The winner is...

Did all of you notice that I turned the BeBe picture post into a game?  Well, Mcüller won, and now I have to come up with a good prize to hand deliver to him when he returns Feb. 1st.  Ideas are welcome.

Our students returned to classes this week, and I start my classes next week.  I'm ready.  I think.  I'm taking Form and Meaning in Film and Visual Culture (a semiotics class).  

Ummm... that's all!  (sorry its not a cool video post like the wife's been leaving)

I changed my mind! That's not all... Michel Gondry curated the homepage of youtube.  That's kinda fun (even if he didn't pick a wifeandman video)... go check it out!

Home Library Kit

I love going to the Library. I have fond memories of all my school libraries, local libraries and home libraries. Just recently I went with my friend to the American Natural History Museum and we went to the Library there. It is only open to the public a few hours a week and we just happened to be there at the right time. It was awesome! We just started looking through whatever books captured our fancy. My personal favorite was a book that my friend found on Native American sign language. I would be happy to show you the sign for "blood" at your request. On the last page of the book there was a war paint picture key. There was one that indicated "killed an enemy using bare hands." Whoa! I am definitely hoping to go back to this particular library. Who wants to take a field trip?

For Christmas the pbf gave me the most amazing gift. A home library kit. The most exciting features are the library cards and stamp. I lend my books out a lot and now I can use these delightful cards. Here is a picture of the first card in use! There is no due date because my borrower should be able to read my books at their leisure. Yes, I know the date is wrong, that is when my patron is picking up their book. I was so excited to stamp that I pre-stamped! Also my old lady thumb has covered up the borrower's full name. This is the interweb afterall.

What's your favorite public building to enjoy?

Movies With Grandma Joy

My friend Shauna has recently created an amazing website and experiment that you should check out. It's really beautiful and made me want to hangout with some old folk!

www.movieswithgrandmajoy.com

BeBe Glamour *EDIT*

I have turned the original post below into a game!!! Match the letter of the photo with the number of the email quote you think it matches. I'll tally the scores on Monday and the closest one to matching all wins... something.

1. man to wife – “Mommy, when you aren't home daddy let's me eat peanut butter off of butter knives. It gets stuck on the roof of my mouth and I can't sleep without you anymore.”

2. wife to man – “Bebe now"

3. Man to wife – “Christmas BeBe”

4. Wife to Man – “Demon Bebe says, “have fun Daddy!”

5. wife to man – “Bebe wants me to get out of bed. Love you!!!”

6. Wife to Man – “The view from my chest”

7. Wife to man – “Bebe right now”

8. Wife to man – “Mommy worked out but I’m tired!!”

9. Man to Wife – “Mommy, I'm helping daddy study!”


Pictures of BeBe that we have taken with our phones and emailed to each other in the last 2 months, often sent with notes written as if BeBe were the sender.

A.

B.

C.

D.

E.

F.

G.

H.

I.

Leaving Lowe's Vegas

Today I spent the day with my dear friend Crystal. Since it was alarmingly warm (65 degrees!) we took a nice walk with Bebe through some neighborhoods near my house. On the way back we passed Lowe's and Crystal was saying how much she would like to go in. We put Bebe in the cart and walked around for 15 minutes. With about 20 feet to the exit we were met by our 10th Lowe's employee who informed us we needed to leave and then escorted us out of the building. So I think we got kicked out of Lowe's today. Awesome! This is Bebe and Crystal enjoying the cabinetry section.

Ohio Trip

We went to Ohio for a few days and hung out with the fam. Two of my favorite people in the whole world were there, my Mom and my Aunt. Here is a small video featuring those two lovely ladies.

Yuletide Productivity

I am done with work now until mid January so I have been working on deep cleaning the house. We have this reaaaaaally old laptop that we literally could not give away--we tried! This is what I decided to do with it yesterday.

Greenwood

When it was Global Warmingly temperate in November I went with three of my favorite people (the Canning girls) to Greenwood Cemetery, a wifeandman regular post subject. The two younger girls, both in elementary school, had the best time going on a grave hunt. We went looking for the first female physician in New York state. We eventually found her but not without many wrong turns. When we located the grave the girls were so excited that they did cartwheels. Here is one picture I took.

Put the lights on the tree

Thank you Sufjan for that most wonderful of Christmas songs! We finally finished decorating our tree yesterday. It has been a two week process, absolute slow motion for us. My favorite are the nativities, not in the tree of course, just in Christmas general. Last year we added mini cut outs of the pbf and myself to be excited at the arrival of baby Jesus. I can thank the McMu's for inspiration. They have various action figures in with the standard wise men, Mary and Joseph. I think to myself, why not, everyone has a chance to come to the Christ child! What fun! I have only two more teaching days left and then I'm on a month long break! This break seemed like a great time for me to do a cleanse so I went to Whole Foods and got a cleanse called, "My First Cleanse." We'll see how it goes, I'm little nervous but I'm sure it will be fine.

What's your favorite part of the Christmas decorations?

