Parents vs. Play Station

Here's a little more ammo we can use in our constant battle to keep video game systems out of the house. So they don't just turn kids into slack-jawed zombies, they also cause physical harm.

Digging Deep For Good News

Guess you could call this a silver lining in the current economic situation. And it's not bad for the sharks either, as they don't really like to eat people anyway. At least that's what I'm told.

It's A Start

So this winter has been so cold and snowy we have been forced to dip our toes ever so slightly into the world of winter sports. First, a little ice skating, and then, a couple of weeks ago, some fun sledding on a local hill. At first the kids were a little reluctant to venture out into the arctic landscape, but after one or two runs down the hill, they were sold . . . that is, at least until Stephen got snow inside his clothes! Picture taking was a little rough, as I had to ride the sled down with Matthew over and over, but I did manage to get a few, including the one above, and some more here.

Brrrrrrrr!!

Here is my weather station at 6:40 a.m. today. The top number is the temp outside!

Is This Good Or Bad?

So, heavy coffee drinking causes hallucinations? I haven't experienced this yet, but I'll be on the lookout!

Happy New Year - 2009

We had a nice, quiet, family New Years Eve last week. We started the evening with fondue (very retro!), and then moved on to roasting marshmallows in the fireplace, playing board games, and enjoying some champagne and Sprite (for the kids) as we counted down to 2009. All four kids made it until midnight, but only one of the six of us was still going strong at 12:01. Three guesses who that was, and the first two don't count! In case you hadn't guessed, it was this one:

Check here for more pictures of the festivities.

Can't Say This Surprises Me

Guess the Tigers were feeling just a bit defensive about having to stoop to accepting a bid to the "Chik Fil A Bowl" this year. Check this out, from one of my favorite writers on politics, current affairs and technology, Gregg Easterbrook, who also writes a great football column on espn.com:

Bad Sportsmanship Watch: Unless you went to LSU as an undergrad and then attended grad school at Georgia Tech, you weren't watching the fourth quarter of the Chick-fil-A Bowl late on New Year's Eve. But leading 38-3 in the fourth quarter, LSU staged a fake punt, trying desperately to run up the score. LSU threw nine passes in the fourth quarter, despite having a 35-point lead, as it frantically tried to humiliate Georgia Tech. Running up the score to impress pollsters bothers TMQ more than the lack of a true national champion in college football. Les Miles knew that if he could push the victory margin just a little higher, that might add one more notch to the school's final ranking in the post-bowl polls. This perverse incentive must be eliminated -- the polls system rewards poor sportsmanship, so poor sportsmanship is what we get.

Couldn't have said it better myself. Entire article linked here.