Blog Archives - The Land of the Weird

The Land of the Weird

More Snow, More Fun

11/16/2017

Yesterday, I was surprised to find a special weather statement for our region that warned of a possible inch or two of snow during morning commuting time. I immediately picked out one of my snow sweaters to wear for work for today, as I wanted to cheer on the snow. I was not disappointed.

The snow came during school, falling in large, soft flakes. Mera was wearing a downy coat by the time school was out. One downside was that the fresh snow also meant a fresh coating of slick ice on the roads. Janelle mentioned that people at the store were talking about several accidents that happened through the day.

The boys and I came home to a little over an inch of snow added to the current blanket on our home, driveway, and yard. We spent some time shoveling and then took to the sledding hill during the early twilight that comes during this time of year. Our sled run was noticeably faster; we had at least two collisions with small trees during some of our forays down it. However, no one has yet managed to make it all the way to the end of the run (and the ditch which marks it) on gravity's power alone.

With more snow in the forecast for Sunday, I'm hoping that we can look forward to a fluffy, snow-filled holiday season.

Missed Post

11/15/2017

For over three years, I have tried to post at least one blog entry to my website (which I copy on my Facebook and Google Plus accounts) every day. Thus far, I have only missed a couple of days, usually due to some sort of travelling or company. Yesterday, I just plain forgot.

This was full-blown forgetfulness on my part. Janelle even reminded me, and I commented more than once about still needing to write something. I remember those moments quite well. Yet, somehow, I never did it.

Granted, I also did not have any other reason to get on my computer yesterday. Since I quit Overwatch weeks ago, and I currently am not taking a class from Walden, I did not even go into my office yesterday, let alone turn on the computer. It is interesting how quickly even daily activities can fall forgotten when my routine is disrupted.

Don't even get me going about my daily exercise ...

End of Another Class

11/13/2017

As of today, I am officially on a break between quarters at Walden University. It was strange to have an evening where I did not need to check in at Walden (although I did anyway due to my paranoia that I have screwed something up--which I haven't). Classes begin again in two weeks.

Considering the challenges that I have faced in teaching at a new school and planning for four courses, I was fortunate that this latest class was a bit more laid-back than most of my other ones. I still feel that I learned a great deal from this class, especially along the ideas of using a targeted plan to identify issues and then select the appropriate approaches to deal with them. I feel more confident in my ability to work as a leader and an agent of change.

Still, this brings me closer to working on my dissertation. As I have learned more about it, I have become a bit more unsure about what I am going to do for it. I began my degree with certain ideas in mind, but I am finding that those ideas need a great deal more refinement before I can use them for a dissertation.

For now, I want to enjoy my two weeks.

The Thirty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time

11/12/2017

Today's readings deal with the idea of being caught unaware. Our pastor told us that this does not just mean being caught unaware at the time of our deaths, but being caught unaware through the many points in our lives when Jesus is asking for our action or attention. It reminds me of the common aphorisms about opportunity. In both cases, we need to do better than simply sleep-walking through our lives. We miss out on so much of what God is trying to share with us when we do.

Our pastor also mentioned that the end of the Gospel seemed pretty harsh. After all, it seems like the virgins with abundant oil would be able to share with those who forgot to bring theirs. However, he pointed out that the oil seems to represent those things that we cannot share, such as our reserves of patience or the time we have spent helping others. These are things which each person must work on for themselves and cannot rely on others to give them their extra.

The gospel also says "the bridegroom was long delayed." To many Christians, who are awaiting Jesus' second coming, this line seems particularly apt. People keep expecting Him to return in their lifetimes and try to match up the articles in the news with the verses in the Books of Daniel and Revelations. As we get closer to the 2,000 anniversary of the Crucifixion, I expect that people will only become more and more anxious. I worry that, in that concern for the end of times, people are missing the smaller moments which Jesus is trying to call to our attention.

Sledding

11/11/2017

Once we finished most of our Saturday chores, we took advantage of the beautiful weather and went sledding. The best location on our property is the cleared area for our electrical lines. Not only was the fallen tree that had blocked the end of the route removed, but I removed several shrubs that had taken root and mowed the area several times during the summer.

The downside is that the slope does not really follow the path to of the lines, but rather, it veers left into the woods. Later in the season--with enough snow--we will set up a bit of a bobsled-like run with a curved snow "wall" to keep the sleds going down the path. For now, we just relying on steering.

Rowen insisted on riding with me the entire time I was out there. By far, the best runs we had were when the three boys and I linked the two sleds together by one person on the first sled facing backwards and putting their legs on the front of the second sled. A few times, this ended with one or both of the sleds going sideways--and off the path. However, when it worked, the combined momentum moved us a good way down the sled run.

I was the first to call it quits, having worn myself out shoveling earlier. Still, I look forward to going down the sled run many times this winter.

Full Friday

11/10/2017

Today, the final project for the class that I'm taking this quarter was due. However, knowing that I would be quite busy all day, I completed my final revisions and submitted the assignment last night. I was not wrong about being busy.

