June already?

Whew, that was quick.

I just got back on Monday from my 10 year college reunion. While we were only there from Thursday through Monday, it was fun to see so many of our old friends, most of whom had never met our kids and we hadn't seen at all since we moved away 7 years ago. It was so strange to be back in the place we'd spent so much time, but hadn't seen in so long. So much has changed. They've built new buildings, many of our professors have retired. But some things haven't: we found all our old houses (on and off campus), we visited the zoo (a lot the same as I remember), and the summer weather was perfect: sunny and 75ish on Saturday. I realize that we were lucky, they've had an unusually cold year so far, but we were grateful for the reprieve the weekend we were there, particularly since we came home to oppressive heat.

The boys did very well. I was particularly impressed with how well the little guy did on his first trip to the West Coast. He adjusted fairly quickly to the time change and slept in the pack n' play with very little struggle. Of course, he didn't take much of a nap most of the days we were there, but I couldn't blame him there since we were often too busy to go back to the hotel room to give him time to lay down. My back reminded me that I was not used to carrying him around the majority of the day. He also voiced his frustration occasionally for not being able to move around. He officially started Army crawling a few days before we left, and he could not believe I wasn't going to let him down on the floor of the airplane to explore the passengers' shoes and carry-on baggage. Sorry, buddy, I think that's a bit too dirty for you. He is so funny to watch right now with his crazy wiggle/drag/contort movement. I describe it as either a baby zombie or that he's trying to breakdance.

We were also able to sing in the alumni version of the concert choir we sang in while in school. It was nice even though only one other member was actually singing in it during the same years we were. The other folks we met there were quite nice and we had a good time.

Perhaps one of the best parts of all was when we got home and we were all bone tired, and the boys actually had to be woken up Tuesday morning. The little one actually slept till 10:00! I was happy to have the extra sleep, and was glad they were able to catch up on some rest they didn't get while we were gone.

So, it's probably about time for another poetry challenge...what say you all to Paige's mom's idea of using the word verification as an inspiration for a poem? Let me know.

Solstice.

Hello. We have arrived at our destination for the holidays relatively unscathed, if exhausted from the LONG journey. I passed some of the time in considering what to include in this week's holiday-related blogs. I also have not forgotten about the poetry challenge. Yes, patient readers, it will make its triumphant return tomorrow.

As a brief preview for tomorrow and following, I will deposit here the first of my analyses of Christmas songs. In this case, it is a list of songs that really should not be considered Christmas songs, since they are not explicitly addressing Christmas itself.

1. "My Favorite Things." This favorite from The Sound of Music hardly even mentions anything from winter. "Snowflakes that stay on my nose and eyelashes" and "sleighbells." I suppose you could also stretch "brown paper packages tied up with strings" as Christmas gifts, but that is super boring wrapping paper if you ask me.

2. "Baby, It's Cold Outside." Another kind of cute, kind of disturbing song in which a man tries to get into his date's pants by getting her drunk using his superior debate skills.

3. "Jingle Bells." Probably the best-known Christmas song of children really has no mention of the holiday in its lyrics. It's simply a sleighing song. In its innocent form (or if you like a twist, try James Taylor's take), it's perfectly harmless, but it's not a Christmas song.

4. "Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!" again, cute, snowy lyrics, a little romance, but no actual Christmas is alluded to, much less mentioned.

5. "I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm." I actually really like this song, but sadly, no mention of Christmas. It's really just a jazzy winter love song.

6. "Amazing Grace." Another of my favorite songs, but again, it's a great hymn but not a Christmas one.

7. "The Lord's Prayer." See #6.

8. "Hallelujah Chorus" from the Messiah. I just performed this for my church choir, but I realize that it was written as the grand finale for the whole work, which ends with Easter, so it really belongs at Easter. I am not sure how singing it at Christmas got started, although I realize it is now a widespread tradition.

9. "Winter Wonderland." Another non-Christmas but very wintery love song.

