That's how you would describe baby bunnies. It's spring, and, of course, bunnies do what bunnies do, and you get baby bunnies. And I'm sure they are sweet, and cute, and adorable.
The ones I see, however, are quite dead. Because it's spring, and Madison, Daphne, and Marino find things, small things, that are cute, sweet, and adorable. And after doing whatever they do, they bring them home and put them on our porch. Or in our yard. Wiley loves the cats for this.
As of now, the score is Cats 3, Bunnies 0.
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Last Indoor Soccer Video
Matthew from April 12 and 13th.
Had the year-end party for the Chargers yesterday night; lots of fun....look forward to coaching that group of kids in the future.
Had the year-end party for the Chargers yesterday night; lots of fun....look forward to coaching that group of kids in the future.
Friday, April 25, 2008
The last (and delayed) Paris Post
Still trying to get back on an Eastern Daylight Time kind of schedule.....
Anyway, the last day in Paris really consisted of one task....get to the airport. Suzanne preferred the 40-50 Euro take a cab option. Scott preferred the 19 euro Metro/Train option.
So we took the Metro and Train. This required a 2 block walk from the hotel to the Metro station (did I mention how much Suzanne LOATHES towing luggage through city streets?), down the stairs to the station, through the turnstile, and onto the train. Then, we get off 3 stops later, and have to walk 5 minutes to transfer onto the railroad train.
And then, the real fun begins. Boarded the train to Charles de Gaulle; it's the express, one more stop in Paris and then straight to the airport. I get on ahead of Suzanne and am trying to reserve a seat. But, for some reason, this black gentleman decides to sit in the same group of 4 seats I'm saving for Suzanne. Lacking the language skills to get him to move his sorry ass, Suzanne just sits a row behind us.
One more stop before the express begins to the airport....as we stop, the guy stands up, bumps into me, and proceeds to get off. And another gentlemen, across the aisle, starts yelling at the guy next to me in French. He's yelling, the black guy is yelling, and eventually, the black guy gets off.
The guy who started the yelling, after we started going again, speaks to Suzanne and I in ok, but, not great, English, and tells us that the guy was trying to pickpocket me, and asked if I felt his hand go into my pouch.
Pouch? I hear you ask. I had only taken one jacket to Europe, an Eddie Bauer water deflecting jacket; it has velcro pockets in the front and pouch pockets on the sides that run behind those front pockets. While I may not have packed with a whole lot of care in other departments, I did choose this jacket carefully. I wouldn't need to carry an umbrella if I had this jacket, and I thought the front pockets (with velcro 'clasps') would serve me well given the constant warnings we had received about pickpockets. So, my wallet was in one front pocket, the passport in another, and while this guy was next to me, I remember checking to make sure my wallet was there and everything was secure.
Turns out the guy across the aisle had seen the whole thing; the guy next to me had reached into my pouch (and found nothing). And I was pleasantly suprised that he gave him a verbal tongue-lashing for it.
So, you might think that's enough excitement for one train ride. Oh no....the next act was just beginning as a gentlemen with his accordion appears in the doorway between the two cars and begins a lovely serenade, including that oldie-but-goodie "O Sole Mio". And after his performance, comes around with his dixie-cup looking for coins.
Finally (finally!) get to the airport, and go up to the ticketing level, and a group of individuals (airport workers union?) comes through beating milk cartons and blowing whistle with banners and such. Have no idea what they were protesting, but, they were the last act of a memorable morning trip to the airport.
Anyway, the last day in Paris really consisted of one task....get to the airport. Suzanne preferred the 40-50 Euro take a cab option. Scott preferred the 19 euro Metro/Train option.
So we took the Metro and Train. This required a 2 block walk from the hotel to the Metro station (did I mention how much Suzanne LOATHES towing luggage through city streets?), down the stairs to the station, through the turnstile, and onto the train. Then, we get off 3 stops later, and have to walk 5 minutes to transfer onto the railroad train.
And then, the real fun begins. Boarded the train to Charles de Gaulle; it's the express, one more stop in Paris and then straight to the airport. I get on ahead of Suzanne and am trying to reserve a seat. But, for some reason, this black gentleman decides to sit in the same group of 4 seats I'm saving for Suzanne. Lacking the language skills to get him to move his sorry ass, Suzanne just sits a row behind us.
