12/31/06 -- Apologies for the blog hiatus, blame it on the holiday madness. Anyway, best New Year wishes to all! Corks will be poppin' and the ball will be droppin' (assuming we can stay awake 'til midnight). A low key but merry gathering is underway here, see yous in '07.

-- Dreamt last night that I was swimming in a pool with a Narwhal. Any Freudians out there please interpret.

--Taking the advice of one of Aidan's therapists, last night we tried giving him melatonin to help his sleeping. So far, no good. It seems to have had the opposite effect, he was completely unable to settle down. Might have been a fluke, but I'm not sure if this warrants further testing or not. The first two active ingredients listed on the bottle are lactose and sucrose. Aren't these sugars? Maybe I'm missing something here. I'm no chemist, in fact I slept through most of my chemistry classes in high school and college. But wouldn't these seem like bad things to ingest right before bed time?

12/18/06 -- Dubya seeks to put an end to earmarking now that all of his Rebuplican croanies have been ousted from office. Where has this been before now?

11/29/06 -- Playing WoW the other day and a guild (kind of like an organized "club") member jumps online from Iraq. There weren't many of us logged in at that time, but of course everyone was asking him how it was going, etc. The dude goes into a testosterone-fueled hero tale of how he and his team "finally got to f*ck up some insurgents" and how the insurgents "actually decided to stand and fight them (his squad) instead of trying to blow them up", and how they (the insurgents) "won't be making that mistake again." He capped it off with a smiley :)

I kept silent, though it was hard to resist serving up my usual analogy - "If a bunch of guys with guns and tanks cruise into my condo complex and I fight back, does that make me an insurgent?"... but I refrained.

I have massive amounts of respect for our soldiers. But I couldn't help but wonder about his gung-ho'ness. It almost sounds as if he truly believes in the cause over there, even though almost every intelligent being on the planet recognizes that the war is based on a lie. Rah! Rah! Go USA! Take out those bad guys! Maybe he's brainwashed. Maybe he doesn't have access to the newspapers. Maybe the powers that be have sprinkled some funny stuff into his MREs. Or maybe he's so gung-ho because he HAS to be, because it keeps him and his squad sane and motivated in a completely chaotic situation?

-- Apparently New Line Cinema has dumped Peter Jackson and he will not be directing 'The Hobbit'. Why bother making it then? Long story short - Jackson is suing New Line over claims that he is still owed money from the LOTR trilogy. Hey New Line - LOTR took in close to $3 BILLION at the box office alone. Give the man what he wants, then get out of his way and let him work. Dumbasses.

-- Study: Bush supporters are nuts. No, seriously.

-- As it turns out, all of the arm wavings and movings around required to play Nintendo's new Wii system are taking a toll on some gamers. Sore muscles and even a few injuries have been reported. Nintendo's answer? Work out more.

-- NYT: Money can in fact buy happiness.

-- The scene was almost identical to Ralphie and the cruel "You'll shoot your eye out, kid" Santa in A Christmas Story. Aidan, who has been jabbering incessantly about Santa for the past three weeks, finally got the chance for some lap-time with the Big Guy himself last weekend - and choked like a New York Yankee. Couldn't get out of there fast enough, wanted nothing to do with Mr. Claus. Jake on the other hand didn't know quite what to make of that big fluffy white beard, and was no doubt considering giving it a hard tug (click here).

Though not yet December, I guess it's officially safe to start getting excited about Christmas. Yesterday we had our first of what I'm sure will be several viewings of The Polar Express. If ever there was a Christmas movie that gets me right here (**I'm tapping my chest**) every time, that's the one. I don't remember exactly what year it was when the bells fell silent for me, but what I wouldn't give to hear them again.

I make the same silent, pathetic plea every year around 12/1. Whoever is in charge of bestowing Christmas cheer -- God, Jimmy Stewart, Santa, Bing Crosby, The Ghost of Christmas Present -- someone, ANYone: please let this year be like it was when we were kids. Please let this year be different. Please don't let the things I most look forward to be a Christmas bonus and a few days off. Please let me hear the bells again. Please let Spirit Rule once more...

11/13/06: --I don't feel bad anymore, according to this website I'm among the top 0.85% wealthiest people on the planet...