10. "Frosty the Snowman." Unless you use the Frosty quote from the movie, "I'll be back on Christmas Day!" instead of "I'll be back again someday!", it makes no mention of what is celebrated annually on December 25.

So, there's a taste of what I am bringing you over the next days. I think I'll probably start with my least-favorite lists (religious and non-religious) along with rationales and hopefully video examples of each, and then on Christmas I will post my very favorite songs/renditions for your enjoyment.

Yum. [UPDATED]

That was our friends' wedding we attended this evening, in a word. They were married in a smallish vintage movie theater downtown and hired a truly excellent caterer. The passed hors d'oevres included brie and pear mini quesadillas, bite-sized guacamole and corn salsa cups, gorgonzola cheese quiches, and even fish and chips. The dinner consisted of a bit heavier bite-sized offerings. My favorites were savory cheese "cookies" with chipotle jelly (served on sticks!), mini chicken pot pies, meatloaf "cupcakes" with mashed potato "icing," skewered shrimp with pineapple, and fried risotto cakes. Dessert was a pie bar in lieu of cake. The pieces were smallish so I sampled the mixed berry, apple, and lemon meringue, but they also had strawberry and pecan. The bride and groom, after spending about 10 minutes trying to cut a piece out of their pie for the "cake cutting" portion of the evening, ended up picking up the entire pie and taking bites out of it. Too funny.

The following day we flew in to Minnesota for the day to witness what was supposed to be the last Twins game ever at the Metrodome, which was extremely exciting. Although I can appreciate a good pitchers' duel, I also like the big blowouts for the team I'm rooting for--we got to cheer for five home runs. The place was sold out, too, so the noise level was pretty intense. Oh, and my dear husband's father got us hot dogs, only he got the jumbo ones, which are like two feet long. I called it "eight days of meat," because it really is. It took me forever to finish it, and where I'd usually want something else by the end of a three-hour game, not this time! That was a workout in itself.

On our way home very early this morning, I was made aware of an FAA regulation that I'd never seen enforced before. Apparently, we were supposed to bring proof of our son's age since he did not have his own ticket on this flight. He has flown nine other times without a word of this to us, which is what we told the ticketing agent, but she would hear nothing of it and insisted if we couldn't prove to her that he was under two, we would have to buy him a ticket to take him home. Unfortunately, on top of this distressing news, the woman decided to talk to us as if we were idiots and repeat herself unendingly. She asked us if we had any proof of his age no less than five times. After the fifth time, my husband told her "Why the hell do you keep asking us that, we already told you we don't," to which she said he didn't have to curse at her, and that he should really think about what he is saying in the presence of his child. Um, what??? Finally, I had to page my pediatrician (it was too early for the office to be open) just to have her tell the lady our son is 20 months old. While we were waiting for her to call back, the lady said "make sure to let me know when HE calls back." Um, lady? My pediatrician's office has at least ten doctors, only one of whom is a male. Does that make them bad doctors or something?? Our pediatrician hadn't heard of that requirement either, so it must be a fairly new thing to enforce. In any case, we'll have to get a little copy of his birth certificate in case they ask for it again, I guess. Grrr. 

Finally, I noticed that no one has yet taken on the ode. I don't know what to do about that development; I'd like to write something else soon, but it's kind of depressing to leave the last challenge behind with no entries. What do you all think I should do? I'm also open to suggestions on what the next challenge should be. Please let me know!

Haiku News

Method Man's method

apparently involves a bit

of tax evasion.

People say sex sells,

but it doesn't sell as much

in this recession.

Never fear...

I went on an impromptu trip to see my best friend, and did not have the energy to post last night. All is well, just was too tired. My apologies. I shall be reveling with her this evening also, hence the early-ish post. 

Please check out the truly lovely offering of free verse by Cicely today.

Haiku News

Brand-new bride ends up

impaled through her neck with a

tree branch in car crash.

How, exactly, does

a man end up inhaling

a piece of a spoon?

Must be weird news week:

this woman regained her sight

with tooth eye implant.

Where did the time go? Again?