One more stop before the express begins to the airport....as we stop, the guy stands up, bumps into me, and proceeds to get off. And another gentlemen, across the aisle, starts yelling at the guy next to me in French. He's yelling, the black guy is yelling, and eventually, the black guy gets off.
The guy who started the yelling, after we started going again, speaks to Suzanne and I in ok, but, not great, English, and tells us that the guy was trying to pickpocket me, and asked if I felt his hand go into my pouch.
Pouch? I hear you ask. I had only taken one jacket to Europe, an Eddie Bauer water deflecting jacket; it has velcro pockets in the front and pouch pockets on the sides that run behind those front pockets. While I may not have packed with a whole lot of care in other departments, I did choose this jacket carefully. I wouldn't need to carry an umbrella if I had this jacket, and I thought the front pockets (with velcro 'clasps') would serve me well given the constant warnings we had received about pickpockets. So, my wallet was in one front pocket, the passport in another, and while this guy was next to me, I remember checking to make sure my wallet was there and everything was secure.
Turns out the guy across the aisle had seen the whole thing; the guy next to me had reached into my pouch (and found nothing). And I was pleasantly suprised that he gave him a verbal tongue-lashing for it.
So, you might think that's enough excitement for one train ride. Oh no....the next act was just beginning as a gentlemen with his accordion appears in the doorway between the two cars and begins a lovely serenade, including that oldie-but-goodie "O Sole Mio". And after his performance, comes around with his dixie-cup looking for coins.
Finally (finally!) get to the airport, and go up to the ticketing level, and a group of individuals (airport workers union?) comes through beating milk cartons and blowing whistle with banners and such. Have no idea what they were protesting, but, they were the last act of a memorable morning trip to the airport.
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
The longest birthday of my life
Will have to work hard to get more than 30 hours of birthday in the future!
Suzanne found this card at Kohl's before the trip
Suzanne found this card at Kohl's before the trip
Here's two photos I wasn't able to upload earlier, but, am able to upload now. Suzanne was trying out some of the color isolation features on the digital camera.
Sports Desk
reports from across the pond indicate that Matthew and Christopher both scored goals and the Mighty Rhinos were successful in their Spring debut. Just goes to show that the coach isn't anything special! :)
Kevin's lacrosse team dropped to 0-4 on the season on Monday; he played attack, not midfield, and that wasn't a move that generated any touching of the ball on Kevin's part. Oh well. Another game Wednesday for the lax'ers.
Kevin's lacrosse team dropped to 0-4 on the season on Monday; he played attack, not midfield, and that wasn't a move that generated any touching of the ball on Kevin's part. Oh well. Another game Wednesday for the lax'ers.
A super-long Paris post
Ok, didn't type up Monday's events, so, here's a super long one post today. Uploading photos seems to be a pain in the butt today, so, two are here and we'll get some more up tomorrow.
Monday. Started the day with breakfast at the hotel. Buffet style, 30 euros (but, since we're gold Marriott it's 'free'. Woo hoo!). Eggs (very runny scrambled eggs), bacon, sausage, etc. Very good.
Tube-d down Rue de Rivoli and walked to Notre Dame. Very nice; very dark compared to Westminster Abbey and St. Paul's. I climbed (Suzanne passed) to the top and visited the gargoyles.
After Notre Dame, we went to St. Chapelle. Standing in line was introduced to what I was told by the Englishman in front of me was a French art form; line cutting. Just don't understand it, but, made sure my shoulders prohibited the woman from moving in front of me. St. Chapelle was nice, walked in to the 1st floor and Suzanne and I looked at each other and went "so, why did people say we should come here". Walked up to the 2nd floor; saw the enormous and varied stained glass windows and understood. Very nice.
Went from there on Monday to the Arc de Triomphe; one nice thing about the Paris Underground is how often you walk up stairs and are face to face with something Awesome; the Arc 'stop' was one of those events. Again, walked up the stairs to the top (Suzanne came along this time). Very quickly nearing another 1,000 step day.
Walked down the Champs-Elysees; stopped and had lunch at a stand. Walked into a few stores looking for the French-rugby shirt, no luck. Walked down to the Concorde and hopped onto the Metro to go over to the Gallerias Lafayettes for one last look for the elusive rugby shirt. Again, no luck, but, leaving the Metro and walking up in front of the Opera House was well worth it.