Slow Down the Change

I've had this blog window open for some time now waiting to be filled. I don't know what to say. I know what I'm feeling but of course that does not mean I know how to say it.

I've been encountering a lot of talk about change lately, and mostly all in a positive light, but with the understanding that it's not easy. It can, however, be done in a loving way with a loving environment.

It's funny, I'm in my mid-twenties (soon to be late 20's), and I sometimes act like the rest of my life is laid out and set... and almost over. Even if I feel I want to make a change, I decide it's not easy enough... I decide I'm fine where I am. I am fine where I am. I'm happy enough.

Sometimes I worry too much about representation... about the way I am represented. I was in a situation recently, in a room with lots of people that represent an area of my life. I got uncomfortable, as usual, around them. But they don't represent me. They aren't me. AND THEY AREN'T BAD PEOPLE... they just make decisions that I wouldn't make. Part of who they are is not who I would ever want to be, but I have to remind myself that while they have some affect on how I am seen, ultimately, it's not a personal affect.

Ghandi's ever quoted "Be the change you want to see in the world," has meant more to me recently than ever. But, at least for the way I am reading Ghandi's quote, the opposite, which has also been important, is Mother Theresa's "We are not called to be successful. We are called to be faithful."

Blackberry Post

I'm sitting at the main branch of the New York Public Library, you know, the one with the Lions (and from Ghostbusters). I am having a typical NYC adventure, walking around, seeing brand new things. I'm sitting in a huge, marble reading room on the 3rd floor with an ornate ceiling. I already saw the Gutenberg Bible in the next room. I took a picture but I can't figure out how to post it from my phone. Hmph.

Mustache

I gave myself one.

rain rain go away

Lucky you! Two posts from us in one day... that is, if you're still reading... perhaps we scared you all away with the videos? or you got tired of waiting for us?

It's raining... many of you know how much I haaaate it when it rains... but only because I hate walking in it and being on a wet train with wet people and a wet umbrella on my lap. If I could sit at home with a cup of coffee and read, then rain would be just fine!

So we saw the final night of Sufjan Steven's performance of BQE at BAM on Saturday. I don't want to say too much, so I'll just say AMAZING!!! Also, just so you know, after performing John Wayne Gacy, Jr., he appologized for leaving out some of the lyrics. He said it was too disturbing and it might be time for him to put that song away. I'd never heard him perform it live before either...

I'd throw in my regular grumble of being too busy, but you all know I like it. The one thing that does suck is that i'm too busy to do some needed things... like fix the wall that was torn from our coat rack falling... and putting the coat rack back up. Our jackets and hoodies and car keys and dog leashes are all sort of scattered around the kitchen now, on the backs of chairs and the table itself.

Ominous Brooklyn sky

I am working on my first Off-Broadway show right now(!). It's very exciting. It's a West Texas dialect so I have had to do some fun research. Yesterday I spoke with a professor over at the University of Houston who sent me some sound samples. I will let you know when the show goes up.



Here is a photo I took the other day on the train, it was with my phone so it's not the best quality but...I think it makes the sky over Brooklyn look like the final battle between good and evil in a super hero movie. Thoughts?

mummenschanz

This is what the pbf and I did tonight. Thank you for inspiration Chloe and the Robs.

first video post

I'm not sure how these are going to work or how often they will come. Perhaps the wife will get into the gig too... for now, they're going to be more of a way for me to throw out some ideas quickly and to relax doing something for myself. And, I don't do music, so unless someone writes music for me, it'll just be music thrown on... though this song surprisingly matches my cut well!

A Myriad of Color in My Beard

I hate the word myriad. I worked on a freelance job once and did lots and lots of video editing for this guy to his narration and he used the word myriad multiple times... he was an annoying person and was very very very late with paying me. Though once he did we were able to buy a washer and dryer!

I tried to wait until no shave november to start growing in my full beard, but I just couldn't wait. Here it comes!

One of his tags is meg(a)lomania

Enjoy the brilliance:
www.youtube.com/gregcondon


Also, I think it's time for Wife and Man to start videoblogging! only, I'm not talking about staring into a camera and talking... naturally, I mean more. would you watch?

crack head

After three clicks on WebMD's symptom checker, I diagnosed myself with Cocaine Abuse.

http://www.webmd.com/mental-health/cocaine-abuse

The Box

I'm really digging pandora.com. I'd heard about it before, but Rob and Son reminded me about it and boy am I glad. Good stuff.

My boss is back after an extended sick leave. He ran into me yesterday on the street while I was walking around on my lunch break... Naturually, I was scowling at the world around me, and he asked me why as he rubbed the spot between my eyes with his finger. Then he treated me to coffee and asked how life's going. He's acting like a changed man... and he's lost enough weight to look like one.

Can I just repeat myself by saying I love fall? I say this every year... over and over... always singing that old Rugrats song "Fall is here, Fall is here, It's the most wonderful time of year". I guess Faall does to me what spring does to most people. It feels like a renewal... a time to start fresh. A chance to cozy up to myself and those I love. It gets the motivation moving and the creative juices flowing. Hooray Fall!