Let your yes be yes...

Amber and I had a sad revelation today. We are becoming an endangered species, the married couple that stays married. I do not know what the failure rate is for marriages today, but I think it is 60% or higher. That is such a sad statistic. Amber and I have been married for 9 years now and it seems to us like no time at all. The scary thing is that most people would look at us and think we have been together "forever." It just seems to me that when people vow to someone "for better or worse," and "til death do us part," that better than 40% of them would actually MEAN IT. I usually try to stay away from preaching or politics on my blog, but it was a sobering thought that our 9 year marriage would be considered a "long" one. I could really go on and on about taking responsibility and how everything is someone else's fault these days. Let me just finish my preaching by thanking my parents and my in-laws for setting a standard and providing two great examples to their children of taking a vow and meaning it.

Lots to say

So much time and so little to say. Strike that, reverse it. I feel like I have a bunch of stuff to talk about, but I am afraid it will only come out as random anecdotes and ramblings. I am in a musical "mood," if you could call it that. I took my MP3 player to work this weekend and it was eye-opening to hear some tunes again. I listened to some classic rock, contemporary Christian, and of course, The Beatles. Then, Amadeus was on this evening. Although it is not really a documentary, it is a great movie and Mozart had unbelieveable talent. So, after listening to The Beatles, and watching Amadeus, I have been thinking about people who can not only play wonderful music, but about the people who wrote it. Mozart was composing at 4, can you believe that? Lennon and McCartney went from Love Me Do to the epic Abbey Road and even to the sometimes bizarre white album. There was a big evolution in their songs from the early to late 60's, but they still produced some of the best music ever (in my opinion). I just want to interject a word of thanks to my Dad for introducing me to most of the music I have been talking about. Without Dad's album collection or listening to classic rock stations to and from our trips to work, I would have no idea who Edgar Winter is or what the rockin' pneumonia and boogie woogie flu is. Dad's enjoyment became my enjoyment. Then, about when I hit my junior year of high school, I started to have my own music to enjoy. Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Stone Temple Pilots, and some other bands from the Seattle area just really seemed to have the music I liked. When the lead singer of Nirvana died, the drummer, Dave Grohl, went on to make an album of songs he had written. He played drums, guitar, bass, and sang on almost the whole album. Just another example of a really gifted musician and song writer, just in a different package than John Lennon or Paul McCartney. Actually, Dave Grohl recently got up on stage at a Paul McCartney concert and played drums for Band on the Run (one of McCartney's hits with his band Wings), and Grohl's group, the Foo Fighters, did a remake of the song. I feel like I am rambling a little, but as I say, listening to some music has gotten me thinking.

Post-birthday thoughts

Well, Abbie's 3rd birthday has officially ended. Celebrations may now cease. All kidding aside, things went pretty well with the birthday this year. Amber toned down the extravaganza and I think it helped her (Amber) to be able to relax a little and enjoy the party more. Abbie had a good time at Chuckie Cheese with Barney, but really enjoyed the cupcakes and presents at home. The family enjoyed putting together Abbie's blocks (yes, we really did). At my parents house it was fun to see Abbie playing with Rachel, Rosie and Lawrence. I did not take my camera, so I am sorry for no pictures of that. I was glad to have some time off to celebrate, it was a fun time.

It was different to see Mom and Dad's new house. The house at Newkirk was such an icon that I have a tough time thinking of Mom and Dad "at home" anywhere else. Their new home is real nice. It is always fun to get into a home that no one else has been in yet. They both seemed happy with the home and I think being nearer to Jami and the kids is good for Mom and Dad and Jami. They are closer to us, too. It really is not that far for us, but that two lane highway through rural Oklahoma is a little bothersome at times (for some reason, Dueling banjos started playing in my head).

While we were at Mom and Dad's, Jami played the piano. I fancy myself to at least be musically informed, but the piano is just beyond me. I took lessons as a youngster, but of course did not apply myself and they did not take. Now, I would love to be able to sit at a piano, put a sheet of music up and just play. That is a wonderful talent. I suppose I could pick up a tuba and play, but as you know, tubas are not quite as melodious as pianos. It is a little tougher to find one lying around, too. I say all that to say that I am proud and even jealous of my talented sister. I wish I had her talent with the piano.

