"Murphy was an optimist!"
Improvised Edible Plate February 21, 2006 8:52 am
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Daily Life, Evan, FamilyHere’s my parent hack for today. My 9 month old takes great pleasure in tossing or dumping a plate or bowl placed in front of him. So in his high chair, he eats right off the tray. Today I treated him to scrambled eggs (which he always devours) but today my eggs were sticking to the tray and frustrating the little fingers. I started to give in and place his plate in front of him anticipating the dogs would finish off the eggs. Instead I layered Cheerios on his tray and put the eggs on top of the Cheerios. He was able to easily grab the eggs and had a nice side dish with them.
1 comment so farYum! February 21, 2006 8:40 am
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Daily LifeLet’s hear it for ketchup on eggs!
add a commentOf Grasshoppers February 20, 2006 11:13 pm
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Of Grasshoppers, PhilosophyStudent: I can’t make my wife happy.
Master: Take it elsewhere bud! I deal in philosophy and morals, not mysticism.
Lights Still On February 20, 2006 9:39 pm
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Daily LifeIt’s 5° C outside. I know this because the little number in the task bar tells me so. And since I can read the number in the task bar the computer is on which implies we still have electricity. And since we have electricity, we have heat. Granted, meals may be thin this month but that is one of the trade-offs of working from home and getting to be ultra involved in my children’s lives. Hopefully they won’t curse me too badly for being called "poor white trash" instead of "snotty, rich brats with a dad they never see" not to imply that working hard either produces snotty brats nor riches nor absentee dads (those are all choices). Of course, when I’m dead, they will stomp my grave and grouse over the lack of fortune left behind but at least their relationships won’t be torn apart in estate court.
I learned today that I’m not alone in my struggles against the heartless utility companies on which we so rely. And there I left this comment:
4commentsI find it funny in not a so haha way that the people that are inspiring the proverbial “you” to come up with money that “you” may not have take away the very thing (at least in my case) that “you” use to make the money. With ALL of my income generated from the Internet, to cut off cable or electricity is cutting off my life blood, my oxygen. Cutting off my cell phone is like depriving me of water (not as fast a death but it will come).
My dialog with the electric company today was something made for the comics. “You do know that this is a banking holiday?” “Yes sir. You still need to have your payment to us by 5pm.” “But I can’t do banking to get you the money.” “Then you’ll have to pay us cash sir.” “Can’t you give me one more day? You have picked a banking holiday and one of the coldest days of the year to cut off our power.” “Sorry sir. Your bill was due ___. It’s your responsibiliity..” “Don’t talk to me about responsibility. You know nothing of my situation so do not preach to me. Now let’s assume the money is in a money market account. I can’t get to that until tomorrow.” “Sir, the trucks don’t run at night. They’ll start running at 8am tomorrow. If you can get us payment first thing and call, we might be able to stop the cutoff.” “You do know my phone run off your electricity?” Thank goodness this month’s issue of MAKE tells us how to make our own power with the wind!
Cold, darkness comes February 20, 2006 1:18 pm
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Daily LifeQuestion: If you are working a regular 8-5 job, when KUB puts a pink note on your door at 1pm to say they will cut off power at 5pm, how do you deal with this when you get home at 6:30pm?
Answer: People with regular jobs don’t have the cash flow issues that causes such problems. Anyone hiring programmers? Looks like I’m on the clearance rack. I’ve got about 4 more hours of working for myself.
Funny. I just tried called KUB to get "I’m sorry. All circuits are busy now. Please try your call again later."
Insult to injury: The banks are closed today. I can’t even move money around!
5commentsGood programmer! February 20, 2006 10:18 am
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Daily Life, Programming, TechnologyI love it when I think "I need a document to _____." and then I find out that I’ve already written it. Documentation is such a good thing! Programmers that think they will "get around to documenting after the project" or that "no one ever uses documentation" must suffer a lot on maintenance projects or when additional work comes around. I bet they say "it would be cheaper and easier for me to just start over" a whole bunch.
1 comment so farHappy President’s Day! February 20, 2006 10:00 am
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Politics, Touchy Subjects, United StatesBah. I was going to upload a patriotic image and after getting it all prep’d I realized that whatever $5/hour artist made it put the flag up backwards.
For all you government workers, enjoy your day off.
add a commentBenefits of a job? February 20, 2006 9:06 am
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : News, Of Interest, SexIn today’s economics, businesses continue to cut job perks:
SPOTSYLVANIA, Va. – The sheriff said Friday he will no longer allow detectives to receive sexual services while investigating suspected prostitution after they spent $1,200 at massage parlors last month.
…county detectives allowed women at Moon Spa to perform sex acts on them — once leaving a $350 tip
I can see the candidates at their interview. "See, we don’t pay great, but…"
add a commentDrink it up Evan! February 20, 2006 8:44 am
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Daily Life, Evan, FamilyI gave Evan 30mL of water mixed with 30mL of apple juice and this morning he figured out that if he tilts the bottle he gets the drink. Until today he has just chewed the nipple unless I was holding it for him. Go Evan!
add a commentThe Other Lost – discussed February 19, 2006 3:13 pm
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Lost, Of Interest, TV / MoviesThanks to Newscoma, there is some chatter about Henry Gale’s anagram at The Fuselage.
There is also some discussion at The Tail Section.
More Lost goodies at Mr. Find’s Uncovering ABC TV’s Lost including images implying that the monster was on the plane.
1 comment so farDaddy, snap it up! February 19, 2006 12:41 pm
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Daily Life, Evan, Family, Of Being DadIf there is one thing that I do really bad, it’s getting those snaps together on baby clothes. There should be something better! And when Evan starts kicking, we both start agonizing.
add a commentWe Storm IHOP Again February 19, 2006 10:51 am
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Amy, Cathy, Daily Life, Evan, Family, Sarah
I’m thinking IHOP needs its own category!
On Friday night the whole crew, minus Tommy who chose to stay home and play video games, went out to eat. We replaced Tommy with one of Sarah‘s friends. Lakesha (pictured), who knows us by name, came by for a visit. She always tries to get Evan to interact and sometimes he gives smiles while other times he cries. Tonight he giggled.
I love this photo because you can see the love pouring from Sarah and Noah into their brother. Not pictured was the jealous Amy. Looking at this picture makes it is easy to understand why Amy is acting out. Amy, once the center of the universe, has been dethroned. Making sure each child gets a balanced amount of attention is always a challenge in a big family. I really like to see that each week each child gets one on one time with at least one parent. That time might be a game of chess, reading a book together, or several hours belaying at the climbing gym.
Naturally we demolished IHOP and as we exited, the HAZMAT team entered. I think they are on contract now.
Remember, FREE Pancake Day is coming February 28.
1 comment so farFrom the mouths of babes February 18, 2006 11:09 am
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Daily Life, Family, From the mouths of babes, SarahLast night Sarah (12 years), with sleep over friend, discovers Cathy’s egg photo (probably not worksafe) [tamer picture (worksafe)].
Sarah, embarassed: "That’s the weirdest thing I’ve ever seen!"
Because milk helps them grow… February 18, 2006 10:44 am
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Daily Life, Evan, FamilyAnd ice cream has milk…
I thought I juggled well! February 17, 2006 11:18 pm
Posted by Doug McCaughan in : Amy, Cathy, Daily Life, Evan, Family, NoahNow that’s a wife!