-- Giuliani thinking of throwing his hat into the 2008 presidential ring? I'd actually take McCain over this tool (if forced to choose between two Republicans). Unfortunately Rudy seems to have gained a huge following for his 'valiant' behavior on 9/11/01, when he walked around in front of the cameras with a cloth over his mouth pointing at stuff...

-- Looks like there's finally a Wikipedia entry for idic(15), which has been curiously absent for a long time...

-- Rummy is resigning, same parting message applies (see below).

-- A message to all of the corrupt, lazy, perverted, incompetent, pork barrelling, earmarking, Bush backing, after midnight secret bill passing, 3-day work week having slimebag Rebuplican members of the Do-Nothing 109th Congress who lost his seat last night: Buh-bye, don't let the door hit you in the ass on your way out.

The House was a landslide but the Senate is still up for grabs - it may be quite a while 'til the outcome is known.

To be realistic, these election results aren't necessarily going to make things better. Talk is cheap, after all. This was more about payback - I think a message was sent that we're finally fed up with the Bushit.

-- The case of the missing Mission Accomplished banner...

-- Happy B-Day to the love of my life. You're an amazing mom & wife, and in passing you are without a doubt the best looking thirty-something I have ever seen. Seed tonight?

-- Possible cause of Sids discovered?

-- Ah, the wonders of Photoshop. I'm able to post a cute shot of the boys sharing a bath (above) without revealing how much mildew has accumulated in our tub...

-- While the administration has succesfully shifted the gaze of the nation from the daily atrocities happening overseas to the John Kerry botched joke incident, Andew Sullivan of TIME points out one little news tidbit that no one is talking about: that Dubya has, at the request of Iraq's prime minister, abandoned the search for the recently abducted American soldier and effectively sealed that soldier's fate...

Halloween has always been such an awsomely creepy kid holiday, but this year something has been lacking. The boys will be decked out tonight of course, but they're still too young to have any clue as to what's going on. We've watched no creepy Tim Burton movies and no Munsters/Adams Family marathons. Our attempt to watch "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" was wrecked by Aidan's insisting that we watch Thomas instead. Hardly any spooky decorations at our place. No haunted hayrides or houses this year. Have not heard Michael Jackson's "Thriller" or even that stupid "Monster Mash" song, since NPR is the only station my car can get. The small amount of candy we purchased has mostly been eaten, and now that I think of it I have yet to eat a single piece of candy corn! **SIGH**

But all is not lost. It's going to be a gorgeous fall night, and we will be out pounding the pavement. Save us a handful of candy corn, and have your wits about you. Because it's Halloween, and I will not rest until I've seen someone who is afraid, very afraid...

10/27/06: -- Saddam verdict postponed until two days before the November elections. Hmmmmmmmm, imagine that....

-- Sharpen those knives and get carvin' !

-- Reported on Slate: the highest ever Scrabble score: 830! This was largely due to a miraculous triple X2 play using "quixotry"...

-- The tag sale to end all tag sales is underway at Grandpa Dom's (email me for the address). Dolls, books, fishing poles, guns, artwork, games, tools, militaria, dishes, clothes, baby gear, sports stuff.... anything you can think of. Get there early, the haggling vultures ("pros" who tag sale for a living) are already circling above. Sales reaching into four-digits took place last night, before the tag sale even got underway! This is gonna be big.

10/20/06: -- This kid has some not-so subtle pickup lines...

-- So I'm asleep on the sofa and it's about 6:15AM (and no, my wife has not banished me to the sofa -- at least not yet -- I often end up there when a certain 7-month old commandeers my spot in the bed). Through a sleepy haze I hear an alarm, which goes off and on again repeatedly in five minute intervals. Sometimes it would change to a low wailing sound, not unlike that of an air raid siren. "What an unusual car alarm," I think, wondering when the jackass car owner would go out and turn it off. This went on for an hour, off and on again, and just when I was about to get up to investigate it would shut up long enough for me to doze off again. Turns out if was one of Aidan's #$*@#ing toys out on our deck, a stupid oil refinery tower thing which for whatever reason decided it was time to start ringing the alarm! Henceforth -- if it requires batteries we don't want it. Bring on the Legos and Lincoln Logs!

-- Invaluable step-by-step pumpkin carving instructions...

