Friends with benefits

Belinda has ruined me. Being married to her has lead to occasionally watching "Friends", at times repeatedly. And it's to the point where I can quote the show, I can tell what episode it is just by hearing a few lines, I can even hold my own in a game of "Friends" trivia.

I love it. Yes, I like "Friends". I enjoy the show quite a bit. It's funny, I can't help it. Hi, I'm Nick, and I like "Friends". I like the characters, I like the storylines, I like the way they kept the temperature on set below 45 degrees so Jennifer Anistons nipples were frequently visible through her shirt. Yeah, that part's the best.

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.5

I'm a monkey

I've seen at least a half dozen different Facebook posts along the lines of "Holy crap, you mean I'm not a (insert zodiac sign here) anymore?!" Whoa, hold on, chill out. Some folks are having kittens because they think their horoscope is gonna change. No, no it's not. Yes, the moons pull has put a bit of a wobble in the Earths rotation and, yes it has changed what time of the year the corresponding constelations are visible. Does that change who you are? A resounding hells no. Does it mean you should laser off your Libra tattoo? Only if you delight in painful pointless proceedures. This article makes a good point about why most westerners shouldn't give two figs. (http://news.blogs.cnn.com/2011/01/13/no-your-zodiac-sign-hasnt-changed/) But even further than that, think of it logically. Even if the position of the stars at the time of your birth ~does~ have any effect on you or your personality, the key term is "time of your birth". This may change the horoscopic signs of future generations, but it can't go back in time and change yours. You'd need a TARDIS for that. Or a Delorian. Besides, horoscopes are mostly hogwash anyway. Except for the ones Nate and Ryan used to write for our high school paper. Those were always right on the money. So take a deep breath, put down your astrolabe, and have a drink. You are who you are and the only one who can change that, is you.

G'night folks.

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.5

Mom, Dad... I'm Gaelic

Tonight, Jillie wanted to watch an animated movie we've seen close to a dozen times. She could have chosen any one of the Disney movies (God knows I can recite "The Little Mermaid" from heart by now) or a number of other saccharine sweet morality tales portrayed by Strawberry Shortcake or My little Ponies. But she picked a film we stumbled upon months ago on Netflix, an Oscar nominated gem from Ireland called "The Secret of Kells."

I can honestly say that "Kells" is one on my favorites. It's geared towards kids and families, but it does have it's darker moments. The movie follows the fictionalized account of the creation of the Book of Kells, an illuminated manuscript an one of Ireland's greatest national treasures. Brendan, the young nephew of the Abbot of Kells who expects him to follow in his footsteps. The abbot is obsessed with fortifying the walls around the abbey to protect it from viking invaders, but Brendan is more interested in the work going on in the scriptorium where he hears stories about Brother Aiden and his work on the Book of Iona. After Iona falls to the Norsemen, Brother Aiden flees to Kells and befriends little Brendan, enlisting his help in continuing work on the book. I don't want to give away too much, but along the way Brendan makes friends with a forest spirit named Aisling, bests the monstrous Crom Cruach, and eventually finishes the Book of Iona, rechristening it the Book of Kells.

The Secret of Kells is refreshingly 2D. Don't get me wrong, I love me some 3D CGI animation, but as an artist it is heartening to see a movie drawn by hand, and Kells is done so beautifully! Everything is illustrated very stylistically and is all reminiscent of the art in the Book of Kells itself. The character design is simple, but highly emotive. The backgrounds and scenery, too, are stylized to match the ancient celtic manuscripts. I can't recommend this movie higher. It's a great change of pace from the animated features we've become accustomed to.

In a slightly related piece of news, Jillian will be taking her first Highland Dance class next week! She's really excited to start. I'm hope she likes it and does well, she would look too damn cute with her curly red hair and tartan skirt, dancing up a storm at the highland games. I can't wait.

Gavin had his 18 month well child check today and everything is going well in his development. He's progressing right on track in height and weight. He showed Dr. Luck his muscles, and said "Aaaaaahhh" when he looked in his mouth. Then he got his second flu shot and didn't even cry, he just gave me a pissed off look.

To sum up; "Secret of Kells" = awesome film, Jillian starts dance class next week, and Gavin is mad at me for letting the nurse stick him with a needle.

Thanks for reading! G'night folks.

