Jason Mraz on ACL!

JM is coming! JM is coming!

That's Jason Mraz, I mean. His Dec 2003 performance at Austin City Limits is being re-aired on PBS tomorrow (4/30/2005 @ 9 pm, I think). There are some video clips of the performance on the PBS website as well. I've already seen the original broadcast but look forward to watching it again.

I'm all bubbly about Jason because he was the catalyst for me taking a stronger interest in learning the guitar. He gets me all jived up with his 'stew' music as he calls it. Most prominently, his voice zings loud and clear with a pretty nifty rap-like style. Now I'm very uncrazy about rap -- actually I hate it -- but I do really like the way Jason funks it out. Way kuul.

Periodically, I check out Mraz's website and his blog.

So go on! Check your local listings and have a looksie and a listen.

The Truth Machine

Late last night, I finished reading The Truth Machine by James Halperin. Actually, it was the ebook version bought from ereader.com. The story was good and recommendable, but I enjoyed it more for its concept and futuristic vision.

I'm embarrassed to say that this is my first book in a triple very long time that I've been able to go through cover to cover. My focus when reading other recent novels had been interrupted endlessly by my need to attend to the kids and things on my 'to do' list. It resulted in my losing empathy for the story characters, and so I had needed to back up a few chapters to regain it. Eventually though, I lost interest.

Today, I'm headed to our town library (I go there often with the kids, hopefully to inspire them with the written word) to check out my next book: Exit to Eden by Anne Rampling (aka Anne Rice). I promised a friend I'd give it a shot, especially since it's in a genre that I haven't tried out yet. I hope it's available.

Racing under the Hudson River

At 9 am this morning, our family ran through the Lincoln Tunnel.

It was the 19th annual 5k (3.1mi) Lincoln Tunnel Challenge 2005. Actually, the three kids rode in strollers that Melinda and I pushed as we ran the course. We started at the mouth of the tunnel on the New Jersey side, raced through the tube to just out of the exit in Manhattan, turned around and then headed back to good ol' Jersey for the finish.

Our first time to run this course was 7 years ago before any of the kids were born. This year marks our second attempt. And wouldn't you know it, our race times for the 1998 and 2005 events are practically the same! Just less than a minute apart. How 'bout them apples!

Now it ain't everyday that a person can take a run or stroll through a major tunnel in the NYC/NJ area. It's therefore why I marveled at and took part in this event. Just another something to spice up life's mostly mundane days, I guess.

Run, run, run!

"Go ahead, knock it off."

I think I have a chip on my shoulder. I felt it as I wrote my "The new pontiff & female priests" entry (4/20/2005), although my intention really wasn't to convey my bitterness. (Did you feel it?) Still, I sensed it again having reread it yesterday. Hey, and again just a minute ago! And there it is, yet once more, just now! What gives?

Is it time for a shrink discussion on the chaise?

Mindy finally swims solo!

It was tonight at the YMCA pool that Mindy, our 2nd oldest, finally let go of Mommy and Daddy and swam by herself (aided only by floaties around her waist). Her solo strokes lasted just a few seconds until she returned to the pool edge, but what an enormous moment it was.

Finally, with only the support of floaties, all the kids can now paddle away on their own in the water. And Melinda and I can add to another sigh of relief that they're a tad better equipped to handle themselves in the deep--this was the primary reason why we had been so eager to enroll them in lessons at such early ages.

Tina, the oldest, was the first to swim independently last summer before taking lessons. Miguel, the youngest, followed suit about a month ago to our surprise, especially since he just turned 2 in December. And now Mindy's closed the book on it all this evening with her daring feat. Good for you, Min! Thus, another plateau in the children's growth to take proud note of.

It really is a joyous night.

Pizza time!

The new pontiff & female priests

Pope Benny's in da house! Woof woof woof!

(Can y'all hear all that typing. People blogging away with their opinions on the new big guy. Lots of 'em. Myself included.)

And lots o' TV news coverage as well last night on the newly elected Pope Benedict XVI, with much comment regarding his controversial conservative views (I tuned into Hardball With Chris Matthews to listen to some of the discussion.), particularly on the issues of homosexuality and gay marriage, contraception and abortion, female priests and married clergy. Yup, hot topics indeed.

Unfortunately, as a raised Catholic, I don't agree with the Vatican's position on all of the above issues. (Why am I saying 'unfortunately'?) Hmmm, well then, I suppose that entitles me to excommunication from the church, or perhaps being labeled as a non-catholic or protestant by definition. If so, it doesn't bother me. Not anymore. Nope. Nadda.

I think my apathy toward the prudence of the catholic authority teemed significantly just before my wife and I got married--after a heated discussion with a priest who yelled at us (yes, 'yelled' with a f*ckin Y-E-L-L-E-D) for our attempt to have our ceremony held at a catholic church closer to our wedding reception than at our own parish. (This story is worthy of its own blog entry, perhaps in the near future. Titled, "The Last Straw". I likes, I likes.) Nevertheless, I gave Vatican doctrine some further thought following a Q&A talk with my oldest daughter a few months ago.

