triple chocolate chunk cookies & immigration

first of all,

scroll down and read the post from FTD.

i don't know why it got posted after my sickness post,

but it did.

read it.

she's funny.

though this is P's response to

"Stop the Bus!"

NO!

i'm trying to start my project searching

off with a bang.

so today, i started off with triple chocolate chunk cookies.

essentially chocolate chip cookies but with

milk, dark, and white chocolate chunks.

delicious, right?

i set out my materials,

*side note: i am not going to go through with the recipe,

and what to do and all of that.

plenty of really awesome bakers / foodies do that.

that's not what we're about here.

adventuring, and learning,
that's what we're about.

*2nd side note: i am also listening to intelligence squared podcast

while i pretend that mixing ingredients together

is actually baking.

you should subscribe to this podcast -
learning.

look how delicious all of that chocolate looks!

first, i tried my sheet pan usually reserved for

mom's chocolate sheet cake.

and what the heck!?

is it warped?

see how the batter all moved to the top right corner?

so there was no dough in the bottom right...

which meant it burned in 30 seconds.

awesome.

so i tried mini-muffins.

okay.

so they don't really look all that great.

if there were a picture in the book, i am sure mine would look exactly

the OPPOSITE.

but they taste delicious!

(and mom, i only had a couple bites of raw dough)

my across the street neighbor used them to bribe her son to eat his dinner.

i'd consider my baking a success.

(don't worry H, if you are reading this, i won't do this often,

blog about you i mean.)

by the way,

the debators on intellengence squared were debating
"should the U.S. stop taking the world's huddled masses." it got heated just around the time
 i turned on the mixer.

so i missed some of the yelling.

i was disapointed with the result.

of the debate, like i said, the cookies were

a success.

and after the baking,

and the podcast,

and cleaning up,

and starting a load of laundry,

at five - twenty five p.m.

i walked upstairs and discovered this sweet scene...

precious p peacefully passed -out.

(that was for you mom.)

for nearly two hours.  get well sweet p!

those cute little buns you see there in blue?

yep.  cloth diapers.

we're really doing it over here!

i'll keep you updated on our progress.

currently we are using fuzzibunz one-size pocket diapers.

and i have to go get them from the laundry so we can do round 2

tomorrow.

stay tuned for another thrilling blog post from

naptown!

AND, all you 16 readers - if you have adventuring / learning
project ideas, please send them our way!

quarantined...with a purpose

the only people who responded to my plea for help

were sister, and my mom.

typical.

sisters advice? adventuring

(we're adventuring, come along with bert and ernie...)

moms advice? learning.

also so typical.

i did get one other response...

the sickness.

we've been caught by the FEVER.

all three of us, but sweet little P the worst.

it seems that at least for the short term,

my restlessness should be devoted to taking care of little man.

which means two doctor visits, the pharmacy, lots of tv time,

and Popsicles.

this is what our counter looked like...

animal crackers, juice, Excedrin, pediasure, Tylenol, toilet scrubbers, disinfectant,

and coffee.  for me.  because i wanted it.

p had a fairly high fever for several days,

so what began as this...

turned into this fake smile...

that's my boy! cool water is the cure-all.  mostly.

my sick boys out for an evening stroll. 

way past p's normal bedtime.

yes, i know it is still light outside.

it's been about a week, we are slowly recovering.

when we get back to things i plan on finding some projects.

my new friend across the street

sent over some websites that she uses to find projects.

we have photography, writing, crafts, baking...etc. etc. etc.

so if i remember, i will take pictures and blog as i go.

adventuring

and

learning

all the way home.