As my visit with my mom is drawing to a close, I realize this time has gone super fast, even though I have been missing my husband. I got to do most of the things I really wanted to do while I was here, and I saw many people I hadn't seen in years, so that was very nice. I also really enjoyed having my little guy spend some quality time with his Mimi. He is just so cute with her. The best game is when she sits him on her lap and sings "Itsy Bitsy Spider." He gets this slow little grin on his face, and there are multiple points during the song where she will tickle him somehow and make him laugh out loud. I really have to get a picture of it tomorrow before I leave. I do regret not taking more pictures while I was here, except for Disney. Sigh.

I know I'll see Mom again in November for Thanksgiving, but it seems like a long way away at this point. Sigh...thank goodness for cellular phones! And I will need to look into finally setting up a Skype account. That will help!

Haiku News

One more reason not

to shop at Walmart: some guy

slapped a stranger's kid!

Is nothing sacred?

Not to these cemetery

owners, says lawsuit.

Maker of Segway

working on an invention

for drinking water.

A Brush with Fame.

Today for Mom's birthday we went to see a taping of The Bonnie Hunt Show. As is typical for this sort of production, we did not know until just before the taping began who the guests were that day. We were in for an interesting afternoon. First of all, I didn't realize until we got there that they must tape part of Scrubs on the same lot, as I saw several set pieces decorated with "Sacred Heart Hospital" as we were waiting in line. Once we got in to the studio, I could read one of the teleprompters and discovered that the guests were Niecy Nash (of Clean House and Reno 911!), the Real Housewives of Atlanta, and former governor Rod Blagojevich. Oh, joy. Well, I enjoy Niecy Nash and she was just as funny and sweet on this show as I've always seen her before. The Real Housewives are apparently out of control on their own show, and according to the audience warm-up guy they were wild on someone else's show yesterday, but today they were BORING. They were all mumbling, nearly inaudible, and barely even answered the questions Bonnie and Niecy asked them. Sorely disappointing. The real meat of the day came in when Bonnie got to put questions to the impeached governor of Illinois. Being a Chicago girl herself, she asked some pretty pointed questions and wouldn't let him weasel out of anything. I think he was taken aback a bit! It's supposed to air tomorrow, so maybe you'll see me. :) Oh, and as we were leaving, one of the audience members heard a voice calling, "I'm better than Bonnie Hunt any day!" A dark haired guy zoomed by on a bike, and as he passed ten feet from me, all I could do to react was to point at him and shout "Zach Braff!" Yes, I am a complete dork. That was cool since I enjoy Scrubs. Anyway.

Haiku News

Bizarre case unfolds

of man and his four women

and some superglue.

Seinfeld's wife wins out

in the plagiarism case

brought by Ms. Lapine.

Community group

taped advising prostitute

and pimp on their jobs?

Sorry for the delay...

So, I was so absorbed in spending time with my family today that I managed to totally forget about doing an entry today. Sorry about that! Not much to report. The boy is working on his eyeteeth. He has one point through on the bottom, the matching top one working its way through, and the other side is swollen...looks like they are trying to come through simultaneously. Joyous. At least he doesn't seem to be too terribly uncomfortable.

My mom's birthday is tomorrow and we are celebrating by attending a taping of the Bonnie Hunt Show. That will be very fun, as I've never attended any TV tapings before. We're also joining her friend (and my friend who's her friend's daughter) and their family for dinner. It should be a very nice day.

Cicely has bravely entered the fray of the epigram. Any other takers are warmly welcomed!

Haiku News

I love her to death,

but Ellen DeGeneres

is an Idol judge?!?!?

Jerkwad of the day:

this guy shouting out "You lie!"

while Obama speaks.

A close runner-up:

Cali assemblyman talks up

affairs on hot mike.

Baby days...

As my little boy struggles to go to sleep tonight (I think he's working on another tooth), I'm somewhat reminded of when he was a tiny baby just learning how to do everything. I had a refresher course on that today when visiting an old friend and her two-month-old baby. I had forgotten many of the noises and faces and body movements that tiny ones do all the time, but just spending that hour with him really brought it all back. I can't believe how fast the time has gone, and how much he has learned and grown since then. 

