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I'm on my second week of getting up at 5am so...
July 31, 2002 by Seraph in Cortez
I'm on my second week of getting up at 5am so that I can have some quite "alone" time. As long as I drink large amounts of coffee I can make it through the day. Trading sleep for peace and quite has also helped Isa and Robbie sleep in each morning. I think (I hope) it means that Isa might be ready to move into her own bed. I'm still a little worried about her falling off at night.
On the fun side of life, Alex is coming to visit us this weekend. It will be fun to catch up, and for him to see how much Isa has grown in the last seven months. I'm not sure we can have her saying "grandpa" by Saterday, but we're trying!
P.S. We will probably stop our e-mail service next month (the earthlink address). We're looking into a new computer and will probably use a different service when we get it. In the mean time I can get mail at work: suemiller@worldnet.att.net
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It was a bit of an odd day yesterday
July 31, 2002 by Adam in Family
It was a bit of an odd day yesterday. Jamie called a little after lunch, asking me to come home early. Evidently Sam was being wild and crazy, while Jamie didn't feel well. I got home around three, and everything seemed fine. It was going great until right after Sam's bath, when he had a complete meltdown. He calmed down after awhile, but we still didn't get him to bed until close to ten o'clock.
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Sam's graps of abstract ideas periodically am...
July 30, 2002 by Adam in Sam
Sam's graps of abstract ideas periodically amazes me. We were playing with Legos, and he explained that he didn't want to use an existing spaceship, but rather "make one with our minds." When I looked at him as if I didn't know what he was talking about, he explained, "your mind is the ideas you get from your brain."
I just had to laugh and tell him that I couldn't have explained it better.
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Another great weekend has come and gone
July 29, 2002 by Adam in Family
Another great weekend has come and gone. Sunday was another lazy morning, having breakfast together, doing a "Spring Cleaning" of an upstairs bathroom, then getting all our bikes cleaned and ready to ride. Our big event of the day was heading over to Washington park for a picinic with the neighborhood. We met up with the neighbors and played some games. There was a raffle too, and watching Jamie listen to the numbers was pretty funny. She was quite intense, even though they weren't raffling off anything exciting. I don't think a Vegas trip is in our future.
Fortunately, Sam won a couple prizes from his games. They kept him busy for most of the afternoon. I got to make dinner, play frisbee with Sam, and watch the last part of Cider House Rules with Jamie that night. Very nice.
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A very postmodern lecturer this afternoon
July 29, 2002 by Sadie in Sadie & Greg
A very postmodern lecturer this afternoon. All she did was humbly challenge and renounce essentialism with the vision of moving beyond to a new progressive, not reactionary, individualist psyche within collective histories. Her discussion of bringing Coloured identities from the margins between black and white cultures was fascinating, because she didnÆt shy away from the issues so entrenched in antiracist work- the traps of colour-blindness, assimilation, and multiculturalism. Holding up critical antiracism and personal work is a new movement in sociology towards multiplicity and transcendence of essentialism. She questioned the narrowness of æblackÆ as privileging black æAfricanÆ identities over black Coloured and black Indian identities. She critiqued the Rainbow nation as depoliticising and multiculturalism as disregarding the history and process of power in shaping cultural identities. I drank it in.
Then she began discussing her newer work, her personal work, and a process of ôtaking down the armour of blackness without losing [her] politics and location.ö As someone who found herself arguing vehemently with one of my closest friends on the trip about the consumerist commodification of womenÆs bodies the hour before, I asked how one could separate a kind of defensiveness with maintaining strength in conviction. She said that defensiveness was a sign of weakness more than strength, and openness (but not porousness) is a key to opening needed dialogue about race. By this time, for me at least, this discussion has moved way beyond race in South Africa to a discussion of Smith and anti-oppression work as a whole.
The most essential thing she discussed was shifting racism from pathology (everyone is racist except for the person accuser) to norm. Thus, people may move away from a hierarchy of righteous black politics to a discussion of what we do with who we are. In that, all must acknowledge and work through their position within racist norms.
What I find most problematic about her discussion is that on a personal level, taking down the armour of blackness (as an example) works, but its implications are potentially depoliticising. In addition, this is an academic discussion that takes place apart from the pain of life and apartheid, and doesnÆt acknowledge a need for continued political solidarity that may be exclusive. A class analysis of race discussions was left out too- the conversation that may happen between a white Afrikaner and Cape Malay Coloured over a pool table in some club is accessible only to those who can pay the 30 Rand cover charge. I was impressed by the emphasis on dialogue, but like my views on the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, there is a place for such things, and they cannot marginalize the equally essential issue of redistribution.
