piano...

So hopefully I'll get motivated to start taking some pictures soon, I'm running out of movies to watch and am tired of movies anyway. Chance, Tanner and I are thinking of taking a backpacking trip, Carolyn and Taylor are not interested, so we'll see how that works out. I suppose we'll start out with a few hikes and go from there... :)

So I'll let everyone know how that works out... I am signing all the kids up for Taekwondo classes, so they are excited about that. They have a gym for the adults to work out while the classes are going on so I may even amuse myself by doing that while they are in their classes, who knows. I've never worked out in my life though but hey, why not?

I also took all the kids to the dentist today, so that's always fun. Remember that tooth Chance ripped out about a year ago? Then there was the root canal and all the other procedures? Yeah, now it has to come out because it never "took", so we have to go see an oral surgeon to have that done and then he will have to get an implant... I don't think he is looking forward to all that, well, he told me he was a "little nervous" but not too much... Myself? I just can't believe how expensive it is going to the dentist these days, what can you do though...

All I know is I'm excited that January is nearly over because I CAN'T wait until Spring is here, I'm way over being cold!! I'm freezing right now and I'm inside with the heat on?!? I think I've finally figured out that the reason I'm so cold all the time is because I have no body fat, perhaps we should relocate to a warmer climate? At least during the winter anyway... Or perhaps I should just start eating a lot more... :)

Not Sure Why...

But I do not like it when my babies (not that they are babies anymore, but they'll always be mine I suppose :) are gone for 3 or 4 days, particularly when I can't reach them for 2 of those days... Not that I spent all day trying or anything, but called a few times and just got VM, anyway, they are back and they had a great time snowboarding, ice skating, etc. Our neighbor took them to Gatlinburg on Friday and they got back last night. No one took that many pictures as it turns out, but here are a few...

Playing in the snow...

Tanner, obviously, iceskating...

In front of the cabin they stayed at...

Ditto...

Playing pool in the cabin...

They had a great time, and want to know when we are going to go snowboarding again. Does sound like fun, so I suppose we need to plan a trip! I've not been skiing/snowboarding in years, trying to remember and I suppose the last time I went was with Titus and Marci, which must have been 15 or more years ago... So I suppose it's time to go again... :)

100 Things...

Yeah, I stole this from Petra's blog because I really have nothing to say... :)  I was trying to figure out how to change the color of the fonts, but then after reading through the list, I realized that I had actually done everything on the list, so it wasn't necessary... :)

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Thought about playing in a band
4. Lived in Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given to charity
7. Been near Disneyland
8. Seen a praying mantis
9. Climbed a mountain
10. Sang a solo
11. Watched people bungee jumping
12. Know people who have visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Have relatives who have adopted children
16. Been out to eat with people who have gotten food poisoning
17. Have siblings who have walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Been to the airport in Guam
20. Slept on a train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a tarantula
26. Gone skinny dipping in a hot tub
27. Run more than 3 miles
28. Have seen pictures of gondolas in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise (around the SF Bay)
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language but no longer remember much of it
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen a documentary on why the Tower of Pisa actually leans
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen photograph’s of Michelangelo’s David online
41. Sang karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt in a movie
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Wanted to visit Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Marveled at pictures of the Sistine Chapel
50. Wondered why the Eiffel Tower in Paris was actually built
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Watched a documentary about the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited a Russian tea house
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Bought any Girl Scout Cookies
62. Seen any whale watching shows on the Discovery channel
63. Got flowers for no reason (other than being a Dad)
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Wondered why people go sky diving
66. Wondered what it was like in Nazi Concentration Camps
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Wondered why quilts are so expensive
73. Wondered what the allure of Times Square was
74. Been to the Everglades
75. Walked off of a job
76. Had any relatives who have seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been passed by a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen pictures of the Grand Canyon
80. Published a book
81. Been fascinated by the Vatican archives
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Ever wanted to walk in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Wanted to visit the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Wondered why you have never been called for jury duty
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby (if being the Father counts)
95. Driven through Texas, home of the Alamo
96. Been in Utah, home of the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100.Read an entire book in one day

Ugh!

