Colorado at Mizzou.
I can't believe I get to see another Mizzou game.
Woohoo!
We just scored. 7-0 in the first quarter.
Looking good.
Saturday, September 30, 2006
Oh. My. God.
Well, the girls have finally started preschool.
They love it and are learning a lot already. The school itself is run by a church here in Kennewick so the girls do prayers before snacks, but mostly phonics assignments throughout the day with art projects mixed in.
The girls love it so much that we actually went to service last Sunday so that the girls could go to Sunday School.
When we pulled up to the church I was surprised at the amount of noise. Then we went inside. The sound was deafening. We checked the girls into what was nothing more than a daycare.
Then we wandered past the children's church for those of a brainwashable age, then past the Holy Grounds coffee and gift shop and finally found the concert/service going on.
As we entered Robin and I looked around and immediately became horrified. We were at one of those militant bible churches. You know like the ones you see in movies like Jesus Camp and Saved! And on Dateline NBC anytime there is a clinic bombing.
Everybody stands and sways with their arms raised in the air as the band plays REALLY LOUD as a very expensive lazer and light show beam the words onto a huge screen above the stage.
No cross. Just big Roman columns with a drapery on each side of the stage.
We are ushered to an open row and proceed to stand for twenty minutes while everyone sings and sways NONSTOP. It's the longest jam session since the last Allman Brothers concert, but instead of stoner southern rock it's nonstop Jesus-freak pseudo-rock.
I look around and see a cross section of America. Latinos, whites, blacks, Asians, gays, and doctors and lawyers, and pierced and tattooed guys that look like they should be at a bar watching football.
I am scared completely shitless. These are the exact people that are ruining this country and electing assholes like Dubya, going on so-called missions to South American countries once a year spending all day exploiting the poor then spending all night drinking margaritas.
Then after twenty minutes of the incredibly loud music the pastor gives a five minute speech about how we are required to tithe just as certainly as we are required to pay taxes to Caesar.
I pass the bucket anyway.
Then we listen to testimonials of crazy people who went to Brazil and embarrassed our country in the name of Jesus. Of course, one happened to be schizophrenic and talked to Jesus about the trip.
Needless to say, my belief in the absolute evil of religion was intensified. Not to mention my fear of the voting power these nutbags possess and the future of this country.
The things they were saying were unbelievable. I am always astonished at the stupidity and gullibility of some people.
Still, I'm still certain that this school is good for the kids. I have sat in on classes and think they do a really great job preparing kids for kindergarten and elementary school.
But I will never go to church there again. Especially since the girls hated the so called Sunday School.
They love it and are learning a lot already. The school itself is run by a church here in Kennewick so the girls do prayers before snacks, but mostly phonics assignments throughout the day with art projects mixed in.
The girls love it so much that we actually went to service last Sunday so that the girls could go to Sunday School.
When we pulled up to the church I was surprised at the amount of noise. Then we went inside. The sound was deafening. We checked the girls into what was nothing more than a daycare.
Then we wandered past the children's church for those of a brainwashable age, then past the Holy Grounds coffee and gift shop and finally found the concert/service going on.
As we entered Robin and I looked around and immediately became horrified. We were at one of those militant bible churches. You know like the ones you see in movies like Jesus Camp and Saved! And on Dateline NBC anytime there is a clinic bombing.
Everybody stands and sways with their arms raised in the air as the band plays REALLY LOUD as a very expensive lazer and light show beam the words onto a huge screen above the stage.
No cross. Just big Roman columns with a drapery on each side of the stage.
We are ushered to an open row and proceed to stand for twenty minutes while everyone sings and sways NONSTOP. It's the longest jam session since the last Allman Brothers concert, but instead of stoner southern rock it's nonstop Jesus-freak pseudo-rock.
I look around and see a cross section of America. Latinos, whites, blacks, Asians, gays, and doctors and lawyers, and pierced and tattooed guys that look like they should be at a bar watching football.
I am scared completely shitless. These are the exact people that are ruining this country and electing assholes like Dubya, going on so-called missions to South American countries once a year spending all day exploiting the poor then spending all night drinking margaritas.
Then after twenty minutes of the incredibly loud music the pastor gives a five minute speech about how we are required to tithe just as certainly as we are required to pay taxes to Caesar.
I pass the bucket anyway.
Then we listen to testimonials of crazy people who went to Brazil and embarrassed our country in the name of Jesus. Of course, one happened to be schizophrenic and talked to Jesus about the trip.
Needless to say, my belief in the absolute evil of religion was intensified. Not to mention my fear of the voting power these nutbags possess and the future of this country.
The things they were saying were unbelievable. I am always astonished at the stupidity and gullibility of some people.
Still, I'm still certain that this school is good for the kids. I have sat in on classes and think they do a really great job preparing kids for kindergarten and elementary school.
But I will never go to church there again. Especially since the girls hated the so called Sunday School.
Thursday, September 28, 2006
Tuesday, September 19, 2006
Dead Kitty
I killed the cat.