Haiku News

Harry Potter star

starts her freshman year at Brown;

tries to stay low-key.

Georgia victim got

twenty-five thousand dollar

settlement prior.

Cops: six-year-old boy

hidden in a secret room,

kept from his father.

Recovery

I definitely wore myself out yesterday. I didn't even hear the boy wake up this morning...he was up at 7 while I didn't get up till 8:30. Thank goodness for my mom. I feel bad that my husband is missing our boy learning so many new words while we've been gone. I think I've picked out "uh-oh," cracker, ball, "whee!", and attempts at car, "I don't know," and truck. He's starting to learn his colors, too. Sheesh, that boy will be going to college soon. :)

Haiku News

I'm sure you're all glad

new species of rat was found

weighing three-plus pounds.

Melanie Oudin

shocks the tennis world again,

handing out upsets.

Disney, part 2: the Reckoning

Today dawned bright and early for me--in fact, so early that the sun wouldn't actually rise for another 1 1/2 hours--so forgive me if I'm not making a lot of sense right now. I'll probably be headed for bed just after I finish this post.

I rolled out of bed, put on my race clothes and equipment, and headed for the start line. I've been in quite a few races now, but this was only my second half marathon, so I was a little bit nervous still. My only goal was to beat my previous time, last year's amazing-to-have-finished-without-proper-training just over 3 hours. My unstated goal was to be a heck of a lot closer to 2 1/2 hours than to 3 hours, but I wasn't going to hold myself too hard to that. I started out trying to follow a pacer who was going to get her group in just under 2.5 hours, but I couldn't keep up with them after the first few miles, so I decided to just trust my watch and my training. As I made this decision, I saw my heart rate return to its familiar territory when it had been hovering rather high, and I knew I had made the smart choice. 

The Disneyland Half Marathon is truly an experience. If you are all inclined to try one, I highly recommend it (and I'll bet its counterparts in other seasons in Florida and in California would be lovely too). I hope to do it again someday. Of all the races I've done, this one by far had the most awesome cheering sections. Highlights included running through California Adventure and Disneyland before opening hours, greeted by various cast members and costumed characters; running right next to the Big A at Angels Stadium; actually running ON THE WARNING TRACK of said stadium while being shown on the JumboTron to a large crowd of scouts and their parents who were squirting us with water and blowing bubbles; the cheerleaders and marching bands of every local high school out in force at an ungodly hour for teenagers with just as much enthusiasm as a pep rally; the mariachi band and mini-hula dancers along the course; and all the crazy Disney-themed costumes many runners wore. Popular choices were Minnie Mouse and Tinkerbell. I also saw Huey, Dewey, and Louie toward the end, complete with padded duck bottoms and yellow "duck feet" slipped over their running shoes. 

Two humorous side stories: Just after mile 10, a woman dressed as Pocahontas and her companion, a gentleman wearing a tiara, stopped to meet a friend, who opened up his cooler and handed each of them a can of Tecate beer. I can only assume they were going to slam the said beer and continue on with the remaining 5k. I could never do that but I found it hilarious. The other is just about all the fun signs. My personal favorite was one that simply said "Just Keep Swimming," Dory's favorite mantra/song in Finding Nemo. I love that movie, and it makes no sense in a foot race so it's a fun thing to keep in your head while running crazy long distances. Someone else was holding a sign that said "If Mickey can run this, so can you." Ha...none of the costumed characters actually employed by Disney were running with us, but I saw Mickey and Goofy at the start line and Chip, Dale and Minnie were jumping up and down as I crossed the finish, so there's that. 

Oh, and I finished in an official time of 2 hours, 35 minutes and 42 seconds. That put me pretty squarely in the middle of over 11,000 finishers. I was thanking my lucky stars for the recent cooling trend since extreme heat zaps me and it had been in the 90s until this weekend. Today topped out at 83, but it was only in the 70s by the time we finished, I think. One mysterious phenomenon that always seems to happen to me is that once I see the finish line, no matter how tired I felt right before that, I can suddenly pull out a sprint (or at least what feels to me like a sprint right then) and pass a few people on the way there. It makes me feel good, anyway. 

