Happy Easter, Part II

From Growing Up Found another photo...from sometime in the early 1980s. Looks like I may have been too old to compete in an egg hunt with those kids. Oh well.

Happy Easter

(Yeah...I've posted this before...but it's the only rabbit photo I have...)

From the Archives

Canoeing a few years ago with Frank, Leigh, and Chet. Jess couldn't make it so I spent a day on the Mullberry River with Chet as my canoe-mate. It was a great spring day. We stayed afloat...unlike other members of our little fleet.

Chet had the foresight to bring in a camera. However...his nimble little fingers managed to drop it in the river. The camera was snatched from the water with little damage and this is one of the surviving shots.

Abandoned Pump

Again with an old Syracuse photo. This time it's a water pump from an old farm that's now just another sprawling subdivision. If I can find a negative scanner I'll get all my old film from my photo classes in high school transferred to digital...

So when my mother was visiting a few weeks ago, I learned something about my family I heretofore had not known.

My grandmother was a professional bowler.

Now I realize that no one else really cares much about that but I think it's fascinating. I wish she was alive to tell me stories from her time as a bowler in the 50's and 60's. I'm told she was quite good. From what little I remember of her it's easy for me to fit a bowler persona into the person I knew (don't ask...I'm not going to try and defend that statement).

It seems clear to me that bowling isn't an inherited characteristic since, while I can bowl, I'm only average. My average tends to hover in the 140-160 range. One of the many things I miss about F'ville is the bowling league. I guess if I really wanted to I could sneak into a league here in Little Rock.

With the baby on the way, I should probably just stick with my weekly soccer game and hiking. I know that personal time will be a rare commodity when after Beckett gets here.

I took this photo near my house in Syracuse in 1990/91. I was taking a photd class at the time and made a print in sepia tones. It's always been a favorite photo of mine.

Lots of fun on Pinnacle Mountain last Thursday. I managed to walk into a low-hanging tree branch, smacking right across my face. Thankfully I was't wearing my glasses or I'm sure I'd have needed new ones. Anyway my buddy PJ and I posed for photos. Our other buddy Kent thought it would be fun to imply that PJ decked me. Here are the results.

As you can see it was a beautiful afternoon for a hike. My office is close enough to Pinnacle Mountain State Park that we can head there every couple of days after work. It's a refreshing hike; 1.5 miles with some bouldering and great views. We generally make a round trip in about 40-45 minutes. The best thing about going after work is fewer people than the weekend. The park tends to get kinda crowded on nice weekends. As we all know...crowds are bad.

Full photo series here.

Wonderful Weekend

So my mother came to visit this past weekend. It was a great time and very productive. She brought a whole bunch of gifts for Beckett as well as a some orphanage gifts. Very nice. One of the books she brought is A Child's Book of Art. I love it. This is the kind of children's book I can get behind.

Also, thanks to some inspiration at my soccer game (we won!), she purchased a fancy Radio Flyer Tricycle that allows parents to take control. In some circumstances it can replace a stroller...like on a walk in the park, or a trip to the Big Dam Bridge.

Beckett has clothes! We also got a whole mess of clothing from Jess' mother and my mother. Thanks!

Lastly...Beckett's room is probably 85% complete. My mother added some much needed inspiration and effort that brought the room project home. Photos of the completed room are here: http://picasaweb.google.com/JJOHNSTONMYERS/BeckettSRoom?pli=1

Terrific Weekend. I'll address the comments on the previous post tomorrow. It seems there are some things to discuss.

Soccer 2007?

Soccer season 2007 started today. We've got some new blood on the team and I think they'll bring us more victories. As luck would have it, I rolled my ankle late in the second half so I'm a bit gimpy. I don't plan to visit a doctor and hope to be well by next Sunday. I'll take it one day at a time. (Is there any other way?)

The photo with this post (me in yellow) is a fun action shot from the summer of 1984.

In other news...

Someone was questioning my use of the word "Shalom." It's a great word that means "peace" but is also used as a greeting or farewell. And...its use is not limited to practitioners of a specific religion. (Yes...Munkee Girl I know you know all this.)

As for conversion...not at this point. While I've met the rabbi and find her to be a wonderful person, if I was to pursue Judiasm, I would first talk to my Godmother.

