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August 01, 2005
"In a cabin, in the woods. Little boy by the windowsill..."
We took a few days of vacation and rented a cabin up North. Fresh air, Lake Superior, etc.
Jack liked the great outdoors. Especially in his spiffy new camel t-shirt. (It fits like a dream Dalia.)
A nice Fabulous Babe and Jack picture.
Look who mommy put on the bed to wake me up. How can you be upset with someone who looks that cute?
More later. Both of us have migraines and Jack is tired and fussy.
Posted by Jim at 12:12 AM | Comments (0)
Michael Yon
There isn’t a Pulitzer Prize for blogs yet.
That’s a shame. There is a lot of great reporting going on out among the internets but the lack of an award gives you an opportunity to be “in the know” before anyone else.
Michael Yon’s weblog is one of the best reads on the war in Iraq. It’s insightful, witty, poignant, touching, and perhaps the closest thing to Ernie Pyle’s great standard of combat journalism that I’ve read in a long while.
Yon’s latest piece, titled “Welcome Aboard”, is a great piece about foreign nationals who are members of the United States military. It’s about men who have taken up arms for our country with an eye on the goal of citizenship.
He demonstrates his skill as a writer with a wonderfully insightful paragraph:
There's another soldier here from Mexico, Victor Quinonez. Everyone calls him Q. At 23, Q fights like crazy; he's earned his great combat reputation. I joke with Q that he'll either be a top military leader, or in trouble with the law if he doesn't listen to his leaders. And Q always tells me, "Mike, when the shit goes down and the bullets are flying, you stick with me and I'll get you out. Never fear when the Q is here! You've seen me in action. You know I'll get you out. I'm a Mexican, not a Mexican't!"
I love that. You know that Yon didn’t have to make that up. Things that “real” don’t need to be made up. Instead he took an amazing quote, set it up and then let it stand by itself. Brilliant.
Before the U.S. was involved in either of the World Wars American’s joined many of the other countries militaries. Americans who faught in the Spanish Civil War are well documented. Generally this is a country whose moral compass is, for the most part, in the right place.
I’ve tried to explain my ferocious loyalty to this country at several different times during my life. Certainly it’s not perfect in every way we would like but it’s underlying principle, that anyone, from anywhere, can build a better future for themselves and their descendents, hasn’t changed. Our local grocery store has several employees that were “lost boys” from the horrific genocides in Africa over a decade ago. These young men have married, started families and are working to build a better future, one that doesn’t include machete wielding lunatics and death.
Yon’s piece winds down with this:
It's been true since the U.S. was founded that some of the best Americans were not born in America. And we can use all the good people we can get. That's something to remember.
Something that most people seem to forget.
My earnest hope is that Yon’s work is published in a newspaper. That would allow his work to be submitted for the Pulitzer and some well deserved credit to come his way.
Go read Michael Yon while I try to figure out how to thank the men and women from foreign lands who have protected my son every day and night. Words fail at the thought but perhaps the easiest that come to mind are how privilaged we are that they would want to be our fellow citizens.
Posted by Jim at 12:33 AM | Comments (0)
August 03, 2005
"I call him Fess or D. Boone depending on the mood."
During our vacation we ended up in a small town called Grand Marais one day. It reminded me a lot of Bellingham, WA in some ways. There are a lot of everyday folks and a lot of, *ahem*, fringe elements. (A lot of the restaurants have far reaching "mission statements".)
When we were wandering around we stopped in the local general store. It's a classic small town general store and reminded me a lot of some similar stores I spent time in growing up. The store staff looked to be related to one another, the aisles were a little too close together and it really was a one stop shop.
While poking around the aisles and pushing Jack in his stroller I found a bin of "boys hats" that seemed worth looking at. After rummaging around I found one that fit: A coonskin cap complete with tail. Score!
I hurried to the checkout, paid for the hat and immediately plunked it on Jack's head. He laughed and giggled and then just went back to looking around. Everyone at the counter thought it was great.
A few minutes later Fabulous Babe and her parents walked around the corner. As her parents laughed and said how cute he looked I got "The Look" from Fabulous Babe.
"What is that."
"It's a coonskin hat. In his size!"
"I can see."
"I had one as a kid. So did my dad."
"It looks silly."
"Everyone else likes it. He looks adorable!"
So then the stage was set. Fabulous Babe in one corner, thinking I've committed the fashion mistake of the century and me in the other thinking that Jack looked fine. (My wife's parents, though on my side, stayed completely out of the conversation.)
