"Murphy was an optimist!"
Aw nuts! December 20, 2009 8:41 am
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Daily Life, Food, Health , add a commentLast night we trade some food with hydrogenated oils for organic food at Earth Fare. N.B. there’s a coupon on their website somewhere that lets you bring any 1 food item from each of 5 categories even if it is almost empty and trade it for healthy food. While there I bought some almonds because I thought they’d be a healthy fidget food for programming. You know, takes time to crack open, gives you energy, improves memory, occupies your hands while you think through a solution to a problem, etc. So this morning I sit down to program and cannot crack open the nuts. What kind of household doesn’t have a nutcracker at Christmas time?!
add a commentI juggled last night December 18, 2009 6:48 am
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Daily Life, Health, Juggling , add a commentI enjoy entertaining with juggling. I also enjoy teaching juggling. Last night I had the pleasure of doing both for a small group of wonderful people, about 15 or 20. The audience makes the show as much as the performer. A tough crowd can be an awkward show. This audience was very receptive as such the show sped by. I normally watch the clock to time the show just right. This time I failed to look at the time. I had a good time that at the end of the show, I became concerned I’d spent to little time performing (which wasn’t the case). I finished by teaching two children to juggle. The joy and happiness from the eight year old girl at learning to juggle is beyond description. Her smile and hug brought this season’s spirit to my heart.
add a commentNoisy Bleeping Sheep December 15, 2009 2:02 am
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Daily Life, Health, Sleep , 1 comment so farIt’s 1am and I’m fighting a bout of insomnia. I had a friend years ago who was an insomniac. Sounded great! Stay up all night learn, juggling, and doing. It wasn’t until years later that I learned insomnia doesn’t mean energy. Insomnia can be zombie. Too tired to do anything yet still unable to sleep. That’s pointless because nothing gets done at night nor during the day. I’d rather be awake and alert…all the time. Now where’s my rejuvenation pill that substitutes for a good night’s sleep?
1 comment so farDorm Room Flashback December 7, 2009 10:18 am
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Daily Life, Education, History, Of Interest , 2commentsThe in-laws must be cleaning out their garage. The children brought home a huge box of highlighters. So I started thinking, "What could one do with so many highlighters?" Then I remembered Clement Hall room 308 at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. That was my room. The walls were the color of an 80s computer that had been used too long. Dingy. Gray. Like a light but wet modeling clay. And the walls were cinder block.
A fun trick for the frequent traveler who stays in hotels a lot is to leave a message on the bathroom mirror using a light application of chap stick or other oil. Done correctly, the message remains invisible until a hot shower steams the mirror.
Highlighters on cinder block painted in that gray color work the same. Draw the highlighter art by turning off the normal lights and turning on black lights. The art in room 308 was quite intricate when my friends and I were done. When the black lights are turned off and the normal lights turned on, the highlighter disappears. Turn the black lights on and feel like you stepped into a Jimmy Hendrix black light poster.
2commentsEarly to bed early to…oh f it. December 3, 2009 7:37 am
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Daily Life, Health, Sleep , add a commentI arose at 2:30 this morning. I walked the upstairs for 15 minutes trying to convince myself to stay awake. In the end, I decide on "just 30 more minutes" of sleep. I awoke again 30 minutes later at 5:30am.
add a commentMy typical night and day November 18, 2009 8:42 am
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Daily Life, Health, Sleep , add a commentI once lived a long time on 3 hours of sleep a night. In the long run, it hurt. I love to sleep and especially to dream but if I could take a pill and do away with sleeping, I’d be pill popping in a heartbeat. Over the years I have changed my habits from pulling alnighters and staying up until four in the morning to trying to consistently get to bed by 10pm. I know that if I get to sleep by 11:59pm that I sleep far better than if I go to sleep at 12:01am. If I get to sleep by 10pm, I can be up and productive at either 2am or 4am which makes for an astoundingly good day for me.