So some idiot knocked out my phone line yesterday and I was without a phone or internet access for a while, of course AT&T said it would be "fixed by Tuesday", fortunately they came out and fixed it this AM! I hate being without internet access though, I'd almost rather be without electricity... :) I know some people would get all pissed off at AT&T and start demanding that someone come out, I feel the same way, but I also realize that AT&T is a massive company and could really give a shit about one person being without phone or internet access, so other than the initial call to report the problem, I'm NOT going to rant and rave and spend hours on the phone because I also know that doing that gets you bumped to the end of the list anyway... Kind of like complaining in a restaurant, why? Bitch about something that I am going to eat so the people who are actually preparing it 'behind closed doors' can 'fix it up right' for me?? Yeah, no thanks! I've worked in enough restaurants thank you. Anyway...

Yeah, I haven't felt much like blogging lately, I actually don't feel like doing much of anything when it's cold out, and winter has really just started here... I am about movied out though, so who knows, there are still about 12 weeks or so until Spring gets here... I suppose I could work on some of the many "loose ends" around here like painting trim, caulking trim where it needs it, etc... I have LOTS of work left to do outside, but I won't be doing any of that until it gets warmer, I just can't do it for some reason, I HATE being cold! Actually, the more I work on this house, the more I don't much care for it. That would be we actually! I think I just need to build a house, a house that is just the way we want it and one that needs absolutely nothing done to it!! We might just do that, of course we would wait until the economy is not in the toilet and our projects around here are completed, so who knows, we might do that in a few years... Actually, the more I think about it, the more I like the idea!

On another topic - TAKE MORE PICTURES MATT!! For some reason, I've taken almost no pictures in the past six months or so, not sure why, just haven't... I do frequently think, "That would make a good picture" or "I should go get my camera", but by the time I would go get it, the 'moment' would likely be over, so I haven't lately... I'll have to work on that... :)

Chance and Tanner are going snow boarding this weekend, so they are looking forward to that. Me? Not so much. Well, I'm happy they are going and I know they'll have a good time, but Carolyn and I have been running around trying to find them "ski" clothes to take and it really seems kind of silly to spend the $$ on skiing outfits that they will likely wear JUST this weekend and that won't fit them the next time they go... What can you do though? Can't let them freeze to death while they are on the slopes... :) So I might have some photos later. Our neighbor is taking them and she is GREAT about taking pictures and giving us copies of them all. Now Taylor wants to know what we are going to do while the boys are "having SO much fun"! She already has a 'list' of things that she wants us to do this weekend, so far the 'list' includes: going to a movie, going to the park, going ice skating and something else that escapes me right now, I'm sure she will be reminding me though... :)

What else is going on? Yeah, other than work, not much! Chance has to get braces, of course we knew that, but wow! Who knew they were so expensive these days. I seem to recall them being around $2K, hah! I wish! $5,400 is what they are, perhaps I should call around for a 2nd or 3rd 'opinion', not on whether or not he needs them, because I know he does, but on how much other people actually charge for them! And I'm not sure about other people's dental insurance, but mine doesn't cover a single freaking penny for braces, nice! Oh well, what can you do?? Not have kids I suppose... I happen to like mine though... :)

Who knows, perhaps I'll get around to actually taking some pictures to put on here this week, time will tell. :)

Is It Just Me?

Yeah, lame post I know, but whatever...  Our next President and Congress are getting practically giddy though with the prospect of spending trillions of dollars here in the next session...  Ultimately though, the taxpayers will have to pay it back, and the taxpayers are tapped out.  But lets go ahead and create a bunch more government jobs to help the economy!  Don't get me wrong, I'm all for doing something, but wow!  I suppose they are about to print some money, because China and anyone else who still actually buy our debts are balking at buying any more...  What's killing me is all the people who are getting excited at the prospect of more government, do these people not even look at the basic facts??  Take Madoff for instance, swindled people for nearly 50 billion dollars, hell, the government is one of the biggest swindlers of all, take a look at Social Security.  It was supposed to be a trust fund, but Congress has taken the money, never saved it, replaced it with IOU's and I'm sure you know the rest of that story...  Ah well, I could go on and on about this subject, but I won't...  Should be interesting to watch this saga unfold though...

Movie Review...