Went to Relais de L'Entrecote for dinner. My kind of restaurant, just need to say 'rare', 'medium', or 'well done' and you are good to go.
After dinner we went over to the Eiffel Tower.
Tuesday was Versailles day. Walked across the Tuileries gardens over to the Musee d'Orsay stop and took the RER train out to the Palace. Walked through the Palace (most crowded place we've encountered in France) and then out to the Gardens. Paid to take the electric-car (golf cart) tour; that was the smart move and was very nice.
Took the train back; stopped and went through Musee D'Orsay. Will have another rant about Modern Art shortly. Regrouped at the hotel and went to dinner at Pizza Pino. Finished the evening with a bus tour of the night time 'illuminations' around Paris.
Monday. Started the day with breakfast at the hotel. Buffet style, 30 euros (but, since we're gold Marriott it's 'free'. Woo hoo!). Eggs (very runny scrambled eggs), bacon, sausage, etc. Very good.
Tube-d down Rue de Rivoli and walked to Notre Dame. Very nice; very dark compared to Westminster Abbey and St. Paul's. I climbed (Suzanne passed) to the top and visited the gargoyles.
After Notre Dame, we went to St. Chapelle. Standing in line was introduced to what I was told by the Englishman in front of me was a French art form; line cutting. Just don't understand it, but, made sure my shoulders prohibited the woman from moving in front of me. St. Chapelle was nice, walked in to the 1st floor and Suzanne and I looked at each other and went "so, why did people say we should come here". Walked up to the 2nd floor; saw the enormous and varied stained glass windows and understood. Very nice.
Went from there on Monday to the Arc de Triomphe; one nice thing about the Paris Underground is how often you walk up stairs and are face to face with something Awesome; the Arc 'stop' was one of those events. Again, walked up the stairs to the top (Suzanne came along this time). Very quickly nearing another 1,000 step day.
Walked down the Champs-Elysees; stopped and had lunch at a stand. Walked into a few stores looking for the French-rugby shirt, no luck. Walked down to the Concorde and hopped onto the Metro to go over to the Gallerias Lafayettes for one last look for the elusive rugby shirt. Again, no luck, but, leaving the Metro and walking up in front of the Opera House was well worth it.
Went to Relais de L'Entrecote for dinner. My kind of restaurant, just need to say 'rare', 'medium', or 'well done' and you are good to go.
After dinner we went over to the Eiffel Tower.
Tuesday was Versailles day. Walked across the Tuileries gardens over to the Musee d'Orsay stop and took the RER train out to the Palace. Walked through the Palace (most crowded place we've encountered in France) and then out to the Gardens. Paid to take the electric-car (golf cart) tour; that was the smart move and was very nice.
Took the train back; stopped and went through Musee D'Orsay. Will have another rant about Modern Art shortly. Regrouped at the hotel and went to dinner at Pizza Pino. Finished the evening with a bus tour of the night time 'illuminations' around Paris.
Monday, April 21, 2008
Modern Art (or lack thereof)
So, at the Louvre yesterday, we had to do the basics. One of the non-basic things I requested we do was head to the 2nd floor of the Danon wing, there to see the art from the 17th century Dutch/Flanders, etc artists. Specifically Vermeer.
Anyway, all through that exhibition of fine and wonderful 17th century art is an exhibition of the art of Jan Fabre. Jan is not from the 17th century (because is he was, he'd be dead, and his art would be forgotten), he's from the 20th century. He is from Belguim. The Louvre says "Within the galleries devoted to the painted works of the Flemish, Dutch and German Schools, visitors are encouraged to rediscover celebrated works by masters such as van Eyck, van der Weyden, Bosch, Metsys and Rubens through the eyes of this major artist of the contemporary scene."
Horse manure.
I'm not sure how a sculpture of bugs marching to a cross or a large worm crossing through a giant gravyard encourages us to "rediscover" the past masters...I do know it confirms for me that Mr. Fabre should stick to paintings and other forms of artwork (apparently he's quite a playwright as well).
