Be The Pigeon

Merry Christmas to everyone. Please see our annual family newsletter , compliments of Jolayne .

I'm in love. I'm having a torrid affair. The relationship is such that I just can't hide it any longer. I must proclaim my feelings for... amazon.com. It makes it possible to be a genetically lazy male and still do a decent job with shopping for Christmas. Seriously, I've done a fair amount of my Christmas shopping online this year, and it's been a totally joyous experience. The UPS man now shows up at my house with presents! What a wonderful thing. No lines, no fighting, and I even get to check reviews and prices, to boot. What could be better? Why would anyone want to go to the mall and wait in line with all the hassle? And at this point I'm even thinking there's little point in shopping anywhere else online but amazon. They make it soooo easy to spend money. Their prices are nearly always the absolute lowest. Their customer service has always been very good for me, and their web site was designed by some smart people who actually considered m...

Today at church our bishop, who was conducting the meeting, said he wanted to take a "slightly different format" to things. That's when bells and whistles should start going off in any sane person's head.  I "knew" right then that I'd be involved with what was coming. The bishop said he was going to call a few of the congregation up to speak spontaneously about their experiences attending the temple this year.  Of course, I won the lotto and was selected!  Funny how we so often know ahead of time when we're going to be picked for those types of things. Amy leans over to Jolayne and says "Did Dad know he was going to get picked?"  Jo says "Nope."  Amy then replies very triumphantly, "heee heee hee hee hee," absolutely loving the way it was going down. Yep,  funny stuff, Amy. Good thing I don't freak out about that kind of stuff (which is likely why he knew he could pick on me).

Two years ago I attended a conference for work that included a presentation by motivational speaker Benjamin Zander, who is also the conductor for the Boston Philharmonic.  He is one of the most inspiring people I've ever heard speak, and I've been looking for something that shares who he is that I could post for some time.  Finally found it. This one gives some better background about who he is.   When he speaks, he shares the things that we commonly place over our own heads that limit our achievements.  He provides simple ways to view things that can help you to be more positive, opening new possibilities.  It's great.  If you ever have a chance to hear him speak, jump at it.  Otherwise, get his book, The Art of Possibility , off Amazon.  It's cheap.

OK all you female types who accidentally stumbled on this rugged, handsome, one-of-a-kind blog.  I'm gonna give you a tip for Christmas: the perfect gift for him.  As I was penning my Sweet Nothings entry, Amy came down to the office crying. "What's wrong, Amy?" "I need your claw thing." "Why do you need my claw thing?" "Because I accidentally dropped Mom's earring down the drain." {lots of crying, followed by dad saying something insenstive, yet witty, to his eldest daughter} Enter "the tool". {dun dun dun} I should clarify something before continuing.  The PERFECT gift would be an Acura TL.   Let's not mix signals here, afterall. But the next most perfect gift (for under $10) would be a  flexible grabber  (about $5 on google).  Seriously, if you don't have one at your house, you NEED to go shopping.  Buy 3 of them.  The kids will have fun grabbing one another's skin on Christmas morning.  What could be more fu...

Tonight we made a gingerbread house.  Mind you, my use of the word " made " is a little nouveau.  When I was a kid, " make " included the connotation of actual baking.  Today, " make " means $9.95 for the pre-fab kit.  Ahh, progress!  But you're getting me off of my point. My point is that while we were creating our sweet habitat, I expected Ozzie-and-Harriett styled-conversation.  You know, stuff like "gee, golly, Dad.  This sure is swell."  Afterall, it's blowing snow outside and my kids are gathered around the table with sticky fingers.  However, if you included non-dubbed dialog to accompany this pic above, you'd hear things like:  "SSTTTOOPP!  MOMM!  She took my gumdrop." "Hey!  That's my tree!" {insert dad yelling assorted orderly commands} and my favorite of the evening, "It looks like bird poop!" What?! Huh?!   Bird poop? That last one was offered by none other than my wife, made of course in ...