Real estate is for the dogs

Anybody watching 20/20 right now, or am I the only one wasting my evening? If I didn't feel bad enough that I couldn't afford to buy a home, their doing a story on dog houses that are worth lots (LOTS) of money. One dog house with a flat screen tv and dvd player, an airconditioner, and a little pool that was worth over $80,000.

My dad and I started making a doghouse for our dog once... I'm not sure if we ever really finished it. I don't think so. If we did, the dog never used it.

Now there's another 20/20 with Jena Bush!!! YaY! An hour about a Bush.

what am I doing?

*EDIT*
Actually, the hour with Jena Bush wasn't so bad... I mean, they really really should have contextualized more regarding what Unicef is doing in Jamaica, but it wasn't so bad.

aluminum and oil drums

Last week was eventful! Saw an old friend from high school, got my first full week of teaching finished, went on a lovely date wityh the pbf on Saturday, bought some artwork-materials listed above and got groceries. Exciting times for the Doubloons indeed!

Yes, Please.

For those that would like to buy me presents...

I need a watch. That would be nice.

Also, I need these AWESOME theory trading cards:
http://www.theory.org.uk/david/theorycards.htm

At the site you can buy them, they use the line - Theory Trading Cards provide concise answers to questions such as, "What is the essence of Michel Foucault's oeuvre?" "What are bell hooks' most important works?" and "What is Theodor Adorno's astrological sign?" (http://www.altamirapress.com/Catalog/SingleBook.shtml?command=Search&db=%5EDB/CATALOG.db&eqSKUdata=0759103836)

This is especially funny if you know that Adorno said, “bent little fortune tellers, terrorizing their clients with crystal balls, are toy models of the great ones who hold the fate of mankind in their hands. . . . The hypnotic power exerted by things occult resembles totalitarian terror. . . . The horoscope corresponds to the official directives to the nations, and number-mysticism is preparation for administrative statistics and cartel prices.”

And it's funny that bell hooks would have a card at all because she goes by (her lowercased psuedo name) bell hooks in an effort to say that the work is what's important, not herself.

Passing

A woman whose writing I loved passed away last Thursday. Madeleine L'Engle wrote, among many things, "Walking On Water: Reflections on Faith and Art" one of the most inspiring and thought provoking musings on the subject. In her NY Times obituary she is quoted as having said,

"Why does anybody tell a story? It does indeed have something to do with faith, faith that the universe has meaning, that our little human lives are not irrelovant, that what we choose or say or do matters, matters cosmically."

Crazy days...

Every Friday in September I will be teaching for 12 1/2 hours with two 30 minute breaks. I am scared poopless for this. It's not sitting at a desk or reading, but literally on my feet working with students for an obscene amount of time. I'm very nervous but it's only for September so send me prayers and money to make me feel better!

The day my chivalry died

I was riding home on the train yesterday and this guy sitting next to me starts telling the lady sitting across from us that she needs to uncross her legs because it's turning him on... I take my headphones off to see where this is going... then he tells her that she might as well just take her clothes off for him. I see other guys standing around, and an older lady too, and I think in my head that this could be a real new york moment... If I speak up, they'll all speak out too. So I say, "Dude, she don't need to hear that!" and i shock myself with how ghetto I've sounded, but I don't let it show on my face. I look around expecting to see the other guys ready to jump in with me, but they look indifferent. I look to the girl whose aid I have come to... she too looks indifferent. I look back to the guy sitting next to me and he says "Stay outta my business." So I say, "just leave her alone, she don't need that." Then the train stops, the lady stands up, looks at the guy, says "Fuck you" and walks off the train. Everybody else is acting like nothing's happened so I put my headphones back on. The guy then starts talking to me, but I can't hear him because of the music. All I can make out is something about his business. So I take my headphones off, mad at him, mad at the other guys standing around, mad that my chivalry was not noted, and I look at him and say "Seriously?" and I put my headphones back on and go back to reading. The guy got up and walked away through the train.

Fall is here

Okay, fall, the season, is not here yet, but fall the semester is knocking on the door. It's too bad the season's not here now because it's my favorite! a snap in the air and color on the trees.
The semester though is making me nervous. I'm taking 2 classes, TAing for a grad class, teaching a pre-college class, and working my regular job! Be nervous for me. Or be excited for me... you're choice.

Just watch Mario Lopez's face...

here. Oh man pageants are hilarious!

Kennel Cough Redux

Bebe gave me her Kennel Cough. Not really because it can't be passed to humans. I do have a nasty cold starting up. Hopefully it will be out of my system before NYU starts! Airborne tonics nonstop.