Anyway, all through that exhibition of fine and wonderful 17th century art is an exhibition of the art of Jan Fabre. Jan is not from the 17th century (because is he was, he'd be dead, and his art would be forgotten), he's from the 20th century. He is from Belguim. The Louvre says "Within the galleries devoted to the painted works of the Flemish, Dutch and German Schools, visitors are encouraged to rediscover celebrated works by masters such as van Eyck, van der Weyden, Bosch, Metsys and Rubens through the eyes of this major artist of the contemporary scene."
Horse manure.
I'm not sure how a sculpture of bugs marching to a cross or a large worm crossing through a giant gravyard encourages us to "rediscover" the past masters...I do know it confirms for me that Mr. Fabre should stick to paintings and other forms of artwork (apparently he's quite a playwright as well).
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Sports Desk Saturday
The report from Okemos was not good, the 5/6 lacrosse team lost all three games this Saturday. Two one goal losses to E. Lansing and Haslett, a drubbing at the hands of Midland. Kevin reports that he played well, and that he carried the ball quite a bit, including one big stretch where he carried it up half the field.
Paris Day 1 (or, how many Euros did that Coke cost?!?)
We bid farewell to London this morning; rolled our luggage to the Tube and took off for St. Pancras. Left on the Eurorail from Platform 9 (somewhere, we didn't find it, in St. Pancras is the famous Platform 9 3/4 that will take you to Hogwarts) for Paris.
Train was excellent, Chunnel was 25 minutes of darkness. But flying through the English and French countryside was quite an experience.
Arrived in Paris at 2, took a taxi to the hotel. Very nice, this Renaissance Vendome. Settled in and headed for the Louvre. Saw the basics, winged Nike, Venus de Milo, Mona Lisa, and then walked around a bit looking at other things. Will write a more detailed post on Jean Fabre when I get a chance and my impression of his trash, um, art.
Left the Louvre at closing time (5:15 ish), and had dinner at La Taverne Saint Germain. Now, the dinner cost about the same as the Indian dinner we had last night, or, really, any dinner we had in London. But, the coke that I ordered, and the fanta orange that Suzanne ordered, cost 9.4 euros each. That's $16 bucks! 1/2 a liter of drink, no refills, $16!
Did a river cruise on the Seine after that.....very beautiful. Of course, it rained on us the first night in London, and of course, our first night in Paris it had to start raining again. Soaked by the time we finished the cruise and walked back to the hotel, but, definitely glad we did it.
Train was excellent, Chunnel was 25 minutes of darkness. But flying through the English and French countryside was quite an experience.
Arrived in Paris at 2, took a taxi to the hotel. Very nice, this Renaissance Vendome. Settled in and headed for the Louvre. Saw the basics, winged Nike, Venus de Milo, Mona Lisa, and then walked around a bit looking at other things. Will write a more detailed post on Jean Fabre when I get a chance and my impression of his trash, um, art.
Left the Louvre at closing time (5:15 ish), and had dinner at La Taverne Saint Germain. Now, the dinner cost about the same as the Indian dinner we had last night, or, really, any dinner we had in London. But, the coke that I ordered, and the fanta orange that Suzanne ordered, cost 9.4 euros each. That's $16 bucks! 1/2 a liter of drink, no refills, $16!
Did a river cruise on the Seine after that.....very beautiful. Of course, it rained on us the first night in London, and of course, our first night in Paris it had to start raining again. Soaked by the time we finished the cruise and walked back to the hotel, but, definitely glad we did it.
Saturday, April 19, 2008
Last full day in London
So, it was time to figure out what to do, and what wasn't going to get done.
Not done. There's this colossal ferris wheel right outside, but, we didn't go on it this trip.
Done. St. Paul's Cathedral. Excellent. I made the journey 434 steps up to the Golden Gallery; Suzanne made it 282 steps up to the Stone Gallery. Our official estimate had each of us doing about 1000 steps today (the 193 steps at the Covent Garden station came as a surprise).
Had lunch at the aforementioned Covent Gardens; I had a Cornish Pastry, Suzanne had a waffle with chocolate sauce.
Went to the National Gallery, saw some of the highlights, but, again, probably didn't spent nearly the time we should/could have there. Walked from there up to Buckingham Palace, and then took a break.
Went out for dinner at around 8 pm; ended up, again, at an Indian restaurant.