Yeah, I actually am putting this up for you Petra, since you asked if I had any recommendations... :) I actually can't believe we have watched this many freaking movies in the past month or so, but we have... So anyway, here are my movie reviews. A lot of these are old movies, but when we get bored, we go buy the movies in the $5 bin at Walmart... Yeah, I don't get motivated to do much when it is cold out, but hey, it WAS the holidays!! :)

• Surfer, Dude: 2008 – I actually CAN’T believe I sat through this stupid movie, but I did…

• Eagle Eye: 2008 – good movie

• Burn After Reading: 2008 – kind of stupid, but we liked it for some unknown reason

• The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor: 2008 – yeah, DIDN’T finish this one… Of course I’m not sure why exactly, considering some of the others that we DID sit through… :)

• Traitor: 2008 – I liked this one, Carolyn didn’t

• The Dark Knight: 2008 – I could have passed on this one, not sure exactly what all the fuss was about to be honest, I think if Ledger was still alive it would have flopped, I could be wrong though… :)

• Rise of the Footsoldier: 2007 – unwatchable, although I did manage to sit through about 45 minutes of it before turning it off

• Wanted: 2008 – um, yeah, we did watch it, but…

• Wisegal: 2008 – it was okay

• X-Files: I Want to Believe: 2008 – didn’t finish this one, but I’ve never been a fan of the show either…

• Hancock: 2008 – ridiculous film, although we did sit through it, the kids liked it…

• Mark of Cain: 2007 – turned this one off 20 minutes in…

• War of the Worlds 2: The Next Wave: 2008 – stupid

• 100 Million B.C.: 2008 – stupid

• 20 Years After: 2008 – could have been a good film if the directing was better

• Transsiberian: 2008 – I actually liked this one, not exactly sure why to be honest…

• Kansas: 1988 – mildly entertaining if you have absolutely nothing else to do

• The Curse of King Tut’s Tomb: 2005 – did not finish it as it was unwatchable

• Sleuth: 2007 – did not finish it, but we might if we ever have a night when there is nothing else on TV, i.e.: the satellite is out

• Firestorm: 1998 – okay, barely…

• Quicksand: 2002 – we DID finish it, but…

• Wicker Park: 2004 – I actually liked this one :)

• Raw Heat: 1991 – we finished it, but it was kind of stupid

• 15 Minutes: 2001 – I liked it, but then I like most movies with DeNiro in them…

• Archangel: 2005 – Um, yeah…

• Fear: 1996 – kind of a teeny bopper flick, but we enjoyed it actually

• The Watcher: 2000 – mildly entertaining (yeah, we watched a LOT of movies that were just ‘mildly entertaining’ :)

• A Kiss Before Dying: 1991 – okay

• The Fountain: 2006 – kind of a weird flick, but I liked it, of course I was the only one actually watching it after about 3 minutes… :)

• The Final Cut: 2004 – I liked it

• Exorcist II: 1977 – not sure why I had never seen this before, but it was unwatchable, and I normally like movies that deal with this sort of topic…

• Power of Attorney: 1995 – um, I watched it, everyone else gave up on it shortly after it started, so…

• UnFaithful: 2002 – good movie

• The Burbs: 1989 – I watched this one because Petra and Andrea recommended it… Actually bought it on Ebay because I couldn’t find it in any stores… Um, yeah… There were a few funny lines… :)

• The Money Pit: 1986 – I’d seen this before, but it came with The Burbs in a 3-pack of Tom Hanks flicks so I watched it again with Carolyn who had not seen it before, it wasn’t as funny or as good as I had remembered…

• Dog Watch: 1996 – bearable, but ONLY if there is nothing else to do, and when I say nothing, I mean NOTHING!

• Bobby: 2006 – we started watching this one, but fell asleep… I’ve got it on the stack to ‘finish later’ whenever there is absolutely nothing else to do…

• 10.5 Apocalypse: 2006 – I liked this one, but then I kind of like ‘disaster’ movies, not exactly sure why…

• Category 7: 2005 – ditto above

So yeah, we've been "real busy" lately... We actually have watched more than this, the Survivor series for instance, we got seasons 8 and 10 on DVD, so that provides hours of entertainment... I don't recall all of the movies that we might have watched that were rented, so yeah... :)

Hmm... Perhaps it's time to actually do something constructive, but then I really don't LIKE doing anything when it's cold outside, and there are about 10 - 12 more weeks of winter here, so who knows, I'm not sure though that there are THAT many movies left that I even want to sit through, we'll see though... :)

2009...

Here it is, 2009, my resolutions are working out GREAT too, well, #1 is anyway... :)

Not too much going on, but there never really is around here this time of year. There is practically nothing going on where I work from mid-December until mid-January most years and I rarely do work on home projects either this time of year, although I am usually trying to finish up something right before Christmas... :) We were going somewhere yesterday and I mentioned that I was just going to relax this weekend and Tanner was like, "You haven't done anything but relax all winter Dad!" lol! He IS right though, other than putting slate in the office and Cory's room, I don't suppose I have done too much, but, whatever...