So how did it play out?
We must have had over 100 people tell us how cute they thought Jack was. They wanted to know where we got it. They thought he was adorable. When we walked past the general store one of the staff poked their head out and said that they had been selling them like crazy since we started telling people where we got it. Everyone who saw him smiled or said how much they liked it.
Negative comments from strangers? None.
When we left Grand Marais I was struggling not to laugh because of the hints of indignation from Fabulous Babe. I love her but she definitely staked out the wrong side of the position. *chuckle*
I don't have any good pictures of Jack in the hat. (I keep trying to capture one but they've all turned out bad.) Be assured that it is now a semi-permanant fixture in the little red wagon. (Except when it's raging hot.) When I took Jack to the bank with me the other day the hat was a huge hit and everyone wanted to know where to get one.
Hmmm. Perhaps this is a business opportunity. My store would be called "Boy's Toys" and carry nothing but the things that every little boys should have growing up. Better write that one down.
In case you're wondering the hat isn't real raccoon skin. Like so many things it's been farmed out to overseas. Be assured: No raccoons were injured in the annoying of my wife.
Posted by Jim at 12:04 AM | Comments (0)
"Send sleep. In bucket loads."
Fabulous Babe is in California for "business" this week. I say "business" because I've become convinced that she's not actually working for the Monolithic Peoples Dairy Co-Operative. I think it's all a sham and instead she's living a double life, a la "Mr. & Mrs. Smith" or "True Lies".
None the less it's just Jack and I this week. The biggest cramp for me is that I have to drop him off and pick him up from daycare for several days in a row which means shaving off time at work. There's been some grumbling but nothing fierce yet.
Jack's schedule has been off from the trip and he's been having nightmares lately. He's woken up at 11, 12 and 1 tonight screaming bloody murder. I pick him up, hold him for a while, rub his head and talk to him and then he calms down and lays back down. Trying to let him cry it out and fall back to sleep hasn't worked, he just gets louder and more upset. He been fighting going down at the regular time, 7:30ish, but letting him stay up later hasn't helped. I'm not sure what the answer is.
So for the last couple of nights I've gotten to sleep around 1:30 or 2:00 a.m. The alarm then goes off at 6:00 for me to have Jack at daycare by 7:00. The bags under my eyes look like two handled shopping bags.
Jack's not looking around saying "Mom?" which makes things a bit easier. Mostly he plays with toys, tries to eat the laptop powercord that Fabulous Babe left in the living room before I spotted it and babbles and toddles along. His signs are improving and I think we're on the cusp of some additional words. We'll see.
The good thing about Fabulous Babe's trips is that I don't wake up freezing from someone stealing the covers. The bad is, to paraphrase a great Police song, the bed's too big without her. (Even if she hates snuggling.)
P.S. I'm up again with Jack and have no clue what time it is.
Posted by Jim at 02:19 AM | Comments (0)
August 04, 2005
Of Rhino's and little red x's.
More nightmares for Mr. Snicklebritches. He wakes up crying and snorting and I run in, scoop him up and hold him.
When I was little I swore there was a rhino in the closet. My grandparents thought I was nuts until they figured out that light peeking in cast a shadow with a hanger in the closet that, ta da, looked like a one horned rhino.
Jack's also got a bit of a cough that won't go away. Couple that with a couple of big diaper blowouts and I am crossing my fingers he isn't sick. The last thing I need is to have to leave work earlier than I'm already leaving. *sigh*
The joys of being a modern parent: Two incomes, two jobs, colliding schedules and an ever present hope that we're raising our child to have a life better than our own. Sound familiar?
It's worth nothing that Jack now does a bit of a wind up before giving a kiss to someone. It's quite a production number. If he keeps this up he'll be the only little boy in 3rd grade with a black book.
I'm hoping to avoid being a grandparent before I'm ready.
In browsing the pictures from the trip I found this one that I liked:
I like the colors, the sunlight and how it turned out. Fabulous Babe did her mountain goat impression and hopped around on the rocks before I captured this moment. She's a cutey.
The archive pictures are still a wreck. I've been pulling my hair out going back to fix them but I keep getting the code wrong. Some well meaning soul sent me a long email about how my past entries are marred with boxes with little red x's and that while the prose was fine the prose with illustrations would be much more marketable.
Noted.
Jack's been up twice so far tonight. Here's hoping we're done.
Posted by Jim at 02:11 AM | Comments (0)
August 05, 2005
"Sleep? Bah! Who needs this "sleep" you speak so highly of."
