When I was a kid, and I’d see various professional athletes retire from the game and then show up in TV and films (often as wooden caricatures of themselves), I used to make a joke. At the time I was involved in theatre and would say “I’m gonna be an actor until I’m about 35 or so… Then I’m going to become a professional athlete.”
Funny, right? Continue reading “Wasted on the young…”
So here’s the deal: I’m slacking on my book reviews. Not that I haven’t been reading (or listening) to lots of books – in fact, I’m one book ahead where I need to be to complete my 70 book Goodreads challenge.
But I’ve bean bad about doing weekly reviews of individual books so I’m giving myself a break and allowing for Short Book Reviews of an assembled grouping. Without further ado, then, here’s the latest batch of books. Continue reading “Review: Keller’s Fedora, Difficult Men, Invasion of the Body Snatchers and others”
In Lithuania, the idea of a baby shower doesn’t really exist and since we’re so far away from friends and family in the States, we just figured on not doing anything to celebrate the pre-birth of our little Monki.
But people have been asking what we need or what they can get us, so we made our Amazon registry, our Etsy list (which, yes, is filled with fun geeky things because as long as we still control what she wears, she’ll wear geek chic – if she doesn’t like it, she’ll just have to get to the point where she can tell us), and even a Pinterest board to show all the things we’re thinking of for our little girl. Continue reading “Virtual Baby Shower”
Rasa and I have a mixed household. Aside from coming from two different generations and two different cultures with two different languages, we also have mixed views on social media. For myself, I’m fairly active on Facebook and Instagram and Goodreads among others. I have no problem with letting the world know where I am or what I think of that place. Rasa, on the other hand, has no social media footprint at all. In the technological world of our AI Overlords, she doesn’t exist (outside of this blog where, for all you know, she might just be a matrix-like construction of my imagination). Continue reading “Well… we have a pronoun”
Don’t know if I’ve mentioned it, but we’re gonna have a baby soon. I know, big surprise, right? What’s been surprising to me is my own reaction to this whole baby thing. Right now, like that infamous cat, the child exists in a quantum state. It is neither here, nor non-existent. But more importantly, the possibilities for Speck are endless at this moment. Or at least, my thoughts on the possibilities. At this point, Speck can still be a rock and roll star (despite neither of its parents having any noticeable musical skills). Continue reading “Schrödingers Child”
One of the great things about living centrally located in Europe is that nothing is very far away – and generally not that expensive to get to. If you’re like Monika, you can find amazing deals (she boasts about a roundtrip from Sweden to Italy, via Frankfurt, for little more than a euro each way). But even if you don’t have her luck, you can get some pretty amazing deals which allow you to see new countries or revisit old ones. Continue reading “Reimagining London 2016”
While the debate about when spring actually starts, yesterday, Easter Sunday, was a truly lovely day. We decided to take a much needed break from work and go for a walk. And we decided to take Laika with us. Continue reading “Sunday in the park with a reluctant dog”
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
To be perfectly honest, I bought this book when we found out we were pregnant. The baby was no more than a speck at that point but I figured I should start getting books for the little one. And I’d seen the movie so this seemed like a safe bet. Continue reading “Review: Nim’s Island”
Week 23 and things are heating up, literally. Speck is about 29cm long and growing daily. Rasa is experiencing a textbook pregnancy, meaning if the book (we’re using the Mayo Clinic Guide to a Healthy Pregnancy, which we like better than the super scary What to Expect When You’re Expecting) says you might experience this, she’s experiencing it. Weird cravings (eating potato chips which she hates), muscle cramps, nausea earlier, low blood pressure, all of it. Continue reading “Dolphin Spotting”
So, we’re having a baby, right?
We’re in week 20, half way along, and it’s pretty spectacular. Rasa is showing, has been for a few weeks now, and the baby is kicking its little heart out. We figure Speck is going to be either a ninja, kung fu master or drummer at this rate. We also expect it to come out with perfect muscle tone and prepared to run a 100 meter dash. Continue reading “Naming Rites”
Growing up in the 80s was a great time to enjoy movies. There were a number of generational defining films for me and this list (with one exception) nails it!
David Bowie died.
He was probably my first rock and roll hero. I remember seeing him sing Space Oddity on some early 70s TV show, then seeking out the song, finding it on cassette on ChangesOneBowie. From there it wasn’t hard to pick up the albums which had come before and stick with the man through permutations and variations. I identified with him. He was the ultimate shapeshifter, able to morph into whatever guise was required at the time. I knew I wasn’t alone in this, but it wasn’t until yesterday, when news of his death was made known that I realized just how many people identified with him. Continue reading “David Bowie 1947-2016”
Getting the Hang of Thursdays 