Then I was going to put up pictures from the past year, and I was looking back through my digital pics and I CAN'T believe how few pictures I took over the past year... :( I'll blame that on the fact that my camera sucks and I need a new one, or maybe I should just read the manual for the one I have? Who knows... Yeah, I don't plan on doing much this weekend either, and actually the only reason I'm even posting anything at all is because I am tired of seeing that New Year's eve post... :)

I do think it is going to be a great year though!

New Year's Eve...

Out with the old, in with the new... For most people, all over the world, party preparations will be ongoing and many will be penning New Year's resolutions... Something, I might add, that I never did quite understand myself...

"He who breaks a resolution is a weakling; He who makes one is a fool." ~ F.M. Knowles

The success rate of "resolutions" is so poor, it's almost stunning. Be it to lose weight, stop smoking, save more money, get out of debt, drink less, etc, many people are failures when it comes to their resolutions before the hangover has completely subsided... It's not that I don't think about resolutions, I just don't make any. I suppose there are things I could change, but why wait until the 'New Year' to make said changes if they are indeed something that should be done or changed?? Yeah, I don't get it... So many people make them though that I have decided to make two of them myself:

1.) To just be myself

2.) To tolerate fools more gladly, provided this does not encourage them to take up more of my time (I'd claim this as my own, but kind of hard to do with the Internet and all... by James Agate :)

So when the clock strikes twelve and your 'slate is clean', here's wishing you the best in 2009!!

Biased Outrage...

It's so blatant, it's amazing... All you see on the news is talk about all the "poor" people in Gaza, why don't we hear or see any news about missiles being fired FROM Gaza into Israel?? Which is WHY Israel is fighting back. Name me one other sovereign nation that WOULDN'T retaliate...

"Death to Israel", on a wall in Gaza...

If Canada had been firing missiles into Maine for the past three weeks, or if Mexico had been firing missiles into Arizona for the past three weeks, I can assure you that we would annihilate them... So yeah, the media bias is stunning... Well, not really...

Merry Christmas!!

Hope everyone is having an enjoyable day with family and friends!! The presents are all unwrapped, stockings emptied and now just tidying the house up for company later... :)

We started the day off with me reading the Christmas Story... The kids insisted on having a cake for Jesus as well. Not sure if anyone actually tried the cake though, it was a bit early in the AM for cake... The kids all look like they are still asleep... :)

Stockings first!

Ditto!

Now everyone is entertaining themselves with their "loot" while Carolyn and I straighten the house back up... We have company coming over later, and Cory of course will be by sometime. Can't wait for Christmas dinner actually, and of course then we can kick back and watch some of the many new movies we now have... :)

Merry Christmas to all!

Merry Christmas Eve!

Hope everyone is having a great day, I'm sure everyone is as excited as my kids are about tomorrow! It's SO exciting just seeing how excited they get! Me? Yeah, I am about to grout that slate I just put down... Seems like I am always doing stuff like that on Christmas Eve, oh well... :)

Santa looked a lot like Daddy...

Or Daddy looked a lot like him. It's not the way I had him pictured, Santa was much too thin...

I always liked that song for some reason: Brad Paisley...

Tick tock... Four days to go, the kids are getting quite excited, as I'm sure all kids are all over! They decorated their rooms yesterday, our neighbor was "getting rid" of a bunch of stuff and unloaded it all on them... Ugh! The last time that happened, it took me nearly a month to "get rid" of it all myself... Oh well, they have a blast with it all, so who cares.

Well, I'm off for the rest of the year (pretty much), I am on call still until Monday morning at 8 so hopefully nothing else happens. I ended up working Friday night and Saturday morning until about 5:30, then got called again at 7:56AM on Saturday and worked until nearly 6PM correcting a disastrous mistake made by another "IT person", using that term quite loosely I might add! I'm about to start laying slate in Cory's room, which is the last room in the house that hasn't had a new floor put down since we got this place, so we'll see how that works out...

Hope everyone is enjoying the last few days as the countdown to Christmas continues... :)

I'll Have A Blue Christmas...

without you. I'll be so blue thinking about you...

I love that song! There was a group that sang it on Imus yesterday and it was beautifully done, but I can't for the life of me remember who they were... I doubt I'll lose any sleep over it though... :)

Taylor at her school Christmas party...