Fabulous Babe was supposed to be home tonight.
Supposed to.
The joke with FB travelling is that under no circumstances do you EVER want to get on a plane with her. Between missed flights, mechanical things that have to get fixed, gremlins on the wing a la "The Twilight Zone" something ALWAYS goes wrong. To top it off the problems almost always occur on the flight(s) home.
Sure enough I got the call at about 7ish: Fabulous Babe was stuck in Colorado with two of her co-workers. They had no idea when they were going to get a flight out and the hotels were all booked up.
#@$%^!
After advising her that the first few rounds of drinks were her ethical responsibility, I put Jack down to bed. Surprisingly he went straight down with no fuss. I thought I would be able to get some things done and then go to bed early.
Ha ha.
Jack woke up around 11:30 crying. Then at 1:30 he woke up screaming and nothing I did seemed to work. Motrin didn't make a difference and the Tylenol might as well have been water. Oragel on the gum might have worked but the whole experience, from 1:30 to 4:00 was pretty grim. Jack finally passed out at 4:00.
I think it's Jack's teeth. He's got two molars coming in and some of the other symptoms, the drooling, streaming nose, wet bowel movements, are all classic signs with him. I'm sincerely afraid Jack has an ear infection but he's not tugging at his ear so I'm not sure. Odds are I'll take him to doctor this afternoon to try and get some relief for the weekend.
I've gone through a shirt and two towels where Jack was crying, dripping and drooling on my shoulder. Jack couldn't get comfortable and nothing I did seemed to help the cause. The only way I finally broke the cycle was to get him to laugh by tickling him and then playing with a basketball with him on the floor. (I roll it to him and he rolls it back and yes, yes it is a University of Kentucky basketball in case you were wondering.)
I suppose the spots I am seeing as I type this mean I should go to bed so that I can get up in less than two hours. lol!
At some point in the next couple of days I'm going to have that beer I've put off all week.
I have no idea when my wife is going to make it home. If my luck holds it will be at some point in October. When she does Jack's going to give her a big hug.
Posted by Jim at 04:38 AM | Comments (0)
August 07, 2005
"Activate sloth mode."
Just what the doctor ordered: a weekend of nothing.
Fabulous Babe made it home on Friday afternoon. (The amount of teasing she took from her co-workers was voluminous.) A one way ticket on Thursday night would have been only $20 more than the hotel room, a fact they didn’t learn until checkout the next morning.
FB got to the house in time to pick Jack up and run him to the doctor’s office. (Doctor September since Doctor Molotov was off of work.) After early Friday morning I wasn’t going to take any chances and booked Jack a spot as soon as they started taking calls. Doctor September wrote him a prescription and told us to use the neb for a few days until it passes. Odds are he’s just having some problems from his cutting his teeth.
Friday night was a picnic with some of the other kids and families from Mrs. Dawn’s Daycare for the Small and Troublesome. We traded horror stories and watched the kids crawl around underfoot. Jack’s a little older than the other two younger boys so he’s a bit more mobile. After the previous night and a beer I was ready to call it a night.
We were all pretty worn out by the time it was time for bed. Fabulous Babe zonked out at 9:30, I was asleep by 10:00. Jack only woke up a couple of times on Friday night but mercifully Fabulous Babe handled things.
With Jack’s coughing we passed on swimming Saturday morning which was fine by him. (He took two power naps on Saturday.) I ran errands while Fabulous Babe did some puttering around the house and then began work on her statistics class.
Saturday night was dinner with the Racetracks at Las Margaritas. We sat outside and it was just perfect: not too windy and not too warm. Mr. Racetrack seemed distracted and a little bored while we were eating. I didn’t think too much of it until, towards the end, he spontaneously stood up with Kate’s diaper bag and announced that it was time to go. This brought curious looks from all of us until Mrs. Racetrack said he does it to her all the time. Fabulous Babe thought his hankering for Dairy Queen finally got the better of him where I believe we were so dull we bored him into action.
Saturday night was movie night, “Million Dollar Baby” at Fabulous Babe’s request, which was great until the end. (I’m still one for a happy ending.) When the movie was over and Fabulous Babe went to bed. I tried to stay up a smidgeon longer but no luck. I was fast on her heels and soon snoring.
We went to visit Wonder Woman and Rickmeister’s new house on Sunday. Wonder Woman was slinging mulch with her mom and Rickmeister was working on building their deck with help from his Father-in-law. We didn’t stay long but we were there long enough for Fabulous Babe to contract a big case of Kitchen envy. “A Viking range!”
