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The Land of the Weird

Daughters

12/10/2018

Tomorrow is Alex's 25th birthday. Time has flown by entirely too fast. Thankfully, we get to see her in just under two weeks. Even though we were down in Michigan just this past summer, it feels like it's been an eternity since we saw her last. We are all really looking forward to having her up here for the holidays.

Katrina is also making her way up here; although, she will be up here a bit sooner. A week from now, she will be up in the air, headed our direction. She's already stated that she plans to use Breath of the Wild (the Zelda game) as a way to combat jet lag. Before then, she needs to finish her last class of her bachelor degree (her graduation ceremony was last Saturday), move out of her college housing, and move up to her and Peter's apartment, so she has a busy week.

We are all quite excited to be reunited as a family again. The girls are staggering their arrivals and departures, so we'll get some one-on-one time with each of them as well.

This week already feels too long.

Second Sunday of Advent

12/9/2018

John the Baptist begins his ministry, preparing the way for his cousin, Jesus. We, too, need to prepare the way of the Lord. This is about more than buying gifts, decorating the house, and making plans with family and friends. It is about getting ourselves ready for His coming.

Our visiting priest mentioned that this includes the Sacrament of Reconciliation. This is not an easy sacrament to follow. It requires opening up the hidden places in our minds and soul and exposing them. Like purging an infection, this can be a painful and wearying process, but it ultimately leads to a healthier and happier life.

As today's priest pointed out, so often we do not want others to know about that darkness within us, afraid of what they might think. He said that most of us are mostly 95-98% good, but we dwell on that dark 2-5%, believing that we are loathsome and beyond redemption. This is another reason why reconciliation and penance are so good for us. The sacrament helps us to confront our fears and realize the better parts of us. This will help us mentally and spiritually prepare for the next world while living a better life in this one.

Jesus is coming; it's time to tidy up.

Birthday Movie Marathon Plans

12/8/2018

My birthday is in just over two weeks. As it is on a Sunday, I cannot start it until at least noon. To give Janelle and me a little bit of breathing room, I decided to start the movie experience at 1:30 PM. After polling my sons, they seemed the most interested in watching the Star Trek reboot trilogy. These are all good movies despite any foibles that I have with them, so it should be a fun experience. As this is shorter than most of my movie marathons, I tacked on time for games after the last movie is over.

The current plan is as follows:
1:30 PM to 3:10 PM Star Trek (2h 7m)
3:15 PM to 5:30 PM Star Trek: Into Darkness (2h 12m)
5:30 PM to 6:00 PM Break for dinner
6:00 PM to 8:00 PM Star Trek: Beyond (2h 2m)
8:00 PM to ? Game time

I think it will be fun.

Waiting

12/7/2018

The past couple of days, the line at the post office has been a bit long. They even established a second line just for people picking up packages (like I have been these past two days). When I arrived today, that line was already six or seven people deep. Being me, I took the opportunity to make jokes with the captive audience (e.g. "I love lines; they make me think of my simpler days in kindergarten." "It's nice to get this opportunity to just stand and contemplate the truths of the universe, like how much I hate standing." "Actually, this line is for Rockette auditions."). I didn't say the jokes were good, but a captive audience is a captive audience.

Later, I found myself waiting at the counter of the local Papa Johns. When I arrived, there was only one working register and it was occupied by a belabored worker who was on the phone with another customer. The side of the conversation was something like, "Yes. Your order is ready and just about to be sent out on delivery. ... You didn't want bacon on it? ... You clicked the wrong button on your online order? ... Well, I would have to void the order and start another one. ... Yes. We would have to make new pizzas. ... About 45 minutes. ... So, which toppings would you like?" [Reads back the order and gives the prices and expected delivery time again.] "Which discount? ... We don't have that discount available on our side. ... That one is for carry out only. ... That was for only two item mediums. ... Yes. ... I can change your order."