I did make it to Taylor's Christmas party at school, but could only stay about 5 minutes... Carolyn and Chance were there the whole time though, so she was happy! Tanner and Taylor are both ecstatic that the "winter break" has officially started! Of course I'm off until the end of the year myself, so it should be nice and relaxing... Of course I suppose that depends on your definition of relaxing... :)

Silver bells, silver bells...

It's Christmas time in the city...

Of course I suppose it's Christmas everywhere and not just in the city... I just love Christmas songs, well, some of them anyway... :)

Hope everyone is having a great holiday thus far! I missed Tanner's party at school today because I had to go down South to a power plant this morning to try to fix someone else's screw up... Turns out it's going to be a 2 or 3 day fix, luckily I brought a remote board with me so now I can fix it from anywhere rather than having to go back to the middle of nowhere again... I'm always amazed why they let some people even touch equipment, oh well... Carolyn and Chance went to Tanner's party without me, and hopefully I'll be able to make it to Taylor's party which is tomorrow...

The kids start Christmas break (or as they call it, the holiday break) Monday and I'm pretty much off the rest of the year myself, so who knows what we'll get into. Don't really have too much planned for next week, I'll probably tackle the slate in Cory's room and get that out of the way, Carolyn's sister and her husband are coming down Christmas day and that's really about it... I STILL haven't mailed out my Christmas cards, but at least I have them in front of me now so I'll hopefully get them out tomorrow... :)

I'm Dreaming...

Of a white Christmas, just like the ones I used to know...

Well, I'm not really, but the kids are... They are likely out of luck though as it should be 67 today. Which is FINE with me I might add! :)



Hope everyone is enjoying the holidays with friends and family! I've kind of been slacking this year for some reason, I haven't even mailed cards out yet, there's still time though I suppose... :) We did make the mistake of going to the mall the other day, WOW! It's actually kind of amusing going to the mall, people watching and all... Actually stunning is a better word than amusing I suppose... Not much else going on here, perhaps I'll attempt to post some photos later, of course I have to actually TAKE some first, which I haven't been doing lately...

Congratulations Carolyn!!

Carolyn finished school today, or rather is taking her final right now... :)

Tis The Season...

For everyone to relax... So many people get so uptight and stressed this time of year, and for the life of me, I can't figure out why... Oh well, better them than me I suppose. We finally got around to trying to take some pictures for our 'card', this is about how it went...


I think we finally ended up with 1 out of the 50 we took that will have to do... Yeah, those will be in the mail 'soon'! :) Other than that, just enjoying the holidays. Hope everyone else is as well!

Hmm...

Do You Believe?

"Four billion people say they believe in God, but few genuinely believe..." Do you like to think? Are you capable of thought, or are you just some mindless, empty carcass walking about waiting on something? Interesting stuff... :)

I like to think, and don't consider any topic to be off limits. It's funny conversing with people though, so many do have topics that are off limits, others get annoyed when other topics are broached and refuse to participate... I always found that rather stunning myself, but then I like to think, at least I think I do... :)

Anyway, what prompted this line of thinking? A book I started reading online, and I kind of got sucked in and before I knew it I was through with it... Interesting... It's free too...

God's Debris...

I Can't Wait!!

To vote AGAINST this moron tomorrow:

I don't even know anything about the guy running against him, but don't care either, anyone but him! It's kind of funny too, you hear all these people all over talking about "We've got to get Chambliss elected so the Dems don't get their 60 vote majority!" Well, Chambliss should have actually THOUGHT about that while he was serving us in the Senate, and as far as MY vote is concerned, BEFORE he responded to my e-mail with an arrogant attitude to the tune of: "I know what's best for GA, butt out."... Yeah okay, he will probably still win, but he won't get my vote, and I could care less if my vote was the deciding vote and gave the Dems their majority, I would still vote against him...

Deck The Halls...

We had a great day yesterday, we did decide not to cook a huge meal though, so we went out to eat with Cory and had a great meal and a good time together... Then we decided to go see a movie, but I wasn't too interested in seeing High School Musical 3 or many of the other ones that were out, so we finally all decided to go see The Dark Knight. I think Chance likes the superhero movies, on the way home he asked if we could get Superman Returns, so we did and watched it when we got home...