At no point last week did I have a chance to work on cutting the grass so I made the decision to contract out the chore to the boys next door. They do a great job and are generally good sports. The one who cut the front yard cut the grass in what looks like a crop circle around one of our trees. Who says teenagers don’t have artistic talent?
We’re bracing for Fabulous Babe’s school calendar to kick in. Her statistics class is the first step as we slide into her intensive schedule. We’re about two weeks from the kick off and I can tell she’s both excited and a little apprehensive, as am I.
Jack ate like a horse on Sunday night. By our best guess he ate a complete slice of the roast Fabulous Babe made. He kept making the “more” sign and as we would lay it down he would wolf it down. I’m thinking he’s going to have a very poopy diaper at Mrs. Dawn’s tomorrow. Lol.
Posted by Jim at 11:11 PM | Comments (0)
FYI: Sign language for infants
When I first read about sign language for infants I thought it was silly. The idea of infants learning sign language sounded to me like a complete waste of time.
Boy was I wrong.
Jack is closer and closer to forming words with every day that passes but most of the key concepts are already there in the sign language that he has learned. Jack is now, at 13 months, capable of communicating some of his needs. Jack can ask for something to drink or eat, say he's done eating, tell us he's tired, express affection and about a half a dozen others that I've forgotten.
It's still a pretty limited vocabulary but it keeps Jack from getting frustrated at our lack of understanding what he's trying to "say" to us. The sign for "all done" at dinner time alone is worth all those hours of teaching it to him. (It's pretty funny to see Jack give us the two handed "all done" when he's really fed up and wants out of the high chair.)
I joke about teaching Jack the sign for "fetch dad a beer" from time to time but that's me poking fun at myself. Jack's proven to pick this stuff up pretty quickly and it's fascinating to witness. Raising a child is about watching things come in stages and communication is one of the most important. It's astounding to watch kids as they go through the learning curve.
If you're expecting or planning at this point take the time to look up some of the books on infant sign language. At 2:00 a.m. when your child is crying you'lll appreciate any tip in the right direction and a simple sign for "milk" may mean the difference between going to bed sooner than later.
Posted by Jim at 11:33 PM | Comments (0)
August 08, 2005
"Whatever happened to El Jefe?"
We heard from El Jefe, Jack's godfather, over the weekend. He called while I was out running errands and Fabulous Babe spoke with him for a while.
He's been flying everywhere for work. I found it's easier just to point out which continents he's visiting than to try and keep up with the countries.
None the less El Jefe's found the time to meet the locals, and try to become comfortable among them:
I don't know about you but I think he's struggling. He masks the pain well though.
He's also taken to accepting rides with strangers...
Which, like the first picture, doesn't look to be working out too badly for him.
Fortunately I know where he got it. My comprehensive network of spies and operatives have obtained documentation of El Jefe's training from the master:
"Repeat after me son: I was wondering if you and your friend would like to dance?"
*chuckle*
p.s. Thanks to El Jefe for the pictures. Better still thanks to his parents for doing such a grand job of raising him as evidenced in the picture of El Jefe with his dad. Now we know where El Jefe learned how to speak in front of crowds.
I wonder if they still have the red jumper somewhere?
Posted by Jim at 11:24 PM | Comments (0)
August 09, 2005
"You thought I wasn't going to post a picture of it?"
In all it's glory:
Who knew that a hat could bring so much joy.
While I'm at it:
More proof that we're not giving our child enough of his recommended daily dose of strainer. To spite us he gnawed on it like a beaver until we finally took it away.
More proof of my impending appointment with the cordless drill, the kitchen cabinets and the bucket of child safety locks.
Posted by Jim at 12:01 AM | Comments (0)
"Other than the striped shirt I think it turned out well..."
So it's one year picture time.
This is a time honored ritual where parents document their success in managing to keep their child from disfiguring him or herself horribly. (It's also testimony to keeping the kid from getting a goose egg in the week leading up to the photo session.) It's also, strangely enough, a major leading cause of home equity loans.
Fabulous Babe made the appointment and then took Jack, an extra outfit and some props on the day we left on vacation a week or so ago.
Leading up to this I offered absolutely no resistance. This is one of those "mother knows best" subjects where male input might be earnestly requested but never, ever, seriously considered.