The employee kept a pleasant tone the entire time. Another employee (a delivery driver) apologized that they were limited to the one register while he was working on the backlog of other things that was going on while the front counter employee was tied up. Once the phone order was placed, the employee at the counter expressed his gratitude for my patience. I replied, "My patience? I was deeply impressed by how calmly you carried out that entire conversation without once using the phrase 'absolute idiot.'"

I don't know why my patience was being tested today, but it did help to keep reminding myself that these were First World problems.

Rowen’s Christmas Concert 2018

12/6/2018

Penguins saved an amnesiac Santa in this year’s holiday musical at Sterling Elementary. Despite not having the spotlight, Rowen has been very excited about the production for the past few weeks, telling me about it multiple times. He seemed to really enjoy his time up on the stage. I apologize for my camerawork.

It was also appropriate to have snow falling on our way to the concert. While the forecast is for it to change over to ice rain tonight and tomorrow, I’m still rooting for snow to win out. I certainly hope we have plenty by the time Christmas comes around.

Lights

12/5/2018

We have all of our Christmas lights up now. As this was our third year setting them up in this house, the process was a great deal easier (and safer) than it had been in the past. Aside from the lights in the kitchen, dining room, living room, and Janelle's workroom, I added a strand of lights around my small office window, some outdoor snowflake lights around the back of our deck, and lights around the loft and main window of the cabin.

Aside from my office, all of them are on timers so that they come on when we wake up, turn off during the few daylight hours, are on again by the time the sun sets, and stay on until after we go to bed. This makes our house a great deal brighter and more festive. It certainly helps dispel dark thoughts and feelings.

I love this time of year.

Dinobot Reward System

12/4/2018

Hasbro recently came out with a new line of Dinobot Transformers as part of their Generations: Power of the Prime line. The great thing about this line is that, while the figures look very much like what I remember the toys originally looking like when they first came out in both their robot and alternate forms, these figures are in much better proportion and are substantially more poseable. Better yet, this series added a sixth Dinobot (a velociraptor appropriately named Slash), and all six Dinobots can now combine into one massive robot (Volcanicus).

Now, a few of these toys were on sale at Freddy's, and I was able to find the rest through Amazon at reasonable prices. I very much want to open and display them right away, or even do so for my birthday or Christmas (which are both in a couple of weeks). However, I have a different purpose in mind.

It has been recommended that doctoral candidates should reward themselves as they push through the many different checkpoints in writing their dissertations and getting them approved. My plan is to use these Dinobots as this kind of reward/inspiration. I plan on starting with the "legs" and working my way up Volcanicus as I complete the first six milestones in front of me. With perseverance and luck, I will hopefully have the whole set opened by about this time next year.

Hopefully, my prospectus gets approved soon, so I can open the first one.

Ice

12/3/2018

Well, that was a disappointing storm. Instead of dropping 6 to 12 inches of snow, it rained ... and rained. Unfortunately, when the rain met the cold ground, it froze. My driveway, the road leading to it, and my lawn are all sheets of ice. There is a solid inch of frozen water between the air and the repurposed asphalt on our driveway. Spots where the water had pooled on the lawn almost reach the recommended thickness being out on a lake.

The dogs don't know what to make of it. They are slipping and sliding all over their fenced area. They keep charging into one another, sliding, and bowling the other one over. Their attempts to make sharp turns look like something straight out of a Looney Tunes short.

I brought out the cleats for the first time since I moved up here so I could sand the driveway. We have a bit of a hill with a curve that I would rather not get stuck on like I did our first winter with the house. Thankfully, I made it down and back without any kind of sliding, let alone falling.

The storm brought the first school delay since we moved up here. Many students were hoping for the entire day off, including my sons. Although my juniors expressed such frustration with not getting the day, they reluctantly admitted that they don't remember ever getting a full day off for weather reasons before.

I don't like that this ice will likely be the base on our driveway and road for the rest of the winter. I'm not looking forward to shovelling snow while sliding, should the snow show up any time soon. I kind of wish I had a grater to at least score the ice a bit; the rake I used hardly made a dent.