Since I'm talking about religion, I went to church on Saturday night. It was a short, odd service that made me not want to go again. Jess was playing bells in the bell choir (and no, not the reason I don't want to go back). It was a casual, Saturday night service at a local Methodist church. Now, I was brought up within the Methodist faith (with a brief stint at a private Lutheran school). I was struck with how evangelical this pastor was. It put me off a bit. I'm not used to Methodist ministers asking for "Amens!" and "Praise the Lords!" from the congeregation (though to be fair the call and response has a rich religious tradition). I also found out that the minister is newer and actually runs the "contemporary" service so that explained a lot. No, what bothered me was the simple fact that his sermon was a sham. It was a 15-minute advertisement for some new movie called "Amazing Grace." Sure, it sounds like a fine subject for a movie (abolition of slavery in England) and there's a religious connection with the author of the song "Amazing Grace," but I don't go to church for movie reviews or commercialism. I was not pleased.

That said, I'll give their more traditional service a shot.

After the Fall

Okay...so I'm wearing a hat in this photo while in the previous one I was clearly not. The point is that I eventually got past the slide fear and learned to enjoy slides. Hell, I'm backwards in this photo.

Shalom!

So I've been scanning photos again. Back in December my mother gave me a box of photos tp go through and scan. I'll post some here and also out on my web album area.

This was taken by my Godfather, Warren Lepley ina park that not longer exists in the Plaza section of Kansas City, cicra 1980. He died a number of years ago but I'll never forget him. He had a kind of raspy voice and was, to a 5 year old, very cool. It was clear he didn't like kids too much but made every effort to be a great role model. I know that I'm a better person because of the impact he and my Godmother had on my mother and me. If I can be a parent in a manner such as his, I should be okay. The other fascinating, and very 1970s, thing about my Godparents was their super-cool giant round waterbed. To me it was a toy. I just wanted to play on it and make waves.

As you can see in the photo, I've got a little bit of terror in my eyes. See...when I was younger I was a bit impulsive. I climbed the slide thinking it would be no problem at all. Then the reality of the height caused me great concern. Warren, knowing this was a great learning opportunity, wouldn't let me climb back down. It was gravity or life atop the slide. As you can see, the platform was quite small. My solution: stretch as far as I could so that the trip down would be short. Still, even with logic on my side...what's a kid to do.

I've got a photo of the resolution that I'll post in a day or two.

Weekend Things...(and a big victory)

So...first things first...new photos of my son Beckett...arrived last Thursday. The current expectation is to travel sometime between May and August. We have no control over the travel date at this point. Naturally, sooner is better.

We also received official word from the adoption agency that our paperwork had been translated and shipped to Vietnam. If we're lucky, the dossier will arrive and get logged-in before Tet. The whole country shuts down for a week during the Tet festivities.

Saturday was the designated birthday celebration for my friend Rich. To that end he gathered friends for a full day of gaming. We arrived at his home around 10am and began playing Twilight Imperium around 11:30. We played solidly for the whole day, apart from a break for lunch at Vinos. I headed home around 9:30 as the winner...it was well worth the time spent and I look forward to playing again. To those of you who were invited but decided not to attend...pptthhh!!! You missed out on fun.

Today...Jess and I did some home improvements. We replaced some cat-stained (if you know what I mean) carpet in the office. All I can say is that Jess is pretty handy. Additionally we bought an area rug for Beckett's room and a camcorder so that we can record videos in Vietnam and while he grows up.

That's about it for now...we were good consumers. It was a good weekend.

Quick question for Munkee Girl...based on your comment on the previous post...was this post better? :-) (Luv ya...when are y'all coming to visit...and yes, I know we owe you one!)

A Little Spring for Mid-Winter

WWJD - 5

What would Jack do?

Nuclear bomb? No problem.

Helicopter crash around the corner? Easy.

Estranged Brother? Knock-em out, tie them up, plastic bag over the head.

Clearly someone has family issues.

WWJD - 3/4

What Would Jack Do?

Episode 3: Need to slow someone down...ram them with your car.

Episode 4: Save the reformed terrorist who has information or kill your friend? Clearly...kill your friend.

Sorry I was away for a while. No real good reason.

Sick of the rain here in LR. Thankfully it's finished for now and we can begin to dry.

New weekly feature now that 24 has started. What Would Jack Do? (WWJD) A weekly exploration of the myriad ways Jack solves problems. One of my friends and former colleagues, also a Jack, often would ask me, when I was confronted with a problem, " What would Jack Bauer do?"

Last night - first two episodes of the season: WWJD?
Rip out their jugular with his teeth. Clearly he's gone vampiric. Also not something you can use at the office.

More tomorrow based on episodes 3/4.

Grand Tour

For Reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_tour and comments on the previous post.

My friend Munkee Girl is correct. The Grand Tour is an inherently good thing that should be revived. Yes it should be open to more than the economically elite. Exposure to the arts and culture fosters well rounded and intellectually curious humans. That's good. Certainly better than sitting in front of a Playstation for hours on end.

