What a Weekend!

180 degrees of Turning Wheels for Kids Awesomeness!

My wife might say otherwise but this was a pretty great weekend for me almost all the way around. From getting up early and driving to San Jose to take part in Turning Wheels for Kids to getting a good workout in on the way home to enjoying some pretty great fights at UFC 124 and then having most of Sunday to be with my kids which included getting our Christmas tree, this was a good weekend! I even got some chores taken care of which always helps.

Christmas Scorecard

Yesterday ended up being a long one, as expected, and it was filled with lots of fun interspersed with a few tot meltdowns from lack of naps, too much sugar and the occasional cousin smackdown.

We went to an aunt's house first, as is tradition now, to partake in snacks, conversation and to let as many of the little monkeys play together as possible. One of the presents that had been opened was an elephant toy that blows butterflies out of its air-filled nose so that the kids could catch them in nets. There were a whole bunch of little ones playing with great excitement and Grady jumped right in and basically jumped up and down for as long as the game was going. Sully, who'd just woken up from a nap, needed a slow warmup to the party and glommed onto me with his face buried in my neck for a good twenty minutes after we got there. But he eventually did warm up and was running around like a little howling demon with the rest of them in pretty short order.

We got to visit with relatives that my wife hadn't seen in ten or fifteen years (one of the downsides to having a far-flung family) but it was fun to meet them myself for the first time.

After a couple of hours of visiting with relatives there, we packed up and went to my wife's parent's house for some Christmas dinner and more presents. The boys got a very cool Smart Cycle from their grandma and grandpa. My wife got some doodads and knick knacks that are pretty nice. And I got some socks. Which is fine by me since I always need socks and I'd already gotten some cool stuff from my wife. Oh yes, I also got a Lightning Lab which isn't as cool as it sounds and has no volume control.

By the time we got home, it had been a non-stop nine hours of holiday fun and we were all pretty wiped out. I ended up being up later than expected because of my addiction to Skyrates. And then, this morning, was pressed into assembling the aforementioned Smart Cycle for Grady. Upon completion we realized that we had no D-cell batteries for it. Which sent me to the store when it was still icy cold outside, I had to use the butt end up of a tube of moisturizer to scrape the windows off with until the heater kicked in and cleared the rest.

It was a fun holiday and we've had a pretty mellow follow-up day for the most part. Right now we're trying to get the boys down for naps and failing. I think I'll go and help out the effort.

Update: Forgot that I wanted to note favorite gifts.
Favorite gift to my wife: Two hand carved and painted Tiki masks for her shop.
Favorite gift from my wife: A totally geeky measuring cup with crazy units of measure (6.8 billions grains of flour, one T-Rex brain, 100 penne noodles, etc.).
Favorite gift to Grady: The junior lacrosse stick set.
Favorite gift to Sully: The mini Nerf Vortex football that he can throw a spiral with and that he left at his Auntie's house.

Most annoying moment of the day: Trying to get both Grady and Sully to stand together in front of the tree, look at the camera and both smile. It was very aggravating and I was not successful.

Happy Holidays to you all!

Christmas Morning

As I write this, my house is quiet save for the dripping of the rain outside my window. We've been getting a good amount of rain this last week but I'm ready for a few warm sunny days again, preferably during my winter break.

For the last three days, Blogger has been broken and I've been unable to publish anything which just gets enormously frustrating amid an already enormously frustrating time of the year.

This has been a "down" year for Christmas in our house in terms of volume but I think we've made a few steps forward in terms of quality of presents. And in the thought behind some of them.

My favorite gift I've given so far is a pair of hand carved and painted Tiki masks for my wife's hair salon that has a Hawaiian theme. One is a bit garish but should look cool on the wall, the other is more subtle.
My favorite gift for myself so far is a Nerf N-Strike Maverick six shooter. It was extraordinarily satisfying to unload all six suction darts on Dr. Phil's face last night.

For now, I'm going to enjoy the peace and quiet with a cup of coffee and the morning news.

Merry Christmas to everyone!