Stop The Bus

I heard Grace Potter and the Nocturnals on the radio in the car the other day. I never hear them while in the car. Part of this is probably because I don't drive that often anymore. Apparently that's part of the culture out here. Everyone loves their bikes, walking shoes and public transit. Well - that's an exaggeration. I don't know anyone that loves public transit as much as they love the idea of it. I'm one of those. Not driving to work is pretty awesome. Ideally, that's a whole 25 minutes you get to listen to news podcasts (I'm a fan of Wait Wait Don't Tell Me and Science Fridays) or read your new favorite book just plucked from the shelves of the public library. If you're careful, you can even drink your morning coffee on your commute, maybe do some morning meditation to prepare you for the day. Plus, if you're lucky like I am, you live a few blocks from the bus stop. This allows for some blood flow to start moving and gets you exercise in disguise. Ideally, it is 25 minutes of bliss before you put your noise to the grindstone and glue yourself to your non-ergonomic chair.

Ideally. You all caught that right? The adverb means –

1. In accordance with the ideal; perfectly

2. In theory or principle

3. In idea, thought or imagination

I'd like to call your attention to the word "imagination" which, when used as a noun is "the faculty or action of producing ideas, especially mental images of what is not present or has not been experienced".

My bus rides have never co-existed with the ideal. Usually I am squished between two large men and their briefcases or sharing oxygen with someone who hasn't ever seen a toothbrush. Once I was fortunate enough to listen to Justin Beiber for 30 minutes through the incredible decibel levels of a young man 3 rows behind me. the doors have been shut on me as people push for position, fights as to whether or not the line begins at this corner or that one, unsolicited conversation and sometimes an ab and leg workout from having to brace oneself against the various speeds and brake forces needed to combat the hills.

I swear I am going to ride my bike to work from now on. Oh wait. . .

Cyclists have a whole different set of issues to deal with during the morning commute. I can only guess that since most of these folks are smarter and more fit than I am, they've avoided rush hour and/or know routes that do not include the major arterials. Still, they try to turn and a bus runs them over. They stay in the bike lane and a car door opens and slams them to the ground. Cyclists are a different breed. I want to be like them. I want to ride with one pant leg up (just like I learned at Lee Middle) with a fancy messenger bag that lights up even in the day time. I want to wear those fancy clip-in shoes to help with the peddling without falling at a stop sign. Sigh. One day. One day I will be brave. For now I just have this idea that I would end up staring up at the crux of my route, whimpering like a lost puppy in the rain, begging for a time machine.

Pax and I walk a lot. So much so that when I told my trainer (the JCC gives you one free session probably hoping that you'll love it so much you'll sign on for eleven hundred hours of personal training.) that I walk probably4 miles a day he scoffed at me. I don't know if he thought I was over or under selling but I did not appreciate it. Anyway, walking is dangerous too but I got myself a neon windbreaker that is just as functional as it is cute (super functional and cute boys). The neon helps with visibility but it doesn't keep vehicles from creeping on me in the cross walk as if I should be sprinting across. Heaven forbid they have to wait to make their turn. I was walking the street the other day - not jay walking - and had a little white man light telling me that it was safe for me to cross. At the same time, oncoming traffic had a green arrow, signaling it was okay for them to make a left turn. Say What? Some one is going to lose that battle and it's me against 2,000 pounds of steel. I concede and am left in the median crossing my fingers for an especially thoughtful motorist to slow long enough to make like a gazelle.

Commuting. It's dangerous.

restless

i know,

you would expect the restless title from CMD, or FTD

(no offense to the two of you)

but its me!

i just spend entirely too long reading about

blogging code, of all things.

and thinking maybe i could get back into programming.

you know, like in high school.

except then i remembered that i dropped

Advanced C++ after two days since the first assignment

had my fellow classmates laughing with joy

and me in tears.

projects.

i am on the lookout for projects.

not like etsy projects, because crafts aren't really my thing.

i actually enjoy cooking / baking but that always involves

going to the grocery store, and messing up the kitchen.

sister FTD tweeted

(i know, we tweet too...social media....)

this link.

http://read.bi/kcEyNm

and now i'm thinking more than ever before.

what can i do? seriously.

i am taking suggestions.

and since we know why most of you come here,

i won't leave you hanging...

good of both of us huh?

