Mobile post sent by djuggler using Utterz. Replies. mp3
Month: August 2008
You mean tomorrow?! Btw, happy birthday Tommy!
Today Tommy turns 18! Hard to fathom. I blinked and he grew up. Tomorrow he heads off to college. Today I am frantically trying to impart all of life’s knowledge onto him and simultaneously trying to prepare his laptop with coolio tools of success (and teach him to use them).
Thus far, I have set GMail up as his email client (Outlook is forbidden on LMU’s campus because "it is responsible for spreading viruses"…uh…more on that later). GMail is checking his various POP accounts although I haven’t configured it for LMU’s student email yet. I assume that is possible but I could be wrong as it could be crippled to the point of only being able to use their own web client. World of Warcrap has been uninstalled along with several other related things that Tommy installed despite our prohibition. He tried hiding them from me by deleting the shortcuts from the Start Menu. Apparently Tommy thinks I’m a n00bish neophyte. Avast has been updated and is doing a thorough scan. Adaware and SpyBot Search N Destroy have been installed. Firefox has been updated to version 3 with the following Add-ons: Delicious Bookmarks, Forecastbar Enhanced, Adblock Plus, and Adblock Filterset.G Updater. I helped Tommy create a del.icio.us account (did you know del.icio.us is now delicious.com? YaaahoooooO$$$) and a Jott account. He has had some mad crash course style training on GMail, labeling, Inbox Zero, Delicious, and Jott.
Happy Birthday Tommy!
Update: All Windows Vista updates and patches applied. Skype setup. Palm Desktop setup. Added links to important websites. Installed Microsoft Office Professional 2007. Palm Centrino sync’ing with Gmail via IMAP. Flickr account (basic) created.
Heroes Message: Stay the Course
How vivid are your dreams?
My dreams are filled with color, details, and sound. Last night I was watching a well machine, straight as an arrow, perfectly round one inch thick steel bar. While I looked at the bar from close distance, it hung in the air with no apparent forces being applied to the bar then without warning it snapped in the middle with an incredible, piercing pop! I flinched to miss any shrapnel, and in the process bolted upright in bed, wide awake, with my ears ringing and heart racing.
No interpretation needed. That dream is as clear as the single, ear splitting pop which came out of the dream and into the real world.
Woke this morning to the sound of …
Actually I was already awake and working at my computer when I started hearing the pleasant sound of wind chimes tinkling in the breeze which reminded me that I should probably purchase a wind chime. I open the back door and the air is calm. The noise went away. I close the door and it comes back. Perfectly tuned chimes! So nice. Eventually I have to seek out the noise. Finding the source is not difficult because the upstairs hallway is awash in a rainbow of flashing light. See, Granny switched to AT&T Wirless and gave her old Verizon phone and charger to Evan so he could have his own cell phone complete with an alarm of music and flashing multicolored lights set to go off at 5am!
Of Grasshoppers
Student: All choices are wrong.
Master: All choices are nothing more than choices.
Seeking Recommendations – Drum Instructor
My son is doing percussion in the 7th grade. I think this is the year he should have some private instruction. Can you recommend a drum instructor preferably near Rocky Hill or West Town Mall in Knoxville, TN?
Thank you Twitters!
We just had an enormous scare. It was expected. Sarah entered Rocky Hill Elementary School in the third grade. On her first day home, she failed to get on her bus and we drove to the school to pick her up. On her second day home, she rode the bus but did not get off at her stop which was no problem; the bus driver drove her back to the school and we picked her up. Amy now shares a similar story.
On Monday, I picked Amy up in the carpool because we had to rush over to the Expo Center to work the School Matters booth. That confused the teachers so on Tuesday they sent her to the carpool instead of putting her on the bus so I picked her up in the office. Today was her first day riding the bus home. I could not find Cathy and assumed she was napping. Tweet! I leashed Dharma for some much needed training, donned by iPod with some Jimmy Buffett playing, and walked calmly to the bus stop where I realized my cell phone (doubles as my timepiece) was still sitting on my desk. Much to my surprise, Cathy walks up to me announcing, "that’s strike 2!" referring to my failure to respond to her text message asking about where the children get dropped off this year. The bus pulls up and 4 neighborhood children bounce out but not our Amy. In our stunned silence, the bus just starts to pull away. We were too far away to converse with the driver. I almost whistled for him but assumed Amy was in the office at the school. A moment later one of the children is explaining that Amy was on the bus! I have transportation’s number on speed dial on my cell phone but the phone is on my desk 1/4 mile away and we are on foot. Cathy calls the school as we make haste toward the house and they explain that they don’t have a way to call the driver. No worries. The bus will just take her back to the school at the end of the run.