Christmastime Thoughts and the Marketing Barrage

You cannot turn on the news these days without hearing about this being the worst retail season since they started tracking retail spending at Christmas way back in 1969. And, as Amy notes, maybe this isn't such a bad thing. I don't agree with everything in her post or linked articles, in fact, I think the alternet quote is utter bullshit, but the idea of moving beyond the spend, spend, spend mentality is extremely laudable.

We are subjected to a non-stop barrage of retailism that even knowing it is coming only deflects some of it. The sheer volume of the marketing is unavoidable and dilutes what the holiday is really supposed to be about.

No, I'm not talking about the religiousity of it all and the birth of Jesus Christ. Sure, that's an aspect of it but, anyone who knows me, I'm not really all that interested in religiousness. Don't get me wrong, I rather enjoy some of the mythology of the holiday but I far, far prefer the sentiments underlying the religiousness. The idea of caring for those less fortunate, loving thy neighbor, opening your heart and celebrating with those you love and love you.

Too much of this season is shouted, too much of this season is getting elbowed while jockeying for the last widget on display at Target or, worse, Wal-Mart. Too much of this season isn't about the season but is an almost zombie-fied response to the marketing barrage. I look in the shopping carts of people at Target and see, literally, nothing of real value, just a ton of plastic crap that fills up the space under the tree while leaving the space in the receiver's heart empty.

I would ten times rather get one really thoughtful present than a dozen pieces of shit that mean nothing to me. It really and truly IS the thought that counts. I wouldn't say no to a Wii but that's because it would be an awesome and fun thing for my whole family to enjoy.

I'm not immune to it but I try to apply y same critical eye and thought to everything I see and hear. I loathe the commercials exhorting people to spend thousands and thousands of dollars on new cars or ridiculous watches. As if piling on debt is proof that you care about someone. If you really care about someone and want to demonstrate that tomorrow morning, then take some of your time and make them something they will love.

Enjoy your Christmas regardless. And, if you've got little ones, I hope their lit up eyes as they shred open presents fills your heart with love and joy. I know I enjoy the heck out of it and sometimes I catch myself thinking just how far my life has come. My children are a prime source of my joy (and frustration if you really want some honesty) and giving them presents at Christmas is fun for them and for me and my wife too.

Glowy Goodness

We went to the Santa Cruz Yacht Harbor Lighted Boat Parade last night and had a really good time among the good sized crowd of festive Cruzans who were out. I also got a chance to take a bunch of photos on the night setting on my camera and captured some of the boats really nicely, as the pic demonstrates.

Grady has also recently shown a strong interest in photography lately and took a few dozen photos too.

I also tried out the iPhone application called Night Camera which uses the accelerometer in the phone to automatically take a pic when the phone is still. It actually works very well once you get used to the idea of not having direct shutter control. I will see if any of the pics can be added to this post when I get a moment (I'm writing this on the downstairs computer so I can keep an eye on the boys).

Among the fun things we did was to walk all the way out to the lighthouse which had been strung with lights to create a glowing caricature of a lighthouse. The waves were big too and it was kind of neat to be out there at night. There were also a couple of kayakers with what looked like converted hot air balloon burners on the fronts of their kayaks. I pretty much assumed that they were Burning Men and had it confirmed later on. Grady got freaked out when they passed by the dock and sent out a wicked dual blast of flame nearly twenty feet in the air. I thought they were awesome but it was a big too much for Grady.

I think the highlight of the night for the boys were a pair of remote control boats (on RC trucks) that had been outfitted with this really neat stuff called CoolNeon that glows like neon but is a wire that can be shaped into most anything you want. One ship was set up like a pirate ship complete with not one but two disco balls on top of the masts. The owner explained the Cool Neon technology and how easy it was to use, he also invited us to the Whale Lighting Ceremony at the Seymour Long Marine Lab tonight where he would have two articulating sharks with the Cool Neon on them too.

I Survived Xmas 2007

The day is done, my boys are asleep in their beds (well, Grady's sleeping in my bed right now) and my wife and I got a chance to talk some stuff over that needed talking over (ooh, doesn't that sound ominous?).