Today we dragged all the Christmas decorations down from the attic and put on the music and got to town getting the place decorated for Christmas! Of course to the kids, it practically WAS Christmas... We have every toy they have ever had up in the attic, so they ran through the attic reminiscing and unfortunately dragging some of it down, I was kind of hoping we could put some more stuff up there instead!! :)

The kids are SO excited they can hardly stand it, I just LOVE this time of year! Taylor is wrapping some presents as I type even though it is way past bedtime, I may go to bed before they do they are so excited! Hopefully I'll get some pictures of the kids up here in the next day or so... I didn't even take any pictures tonight, Chance took some though, and I just borrowed his camera and took this one...

I suppose I need to go to bed because I have to throw that turkey in the oven first thing in the AM, well, I don't HAVE to, but it does sound pretty tasty, so I suppose I shall...

Happy Thanksgiving!

I Got Tagged...

Well, not really, but I stole this from Petra's blog... :)

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? Wrapping paper.

2. Real tree or Artificial? Artificial!! I had a real one once, never again…

3. When do you put up the tree? Sometime Thanksgiving weekend, perhaps tomorrow this year… :)

4. When do you take the tree down? New Year’s weekend.

5. Do you like eggnog? Not really…

6. Favorite gift received as a child? Hmm… I don’t really recall, actually the only thing I can even remember off hand is those bricks, and I’m not even sure they were for me, I think they were for all of us…

7. Hardest person to buy for? Never really thought about it, my mentality has always been: “Don’t like it? Feel free to throw it away or regift it!” :)

8. Easiest person to buy for? My kids…

9. Do you have a nativity scene? Yes, not on the front lawn or anything, but we have one…

10. Mail or email Christmas cards? Mail. I think e-cards are tacky…

11. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? I think all gifts are great, at least whoever gave it thought of you, even if the thought was, “Jeez, we’ve gotten everyone something except Matt, do we have anything we can throw some wrapping paper around?” :)

12. Favorite Christmas Movie? Not a huge fan of them actually…

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? Usually January 1st, depends… :)

14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? Oh yeah! :)

15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Ham!

16. Lights on the tree? Tons and tons! Can’t have too many lights, and yeah, only white ones! I hate those multi-color lights...

17. Favorite Christmas song? Pretty Paper.

18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? Home! It’s the one holiday I think kids should wake up in their own home, although once they are older, let’s travel! If everyone wants to… :)

19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer? I suppose I might be able to if I started singing Rudolph… :)

20. Angel on the tree top or a star? Depends on which one isn’t broken… We have both, and whichever one of them ‘stays’ the best is what it is…

21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? Christmas morning!

22. Most annoying thing about this time of the year? Stressed out morons, the uppity type, and the type who would get offended if they found out that you actually *gasp* regifted! Relax people and just enjoy it!

23. Favorite ornament theme or color? Whatever is in the “ornament” boxes goes on the trees, quite varied actually…

24. Favorite for Christmas dinner? Ham, potato salad, and all the trimmings!

25. What do you want for Christmas this year? I could care less, I really care more about getting my wife and kids stuff… I always tell everyone not to even bother getting me anything, but if you must… I try to think of something they can get me, and in my kids case, that won’t dip into their “fund” too much…

26. Who is most likely to respond to this? Who knows…

27. Who is least likely to respond to this? Hmm… Titus.

Finally...

Only about six years later... The office is done, well, ALMOST done, I still have a few pieces of trim to put around the windows, I suppose I'll attempt to get it up in the next few years... :) It's kind of hard to see the slate in some of the pictures, but it looks great!

You used to walk in and just see piles of crap that had accumulated over the past six years... Glad that's gone! We'll see how long it takes to accumulate more junk... :)

Yeah, I need to figure out what to do with the door that used to be there, I'm probably going to put a pocket door there, but yeah, it's NOT all that urgent of a project...

Carolyn was glad to get back in here as I had to cram her desk in the corner in the "school" room for the past two weeks or so... :)

I also am aware that my desk is a bit banged up, but hey, I got it at a garage sale for a dollar about ten years ago and it works just fine... :)

Yeah, I know my camera sucks, who knows, perhaps Santa will bring me a new one... :)

Uh, Yeah...

Has it been a week already?? I suppose it has, hard to believe that it is nearly Thanksgiving... The kids are getting excited about dragging down all the Christmas decorations though, I suppose we all are though, fun time of the year! We don't really plan on doing much this week though, the kids are out of school, I have to work and Carolyn has school (except Thursday and Friday). We were going to go down to Tonya's, then changed plans because Carolyn's family was coming down, then that changed, so now we might just go out to eat and see a movie... We did get a turkey though in case we change our minds again... :) Why do people only cook turkeys on Thanksgiving? Of course maybe some people cook them all the time, who knows...