Going Going Back Back to Cali Cali

My (and my mom's) trip to Cali is coming up in about a month. Originally it was just going to be a nice little trip to visit 2 of the 3 other siblings and check out LA on the way from San Francisco to San Diego. I wanted to stop in and get a feel for the city and kind of look around for areas I may want to live when I move out there. When I told LTD this was the main purpose of the stop, she told me, "No! You have to go and meet agents, make connections!" That was a paraphrase, but it was pretty close. I had to inform her that you can't just walk into an agency(especially in LA) and say, "Hey, my name is Mack and I live in Orlando, but I'm thinking of moving out here, do you want to have a meeting?" Again, a paraphrase. I think I told her I'd be arrested for trespassing, and while that may not be exactly true, I feel it's pretty close.

Pause there for a second.

A week or so ago, a friend from early UF days called me up and told me he had applied for a coaching job with UCF and he wanted to know if I knew anyone who might be able to give him a recommendation. I did, so I passed along his info, and a fairly high-up gave him a recommendation to someone that matters. Why am I telling you this? Well as this was all going on, discussion switched over to me and what I was doing. I informed this friend that I was pursuing an acting career and was thinking of moving out to LA in the near future. Well, his next door neighbor growing up happens to live in LA. And work in the business. For some well known film people. Also, this friends' cousin lives out there and works in the music industry. She has a manager who also reps actors. So. I now have these people's contact information and we are going to try and meet while I'm visiting(including the manager, hopefully). People helping people.

This past weekend was a friend's bachelor party. We went to New Orleans, and it was awesome. That's really all I'll say about that. Except this. I was sitting at a table playing a game of strategy and got to talking to the guy sitting next to me, you know, just small talk while trying to win together. The question of "so, what do you do?" comes up, so I tell him. HE'S got a buddy who has been living and working in LA for a while with a prominent agency. So, I get this guys card, he says to email him and he'll put me in contact with the guy. I didn't really expect him to come through, but, he did. I've been in contact with this fella and we're going to try and meet while I'm out there too.

Pretty good two weeks.

Now, most likely, nothing will come of these meetings. I'm aware of that. You should be aware of that. I hope now you are aware of that. Buuut, mayybe? Maybe. At worst, I meet a few people (assuming the meetings actually happen) who probably know some more people, and might be able to point me in a helpful direction.

I have no expectations. But my fingers are crossed.

Quick update on biz stuff that has been going on over the past few months. I think I have passed on most of this, but here you go again. I booked a PGATour.com commercial, a SAG Gillette commercial, started shooting a SAG webseries, and will start shooting an independent film this weekend. Also, I had an audition with Tyler Perry studios and had an audition for the latest in the American Pie movies(and a subsequent 2nd audition. Another level of suck: See previous post) So, things seem to be moving in the right direction.

For your viewing pleasure, here is the PGATour.com commercial:

Rainy Days and Mondays

Today was the 100th running of Bay to Breakers. Don't be fooled by the legit runners featured on the home page. While Kenyans probably won the race (haven't checked yet), mostly the news around here centers on the lack of port-o-potties, insane costumes and people that insist on urinating in other people's yards or vomiting in the street. I thought about going for approximately two-nanoseconds. Crowds and costumes and drunkards just cause my anxiety to go through the roof. Also, I must be getting old because a very long evening on Friday (complete with being a spectator for a bar fight and a scavenger hunt) apparently wiped out my energy for the rest of the weekend. Awesome.

Instead, I met a friend for a phenomenal brunch at a place called Toast. The MUNI bus driver on the way there decided to abandon his route before it was finished, which was a little odd but it let me walk an extra block before devouring a few bloody Marys and some awesome eggs Florentine. Apparently I have no ability to order stuff from the healthier portion of the menu. Following brunch, we enjoyed a pleasant, windy walk to Sundance Cinemas to see Bridesmaids. Hilarious. Seriously - go see this movie.

This weekend was also my first adventure into Marin County. I met a friend with a plan to hike to the ocean on the Tennessee Mill Valley trail but had to change routes last minute due to a ban on pets on that particular trail. What's the point of heading out on a hike if I can't take Pax with me? Still, we ended up hiking a pretty awesome and strenuous 3mile loop. The views around here are just amazing. I'm going to make a point to head over to Marin more often.

