This was a fast-moving month for one with 31 days in it. Granted I spent much of the time in my summer schedule of wake up, eat breakfast, exercise, possibly do lawn work, morning ablutions, possibly do errands, work on readying the house for Katrina's family, a long lunch with Rowen and I watching cartoons (X-Men, X-Men '97, Star Wars: Bad Batch, Star Wars: Tales of the Empire, and much of Star Trek: Prodigy), more house work or video games depending on my mood, dinner, housework or video games depending on Janelle's mood, and sleep. Still, there were some notable events as well. Some of these included:

-Finally completing Final Fantasy 7: Rebirth--a game truly made for me.
-Our AP students received their scores and did well in all of the classes that I know about.
-I got new glasses that look like my old ones, but are lighter.
-I picked up the set of dresser-stairs that go with the bunkbed that we currently have in our cabin but are moving into the house for the grandsons.
-I've made improvements with my Japanese fluency, but I'm still not even to the conversational stage as of yet.
-Connor bought the parts for a high-end gaming computer and put them together with very little help from me. He's been fine-tuning it this entire month.
-I set up reservations for the hotels Peter and I will need on the trip to move their stuff up.
-I found myself lost in memories as I sorted through boxes and boxes of items from my past.
-I moved my "office" into the living room. It's generally working out (I'm wishing that I could have replaced the windows in the living room too), but we will see what happens when my grandchildren see all of Baba's toys.
-I had to deal with another spraying pipe.
-I learned that I am a "baby-donor" due to something about my blood--beyond just being O-.
-I attended my first (albeit unofficial) meeting as a member of my union's executive board.
-President Biden agreed to withdraw his candidacy in this next presidential election with Vice-President Harris stepping up in his place. What had been largely an ideological difference in the election has now become a historically stark difference between the two candidates.
-The younger boys and I saw Deadpool & Wolverine. We then saw it again with Janelle. I would still like to see it again.
-I completed God of War: Ragnarok--another case that proves video games are their own form of literature.
-We are planned and nearly ready to head out on the life-changing trip which will bring Katrina, Peter, and our grandchildren into our house.

I chose to write and post this blog entry early as Janelle and I will start our travels this evening. July was a pretty full month, but it's clear that August is going to top it in nearly every way. I'm so excited to see what it brings!

Janelle and I leave tomorrow for Anchorage. Very early on the 1st, we will start our flights that get us to Michigan. We have the "landing space" mostly ready for Katrina and her children. Surprisingly, we have not had to give up any vehicle space thus far when it comes to storing the many items that we've packed away. A lot of the credit for that goes to Peter, who made a floor for the attic space in our garage. 

I will also say that Rowen has been a tremendous help with this move. He has been diligently working with very little complaint this entire summer--putting in multiple hours of work nearly every day. This has made my life significantly easier than I expected it to be.

Today, I finalized some of my plans for the 5 day drive back up. I have the maps downloaded to my phone (and a couple of old physical maps to take up space in my travel bag). I made certain our first three hotels had breakfast available (I already knew that the last one doesn't). I wrote down addresses and travel times, sharing that information with Peter, Katrina, and Janelle. 

Tomorrow, I'm going to do some lawn work, make a run to the dump and post office, and pack for the trip. We've been working towards this all summer. It's amazing that the time has already arrived!

Our readings today included the famous miracle of the multiplication of the loaves and fishes. Our visiting priest talked about how this event, as well as a similar one with Elisha from the first reading, stresses the importance of sharing what we have. He called attention to the boy who provided the five loaves and two fish. It was that boy's generosity that made it so the miracle could occur. Without the boy's willingness to share there would have been no loaves or fish for Jesus to multiply (remember that the devil had tempted Jesus to turn stones into bread during His 40 day fast). 

God works His miracles through us. Even when we think that what we have is not enough for the situation, God asks us to give of ourselves what we can. As we do so, He then makes it enough. This applies not just to our charity with our treasure, but with our time and talent as well.

I've long been bothered by the expression "God helps those who help themselves." That's the opposite of Jesus' message. Instead, we are told that "God helps those who help others." This help is true help, not judgment or condemnation which so many people give out instead. We are to be like the boy in the Gospel, bringing what we have to share with others even when we know that it won't be enough--allowing God to provide through our own generosity.

Part of my morning ritual includes looking through my Facebook "memories" for the day. It's interesting to looking for continuities and change over the years--almost like it's one of my exercises for my AP history classes. Some of the changes and consistencies are in me, and some are in the events that happen during the same time of year. 

For example, recent "memories" have dealt with the influx of dip-netters that our area deals with every summer. Some of the posts demonstrated concerns about the traffic issues that are caused. In others, I talked about how the revenue to our businesses (and sales tax) generated by dip-netters this month makes it necessary for us to put up with the overall craziness. 