OK, I am going to see what stinky-britches is up to. Have a good weekend. Oh, by the way, Tiger Woods is one shot off the lead in the US Open after two rounds. It may not sound like much, but it is his first tournament back since having knee surgery, so he is allowed to struggle, isn't he?

Abbie Kay is 3 today!

Three years ago today, Abbie was born. It is hard to believe. I remember some things very vividly, but I am already having trouble remembering how small she was, and what it was like to have a newborn to take home. Three years have passed so quickly, and I am afraid that they are going to pass even quicker now. As the great orator and leader Ferris Bueller once said, "Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once and a while, you could miss it."


HAPPY BIRTHDAY, SQUIRT, DADDY LOVES YOU!

Horses, horses, horses

I have talked before about Tiger Woods and how dominant he has been in golf. I also talked about this year's New England Patriots and their try for a perfect season. But, the triple crown chase this year in horse racing has had me remembering a horse that dominated before I was even born. This picture is of Secretariat winning the 1973 Belmont stakes in what is possibly the most dominant display by a horse ever. He won by 31 lengths, and ran a time for the mile and 1/2 that has never been matched. I just watched his Kentucky Derby, Preakness, and Belmont wins on YouTube (just search Secretariat super horse on YouTube). The video is not the best, but the soundtrack is from the movie "Superman," and it is really something to see the performances this horse put on. I am not a horse racing person. But, I do think horses are very beautiful, graceful, and powerful animals. I do not know if another horse will come along like Secretariat, but I would love to watch if it does.

Pictures

Here are some pictures from Memorial Day weekend at Oilton. There were a ton to choose from. It was good to get Abbie together with her cousins, I am hoping to do more of that in the future.

Congrats Hannah!

Our niece Hannah graduated High school last week. She was in the top 10% of a class of over 600. That was pretty impressive to someone from a class of 52 (number of students, not the year, thank you). I had a different take on this graduation than I have before. After the ceremony, we went to Hannah's parent's house for food and presents. Howard and Alana had put together a slide show of Hannah growing up. It made me realize how fast things happen and that Abbie will be there in no time. I cannot imagine how hard it will be for Howard and Alana to let their little girl go. It breaks my heart to think of how to deal with that. I also came away from graduation with more respect for Howard and Alana. In the times that we live, they have done a great job in raising a wonderful, smart, and respectful young woman. I think being around more families like theirs was one of our main reasons for moving here. I think we have not expressed that enough. The whole evening was impressive to me, and I was glad to be a part of it.

Little Miss Sunshine

Abbie's last day at Mother's day out was Thursday. They had a little program to celebrate. Each class came out and sang a song or two for the audience. Abbie's class sang one of her favorite songs. She must have been overwhelmed with the crowd, because she did more staring than singing. The night before she had been singing her song a little differently than usual. She kept inserting the word "loud" at a certain point in the song. We figured they had been practicing and the teachers were telling them to sing louder as they sang the song. It was a real fun thing to watch, and it makes me feel like Abbie is growing up. She is talking more and more each day. One of her favorite shows is called "Signing Time." It is on PBS and is a cool show that teaches sign language. It has helped Abbie with new words and she has learned the signs, too. I think it is going to be another beautiful day today. I hope to get out and walk or go to the park so Abbie can play outside. She loves to be outside whenever she can. I hope everyone has a good weekend.

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there. I have to say this one was good and bad for us. It was good for Amber and I to spend some time together when I got home from work this weekend. It was bad because Abbie had an ear infection and we had to cancel our trip to see my Mom and their new house. Amber's mother was also very ill and bedridden today. It can really create problems when I have to work on the weekend. Abbie's little ear issues cause problems, too. I was very dissappointed that we did not get to see Mom and Dad. It has been tough to get time to see them since we moved down here. I am hoping that their moving will help with some of that. But I do hope everyone has had a wonderful Mother's day.