What really happens? I wander to bed at 10 or 10:30pm but lounge in bed chatting with my wife and watching television until midnightish. Between 2am and 2:30am, one of the dogs needs to be walked or rather she has formed the habit of going outside for a few minutes. I sit around for a few minutes and debating starting my day but acknowledge that on 2 hours of sleep my head is simply too fuzzy. I return to bed. At 4am, Evan wanders into our bed. I debate getting up but decide Evan will follow me so I conceded to another 30 minutes of sleeping. At 4:30am, I wake again and alter between cat naps and tossing and turning until between 5 and 5:30 at which time I finally get out of bed and try to get some work done before 6:15am. At 6:15am, Amy arises and I step away from the computer. If I spend time on the computer between 6:15 and 7am, she misses her bus. From 6:15 to 6:55, I make Amy’s lunch, chat with Amy, prompt Noah to brush his teeth, and then drive Amy to the bus stop. From 7:15 to 8:15am I try to get another hour’s work done but this is dependent upon whether or not Evan has awoken and whether or not Noah has missed his bus and needs a ride or Sarah needs a ride. Between 8:30 and 9am Monday through Friday, I am carpooling either Tommy or Evan to school. At 9:30 I am typically back at my desk trying to get work done. If I eat lunch, I take it at my desk. At 2pm, I will grab a 15-20 minute power nap and return to work by 2:30. At 5 or 5:30pm, I break to prepare dinner for the kids. This break typically extends to 7pm. I’m usually back on the computer no later than 8 and try to work until 10pm when the cycle begins again.
That is par for the course Monday through Friday. I try to avoid working on Saturday. I like to get up early on Sunday and try to work at least through lunch.
Update: A friend asked, "why doesn’t Cathy do the morning with the children?" There’s far more duties than what I’ve described with 5 children. She is not a morning person. We have no dishwasher so she hand washes the constantly barrage of dirty dishes our family produces. Our washer and dryer run 24/7 and she does all the folding (I’ve been forbidden from doing laundry…something about doing it wrong. Thank you Bill Cosby!). She handles all the school paperwork, homework, supplies, schedules and with 5 children in 5 schools there is plenty of that! She gets all the children’s clothing and backpacks laid out the night before so our mornings go smoothly. She also does the carpool pick-ups to balance my carpool drop-offs. She handles medical appointments, dentist, extracurricular activities, etc. The children also have their chores and areas of expectation. We are not the Duggars but we have a system that works for our tiny large family. I think we have a machine that runs pretty smooth but I certainly wouldn’t turn Mary Poppins away if she showed up on our doorstep.
add a commentWorking out of my slump November 10, 2009 10:58 am
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Daily Life, Health, Mental , add a commentI exercised today. Just some situps and pushups. That’s a start. Exercise fights depression. Mother Nature has thrown a gloomy, cold, gray, rainy day my way. None-the-less, I feel motivated to get back on the track.
add a commentState of Me November 2, 2009 8:50 am
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Daily Life, Health, Mental , add a commentStress is high right now. So high I can feel the blood coursing through my veins. I am not having dizzy spells but if I do not get this under control, I could see them happening in the not to distant future.
What has me stressed? Two factors. Primarily a coding project to which I have volunteered my services. My piece is now mission critical. The other is that always present thing which some people mistakenly think can not buy you happiness…money. I should have control over both of these but this morning they have control over me. It’s a simple trick of the mind. I’m thinking about these things so much that I’m not accomplishing anything.
There are dreamers that dream
And dreamers that do.[Source unknown..I always thought that was Ogden Nash but maybe it was me
]
So I need to do more and think less. As I type this, it occurs to me that neither the project nor money is the problem. I am simply addicted to brain crack (language warning).
This video contains words that begin with the letter F.
Update: Coffee must have kicked in. I’m on fire now!
add a commentWhat killed the public option? September 30, 2009 10:52 am
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Health, Politics, Touchy Subjects, United States , 6comments$19 million and 5 purchased votes shot down the best change that could have ever come to this country.
Max Baucus got $7,734,102, Blanche Lincoln received $4,190,592, Ken Conrad took in $3,287,891, Bill Nelson was given $2,414,895 and Tom Carper accepted $1,592,380 from health industry interests. [Source, Intershame.com, Bought by the Insurance Lobby]
These Senators clearly voted against the wishes of their constituents who 81% favor the public option. Is this another example of the Government of the Corporation? In CEO We Trust.
