History Detectives

See if you can spot my graphics in the season premiere of PBS’s “The History Detectives.” It’s on at 8:00 p.m. tonight on most PBS stations.

Watch Vietnam Diary, Bootlegger’s Notebook and a Hollywood Ledger on PBS. See more from History Detectives.

Sleight of Hand

Somehow Karsten always manages to slip his hand into mine as we walk home from the bus stop. I’m not even conscious of exactly when he does it—perhaps he’s not either—but by the time we reach home his warm little hand is always there.

From the Anderer Dictionary…

Dipit - \ˈdi-pət\ n, a seasoned pureed condiment usually made from tomatoes. Aka ketchup.

Christmas Wish List, Installment #2

This 2009 Vintage Penn State Football Calendar from Asgard Press features archival-quality reproductions of Penn State football souvenir programs sold at the stadium during the early 1900s to the 1960s.
[read more]

From the Anderer Dictionary…

Lookamuh - \ˈlük-ə-mə\ v, an imperative verb used by certain children to call immediate attention to something noteworthy. [i.e.: "Lookamuh drawing!" "Lookamuh toy!" "Lookamuh shoes!"…]

Maxwell's First

Two down, one to go; Maxwell hopped on the bus this morning for his first day of Kindergarten. I would describe his mood as "indifferent."

More photos here.

Udvar-Hazy Visit

The boys (Daddy, Maxwell, and Karsten) visited the Smithsonian National Air & Space Museum's Udvar-Hazy Center at Dulles Airport today. Highlights included: a Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird, The Concorde, The Enola Gay, a Curtis P-40E, a North American F-86A Sabre, and the Space Shuttle. Space Ice Cream was consumed, and Maxwell did some sketching of both the SR-71, and from the observation deck. Photos here.

The 1960 Sears Catalog is more interesting than whatever you're reading.

Look, a monkey for $50 plus shipping and handling:

2008 Blue & White Game

See photos of Corrin cavorting, pirouetting, and autograph-mongering during our trip to Penn State for the annual spring scimmage here.

That really makes me somebody!

I am quoted on page 9 of the March/April 2008 issue of The Penn Stater magazine. This is the kind of spontaneous publicity I need! My name in print! That really makes me somebody! Things are going to start happening to me now. (The Jerk, 1979)

The Easter Bunnies

Corrin came into my office Friday with one of her little stuffed animals. She stood patiently beside me, holding it out for me to see. I gave her the obligatory "that's nice, dear." And then it blinked...

Startled, i turned to see three grinning children, each holding a tiny bunny. They had been picking daffodils and came across their nest. See more photos.

Where’s my Nobel Prize?

I saw this decal on a parked car today and could‘t believe my eyes.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't GASOLINE a hydrocarbon??? In that case, I too, drive a Hydrocarbon-powered Eco-vehicle!

Take that, Algore !

Jasper RIP

Our sweet dog Jasper passed away from bone cancer this morning. We wish him godspeed on his trip to Doggie Heaven/Squirrel Hell.

Christmas Wish List, Installment #1

A pedal car replica of a 1936 Auto Union Type C Grand Prix racecar. But please order early, they're only making 999. [read more]

Cox Farms!

We've been hearing about Cox Farms for a while, but it was even better than we had heard: haystacks to climb, 6 slides, baby animals, antique farm equipment, a haunted hayride, pumpkins, cider. Highly recommended. See some photos here.

Cox Farms' website here.

Don't mess with Clocky®

Someone has finally invented an alarm clock for people like me—who hit the snooze bar over and over. This alarm clock runs away and hides when you don't wake up. "Clocky" gives you one chance to get up before it jumps off the nightstand and wheels randomly around the room looking for a place to hide. More info here or watch it in action here.

From the Anderer Dictionary…

Robin Hood Lunch - \'rä-ben hud lænch\ n, embarrassing situation wherein small portions of other children’s lunches are combined to feed your child who arrived at preschool without one. [i.e.: stolen from the rich and given to the poor, à la Robin Hood.]

Did you see us on South Park?

Click on image to enlarge.

From the Anderer Dictionary…

Code Brown - \'kōd brau n\, n, embarrassing situation occurring when a child soils the very last diaper you have while on the way to the store to buy more. [Example: "Will there be anything else, sir?" "No thank you, just the diapers—we have a Code Brown situation."]

It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Our Daughter Back … booouuyie!

Tonight we attended an assembly at my daughter's kindergarten. While we've had many occasions to be proud of our daughter, none has made me feel prouder than I felt tonight.

Keeping the attention of squirming 6-year-olds is always a challenge. The key seems to be the use of as much audience participation as possible. Tonight was no exception.

TEACHER: "Can anyone tell me what 911 is?"
[Many children raise their hands eagerly. The teacher motions to my daughter to answer.]
CORRIN: "A joke in your town!"

It's been a few hours and I still can't stop laughing.

Update: Clarification for Whitey:

All that glitters is not sugar

Call it chemistry for grownups if you like: Our sugar bowl was empty and I was desperate for sugar for my Sunday morning coffee. I pondered all my available alternatives: confectioners sugar, maple syrup, crushed Sweet-Tarts^®, Jello mix…. I finally decided my best option was decorative cake sprinkles. It's just colored sugar after all, right?

Wrong! As I watched a greasy, semi-solid scum envelop my espresso, I realized perhaps cake sprinkles are not sugar at all. Turns out, they are actually dyed slivers of carnauba wax, sprayed with confectioner glaze to harden it and make it twinkle. Sure, there's a nominal amount of sugar mixed in to make it sweet, but I now know it's mostly car wax. Delicious!

Trivia

There are only 3 words in the English language that begin with "DW".

World's ugliest puppet

Click on the photo to see the world's ugliest puppet in action. So silly!

Karsten's first day of preschool

[12 September 2006] Maxwell is a Teddy Bear now. Karsten is a Puppy. You can see some photos of the big day here.

Corrin's first day of kindergarten

[5 September 2006] Stay tuned for photos.