No, I don't have the office back together yet, and it's getting on my nerves... I finally finished grouting it all today though, so I suppose I'll be able to move everything back in tomorrow, which will be nice, because the contents of the room have been scattered throughout the downstairs for the past several weeks... Perhaps I'll post some pics later, I have been awful about taking them lately though, probably because everyone keeps passing around a cold and I just haven't felt like it... Hope everyone has a great week though!!

Have I Mentioned...

How much I detest cold weather?? Ugh! It's here to stay though until March I suppose... I don't get a whole lot done outside when it is cold out, and keep in mind that "cold" is pretty much anything below 60 degrees... :) I did get the slate put down in the office though...

This is pretty much how I spent my weekend...

I DID get it done though, well, not done yet, as I still have to seal it and then grout it, a chore I hate nearly as much, if not more, than actually laying the slate... We'll see if that gets done in the next few days, although I'm sure it will because I can't not have my office back together... :)

Something else that has been killing me lately is hearing all these people comparing the current economic mess with the Great Depression...

I've not yet seen anyone living like this...

Or this...

Nor is it likely that we will see people living like that... Will it get worse than it is right now? Probably... Are we all going to be living in "Hoovervilles"? Doubtful... You hear some of these doom and gloom people talking about the end of times, stockpiling food, etc, etc... Reminds me of some of the kooks who sold all their shit before Y2K and moved to the hills. Idiots!

We did watch some movies this weekend as well, nothing like a roaring fire in the fireplace and a good movie to watch on a cold night! 'The Bank Heist' was pretty good, so was 'Street Kings'... I also liked 'Lions for Lambs'. Of course the places we get movies are running out of options, we got 'Color of Freedom' and 'He Was A Quiet Man' for tonight, I'm not getting my hopes up on those two though so we'll see how they are. :)

Before...

So I've spent the past three days emptying out the office so I can finally put the slate down that has been stacked in Cory's room for who knows how long... It's LONG overdue for it I might add, I think it's the only room in the house that hasn't gotten a new floor put down (well, except Cory's room, but he doesn't live here, so it hasn't ever seemed all that urgent... :) So anyway, here are the before shots, hopefully the after pics will be up within a few days! :)

Happy Veterans Day...

Note To Self...

When the temperature is only going to be in the low 60's and it is going to be windy, DON'T wear short sleeves and shorts! Yeah, I can't wait until Spring, and it isn't even Winter yet... We decided to take off to Red Top Mountain yesterday for some hiking and a picnic...

About to start off on the trail... Yeah, it's not exactly wilderness hiking or anything... :)

They always drain a lot of the lake this time of year, but enough is left to enjoy the scenery...

Tanner contemplating what to do with the 'crust'... He ended up removing it... :)

That rock would normally be under water, and it will be again come Spring!

Carolyn has more pics posted on Facebook if you are interested in seeing them... :)

The Right Wing Nutjobs...

Not that McCain was, but it's time to rework the GOP... Getting rid of the far right-wing wackos is, in my opinion, one of the FIRST steps that need to be taken... We'll see how that works out, now just need to get more people of like mind involved to rid the party of the morons who have allowed the current bunch of 'leaders' to stay in power so long...

Tick Tock...

Well, today is the day... Who will win?

The Chosen One?

Or these two clowns??

Yeah, I'm still undecided because I don't like either one of the choices... Although I have already voted... :) I honestly think that conservatives actually NEED a wakeup call, and I think this is a hell of a wakeup call: Democrat majority in the House, possible filibuster proof majority in the Senate and the White House... Not to mention the possibility of a few SCOTUS appointments... What were the Republicans thinking when they chose McCain?? Who knows, but we'll soon find out how that works out for them, and it's possible that he may even win...

The thing I find the most stunning is idiots like this:

Obama Is Going To Pay For My Gas And Mortgage!!!

Big Government will take care of us, go Obama!! Wow! This is PRECISELY the reason that our Founding Fathers DID NOT give everyone a Constitutional right to vote, even though you hear many morons spouting that nonsense over and over... If I was in charge, I would start restricting the "right to vote", only people who are self-sufficient would be allowed to vote, but alas, I'm not in charge... :)