avablog

What’s worse than catching a cold in the summer?  Blech.  Fortunately, I just got an e-mail that’ll keep me going: “Tour De Brew” Seventh Annual Brewery Bike Ride Saturday, July 14, 2007 INFORMATION: ·        Route is Old Capitol Brew Works in Iowa City to Millstream Brewing in Amana.  The exact route will […]

[Read more →]

And I was not prepared for it. Not prepared at all. I expected this conversation when she was six–NOT when she was three months away from her third birthday!

[Read more →]

From the WSJ: American men in their 30s today are worse off than their fathers’ generation, a reversal from just a decade ago, when sons generally were better off than their fathers, a new study finds. Well, I’m in my 30s, but I don’t know that I’m worse off than my father was when we […]

[Read more →]

Some people just are. You know the type. They’re thick skinned and resilient. They’re no-nonsense survivors. They can look at any potentially sad or scary or negative situation and see a glass half full. I’m not of that ilk. Nor am I of the ilk that sees the glass as half empty. No, I’m the […]

[Read more →]

Really. I never cease to be amazed by the number and variation of ways people find to off themselves, particularly kids. The odds against something like this have got to be millions to one. Also, do you keep scissors on top of your fridge? Girl Dies Falling From Chair With Scissors POSTED: 9:53 am CDT […]

[Read more →]

I spent a couple minutes packing up some books today, one of which turned out to be my high school yearbook. It was hidden at the back of a bookcase, sitting sideways behind the more palatable reading material. “Why don’t you get rid of that?” Leah asked. That wouldn’t actually pain me too greatly, but […]

[Read more →]

I almost forgot to write this down, but it’s a biggie. When we were at the Holiday Inn Express in North Platte on the way out, Ava and I took a dip in the pool. We’d been promising her she could go swimming, and there were times on the drive when it was the only […]

[Read more →]

So much for the Icebox of the Nation.  The high in Fraser today is going to be 51.  In Iowa City?  Thirty-six.  Looks like it’ll warm up a bit before we get back, but not a whole lot.  Spring.  Feh.  Go figure.

[Read more →]

In case any of my loyal readers are curious about where we’re staying this week, here’s a link to info about Fraser, CO, co-claimant to the title of The Nation’s Icebox. It’s been very nice while we’ve been here.  Mostly sunny, highs in the lower 50s.  Yesterday was a bit windy, but today’s much calmer.  […]

[Read more →]

Just got into our room a bit ago. It’s pretty nice. Here’s a shot from our window: Ava never did nap today, and she spent the last couple hours of the day running around at her cousin Zack’s birthday party. You lucky registered users will get to see the fallout from that in a subsequent […]

[Read more →]

Pretty uneventful day on the road. Before we left, I got my camera out of my bag and set it next to the driver’s seat, just in case. It wasn’t long before I saw something I wanted to get a picture of. So, this guy buys a Navigator for God knows how much, and when […]

[Read more →]

Recent blog comments indicate I’ve missed posting about some recent developments. So, here goes…. First, the new job. I interviewed and was hired for a new position in my department, so I’m not going anywhere. It’s not only a new position to me, but it’s a new position in my workplace, and my first order […]

[Read more →]

Ava and I were in the side garden last evening after work, clearing some dead leaves and branches from the bed to make way for all the new greenery poking up everywhere. To our surprise, a clump of wet brown twigs were covering this beauty: A teensy crocus straining to get some sun. I don’t […]

[Read more →]

So my mom asks me last night if I can help her this morning with a load of junk she’s hauling out to the local landfill. “Sure,” I say. I needed a ride to work anyway, since Friday is Leah’s day off. My mom rolls up to our place at 7:1o. I hop into the […]

[Read more →]

I had an interview today for a new position at my office. It was an excuse to get dolled up a bit in my fancy duds, which typically only leave the closet when there’s a wedding or a funeral to attend. Here’s what I looked like: That’s my JC Penney pose.  You can tell little […]

[Read more →]

In case anyone was wondering where Ava gets it: As near as we can tell, this picture was taken when Leah was about Ava’s age.

[Read more →]

About 6 last evening Leah made the decision that we weren’t going to wait at home for the electricity to come back on. So we loaded up and slogged across town to the hotel. As you can see, it didn’t take Ava long to get settled. That’s her monkey Butterfly sprawled out on the bed. […]

[Read more →]

Leah surprised me this morning with a new Italian wool sweater and a nice dress coat.  Wonderful gifts, particularly for this ongoing cold snap. I certainly do feel sorry for Leah sometimes.  She takes a lot of pride in — and puts a lot of effort into — her own appearance, but she’s married to […]

[Read more →]

And speaking of dogs (trust me, non-registered users, I was just speaking of dogs), here’s a shot of me, my mom, my brother, and our first dog, Zipper, taken sometime around…oh boy…uh, ’77? Zipper got her name from being really fast. She’d zip all over our back yard and hop the short fence between our […]

[Read more →]

I spotted Kevin a flickr pro account; no one should be without one. He’s putting up some pictures, slowly, and he got one up recently that shows the attic at his house that we spent the past weekend drywalling. It was mostly finished off before I arrived, so all Kevin and I had to do […]

[Read more →]