An issue that I have found too easily skirted with passive voice and an academic emphasis on symbolic cultural revival and African renaissance. IÆm still holding onto the perspective that cultural roads are formulated, paved, and used with money as fuel. I canÆt privilege classism over racism, but I canÆt forget class eitherà even in South Africa.
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It was one of those fine Saturday mornings
July 27, 2002 by Adam in Family
 It was one of those fine Saturday mornings. I puttered around in the nerd cave, while Jamie and Sam slept in. Around 8:30, Sam wandered down, completely naked, and we played with Legos until Jamie called us up for breakfast. I got a good helping of eggs with spinach, tomato, and feta cheese, along with muffins, sausage, and fresh coffee. What a wonderful life I live.
We decided to go for a hike, so the family went up to Spencer's Butte. About a year ago, Sam and I went, barely made it a half mile up, when he fell and hurt his hand. This time was completely different. He climbed up the trail, mostly by himself, and made it to the top. It was quite exciting, and we were all in a great mood. Sam got pretty tired on the way down, so I carried him the last half mile. Still, quite impressive for our little boy.
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When I went to the dentist last week, he reco...
July 26, 2002 by Adam in Sam
When I went to the dentist last week, he recommended that I get a water pick to hook up in my shower. It's this small attachment that, when turned on, puts out a fairly high-pressure stream of water. Well, Sam was fascinated by it, and kept want to play with it. Unfortunately, he's still only three, and wasn't very good at keeping the spray inside the shower stall.
So, being the resourceful dad that I am, I stripped him naked, put on his swimming goggles, and threw him in there with the thing turned on. Within seconds, he had managed to spray it up his nose. This resulted in giggles and screams, especially after he let go of the water pick. The water pick, once released, spun around wildly like a rocket out of control. Sam kept squealing and trying to escape from the shower, causing water to spray from the now-open curtain. Eventually, I got him out and managed to turn off the shower.
This entire experience was followed by great laughter and a trip to mom to tell the tale.
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For some reason, getting a firm grasp on the ...
July 25, 2002 by Adam in Adam
For some reason, getting a firm grasp on the day somehow eluded me. There were endless meetings, work to catch up on, and emergencies popping up. I had another headache this morning, like I did the day before, but I fended off the desire for coffee to fix it and instead took some Advil. Not that it was a bad day - I just never felt that sense of resolution like I do other days. Maybe it's knowing that with most of my team out next week, I'm going to be deluged with calls.
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Sam went to bed much better last night, after...
July 24, 2002 by Adam in Family
Sam went to bed much better last night, after chewing through the last of his pacifiers a couple days ago. He was pretty exhausted all day, which probabably helped. Jamie also reported that he sang himself to sleep by singing, "Spiderman, Spiderman, friendly neighborhood Spiderman . . ."
Sam's surgery date is set. We'll be wringing our hands in the waiting room bright and early on the 26th of August. I'm taking the day off, though I'm not sure how long it's really going to take. We could be out in a few hours. Not sure.
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Well, Sam passed another milestone last night
July 23, 2002 by Adam in Sam
 Well, Sam passed another milestone last night. Since he was a baby, he used a pacifier to help get himself to sleep at night. Initially, he had three, one for his mouth and one in each hand. Lately, he's been chewing through them and we've been throwing them out accordingly. Last night, the last of the binkies was destroyed, so he had to go to bed without one. I myself went to sleep at ten o'clock, when poor Jamie was still trying to get the boy to sleep. He's already been staying up late, so I expect some difficult nights ahead. Sigh.
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I took Sam for a bike ride along the river Sunday
July 22, 2002 by Adam in Sam
I took Sam for a bike ride along the river Sunday. He decided to wear his Superman outfit, complete with cape. Virtually everyone who passed by had to say hello to Superman, which made for a very interesting trip. I think Sam was pretty tired by the end, as I mostly just pushed him along. It was hot yesterday, in the nineties, so we went home and ran through the sprinkers for awhile.
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Saturday was one of those great days that com...
July 21, 2002 by Adam in Family
Saturday was one of those great days that come along infrequently. If all my days were like Saturday, I would die a happy man. The odd thing is that there was nothing especially extraordinary about Saturday.