The First Sunday of Advent

12/2/2018

Today is the start of a new liturgical year. We are now on the Year C rotation of readings which focuses more on the Gospel of Luke. In my opinion, Luke is the easiest of the Gospels to follow as it uses a historically analytical lens. Luke was really concerned about getting the facts and references straight. As he was not present during the events, he emphasizes his reliance on reliable witnesses as well as other compiled written accounts. I feel that, as an outsider himself, Luke was able to clearly write with an audience of outsiders in mind.

Today's Gospel brings up the end of days. The advice given by Jesus seemed especially applicable in the wake of the recent earthquake: "... stand erect and raise your heads." Granted, ducking and covering is the best advice during the actual earthquake, but Jesus warns that people will die of fright. He tells us to stand firm and rejoice. Often in times of crisis, people freeze in indecision. I feel that Jesus is telling us to move forward and take action in our lives.

Trevor stepped forward today. He cantored for the first time ever this morning and did a good job of it. It is not easy to stand in front of the congregation and lead them in singing a psalm, but he did so and, more importantly, is willing to do so again.

Powerless

12/1/2018

The high winds that cruised through this evening knocked out power down our end of the road. We had just been discussing what to do for dinner. With the sun having already set, it seemed that our best option was to go out to eat, something that we rarely do as a family.

We had a wonderful meal at Senior Panchos before going to Freddy’s to get batteries and other items for power outages (as well as some new puzzles and Nerf guns). I had hoped that we would have our lights on by our return, but that was not to be.

Instead, the five of us played a couple of games of Skipbo by lantern light and are now covering up for a cold night. I hope that I am quickly awakened to the power coming back on.

Update: Our power came back on at 11:30. Our cat had been punishing us for the lack of power by dragging her water bowl across a tile floor. As the house was so quiet, it sounded like something much more sinister.

Today's Earthquake

11/30/2018

Over the course of the day, I've seen different magnitudes listed for the quake that rolled through at 8:30 this morning. Reuters has it listed as a 6.7. Several Alaska based newsgroups had it listed at a 7.2. However, most sources seem to agree that it was a 7.0. Although that is slightly less than the 7.1 that woke me up when we were still renting the duplex, it seemed stronger, probably because it was closer to the surface.

This one was also closer to populated areas, including Anchorage--Alaska's largest city. The pictures and videos being shared are downright humbling; they show an awesome power that humans are nearly powerless against. Thankfully, not many people were injured, and I don't believe that any fatalities today were due to the earthquake.

I was standing at my classroom door, welcoming students and wishing them a happy Friday. As I play back the event in my mind, I cannot remember if the bell had just rung or if it rang shortly after I noticed the ground was shaking. It was clear in a few moments that it was ramping up, so I told my students (juniors) to get under the tables. They responded immediately. I stayed in the archway and ushered a few students who were still in the halls into my room. Aside from some dust, nothing came down from the ceiling.

Once the rolling stopped, I gave my students the all clear, then tension broke, and we talked about what happened in a light-hearted way. I only had to tell a few of them to get under the tables when the aftershock hit later in the period. While I still continued with the day's lessons, the earthquake was certainly a topic of conversation throughout the day.

At home, the only "damage" I noticed was in my office. Sadly, I was given a alternate scenario for Luke's trench run as it looked like Han shot just a second too late. There's no reason to worry as everything is now reset as it should be (even if the arrangement of the room has the Millennium Falcon coming in from the wrong side).

I am truly grateful that this event was not worse. I have the deepest sympathies for those farther north who are dealing with a great deal more damage and destruction. I am glad to see that many businesses are giving their employees time to get their homes together and letting them focus on their families before dealing with the damage at work.

Children's Crusade [controversial/political]

11/29/2018

It is sometimes difficult to get to the truth in matters of history. Often rumor, myth, and legend get repeated to the point that it is hard to distinguish the stories told about an event to the actual event itself. This is certainly the case of the Children's Crusade of 1212. The stories vary wildly depending on the source. In some, the Crusade begins in France, in others Germany. In some the children are taken by evil and greedy Venetian merchants and sold as slaves, in others they are simply never heard from again. Some scholars say that they weren't children at all, but rather serfs. And more than a few say that the event never took place, but was instead an allegory (a medieval urban legend) told as a warning to people who might be easily misled by fanciful ideals.