I return to the house and decide to get back to work. Cathy is going to run around and fetch Amy, and her older sister and a friend from the high school. Everyone is calm. We part company and a few seconds later my cell rings to tell me the school called and Amy got off at Dunbarton Oaks! Tweet! That’s on the wrong side of the dangerous and busy, dreaded Northshore Drive! With Amy’s hard-headedness I could easily see her crossing Northshore. I direct Cathy, "take a right on Northshore then immediately turn left into Dunbarton Oaks." She calls back, "I’m at Kingsington." I picture her in Farragut (which she’s not) hours away from being able to reach Amy who is obviously playing Frogger on Boothillshores Drive. I race out the door and pretend like I’m still a sprinter in high school track. Tweet! It doesn’t matter if I have a heart attack as long as I reach Amy in time! I reach and cross Northshore. Cathy calls to say she has been in Dunbarton Oaks and one road closer to our neighborhood, which I’d forgotten existed, and there is no sign of Amy. Tweet! By this time, I’m at the same cross road as Cathy and I take the drivers seat in the van along with my wheezing. Tweet! Cathy gets a call to say a mother, who used to be a teacher, has Amy in her yard in Dunbarton Oaks and is waiting for us. Tweet!
Thank you to everyone who Twittered your thoughts as we lived this scare! Thanks to @Critter, @nathanblevins and here, @Digitarius, @knoxgirl75, @MariAdkins, @bobmissy07, @alanstevens, @overtlytrite, @dwneylonsr, @mwoodvols, and @areynolds65! And thanks to all others that were thinking of Amy. Hope I didn’t miss anyone. Thank you all! It would not have surprised me (nor Amy) much if someone pulled up and said, "I’m from Twitter! Stay right here your parents will be here in a moment." Of course, I hope she would not get in the car unless she knew you.
Related: I do blog the kids lives
Son to preschool – Twitter covers it
Toddler introduced to preschool. They grow so fast! 1 hour ago from txt
lasthome I remember when he was just an Easter egg 😉 1 hour ago from twhirl in reply to djuggler
bobmissy07 @djuggler The Feral Child? 43 minutes ago from web in reply to djuggler
RussM @bobmissy07 As some commenter said to @cathymccaughan, he’s not feral — he’s free-range. 38 minutes ago from web in reply to bobmissy07
bobmissy07 @russM Sorry, I get those confused sometimes. Guess I should hope that the restaurant selling freerange chicken doesn’t do the same, right? 32 minutes ago from web in reply to RussM
lasthome @RussM I think he’s a LOLkid. 30 minutes ago from twhirl in reply to RussM
RussM I think @lasthome nailed it. 20 minutes ago from web
Note: Don’t mind the time stamps. This was hard to type. I understand why people screenshot their Tweets.Timestamps fixed.
Update: For those wondering about the Easter egg comment, when Cathy was pregnant with Evan, Easter 2005, we painted her belly as an Easter egg (and a couple of other parts as flowers) then published the photo. The resourceful can find the picture on Flickr.
Read her story – Motherhood and Cancer
A dear friend of mine from college is battling cancer. Her heart wrenching updates to her blog will bring tears to your eyes. She is a wonderful mother and a wonderful person!
I would like to make it to 50. That’s only 16 years away. Captain Adorable won’t even be 18, but he will have had me for his entire childhood and his formative years. Barring that, I would really like to live long enough to teach him to read. [Source]
Band students need instruments
Who are these people?
In Reality
Over the years, I have been told that we have two ears and one mouth because we should be listening twice as much as we speak. The truth of the matter is that for the most part, speaking is a waste of effort. I think it takes most of our lives to realize this which is why its the old men who keep their lips shut; has very little to do with hearing loss.