avablog

I take a large.

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Gramary and Uncle Scott took Ava to a festival at the local Catholic high school (education center; it’s more than just a high school) over the weekend. They were also joined by Scott’s friend Valerie and her daughter. A couple choice pics (not taken by me): and… Ava carries on her great grandmother’s fondness for […]

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Leah, Ava, and I were joined by my dad yesterday for a trip down to Mt. Pleasant to visit the Old Threshers Reunion. It was a perfect day for it. Ava was like Templeton the rat from Charlotte’s Web, running around from food stand to food stand, eating everything she could get her hands on. […]

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Michael Jackson just turned 50. Why is it so difficult for me to wrap my mind around that fact? I wonder if he can still do the moonwalk….

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I watched Hillary’s speech at the DNC last night on NBC. She looked pretty good in HD. I hope her words were enough to convince her supporters that this election is not about Hillary or Barack but about the country. We’ll see in November, I guess.

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Watching the Olympics here. Women’s beach volleyball. I don’t follow the sport, but I do like watching and playing volleyball, so when the pros are playing in the Olympics, well, I’m there.

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Refer to it in your advertising as a “ginormous yum rocket.” Who comes up with this stuff? I think this was an ad for Subway that ran last night during either Law & Order or Project Runway (do NOT get me started on Suede. Just don’t.). In any case, it was a truly gag-inducing bit […]

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So I’m quickly reading through one of my favorite blogs this morning, and I come across the news that Laura Lieghton turns 40 today. I was never a big Melrose Place fan, but that’s the show on which Laura made her big break. Anyway, she’s from I.C.; I think she went to West High. I […]

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I was originally thinking that there would be maybe two readers here who would have any interest in reading about the trials and tribulations of my home theater/Apple TV setup, but then — as I thought more — I figured, what could it hurt? Don’t click through unless you know what a TOSlink cable is. […]

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The challenge: Familiarize your toddler with the Internet/WWW and all its crazy little nooks and crannies. The answer: Baby’s First Internet It’s funny because it’s true (< -- did you see what I did there?) Denny, Aprille, Jen, Mara, Dawn, Ben, Kathryn, Cindy (AND Nathan!)...I'm looking at you (not all at once, but, like, one […]

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…I will: WTF happened to Carrot Top?!

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I mean, I never miss an episode of The Hills, either. I wonder if McCain knows the show isn’t named after Heidi’s chest. I wonder if he cares….

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And by that, I mean I hate people like my friend Ben, who sneakily slide their gorgeous iPhones out of their pockets when I’m not looking. Then, before I know it, I’m staring at this gleaming piece of hardware laid out on some bar table somewhere, and my technolust washes over me like a sepsis-induced […]

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Our friend Megan told us a story yesterday about how she locked her keys in her car and had to impose on the kindness of her husband, Ed, to dig up the spare keys and bring them to her. Ed wasn’t pleased. When Megan finally got home, Ed was lying on the sofa with a […]

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Last night I heard the first cicada of the season. July 5, 2008, Iowa City, IA. As I type this, more are buzzing away over the lilting notes of Jazz guitar coming from downtown. None of which we’d hear with the A/C on….

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The reviews are pouring in, and they’re love songs. Looks like I’m going to have to wait for this one to come out on DVD, which is fine with me. The more I go to movies, the more I’m reminded why I don’t go to movies. Seems the odds are anymore that my experience will […]

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Sometimes I see something on the Wonderful Wide Web (frequently on BoingBoing) that pushes a magical button way, way deep down inside my being. Here’s the most recent cause for delight: A “one-of-a-kind” Lego replica of Syd Mead’s Spinner flying car from the movie Blade Runner. Oh. Man. How Lego doesn’t go into mass production […]

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Who doesn’t have a minute for Cameo? The little dancer is just a bonus.

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Leah and I are viewers of Top Chef, a show on the Bravo network that pits chefs against each other to see which is the best. I’m sure I’m not exhibiting any great prescience when I say I picked Richard as a finalist from the first episode. He seemed more polished, imaginative, and skilled than […]

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