Sam on the Honor Roll

Sam made the honor roll this semester. We went to Burger King after the ceremony.





I thought it was hilarious how much he looked like Stewart at church last week.

I Recognize that Fabric!

This block is on the wall outside the Vaccine Research Center (where I am getting immunized against Malaria FOR SCIENCE!). I recognize some of the fabric from other things Jennilyn has quilted over the years.

It makes me happy to see pieces of us reflected everywhere.

Fall Stake Youth Activity

I love going along with my kids on youth outings.

Sam was happy to see me.

Suzanna was not. At least, she was pretending to not be. I think secretly she's happy I still like her.

She turned 16 this week. She's growing up, turning into an adult.

I'm glad we got to be a part of that process.

Photos from Dallas

The last time I stayed in a hotel with the census, it was just some hotel in Philadelphia. This place reminded me of the huge convention hotel we stayed at in Atlanta for the World Science Fiction Convention in August, 1986. It has a bank of glass elevators.

Going up (a pic from inside the elevator).



The elevators from the vantage right out side my room.



My cousin Roger is a marketing/branding manager at the Dallas CW affiliate (if you said "What's CW?" he just cried a little). Both nights I was there, he came and got me, taking me to dinner. Monday night was a Tex-Mex place. This picture is from the balcony at a place called "Smoke" Tuesday night. See the little tiny glowy ball on the right side of the photo? That's Wolfgang Puck's restaurant at my hotel.



I went for a walk (to buy some food so I could make lunch/breakfast rather than buying it), and saw some interesting places. These blue lights were really pretty, but hard to see in the day time.



I'll bet these vines are really pretty in the Spring. There were some neat-o icicle lights hanging from the trees with "dripping" lights that ran down the lengths. Again, not so cool in the day.



Thanks Brother-on-law Bob for the suggestion to seek out Dealy Plaza. It was *really* cold that day, so not fun to walk around and look at the sights. That red brick building is the book depository.



Sunrise through the huge slanting front window of the hotel.


Boy am I glad to be home.

On the Way to Work Sunrises

That's all. Just some of the things I see on the road in the morning.

The Bees Sneeze ReVisited

Remember this bush from earlier this year?



Fall has come and gone, taking the flowers, the leaves, and the bees.



But look closer. It has revealed something else.



Only two more Easter Eggs left to find from this year's impossibly difficult hunt.



Max, you are never allowed to hide Easter Eggs again!

Cultural Literacy

My behavior is populated with filmic allusion.

Especially from my childhood favorites. When insisting on something with a child, threatening a punishment or a course they dislike, I challenge them, a la Grand Moff, "Would you prefer another (punishment, objective, chore, etc.), a military (punishment, objective, chore, etc.)? Then name the (punishment, objective, chore, etc.)!"



And Luke, ever earnest, overachieving, and in desperate need of affirmation, "(beat) *I* care!"

It is always wryly disappointing when I hear people get an allusion wrong. The other day, a co-worker joked about needing any "stinking badges", and I asked him if he'd ever seen the movie.

"Blazing Saddles? Yeah, it's one of my favorites!"

To think that kids these days grow up without bothering to source their favorite quotes. It is to weep.



I have tried to instill a similar discerning love for film in my children. I am certain that makes me occasionally entertaining. I am also certain it is not enough.

What are the cultural things that are important for children to know? Do we need to teach them the School of Rock chart of Rock and Roll etymology? Political terms and historical stances?

We teach them what's worth fighting for, striving for, what things are worth the sacrifice. What things are not.

I want my children to know that I expect them to go to church each week, even if it's inconvenient.

I want them to have fun and laugh, but to know when to be tender and reverent.