After I got showered and felt relatively human again, we got to meet up with a good friend of mine from about 5 years ago who currently lives close to the park and has an annual pass. It was great to see her and introduce her to my son and my mom. She was able to show us a few of her tips for getting through the park quickly, which came in handy with a sleepy guy. He got to see the Jungle Cruise, the Haunted Mansion, the Winnie the Pooh ride, and the Tiki Room as well as going on "It's a Small World" yet again. He still loves it. He seemed to enjoy everything, actually. Probably the funniest thing with him today was that we waited to see a parade on Main Street before heading home, and despite it being loud and right in front of him, my boy fell asleep before it was over. He didn't wake up till we had to get him in the car from the stroller. What a sweetie.

Haiku News

Radio stations

in Venezuela shut down;

prez sez they hate him.

Tila Tequila

claims Shaun Merriman choked her;

near-acceptable???

Senator Nelson:

could reach health care compromise

with trigger system.

Disney, part 1

Today, we took my little boy to Disneyland for the first time. I wasn't sure what to expect from him, especially since our room wasn't guaranteed to be ready until after 3PM and he usually naps at 12. We managed to get him to take a 1 hour nap in the stroller while we walked around California Adventure, and then we took him into Disney proper to enjoy the Railroad. He loved it, saying "bye!" to all the people getting off the train at all the stops. Then we headed over to "It's a Small World." My little guy loves music and enjoys looking at other children, so we thought it'd be a hit. That was an understatement. He smiled, he laughed, he clapped, he talked to the figures, he tried to sing along, he pointed out his favorites. Most precious of all, at the very end of the ride, he looked around and said "bye-bye!" I mean, really, how did he KNOW? Ahh, I love him. He also enjoyed Pirates of the Carribean, especially since there were a few cute Irish women on the ride behind us. He loves flirting with girls. I know, I'd better lock him up in a few more months.

My race is tomorrow: I'm doing the Disneyland Half Marathon. The course starts outside the Disneyland Hotel and wends its way through both parks, the Big A, and Honda Center (Formerly the Anaheim Pond). It starts at 6, mercifully, so I'm fairly sure that I should be done before it gets too hot. Then we're meeting an old friend of mine for breakfast before spending a little more time at the park. It should be fun, even if I'm going to be exhausted when it's over.  Positive thoughts are appreciated. 

Haiku News

Massive ancient wall

found in Jerusalem, the

largest of its kind.

Chinese doctors say

needle-stabbing reports may

have been mistaken.

Seven victims of

Georgia murders laid to rest;

some doubt Heinze did it.

Recollected...

Okay folks, I'm back in action. 

First off, I've been trying to ignore this hooey about the health care shouting match "debate", but it is just so maddening to see people getting so riled up about things that they either haven't bothered to research or are willing to buy some crazy misinformation about. In this day of miles of readily available information, it is incomprehensible to me that this can happen. WHY is it so hard to figure out what the hell you're talking about before you open your mouth? Grrrrrrrr. 

On the "ignorance is bliss" wagon, why in the world are so many parents up in arms about the President wishing to address school children about long-term goal planning and personal responsibility? Since when is good character a political issue? Good Lord, people, get ahold of yourselves. If you're so afraid of your kids being "indoctrinated," talk to them about what YOU believe and let them make up their own minds. They do have them. Rant over.

I am highly enjoying seeing my little boy explore his Mimi's house. He is really enamored of his "new" toys and all the new places to walk, run, crawl, peek, etc. He also loves to get in his Mimi's lap and talk and sing to her. Ahhh. He also got some new shoes. The first real pair he got at the beginning of the summer were 5s. Today he was measured at 6 1/2. Sheesh! I can't believe how fast he is growing. Anyone know a good flatiron store so I can get one to put on his head?