I woke up with my family, played with Sam, and had a hearty breakfast. We painted Sam's room and I entertained Sam with movie summaries of The Goonies and Raiders of the Lost Arc. I then took Sam over the hill to mom's house, leaving Jamie and I to finish painting, hang out, and eat lunch. The afternoon was a movie for Sam, having dinner, then playing with the neighbor kids. Jamie and I watched Kate and Leopold, then collapsed in bed around eleven.
It was just one of those very nice days where we didn't try to do too much, everyone was in a good mood, and we balanced accomplishing work with relaxing.
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Well, as suspected, there was a birthday part...
July 20, 2002 by Adam in Family
 Well, as suspected, there was a birthday party for me last night. My whole family arrived and there was much libation. I must be getting old, as I mostly got gift certificates. Anyway, lots of excuses to buy things for myself. Not that I really need much excuse for that.
Sam's heading over to my mom's house for a little visit later this morning. Jamie and I are hoping to start prepping and painting Sam's room. We're doing pretty good with the house projects. We cleaned up the garage and it looks considerably better.
Angie has her house warming party tonight. Not sure if we'll make it, depending on our schedule. It's nice just to hang out as well, and we may do much of that today.
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I think Mom meant to say "No POSTED RULES", a...
July 19, 2002 by Jamie in Hanes
I think Mom meant to say "No POSTED RULES", as opposed to "NO RULES" :-)
Rule 1: Have fun; make a mess
Rule 2: CLEAN UP YOUR MESS!
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First: We no longer have access to the inter...
July 19, 2002 by Judy in Hanes
First: We no longer have access to the internet at home. Our ISP stopped providing service and we probably won't have time to research this until we get back from Europe. So use the phone! or my e-mail at work.
Update on the painting: The 2 upstairs bedrooms are done and beds are reassembled. (At least I think Dave and Brant set up the second bedroom.) Jim went down yesterday eve after work to start on the downstairs rooms. The washer and dryer are hooked up. I have ordered both upstairs and downstairs upholstered furniture pieces and the dining room table. So things are coming together.
I am planning to call the Bayshore BeachClub today, so we can start using the swimming pool, pool tables and tennis courts.
Everyone has been down to see and help now except for Barb and Jeff. So everyone has a key and you should really think about driving over for a few days during this nice weather!! There are no RULES yet,except no pets and write in the journal!!
See the calendar! Look at all the weekends!
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The week slowly meanders along
July 17, 2002 by Adam in Family
The week slowly meanders along. I'm mostly caught up with work, which began with a somewhat daunting 200 e-mails to respond to. I'm now down to a handful and a few projects to deal with.
Sam's still staying up really late, though it wasn't quite so bad last night. We took Sam over to the neigbor's house, where they ran around with Ben and Sabastian for a good hour. I think that tired him out enough so that he got to bed closer to nine than ten.
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Going over to my mom's house after so many ye...
July 16, 2002 by Adam in Family
 Going over to my mom's house after so many years was quite strange. I almost had a physical feeling going through the back door as I had so many times before and seeing all the furniture in the same place as it always was. Very odd. We wished Sadie a good trip in South Africa and sent her on her way.
My birthday is coming up, which I'm pretty excited about. I tried to prod Jamie into reveiling any birthday plans, but I didn't do a very good job. All I got was a "you're not supposed to ask questions like that."
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I just got an e-mail from my old friend Colin
July 15, 2002 by Adam in Adam
 I just got an e-mail from my old friend Colin. He's living in Germany with his girlfriend, working as a carpenter and enjoying Europe. I also heard that Jason proposed to Bridget, two other names from my past. I gotta get on the phone and see what that man's up to.
I went over to my mom's house today, and was surrounded by all my nieces and nephews. With my 33rd birthday coming up, I'm continually reminded that time passes and everyone's getting older. Pretty amazing.
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Well, I picked up more memory to replace the ...
July 14, 2002 by Adam in Adam's Projects
Well, I picked up more memory to replace the stick that melted in my computer. Unfortunately, it wasn't compatible (evidently you can mix registered and unbuffered memory). So, I have a spare stick of memory at the moment. If I keep this up, I'll have parts for half a computer. I ordered some more, though I'm not sure what kind it is. It was such a super deal, however, I couldn't pass it up.
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Well, Josh had his birthday yesterday
July 14, 2002 by Adam in Family
 Well, Josh had his birthday yesterday. We all had a good time hanging out there, eating bar-b-que and playing with the dogs. Tracie came down, looking very tan from her time in California, spent the night and headed off with Josh to Portland this morning. We did have a weird and annoying thing happen - someone broke Tracie's side window of her car. Nothing was taken, but it did annoy me greatly.
