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Damon and I will be walking in the Orange County Race for the Cure on Saturday Sept. 25. We're walking in support of my sister-in-law who is a survivor. If you'd like to make a donation to the Komen foundation, click this link. You'll also find more information about the race and about the Susan G. Komen foundation
We've been reading a lot of books to Damon lately, and I thought I'd comment on a few that he enjoys and I enjoy reading. It's also fun to see which books he asks to have read to him. Overall, I've gotta say that the Sandra Boynton board books are great. We're also enjoying Dr. Seuss right now.
by Steve Haskamp. Mind numbingly boring to read, but Damon requests to have this one read to him once or twice a day, so there must be something good about it. by Sandra Boynton. One of my favorites to read to him at bedtime. by Kevin Lewis. Fun train book. Didn't like it at first, but it's grown on us. Now a regular feature at bedtime. by Sandra Boynton. Very clever counting book. by Sandra Boynton. Fun and easy to read opposites book. by Dr. Seuss. Lots of fun to read, especially if you tickle his feet as you read along. by Sandra Boynton. Fun and easy to read. by Dr. Seuss. If you can read this one through without tripping over your own tongue at least once, I'll be amazed. One of the few non-board books that Damon likes right now.Had a good week with the fam-damn-ily this week in various parts of Idaho. It started last Saturday with a family reunion of sorts to celebrate my Grandmother's birthday. Many of the extended family came to Boise for a picnic at the park, then cake & ice cream on Sunday. We had a lot of fun hanging out with all of the cousins I haven't seen in a couple of years (at least). My aunt Kathy did a fabulous job organizing the party and making sure there was enough food for everyone. Also, Scott, Grace and I went to a water park near Boise on Sunday afternoon and had a blast, even met up with the Reno contingent of the family while we were there. I also sunburned the living hell out of my shoulders - turns out that the "waterproof" sunscreen I had wasn't really all that waterproof.
On Monday, my younger brother Scott and his daughter Grace, my parents, and Damon, Marnia and I headed into the mountains to McCall for a couple of days. We all stayed in a two bedroom condo with the three of us in one bedroom, Scott & Grace in the other, and my parents sleeping on the murphy bed (folds down from the wall) in the living room. The parents get a big gold star for letting everyone else have the bedrooms, especially considering that they paid for the lodging.
Tuesday morning Scott and I played golf at the hardest freaking municipal course on the planet. I averaged something over one lost ball per hole. PER HOLE!!! Of course, they weren't my golf balls, so it wasn't all bad (sorry Dad). Monday afternoon Scott rented a canoe and he, Grace and my Dad paddled around the lake a little. Weather was beautiful, no wind, lake was calm.
On Wednesday we rented a three-person wave-runner (jet-ski type thing) and an inner tube that could be towed behind said wave-runner. My Dad, Scott and I had a great time dumping each other off the tube. Scott and I also took it out on a tour of the lake. Fun little boat to drive. It was especially fast when there was just one person on it. Weather was overcast, cold and we even got rained on while out on the lake. Irony rules. I was totally exhausted at the end of the day on Tuesday and a little sore from getting bounced across the lake. Just in time to pack up and head home.
Thursday was mostly consumed by packing and traveling and keeping the child from coming completely unglued. He'd put up with quite a lot in the way of new people, new places, and changes to his routines. By Thursday, he'd pretty much had enough, so the ride home was interesting. The flight wasn't too bad though - children's Benedryl is a miracle drug, talk to your doctor about it.
Overall a good trip. Great to see everyone, great to hang out with my brothers and parents.
Great to be home again.
Pictures coming soon.
(My brother forwarded these to me. Not sure what the original source was.)
2005 Darwin Award Winner:
1. When his 38-caliber revolver failed to fire at his intended victim during a holdup in Long Beach, California, would be robber James Elliot did something that can only inspire wonder. He peered down the barrel and tried the trigger again. This time it worked.
And now, the honorable mentions:
2. The chef at a hotel in Switzerland lost a finger in a meat cutting machine and, after a little hopping around, submitted a claim to his insurance company. The company – expecting negligence - sent out one of its men to have a look for himself. He tried the machine and lost a finger. The chef's claim was approved.
3. A man who shoveled snow for an hour to clear a space for his car during a blizzard in Chicago returned with his vehicle to find a woman had taken the space. Understandably, he shot her.
4. After stopping for drinks at an illegal bar, a Zimbabwean bus driver found that the 20 mental patients he was supposed to be transporting from Harare to Bulawayo had escaped. Not wanting to admit his incompetence, the driver went to a nearby bus stop and offered everyone waiting there a free ride. He then delivered the passengers to the mental hospital, telling the staff that the patients were very excitable and prone to bizarre fantasies. The deception wasn't discovered for 3 days.
5. An American teenager was in the hospital recovering from serious head wounds received from an oncoming train. When asked how he received the injuries, the lad told police that he was simply trying to see how close he could get his head to a moving train before he was hit.
6. A man walked into a Louisiana Circle-K, put a $20 bill on the
counter, and asked for change. When the clerk opened the cash drawer, the man pulled a gun and asked for all the cash in the register, which the clerk promptly provided. The man took the cash from the clerk and fled, leaving the $20 bill on the counter. The total amount of cash he got from the drawer...$15. (If someone points a gun at you and gives you money, is a crime committed?)
7. Seems an Arkansas guy wanted some beer pretty badly. He decided that he'd just throw a cinderblock through a liquor store window, grab some booze, and run. So he lifted the cinderblock and heaved it over his head at the window. The cinderblock bounced back and hit the would-be thief on the head, knocking him unconscious. The liquor store window was made of Plexiglas. The whole event was caught on videotape.
8. As a female shopper exited a New York convenience store, a man grabbed her purse and ran. The clerk called 911 immediately, and the woman was able to give them a detailed description of the snatcher. Within minutes, the police apprehended the snatcher. They put him in the car and drove back to the store. The thief was then taken out of the car and told to stand there for a positive ID. To which he replied, "Yes, officer, that's her. That's the lady I stole the purse from."
9. The Ann Arbor News crime column reported that a man walked into a Burger King in Ypsilanti, Michigan, at 5 a.m., flashed a gun, and demanded cash. The clerk turned him down because he said he couldn't open the cash register without a food order. When the man ordered onion rings, the clerk said they weren't available for breakfast. The man - frustrated - walked away.
A 5-STAR STUPIDITY AWARD WINNER!
10. When a man attempted to siphon gasoline from a motor home parked on a Seattle street, he got much more than he bargained for. Police arrived at the scene to find a very sick man curled up next to a motor home near spilled sewage. A police spokesman said that the man admitted to trying to steal gasoline and plugged his siphon hose into the motor home's sewage tank by mistake. The owner of the vehicle declined to press charges, saying that it was the best laugh he'd had in years.
DARWIN WINNER - March 2005
The following mind-boggling attempt at a crime spree in Washington, USA, appeared to be the robber's first (and last), due to his lack of a previous record of violence, and his terminally stupid choices: