Sunday, May 31, 2020

COV80D-19

Sorry that I haven't posted in about a week. It's just been a week of nothing interesting in my week. Certainly, there have been lots of interesting things happening in the country this week. And I am grieved by that. And I have been trying to figure out how to work against the racism that so many people are protesting to fix. More on those issues as I discern how to be in support of solutions to make everything better for everyone.

In the good weather these days, the girls have dusted off their softball gloves and been throwing in the backyard. Hannah says that she is interested in trying out for the Seventh-grade team at Walnut Springs next year--assuming such things happen in the future. So this is some good prep work for her--to remind her of what skills she acquired in her brief experience in Fall Ball the last few years.

What else?

We have successfully made two Great British Baking dishes the last few weeks. Hannah hasn't determined what this week's dish will be. But it might end up being another savory item similar to the Giant Sausage Roll that we made yesterday. (We don't want to step too much on Grace's established  sweet territory.)

Since I can't think of anything interesting to say, maybe I'll turn the questioning on you.

What have you done in the last month that you feel is noteworthy? Have you achieved something you never expected to achieve? Have you overcome something that seemed impossible before?

What good things have happened to you? Is there a great memory that you can think of in the month of May that you would like to share?

Do you have something difficult that you want to get off of your chest? Are you willing to share it in a public comment? Maybe someone who reads this can help.

What do you look forward to? What do you dream for in the near future? 

Monday, May 25, 2020

COV74D-19--#OfficialHat2020 Revealed


Placing this here for complete-ness and posterity. (You are welcome future historians.)

Sunday, May 24, 2020

COV73D-19

How is your Memorial Day weekend going along?
Today has been a pretty relaxing day but I'm craving some potato chips right now. (Not that you really needed to know that, but I thought I would let you in on that little secret. And the reason I'm craving chips at all is because I just watched a Bon Appetit YouTube in which Claire (the Gourmet Makes host tried to recreate Pringles). 

Do you watch Bon Appetit? That has been one of the new entertainment additions of mine during the COVID quarantine. Grace watched it a lot and I started watching Gourmet Makes. It's a fun twist on How Its Made and Unwrapped and other food-related shows that I like to watch. And once you start watching one personality, its easy to start watching some others.

So . . . yeah. Maybe I'll eat some potato chips soon.

But, what else is happening?

I went for a walk today and that was nice. After so much rain this past week, it has been nice to see the sun and even feel some warmth. But since the Highlands Pool has announced that it won't be opening to the public this summer, I wonder if I'll be setting up the sprinkler in the yard to help cool off? But if I do that, then I would need to prevent people from playing in the water and violating my quarantine.

Speaking of food . . . Lynda and Hannah are attempting to make an extremely difficult pastry from the Great British Baking Show: religieuse. (see above) 

(If they make it out of the kitchen alive and still loving one another, then good for them. I don't even care how it tastes.) 

***

Two other things:

1. You have tonight and sometime tomorrow--until I decide to shut down the Google form and make my reveal video--to cast your final votes on #OfficialHat2020.  You can vote here.

2, My kids spent the morning making an online personality quiz. It is based on Avatar: The Last Airbender . . . because why not? Click here to take the quiz. They designed the concept. They chose the characters. They wrote the questions. They wrote the copy. I like it and I liked the result that I got. Click here to go and enjoy.

Thursday, May 21, 2020

COV70D-19

Memorial Day weekend is right in front of us, so that means there are only days left to vote for this year's #HatofSummer.

Watch today's video that exists only to make you get off your couch and put your voting fingers to work.

As always, you can vote frequently--an obscene amount of voting is to be expected and should be required. If you feel that you have voted enough, I am here to tell you that you are incorrect. You should be voting while you eat dinner--unless you somehow need both hands to eat your dinner. (Maybe you are eating ribs or a hamburger or a sandwich. But even so, use voice recognition on your smartphone to tell the phone to set a reminder to vote as soon as both (or even one hand) is free from dinner consumption.

And then, once dinner has been digested . . . guess what? Vote some more.


Where should you be voting?

Go here and click, click, click away. You only have mere days left.

Wednesday, May 20, 2020

COV69D-19

FINALLY some GOOD NEWS during all of this COVID-19 pandemic sadness!

(I've thought about this randomly during the last few months and had convinced myself that it would never happen. But this evening, Twitter delivered the only good piece of news that misbegotten site has every published live--


Can you believe it?!

***

In my Fall 2019 TV Preview post, I boldly stated that the original Holey Moley was the only Category I show that aired last year. You may disagree, but if you do, I encourage you to start your own blog site that you've pestered person(s) with for approaching twenty years. Then maybe I'll endorse your differing opinion.

But I'm so very happy about this unexpected development. 

I'm so thrilled that I get to spend my summer evenings listening to Rob Riggle once again ridicule the fame-hungry pseudo athletes who try to make a life of mini golf.

I'm so jazzed that weirdo people with bizarre TV personalities and fashion senses try to one-up each other inside a freezing cold sound stage.

I'm over the moon at the prospect of new, inventively bizarre mini golf holes.

And I'm terribly sad that I didn't follow my dream to apply myself for this train wreck of a "reality" show.

Please, please, please, PLEASE watch this show over the next few months. Tweet about it. Chat about it. Raise up its media profile so that a season three can be assured and if no other sport rises out of the post-COVID aftermath . . . it is this sport!

Make. It. Happen!

Monday, May 18, 2020

COV67D-19

True story . . . I knew that I hadn't posted about the #HatofSummer voting in a while. But I hadn't realized how much time remained before the voting officially closes for this year.
And, my friends, it is only a few more days to be honest! Because when I opened up the Google doc and checked the calendar, it dawned upon me that Memorial Day is NEXT MONDAY.

And that means you only have one more week to cast your vote that determines #OfficialHat2020.

I realize that this is not the most important thing occupying your mind these days. Heck, as you can clearly tell, it is not the most important thing occupying MY brain these days. But we cannot let these important rituals fall away during this time of crisis. If I cannot turn to you, my digital faithful, and ask you to spend your off-hours time mindlessly clicking away to determine my hot weather head gear . . . well, then what are we all fighting for in the first place? What joys and pleasures remain?

So, please . . . take some time today, tonight, tomorrow, and every day between now and next Monday clicking away. You can choose between the current leader--the often overlooked Ireland hat--or this year's upstart challenger--the Martin BBQ Joint hat.

Go here (https://forms.gle/1oJWSpMNh7V66MAY9) to keep on voting.

(Remember that this shows all of the votes that were collected by all of the hats initially on offer this year. Only the top two vote winners remain to be voted on. The Ireland hat has received 41% of the total votes cast throughout the campaign period. The Martins BBQ has is second with just over 29% of the other votes cast.)


Saturday, May 16, 2020

COV65D-19

My posting frequency has declined in the last few weeks, as I'm sure you have noticed.

Just not much to talk about these days. 

As everyone keeps saying "We're all in this together."

So I don't need to explain to you how this is going.

As the great poets once said:

Well the years start coming and they don't stop coming
Fed to the rules and I hit the ground running
Didn't make sense not to live for fun
Your brain gets smart but your head gets dumb
So much to do, so much to see
So what's wrong with taking the back streets?
You'll never know if you don't go
You'll never shine if you don't glow

What does that mean?

I think you can let yourself decide what that means.

(You know . . . when I decided mentally to do that bit, it sort of made sense. But now that I see it, it really doesn't. And it seems pretty hacky. But oh well, it's content.)

ANDBUTSO, what now?

I've got no ideas.

Maybe something will come to me tomorrow.


Tuesday, May 12, 2020

COV61D-19









I took a day off of work today. It was a needed break for me. A time to step out of the house and breath some fresh air. And I was lucky enough to have a day on my schedule that didn't have any predetermined tasks that I had to accomplish AND it was a bright and sunny day and not very cold.

So, I took Sarah with me because she is out of school and she doesn't have any work right now.

We first drove down to Scioto Grove Metro Park in Grove City and wandered around their trails, taking pictures of the river and the woods. After that we drove back into Columbus and hung out on the Scioto Mile. We ate some lunch and relaxed in the sun. And we talked about many different things. The news. Culture. Life. Friends. School. 

It was so nice to be out and away from my routine and my home--even for a few hours. We wore masks when we went inside. We social distances. We remarked at how silent and empty the downtown area seemed on a day like this. We saw bikers and walkers and families. But the OSU neighborhood was eerily empty and still.

Such is life in the time of coronavirus.

I hope that each of you has an opportunity soon to step away from your responsibilities and give yourself a moment to recharge. It felt good for me to do so today.

Sunday, May 10, 2020

COV59D-19

Happy Mothers Day to my mom Margo, to my wife Lynda, to my mother-in-law Cheri, to my sister Mary, my sister-in-law Virginia, to my sister-in-law Ashlyn, and to all the mothers out there! I hope that you can find time for peace and reflection and satisfaction on Mothers Day.

. . .

You know, I started to write something about the unique joys as well as the burdens of being a mother. But, as you know, I have no idea what it means to be a mother or any real concept of how it feels to be a mother these days. I can only observe it and formulate my own opinions. But to suggest I understand it is nonsense. So I really shouldn't try.

I am grateful for my mother, who watched over me and cared for me in so many ways through my life and to today. And I am deeply grateful to my wife and her role as a mother in my own family. Lynda does so many good things, and I should be a better and more consistent job of thanking her for all that she does.