Getting back in the swing

It sure is good to start a new week. Last week was not a good one around here. My last post about vomit was meant to put some humor to something that is not humorous. Unfortunately, the vomit was just the beginning. Abbie was sick all week with fever, vomiting, and diarrhea. She just could not shake it. A couple of times during the week she seemed to have turned the corner, only to throw up again later. Amber came down with the vomiting in a big way on Wednesday night. She could not keep anything down through Thursday. It got bad enough that we went to the emergency room on Thursday afternoon. Amber was given 2 bags of IV fluids and some anti-nausea medication. Abbie took some medication but would not drink anything, so she had to have an IV, too. She did much better than you would think a 2 1/2 year old would do getting an IV in the arm. Abbie sat in between my legs and rested her head on my stomach while she got the IV. It was amazing to see the change in her after the fluid got into her system. She started talking and even singing some, too. It was good to hear. Amber said it was surprising how good the fluids made her feel. After the ER visit, Abbie really made a quick recovery. Momma still had a day or so of recovery, but seemed to be closer to 100% today. Abbie has really taken to playing with her swingset, as you can see in the pictures. We took over 30 pictures this evening while she was playing. She seems to be a daredevil. She climbs the rope ladder by herself and slides down the slide (especially if she has an audience). Ralph and Janice brought some sand for the sandbox and Abbie loves that, too. She kept trying to feed the sand to Al. After such a tough week, it was great to have our family healthy, happy, and home to play outside and enjoy the beautiful weather today.

Why are hospital emesis basins so small?

emesis
noun
the reflex act of ejecting the contents of the stomach through the mouth [syn: vomit, upchuck, barf, ralph, spew, hurl, heave, puke, blow chunks, call Ralph on the big white phone, air out your gastric contents, barf up a lung, be a food fountain, burp for the hearing impaired, decorate the porcelain, make an alimentary u-turn]

Abbie has been sick the past couple of days. If you could not guess, she was throwing up. For some strange reason, I have been thinking about emesis lately. I can not remember seeing Abbie vomit like she did on Saturday. It was like her mouth was the end of the faucet and the valve was all the way open. I started thinking, that takes some violence to get the fluids flying up like that. When the body does not want something in the stomach, it has a stout mechanism to get rid of it. Seinfeld had an episode where Jerry talked about his vomit streak. He had not puked in 13 years. The streak came to an end near the end of the episode. I am sure Mom has been shaking her head and muttering, "Where did I go wrong?" while she reads this. Sorry Mom, but seeing Abbie spew gave me a new perspective on reverse peristalsis. I felt it was a relevant and worthwhile topic to chew on (pardon the pun). If anyone is interested, I found a website with a huge number of vomit synonyms (you know, for parties and such): http://www.geocities.com/mbordt/chunder2.htm .

Mornin'

I have been a little under the weather the past couple of days. Some kind of cold or something that has really taken it out of me. I felt much better today. Especially when I was awakened by this little face saying, "Mornin', mornin'." I took this picture last Sunday. Abbie had a matching dress with her little doll and she just looked beautiful. Amber and I have commented on how much more fun it is with Abbie the more she speaks. I used to feel like we carried on conversations without her speaking, but now I can not get a word in edgewise. Anyway, I am feeling better and I hope to be 100% by the weekend. I think I will need it since Mom has lots of work planned for me. I am so excited!

"That don't make no sense"

Sometimes when I start a new post, I look at the blank square and I draw a blank. But, there are times when I have a blog that just seems to grow and fester inside my head. I often have all the words and phrases that I want to say in my mind, but when I type the blog it often does not turn out how I had thought it would. I wish I could connect my thoughts to the computer the way I do with the digital camera. Just download the thoughts and trim them up on the computer. Anyway, this is a blog that I have been thinking about for awhile, I hope it comes out the way I have pictured.
My mother is an English teacher. I say IS even though she is retired, because you do not stop teaching English even though you are not in the classroom. Growing up with a mother who taught English was good and bad. It was good when I had papers to write because she could help me correct them and could give me a feel for what was a good paper and a bad paper. It was bad when she corrected my speech (many, many, many, many times) because I was speaking incorrectly. As I have grown, I have learned (surprisingly enough), and I try to speak and write correctly. Every time I write a post, I worry over the grammar because I do not want to make a mistake. I am by no means an English teacher, but Mom taught me well. So now I have the curse of noticing grammar mistakes around me. It is like fingernails on the chalkboard to hear how some people butcher the English language (again, I am not an English teacher, nor do I claim to be one). I am not talking about dangling participles or ending sentences with prepositions. I am talking about blatant, brutal, and egregious mistakes that non-English teachers' sons would catch. I have a co-worker (yes here is the reason for this whole diatribe) who speaks very little in terms of correct grammar, but speaks great volumes in terms of sheer words. One of her favorite exclamations is "that don't make no sense." IT IS NOT SAID FOR EFFECT, SHE MEANS IT! Now, I know this all sounds petty and it probably is, but imagine hearing phrases like that all day, every day at work. Can you see where I am coming from? I realize that "they don't know no better," but when that kind of language is used in dealing with the public, I think it makes the rest of us look bad, too. I am serious, sometimes I just think to myself, "You did not just say that, did you?" Maybe I notice her speech because she is abrasive and rubs me the wrong way, but I think I would notice even if a good friend talked like that.