Before I forget, Paige left a beautiful rondeau on the placeholder for this week's poetry challenge. You can check it out here. I believe one other person claimed to be working on one, and others are of course welcome to join in...I'm thinking I may just wait on putting up a new challenge until next week to allow more participation.

Haiku News

California fire

was arson, according to

investigators.

High school quarterback

tackles girl with gun on bus,

saves twenty-two lives.

Taxidermy school

owner peppered with questions

on "chupacabra."

Slacker Saturday

This morning, my husband's grandfather, the benefactor of this trip, woke up sick. Upon examination, he was admitted to the hospital overnight due to pneumonia. It sounds like they'll likely let him return home tomorrow, but that was a big bummer for our last full day at the beach. 

We have reached the point where everyone begins to miss home more than they are enjoying being away. I wish that involved less complaining, but I understand and somewhat echo the general sentiment. 

We have a very early flight and a long day of travel ahead of us to return home, so I am going to end this here for today. I will post SOMETHING tomorrow, and be back to full force on Monday.

Haiku News

Embassy workers

among the one hundred tried

en masse in Iran.

Kenyan man offers

forty goats and twenty cows

for Chelsea Clinton.

Nine people feared killed

when small plane collides with a

chopper o'er Hudson.

Freewheeling Friday

Happily, although my boy woke up kind of early, it was sort of close to 7AM and he took a 2 1/2 hour nap, so it wasn't as bad as sometimes. Plus, Grandma graciously took him for an hour so I could catch a little extra shuteye this morning. 

The beach wasn't as oppressively hot today, either. I love when it's warm but not BOILING hot and with a bit of a breeze that helps to cool off a bit. The boy happily walked along the sand for awhile and merrily called "Hi!" to all the strange people he passed. Oh, to be 18 months old again. :) 

Haiku News

Autopsy reveals

cocaine played a part in Mays'

early death last June.

OMG! Thursday

saw Twitter and Facebook down.

How did we survive?!?

Slow news day alert:

CNN reports Sherri

Shepherd loves her boobs.

Terse Thursday

Due to the lateness of the hour, the fact that the boy has woken up before 7AM three days in a row, and the limited amount of stuff I have to say, I am going to keep this one very short. 

Please check out the wonderful limericks submitted here. Keep 'em coming!

I am still itchy but I hope it will be better tomorrow. At least the storm we had today is supposed to be the last one for the time we will be here. Also, I do not recommend running for nearly an hour when the dew point is 75. My husband's weatherman cousin says anything over 65 is pretty bad. 

Haiku News

"Bueller"'s John Hughes dead;

noted for teen comedies,

defined 80s teens.

Husband of driver

killed in crash driving wrong way

claims police were wrong.

No one saw her drink,

they can't explain booze in car,

but she had a stroke.

Never mind that he

has no evidence to back

up this brand-new claim.

Wiped Wednesday

I was eaten alive by several million mosquitoes yesterday, and the extremely hot weather today produced a slightly-baked feeling that has lingered on into the evening, so I will try my best to keep this kind of short. At least I managed to avoid burning all but a very small patch on my chest. 

I was happy to see two early entries in the Limerick Challenge. Check them out here.

In a tribute to my love of description, I will share my favorite of a popular genre on YouTube called "literal music video." In this, someone replaces the words of a song with a description of what's going on in the video. Enjoy!

Grammar Geek-Out #5

5. Define case. Illustrate each case.

I have no idea what that term means, so I'm going to have to look this one up from the get-go. 

For nouns and pronouns, case is the description of their function within a sentence. Nouns and pronouns can be subjective or nominative, where they act as the subject of a sentence or clause; possessive, where they show possession of something else; and objective, where they function as the recipient of an action or are the object of a preposition.

Except for possessive forms, nouns do not change in English (this is something that is easier than in other languages!). The possessive usually just involves adding an s and an apostrophe. Pronouns do change, however. 

Examples: (for the word "tree")

Subjective: A tree grew in our front yard.

Possessive: The tree's leaves were broad and shiny.

Objective: A big storm broke a few branches off of the tree.