Another interesting trend during this time of year includes traveling. Despite generally being a homebody, I seem to use the first part of August as one of my main times to travel to other places. Certainly, one reason is because that is my last chance before the school year starts. Another is due to Janelle's blanket inability to take time off during July because of her job (and the aforementioned dip-netters). Still, I've been surprised how many of my "memories" lately have been focused on preparing for an upcoming trip--like the one we're taking in a few days.

Not everything follows these sorts of patterns. In many cases, I can use the memories to chart changes that I have made in my life and sometimes in my way of thinking. My exercise routines (or lack thereof) have certainly gone through periods of waxing and waning. My tolerance for certain political shenanigans has definitely shortened over time, but I've also noticed an improvement in my temper regarding them (at least as expressed online).

Basically, I find that I'm still essentially me, but that past and present me would not see eye-to-eye on everything. 

We are less that a week away from Janelle and I heading down to Michigan and begin bringing Katrina's family up to Soldotna to live with us. This trip that will change our lives more than anything else since we moved up to Alaska. It's definitely going to take some adjustment--on all of our parts.

Most of the upstairs is getting converted into bedrooms for Katrina's family. What has been the boys' bedroom, the art studio, and my office are becoming a master bedroom, a bedroom for my grandsons, and a bedroom for my granddaughter. Trevor is moving out to the cabin--once we no longer have renters (which will be the day after Peter and I get back up here). Rowen has already moved into the pantry room downstairs. Janelle's art materials are getting stored in a variety of locations with her sewing table and computer desk in our bedroom. Meanwhile, I've moved my "office" space to a corner of the living room. 

Our days of relatively calm and quiet are soon to be filled motion and noise. Janelle's long morning video calls with Katrina will be replaced by getting to spend time together (although, maybe not as early in the morning). While Trevor will have a bathroom (including a shower with a tub) of his own in the cabin, nine of us will be sharing two bathrooms in the main house--one of which is only accessible by going through our master bedroom. I have a feeling that the phrase "Hurry up!" accompanied by some percussive knocking will become one of the more commonly heard sounds.

Of course, the biggest issue will be people living close to one another--which can frequently lead to unexpected conflicts. In this case, it will be my daughter's family learning how to live with me. I can be quite difficult.

I love it, and so do both of the younger boys. I would willing go to see it again and again. Based on this first viewing (and my thoughts might change with subsequent viewings or as time goes on), I would place it above most of the other Fox made X-Men films--with only X2 and Deadpool 2 beating it out. I would also place it above nearly every MCU Phase 4 or 5 film (since Endgame) with the exception of Spider-Man: No Way Home. In many ways, this movie reminded me of No Way Home, but with about 15% less run time. In fact, I would say that my biggest criticism of the movie was that I wanted more and felt that it was cut short (as many recent MCU movies have been). 

It is definitely a Deadpool movie. It's excessively/comedically violent, massively irreverent, and morally ambiguous--yet it still has a clear heart that makes me love the character. I would say any fan of the Deadpool or Wolverine movies will enjoy this film. 

It also is filled with references and cameos that made me extremely happy as a Marvel geek. That said, I feel that the movie does a good enough of a job setting up the audience with at least most of the information that they would need before watching the film. In my mind, there were several missed opportunities and cameos that did not appear, but those were more than balanced out by unexpected elements and cameos that made the movie great.

There is also a post-credit scene that I felt was worth the wait.

I look forward to seeing it again--hopefully soon.

In the history of Presidential elections in the United States, there has never been as stark of a difference between the two main candidates as there now is in this election. Much more than political ideology stand between them. There are many clear distinctions between the candidates in this race.

On one side we have a successful prosecutor; on the other we have a convicted felon (whose primary defense lately has been that he should be able to get away with it because he was a President--even if he wasn't at the time of the crime).

On one side we have a woman who has continually stood up for women's rights; on the other we have an admitted philanderer (at the minimum, who had an affair with the woman who is his current wife while still married to his second wife) who was found guilty of sexually groping a woman without her consent (albeit in a civil rather than a criminal court due to issues with statutes of limitations in New York). 

On one side we have the daughter of immigrants; on the other we have a man who has outright stated that he would establish camps (you know, where people would be "concentrated") in order to round up millions of immigrants and deport them--many of whom have applied for asylum in the U.S. (a process that currently REQUIRES people to be on U.S. soil to make the application).

On one side we have a Black American who is also of Indian descent who continually advocates for minority groups within America; on the other, we have a man who received endorsements from racist organizations and has continually made racist comments that his campaign has needed to either cover up or explain away (... but he didn't mean it that way).

In stark contrast to just last week, we are being given a clear choice this coming election. Our daughters are watching. Our system of law and order is watching. Our immigrant neighbors are watching. Our world is watching. History is watching. God is watching.