After school, I put the finishing touches on my lesson plans for Monday, inputted a series of grades into the online gradebook, and got Trevor home with enough time for him to eat a quick dinner before I had to bring him back to the school for call-time. We then ordered in picked up pizza to bring to this month's Chatty Catholics get-together. However, we were only able to be there for a little while so we could beat the rush for SoHi's production of Rodger and Hammerstein's Cinderella.

The musical was quite enjoyable with a great deal of talent on display. The people around me made many positive comments on the set design, props, and costumes (as the musical was set in a "steampunk" style). The show was enough fun that Rowen said he really liked it (although Connor complained about the story being too "girly" for him). Rowen even wanted to go up and say hi to Cinderella once the performance was over--although he did refuse to give Prince Charming a requested fist-bump. The only real distraction to the play was that the microphones kept cutting in and out. I felt that the actors did a great job of maintaining their composure, and made a good effort at being heard, when the technology decided not to cooperate.

Once home, Janelle and I watched another episode of Iron Fist (which we had avoided watching before due to negative reviews, but started due to the recommendation of a friend). It's not up to the caliber of the other Netflix Marvel series, but going in with low expectations has helped to let me still enjoy what is there.

I also managed to finish the fourth of the Dark Tower books during the snippets of time I had between events. While the book explains more about Roland's background, I've never been a fan of stories that I start knowing that the end will be tragic. Aside from that aspect, which hung over the book like a dark cloud and made my progression slower than the other books, I enjoyed much of the story, and I look forward to continuing the series.

I'm looking forward to having a bit more time to breathe tomorrow.

What's en a Name?

11/9/2017

Rowen has been struggling a bit with reading, especially when dealing with words that use letter sounds in unconventional ways (a common occurrence in English). One of the teachers who works with it says that the letters "aren't playing fair" but that he needs to understand how they might try to trick him.

Yesterday, Rowen told me that I didn't "play fair" with his name. I asked him what he meant, and he told me that his name sounds like "Row in" but we used an "e" to spell it. I chuckled and told him that his name is "Row en," the way that it is spelled, but that it can sound like "Row in" when it is said quickly.

I clearly blew his mind. He sat back with a look of complete shock on his face, like everything he ever knew was now a lie. After a long moment, he seemed to come to a conclusion, looked back up with me with as much seriousness as a seven year-old can muster, and said, "I like Rowin better. I'm going to change it when I grow up."

I told him that it will be up to him, but that I really liked the name "Rowen." He then said that he might be willing to keep it ... but he'd have to think about it.

Cinderella

11/8/2017

Trevor is in our school's production of Rodgers and Hammerstein's Cinderella. The shows are this week Thursday, Friday, and Saturday starting at 6:30 pm. Tickets are $10 at the door (no advance sales). Janelle and I are planning on taking the younger boys on Friday.

Trevor has been very excited about this performance. His role is that of the cat / coachman and somehow involves him using a puppet for a portion of the play. He was interested from the onset as the musical is being set in a "steampunk" fashion (steampunk is a sci-fi / fantasy concept that places a world in an advanced version of steam-based technology of the Victorian era). Thus, there is Victorian era clothing with goggles, pipes, and convoluted machinery (lots of gears).

I am excited for him as well. He has been interested in being in a musical ever since he saw Katrina in one. He is even taking a drama class this semester. I suppose that this should be expected considering his love of role-playing. It will be fun to see him up on stage, having a good time.

Snowpack

11/7/2017

We received a good amount of snow Sunday morning. I then made a tactical error. We had a rather busy day planned out for us, and I figured that the weather would stay warm enough (or warm up enough soon) that I did not need to shovel the few inches that filled our driveway.

That snow, especially the tracks made by our vehicles as we went on our various voyages, froze solid. Quite likely, based on how the weather is looking, it will now be the bottom layer of all precipitation that we receive until break up. Last year, I had promised myself that I would do better on this front this time around, and I already screwed that up.

The only good news is that the holes in our dirt driveway have already gotten smoother. While I love snow and winter weather, I am concerned that I might again slide off the toboggan run of a driveway that we have. At least we answered the question about whether or not we should put the studded tires back on the van.

Thor: Ragnarok [very mild spoilers]

11/6/2017

Yesterday, Janelle, the boys, and I went to Kenai to see the third Thor movie. I want to start by saying that this movie is easily in the top five of the Marvel Cinematic Universe movies, maybe even the top three. I still keep Winter Soldier and the first Guardians of the Galaxy vying for first place, depending on my mood, but this movie comes pretty close. It is certainly one that I want to see again (and again and again). It is a fun, highly entertaining, sci-fantasy spectacle.

That is not to say that it doesn't have its faults. There are a few places where the CGI and the green screen (such as some of the scenes "in Norway") are off enough to remove me from the movie for a bit. Also, there are several times that I questioned the logic behind the other worlds that we see. In particular, I have a number of questions about the Asgardians themselves. However, my largest concern comes from the movie's biggest selling point: its humor. It was sometimes jarring for me to see what other movies would treat as tragic (such as the fate of the Warriors Three) or even horrific events almost completely disregarded by the time the next joke is made, and those jokes come at a rapid pace.

