Chanukah 2005

We celebrated the second day of Chanukah with Mike's parents. Last year it was Ben who didn't feel well due to 4 immunization shots. This year it was me due to a sinus headache. We lit candles, opened presents, then sat down for latkes -- which I had been looking forward to all week. I was feeling so bad looking at the food made me sick. I tried taking a couple of Tylenol but that didn't work too well. Then Mike's dad suggested I hold a piece of ice wrapped in a paper towel against the place I was feeling the pressure. That worked great. After about 10 minutes, I felt like a human being. I ate a little something afterwards.

I hadn't been feeling well all day. I took a nap when Ben did and felt a little better. After I awoke, I went to the gym. Exercise was okay but whenever I tried to get my heart rate between 90% and 100% (redline) my head started to hurt. I decided to stay in the aerobic zone. Maybe tomorrow or Wednesday I can make up the workout.

Michael bought me two "Best of..." U2 CD's. One covers 1980 - 1990, the other 1990 - 2000. I didn't like U2 in the mid to late 80's when I was in high school, not that I disliked the group I just wasn't into them. I was more into R&B and soul. Now, I have an appreciation for them. I got Michael another book light.

I'm hoping Ben had a good day. I took him to the mall earlier where he got to run around a bit. Later, Michael took him to Jerry's for lunch while I went to the gym. He didn't really eat much at his grandparents', I think it was because he had just eaten at Jerry's. He did very well with a fork and ate some fruit but didn't seem too interested in the latkes. He watched parts of Fantasia. He liked the more lively portions. I was in the Disney Store this afternoon looking for movies. Disney has released Bambi II which appears to be Bambi's life as his father raises him after his mother's death. I would like to start buying all the Disney movies.

Christmas 2005

Michael and I went to his parents' place to open presents and have Christmas brunch. We tried to get some good photos of Ben but both my mother-in-law and I found it is hard to take a picture of a moving target. Ben started acting tired around 11:00, we put him in the portable crib. When I took out the camera to take more pictures he started cheesin' for the camera. Michael got video of Ben spinning around.

Ben's grandparents got him some Weebles. They've changed alot since my time. They used to look like a plastic eggs, now they have detail. I had the Winnie the Pooh and Tigger Weebles along with the W-t-P tree house.

Michael surprised me with an iPod video. He told me several times over the past month he wasn't going to get it for me. It was just too expensive. We couldn't find it when we got to his parents. He acted really upset because he wanted me to open it before brunch. I said it was no big deal, we probably left it at home and I could open it when we returned. The package must have fallen into a dining room chair when we set the packages down on the table when we arrived at their place. When I saw the wrapped package I thought it was the U2 boxed CD set I wanted and couldn't fathom why he would be so anxious for me to open it. Then I opened it and saw my iPod. Now I can take family pictures and video with me wherever. He also bought me the new Stevie Wonder CD A Time to Love, which I'm listening to as I type this. I like it, especially at this time of night.

Because Starbucks was closed, I couldn't get my usual cappucino. Instead, like the other 10 people who were there, I went to 7-11 for a cup of coffee. This has to be there biggest sales day of the year. Michael wanted nachos but they were out of cheese. How could 7-11 be out of cheese. That 1/3 of the 7-11 chili dog recipe and -- more important to us -- 1/2 of the nacho recipe.

For dinner we drove around until we found open restaurants. Our choices were Indian, Chinese, or Central American. We chose Indian. We came home, played with Ben some more then put him to bed.

It's Been Quiet

Things have been quiet at work. The company for which I work is closed between Christmas and New Year's. Many people have either left for vacation or are not making any requests because it won't get done for two weeks at this point. In addition, as a training company we typically don't have a lot of traffic this time a year.

We took Ben to Chuck E. Cheese last night. Michael was disappointed because they didn't have video games. I don't know if Ben enjoyed himself but he was at least stimulated. He walked around. Watched Michael play Skee-Ball. Drank from his sippy cup and ate french fries dipped in ketchup. My one complaint about Chuck E. Cheese would be the lack of healthy eating options and a couple of more adult foods on the menu. They would probably get more business if they had options for parents. I'm not suggesting caramelized onion and goat cheese on focaccia bread sandwiches, just maybe something grilled.

Michael's Ghetto Fix

In the ghetto, everything can be fixed with a butter knife and/or a pair of pliers.

The knob on the washing machine snapped off over the weekend. As a BAP I found the problem insurmountable. To no end, Michael tried to fix it with Crazy Glue which can suspend a 175 pound man in air but can't take the torque of trying to twist a washing machine knob. Meanwhile, Michael's fix for the washing machine is grasp the outer ring and twist to the desired setting, grab the screw to which the knob used to be attached (with a pair of pliers, if available) and pull hard.