For my benefit, I want to record that I saw the following shows this summer:
BRANDI CARLILE WITH IVAN & ALYOSHA JULY 29 SOLD OUT!!
THE GO-GO'S LADIES GONE WILD TOUR WITH GIRL IN A COMA AUGUST 14 SOLD OUT!
I'll comment on the shows later.
Sunday, September 4, 2011
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
A face to a name...
Having discovered last year that my biological dad had died, a dormant curiosity started to grow into something I could no longer ignore.
When my wife found his on-line obituary, a number of significant details were revealed that helped in my quest to discover some of my hidden past; names, dates, locations, hobbies, vocations... It was all there.
With this information, I created a saved search in eBay to help locate a yearbook that might contain a picture of him as a young man. Last week, I got a hit. After all this time, would the information I used to create this search be accurate and produce the image I most wanted to see? Last night, as the auction came to a close, I put in a ridiculously high bid for the yearbook. The wife was looking over my shoulder and joked that I might be outbid. I fixed that by increasing the bid amount by another ludicrous amount, then increasing the amount once again. I felt fairly confident I would be the victor. I was. After looking at location of the sender, and realizing I didn't want to wait a week or more to see if the yearbook contained the picture of my deceased father, I contacted the seller and asked if he would be willing to meet me at a public location and complete a cash transaction. The seller was agreeable to my proposal.
Today, I went to pick up my treasure. I had an hour and 35 miles to think about what this yearbook might have in store for me. What would I hope to gain from seeing his picture? Would I see any of myself in him (or he in me)? I've always been told I look like my mother, so I didn't expect that to be the case. It certainly wouldn't change my life history to this point. Would it make a difference in my life, going forward? I questioned what it means to be a father. I hope I am the best father I can be to my own son (or any child I father); how did he feel about me and my existence? As my wife pointed out this morning, my mom may be in the yearbook. What other answers or questions may be posed when I look through this snapshot in time?
I pulled into the Safeway parking lot, searching for the Ford F150 I was told to look for. In Monroe, that's like telling someone on Rodeo Drive to look for someone wearing a Rolex. I saw plenty of Ford pick ups, and was busy looking for model numbers, when I happened to look out over the parking lot to find someone waving at me. I steered my trusty (rusty) vehicle toward the waver.
I got out of my car, to be greeted by the man who had the yearbook in question. We shook hands, and he asked if I wanted to look it over before purchasing. I told him I was buying the book, regardless of condition, which was quite good. I opened the book and quickly started flipping through the pages in an attempt to figure out the layout. Most yearbooks present the seniors class, then the rest of the classes fall out in descending order. Of course, to be difficult, this annual listed the sophomores first, so I had to flip through those kids, and the juniors to get to the senior class. In the lower corner of each picture was a label, whose purpose I initially couldn't determine. So many seemed to have the same name. I finally narrowed down my search to the page I fully expected him to appear, but I couldn't find him. Was he an absentee on picture day? By now I was making a few random utterances to the seller, but only so that I wasn't rudely ignoring him. I told him that my mom might be in the yearbook, but I certainly wasn't looking for her yet.
THERE! I finally saw the name, now I was able to track it back to a section on the page where my biological father was. He was not looking directly into the camera (no one was), but it was him. Mission accomplished, I was surprisingly overcome with emotion, and found myself unable to speak. The seller commented that this was an emotional time for me. I finally managed to utter that I was looking for a picture of my biological father, and that he'd died last year. I was struck mute for a few minutes and, try as I might, I couldn't keep a few tears from falling. What the hell was wrong with me?
I'm sure the guy probably felt a little uncomfortable so, I finally looked up at him, thanked him for his willingness to meet with me, and let him depart with his travelling companion.
I got back into my car, and flipped through the yearbook. Was my mom in it? She was, but as a junior, not a senior as I'd expected. Strange looking at your mom as a 16-year-old.
Any big surprises in the yearbook? One. A fellow senior classmate, would later become my bio-dad's second wife. I wonder how well they knew each other in high school. They certainly couldn't have known that they would marry in the not too distant future...
When my wife found his on-line obituary, a number of significant details were revealed that helped in my quest to discover some of my hidden past; names, dates, locations, hobbies, vocations... It was all there.
With this information, I created a saved search in eBay to help locate a yearbook that might contain a picture of him as a young man. Last week, I got a hit. After all this time, would the information I used to create this search be accurate and produce the image I most wanted to see? Last night, as the auction came to a close, I put in a ridiculously high bid for the yearbook. The wife was looking over my shoulder and joked that I might be outbid. I fixed that by increasing the bid amount by another ludicrous amount, then increasing the amount once again. I felt fairly confident I would be the victor. I was. After looking at location of the sender, and realizing I didn't want to wait a week or more to see if the yearbook contained the picture of my deceased father, I contacted the seller and asked if he would be willing to meet me at a public location and complete a cash transaction. The seller was agreeable to my proposal.
