I find your lack of direction bump disturbing.
- May 4th, 2010 at 11:09 am · I was contemplating life, wondering about my place in it and from where I could derive any sort meaning. But then I happened upon this and I understood. I'm so thankful for my b!tch, I should go get some hugs up in that mutha. · (0)
- May 3rd, 2010 at 5:36 pm · Google's ways are admittedly mysterious, but plopping People's "Is Gwyneth Paltrow Feuding with Scarlett Johansson?" story into my "Recommended Items" in Google Reader tickles my "What The Fuckometer" right up to the stops. Then again it thinks I dig Bill O'Reilly as well. Methinks monkeys are at the wheel. · (0)
- Canadiens force game 7 and Buffalo goes home. A fine night of hockey. Here's hoping Lindy Ruff's indigestion is PROLIFIC. #NHL #
- Surprisingly comforting having visibility into other apps' open defects on this horrid device. Our app? 0 open. Overall? Greater than 400. #
- Habs win! What a friggin' game! Sure, it ain't my Canes, but with a wife from Montreal I have to cheer for the Habs otherwise. #NHL #
- Oh Pandora, you DO love me. How could I forget to what degree AC/DC's "For Those About To Rock" absolutely frickin' KILLS? FIRE! #
- Oh Halak. Akin to Jesus in Montreal but give him a few soft goals and he'll be trade bait and hung in effigy. Tough place for goalies. #NHL #
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I find it almost painfully wonderful that my daughter has her reading light on in her bedroom, reading Dr. Seuss’ One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish before bed. She can read it. I remember at the beginning of first grade this year she despaired because she hated to read. It’s hard! She would cry and stare at words as we tried to read books. I commiserated.
“English is,” I told her, “an extremely hard language to learn. There are so many dumb rules and exceptions. You think you have something figured out and you immediately learn 3 cases where what you learned isn’t true.”
I despise English as a language to learn and wholly empathize with anyone trying to learn it. I felt so bad for her because I know how hard it is but I also knew that she could do it. She could learn to read and, perhaps even more importantly, she could learn to love to read. I’m lamenting the time that I can’t spend reading because I so completely love to read books. I wanted that for her perhaps more than anything.
It’s been a struggle. She didn’t want to try. It was too hard. It was a chore. There was no joy in it. We tried to keep it light, to ease her in, to make it easier because it is hard. And slowly, surely, she learned.
Now she’s laying above me in her bed, reading a book by herself. Not because we told her to or made her do it but because she wants to. Every night before bed she goes to her bookshelf and pulls 2, 3, maybe 4 books off the shelf and brings them to bed. I peek in on occasion. Tonight I had to go in.
“Juju, I’m so glad you’re enjoying reading,” I said. “I know it’s been hard but I’m so proud of how well you’ve learned to read.”
“Thanks Papi,” she says in a sleepy voice.
“Crepes for breakfast tomorrow?”
She grins and bounces a bit excitedly. I’d die for that child; crepes are nothing.
I’ve gotten fairly serious about running. That should be fairly obvious given recent events. Consequently my lunchtime routine has changed significantly over the past year. Prior to running I’d do whatever the hell I wanted at lunch which normally involved eating things that are bad for me while reading. I’d take an hour or so and just read, luxuriating in the book. I love reading and recently I’ve been doing more branching out than ever, trying new authors with a refreshingly open mind.
I changed my eating habits once I started running, but I maintained my “going out to eat” mentality. I just changed where I’d eat. I’d do a run, get cleaned up and sit at the Harris Teeter around the corner and usually eat a salad or sometimes a sandwich. And read. Great way to cool down and get my mind cleared up. But it still cost me damned near $10 a day in salad bar costs. The Teet loved me.
As of this year I switched to protein powder and milk for lunch with some Greek yogurt and whatever fruit I grab from the grocery. It’s a whole lot cheaper — I got 5 pounds of yummy protein powder for about $40 back in January that I’m still working on — and has been a component of my weight loss. But I don’t read any more. I get back from my workout, mix up my protein shake and grab the other stuff out of the fridge and eat/drink while I work. I miss my book time.
I’ve been chewing on The Scar now for almost a month. It’s not that damned long of a book! The only times I actually get to read or make time to read are a little bit at or near breakfast once Julia’s off to school and right before sleep in bed. That never lasts long as my eyes are typically drooping after about 4 pages.
Damn, I miss my book time 
. Perhaps it’s time for another adjustment.
- April 30th, 2010 at 10:52 am · Oh hell yes. "I can't believe how hard it is to break somebody's neck," she said. "I just kept choking him until he couldn't talk. I thought he'd at least faint." Lesson: don't jack this 70-year-old lady's van. · (2)
It's foolproof!
- Put a box in the neighborhood grocery store.
- Put some movies in the box.
- Get people to actually rent a movie. They’re only $1 a night!
- Now this is key: Never allow the customer to return the movie. “Sorry! We’re full up to our assholes with returned movies! Go hunt around town for another box that’s also full!“
- Never, ever empty the box again! My redbox has said that for 3 days now! That’s free money for redbox!
- Get money forever and ever and ever until the sun eats the Goddamned planet!
It’s so simple even a caveman could do it if he had the shear, bloodthirsty gall. No more redbox for ColdForged. Fool me once, shame on me. Never empty the machine? Bite my ass.