Reports from the photo session were that things went well. Never one to discount Jack's ability to inflict mayhem I figured the proofs would be the pudding. Turns out the initial reports were right:
This is just one of the proofs that Fabulous Babe picked up Monday. We went to Ron Burg, a local photographer with an excellent reputation for working with small children. After a phone call with Ron on Tuesday afternoon he was kind enough to allow me to reproduce it here. Fabulous Babe was very impressed and said that his attention to detail and his approach, leisurely and not rushed, made the experience a joy and not nearly as scary as she feared.
You can see more of Ron's work on his website if you want to follow this link: www.ronburg.com. Based on the results and all that I heard the day of the shoot I would highly recommend him for any sort of photography.
Now the pressure is on us to pick and choose the pictures to send out to family, friends, etc. The above picture is a likely candidate but there are others that are equal contenders.
It's scary to look at this picture of Jack and realize how far we've come in just over a year. He's walking and talking and that smile on his face is the expression we see 90% of the time. That arms wide and ready for action pose is pretty typical too.
I know I sound like a blathering proud parent from time to time but if you ever had told me I would contribute to something as wonderful as Jack I would never have believed you.
Posted by Jim at 11:14 PM | Comments (0)
August 18, 2005
"There's a Johnny Paycheck song that comes to mind."
It's been an interesting week.
I know updates have been few and far between but the circumstances have been, to say the least, unusual.
Last week I sat down with my manager and explained I was having eye problems. When he asked what I meant I explained that I just couldn't see myself coming to work anymore.
For a while things have been less than enjoyable if not downright unpleasant at work. I've had three supervisors in less than 18 months. With a little short of two years I was the senior most person in my office and the next person in "rank" had only been there 8 months. My counterparts within the region were coming and going as quick as the door could revolve and the group that directly supported me had seen a 600% turnover. Ugh.
Couple all of that that with an hour plus commute in the morning and an hour and a half commute and night and things were getting out of hand. While I liked some of the people I worked with, the overall situation was not improving.
Fabulous Babe and I have been having some conversations about all of this for some time. With her recent promotion and the impending crush of weight for her MBA at Carlson we had both been wondering how we were going to make all things Jack related work. In the end, things at my office made the rest pretty clear.
It's very strange to quit a job without something else lined up. That was the hardest thing to deal with. Even when it was clear that for my own sanity and health I needed to leave, I still found myself wrestling with it more than I really should have.
So for the next few months, until Fabulous Babe feels she's got her equilibrium with all things work and school, I'm the primary for Jack. (Drop off and pick up, plus dinner and other things.) To be clear we're still taking him to daycare so that his schedule isn't too out of whack when I return to work. With my free time I've enrolled in some University courses and am also tackling things that there just wasn't time to do otherwise.
In some ways I'm starting to punch through the funk left from work. After almost two years that started off great and steadily declined I'm looking forward to the rest and recovery. Yesterday I took the Miata out on the highway and for the first time, in a long time, really relaxed.
More blogging of course and the website redo is on a better course. Who knows, I might even have some time to get a trip or two in.
Best to all of you,
Jim
Posted by Jim at 09:01 PM | Comments (0)
August 22, 2005
"Silverware might have to wait."
"Why?"
Here's why:
Jack did all of that with just a spoon. Why Fabulous Babe decided to give him the spoon with his yogurt is beyond me. Needless to say the results were a bit messy.
Jack did really well holding the spoon. (With both left and right hands so the career as a major league pitcher isn't out of the question just yet.) It's his fine motor control that is a little off.
Finally Jack decided the spoon was taking too long. By the time he was done our Tuesday night bath got bumped up to last night.
Posted by Jim at 07:39 AM | Comments (0)
"The Secret Lives of Fischer Price Little People Vol. 1"
"Oh Sir Lance-A-Little, our forbidden love knows no bounds."
"My lady. What if your husband, the king finds out?"
"That old fool? Give me a break!"
*castle door opens with a thud*
"You two are SO busted."
Posted by Jim at 07:44 AM | Comments (0)
"Thanks for the support."
Lots of kind words, emails and phone calls since I posted the news on Friday. All very supportive and that's greatly appreciated. It's nice to know people care.
Fabulous Babe's first day of school was Friday. I think the class has 63 in it if I am not mistaken. First came pictures of individuals and then the class as a whole. She looked awesome when she left Friday morning and was so keyed up she hardly slept the night before. It was like having a preview of watching Jack go to his first day of grade school.