I feel that we are seeing a similar phenomenon with the news about the immigrant caravan. The stories told and perspectives shared in our modern era of technology are giving vastly different impressions on an event that is occurring at the present time. If we have this level of confusion now, I wonder what future historians would make of this event (if it is even remembered or studied).

I wonder if the various stories that are filling up my social media are all true, at least to some extent. I'm certain that criminal elements would take advantage of a caravan filled with families that are legitimately fleeing violence and oppression. I believe that many of them have been sold false promises. Considering our current administration, I believe that informed people would know they would not receive a welcoming reception at the border. However, I think that many of these people were uninformed about the hospitality of the United States (much like the members of the Children's Crusade were promised an easy trip to the Holy Lands).

I believe that both political parties are using this as rallying propaganda for their respective bases. I worry about people who are only receiving one side of this story. The truth is definitely more complex. Our current society is not ready (sociologically if not economically) to allow everyone seeking citizenship a place in our country. However, currently immigration laws are a bureaucratic nightmare to navigate even for those with connections. We have gang violence that does include groups that travel across the border. However, simply closing a border does not prevent that kind of crime and has other serious repercussions.

My real concern is for those in this modern crusade who have been sold a dream only to find that the reality is so incredibly different. What future do they have if brought in or if turned back? How likely is it that they will find themselves slaves of greedy and evil people no matter the outcome?

Ages

11/28/2018

I often casually forget the ages of my children. I can come up with each child's age when I devote the mental energy to do so, but if I'm not actively thinking about it, I tend to think of them as ages other than they are.

For example, I keep thinking that Connor is a teenager even though he is only eleven. In my defence, Connor has had the snarky attitude of a teenager for a while now. Even though he acts older than his biological age, we occasionally catch glimpses of his more vulnerable childhood.

I also have to remind myself that my daughters are both able to (and have been able to) legally drink. I know that they both passed 21, yet when they talk about drinking, I still have to take a moment to remember that it is legal for them to do so. Actually, the fact that they are (or will be in the next couple of weeks) college graduates still catches me by surprise from time to time.

For that matter, "little" Trevor is now a senior in high school. In fact, he will be 18 in just a couple of weeks! An adult! Trevor! Yet he's still not willing to practice driving so he can get a licence.

Poor Rowen, being the youngest, I'm afraid will stay in my mind as younger than he is. Sometimes, I think that he recognizes this and milks it for all that it's worth. But he's in third grade now, the point in my own life that I started to really think of myself as an "independent" individual (it was the age that I told my parents that I no longer needed to go to school since I knew adding, subtracting, multiplying, dividing, reading, and writing, and thus there was nothing more for school to teach me).

I suppose that incorrectly remembering my children's ages should come as little surprise. I rarely think of myself as the age I currently am. Most of the time, I still feel like I'm in my twenties, maybe early thirties. However, there are days when I feel absolutely ancient (almost all of my students were born after the attacks on 9/11?!).

In the end, age does not fully define who we are to ourselves let alone to those who know us.

Appliance Update

11/27/2018

The new dishwasher is safely installed with no loss of life in the process. Despite a few frustrations, my use of shocking language was kept to only mild grumbles. None of my children had to hide from me or run from the room crying. Everything seems to be working fine.

I always worry a bit after installing a dishwasher because it's almost impossible to know if leaks develop. I have not noticed any odd sounds or puddles in our test runs, so I think we'll be fine. Still, this is one of those times that x-ray vision would come in handy.

Speaking of vision, my progressive lenses are a real pain when I'm trying to do close-up work at odd angles. I kept having to take my glasses off to line up (and sometimes even find) screws. Normally, my glasses don't bother me, but they were certainly causing more harm than good today.

I also set up our new tree. It looks nice, even if it's not what we're used to. It's lights are in various sized bulbs, and both bulbs and the tree are "frosted." It seems so fancy.

We have more decorating to do, but that's work that leads to smiling, not swearing.