I hope you all enjoy your day today and can find some rest and peace today and in the week ahead.

Wednesday, May 06, 2020

COV55D-19

Sarah finishes the spring semester of her sophomore year of college today.
Grace and Hannah have about two more weeks of the official school calendar. 

Grace is preparing to take three unusually-presented AP Exams in those next two weeks, along with finishing up her classwork. 

Hannah is wrapping up her first year of Middle School by closing out Sixth Grade with final reading assignments, completing research paper projects, taking weekly quizzes.

None of them are reaching these milestones in the environments they could have imagined. None of them wanted to talk to their teachers through video chats. Definitely, none of them wanted a parent to serve as their daily goad for getting work done. 

But they have persevered. And they have done well. They are succeeding, despite the circumstances. And their success is due to their inherent skill, desire, and goal-setting . . . not because of any pushes or pulls that Lynda or I have started. (Despite our presence in some cases--as they would likely remind you, were you here to ask.)

So--today's note is simply an acknowledgment of who they are and the challenges they are overcoming.

Good for them. Because they are good.

Tuesday, May 05, 2020

COV54D-19

Today was a challenging day. And that was due to my own internal reaction to the day. Outside forces stayed out of my way. But my own perception of everything around me set my own personal tone for this day and affected how I moved through it and how I responded to it. 
And that is a very important thing for me to think about, to acknowledge, and to understand.

Outside of myself, it was just a day. We got up. We ate. I worked. The kids worked. I kept an eye on what the kids were doing. I started some tasks. I participated in meetings. Nothing too difficult. All things I've done before and will do again.

But my perception of those things colored my experience. The assumptions that I made. The attitude that I carried with me. The inner life of me fought itself closer to the front and demanded to push me in directions. And helped set my tone throughout the day. And told me how I should feel about it all. Not because of how all of those things objectively were. But how that part of me thought I should perceive them and how I should about them.

I'm psychoanalyzing myself here for all of you to enjoy (?), so I hope any part of this might be universalized for your own use sometime in your future. Otherwise, I should've just typed it out on the screen and saved it for a folder marked PRIVATE.

But that is not how blogging works, I guess. Or at least not how I'm choosing to work it today.

There have been times in the past fifteen years when I've publically blogged about stuff that I probably should have dumped in a PRIVATE folder. One particular moment comes to mind several years ago when the kids were much smaller and I was struggling as a parent. I wrote some things and published them and got asked some questions. All well-meaning interactions. But I took the post down and a part of me said that I should keep some parts of my dirty laundry to my own basement and not feel free to just hang it out for everyone to see it dry.

And when I've done things similar to that in recent years (or even today), I have tried to keep it general and vague. (Really good writing technique, to be general and vague. But I quit trying to chase clickbait a long time ago here at WWYG?! studios, so I'm just doing it for myself now.)

This is the sort of post that won't make any sense in five minutes, much less five months from now. But I felt the need to drop a few lines down and to remind myself that how I am is MY responsibility.

And I have.

Saturday, May 02, 2020

COV51D-19

Today was a good day for a few reasons.

First, the weather very much cooperated and it was a pleasure even to be outside cutting the grass. The temperature was warm but not uncomfortable. It was a great day to get outside of this accursed house and pretend that things aren't strange and never-ending.

Second, while outside we had a nice hamburger lunch on the back patio with sweet tea and fixin's and I grilled the burger patties. and it was nice to pretend that things aren't strange and never-ending.

Third, while having our hamburger lunch we spent time with Nana, who came over and enjoyed our nice hamburger lunch on the back patio with tea and the fixin's. And it was nice to pretend that things aren't strange and never-ending.

Friday, May 01, 2020

COV50D-19

Congratulations that you have made it into May! And with the coming of May--even during a time of bizarre coronavirus concerns, all thoughts naturally turn towards the #HatofSummer. Every year since human memory we have banded together to choose a single hat. A hat that is a celebration of sun, fun, and good times. These are the things that we all want. This is what we need. And I am here to help you get to that happy place.

There are only a few weeks remaining in the #OfficialHat2020 voting. Memorial Day is finally on the sort-of-distant horizon. But when it arrives, a final hat will be chosen. And now, starting today, there are only two hats that remain. The newly-established primaries are done. The top two have been chosen.

It was a close call between choice 2 and choice 3. The Martins BBQ Joint received a total of 354 votes (29.4%) while the NHS Yes! was only 13 votes behind with 341 votes (28.3%). I'm sad to see that the NHS Yes hat didn't clear that bar this year, but I'm sure it will return in future years.

 

As I said, the votes continue. Please click here to visit the Google Form page to cast your choice between the two remaining hat choices.