Well, I guess everyone pretty much knows that already.
I felt like I had a stroke or heart attack or something.
I killed Robin's cat.
I woke up after falling asleep on the couch while trying to make it to the weather. Dixie was in the same place, but when I looked around for the cat I noticed a lump under me. It was already stiff, but I tried CPR anyway. Then I freaked out and Robin came running out from the bedroom.
She didn't see the kitten lying next to me one the couch and sat on it. I freaked out a little more. After she stood back up she noticed Charlie lying dead next to me.
I threw up a lot right after it happened, though I'm not really sure why. I wasn't grossed out.
After Robin calmed me down, I gathered the cat and shovel and buried her under the tree overlooking the river in the front yard.
I didn't sleep for a few hours, even though it was just after 3 am.
It's hard to explain, but it hurt me physically. I don't think Robin understood how bad until she noticed that both of my eyes were bloody.
I look like I got hit by a truck. Well, I guess it's not so hard to explain how it felt. It felt like I got hit by a truck.
Sunday it felt like the truck backed up.
Today I tried to go fishing.
It hasn't rained in weeks. It has sprinkled, but never rained. Not since May. Today it poured. The girls thought it was fun, but I didn't even get a bite and after two hours we headed home.
I need some time to go fishing. Really fish. No girls. Just me. On the water.
I need a moment.
I haven't got it yet.
That little kitten was only four weeks old. It just wanted to sleep next to someone. Dixie must have pushed her off her end of the couch. That lazy dog likes to stretch a lot in her sleep.
It's hard watching her search the house frantically for her little pal.
The girls have taken her death surprisingly well. "She's with her mommy," Chloe keeps telling me. "She's with her family."
When we got Charlie last week we told Chloe and Kayla that the kitty's mommy had died but I didn't think she understood. She has such a sense of family and spirituality. I had felt like such a bad parent last week when we were visiting prospective preschools. The questions about the alphabet and numbers. The girls have only a limited visual recognition, but she understands family and our spiritual connection.
Well I have to stop writing now. It's already after 11 pm. I put the girls down at 8:00 and they are still running down the hall.
They start school tomorrow.
Well, I guess everyone pretty much knows that already.
I felt like I had a stroke or heart attack or something.
I killed Robin's cat.
I woke up after falling asleep on the couch while trying to make it to the weather. Dixie was in the same place, but when I looked around for the cat I noticed a lump under me. It was already stiff, but I tried CPR anyway. Then I freaked out and Robin came running out from the bedroom.
She didn't see the kitten lying next to me one the couch and sat on it. I freaked out a little more. After she stood back up she noticed Charlie lying dead next to me.
I threw up a lot right after it happened, though I'm not really sure why. I wasn't grossed out.
After Robin calmed me down, I gathered the cat and shovel and buried her under the tree overlooking the river in the front yard.
I didn't sleep for a few hours, even though it was just after 3 am.
It's hard to explain, but it hurt me physically. I don't think Robin understood how bad until she noticed that both of my eyes were bloody.
I look like I got hit by a truck. Well, I guess it's not so hard to explain how it felt. It felt like I got hit by a truck.
Sunday it felt like the truck backed up.
Today I tried to go fishing.
It hasn't rained in weeks. It has sprinkled, but never rained. Not since May. Today it poured. The girls thought it was fun, but I didn't even get a bite and after two hours we headed home.
I need some time to go fishing. Really fish. No girls. Just me. On the water.
I need a moment.
I haven't got it yet.
That little kitten was only four weeks old. It just wanted to sleep next to someone. Dixie must have pushed her off her end of the couch. That lazy dog likes to stretch a lot in her sleep.
It's hard watching her search the house frantically for her little pal.
The girls have taken her death surprisingly well. "She's with her mommy," Chloe keeps telling me. "She's with her family."
When we got Charlie last week we told Chloe and Kayla that the kitty's mommy had died but I didn't think she understood. She has such a sense of family and spirituality. I had felt like such a bad parent last week when we were visiting prospective preschools. The questions about the alphabet and numbers. The girls have only a limited visual recognition, but she understands family and our spiritual connection.
Well I have to stop writing now. It's already after 11 pm. I put the girls down at 8:00 and they are still running down the hall.
They start school tomorrow.
Wednesday, September 06, 2006
Back On The Hunt
The fall salmon run has begun.
Labor Day weekend marked the beginning of the season on the Yakima River, but we headed down to the gorge.
Last year, if you remember, this strategy backfired and we spent literally hundreds of dollars wasting time. This time I had no expectations. I was really just looking forward to the last camping trip of the year. In fact, we left so late Friday we did not fish at all. We had planned to camp along the Klickitat River so we could fish for salmon and steelhead right where we camped.
Since we arrived well after dark, finding a spot at the place we wanted was impossible because of the number of people already camped and the low profile of the new minivan. (big rocks are hard to navigate around at night)
So I drove and drove until I finally found a place upriver that wasn't already full of other campers. I was actually astonished that there was nobody camped at this spot.