Not done. There's this colossal ferris wheel right outside, but, we didn't go on it this trip.
Done. St. Paul's Cathedral. Excellent. I made the journey 434 steps up to the Golden Gallery; Suzanne made it 282 steps up to the Stone Gallery. Our official estimate had each of us doing about 1000 steps today (the 193 steps at the Covent Garden station came as a surprise).
Had lunch at the aforementioned Covent Gardens; I had a Cornish Pastry, Suzanne had a waffle with chocolate sauce.
Went to the National Gallery, saw some of the highlights, but, again, probably didn't spent nearly the time we should/could have there. Walked from there up to Buckingham Palace, and then took a break.
Went out for dinner at around 8 pm; ended up, again, at an Indian restaurant.
Friday, April 18, 2008
Friday
Overslept this morning, so, got off to a late start. Went to the British Museum to start with. The first 20 - 30 minutes were fabulous; the Rosetta Stone, the pieces from the Parthenon. But, there was just too much of it, and really, we didn't have to digest it all. Did the audio tour for the highlights...I really like the roman coins and items they just discovered in the last 10-30 years in England, but, maybe not the best of experiences.
Walked down Oxford Street to the Oxford Circus station.....this is the big shopping street in London, and it was crowded. Took the Underground to the station near Harrod's and checked that out.....very large, the food halls were amazing.
Came back to the hotel, and then went out to a German restaurant for dinner. Not many choices for German in London....and the restaurant was more properly a beer cellar. Sat at picnic tables, ate our shnitzel.
Walked down Oxford Street to the Oxford Circus station.....this is the big shopping street in London, and it was crowded. Took the Underground to the station near Harrod's and checked that out.....very large, the food halls were amazing.
Came back to the hotel, and then went out to a German restaurant for dinner. Not many choices for German in London....and the restaurant was more properly a beer cellar. Sat at picnic tables, ate our shnitzel.
More Kevin
he's been asked to email us everyday....so, I can cut and paste the updates here.
"Today in orchestra a viola instructor came in and just taught the violas, we practiced Pink Panther and we finished the entire song while the regular class only finished half a page out of a page and a half. In gym we started softball and in case I forgot to mention yesterday we ran the mile and I finished with a time of 6:53, one second behind the leader Kevin C.! I’m getting better at running! In lacrosse we scrimmaged and I scored a goal! Jeff H., who was playing X, passed it to me when I ran toward the goal. I caught it and threw it into the goal. SCORE!
Love,
Kevin"
"Today in orchestra a viola instructor came in and just taught the violas, we practiced Pink Panther and we finished the entire song while the regular class only finished half a page out of a page and a half. In gym we started softball and in case I forgot to mention yesterday we ran the mile and I finished with a time of 6:53, one second behind the leader Kevin C.! I’m getting better at running! In lacrosse we scrimmaged and I scored a goal! Jeff H., who was playing X, passed it to me when I ran toward the goal. I caught it and threw it into the goal. SCORE!
Love,
Kevin"
Ye olde London-Towne report
Thursday: Bright, Sunny, and very windy. Changed our plans for today, as the weather was so nice and the next two days are forecast for rain rain rain. Went over to the 1/2 price ticket shop and, while hoping for "Jersey Boys" ended up with "Avenue Q". Came all this way for that when we could have seen it here. Purchased the tickets at 10 am and then came back over to take the train to Hampton Court Palace. Pleasant train ride, spent the day in the royal gardens and walking through the place. Very nice. Will upload pictures and add them to the blog tomorrow.
Went to the show Thursday night.
Food. Breakfast at the hotel, small lunch at the place, dinner at an Indian restaurant. Suzanne was very happy with the Vindaloo.
Went to the show Thursday night.
Food. Breakfast at the hotel, small lunch at the place, dinner at an Indian restaurant. Suzanne was very happy with the Vindaloo.
Thursday, April 17, 2008
From the Sports Desk
reported by our on-site correspondent, Kevin.
"The only exciting thing that happened after I talked to you on the phone was the soccer game. We played East Lansing and we won 3-1. The other teams goalie played really weird, he wouldn’t always pick up the ball, the farthest he ever came out was midfield. Everyone on our team thought he was insane. But it was also because of his coming out that I scored my goal. I was on the side of the field on the red line when the goalie came out and kicked it up the field, I was able to get and decide just to take a shot because the goalie was out of position. It was like shooting a basketball, it arched up and fell in the side of net. I didn’t expect it to go in but I’m happy it did."