I do not want to think higher of myself than others, but that is pretty much what I have done, isn't it? I just wanted to get something out that bugs me. I am definitely NOT saying I am perfect in my grammar, but it does bother me when things don't make no sense.

"I've got the genetics for it"

There are a number of ways to say it. "The apple does not fall far from the tree," or "she is her mother's daughter." The way we always said it in my family was, "He has the genetics for it." Things that our parents have given to us, and often their parents gave to them. I am grateful for many of the traits that I have from my parents, but migraine headaches are not one of them. I have always been thankful that I did not have headaches like Dad has had. This morning, I had a migraine. It is strange to think of a headache making you sick to your stomach, but it sure can. I generally would not be so sure of calling it a migraine, but when migraine medication gets rid of it, it is probably a migraine. Amber had a sample of Relpax left over from her battle with migraines a couple of years ago. I had to try it because I would not have been much good at work in that condition. After a couple of hours, I felt OK. As migraines go, it probably was not the worst in the world, but it was one of the worst headaches I have had. Amber thinks I should see a doctor because my headaches have been increasing in number and (unfortunately) severity. After the one this morning, I am inclined to agree with her. I talked with Dad tonight about his headaches and the similarities with mine. He said he had had a migraine this morning, too. It just makes me think that I had better get some more medication before the next one. Because I have a bad feeling that there WILL be a next one. Thanks, Dad, I really appreciate it!

Swing, plee

The picture on the left is from June 4, 2006, the picture on the right is from today. I finally put Abbie's swingset back together. She was quite pleased. I wondered if she would still like to swing as much as she did before. She does, only now she can say, "Swing, plee." The "z" sound at the end of please has not been figured out yet. She was not at all happy to get out after her swing. Abbie does seem to be learning please, thank you, and your welcome. Although they are sounding more like "plee, cank you, welcome" she does get the timing right of when to say each.

Happy Birthday Ralph

My father-in-law turned 70 on St. Patrick's Day. Abbie learned this rendition of Happy Birthday for him. He has the birthday present that keeps on giving: kidney stones. He is going in on Monday to try and break them up. Ralph and Janice are great in-laws. They have always been supportive and never tried to make our decisions for us. But, since June 9, 2005, they seem to be interested in one member of our family much more than the others! We are planning on having a party this weekend for Ralph, it should be a HOOT! Have a good weekend.

"That really grinds my gears"

You want to know what really grinds my gears?

1. Cell Phone etiquette

-how many times do you see someone driving who is NOT on a cell phone?

-I hate those little earpiece phones that people wear around so they do not even have to hold their cell phone while they talk. I think people wear them because they think they look cool, THEY DON'T.

-I hate it when people come to drop off or pick up a prescription and continue their call while I am trying to talk to them. They even seem bothered that I would interrupt their call. That is just about as rude as you can be without actually saying, "You are worthless to me."

2. Beating up on Wal-Mart

-I know that Wal-Mart underpays its people, runs mom and pop stores out of business, and just generally ruins the areas that they are built in, but what is the big deal? Just because it is the biggest corporation in the world, does that mean it is evil? I about went through the phone this past week at another PHARMACIST because he said I was giving away my prescription counselling for free. He said that since we were selling prescriptions for $4 that we had to either not be counselling or doing it for free. I went back and forth with him some and he finally said, "Did you go to OU or Southwestern?" When I told him Southwestern, he said "That figures." Man I was hot. Just because I choose not to have my own pharmacy and work at a chain, I am selling out and devaluing my education? Give me a break.

I could go on, but I think that is enough ranting for one evening. Remind me to tell you about Abbie playing Rockband and Guitar Hero. It is pretty funny. She is becoming a glory hound.