You see, once upon a time in our living room, little Tina asked me if she could be anything she wanted to be. A typical kid question that I quickly answered, "You bet, pumpkin. Anything." And during my attempt to think of exceptions, it suddenly popped into my mind and I decided to finish the thought to myself, "Sure sweetie, you can be whatever you want...anything except a priest; and it's all because the catholic church won't let you...or maybe because God said so." It was that thought that made me do the google thing and find out why the Vatican supported this.

I found the following links:
a. Recent history of the female priest debate.
b. A press statement of a catholic priest resigning due to disagreement with the vatican.
c. Posted newsgroup question of some user :-) asking why catholic seminaries can legally deny entry of female applicants.

Interesting. Very interesting.

Oh well. It seems from the past statements of Pope Benedict XVI as Cardinal Ratzinger, he will continue to uphold the current conservative decrees of the church. But maybe...just maybe...all that will somehow change by some new biblical interpretation. Called upon by something higher than even the highest of the highest authorities. Whatever.

And y'know, if that change happens, I guess my opinions would jive with the church's. And ergo, I'd be 'catholic' once again! (woo-hoo! woop woop woop!) ... By definition, of course. :-)

My home is my heaven.

I watched "Designed to Sell" on HGTV tonight. For $2000, a featured house is spruced up in order to markedly increase its selling price, as is the case in each episode. And wow! what a transformation it was in tonight's show. The house sold for $45,000 above the original asking price! -- (humma humma humma...can you say, 'BMW 5 series?!')

I always think about our little suburban abode every time I watch any of those 'home and garden' programs. I think about how my wife and I have come a long way with our improvements since we moved in almost five years ago. It was several months later after working on some project that I realized that my dream house could never be bought. It had to be built. From the immediate paint job just days after our closing to our never-ending garden work each spring, I smile more and more knowing I'm hammering away that much closer to a cozier oasis.

This year, our list of projects is tremendous: paint all the interior doors and replace the knobs, put in an attic vent, stain the deck and fence, clean up the basement, etc ad nauseocity. For me, I think I'd be happy if we could just finalize our garden and make it totally killer looking, and redo our small kitchen to look more up to date and feel less cramp.

Today, I mowed the lawn for its first cut of the season.* Tomorrow morning, I'll spread Scotts fertilizer and then it's off to Lowes or Home Depot for some inspiration.

Home sweet home.

*What's that expression? Oh yeah, "Good fences make good neighbors." Well, I feel that way with lawns: I judge a man by how well his grass grows. :-)

Pope John Paul says hello.

Hey, big news flash! The pope says heaven's not all that palatial. Well, here...you read about it at the very newsworthy, theOnion.com. :-)

Procrastination is debilitating.

"And of course you can't become
if you only say what you would've done.
So I missed a million miles of fun."
--Steal My Sunshine (song by Len)

My ears tuned in to those lyrics above as I peddled to the song's beat during today's workout. (I was on a LifeCycle stationary bike at the YMCA.) It made me realize how empty-headed I was to allow the last 2 to 3 weeks of physical inactivity to occur because of pointless brooding over a tardy client project. Had I been productive, my time away from the gym could be somewhat justified and I wouldn't feel so guilty. Nevertheless, these are classic symptoms of procrastination.

This evening, I have the intention of finishing my project. My wife isn't working tonight's shift so I'll ask her if she could watch the kids. I won't rent out a movie as a distraction as I usually do. Hmmmm, what else? No net cruising, no blog posting, no email checking, no food snacking or coffee breaks (I'm well stocked in diversions :-)). Hopefully, this'll give me momentum to get my stuff done and over. Go, well, go! You dee man!

So am I done? Will tonight be the night of completion? Am I finally going home? Well think again, buddy boy, because unfortunately, the above gung ho speech is yet another procras. symptom that I've been through many times (sigh). And so I say it once again: we'll see if this night is any different.

But here's one thing I'll do unique of my pep talk: I'll read a chapter of The Now Habit, the latest of my self-help lot on the shelf. I've found perspective as a great tool for changing habits and this book offers something different from my other readings: scheduling playtime, not worktime. It's piqued my curiosity and I haven't given this author a chance. So let's read.

Alright, stop blogging. There, I did it. Now...to be continued.

Junk meals for the little ones

I gave my kids Cheese Doodles and marshmallows for lunch today. Oh, and popcorn for breakfast.

The scenario goes like this: It's noon and I'm standing in the kitchen munching on the Doodles. I do this often with other foods as well. Stand and eat, I mean. Mindy, my middle one, comes in and says:

Mindy: Daddy, can I have some?
Daddy: Y'know Min, I don't want you eating these things for lunch.
Mindy: Please, can I have some?
Daddy: You should really eat something more healthy.
Mindy: Please?
Daddy: No.
Mindy: Please?
Daddy: Okay...but get a bowl first.