"The only exciting thing that happened after I talked to you on the phone was the soccer game. We played East Lansing and we won 3-1. The other teams goalie played really weird, he wouldn’t always pick up the ball, the farthest he ever came out was midfield. Everyone on our team thought he was insane. But it was also because of his coming out that I scored my goal. I was on the side of the field on the red line when the goalie came out and kicked it up the field, I was able to get and decide just to take a shot because the goalie was out of position. It was like shooting a basketball, it arched up and fell in the side of net. I didn’t expect it to go in but I’m happy it did."
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
London 2
Wednesday comes to an end in old-London-town, so, here's the update.
Monday night. Admission to the Ceremony of the Keys went without a hitch; think I could have given him a completely different piece of paper and it would have been ok. Started to rain in London at about 7 pm, so, a soggy mess by 9:30 for the ceremony. Suzanne had no umbrella (at the room) or coat, so, was fairly miserable at the end of it.
Dinner Monday night: Ate at The Silver Cross. Scott had Chicken Stew with Dumplings (sides of mashed tatoes and peas) and Suzanne had Steak & Ale pie. I enjoyed mine, Suzanne as ok with hers.
Suzanne and I slept like the dead when we got back to the hotel Monday night
Tuesday. Slept in! Had breakfast at the hotel lounge (good continental fare). Walked across Westminster Bridge from our hotel to begin our tour.
Monday night. Admission to the Ceremony of the Keys went without a hitch; think I could have given him a completely different piece of paper and it would have been ok. Started to rain in London at about 7 pm, so, a soggy mess by 9:30 for the ceremony. Suzanne had no umbrella (at the room) or coat, so, was fairly miserable at the end of it.
Dinner Monday night: Ate at The Silver Cross. Scott had Chicken Stew with Dumplings (sides of mashed tatoes and peas) and Suzanne had Steak & Ale pie. I enjoyed mine, Suzanne as ok with hers.
Suzanne and I slept like the dead when we got back to the hotel Monday night
Tuesday. Slept in! Had breakfast at the hotel lounge (good continental fare). Walked across Westminster Bridge from our hotel to begin our tour.
The View from just outside our hotel
Went to Westminster Abbey; very awesome. Went to the Churchill Cabinet War Room (the underground offices used during the Blitz) and then went back to the Tower of London for the full tour. Sunny/partly cloudy skies all day.
Westminster Abbey
Did audio tours at the Abbey and the War Room; did the guided tour at the Tower. Yeoman Warder was pretty funny, on purpose. One event was especially good, we're walking up towards the Tower Green and there's these two kids playing chase in the courtyard and he yells "Hey, cut it out!". And then points his two fingers towards his eyes, and then towards them. Suzanne and I look at each other and smile, no report if the boys bothered to say "And we've got our arse on you!"
The Tower Of London
Dinner at Thai Square; Suzanne had the Green Curry and was extremely pleased, I had this beef and sweet chili thing that was good. Made a mistake at dinner, I was having a taste of hers and had grabbed some of her veggies and ate a red pepper, assuming it was mild (like the US) and it wasn't, and had flaming-hot-mouth the rest of the night. Oh well.
Checked out Leicester Square (we'll be going there tomorrow am for 1/2 price tickets for a show tomorrow night) and Picadilly Circus before retiring for the evening.
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
London
We're here. Both dog tired, maybe 2-3 hours of sleep each at various times. Nice weather here....had some beautiful views of downtown London as we made our approach.
Tonight's the ceremony of the keys; of course, the one thing we forgot in Lansing was the ticket to this. Gramps scanned it in, so, we printed it out here and hopefully that will be good enough.
Room is nice. Window view looks out across the Thames at Big Ben. Will get a picture tomorrow when the sun isn't right behind it....
Tonight's the ceremony of the keys; of course, the one thing we forgot in Lansing was the ticket to this. Gramps scanned it in, so, we printed it out here and hopefully that will be good enough.