The key difference between being an undergrad and a graduate student? They gave her all of her binders and books in two huge book bags. One of the other spouses I spoke to on Friday night joked that the difference between the part time program she's in and the full time program is that the full time students get everything including someone to sharpen their pencils.
My honey do list is longer than I thought. I'm trying to get my head around where to start. First up are the safety locks for the drawers. Jack's taken to using them as tools to stand up and when they slide out he tips over.
Off to pack out the cordless drill...
Posted by Jim at 07:44 AM | Comments (0)
August 30, 2005
"A little too much statistics there hon?"
Well we wrapped up the second weekend of Fabulous Babe's MBA program. I'm fairly certain that my wife has just about reached her saturation point on statistics after only two weeks. Her week long study session in September should be a load of fun. *chuckle*
This past weekend was more reflective of what is to come: Fabulous Babe gone all day Friday and most of Saturday to school. Her backpack weighs roughly 20+ lbs from everything she lugs to class and her desk is now buried in the binders and books she received the first day of the class.
It seems the nickname for the MBA program is “CEMBA” which is pronounced like the old elephant name “Simba”. The first few times she threw it around the house in casual conversation I thought we were being invaded by pachyderms. You can tell the “cool kids” use the phrase and that my poor wife, being a “n00b” has to start using it asap.
The first Friday of class the school held a dinner for all of the new students and their spouses, supporters, camp followers and bearers. While waiting to see Fabulous Babe I met Mrs. Carlson who mentioned she had spoken with Fabulous Babe a few times during the day. Afterwards I pointed out to someone that she was much nicer than when she owned the radio station in Cincinnati that her son Arthur ran. (Perhaps the turkey drop weighed too heavily on her mind.)
I remain certain that upon graduation Fabulous Babe will receive a special CEMBA class ring that, like all U of M class rings, keep 89.994% of all U of M graduates from moving out of state. (You get to the border and a large electrical shock is administered.) The tricky bit is that the CEMBA class ring will not only shock you but also display a table showing the odds of your receiving the shock based on a statistical model based on previous corrective punishment. My guess was that this was a Six Sigma Black Belt project. It certainly has all of the hallmarks.
Fabulous Babe loves the classes and the atmosphere and despite some of her protests I know she’ll thrive in the environment. Her office continues to support her in ways that make me realize how much the appreciate her and I think she knows that. Her MBA was a dream that was shoved aside about ten years ago so I’m glad to see all things coming together now.
How about Jack? Jack doesn’t miss mommy too much when she’s gone but when she comes home he’s so excited that he starts to shake he’s so happy. That’s one of those things that they don’t mention in all of the parenting books but when you see it makes you realize how cool having kids really is.
On a side note you should know the infamous WKRP Turkey drop was based on a real event that took place in Arkansas from the 1940's until the early 1980's. Truth is stranger than fiction.
Posted by Jim at 08:13 AM | Comments (0)
"Unexpected but greatly appreciated."
On Saturday while Fabulous Babe was in class I took Jack with me to the Post Office and a few other places. He had been up late the night before so he slept in a little later than usual so breakfast was off schedule as well.
I took Jack to McDonalds for a break from our usual "awful waffles" at the house. (Cottage Grove, MN has one McDonalds and, weirdly enough, 3 Subways.) When we got there I had Jack, the diaper bag, his hat and a toy. I ordered our food and then, as they were pulling things together, wrangled a high chair to a table and got Jack squared away. As I turned to start walking back to get our food low and behold a McDonalds employee was walking up with everything. It seems the manager had spotted me and told the employee to bring our order over to us.
When we left we went to the counter and I thanked the manager for her thoughtfulness. She blushed and said it was nothing but to me it was everything. For every awful experience like the Carbone's there's always someplace like this McDonalds where someone actually gets it.
I called McDonalds customer service number Monday and put in a good word. It's not much but it was the very least I could do.
Posted by Jim at 08:48 AM | Comments (0)
"Our 5th anniversary"
*sigh*
No clue what we're doing for our anniversary later this week. My plans for "5th year of joyous marriage" celebrations are pretty much shot as any free time Fabulous Babe had vanished with the MBA program.
I still have some ideas so we'll see.
Posted by Jim at 09:02 AM | Comments (0)
August 31, 2005
Outages on the website...
Are, miraculously enough, not my fault.
Katrina seems to have done some damage to Hosting Matters, the fine folks who host the website.
Watching the television tonight I'm struck that things are just going to get worse before they get much better in the Big Easy.
Jim
Posted by Jim at 12:18 AM | Comments (0)