We hope It's not poisonous.

Will you be able to make it by two? i hope i'm back by then?

Wish you were here. hiking the gorges of McCormick's creek.

Parked

i joined the rest of the family at the campsite. they came down early, while i was still at work. i rode the hundred miles of Twisty roads to join them after i completed my work week.

Construction site

John hoisted reclaimed fenceposts atop the swing set as a makeshift "fort in the sky".

Light Grafitti

Found a website with some cool photography using "long exposure" and a laser light.

The entire article, including more cool pictures, is here.

Stuck truck

Suddenly the truck stopped working. had to have it towed to the mechanic. the verdict: fuel pump.

Lexi

Dawg

Carolyn on her bike

My lady rides her own.

Arms and hands

His arms are developing muscles, and his hands have strength, the pads of his palms and fingers are thickening, like a man's hand. My little boy?!?

Emmalee's Helmet

Emmalee models her new motorcycle helmet. the helmet was a hand-me-down from her brother. when john got a new cool helmet with stylish graphics, Emmalee lamented the plain white helmet the had been his. fortunately they make a clever helmet covering that decorates a drab helmet. She picked out a suitable cover. and happily shows it off here.

Photo History

Now all pictures from our blog can easily be viewed as a slideshow, here.

My boy

John in his element. outdoors, building something.

Emmalee dances with the birds

Emmalee and John are watching a video of a dancing bird.




Emmalee couldn't help but dance along.

Bike parts

I sold a bunch of spare motorcycle parts on ebay after Carolyn's old bike was sold. raising money for parts for Carolyn's new bike. ebay has been a big part of our motorcycle experience. all but one have been bought and sold there.

Treehouse Physics

The whiteboard was filled with equations when i asked my coworker . . . who has a Ph.D in Physics . . . about computing tensile strength and sheer strength in trusses.

Yes, this is for a treehouse.

Sky Fort

John builds a fort atop the swing set. this was a temporary arrangement: too dangerous to leave it intact for very long.

No breaks

No breaks. The doctor said he should take Ibuprofen, apply ice, and keep it elevated. he said that if It's a stress fracture it won't feel better in four days. stress fractures don't show up on Xrays for three or four days. so if he's not better he'll go back to be checked again. john's a trooper. he's in relatively good spirits. but he's not happy. just entertaining the nurses with his long soliloqueys about how much it hurt and how long they were taking to treat him. he also really warmed to the idea of rating his pain on a scale of one to ten. he was able to provide specific details about how much it hurt at the time of the incident as compared to just the moment that they asked about the pain. he elaborated on the various positions, and the effects on pain level of touching or moving it.

Xrays

John in Xray. checking to see if his foot is broken. he was helping his mom with yard work, pushing the trailer back behind the shed . . . in his bare feet. the tongue of the trailer ran over his foot. hurt too much to clean it up. so he went barefoot to the Medcheck. dad carrying him everywhere because he can't walk, and because Medcheck can't find their wheelchair.

still climbing

John climbing a tree with his gimpy foot and crutches below.

John demonstrates his uncanny ability to climb a rope or chain with his toes.

CDC Warning

CDC Warning: Do not do this.

A little light reading for John

John picked out a book to read for his bedtime story. back in first grade is was family medical guide, especially the chapter 'Disorders of the bladder.' Now he's moved on to a High School Physics text.

New bike

This is a better picture than the one I posted last week.

Happy Anniversary

Call me crazy, call me a fool who's parted ways with his money. I don't care, I knew what my wife wanted and I bought it for her.

I bought her a new Harley this week.



Tuesday night I told her I had to work late. Instead, I stopped by the Harley Dealer on 96th street after work, and browsed bikes. I'd seen a used Dyna Low Rider on their website that drew me in. As it turns out, I got a better deal on the new than I could have gotten on the used bike.

I signed all the paperwork on Tuesday night, and came back to pick the bike up after work on Wednesday.

Last night, while she and the kids were at a church meeting, I rode the bike home and parked it in the garage. I unplugged the garage door opener (like I do in the winter so nobody accidentally lets the heat out of the garage) -- so she'd have to walk in through the front door.

When she got home, I handed her a card and gift. The gift was about the size of a ring box. The card was an anniversary card -- it's our 20th anniversary this year.

She opened the box, expecting a ring. Instead, it was a key to the bike.

She looked at it with a puzzled expression, not recognizing it. The new Harley keys look like the key to a vending machine.

I said, "Read the words on the key."

Inscribed on the key were the words, "Harley Davidson".

She ran to the garage and screamed. I thought she might faint. Her knees buckled. She couldn't believe what she was seeing.

I had completely surprised her. This is something she's wanted since she was a little girl riding behind her dad on his 1978 Harley FLH Ultra Glide.

I bought her a 2009 Dyna Super Glide.



She's still in shock.



She hasn't ridden it yet.



I'll have to peel her off the ceiling to get her to ride it.

The Gift

This was a surprise anniversary present for my wife. Twenty years this year.

Here it as at the dealership before I rode it home. I wanted a picture of it before it ever left the lot.

Wild horses

Emmalee poses by her horse puzzle. twas a whole-family project.

Sunset on Sweetwater Lake.

Sunset on the water through the trees.

The house on Sweetwater Lake.

The kids wanted to steer. i said if you want to steer you also have to pedal. they agreed. i took a leisurely trip riding in the back while the kids did all the work.

John enjoys the lake by paddle boat.

John wears a halo provided by the setting sun.

Emmalee enjoys an afternoon at the park.

Sibling horseplay

When tweedle beetles fight they call it a tweedle beetle battle.. . john and Emmalee wrestle in a mutual spank-down.

Turtle

John plays with the turtle at the pet store. a saturday family outing to the bookstore followed by the pet store. cheaper than a night at the movies.

russian dolls

russian dolls

Kit sit

The cat is named John Wesley. he is very sweet.

That's what it's all about!

Emmalee does the Hokey Pokey at a friends birthday party at a skating rink.

John builds a snow fort.

When life gives you lemons, make lemonade

And when life gives you pill bottles, make a tower.

John poses by his tower of pill bottles, a flashlight, a nasal rinse bottle. One day after his oral surgery . . . baby tooth extraction, his canines.

Making the best of it, John's way. Actually, he did really well with the oral surgery. And he had no trouble falling asleep last night with the Tylenol with Codeine that they had prescribed for his pain.

Creepy XBOX Advertisement

I did some google searches and confirmed -- I'm not the only one who thinks the Microsoft XBOX 360 advertisements, which show a hollow headed person staring at digital entertainment, is freaky.

"Disgusting, nightmarish, perverted" are a few of the adjectives people are using.

All that and more! The woman's face is frozen in a ghastly grin, the back of her head is open, revealing an empty theatre.

It's freakishly fascinating, like watching an autopsy. But is it good advertising?

There are those who would say, since people are talking about it, it's good advertising.

I would say if it dehumanizes us, if it portrays the human brain succumbing to the machine, it is bad.

Perhaps what's most disturbing about the ad is that it is probably accurate. Turn on the electronic game system, and the brain hollows out.

Princess Bride Shirts

We watched Princess Bride with our kids last week, and they really enjoyed it. It was fun seeing it again -- it'd been too long.




And I got a T-Shirt from Larry for Christmas. (Not the one pictured above.)