Natural Born

kiiiiller?
outlaw?

We're home!

Kira, I swear I sent you that email before I saw your comment.

Back from the trip to TN. On our way to the airport our muffler fell off the car... we were dragging it so we had to get the car towed. It was drama that ended with us catching a cab while our car was still being hooked up to the tow truck and then having to get a second cab that missed the airport exit. We made it to the airport in time for our flight though, and then it was delayed an hour.

The trip was fine and now we're recovering... so is our dog because she got Kennel Cough.

Perhaps there will be some fun photos from the trip sooner than later.

We saw Eisley in concert monday night at Joe's Pub. They were great... great venue too. They're coming back and opening for MuteMath in october... would that be a good show? I don't really know mutemath's music.

My turn

This weekend, I'm the one out of town and the wife is the one home. I'm in San Diego... the baseball stadium is two blocks away from my hotel and there's a crowd there waiting for Barry to break the record.
I have a ticket to the zoo tomorrow. Should be fun. I'll have to slip away from the boss to get there.
Today I walked over to the harbor and saw sail boats, an aircraft carrier, a battle ship and other really big boats. Also walked through the historic gaslamp quarter. I think, after the zoo, i'll have done all the city has to offer (other than the beach, but I don't like beaches). Guess I'll have to focus on the conference then.

I was sooooo sick from the plane ride when I first got here, that I vomited in my hotel room! I was motion sick or had a migraine or some combination of the two.

When the Wife's away (a photo post)

0 comments eh? Either there's a lot of White Stripes haters out there or our blog needs a shot in the arm... nothing like a photo post to do that.

The wife's in Vermont teaching hippies how to speak... or actors living in the hippy state how to speak. I'm home with a sore throught and congestion. I was told to do airborne while she was away. Yesterday morning I did airborne powder in water, then last night I did sierra mist and tequilla, today I am doing sierra mist and airborne powder (not a bad mix!) and tonight I might do airborne, sierra mist, and tequilla... maybe not. I'm also snacking on a block of extra sharp cheddar all weekend and last night while I was drinking tequilla, watching an emotional 20/20 about drawfs and giants, and eating cheese, I started thinking about the government cheese my grandparents used to get... tastiest cheese EVER MADE!!! I've heard the same thing from other people that have eaten free government cheese.

So the wife has the camera that we got for christmas with her in VA (is vermont VA? no, that's virginia... VM? VT!!!?) so I dug out the old one. It had pictures from thanksgiving and christmas on it! OBSERVE!


Thanksgiving Day!


Christmas Day!


Pillow Day!

So what's a weekend look like without the wife? Are you sad husband? You're drinking tequilla alone! I'm not sad. I miss the wife, of course. Her presence is better than her absence, but I enjoy time alone occasionally. It means I can eat THIS for breakfast:


And BeBe and I can throw the newspaper anywhere we want after we read it.


And now BeBe is going to learn some new CS3 tricks so she can change that lucky charms box from purple to red (though really, that's not new to CS3):

my birthday gift

For my birthday, the wife got me tickets to see the White Stripes at Madison Square Garden. I haven't been to an arena concert since Aerosmith when I was 16. The sound was beyond loud at that show and I couldn't hear for a day... that left me worried about those kinds of shows, but MSG and the white stripes know how to not be stupid with the volume.

Porter Wagoner opened the show with Marty Stuart accompanying him. Poter is old (he had to be helped on and off the stage) but he still rocks the rhine stone suits. Porter will be on Letterman tonight just so you know... He was really awesome. He kept thanking the crowd and thanked Jack White and talked about how great it was to play Madison Square... he sang Dooley, and that was awesome.

Then Grinderman, Nick Cave's new band, came out and really crapped up the stage. The wife sang, in the tune of their song I Am Grinderman, "this is pretentious bullshit" and then she said in a cheery voice, "but they are creepy and I'm afraid they could rape me!"

Then the White Stripes played. It was awesome. I like them because the music is simple but dirty, and then not simple at all. It's really crazy how much sound they get out of a two person band. They played Jolene. That made the show worth it to my wife, and brought it all back to good 'ol Porter (via Dolly).

White Stripes

Went with the pbf to see the White Stripes for his belated b-day present. Wowsa, what performers they are! Excellent.

Harry Potter

I barely left the house this weekend so I could read Harry Potter! I just finished. Thank you J.K. Rowling!

Gray Line Throwdown (post by GRob)

Special thanks to Wife and Man for allowing me to post as a guest.