Did I mention that after taking Pax to the park on Sunday afternoon I saw Pac-Man, Superman, 80's dance crew and a man in a unitard? Yep - just another day along the Bay.

can't think of a title

it's really hard to think of a clever title.

especially considering we haven't really been up to much.

which has been SO nice.

P man has been sleeping a bit better as of late,

so everyone is less stressed in the morning.

which means a happier family in the evening.

P even helps with dinner.

and still gets really excited

at the sight of hummus.

we celebrated mothers day, easily now my favorite holiday,

by staying in our pajamas for much of the morning.

little man slept in so we could too!

P (whom B calls the little prince when wearing these pjs)

LOVES being outside.

LOVES.

when the sliding door opens, this guy is headed straight for it.

hence, the attractive baby gate in the background.

my boys were pretty pooped after an afternoon

of exploring the garden center, playing in their fountains,

and planting our new plants.

i wish i had a picture of P after the fountain incident...

he was soaked through.  and loved every second of it.

then they got hot...

and sat down to watch some basketball.

later, at P's dinner time, he was told by his dad

to please stop throwing his food.

and this was the response we got.

excuse me?

i didn't quite hear you.

nope! still can't hear you!!

in other news. 

since pretty much all i have to write about is the family,

p man now only takes one nap a day.

but in the morning he still gets tired.

so he crawls up into my lap and we read.

i love every minute of it (sometimes up to 30!)

and yes, that is brown bear we still love.

see this post:  Brown Bear, Brown Bear

so, life is pretty good in our household.

the weather has been beautiful,

which alwaysputs me in a good mood. 

 little man is sleeping in -

BML has a whole month off of school,

its so nice to have him around some more!

until next time...

oh - i should at least mention

we did manage to take a vacation - just me and bml

while my parents took p.  we went off to the keys

and enjoyed watching the sunset at Lorelei's

and sleeping in until 8am!

but we missed little man, so we went back soon.

and i have no pictures to prove our vacation.

but it was awesome.

while we were gone, p enjoyed

swimming, golfing, walking captain and

entertaining the neighborhood.

for some reason, the pics won't load. 

maybe CMD has a couple he will share later.

ps.  baby girl aka sprout #2 is kicking

around like crazy these days...just when we were getting our sleep back.

it's sweet.  mean it.











Relief

September 11^th, 2001 started as a good day. I was a Midshipman 1/C at Annapolis, and Tuesdays and Thursdays I had the first period-and-a-half free, which meant I could sleep in a little bit. I walked out of my room around 0845 to make my 0900 class and saw a large group of people in the wardroom watching television. Seeing the first tower billowing with smoke, I thought some terrible aviation accident had happened and continued to make my way to Rickover Hall where my Coastal Engineering lab was held. Shortly after my arrival the lounge televisions reported that a second plane had hit the South WTC tower and later that a third had struck the Pentagon. Soon after, all the midshipmen were sent back to Bancroft, non-essential personnel were told to go home, and the Yard was on lock down. There was an initial scare that Annapolis may be a target, possible retaliation for our missile strikes against Al-Qaeda’s training facilities. People traded phone calls with home, and the phone banks were left open for our friends with families in New York and Pennsylvania.

There were two common sentiments coursing through the Brigade - especially the Senior Class of 2002 whose class motto was “In Harm’s Way” – anger and excitement. We were going into the arena.

The excitement did not last long and the anger only grew. We strove valiantly but erred and came short again and again. Friends and classmates died in training, died at sea, died in the desert of Iraq and died in the mountains of Afghanistan. Friends and classmates came home from battle old before their time, physically and mentally scarred to a discourse more about the critic and a population further removed from the pains endured by the doer of deeds. Our faces were marred with dust and sweat and blood.