That said, it is a tremendously funny movie. Everyone in the audience was laughing through most of the movie to the point that I know I need to see it to catch anything I might have forgotten or missed. The action is amazing, yet still possible to follow. As others have said, it felt like all of the best parts of the action cartoons I watched growing up taken to the next level and put into a overall story that stays internally consistent while still being exciting and fun.

All of the actors did a tremendous job building up their characters. Karl Urban and Idris Elba did not have enough screen time, yet still brought depth to their characters. Cate Blanchett and Jeff Goldblum were pure gold in their performances as the main villains. Tom Hiddleston and Mark Ruffalo did a great job bringing back their characters of Loki and Hulk (respectively). Tessa Thompson as Valkyrie is a great replacement for both Sif and Jane Foster (played in previous movies by Jaimie Alexander and Natalie Portman). However, it is Chris Hemsworth who continually steals the show (as he should) making me like Thor better than I have in any of the previous movies.

I look forward to seeing it again.

Thirty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time

11/5/2017

I have to admit to being a little distracted in mass today. I was asked last week if I would be able to play the guitar for this week's mass as our normal accompanist was not in town. For the most part, it turned out fine (except I really struggled with the D minor chord and I was in much too low of a key for the final song). That didn't stop me from "fretting" about it nearly the whole time.

This is one of the reasons that I prefer just singing at mass rather than playing the guitar. It requires a great deal more concentration and I am tremendously self-conscious about it.

That said, I still like doing it. I am really glad that I made the effort to learn how to play the guitar (at least, to the degree that I can play the guitar) and that I kept practicing in the decade or so since then. Otherwise, days like today would find us singing acapella (which can be nice too).

As for the readings and homily: live your faith with enthusiasm in every part of your day. Do not live hypocritically, preaching difficult ideals that you do not live up to. Do not use your religion as a means of self-importance and profit. Rather, live to serve God and one another.

At least, I think that's what they were about ... I was a little over-focused on D minor.

Lights

11/4/2017

When we purchased our house, many of the lightbulbs in the fixtures were missing, and of those that were there many were burning out or burnt out. In the master bathroom, there are four lights (que Captain Picard since Winston Smith folded on this one) and all were made of circular fluorescent lights that needed to be replaced. I switched out all of the fixtures with bulbless LED replacements. They are energy efficient, environmentally friendly, and are supposed to last for decades.

The first one went out after a little over a year. As there are no bulbs to replace, I had to replace the entire fixture. Thinking it a quirk, I replaced it with the same type. A few months later the second one went out. Recently the third one started flickering. I picked up more traditional bathroom fixtures at the beginning of last month, but then promptly put out my back.

Since my back is better, and since the sun will be setting an hour earlier tomorrow (see previous posts on Daylight Savings for my frustration with that issue), I decided to make the switch today for the two that are demonstrating problems. The replacement fixtures were significantly more frustrating to install, but the task is done and our bathroom is fully lit again. I'm just not looking forward to dealing with the other two (which includes the first one I replaced) should they start acting up.

Trial of the Sword

11/3/2017

This summer, Nintendo added downloadable content to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. The content included some items for fans of previous Zelda games, a useful teleportation item, a harder difficulty mode (called Master Mode), and a set of trials that unlocks the "true potential" of the Master Sword.

The trials are difficult. Link begins each set of trials with nothing except the Sheika Slate abilities, and the hearts and stamina he has acquired. Everything else must be picked up in the trials. They are divided into three sets of challenges: beginning, middle, and final. The beginning set has 12 floors, the middle has sixteen floors, and the final has 23 floors. If Link runs out of health at any point during one of the sets, he then has to start at the beginning of that set ... with nothing. I had trouble just getting through the beginning set, even after switching back to normal difficulty.

Today, I finally finished the final set of trials. In the end, I relied heavily on online walkthroughs to prepare me for each stage and to provide me with strategies that I otherwise would not have realized on my own. Despite having help, I still set down my controller with a sense of accomplishment. I refuse to be saddened or ashamed by that last statement.

Neuralizer

11/2/2017

Since we watched the first two Men in Black movies leading up to Halloween, and there were no evening activities today, we decided to watch the third movie in the Men in Black trilogy. Almost from the beginning, Connor started saying that he remembered the movie, often telling us what was just about to happen in the next scene to prove his point. Trevor and Rowen even chimed in a time or two about remembering the film.

I didn't remember it at all ... well, until the end as I remembered how it ended. But that was it. Every scene up until they got to the lunar launch was as though I was watching the movie for the first time. I did not have this problem with the other two movies in the series. I remembered both of them just fine. But this one? I remembered having liked the movie (and I quite enjoyed it this time too), and I remembered the end reveal, but that was it.

For that matter, how do the boys remember it so well? I only recently purchased the movie for my collection. It was still in its cellophane wrapper. In fact, now that I think about it, I'm not even sure how I saw it before--although my guess is that I borrowed it from Bj.

These holes in my memory are disturbing, especially since I used to have such a strong ability to recall. This was particularly disturbing because I knew that I had forgotten and was unable to dredge up any memories of the movie as I was watching it.

It's enough to make me believe that the neuralizer in the movie is real.