I also agree with Munkee Girl regarding language. Heading off to a non-threatening vacation (educational though it may be) to a predominantly English-speaking nation doesn't open one's eyes as much as traveling where you might have to make an effort at understanding. It would probably make better citizens and maybe even a better world.

I know that my trips abroad have always been to places where I could get by in English or German. Even on my trip to France I found it easier to use German than bother butchering the French language. My tip to Vietnam will be a challenge on the language front. Despite having a written language that is Latinate in nature (i.e. characters), there's not a lot that I'll gain in trying to decipher words by looking at them. There's no real connection to English (or German). Also...the language is tonal...meaning words with different tones may have different meanings. How fun is that? I don't have enough time before our trip to do a lot of book-learning or class-taking so I run the risk of being a dumb American, and I hate that thought.

Here is a sample of the Vietnamese written language: (See the challenge that awaits!)

Trăm năm trong cõi người ta,

Chữ tài chữ mệnh khéo là ghét nhau.

Trải qua một cuộc bể dâu,

Những điều trông thấy mà đau đớn lòng.

Lạ gì bỉ sắc tư phong,

Trời xanh quen thói má hồng đánh ghen.

Translated:

A hundred years – in this life span on earth

talent and destiny are apt to feud.

Go through an event in which the sea becomes mulberry fields

and watch such things as make you sick at heart.

Is it strange that one who is rich in this is poor in that?

Blue Heaven’s wont to strike rosy cheeks from spite.

Two final things...
1) If your 3-year old can craft a balanced mobile sculpture...it's ART! (and get her an agent...or whoever artists use because that's talent)

2) The Space Invader wall art is cool. Not every room has to be Beatrix Potter, or Harry Potter, or Col. Potter. It's okay to spice it up. Babies and childhood should be fun. When Beckett can talk and tell me how much he hates his room...we'll re-assess.

Oh...Thanks Pete. Miss you guys. The kids will all be within 1-year of each other in age (poor Jack as the baby of the bunch) so I hope we can get them to be friends at an early age. Trips to the park when we (or you) visit.

Calder Mobile

My old friend Joy, who lives in NYC and knowing my love of art, took this photo and sent it to me. She's just trying to make me jealous of the fact she's in NYC and around myriad art and culture options.

Actually I think it's in response to the ticket stub to the Andrew Wyeth exhibit that I sent her. We've had an ongoing art/culture feud since at least 1990. I generally credit her with victory since she's been to Europe more often than me. Plus she lives in NYC. However, occasionally even Arkansas gets something artistic that doesn't hit NYC (like the Wyeth exhibit) and I have to bask in that limited glory while I can.

I've got to say that my impending trip to Vietnam will go a long way to balancing the art/culture war. I'm pretty certain she's only traveled to Europe...I'm raising the ante and heading to Asia.

Big News (Delayed)

As many of the people who visit here know, Jess and I are pursuing international adoption from Vietnam. Well...in mid-December we received a referral for a baby boy...which we've decided to accept. (I realize a lot of you know this too but I've made no mention of it in this venue.)

He's a little over 5 months old and appears to be absolutely adorable. We hope to travel to Vietnam by late Spring at the earliest, but it's not in our control. It can't happen soon enough. I want him home.

His name will be Beckett.

Jess and I finally started working on his room this weekend. We picked colors (green/brown) and bedding (abstract/shapes) and purchased a crib. I'll not dwell on the details here. Rather, visit our adoption blog for more details and photos. http://bringinghomebe.blogspot.com/

I do want to share one bit about Beckett's room and the designs we're looking into. Jess has agreed, at least initially, to try out this cool Space Invader design on one of the walls. The challenge is to coordinate the room with the Space Invaders. Since we're trying to avoid trucks, cowboys, blue, etc it hopefully won't be too hard work in and still have a cohesive feel. Clearly I'm more about the Invader theme than Jess....but I think it could work and it's different.

Anyway...we're "having" a son and wanted to let you know.

Happy New Years (late)

All -

Happy New Year. I hope you celebrated in a fun and largely safe manner.

Jess and I had the fortune to spend the evening with some new friends (and old) friends. There was fancy imported Russian vodka, snacks, games, beer, music, conversation, and no stress. I've been in this state for a over a decade now and I'm still amazed at the different connections I find in the people I meet. I clearly have great taste in friends as they all seem to know each other or are separated by 1 degree.

Okay...maybe it's a lot of luck and the simple fact that I'm drawn to specific kinds of people; so it would stand to reason that they too would also find similar connections. Regardless...it's nice and reinforces the sense of home here in Arkansas.

I'm finally doing better...was ill for the past week. I'm very much looking forward to returning to work. I've missed it.

I wish you a year of more highs than lows, smiles than frowns, sweets than sours, and generally...all the best.