Room is nice. Window view looks out across the Thames at Big Ben. Will get a picture tomorrow when the sun isn't right behind it....
Schiphol
Our 3 hour layover in Amsterdam is right NOW.
Walked around; checked out the Rijks(?) museum. Flight was ok/good....pretty empty flights. Suzanne moved up to 1st class with me on the jaunt from Lansing, and then we shared the 4 middle seats of the Airbus 330 from Detroit to Amsterdam.
More later.
Walked around; checked out the Rijks(?) museum. Flight was ok/good....pretty empty flights. Suzanne moved up to 1st class with me on the jaunt from Lansing, and then we shared the 4 middle seats of the Airbus 330 from Detroit to Amsterdam.
More later.
Monday, April 14, 2008
Getting off to the right start....
this Silver Elite business on Northwest is all right! For the flight from Lansing to Detroit, they've plucked me out of coach and stuffed me in 1st class!
Suzanne, you ask? Oh, she's still stuck back in steerage. There was no way for me, online, to switch my seat back to coach. Will have to ask (hah!) at the airport for them to switch me back.
Suzanne, you ask? Oh, she's still stuck back in steerage. There was no way for me, online, to switch my seat back to coach. Will have to ask (hah!) at the airport for them to switch me back.
Sunday, April 13, 2008
From the sports desk
Matthew had his last 2 indoor soccer games of the season this weekend.
First game we only had 4 kids, so, no subs. Should be good news for the other team. Turns out we had, probably, our 4 best kids, and the other team was missing a good kid or two. Ugly ugly game, the final score was probably 25 or 30 to 1 and I was actively trying to keep some of my kids on the sideline (we were scoring at will when we were playing 3 to their 4...one goal came when it was 2 to their 4).
Second game on Sunday was a full team and another blowout, an 18-5 win.
First game we only had 4 kids, so, no subs. Should be good news for the other team. Turns out we had, probably, our 4 best kids, and the other team was missing a good kid or two. Ugly ugly game, the final score was probably 25 or 30 to 1 and I was actively trying to keep some of my kids on the sideline (we were scoring at will when we were playing 3 to their 4...one goal came when it was 2 to their 4).
Second game on Sunday was a full team and another blowout, an 18-5 win.
Kitchen 6
Last post for this wall; rest of the kitchen design occurs over the Atlantic tomorrow.
Installed the handles (finally) last night.
One of the 'cool' things is the dampers. Kevin really likes them. Here's the dampers for the silverware drawer, wall cabinet door, and pantry.
Installed the handles (finally) last night.
One of the 'cool' things is the dampers. Kevin really likes them. Here's the dampers for the silverware drawer, wall cabinet door, and pantry.
Anything you can do I can do better......
So, one of Christopher's favorite phrases nowadays is
"I've got my eyes on you"....followed by two fingers pointing at his eyes and then at the target in question.
As we discovered in Ohio, this phrase can be followed up, if you choose to retort, by "I've got my arm on you" all the way to "I've got my butt on you!".
Yesterday, for some reason, I told Christopher that I had my eyes on him and he responded "I've got my balls on you".
Suzanne dissolves in laughter; Kevin's giggling, and then we ask him what he meant, and he really meant the 'ball' that's in your knees. We told him it was probably better to say that "I've got my knees on you".....
"I've got my eyes on you"....followed by two fingers pointing at his eyes and then at the target in question.
As we discovered in Ohio, this phrase can be followed up, if you choose to retort, by "I've got my arm on you" all the way to "I've got my butt on you!".
Yesterday, for some reason, I told Christopher that I had my eyes on him and he responded "I've got my balls on you".
Suzanne dissolves in laughter; Kevin's giggling, and then we ask him what he meant, and he really meant the 'ball' that's in your knees. We told him it was probably better to say that "I've got my knees on you".....
Saturday, April 12, 2008
More tennis
Finally finished compiling Kevin's second match of the March tournament into one movie file. Here's the one game highlight, Kevin's up 1-0 in the first set and his opponent, Scot (challenged in life by the lack of a 't') is serving.
News headlines from the week:
"Christopher loses ANOTHER tooth; 4 holes waiting for adult teeth now"
"Boring spring break for boys...demand that parents go somewhere next year!"
"Scott's construction project held up by endangered Indiana Bat."