In between all that, we visited with friends we haven't seen in far too long, had a good time at my in-laws with a full house of family and kids and presents and ham and turkey and stuffing and gravy and more.

I got some pretty thoughtful and thought provoking gifts (thanks Mom!) and enjoyed seeing my two beautiful boys open and have a ball with their new things. Sully's big win for the day is a toy ride on Kawasaki ATV that makes noises and is pretty kickass for an 18 month old (or a three and a half year old as the case may be) to tool around on. Grady's big wins include a Leapster portable learning/gaming system and a Geo Trax Grand Central Station which has been added to our collection so that now we can quite literally take over the entire living room with snap together trains.

Also, my gloom and doom mood has, largely, lifted as the day passes into yesterday. I've still got a bunch of stuff to do and stuff to mail but that's alright, I've still got a couple of weeks off work to do them. And to start putting some plans together for 2008, including camping, weekend biking trips, family vacations to spring training (perhaps) and much, much more.

One More Day...

Until the end of the awful Christmas ads.

I'm trying not to get all bah-humbuggy but it is all but impossible sometimes. The bombardment to spend, spend, spend to prove, prove, prove your love for your family and friends is incessant and wears you down. Not unlike a trip to Las Vegas where you don't gamble at all the first day but slowly, slowly they get their hooks into you and, before you know it, you're blowing twenty bucks a hand on blackjack and down a thousand bucks.

One more day and then the world starts to return to whatever passes for normal. Actually more like 36 hours since today has just begun.

I wish I could find even a speck of holiday spirit but I'm so thoroughly beat down and tired of the whole stupid ass charade that I am just in a holding pattern until the storm passes.

Let's face it, Christmas for adults sucks. Not that it shouldn't but there's so much run up, so much hyping and then the actual day is, without fail, a depressing letdown.

On a mildly positive note, I did, eventually, get some cards printed up to send out. I guess they're called holiday cards since there's no chance they go out before Christmas. Not that it matters really, does it?

Anyway, without getting into too much of it, I'm having a crappy holiday break. I think I need to get away for a day or two and see if I can regain a little perspective.

How Do You Christmas?

Just what the title says, how do you do your Christmas or Hanukah or Kwanzaa or Festivus or Jolly Days?

Do you pile presents under a tree and await the morning of the 25th to explode into an orgy of pretty paper shredding frenzy? Or do you open a present here and there on the way to the 25th? Is the holiday season all about traditions and decorations? Or is a non-stop party? Are you focused on children or parents or favorite cousins?

I come from pretty traditional Christmas celebrations with stockings hung on the mantle with care, a pile of presents under the tree and weeks of anticipation. Which was fun and fine.

But now we do things a little differently for a number of reasons. One, we don't wait until Christmas morning to open a pile of presents. The main reason for this is that it just overloads people with too much all at once and its hard to give each present the attention it deserves. Most especially with toys for the kids. Grady and Sully have been getting a present here and there over the last week or so and it gives them a chance to play with and appreciate the gift.

In Grady's case this is working out quite well because he gets a full day to play and appreciate each toy. And it also gives Sully a chance to play with the toy too. Though I will admit to a little nostalgia for the orgy of gift opening on Christmas morning and the piles of wrapping paper and bags full of loot.

One thing I do love is that both boys really like to make sure the Christmas tree is lit up whenever we're downstairs.

Merry Slopmas

I don't know about where you are but it isn't looking at all like Christmas here, unless you celebrate Christmas at the bottom of a lake. We're getting absolutely drenched with rain today and, apparently, all this week.

But they are talking about two FEET of fresh powder up in the Sierra so it'll be looking like Christmas there. And who knows, maybe we'll take a trip up north to go see the snow. Not like I don't have the time to do it since today is my last day of regular work until the 11th of January.

Yeah, yeah, don't get all hateful on me, 99% of that time is unpaid. But it is time off so there is that. And we've got two projects to keep us busy during the break so that will help some. But I will probably be working on some of my other projects to keep me from going too crazy.

I know I get zero sympathy from folks living where it is real winter now. But that's alright, I'm just kvetching during the current deluge. You won't hear any complaints when the sun is back out and I'm going riding in late December!