I finished my birthday present that Jamie got for me. She picked up some unfinished CD boxes at Ikea in Seattle. I stained them and attached some antique drawer pulls. I asked if she wanted to wrap it, but she just gave me a funny look. I also completed painting the closet door, and it's now back up in our living room. Lots of things accomplished today.
Jamie just left for Angie's to look at her own house, leaving me with Sam. I'm sure we'll find something interesting to do.
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It's nice to be back home
July 12, 2002 by Adam in Family
 It's nice to be back home. Sam's watching t.v. in our newly arranged living room (complete with the new chair that Jamie ordered). Jamie's cooking up french toast, using the bread I made from scratch. It's all good.
We puttered around yesterday, doing errands, house projects, and trying to beat the heat. I had a great time spraying Sam with the hose as he ran around the back yard. One of those activities that's fun for both parent and child.
Josh has a Saturday birthday party at the boy's house, and I'm hoping to at least say "hello" to my family at some point. I'd like to see mom and Dick's house especially, now that they've moved over the hill. Maybe we can walk by some evening since they're so close.
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The Fossil computer is back in business
July 12, 2002 by Adam in Adam's Projects
The Fossil computer is back in business. It turns out it was a faulty memory stick. I've ordered a replacement, which should be arriving shortly. The only "oops" from this experience is that I have a power supply that I don't need. Plus, it's really loud (the fan hits the case). I may just try to fix it myself and keep it as a spare. You never know when you'll need another power supply.
I've been doing house projects as well. We took a closet door off the hinges, stripped off all the old paint, and I'm almost finished repainting it. Whew!
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We were having a conversation at the table la...
July 12, 2002 by Adam in Sam
 We were having a conversation at the table last night, when somehow the talk turned towards removal of body parts. We all agreed that removing your tongue is a bad idea, when Sam piped up, "Because your tongue has important things. Like your taste buds."
We were amazed that he'd picked up on that little anatomical fact, and quizzed him on where he learned it. "From Blues Clues," he replied. Evidently there is some redeeming quality of television.
Oh, and this morning, he looked at his two triangular pieces of peanut butter toast and exclaimed, "These are different angles!"
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Well, we're back in town, safe and sound
July 10, 2002 by Adam in Family
 Well, we're back in town, safe and sound. We came home a bit early, having done the highlights of Seattle. We had a good time at the Science Center, and Sam and I visited the aquarium as well. Jamie and Judy did a little shopping at Ikea, which is a huge furniture store. I also had coffee at one of the millions of Starbucks around town. All great fun.
I have a few more days before I head back to work. I'm hoping to do some of the long list of things on my to do list. I've still got to clean and paint the door, and Jamie's getting her new chair as I type. It's nice to have a little vacation, and it's equally nice to return to our home.
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The best part about having Isa sleep with us ...
July 10, 2002 by Seraph in Cortez
The best part about having Isa sleep with us is that she does most of her talking in her sleep. She'll wave and say "bye-bye", giggle, and the other night excitedly yelled out "choo choo"! Must have been a pretty great dream!
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Gadzooks
July 09, 2002 by Lohring in Lohring
Gadzooks. Can't believe we haven't posted our newz for months. Lohring is preparing for the NAMBA Nationals boat race which will be held in Springfield at THE POND. He will be preoccupied from this week on until July 21st! Full boats ahead and hanging out with other crazy "boatheads" from all over the country. There are 600 boats entered in this race! My job is to work in the "store" selling stuff for the club and trying to extract money from the "boatheads." This money will help pay for all the club expenses including 3 deluxe Porta-potties. Come out and visit if you have time. Use the potties for fun and excitement. IT should be a fun but very noisy boating event.
Meanwhile, I'm still volunteering at the VIM medical clinic. The clinic was featured on national TV (Peter Jenning's show) a month ago! Very exciting. I'm also working very part-time for the Center for Senior Health doing care planing services specializing in dementia care. Part II of our Japanese garden has been completed. So far a few neighbors have visited and THE unwelcomed DEER, whom I have threated with brooms and stones! I feel like making Sashime (raw deer) out of them. They would be a big hit for ambivalent Vegans considering a return to meat. Yucky Yum.
Sayer, my nephew and his lovely fiancee Sasha are getting married in Monmouth on September 6th. He is having only the immediate family at the wedding but there will be a wild and fun reception on Saturday, September 7th at John Jones' warehouse in Eugene. You will all be invited to attend this soiree.