Having children means never sleeping again

I went to bed at an unprecedented 9:00 tonight. I was soooo damn tired for no damn reason. I lay in bed with Belinda, drifting in and out of consciousness while she watched season 8 of Scrubs. Got to the end of the disc and turned off the tv to hunker down for legitimate sleep and not ten minutes in, the boy starts making noise. Classic case of binky overboard. I picked the evil suckbubble off the ground, stuck it back in his mouth, kissed him goodnight and walked away. Bel brought him into bed. Gavin decided it was playtime now and proceeded to toss and talk and sandpaper my chest with the little traction bumps on the soles of his footie pjs. Back to the crib with him! I figure he can "da da da dee dee" to himself all he wants and crash on his own, and that seemed to work fine till I hear a thud and a "WAAAAAH!" I rush in, thinking he's hit his head or something, but intead feel the binky underfoot and realize he's just chucked it across the room and forgot he couldn't summon it back. Great. Re-bink, re-blanket, good night. It's been variations on that theme the last couple hours ranging from "I dropped it again for the 3rd time" to "I've got my finger stuck in the same hole it got stuck in at nap time". As I write this, he's in there, mocking me. Contemplating his next assault on my last nerve. I'd be angry if he weren't so gorram cute! He just looks up at me with that innocent cherubic face as if to say, "I'm the baby; gotta love me!" Yeah, I do, but I'm not putting up with this crap when he's 15, I can tell you that much. Good night, folks.

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.5

I will do science to it!

Today, the kids and I went to OMSI with Aunt Heather, Uncle Craig, Aunt Amber, and cousins Trent, Ainsley, and Carter. I frickin love OMSI, have since I was a kid! For those who may be reading this who aren't familiar with this neck of the woods, OMSI is the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry. Like any true geek, I went armed with my trusty lab goggles, magnifying glass, and sonic screwdriver. First we went to the turbine hall where they have all manner of hands on experiments and fun science activities. Jillie and Trent tried out the space capsule. Nah, not interactive enough.... Moving on!

Next we moved onto an oldie but a goodie (and still one of my personal faves) the earthquake simulator! Jillie love this one too. You get to pick between two magnitudes, then it plays "I Feel the Earth Move" by Carole King and the room starts a-rocking. After a bit it plays the emergency alert sound and does the whole shtick. It rarely gets to that point with Jillie though, she just likes to dance to the song, then start the whole thing over again. Gavin, on the other hand was wary. After a few times through he got the hang of it. He didn't get down and funky like his sister, more like just standing there like a deer in the headlights.

At least the kid is good at keeping his balance! Carter dug it too, I think he liked the falling down part. Next, we moved onto the water tables to build paddle boats, sailboats, irrigation systems, and to get completely soaking wet. Gavin tried a number of times to cut to the chase and just climb right in. Jillie wasn't to thrilled with having a wet tummy. Fortunately there was a hand dryer and a bench nearby.

Unfortunately, the toddler area and the room with Samson the Tyrannosaur were closed for renovation. So what else could we do, but go and play with lizards, insects, and rats!

We bumped into Elly, one of Jillie's friends from Kindercare. Jillie introduced her to Trent and they dragged each other all over the place. Gavin enjoyed watching the snake and rat the most. In another exhibit, he and Ainsley did their best to re-mix  "Twinkle Twinkle" to the best of their one and a half year old abilities. That is to say, they fiddled at random with the controls and moved to the music.

 Bel met us after work and played with the kids. It was great to see everyone and get to hang out together. Heather, Craig, Trent and Ainsley live in Kodiak, so the chances to see them are few and far between. I love em and miss em!

Wow. It's later than I thought. I should get to bed, it's hard to sleep in when your children are early birds. Night all!

Test

This is a test of my blogger by phone app. This is only a test. If this were an actual blog post, this space would be funnier and more informative. This concludes this test of the blogger app. Thank you for your patience.

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.5

unmentionable playdough

Jillie got a play-dough set from Santa this year. It's a dog that has all sorts of shapes that you can mold, like a fire hydrant, a bone, puppies, etc. You can push down on it's head to make hair grow and a tongue stick out. It comes with a kibble maker, that is actually pretty cool. What's the first thing my daughter wants to know how to make? Crap. Yes, my sweet little angel asked me "Daddy, I made the doggy eat, now how do I make poop?"  So I did what any father with an ounce of sense would do; I showed her. Yup, how to roll out a snake and coil it up just like a little lawn bomb. I think her dog has some gastrointestinal issues cause all her poops were vivid pink. That's my girl :)

First Foray

Most people who are going to be reading these posts already know me. For those who don't, Hi. My name is Nick. I have a lovely wife, Belinda, and two awesome kids, Jillian (age 4) and Gavin (age 1.5). I used to be a teacher, but now I'm a stay-at-home dad. I'm trying to find a way to make a living doing one of the things I love (aside from teaching), such as drawing, acting, writing, you know... things that are really hard to turn into a profitable endeavor.

In the course of this blog I'll be rambling about pretty much anything. You'll hear many a thing about my kids (big surprise) and family life. Occasionally you'll see me geek-out about various geeky things like Doctor Who, Lego's, video games, musical theater, and science. That's it for my first little post. Just wanted to give you a "heads up" on what to expect from here on out. I'll do my best to be funny, but those of you who know me, also know my sense of humor can be a little... off. Mostly I'll just try to be a good me. We'll see where that takes us.