Today, I went to pick up my treasure. I had an hour and 35 miles to think about what this yearbook might have in store for me. What would I hope to gain from seeing his picture? Would I see any of myself in him (or he in me)? I've always been told I look like my mother, so I didn't expect that to be the case. It certainly wouldn't change my life history to this point. Would it make a difference in my life, going forward? I questioned what it means to be a father. I hope I am the best father I can be to my own son (or any child I father); how did he feel about me and my existence? As my wife pointed out this morning, my mom may be in the yearbook. What other answers or questions may be posed when I look through this snapshot in time?
I pulled into the Safeway parking lot, searching for the Ford F150 I was told to look for. In Monroe, that's like telling someone on Rodeo Drive to look for someone wearing a Rolex. I saw plenty of Ford pick ups, and was busy looking for model numbers, when I happened to look out over the parking lot to find someone waving at me. I steered my trusty (rusty) vehicle toward the waver.
I got out of my car, to be greeted by the man who had the yearbook in question. We shook hands, and he asked if I wanted to look it over before purchasing. I told him I was buying the book, regardless of condition, which was quite good. I opened the book and quickly started flipping through the pages in an attempt to figure out the layout. Most yearbooks present the seniors class, then the rest of the classes fall out in descending order. Of course, to be difficult, this annual listed the sophomores first, so I had to flip through those kids, and the juniors to get to the senior class. In the lower corner of each picture was a label, whose purpose I initially couldn't determine. So many seemed to have the same name. I finally narrowed down my search to the page I fully expected him to appear, but I couldn't find him. Was he an absentee on picture day? By now I was making a few random utterances to the seller, but only so that I wasn't rudely ignoring him. I told him that my mom might be in the yearbook, but I certainly wasn't looking for her yet.
THERE! I finally saw the name, now I was able to track it back to a section on the page where my biological father was. He was not looking directly into the camera (no one was), but it was him. Mission accomplished, I was surprisingly overcome with emotion, and found myself unable to speak. The seller commented that this was an emotional time for me. I finally managed to utter that I was looking for a picture of my biological father, and that he'd died last year. I was struck mute for a few minutes and, try as I might, I couldn't keep a few tears from falling. What the hell was wrong with me?
I'm sure the guy probably felt a little uncomfortable so, I finally looked up at him, thanked him for his willingness to meet with me, and let him depart with his travelling companion.
I got back into my car, and flipped through the yearbook. Was my mom in it? She was, but as a junior, not a senior as I'd expected. Strange looking at your mom as a 16-year-old.
Any big surprises in the yearbook? One. A fellow senior classmate, would later become my bio-dad's second wife. I wonder how well they knew each other in high school. They certainly couldn't have known that they would marry in the not too distant future...
Saturday, October 16, 2010
The Social Network (MRQE graphic)
This is a test to see if copy/pasting the embed code will render the graphic as shown on the MRQE site.
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Things to do when you move...
So, you've moved into your new abode.
Life is great, right?
Not so fast...
You're not going to sit your best assets down on someone else's toilet seat, are you?
I should hope not.
No one else has a key to your front door, right?
Silly boy.
OK, I've just pointed out a couple areas that deserve your immediate attention. Whether or not you own or rent, there are a number of things you can do to make your place safer and, generally, more pleasant than if you'd just moved in and left things as they are. Let's run down the list and take a look-see...
Life is great, right?
Not so fast...
You're not going to sit your best assets down on someone else's toilet seat, are you?
I should hope not.
No one else has a key to your front door, right?
Silly boy.
OK, I've just pointed out a couple areas that deserve your immediate attention. Whether or not you own or rent, there are a number of things you can do to make your place safer and, generally, more pleasant than if you'd just moved in and left things as they are. Let's run down the list and take a look-see...
- Replace toilet seats. This really is a no-brainer. I'll admit to being a hypocrite on this one; we've lived in our house 8 years, and I just replaced our two weeks ago -- and the only reason I replaced them is that one cracked (I shudder thinking how much mileage that baby had on it). After replacing them, I wondered why the hell I didn't do that before we moved in. For $50, I replaced the seat/lid combos in both bathrooms (and these are the ones with the metal hinges. They look nicer, they are spotlessly clean, and I love 'em. Money well spent.
- Replace door lock sets. If you rent, this may not be an option, but if you own, do it. How many of the neighbors have been given a key so that they could let in a serviceman, or some other emergency purpose? Point is: you don't know, so replacing them will give you some much-needed peace of mind.
- Look through garage/storage areas for things you'd just as soon be rid of. When we moved into our house, we found a bottle of "Methyl Hydrate Poison" and a bottle of Chloroform. Who knows what's lurking in your new digs?
- Replace furnace filter. You may not get around to doing it again for another 6 months, you may as well start your stay with some fresh, clean air.
While this list is by no means comprehensive, I've got to get back to my homework. I'll continue to add to this list as I think of new items and as time allows.
Monday, December 28, 2009
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