Those of us who made it back safe time and again and most of those who served in further rear echelon jobs were also worn out, but only worked harder to ensure our friend’s sacrifices were remembered and meant something, if not to the struggle as a whole, at least to us who knew them. Back-to-back-to-back sea duty, hard fill billets, hard ship duties and individual augmentations met mostly by volunteers who felt they needed to contribute more - all in the name of their friends and classmates. Some of us felt personal responsibility to spend ourselves in a worthy cause, that there was to be no quitting, no “easy” job until the wars were over, not while we had friends and classmates still enduring hardship.

May 1^st, 2011 is relief. Relief that it will not be in vain, that justice has been served and that America can still achieve its goals, no matter how sobering they may be. Relief that the end is in sight. Relief that it is not going to be regarded as a loss.

Our Global War on Terror has been wrought with missteps, miscalculations, poor planning, distractions, and missed opportunities. There is no effort without error or shortcoming. I am proud this opportunity was not missed, that nothing distracted our leaders from making the “green light” decision. I’m proud of the intel section, the surveillance, the pilots and crewman and the shooters, those who strive to actually do the deeds. Of course, I am extremely proud that some people I have supported in other missions and from my home service made this a reality and no longer a chase for a ghost – the strong men who did not stumble.

The struggle against extremism is far from over. One only has to read the newspaper to see that other regions are ripe for terrorist exploitation and we must always remain vigilant, hopefully more so than we as a country have been in the past. But just as the leader of Germany’s demise was the beginning of the end of the last global struggle, hopefully the Al Qaeda leader’s death will be a substantial step toward the end of sacrifice for those who know the great enthusiasms and the great devotions - our current military personnel and their families. Here’s to our daring knowing no failure and the future triumph of high achievement.

May 1st, 2011

It does feel a little weird to celebrate the death of a human, but I cannot help to join in the jubilation with the death of Osama Bin Laden. To steal from Mark Twain, “I have never wished a man dead, but I have read some obituaries with great pleasure.” This is one of those occasions. As all who were old enough to remember where we were on September 11th 2001, I vividly recall sitting in Ms. Parrish’s English class in the 200 hall at Edgewater High School. I remember watching the second plane crash into the second tower. I remember going home and watching the footage over and over again. I remember the pained looks of sheer terror on the faces of those people caught near ground zero. I remember feeling completely helpless. I remember total sadness.

There have been many times when I have been brought to tears. I admit tonight was one of them. Not upon hearing the news of Bin Laden’s death, but during our President’s address. “…And yet we know the worst images are those that were unseen to the world. The empty seat at the dinner table, children who were forced to grow up without their mother or their father, parents who would never know the feeling of their child’s embrace…” These words were spoken in reference to those who were killed during the 2001 attacks, yet they speak to all those who lost loved ones in the war against terror.

I have had the great opportunity to visit the resting places for many of our fallen troops- Arlington National Cemetery and the Normandy American Cemetery on Omaha beach. You can bet I was brought to tears on these occasions as well. The hypnotic patterns of graves marking fallen heros haunt your soul as you are reminded, these people died so that I didn’t have to. The Marines who guard the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier assure that those who die might be gone, but they will never be forgotten.

I cannot claim to even begin to understand what families go through when they receive that fateful call to inform them that a loved one has been lost. I only know what I felt when I believed that call had come, and it had been answered by me. It was not what I had feared, as the man on the other end assured me that this was a courtesy call informing me of an incident, and that my brother was okay. For those few seconds, which seemed an eternity, I was shaken to my core. The fact that others must continue through life with a far different outcome is something I cannot fathom.

On a night like tonight, where a victory has been won, let us not forget the sacrifices made along the way. For almost a decade this fight has gone on. Today does not mark the end of sacrifices made. There will undoubtedly continue to be a war against terror, as there will undoubtedly be brave men and women leading the charge against evil. As we celebrate a momentous day in our history, remember that it is brought to you by brothers and sisters, sons and daughters, mothers and fathers, friends and neighbors.

“…let us remember we can do these things…because of who we are. One nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty, and justice for all…” - President Obama