-- If you vote democratic next month Osama will find you and kill you. The new RNC ad is pathetic and shameless, a disgusting move of desperation.

-- More on the autism/TV link from Slate. Interesting point near the very bottom of the article: Autism is very rare in Amish kids, who are not allowed to be vaccinated... and are also not allowed to watch TV.

Have to keep telling myself that whatever comes of these new findings -- while of course it's fantastic if any progress is made on this -- doesn't really pertain much to Aidan. Idic(15), as it was explained to us, happens around conception due to a very unlucky genetic fluke. Or so we're told...

-- Really really rich collector accidentally pokes his elbow through a $140 million Picasso with an errant hand gesture. Ouch!

-- Cornell study: watching TV causes autism. I call bollox. I say kids are born with autism and their parents are more apt to plunk them in front of the TV.

-- By now most of you probably know about the next Rocky movie coming out in a few months (hmmm, wonder how this one is gonna end?). But what you may not know is that production has also started on another chapter of the Rambo series. I can hear you groaning. But come on, admit it -- a part of you is curious... come on, allow yourself a guilty pleasure or two. As for me, I'll probably don a trench coat and a pair of Groucho Marx nose glasses and sneak into some late night 11:45PM showing or something. Hopefully no one will see me. Or maybe I'll just wait for the DVD. I read somewhere that the writers couldn't come up with any bad guys to blast for this latest installment (Commies? the Cold War is long over... Viet Cong? Been there, killed them... Taliban? Too politically sensitive I guess...), so Sly Stallone (who just turned 60!) called up Soldier of Fortune magazine and asked if they knew where the worst injustices in the world were currently taking place. Burma, they answered without hesitation. Apparently that place is the worst hell-hole that no one has ever heard of - corruption, killings, abductions, etc. are apparently very commonplace. So there it is. Strap on your blood-stained headband, pump up your abs & pecs, reload your M-60 and and get in line. Just don't let anyone see you.

-- Andrea, you may have turned sixteen but there will be snowmen in hell before you can drive my car ;)

-- Dubya signs a bill that will enable taxpayers to track federal spending online. I like the concept, it's a good sign that he's showing at least some semblance of fiscal responsibility. And at least now we'll be able to see which toilet our tax dollars are being flushed down. But the part about "... except for those (federal grants & contracts) classified for national security reasons." I wonder if any of the $10 million/hour (that's an actual figure, I didn't make that up) spent on the Iraq War will be listed.

-- Urban Ninja rocks my world.

-- How times have changed. Ran over the mall at lunchtime for sneakers. In the old days $80 would have fetched me one shoe for one foot. I left today with two pairs - running and hoops (my feet were bursting through the soles of my previous pairs). I've always believed that with kicks you get what you pay for, time will tell whether or not today's purchases were "penny-wise & pound foolish"...

-- Cousteau on Irwin's tactics. He obviously read my 9/6 post on poking, prodding, and pissing off the animals to make for exciting tv.

-- **OFFICIAL LAST POST COMPLAINING ABOUT VACATION BEING OVER** This would be a lot easier if a fat-assed rain cloud would park itself over New England and spew buckets of water over us. But no, today the sky has to be perfectly azure, ideal September conditions for setting up camp on Mansion Beach...

-- **Drool drool drool** Apple announced today the release of a brand new 24" iMac, yummmmmmmm...

-- Explained on Slate: how rare are stingray attacks (very), and how often are the attacks fatal (unknown for sure, but probably almost never). Long story short - of all the potentially dangerous critters Steve Irwin has grabbed, poked, prodded, pissed off and provoked over the years, it seems a stingray was the least likely to kill him.

-- I like it I like it -- NBC newsman David Gregory turns White House Press Secretary Tony Snow's confrontational "how dare you question us" techniques against him, you go boy!

--Been thinking a great deal about our upcoming Block Island trip, probably thinking about it more than most psychiatrists would consider healthy. It can't possibly be normal to already be depressed about having to come home weeks before the trip has even begun, already feeling that dreadful churning in the gut that starts about halfway through a great vacation -- the feeling that, though an epic time is being had, each passing second hurtles us closer to the moment we board the return ferry. One can't help but wonder: is it better to have Blocked and left than to never have Blocked at all?

-- Aidan isn't the only one making headlines these days, here's a nice article about my pops and The Villager Redux.