(for singular pronouns)

Subjective: I want to make a phone call.

You have to go home now.

He will be in trouble if he misses curfew again.

Possessive: My phone is almost dead.

Your luck may be running out.

She can call her dad to pick us up.

Objective: That phone belongs to me.

      I can't believe you thought it was yours.

      He sees his mom's car coming.

I love the rest of my source material here, there is a lot on how to use I vs. Me, etc, but it's getting late and I'm afraid the boy will be up early for the third morning in a row, particularly because Dad is going golfing again at oh-dark-thirty. Sigh. So if you want to see more, click here.

Haiku News

Gunman in the gym

targeted women because

they rejected him.

Teller stops robber,

but because he disobeyed

policies, is fired.

"Jungle monkey" cop

sues Boston 'cause civil rights

were violated?!?!

Tipsy Tuesday

So, today was good. I was pleasantly surprised that the weather held up to be very pleasant today. Unfortunately, the boy woke up shortly after his father left this morning to go golfing, but other than that he had a nice day--generally sweet and smiley, and said "bye-bye" for the first time today. I just wish he hadn't been quite so clingy today--he generally wouldn't go with anyone except me today and most of the time he insisted that he hold him. Very tiring!! He is not too little anymore. I'm just glad he doesn't have more of those days lately.

Sorry if this doesn't make a lot of sense. In a spirit of cousin bonding, I went down to the beach tonight after putting the boy to bed, and ended up being eaten alive by mosquitoes. I wish I wasn't so allergic to them. Sigh. There was some beer involved, so if I have some weird sounding phrases, you know why. 

Haiku News

President Clinton

goes to North Korea and

frees two journalists.

Wrong-way driver found

to be drunk as well as high

on marijuana.

Naomi Sims dead;

the first black supermodel,

she broke color lines. 

Maritime Monday

My first prayer of the vacation was answered last night, as the boy slept pretty solidly through the night--he woke up and cried for a little over a minute at 3AM but then went back to sleep until nearly 8:30 this morning. Ahh, I hope that continues (the sleeping well, not the waking)!

I discovered today that the boy LOVES the ocean. He toddled all over the sand today, digging with his little plastic shovel, exploring, and finally discovered the water. Though it was freezing cold (and the air wasn't super warm today due to clouds), he kept coming over to the water. Even when some waves made him lose his balance and sit down, even when he actually fell forward once and got a face full of salt water, he kept walking back to the water. I am so happy he likes it since we'll be here for a week, he'll have plenty to do when the weather is good enough outside. We were only probably out there for an hour and a half today because of some passing thunderstorms, but hopefully tomorrow will be better. 

That said, I managed a good run this afternoon. It was humid but I still felt good. The only annoying thing was mosquitoes. Yes, they even bit me WHILE I was running! I have had at least a good 8 mosquito bites since we got here yesterday and we have only been here about 26 hours. Ugh...I wish I wasn't so allergic to them. I always get huge welts. Ah well. Other than that, it's going great...the boy is getting along with all his similar-aged second cousins and it's fun to catch up with all of my husband's relatives. 

Haiku News

Recent college grad

sues her alma mater 'cause

she can't find a job?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?

Aussies foil a plot

by Somalian terrorists

to attack soldiers.

Turkish building was

slated for demolition;

instead rolls away!

Scattered Sunday

So, we made it to our beachy destination today. The boy even traveled fairly well. He mostly laughed and was cute through the two hour flight, and then only whined sporadically through the hourlong drive. He even went down to sleep pretty well. I hope that bodes well for his sleep through the night tonight. I have a clear memory of how terribly he slept at the beach last year, although at the time he had never really slept away from home and he was still nursing. So there's that. I just hope I can get more sleep on this trip than last year!

Also, I hope it doesn't rain the whole time we're here; it rained pretty steadily for the whole drive over. It's only a "chance" thus far, but the chance remains the entire week. Ugh. 

Haiku News

Moussavi, others

criticize protestors' trials,

claim confessions forced.

Treasury big cheese

says economy won't break,

but fix deficit.