Father's Day

"I tried hard to have a father, but instead I had a Dad." -"Serve the Servants," Nirvana


I have come to a conclusion. This is a serious issue and one that I have thought about long and hard. I know many of you may not believe this one but I am sure I am right. Ready? OK, here it is: I LOVE AND ADMIRE MY FATHER VERY MUCH. Shocking, isn't it? I came to this realization as I thought about how I have seen my father in people around me. My Chemistry professor and advisor in college, Dr. Baxter, reminded me of my father very much. A couple of pharmacists that I have worked with reminded me of dad. And, most recently, Hugh Laurie in House, reminds me of dad. Let me explain the last one, I do not mean he reminds me of dad in how he acts to people. He just looks like dad. His eyes and expressions make it seem like my father is playing that part. When House bought a motorcycle, and then had a migraine (even though it was self-induced) it was just like, hey this sure reminds me of dad. House is also very intelligent, and he does the right thing (even if his methods to get there are somewhat shady). I say all this to illustrate that when I see my father in others I feel like it is a tribute to him. I and my father are not the best communicators on the planet (just ask our wives), but the example that he gave me in his actions was far more than he could ever say. I just hope I can have a similar impact on Abbie.


This is one of the songs that Abbie learned at Mother's day out. It is heard in the halls of our home almost as much as the B,B,C's and "How I wonder what you are."

ABC's

If I have not stated that Abbie loves the alphabet song, let me say that ABBIE LOVES THE ALPHABET SONG. Although it is not completely intact, the tune is unmistakable. As you can hopefully hear in the video, B is her favorite letter. So if you can imagine her singing "B,B,C,B,E,F,G..." about 20 times in an hour, then you can basically hear what it is like around here. It really is cute.

You may also notice the counter that I have added over on the upper right of the site. Be sure to tell all your friends to read my blog, because now I can see who all comes to my site!

Crowded HOUSE

House, seasons 2 and 3 arrived today. I am pumped for this weekend. I can not wait to watch! Well, I guess I am happy to spend time with my wife and daughter, too. Amber watched an episode with me (the one with the pharmacist who made a mistake) and she was not as enthralled as I am. It was not that she did NOT like the show, but she does not like it as much as I do. I figured since Hugh Laurie is the star that she would be all over it. He is a cohort of Emma Thompson's (one of Amber's favorites) and has been in some of Amber's favorite films. I really am not as possessed by this show as I sound. I just have not found a TV show that I like this much in a long time. I also have to fill the void until college football and the NFL come back around. I used to watch ER religiously, but I just did not stay with it. I remember at some point when The Cosby Show, Seinfeld, Hill Street Blues, Knight Rider, The A-Team, and a whole host of other TV shows were what I could not wait to watch. Does anyone remember Max Headroom? How about The Flash? Those were two that I really liked, but were unfortunately short-lived (I must have been in the minority). I really have not gotten into the "reality" TV shows. Other than House, I have not watched a network TV series on a regular basis in a long time, and I have only watched House on DVD. I feel like I am rambling. Television shows get me blabbing, I guess. I am presently listening to Aretha Franklin's Eleanor Rigby. I love the Beatles' version, but if you have not heard Aretha sing her version, it is worth it. Abbie is sleeping and I can hear her breathing on the monitor. I am thankful she has not gotten the flu, and I pray that she continues to be healthy. The Flu is unbelievably rampant here. The pharmacist I worked with today said this was the worst flu season she had seen in her 20+ years in pharmacy. A doctor's office called yesterday and prescribed Tamiflu(R) for their nurse and PA to be taken daily for a month. They said the drug rep for Tamiflu(R) told them that the maker of Tamiflu(R) (Roche) is recommending that they take Tamiflu(R) daily to try to keep from getting the flu. I also had a lady tell me her son got sick with influenza A, got better, then got sick with influenza B. I have been wondering if these periods of rampant sickness could get worse. It just seems that these epidemics are growing in intensity and the way medications are prescribed, we could be bringing some of it on ourselves. We have been dispensing antibiotics at an alarming rate for some time. I am not saying that they are all unwarranted, I am only saying that the more we use these drugs, the more the bugs figure out how to beat them. Just look at how much MRSA (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MRSA ) has spread in the past few years. I am not a prophet or the son of a prophet, but I think these infectious problems are going to worsen, sooner rather than later. Wow, how did I get on that rant? Anyway, I will keep you updated on the fun that House and his friends get themselves into. Have a good weekend.