So enough for now. Gotta go now and chase THE DEER off my garden.
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It's been an age since I posted last
July 08, 2002 by Seraph in Cortez
It's been an age since I posted last. We've been slaveing away on our back yard, but it is slowly taking shape. So far Robbie has decided to stay married to me!
Isa has been cutting several new teeth. Her lastest word is "Choo Choo", which comes with a new obsession for trains. Robbie had to make a run to the Library yesterday to stock up on train books!
Tomorrow is my first night as chairwoman of the Administrative Council at our church, and Robbie's first meeting as Chairman of the Education Committee.
We tried to help Mom, Dick and Sadie move some this weekend, but I think our greatest contribution was the Sat. pizza run.
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Well, I'm posting from the Pacific Science Ce...
July 07, 2002 by Adam in Family
 Well, I'm posting from the Pacific Science Center in Seattle. We've been doing well, hanging out in our hotel and wandering around downtown. Sam especially enjoyed the Pike Place Fish Market. They would throw fish around and yell, as well as having a nice assortment of live crayfish.
The Science Center has been fun too, with more exciting adventures on the way. We're spending another night in our current hotel, then off to another place further away from downtown. Great fun!
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Danica and Ben arrived for the 4th of July
July 07, 2002 by Dorothy in Danica Miller
Danica and Ben arrived for the 4th of July. Danica was bringing Ben to spend a week at JedÆs to help out on the farm for a week. Ben got to play golf on Friday with FranklinÆs old golf buddies while Danica and I took a trip to Falls Creek, PA where my Grandfather and Grandmother Black lived. We found the house they moved into in 1896, the year before my mother was born. We also met a nice woman who lived across the street and had known the Blacks.
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I "finished" Neverwinter Nights
July 05, 2002 by Adam in Adam's Games
I "finished" Neverwinter Nights. Which means that I finished the official module, though people are coming up with endless other modules. I personally am working on an extensive series of them, which has turned out to be pretty complicated. It's fun, though, watching my creations play out within the game. I also have the work group coming together - I can definately see a "Friday Night Fights" kind of thing happening.
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Today's the big day
July 05, 2002 by Adam in Family
Today's the big day. I'm busy packing and doing laundry while the sleepy heads stay in bed. Amazingly, I actually got to sleep around ten o'clock, even though it sounded like a war zone outside our house. We had fireworks on the other side of our hill, over the baseball stadium, so it was quite exciting.
The Bar-B-Que at Dave and Brant's house was fun. Sam had a good time hanging out with Josh. When we came home, Sam wanted to do some experiments. I broke out the corn starch and water mixture, which forms a nice goopy mess. For fun, I added food coloring. Evidently this also colors skin quite nicely, as Sam ended up with zombie-green hands.
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I think we're coming to the conclusion that S...
July 04, 2002 by Adam in Sam
I think we're coming to the conclusion that Sam is going to need to be circumcised. Though the topical cortisone treatment helped open the hole some, it appears to be closing again. Though I'm still nervous about the general anasthetic, it'll probably be good to get this finally over with.
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Happy 4th of July to all! We're soon heading...
July 04, 2002 by Adam in Family
Happy 4th of July to all! We're soon heading over to Dave and Brant's for a Bar-B-Que. I'm also officially on vacation, which makes me very happy. I get to leave my pager at home and completely be free from work.
The big family news for the day appears to be that Josh's mom, Tracie, is getting married to a man in San Diego. They evidently asked Josh who he'd like to live with, and he decided to live with Dave. So, we'll be seeing a lot more of Josh, which makes Sam happy. Though it was a surprise to us, we also hope Tracie the best of wishes.
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Yesterday, I was scraping paint off a door in...
July 01, 2002 by Adam in Sam
Yesterday, I was scraping paint off a door in the basement and trying to entertain Sam. I had resorted to telling him the plot of the Ghostbusters movie, and had made it most of the way through. He interrupted, announcing: "The moral of the story is to not live in a town with ghosts."
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I've got short timer's syndrome here at work
July 01, 2002 by Adam in Family
I've got short timer's syndrome here at work. I'm leaving for vacation on Thursday, so I'm already thinking that I'm halfway out the door. Plus, my boss and coworker are gone, so it's very quiet here.
Sunday was nice, if uneventful. We had a nice hike out at Hendrick's park again. I'm slowly finishing my paint stripping project. I just need to sand up the door a bit, then it's ready for priming.
I'm looking forward to this vacation very much. It's been far too long since my last one. My PTO almost hit 200 hours last time I checked.
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