Doing laundry

When Hank is old enough to wash his own clothes I won't miss doing all the laundry but I will miss washing underwear with things like "STRIKE FORCE" and "WIND STORM!" printed on them.

Sunday paper

This on-line comment:

As much as I love this state, if Al Franken got 1,209,000 votes, that means there are at least 1,209,000 clinically insane people living in Minnesota.

In fairness, how can you not survive the dark in the winter up here without going a titch cuckoo? I think the lack of sunlight explains a lot of Minnesota crazy.

My Christmas shopping is done

Flair Hair

Giving thanks

for all blessings, big and tiny.

Happy Thanksgiving

There's a new pooch in town

From left: Peggy, Kai, Walter

I got plans

"My goal today is to make it to Trader Joe's and otherwise take it easy."

"I'm glad you're goal-oriented."

Grooming

Recently, Hope has taken an odd interest in the appearance of her hair and has actually been brushing it before school and won't wear her hat in the morning. She seems to have given up the dread locks.

Something smells fishy...

"Hope, your hair looks so nice! I see you've decided to brush it. That's great!"

"Well if I don't I don't, QiuQin Laoshi does it and it HURTS. That's why I can't wear my hat to school anymore!"

Hank and Patrick, mano a mano

Bragging Alert! Bragging Alert!

Hank earned five blue ribbons out of the six events in which he swam Saturday. (Pays to be one of the oldest kids in the 8-and-under group.)

Official translators

These two decided they needed to write the swim event numbers in Chinese for all the Chinese-speaking swim team members at the Y.

A little bit excited

"Establish your perimeter" indeed.

Impossible!

Can a person see too many productions of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella? I say no. And who can pass up the opportunity to sit in Cinderella's pumpkin-turned-golden carriage?

I would have had my picture taken, too, if I had been certain it wouldn't have weirded out the thespians.

Things to do when bored

Step 1: Pop popcorn.

Step 2: Search Youtube for cat+roomba.

Step 3: Sit back and enjoy.

That's how I drive!

Whose kid needs a ride somewhere? I'm offering.

Happy Holidays

If I quit my job and knit nonstop from now until Christmas Day it might be possible for me to knit something for several members of my family.

Hot topic

"I'm weighing whether or not to take a shower today."

--crickets chirping--

"I'm wondering what the pros and cons are of me taking a shower today."

--more crickets--

"Gary, I'm asking for your input. This is an opportunity for you to have your say on this important issue."

"I don't have an opinion. I'm watching a football game."

Concert preview

Remembrance and Hope

Lunch with Chinese language students

I hope they're not swearing.

Taco Tuesday

(Some highlights from a poem one of my offspring wrote for a school assignment)

From boney steaks sizzling on the grill to soft jucie grapes...

From chips salty and gresey to bendable spageti...

I am from going to Iowa to taco Tuesday...

In Iowa on Saturday you can watch TV as much as you want...

Taco Tuesday is what I hate.

Orange you happy you read my blog?

More here.

Chili

Gary is cooking. The can of beans came with this coupon warning:

Excitement

Hope's good friend, PJ, is the proud owner of a very cute pooch. I am predicting that Hope and her friend grow up together, go to Iowa State College of Veterinary Medicine, and open a vet clinic in Beijing. Oh, why not?

In other news, this post. Remind me when I grow up to not work in a veterinary clinic. At least not one with cats.

Congratulations

To our neighbor Brad. He knew it would be an uphill battle convincing 44B voters to choose a fiscal conservative. But some did. More didn't. Brad is a good guy with a strong business and solid accounting background. Gary and I will be out there supporting him next time!

In hiding

Fiscal conservatives/libertarian voters keep their heads down especially when they work in public schools. I met three of them today. Shh. It's top secret.

Here's how the spelling homework scene went down in our house

Hank is brushing his teeth in the bathroom before bed. Mother is checking the spelling homework where Hank wrote: "Thermostat. A heater. I like to have a thermostat in the winter."

"Hey Hank, a thermostat is not a heater. You can look up the definition in the morning and rewrite your sentence."

"I am NOT. I'm leaving it."

"Hank, you're going to change it."

"I am NOT! Our teacher said she wants us to LEARN FROM OUR MISTAKES!"

Town Hall

Town Hall
Originally uploaded by WkHanson08.

We were at Town Hall before the show last night, watching returns. Did anyone else have a seizure trying to watch CNN and their way-too-much-going-on-visually election set? They had so much stuff going on in their "war room" with graphs and smart boards and news guys fondling the maps. I much preferred the boring people sitting at the table like they were doing on Fox. I hate to say it but it appears there can be too much of a good thing when it comes to technology.

In memory of Sami

You will be missed.

For the vocologists out there

Maybe if he had stayed for more than a couple of quarters at the U, he could have taken a music class that discussed how a singer should treat his/her voice. Frankly, Dylan's voice hasn't sounded this bad for so many songs in recent memory. That gravelly croak suggested too many cigarettes, too much phlegm and too little hydration.

Congratulations Obama and supporters

It was a great concert and a deafening roar of the crowd as we exited Northrop at the end of the show and it was announced that Obama won. The U of MN campus was pleased. It will be an interesting 2 to 8 years.

Sadly, Dylan did not play Workingman's Blues #2.

Peace

Could there be a better place to be on election night than sitting in a good seat (row 16) at a Bob Dylan concert? Gary and I will be there. Bob will play Workingman's Blues #2 to open the show and the whole world will melt away for 90 minutes or so.

It will be so good when it's over

We will know who the next president is
	by 10 p.m. Tuesday
	by Christmas
	by Inauguration Day 2009
	when Hell freezes over
pollcode.com free polls

Power

On the other hand, if the federal government were properly limited to its constitutional powers, there would be much less to fear, and elections would be less stressful for all concerned. Just a thought.

Swim team

Swim team is off to a good start. No one had to be hauled out of the pool by a lifeguard during the fun meet yesterday. Hope has improved her times by deciding to use BOTH arms in all events along with giving up the dog-paddle. Hank gets to be the oldest 8 and under boy so he has visions of blue ribbons in his head. The Bunco party was a hit even though Gary and I came away losers. Everybody found their own shoes at the end of the night.