[ Wednesday, July 31, 2002 ]
All righty, so my blogging has really been lacking lately. bah! Here goes...More Cyn! More Cyn! Cyn has switched her site over to a blog-powered one now, so we can get more of her ramblings. Cool.
My son is the party king, I tell ya. Next Saturday (the 10th), he has been invited to FOUR birthday parties! We're gonna attempt to attend three of them. And I have a basketball game to play in that day too. Oy. At least none of them are at Chunky Cheese!
Get well wishes to Yvonne! This has been quite a year for you, hasn't it? Rest up and do some relaxin' and chillin', OK dear?
Has anyone seen the previews to that new sport/show on TNN called "SlamBall"? It's like basketball on steroids since the game is played on a spring enhanced floor (like gymnastics floor exercises) and trampolines under the basket. I dunno, I think it might be fun for a while, but I'm afraid that the novelty will wear off soon if the quality of game play doesn't live up to NBA standards.
Farewell to Bleak. It was fun while it lasted, but I guess the time has come to move on...
My life is really lacking something these days. Yeah, part of it is that I really need the company of a woman (natch), but also I'm really in need of some romance in my life. The daily grind of working and being a single father, without much taking care of myself has worn me down, mentally, emotionally and physically. Now that I'm beginning to recognize this more I'm hoping that I can come up with some remedies for this. Of course, taking our trip to Hawaii in a couple of weeks will certainly help!
yam [12:30 PM 0 comments ]
[ Tuesday, July 30, 2002 ]
RidiculousYou know those crazy chat acronyms that everyone uses? This one takes the cake, IMHO!
ROTFLOLWMCOMNPMP - Rolling on the floor laughing out loud with milk coming out my nose peeing my pants
Bahahaha!
yam [9:55 AM 0 comments ]
[ Monday, July 29, 2002 ]
TEST FOR US OLDER FOLKSThis is the quiz for you!
1. Where did headlight dimmer switches used to be located?
a. On the floor shift knob
b. On the floor, left of the clutch
c. Next to the horn
2. The bottle top of a Royal Crown Cola bottle has
holes in it. For what was it used?
a. Capture lightning bugs.
b. To sprinkle clothes before ironing
c. Large salt shaker
3. Why was having milk delivered a problem in northern winters?
a. Cows got cold and wouldn't produce
b. Ice on highways forced delivery by dog sled
c. Milkmen left deliveries outside doors and milk
would freeze, expanding and pushing up the cardboard bottle top.
4. What was the popular chewing gum named for a game of chance?
a. Blackjack
b. Gin
c. Craps
5. What method did women adapt to look as if they were wearing stockings
when none was available due to rationing during W.W.II?
a. Suntan
b. Leg painting
c. Wearing slacks
6. What postwar car turned automotive design on its
ear when you couldn't tell whether it was coming or going?
a. Studebaker
b. Nash Metro
c. Tucker
7. Which was a popular candy when you were a kid?
a. Strips of dried peanut butter
b. Chocolate-licorice bars
c. Wax coke-shaped bottles with colored sugar water inside
8. How was Butch wax used?
a. To stiffen hair cut into a flattop so it stood up
b. To make floors shiny and prevent scuffing
c. On the wheels of roller skates to prevent rust
9. Before inline skates, how did you keep your roller
skates attached to your shoes?
a. With clamps, tightened by a skate key
b. Woven straps that crossed the foot
c. Long pieces of string or twine
10. As a kid, what was considered the best way to
reach a decision?
a. Consider all the facts
b. Ask Mom
c. Eeny-meeny-miney-mo
11. What was the worst thing you could catch from the
opposite sex?
a. A cold
b. VD
c. Cooties
12. I'll be down to get you in a ________, Honey?"
a. SUV
b. Taxi
c. Streetcar
13. What was the name of Caroline Kennedy's pet pony?
a. Old Blue
b. Paint
c. Macaroni
14. What was a Duck-and-Cover Drill?
a. Part of the game of hide and seek
b. What you did when your mom called you in to do chores
c. Hiding under your desk, covering your head with
your arms in an A bomb drill
15. What was the name of the Indian Princess on the
Howdy Doody show?
a. Princess Summerfallwinterspring
b. Princess Sacajewea
c. Princess Moonshadow
16. What did all really savvy students do when
mimeographed tests were handed out in school?
a. Immediately sniffed the purple ink, as this was
believed to get you "high"
b. Made paper airplanes to see who could sail theirs
out the window
c. Wrote another pupils name on the top, to avoid failure
17. Why did your mom shop in stores that gave Green
Stamps with purchases?
a. To keep you out of mischief licking the backs,
which tasted like bubble gum
b. They could be put in special books and redeemed for
various household items
c. They were given to the kids to be used as stick on tattoos
18. "Praise the Lord, and pass the _________?"