Until 6:00 am anyway.
I woke up to the sound of some asshole backing his diesel F250 and boat trailer less than a foot from our tent.
Apparently the place we camped was what passes for a boat launch on that river. I got out of the tent ready to kill this man. (He was very apologetic, which saved him from a Texas-sized ass whipping) The kids and Robin were on that side of the tent.
So we packed up camp and left that spot before others decided to do the same.
After heading to a small town for supplies, I decided to take Robin to see the Mt. Adams Ice Caves. The caves are actually old lava tubes created by ancient lava flows from the now quiet volcano.
She loved it although we didn't get to explore too far into the caves. We only fished for a couple of hours that afternoon before driving all over the area looking for a nice place to camp. Four hours of driving later we ended up finding a spot at the first place we had come to on the Klickitat the night before, but were unable to see a way around the boulders sticking out of the ground.
Anyway, I brought along our gas grill since the state is under a fire ban right now. Dinner was great. We stopped at a farm earlier in the day and picked some fresh corn on the cob and tomatoes. I have never been a big corn on the cob fan, but we really love the sweet corn they grow up here and grill some quite often.
The next morning instead of fishing the river all day we headed to back to Drano Lake.
An hour later, I had caught my first salmon. A 25 pounder, it was the biggest fish I had ever caught but pretty average.
We took a lunch break and I pulled out the grill and made some jerk chicken. (I didn't trust leaving the grill at camp.)
We had planned on leaving as as soon as we were done eating, but I decided to give the place another shot so Robin might have a chance to snag one before we hit the river. She battled for over an hour trying to coax a salmon into action, but it just wasn't in the mood.
I was trying to get a steelhead to take a snap ata plain silver spoon when out of nowhere I see this enormous gaping mouth of a salmon chasing the spoon a few feet in front of me. It takes a swipe and I set the hook on a 40 pound beauty.
Opening weekend. Two salmon. I was excited and making a scene, which I noticed gathered a few frowns from frustrated anglers down the shore and across the lake.
Nobody else was catching ANY and I caught two.
I guess all those weeks of frustration last year finally paid off.
Labor Day weekend marked the beginning of the season on the Yakima River, but we headed down to the gorge.
Last year, if you remember, this strategy backfired and we spent literally hundreds of dollars wasting time. This time I had no expectations. I was really just looking forward to the last camping trip of the year. In fact, we left so late Friday we did not fish at all. We had planned to camp along the Klickitat River so we could fish for salmon and steelhead right where we camped.
Since we arrived well after dark, finding a spot at the place we wanted was impossible because of the number of people already camped and the low profile of the new minivan. (big rocks are hard to navigate around at night)
So I drove and drove until I finally found a place upriver that wasn't already full of other campers. I was actually astonished that there was nobody camped at this spot.
Until 6:00 am anyway.
I woke up to the sound of some asshole backing his diesel F250 and boat trailer less than a foot from our tent.
Apparently the place we camped was what passes for a boat launch on that river. I got out of the tent ready to kill this man. (He was very apologetic, which saved him from a Texas-sized ass whipping) The kids and Robin were on that side of the tent.
So we packed up camp and left that spot before others decided to do the same.
After heading to a small town for supplies, I decided to take Robin to see the Mt. Adams Ice Caves. The caves are actually old lava tubes created by ancient lava flows from the now quiet volcano.
She loved it although we didn't get to explore too far into the caves. We only fished for a couple of hours that afternoon before driving all over the area looking for a nice place to camp. Four hours of driving later we ended up finding a spot at the first place we had come to on the Klickitat the night before, but were unable to see a way around the boulders sticking out of the ground.
Anyway, I brought along our gas grill since the state is under a fire ban right now. Dinner was great. We stopped at a farm earlier in the day and picked some fresh corn on the cob and tomatoes. I have never been a big corn on the cob fan, but we really love the sweet corn they grow up here and grill some quite often.
The next morning instead of fishing the river all day we headed to back to Drano Lake.
An hour later, I had caught my first salmon. A 25 pounder, it was the biggest fish I had ever caught but pretty average.
We took a lunch break and I pulled out the grill and made some jerk chicken. (I didn't trust leaving the grill at camp.)
We had planned on leaving as as soon as we were done eating, but I decided to give the place another shot so Robin might have a chance to snag one before we hit the river. She battled for over an hour trying to coax a salmon into action, but it just wasn't in the mood.
I was trying to get a steelhead to take a snap ata plain silver spoon when out of nowhere I see this enormous gaping mouth of a salmon chasing the spoon a few feet in front of me. It takes a swipe and I set the hook on a 40 pound beauty.
Opening weekend. Two salmon. I was excited and making a scene, which I noticed gathered a few frowns from frustrated anglers down the shore and across the lake.
Nobody else was catching ANY and I caught two.
I guess all those weeks of frustration last year finally paid off.
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