I uploaded a video of Sophia laughing to YouTube, Here it is.

Categories: BJ, Sophia
2 Comments »

We have known this for a while. However, she used to need assistance to get to a standing position. Now she can claw her way up most stationary objects. I’m stationary most of the time so I have to shave my legs and wear shorts to prevent this sort of activity. She has also started eating solid food, or at least solid food that has been ground into a watery paste. She takes these times to learn to talk. I’m not sure where she got the idea that eating and talking were related, because most of our eating is done while vacuously watching the current hot sci-fi thriller. I kid, we sit at the table sometimes. When a small child who cannot actually speak tries learning how to talk while eating, it usually involves a lot of gagging and sputtering. In her case, it involves a lot of spitting our her food and smiling. It is a race to get the spoon far enough in her mouth that her closing her mouth doesn’t cause a geyser of banana to slide down her chin. It’s like feeding a nervous venus fly trap or playing operation. If there is any indication that there is an object in her mouth she will immediately close it. She finds this hilarious. The other problem is that she is so cute that this only elicits pained whimsical laughter from her mother and I.

At other times she looks like a zombie. She is a cute zombie, but a zombie nonetheless. To be fair she shares most of the traits of zombies: she puts everything in her mouth, she squeals and moans gibberish, she smells funny, and she moves very slowly. She is much cuter than most zombies, but could use a little direction on how to eat.

It was nice having Bekah in town for a time. I miss my sister. She’s a pretty awesome person. She is less likely to keep me from being an idiot than my wife, but for that I treat her like a buddy who happens to live a thousand miles away. I wish I could invent a long distance hug machine to give her a hug every once in a while.

Categories: BJ, Sophia
No Comments »

I don’t often break down and tell her, “Heather, I’m glad you’re not bats— insane like a lot of women in the world,” but I should. I appreciate her sanity. Sure, she still has a deep affinity for judge shows (IE: People’s Court, Judge Judy, Judge Mathis, etc … ) and seems to love silly, happy morning drive shows, but I can’t complain too much as I thoroughly enjoy activities that befuddle most women. You know, activities like: pwning noobs, killing zombies, drifting (DORIFUTO!!!!!), reading subtitles, and listening to incomprehensible music. The main problem is that she doesn’t consider the first three items on the list to be different. She lumps them in the videogames category. Well, I’m sorry to say, they’re very different, unless you’re drifting through zombies in the wonderful Dead Rising. The stupid game has me trying to figure out a way to get my hands on an Xbox 360. Sadly, Christmas-time is not for me anymore. It seems to be for my daughter. I can’t seem to convince anyone that Sophia would love to smash zombie goo into concrete with a sledgehammer, so I’ll just have to be patient.

I’m sort of sad that I haven’t posted more about global conflict, race, or any other hot button topics that fill my nightly screaming matches with public radio, but I feel these times deserve a little more levity. In the wake of inescapable futility and frustration, a little laughter helps out.

I also flip flop. I use the information available to me to make the best decision I can. I’m growing cynical. I have never before had to make the assumption that I was knowingly being lied to by our elected officials, but I now make that assumption in every single case. All politicians are weasels. The only guy I can get behind is Ron Paul. Too bad I’m not in his district to vote for the man. He is a little harsh when it comes to personal liberty though. In that same respect I have come to identify myself as a minarchist Libertarian (Big L cause I vote for em).

Categories: BJ, BJ's Life
No Comments »

This webcomic is hilarious.

Here’s his homepage.

Categories: BJ, Entertainment
No Comments »

Wow, that was fun. If by fun you mean a pain in the neck, then yeah. Much to the detriment of Grandparents and old people everywhere, I’ve decided people should surf the interweb at 1024 x 768, at a minimum. As such, my website is now bigger and awesomer. Let me know whether you like it the new way or the old way. Not that I really think what you say is going to change the site, but I like to read people telling me I’m awesome.

Categories: BJ
2 Comments »

Here’s the official Exchange list.

Edit: Watch this space, updates are coming.

Categories: BJ
2 Comments »

I don’t mind the rapid spreading contagion of nerdity (I made the word nerdity up, which I think makes me a nerd. A fact that was never in doubt). My only lament is her hesitance to adopt my music. Seriously, I listen to some awesome music. Every week I find new bands, new sounds, and every once in a while I find gold. The only problem is that I’ve trained myself to like the weirdest stuff I can find. For example:

The band is called uneXpect. They’re probably considered metal but they have a certain jazz/circus music/opera influence. They’re similar to Sleepytime Guerilla Museum but much heavier. Anyway, I’m a huge fan and really have to suggest picking up their latest release In a Flesh Aquarium.

I’ve also been doing some hunting lately and need to share the fruits of my searching. This first one is easy. It’s the background music to the Gears of War commercial. Give it a look see. It’s breaking down my resolve to wait for the Xbox 360 to come down in price. Anyway you’ll notice the music is a cover of the Tears for Fears song Mad World. If you need help finding it it’s on the Donnie Darko soundtrack. Here’s the full track.

Right Click here to download the track.

Another track that had eluded me ror a long time was the old Adult Swim bump. It sounded like a Latin Remix with some funky beats added in. It was recently used in a commercial for the show Studio 60 I found the original track at an online music source (extrememusic.com). I couldn’t find a good copy though. The website was a commercal only site, and a webrip was a decidedly low bitrate. Anyway thanks to the ytmnd site I found a decent copy. Give it a listen.

Right Click here to download the track.

I still have a short treatise on metal bouncing around in my head but that will have to wait for another time. Needless to say I need to thank my cousin Joe for turning me on to Threat Signal. Been listening to Meshuggah, Soilwork, Scar Symmetry, Cataract, Chimaira, etc … Awesome stuff. Guitar Hero and Metalocalypse and all of a sudden I’m listening to metal all the time.

Categories: BJ, Entertainment
No Comments »

Okay friends and family. Enough of hearing from BJ yack about his boyfriend Jeremy Clarkson, the awesomeness of Guitar Hero, how you too can download shows and music from the internet, or great places to go to look at random crap. I jest, BJ knows I love him. He has quite a knack of rubbing off on people. In fact, this is what my post is all about. BJ knows he is a bit of a nerd, computer geek, whatever. I never was one growing up and never considered myself to be one even presently. However, I finished reading through Wired Magazine a couple weeks ago (the entire magazine) and something hit me—-after being married to BJ I have become a bit of a nerd myself!!! If I read an entire magazine it is usually People or Entertainment Weekly. I never knew what Anime was until BJ. Who was Orson Scott Card? Fantasy novels?! Other video games exist other than Mario Brothers?! I grew up on books like Nancy Drew, Baby Sitters Club, Sweet Valley High! My shows were the Care Bears, the Smurfs, or Saved by The Bell.

I said “I Do” and something happened, the nerd genes started to form and mutate me into something. I love Anime, and have certain shows I even prefer (Trigun was great). Orson Scott Card is a wonderful author among many other fantasy novel writers. While I don’t love video games like BJ does I have broadened my horizons from poor little Mario and his buddy Luigi. I even enjoy the car shows Top Gear and Fifth Gear. This is madness! It’s not such a bad life, this nerd life. Thank you BJ for opening my eyes to a new world and new things. I am better for it.

Categories: Heather
No Comments »

I uploaded some more photos today. Have a look see at Sophia’s new album which encompasses the last 2 months.

Categories: BJ, Sophia
No Comments »