a. Meatballs
b. Dames
c. Ammunition
19. What was the name of the group who made the
song "Cabdriver" a hit?
a. The Ink Spots
b. The Supremes
c. The Esquires
20. Who left his heart in San Francisco?
a. Tony Bennett
b. Zavier Cugat
c. George Gershwin
ANSWERS are in the comments pop-up....
yam [2:49 PM 0 comments ]
[ Sunday, July 28, 2002 ]
Wow, did I take a LOT of photos this weekend.... bear with me as I sort thru them before I post them up.... But overall it has been a GOOD weekend!yam [2:30 PM 0 comments ]
[ Friday, July 26, 2002 ]
TidbitsThings are actually kind of slow today, so I thought I would jot down a few thoughts from recent history.
Saw the new Nissan 350Z on the freeway the other day. I was just getting on the freeway when I saw this unusual orange/copper colored car in the fast lane. Didn't know what it was but had a hunch that it was the new Z. The fast lane traffic began to slow just enough for me to get a better look at it (also the driver of a late 90's 300ZX sped up to pull alongside it) and I'm positive it was the new Z, due to go on sale in a few weeks. In my opinion, from the rear/side angle it reminds me of a wider, sorta squashed Porsche 911. I'll have to see more of it to get a better opinion of it. But my first thought is NOT one of "Oh, I love it" :p
Was awakened early last Sunday morning by a phone cal from the police. They had found a car in the Chuck E. Cheese parking lot that was registered under my name and were suspicious that it was stolen. Turns out that it was a Honda and not mine. Apparently the called the wrong person, but the other guy in town who has the same name as me. I've met him, since he's good friends with my friend Steve, so I was tempted to call Steve and ask if his friend had his car stolen. Heh.
Oops, gotta go to a meeting.... more later.
yam [12:58 PM 0 comments ]
[ Thursday, July 25, 2002 ]
I'm . . . Sooo . . . Weak.....
Lookie at what I bought today....
yam [11:14 PM 0 comments ] Matthew Sez
I HAD to write this conversation down! On the way to school this morning, Matthew had this unsolicited question for me and the following discussion ensued....
Matthew: "Daddy, when are we gonna have a new Mom?"
Brian: "Hahahaha! Well, when I find someone that I like."
M: "Do you like anyone?"
B: "Well, so far I haven't found anyone that I really like a lot."
M: "Oh."
B: "And it has to be someone that you like too."
M: "I don't like anyone 'cuz I'm not a grown-up yet."
B: "It has to be someone really special."
M: "I only like Patrick and Nicky."
yam [9:05 AM 0 comments ]
[ Wednesday, July 24, 2002 ]
Whew. Things have been so busy lately on all fronts that I haven't had a chance to update in a few days and I don't see any light for a while, up to when we take our vacation at the end of next month. But I'll try to squeeze in an entry here and there. Thanks for the input! Oh, and btw, I want THIS!Also forgot to wish Franko a Happy Burpday today, too!
yam [2:53 PM 0 comments ]
[ Tuesday, July 23, 2002 ]
Bonding
Last night (Sunday) Matthew and I made cookies together! I think he really enjoyed it and it was a good experience for the both of us. I'd been meaning to do something like that with him for a long time, but just hadn't gotten around to it. First of all we usually don't have enough time to do that kind of thing, and second, I definitely don't need all of those calories! Ahh, the sacrifices I have to make for my son! Hahaha!
yam [12:10 AM 0 comments ]
[ Monday, July 22, 2002 ]
Happy Birthday!Happy BDay shouts out to HapaRob! Hope you're having a good one today!
yam [11:38 AM 0 comments ]
[ Sunday, July 21, 2002 ]
We're back!Added a bunch of new pictures from the past week. I'm tired now, but there should be more stories from the last few days, when I get the chance later during the day on Monday, OK? Have a great week!
UPDATE: Oops. Sorry I got busy and didn't have a chance to blog on Monday.
yam [11:57 PM 0 comments ]
[ Monday, July 15, 2002 ]
just when i think i'm going to gain some momentum and start reeling off a bunch of journal entries, i'm feeling totally brain dead. dealing with another birthday passed without a "loved-one" again has set me back a few notches. but i still have to brag about my boy. when we were out to dinner on saturday, we ran into some friends there that we hadn't seen in a long time. they were there for a birthday dinner. i told them that this was my birthday dinner, just me and the kid. and after they left, matthew got down from his chair and came over to give me a hug and say "happy birthday, daddy!" made my weekend. :)i'll try to come back soon.
i'm out
yam [11:39 PM 0 comments ] Sending a happy burpday out to da Evil-Mouji. Have some cake on me bruddah!
yam [8:48 AM 0 comments ] Where did the time go?
But yet, it seems to take forever.