I attended my first, albeit unofficial, union meeting as an Executive Board member today. Despite being informal, most of the time was spent talking about scheduling upcoming meetings and events. Just being on the E-Board means meeting two regular evening meetings a month. On top of that are the other union events--which seem to take up a good amount of time for at least the first few months of school. 

As we were talking about possible dates for certain events, I looked up items already on my school calendar, and saw that things like Homecoming are coming up at the beginning of September. I haven't even put in the tournaments for my DDF (Drama, Debate, and Forensics) team as of yet. On top of that are the meetings that I still need to schedule for the students and parents that I'm taking on my upcoming trip to Japan. 

All of this does not mention that Janelle and I are heading down to Michigan in just over a week to help with moving Katrina, Peter, and our grandchildren up to Alaska and into our house. I think that, as busy as we have been, we will be seeing even more activity in our lives starting at the beginning of August. Still, I'm certain that we will be able to handle it.

I have a difficult time fighting procrastination. Over the years, I have become better at getting things done sooner rather than later, but I still have to fight the urge on a regular basis--and I'm not always successful in doing so. My struggles would probably be easier if my procrastination did not end up benefiting me so often--or worse, when my life would have been substantially better if I had procrastinated. The classic example (for me) is that time and again, I have spent the summer planning for a class that I end up not teaching the following school year. However, there are plenty of smaller incidents that demonstrate this issue, including two that happened today.

One was that I postponed going to the post office. I had been informed that there would be a package arriving today, but I decided not to squeeze in a trip to town today (especially with the current traffic and my Deadpool & Wolverine movie prep) as I will be in town for a meeting tomorrow. I had expected exasperation when I said that I didn't go, but was instead informed that the package was delayed and isn't there today anyway. It's a good thing I procrastinated.

The second involved the lodging reservations that I've been making for my trip up through Canada with my son-in-law. Our final night (between our fourth and fifth days of driving) does not have a lot of options as towns (let alone cities) near the Alaska/Canada border are (quite literally) few and far between. I've had all of the other arrangements set, but I've been waiting to receive a call from a place near Beaver Creek (in the Yukon) to let me know if they would have a cabin available--they had a couple of cabins on hold due to a construction project. They called me this morning to say that they were sorry, but that there were no availabilities for any of their cabins on the 7th. 

Not having a reservation there meant changing up our driving plans, making our trip on the last day two to three hours longer. I figured that I would wait until I was done watching the X-Men movies today before I started looking online for other options. I was in the process of walking to my desk to turn on my computer when I received a call from the place that had told me earlier that they were booked. They had one cabin open up as long as there will be only two of us (which there will be) and that we don't have a pet with us. It's a good thing I procrastinated.

I will still work at being more proactive in my life, but I do recognize that there are times when a little bit of procrastination can save a lot of trouble. 

Today's first reading, psalm, and Gospel all focused on shepherds and sheep. Jesus saw the crowds and, even though He had tried to find a quiet place to rest, He instead decided to teach them out of pity for their lack of understanding and guidance. Jerimiah warns those shepherds who mislead and scatter the flock of the Lord, and speaks of shepherds who will guide the flock correctly. Meanwhile, Psalm 23 talks about the Lord our shepherd, leading us, protecting us, and providing for us.

There are times that I think of myself as a shepherd in this light. Especially in my roles of father (now grandfather) and teacher, I hope that I am guiding those in my charge the way that God wants of me. I try to keep myself from allowing selfish desires and negative emotions to influence me as I attempt to guide my children (and grandchildren) and students to be the best version of themselves.

However, I'm also one of the sheep. I need guidance and protection, myself. I sometimes find myself wandering, confused, and even lost. The most difficult situations are when I don't even realize that I've strayed. It's in those times that I am grateful that God shepherds me, nudging me in the correct direction and guarding me from my the dangers brought about by my own poor judgement.

The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.

I know that I am not alone in my excitement for the upcoming Deadpool & Wolverine movie. Ever since the first teaser which had Hugh Jackman casually walking in the background, I knew that this movie would be one that I would see in the theater--and possibly for multiple viewings. The actors and writers strikes, low performing movies, and a certain actor's criminal charges changed up the entire schedule of the MCU so that this movie will be the only movie from the Marvel Cinematic Universe this year. Meanwhile, the promotional hype for it has been perfectly executed. I'm definitely part of their target demographic, and everything has only increased my anticipation.

As I've mentioned before, Rowen and I are planning on watching the X-Men movies that include either Wolverine or Deadpool this coming week in preparation. It looks like this film is going to incorporate so many of the previous Marvel movies and shows that it is not practical to watch all of them going into this. However, Rowen has been particularly interested in watching the X-Men movies as the only ones he remembers are Apocalypse and Dark Phoenix--which weren't that good. Considering that he and I recently watched all of the 90s cartoons for the X-Men as well as the phenomenal X-Men '97, I think that we'll have a great time.