Act II: Tina and Miguel hear the crumpling of the Cheese Doodles bag, run in and ask for some, almost in unison. Daddy gives in. But first, asks for two more bowls. And they lived happily ever after.

I believe all that was verbatim. True story. Anyway, what else was I suppose to do, especially since they caught me red-handed? I didn't feel like being a hypocrite. Plus, I just wasn't in the mood to argue. I loathe arguing with my kids.

Now don't you go ahead and judge me. I know you probably have given in to some weaknesses as well. So hush up. Anyway, we did have a happy ending: we had pasta for dinner.

My PDA & being in the blog zone

"When I'm in the zone, it's the only time nothing hurts me."
--Pete Armstrong (The Truth Machine by James L. Halparin)

I jotted down 11 thoughts on my PDA today for future blogging. Then I prayed in thanks to the god of portability, Jeff Hawkins, for my Tungsten E. Without it, my entry inspirations would be limited to the few minutes of vague recollection at the day's end. (Or else I guess I could just resort to the abhorrent pen and paper thingy. Oh how ungeeky of me!)

But certainly, there's much more that my Palm device enhances other than my memory. Therefore, here's a list of my current bad boy applications:

1. eReader Pro -- ebooks are da bomb! I mean with 3 kids on one arm, how the halibut am I suppose to turn the pages on a conventional paperback? :-). My favorite feature is the integrated dictionary: tap on a word and the definition appears. Nifty, huh. Try it, Mikey...you'll like it. Various eReader versions may be found here, freeware or for purchase. For free ebooks: www.gutenberg.org.

2. Kids' games -- MatchGame, Memo24, PalmSimon and SketchHand are my kids' favorites. Comes in handy when on line at the local Costco. Very child-learning productive. Freeware.

3. Adult games -- gotta give daddy something to wank on :-). Galax (ie, Galaxian), Hiarcs Chess (the best chess for Palm), Scrabble and Traffic Jam (my favorite) are killer. Shareware.

4. HandyShopper -- the best Shopping and To-Do List program! Here is where i jot down my thoughts. This is my #1 application and what I use to organize my life. This program is not to be underestimated. Freeware.

5. Music references -- When learning the guitar, I used ChordDB, FretBoard and Guitar Tuner, although not extensively enough to realize their merits. Freeware.

6. PocketTVBrowser -- your TV guide on your PDA. A very efficient program that I used instead of the TV online guide so my kids wouldn't give me flack for interrupting their viewing. Very good user forum and support. Freeware/shareware.

7. MessagEase -- Saved the best for last. Who needs Graffiti or even a keyboard when you have this? You just gotta see the video demo to believe its innovation. This is totally killer and how I enter text. I can't rave enough about it, especially to power PDA users who do a lot of note-taking. Freeware/shareware.

Now go on. Fire up your handheld and do the electron dance.

Kids come first

"What the hell could be more important than a baby cryin'?!"
-- Barte Trinke (George Carlin) in Jersey Girl

Yesterday, I had a chance to only catch the first 25 minutes of the movie, Jersey Girl, and it already had me in tears. What a sissy I am. :-) I'd say that I've turned into a a sucker for parent-child films since my wife was first pregnant. So why didn't I finish it? Well, you guessed it: the 3 little amigos dancing in front of me and demanding my attention. Perhaps I should cut this entry short so I could go downstairs and finish it.

This afternoon, I saw another movie about kids, "To Be And To Have" ("Être Et Avoir"), on DVD which I enjoyed. It was refreshing to watch this French documentary film and see how an adult can calmly assuage what may be frustrating situations for most parents such as myself. I had definitely taken note of the teacher's gentle and patient temperament as a reference for my own future predicaments. Any parent who feels they need to raise their voice or otherwise to discipline their child should perhaps give this film a watch. (On a side note, I love the French language and enjoy hearing the original dialogue with English subtitles. I'll speak French yet!)

Am I triathlon ready?

I have about 5 weeks until my 1st (individual) triathlon after a hiatus of about 15 years. (Actually, my wife and I had entered a race as a relay team a couple of years ago. However, she had some difficulty in the swim--the first leg of the swim/bike/run race--and we weren't able to continue.)

The thing is, I haven't been to the gym in almost 2 weeks. You see, I've had my mind on a client project that's way way way overdue and felt that it would only be fair that I trade my exercise sessions for more work time. But just thinking about it right now, it's a lousy tradeoff and not a very good ying-and-yang thing to do. Alright then...tomorrow morning, I'll be back in training. Yeeehah!!!

Now time for a prayer to my triathlon god: "Oh Greg Welch, the famous little tri-guy from down under who did great things (and whom I have a personal picture of with my wife standing next to him), give me the strength to continue my workouts and finish in the top 100% of my 1st race this season."