The things we want to last
Seem to slip through our fingers.
And things we wait for
Will they never come to fruition?
yam [12:01 AM 0 comments ]
[ Saturday, July 13, 2002 ]
Heh, just another day for me and Spud.
A yam and a spud, get it? hee-hee.
yam [1:33 AM 0 comments ]
[ Friday, July 12, 2002 ]
Matthew Sez(here's another one for you gg!)
Early this evening, while changing Matthew's soiled bedsheets again, from last night....
Matthew: "Daddy?"
Brian: "Yeah?"
M: "Daddy, I can't not remember, umm, something."
B: "Huh?"
M: "I can't not remember what it was that you were telling me."
B: "Whaaat?"
M: "I can't not remember what, umm, what it was that you were telling me that you wanted, umm, me to do."
B: "Wh-huh-hut are you talking about? Heh."
M: "About not going pee-pee in my bed!"
B: "Ohhhh. Yeah, when you feel like you have to go pee-pee at night, you need to get up and go to the potty."
M: "Yeah, ..." (slapping himself in the forehead) "C'mon brain, get up and go pee-pee at night time. You can do it!"
B: "Hahahahahaha, you're so FUNNY!"
... Matthew doesn't quite have the potty-training figured out at nighttime yet. :p
yam [10:39 PM 0 comments ] What do you except fo nuthin'? Rubba Bisquit?
yam [9:27 AM 0 comments ]
[ Wednesday, July 10, 2002 ]
Didn't sleep too well last night (I think it was that Starbux iced coffee I had too late), so my mind is kinda flat tonight. But I did post up a new video of Matthew playing basketball again (on the main site) , and I captured a couple of pictures from tonight's ESPY awards.G'nite!
"Hey, Shnoop"
nice, "3peat" jersey, huh Lare?"
"Uh, back in 1974, we had Da Funk!"
"Yee, we gots da funk!"
yam [11:46 PM 0 comments ]
[ Tuesday, July 09, 2002 ]
PoignantArrgh! I spent about an hour writing up a tough journal entry and then my computer crashed on me!!! I guess I wasn't supposed to write that entry. It was a depressing one any ways. So, in place of that one, I'm just gonna show you this short but poignant one.
When we got home tonight, Matthew went right to work drawing a little picture on a piece of paper and said, "I'm gonna make a picture for Mommy."
After several minutes of drawing he said, "Can you help me write mommy's name?" So, I slowly spelled out M-O-M-M-Y (that's it in multi-colors on the bottom).
Then he got several ideas of turning the paper into an airplane by adding strips of paper to the original one.
He also wrote his name on the backside.
"So, what is that picture on the front?"
"It's a picture of mountains. I wanted Mommy to see the picture of mountains. When can we take this to Mommy so that she can see it?"
"Well, hopefully we can stop by the cemetery this weekend."
"OK. I wish that Mommy was still here so that I could show her this."
"I'm sure that Mommy can see what your doing. I'm sure she's very happy that you did that for her."
"Because she's in my heart?"
"Yes!"
"Just like Jesus is in my heart?"
"Yes, He is."
yam [11:39 PM 0 comments ]
[ Monday, July 08, 2002 ]
Not too much to say tonight. But I'm hoping to build up some momentum and really put down into writing more inneresting and thought provoking stuff in the future. We shall see. There's something inside of me that wants to get out, but I'm seaarching to find out just what that might be.I've been reading this guy's blog for a while now and he really cracks me up. And his website is just filled with humorous schtuff, worth hours of reading. I still haven't had enough time to go through all of it.
Here's another Bruce Lee related site. Kinda cool and good for a few yuks.
OK, more tomorrow.
yam [11:07 PM 0 comments ]
[ Sunday, July 07, 2002 ]
Random Weekend Thoughts
After a long restful 4-day weekend, where we didn't really have any big plans for a change, here are a bunch of random thoughts:
Weird weather. While everyone else in LA is trying to cool off and beat the summer heat, we haven't really seen that much sun here along the coast, with temps in the low 70's. And the last couple of days has been extremely windy all day. Go figure.
I joined the new LABlogs webring. I'm really surprised that I haven't seen any webrings for people based in the Los Angeles area before this. I'm also thinking about joining a couple of other rings in the near future. I feel like I need to check out some new sites since I always visit the same places over and over.
One thing I forgot to mention the other day about the movie Like Mike was I noticed that all of the exterior shots of the basketball games were done at the Staples Center, but all of the interior shots were done at the Forum (former home of the Lakers). I wonder what the reason for that was? Probably because since the Lakers left the forum, they don't get many events at the Forum any more.
Had my first boba milk tea in a couple of years. Can you believe that? I haven't had one since Grace passed away, since she was the one who always ordered then for me. Heh. Matthew really liked it (strawberry flavor) and was disappointed when I drank it all up and there wasn't any left after he woke up from his nap. Hahaha. I'll hafta get him some more next time.