"Amazon.com mp3 purchases way better than Itunes..."
"I've got my EYES on you....."
News headlines from the week:
"Christopher loses ANOTHER tooth; 4 holes waiting for adult teeth now"
"Boring spring break for boys...demand that parents go somewhere next year!"
"Scott's construction project held up by endangered Indiana Bat."
"Amazon.com mp3 purchases way better than Itunes..."
"I've got my EYES on you....."
Saturday, April 5, 2008
Slow day at the LSJ
lots of coverage of the bee, even though they are slightly wrong today.
Bus leaves for Ohio in the next 5 minutes....
Bus leaves for Ohio in the next 5 minutes....
Friday, April 4, 2008
A piece of history
Kevin probably won't appreciate that I saved this piece of paper, but, he brought it home from Kalamazoo so it's fair game.
There were 2 questions in the tiebreaker that Kevin was around for. The first had to do with a root-based crop in Ireland; everyone got that question right. The second was the lederhosen in the country near the Bavarian Alps; Kevin got confused by the Alps part of the question and went mountainous...but, you can see, he had second thoughts, crossed out Switzerland, and started to right G----. Time was running out (he actually asked the judge to wait for a second)......and decided to stick with Switzerland.
There were 2 questions in the tiebreaker that Kevin was around for. The first had to do with a root-based crop in Ireland; everyone got that question right. The second was the lederhosen in the country near the Bavarian Alps; Kevin got confused by the Alps part of the question and went mountainous...but, you can see, he had second thoughts, crossed out Switzerland, and started to right G----. Time was running out (he actually asked the judge to wait for a second)......and decided to stick with Switzerland.
Good News from London
Received this in the mail today, which means we'll get to go. Suzanne discovered this option late, and while tickets are free, you have to request them early. We weren't sure if we submitted our request too late or not.
There is no joy in Kalamazoo....
In the first of the written tie-breakers, Kevin missed a question about Bavarian countries with lederhosen (I think, but am not sure, that he answered Austria and Switzerland and that the answer was Austria and Germany). It sounded as if Kevin talked himself out of the right answer, but, again, am not sure on that.
Kevin is/was distraught, but, calmed down and did as we encouraged him to do, fought the impulse to leave and stayed for the end of the 'bee' to see and hear the types of questions they asked so that he could be ready for next year.
Four others missed one of the questions in the first tie-breaker as well.
Kevin is/was distraught, but, calmed down and did as we encouraged him to do, fought the impulse to leave and stayed for the end of the 'bee' to see and hear the types of questions they asked so that he could be ready for next year.
Four others missed one of the questions in the first tie-breaker as well.
More from Kzoo
Turns out 18 of the 100 answered all eight questions correctly; Kevin and the other 17 are in a written tie-breaker to determine the final 10.
Update from Kalamazoo
First, the format. 100 kids divided into 5 groups. Each group of twenty answers 8 questions. Top 10 from this process (overall) move on. If there's a tie, there's a tie breaker.
First call from Mom: Kevin is 4 for 4
Second call from Mom: Kevin is 8 for 8.
The on-site reporter says: Kevin had one really hard question and pulled one answer completely out of his arse, a complete guess of Kazakhstan that turned out to be right. Had another question about where Christchurch on South Island was (New Zealand) and a current events questions about toads on Vancouver Island in what country (Canada).
First call from Mom: Kevin is 4 for 4
Second call from Mom: Kevin is 8 for 8.
The on-site reporter says: Kevin had one really hard question and pulled one answer completely out of his arse, a complete guess of Kazakhstan that turned out to be right. Had another question about where Christchurch on South Island was (New Zealand) and a current events questions about toads on Vancouver Island in what country (Canada).
Off to Kalamazoo.
Up early so Suzanne and Kevin can get going.
We received a call yesterday around noon from a reporter; here's the result.
We received a call yesterday around noon from a reporter; here's the result.
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Kevin's Tennis
Here's one game from Kevin's match a few Fridays back. He won the first set 6-3 and is winning 4-2 when this game begins. When the video starts, you can't see Kevin, he's on the side closest to the camera.
The voices in the background are Dad and Ashton, who is waiting for his match to begin.
The voices in the background are Dad and Ashton, who is waiting for his match to begin.
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