6commentsNow where’s my unicycle? September 29, 2009 10:41 am
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Exercise, Health , add a commentYears ago I had a unicycle. Years ago I was a mountain biker. As I approach 40. I lament that I may never do these things again. Perhaps I need to rethink that.(that was an awkward forced sentence because I don’t really feel that way) {Dear Reader, Fill in something here that connects the thought that I used to do these things and he still does as my Muse escapes me. Then skip all these words and just watch the video.} At 53 years old, Unigeezer is both unicycling and mountain biking like someone in their 20s!
Check out UniGeezer.
add a commentPop! September 29, 2009 7:25 am
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Daily Life, Education, Family , add a commentA month and a half into the school year and it is time to replace a backpack. Any guesses as to which child’s backpack just had a shoulder strap break?
add a commentKiller Stress September 29, 2009 7:22 am
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Daily Life, Health, Mental , 2commentsStress will make my life shorter.
I woke this morning feeling hung over but I didn’t have anything to drink. For that matter, I had a decent amount of sleep, slept like a rock, and had ultra vivid dreams. I know getting a handle on my stress is essential. The side effects of stress that I’m experiencing are increased absentmindedness, memory loss (rather recall issues..I believe the memories are there but the ability to draw them out is hindered by stress), sore muscles, headache, blurred vision, and exhaustion.
I want to live a long stress-free life. Time to get back to Quad II.
2commentsWe need a single payer option September 27, 2009 9:01 am
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Health, Politics, Touchy Subjects , 7commentsHealth care reform is essential in this country. People are dying so that other people can put dollars in their wallets. That is wrong.
7commentsKimberly Young, vibrant 22-year-old who was working at least two jobs in Oxford after graduating with a double major in December 2008, became ill about two weeks ago, but didn’t seek care initially because she didn’t have health insurance and was worried about the cost. "That’s the most tragic part about it. If she had insurance, she would have gone to the doctor," Brent Mowery, her friend and former roommate, said. [Source, Crooks and Liars, R.I.P. Kimi Young, 22, Another Casualty of Our For-Profit Deathcare System.]
Change is coming September 20, 2009 8:30 pm
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Health, Mental , 2comments
We have a new baby in the house! September 18, 2009 8:38 pm
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Daily Life, Education, Family, Health, Noah, Of Being Dad , add a commentDear Knox County Schools, If I beat your fancy $500 electronic baby, does my son lose points because abusive granddad was raised in the 70s? Sincerely, I have 5 children I know what a baby crying all night sounds like and so does my son I thought I was done when Cathy said we couldn’t have a 6th
Yes, we have an electronic baby in the house this weekend. The irony is that Noah has probably changed more diapers and spent more baby time than many of his schoolmates ever will. If this is demented sex education lesson on abstinence, I give the schools an F because we don’t educate through fear and making the wonder of life a thing to dread. If the lesson is truly about the responsibility of caring for a child, I give this gadget an A+. This is a cool toy and Mattel had better step up because my 7 and 4 year old children are loving it! The diapers even have to be changed! Oh, I like the fact that there are no Caucasian electronic babies because I’m sure my son’s absentee interracial girlfriend is going to be quite the buzz at the inlaw’s church. I wonder if Noah will have the wherewithal to actually turn electrobabe into the daycare instead of carrying he/she/it into the teenager’s sanctuary.
Update: I just learned that the baby and Noah are more than a certain distance apart that the baby’s head explodes because Noah has an electronic wrist band secured to his wrist. Side note, you really should secure the bands a little tighter because I’m quite certain that I could slip it off Noah’s wrist so that he could help Evan get to sleep but no, we will be honest and I will take over for Noah tonight. Of course, I could get Evan to sleep easier if your do dad had a mute button! I must say that it is amusing watching Noah try to put electrobabe down long enough to play his video game only to have crying drag him away from the keyboard with a grin and an eyeroll.
Update: Electrobabe turned off about midnight. I have the sneaky suspicion the program was set up wrong and we’ll be seeing this child again.
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