The Orca (movie theater) now has a 4:10 PM showing for Deadpool & Wolverine on Thursday, so I have amended my tentative schedule to finish Deadpool 2 (no longer the Super Duper Cut) with enough time to get ready and get to the theater. If you're curious, the current schedule is:

July 22:     
10:00 AM - 11:42 AM    X-Men (1h 42m)
11:45 AM - 1:59 PM         X2: X-Men United (2h 14m)
2:05 PM - 3:49 PM          X-Men: The Last Stand (1h 44m) 

July 23:     
10:00 AM - 11:47AM     X-Men Origins: Wolverine (1h 47m)
11:50 AM - 2:01 PM         X-Men: First Class (2h 11m)
2:05 PM - 4:17 PM         The Wolverine (2h 12m

July 24:     
12:00 PM - 2:12 PM         X-Men: Days of Future Past (2h 12m)
2:15 PM - 4:03 PM         Deadpool (1h 48m)

July 25:     
11:00 PM - 1:17 PM         Logan (2h 17m)
1:20 PM - 3:19 PM         Deadpool 2 (1h 59m)
4:10 PM - 6:17 PM         Deadpool & Wolverine (2h 7m) [at the Orca]

In the past few days, I have watched the season conclusions of three TV shows that I hoped to  enjoy--with various degrees of success in that regard: Star Wars: The Acolyte, the third (and final) season of Star Wars: The Bad Batch, and the most recent season of Doctor Who (with Ncuti Gatwa as The Fifteenth[?] Doctor). They were all about as good as I thought that they going into them, but none of them were as good as I hoped they would turn out to be. Still, I enjoyed moments in all of them. 

The Acolyte does not deserve the negative review bombings that it has received. It was an interesting show that took the Star Wars universe in unexpected directions while still keeping it tied to the overall lore in satisfying ways. In particular, episodes 5 and 8 (the final episode) were spectacular--particularly the fighting choreography! I will say that Manny Jacinto (who played Jason Mendoza on  The Good Place) ended up stealing nearly every scene where he had a part. Still, there are parts that did not seem to make sense to me that were left unexplained (and I don't think would be explained even if the show is renewed for a second season--which I hope it is).

The Bad Batch has been consistently solid throughout its run, but never truly spectacular. I enjoyed this cartoon with adult themes dealing with a rogue group of clones who are trying to piece together their lives after the Empire decides to discard them. It's an enjoyable show that occasionally brings in recognizable characters from the rest of the Star Wars universe, but I don't feel that it as necessary to watch as The Clone Wars or Rebels. 

The newest Doctor Who episodes were the biggest letdown for me. They started so strong leading into the series with the highly entertaining return of David Tennent and Catherine Tate, but the actual season kept falling flat for me. I'm keeping this spoiler free, so I think that I will leave this by saying that I enjoyed the actors' performances, but felt that the writing could have been tighter with stronger payoffs (which is what I used to love about the show). 

Of the three, I only have a strong desire to rewatch The Acolyte--especially the 5th and 8th episodes, but I would still enjoying seeing the whole season again. I'm hoping that the powers that be keep working on new ideas and concepts in these established universes and are not thrown off by the backlash from toxic fanatics. Still, I would also like them to "up their game" a bit as well.

I'm quite tired and have a low level headache that has been keeping me company for the past day. Thus, having gone well past my self-imposed fifteen minute barrier, I'm giving mention to some of the topics that I had considered for today.

-I wanted to write about the passing of Bob Newhart. He is one of my all-time favorite comedians whose mastery of wit and timing continually brought joy into my life. 
-The progress that I've made in preparation for our inclusion of Katrina's family into our home was more subtle today, but it's still progress. 
-​I probably should put out a reminder about next week's viewing of the X-Men movies that involve either Wolverine or Deadpool (or both). The plan is to watch those 10 movies over the course of the first four days of next week in preparation for the release of the Deadpool and Wolverine movie on Friday.
-This new arrangement for my "office" is going to require a significant period of adjustment.
-Someone today had said that getting President Biden to step down as the Democratic candidate for President is like trying to convince someone to give up their driver's license due to concerns about their age and the recent mistakes that they've been making. 
-Meanwhile, I'm still astounded that the Republican Party has embraced Russian talking points and political positions--to the point of echoing Russian media in major speeches during their convention. 
-I'm sick of the "review bombing" culture that has developed. Granted, it is a natural evolution of the corporate punishment of employees who do not receive near perfect scores on surveys. The numbers are meaningless unless they are backed by more concrete evidence. 
-I already knew that my blood type is O-negative, but I recently learned that my blood also qualifies to be used in transfusions with infants--the term used was "baby-donor."
-I'm not looking forward to mowing after all of this rain. The lawn in the dog yard is looking quite thick in particular.

I think that's it for now.