Last week BMW introduced the new Z4. This car is set to be available later this year and will be replacing the classic Z3. I'm really disappointed with its looks. I understand that it was designed by an American stylist, Christopher Bangle. I'm sorry but Americans just don't seem to be able to design good looking cars. I think it looks clunky, lacks those clean flowing lines that Bimmers are known for, and it just looks plain ugly. I dunno, maybe it will grow on me with time.
Tried the new Pizza Hut Insider pizza. Since Matthew loves cheese so much I thought I would get that pizza which is layered with extra cheese inside the crust. Yeesh, was that thing gross. Even though I'm not lactose-intolerant in the least, that pizza made my stomach turn. :p
Thanks to JP for the future bday wishes ;)
I joined an online group for young widows/widowers. Not sure if this is going to do me any good, but thought it was wortha try. It's quite interesting how limited the support is for "young" widows, and even more sparse for young widowers.
Thanks to everyone for their suggestions on what to do in Hawaii. I'm compiling the information that I've gotten so far and I'll post them here when I get a chance. But of course, I'll still take more hints and tips if you've got 'em!
Matthew Sez
While driving in the car the other day:
Matthew: "Daddy, when am I gonna die?"
Brian: "Well, hopefully not until you are really old."
M: "You mean like mommy?"
B: "No, mommy wasn't very old. She was just very, very sick."
M: "OK."
B: "Why are you asking anyways?"
M: "Because."
B: "Because why?"
M: "Because mommy died."
Sigh..., sometimes it sure is tough to be the Dad, explain the facts of life to my son, and keep a level head.
And it continues.....
I was trying to explain to Matthew how his last name is the same as my last name, and the same as Grandma and Grandpa's last name, but his Po-Po and Gon-Gon have a different last name. I told him that when mommy and daddy got married, mommy changed her last name to mine. So, the first question out of my inquisitive son's mouth was "When are you getting married?" What else could I say? "When I find someone again, that I really like." "Oh."
NOTE: I don't know what the heck is going on with the fonts
yam [10:57 PM 0 comments ]
[ Thursday, July 04, 2002 ]
Happy Independence Day!Hope you're all having a great 4th of July holiday!
Since we first saw the trailer for the movie Like Mike, Matthew has continued to say "I wanna see that!". So this morning we caught the matinee. This is the story of a little orphaned kid (Lil' Bow Wow) who acquires an old pair of sneakers, supposedly worn by Micheal Jordan, and then he suddenly has extraordinary basketball skills. I really enjoyed this film, believe it or not! It's definitely a made-for-kids movie, but it was well acted, had a cute story, and the characters were likeable. I actually got teary-eyed at the end, dammit. Eesh! Matthew even wanted to see it again with his friends. Although most of the crowd there was dads with their boys and their buddies, I think this is good entertainment for the whole family.
We're hopefully gonna get to see some fireworks tonight, so I'm out for now. Have a safe and fun holiday!
yam [3:16 PM 0 comments ]
[ Tuesday, July 02, 2002 ]
After work today I stopped off at a little Japanese restuarant to pick up some food for our friend Paul, who is staying at the hospital near work. If you remember, Paul was seriously injured recently in a car accident. After a lots of major/minor problems, pelvic reconstructive surgery, and lots of prayer, he's now in the hospital rehab center. I got a message that he's doing better and would like to have visitors and some food, other than hospital food (ewwww!), so that's what I did this afternoon. Unfortunately I had to wait a long time for the food (I didn't plan it well) so I didn't get to spend much time visiting since I had to pick up Matthew from school immediately afterwards. Even though he has a long, long way to go (he's partially paralyzed on one side, still has discomfort from broken bones, is having gastrointestinal problems, and is recovering from severe head/nerve injuries) it is amazing to see how far he's come. I'm really glad that I was able to see him for just a few minutes. I'll definitely go back to see him again soon. To see how far he has come, knowing how much of a good Christian he is, and knowing how much everyone has been praying for him, was inspirational to me. I hope I can learn from this.yam [9:28 PM 0 comments ] Happy Birthday!
Happy Birthday greetings out to the RiceyGirl! Damn, sorry to hear about your news. Not really the best way to celebrate your big day, huh? Please make the best of it, girl! :)
yam [8:58 AM 0 comments ]
[ Monday, July 01, 2002 ]
What to do?OK, all you Hawaii afficiandos out there. How about some suggestions for things to do when we go to Hawaii? I need stuff that me and the kid can do, so bar hopping is prolly out of the question!
Wow, today is the first of July already??? Yikes! With this vacation coming up and another birthday in just a few days, I seriously need to lose some weight! Ay carumba.
yam [10:12 AM 0 comments ]