My folks visited last week. Before they came we had talked about doing an open top bus tour of the city, so on Friday after MRob and I got off work we met up with BB’s mommy and daddy and went in search of ticket sellers.
I was in a pretty foul mood as work that morning had been less than ideal. Even a burger from the Burger Joint didn’t do much towards putting me in better spirits. And it was hotter than a screaming kumquat.
We ended up having to walk a bit farther (or further?—you tell me) than expected, but finally, in the distance, we spotted the proverbial red vests of the ticket peddlers. Upon our approach, two of the red vested vultures swooped down upon our small party and immediately began bickering over who had gotten to us first. Their argument grew so intense that I believe they forgot about us, the paying customers, for 7—possibly 8—seconds. Two members of our party (mother and BB’s mommy) stepped to the side to let the fracas unfold as it would. The vendors did not even notice.
Finally, the remaining four of us yelled that we would just take out business to an idle red vester if they couldn’t sort their differences out in a civilized fashion. This snapped them back to reality, and BB’s daddy went with one (Red Vest #1) while I, MRob, and father huddled up with the other (Red Vest #2).
Red Vest #2 proceeded to pull out the bus tour brochure and spout incoherent musings on the different options, all while furiously scribbling on the pages opened in front us. Hindsight allows me to know that he was trying to describe the various choices, but, at the time, it was not helpful…at all. Especially as he kept glancing at Red Vest #1 and asking, “How many is he buying?” (referring, of course, to BB’s daddy). Despite our efforts to get him to concentrate on the task at hand, we could tell his mind was with Red Vest #1 (and, of course, BB’s daddy).
By this time, father, MRob, and I had pretty much lost any semblance of patience (remember, I had had a bad morning that day). We distracted Red Vest #2 long enough to let him know we wanted 4 tickets, and father pulled out his wallet while #2 rang us up. Father didn’t pull out enough money at first, which he realized, but before he could retrieve the lacking cash, Red Vest #2 began jabbering about how father needed to give him more. It was, as they say, the straw that broke the camel’s back.
MRob and father offered a quick 1-2 invective combo, and I immediately followed up with the KO punch (almost literally, but not quite).
Let me pause here to say that I consider myself a person of moderate to not bad self control. I don’t make it a habit of lashing out at strangers, and I often try to take things in stride no matter how infuriated I am. In this particular instance, especially as I was with MRob and father, I wouldn’t have thought I would have any problems maintaining my temperamental status quo. Sadly (and perhaps funnily) this was not the case.
Fed up with #2’s insolence, I delivered a 2-sentence-length lesson on customer service and then, looking him straight in the eye, I calmly said, “I ought to kick your ass.” Let’s just say there was a change in mood.
Red Vest #2 began apologizing, saying how excited he gets. MRob walked away. Father remained silent. #2 offered his hand, expressing his desire to bury the hatchet, and we quickly completed the transaction.
Father and I walked over to MRob, who had just told mother and BB’s mommy about my bizarre behavior. I was still steamed, but the reality of what I had just said was beginning to kick in. We were all kind of standing around expressing our bewilderment at what had just happened when #2 came over and again offered his hand. I shook it—again—and he went on his merry way.
When I look back at this incident, I chuckle. But I also do a mental double take. I told a stranger I ought to kick his ass in front of MRob and father. Who does that??? I guess I do, but I never would have thought it. Sometimes you witness or experience something that really chaps your hide, and you get angry, right?
If I ever see Red Vest #2, I’ll probably offer some sort of apology, although I’m sure he’ll have no idea who I am. You never know, though. Perhaps I’ll be walking to the train from work one day and in one of those serendipitous moments that only happens in movies, I’ll spot #2 from across the street, our eyes will meet, and we’ll run across the crosswalk, stopping traffic, to embrace and shed tears of remorse at the rudeness we displayed in our first encounter. Perhaps we’ll get vente mochas together. Perhaps I’ll take him to the Burger Joint. Perhaps we’ll be BFF. Perhaps…

The Neighbor

We will soon be unvailing a post from our first guest blogger. You too may guest blog on Wife and Man if you like... just let us know if you want to. Guest blogs will be submitted under the user name theneighbor, a reference to the fact that guest blogs will be from our friends, and most often, friends that live in our neighborhood.

New Nephew!

Congrats on being successfully born to our beautiful new nephew, Ruger! He made his his debut on July 11th. We will be meeting him in August and we can't wait!!

I'm in a meat coma

I saw Jay Bakker at RUB today. I was with my boss and a coworker, and we were leaving when I saw him, so I couldn't really stop and say "I KNOW WHO YOU ARE AND I WROTE A PAPER ABOUT YOUR REALITY SHOW"... but I did walk right by him and we made eye contact.

Our lunch was an embarassing meat fest that included 5 different types of meat...