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Ah, the glory of baseball season: consuming gargantuan hotdogs, overpriced beer and endless peanuts while rooting for the home team (and hoping the loud guy next to you gets pegged in the face by a stray foul ball).
The enjoyment of the sport has been enhanced by the wealth of mobile apps that help you track the progress of your fantasy team or whip up classic trivia for the 7th inning stretch.
But you may need to keep a closer eye on your mobile security the next time someone takes you out to the ballgame. A ballpark is a great place to watch a game, but take caution how and where you use your mobile device there.
Because when malware wins, it's a shame.
Protecting your mobile technology at the ballpark starts with what you bring into it. While your favorite player's focused on "being the ball," you should focus on being your own antivirus.
Apps that help fans track multiple games for their fantasy baseball leagues have become wildly popular, and you can now spend the slow moments at your own home team's game checking in on the progress of your fantasy players. But the popularity of these apps has spawned a wealth of imitators created by hackers whose intention is to install malware on your smartphone. You're better off paying for an app like MLB.com At Bat than running the risk of downloading a pirated version that could leave your smartphone wide open to hackers and thieves.
By the same token, mobile security at ballparks ends with what you leave with, and there will inevitably be one game this season where you manage to leave without your smartphone. Save yourself from panic mode by taking a few easy steps to protect your smartphone in the event that it falls into the other team's hands:
It sounds so simple and obvious, and yet, so many of us neglect to do it. And it really is easy. Just go into your setting options and the device will walk you through the process from there.
These days, there are quite a few services and apps that can help you lock or even erase your device from afar. Take these steps, along with backing up your photos and address book at home, and a lost phone at the ballpark becomes a minor annoyance rather than a major crisis.
Just as an all-star lineup will carry a team to the World Series, you want to provide your devices with the best mobile security in the game. Keep in mind that mobile malware use spiked 155% in 2011. Our mobile devices have become the big show for hackers and criminals, and while a great ballpark can be the site of so much joy and excitement, it can also leave you open to security threats even scarier than your team blowing a 5-run lead in the 9th.
Just keep an eye on your security like you do on that fantasy league, and you'll be home free.
By Jamey Bainer

subset: commoncrawl


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A child's online reputation begins as soon as a full name or photo is posted on the Internet. Parents active in social media and blogging may wonder what information is appropriate and safe to share as they discuss and post stories about their children. It's also important for parents to help children learn how to keep their own personal information private. Reputation.com, suggests the following:
The information your child should keep private doesn't deviate much over the course of growing up. Personally identifiable information such as birthdates, home addresses, phone numbers, and excessive pictures should always be avoided.
At an early age, it is important to establish the difference between personal information and public information with your child.
By the time children are in high school, they should be keeping most of their personal information private, but they should also be encouraged to use the Internet in helpful ways. A strong, positive online reputation can be an incredibly constructive force in a community, and it can attract college admissions officers & potential job recruiters.


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When NPR's Scott Simon spoke with singer Nate Ruess of the band fun. three weeks ago, the band was wrapping up a marathon tour of the United States in support of its album Some Nights and the hit single "We Are Young."
"We haven't really been home since," Ruess said of the tour that began in February. And indeed, after enjoying just a few days at home in New York, fun. flew to Europe for more concerts. Over the course of the summer, Weekend Edition Saturday and NPR Music will continue to check in with members of fun., as well as the band's touring crew to see what it takes to mount a successful tour. In the weeks since that first interview, the band has played in Paris, London and Germany, and braved the mud at the Scottish festival T in the Park, where they played on the same stage as New Order, Alabama Shakes and Skrillex.
This week Scott Simon checks in with Shane Timm, the band's guitar technician, who says the Scottish festival was a little bit of a mess. "It was the craziest thing I've ever seen as far as festivals go," Timm says. "Festivals [here] are nothing but mud and rain and puddles, but everyone is completely dressed and ready for it. We did not know that was how it was going to be, so we're walking around in tennis shoes getting completely covered in mud. We had to throw our shoes in the tub and let them soak for a while, but I think it was worth it."
Timm's voice echoes in the empty hallways of the building where he's helping the band set up for a show at Club Bauhaus, in a former art school building in the town of Dessau, Germany. "It's a really old building. It looks like what your typical high school looks like," he says.
As fun.'s guitar tech, Timm is in charge of the backline — every piece of equipment that the band uses while it's on stage, from cables to keyboard stands to drums and microphones and guitars. How much stuff does a band like fun., on its way up the charts, cart around?
"I would say probably as much as what a circus does, minus the animals," Timm says, before groaning at his own joke. "The last time I counted, I had 45 backline pieces that I gotta keep track of." That load fills a "really, really big trailer ... from floor to ceiling" and can weigh up to 13,000 pounds.
Before he joined the band last year, Timm, who is slim, with dark, center-parted hair and a wisp of a goatee, had never worked in the music business before, had never been on tour with a band.
"He looked like a pirate," Ruess joked. "So it was a little weird for, I would say, the first two weeks, getting used to the guy."
Now, Ruess says, "This guy is with us forever. It's been unbelievable to watch him grow into an incredible guitar tech. He kind of runs the stage and makes sure everything is working for everybody."
Timm says he started trying to make himself invaluable from the moment he walked in the door. "I remember the very first day that I even met them I was really freaked out," he says. "I was like, 'OK, these guys are professional musicians, this is going to be intimidating. I can do it, I can do it.' And Jack [Antonoff], one of his guitar pedals was screwing up, so I took it apart the very first time I met them, right there in the rehearsal studio, and I fixed it."
"I fix things," Timm says. "That's what I'm good at." He previously worked as a technician for Mercedes Benz and BMW. "I fix a lot of stuff, everything from cars to guitars to even household items," he says. "if it's broken I'm just going to try to fix it before I buy another one."
It's another piece of equipment belonging to Antanoff that gives Timm the most trouble: a red, vintage 1968 Gibson ES-330 electric guitar. Timm says he's fixed the instrument so many times it'll eventually be "a very old body with all brand new parts."
"It's like it's a person almost, and it wants to just mess with me. And it could be as simple as like, [Jack] just set it down on the ground a little awkwardly and for some reason as it wobbles around on the floor a wire decides to go," he says. "But every time I tackle it and I fix it, ... I fix something new."
Timm is learning the ropes of being on a major tour alongside the rest of the band. Where smaller bands (like the one fun. used to be before they scored a No. 1 with "We Are Young") pack everything into a van and do as much as possible themselves to save money, Timm is a part of fun.'s growth. There's more equipment to keep track of, more shows, more fans.
"The schedule is really busy and really hectic, and we don't always get to see a lot of each other," Timm says. "A lot of the time we're tired. We're worn out. We just want to take a nap." But the crew and the band try to spend as much time hanging out as they can, even if they have to squeeze it into a short drive.
"When we were in Scotland on the way to T in the Park, it was like a 30-minute drive, but that 30 minutes [was] everyone laughing, making fun of each other, talking about what's been going on; it just kind of refreshes you," he says. "It makes you go, 'All right, here we go. We're still us. We're overseas, we're really busy, we're all tired, but this is awesome.' "
This is WEEKEND EDITION from NPR News. I'm Scott Simon.
SIMON: This summer we're checking in with the band "fun."
NATE REUSS: (Singing) Give me a second. I need to get my story straight. My friends are in the bathroom getting higher than the Empire State. My lover...
SIMON: The rock band on tour is a kind of traveling road show with publicists, tour managers, and of course, technicians. So today we speak with Shane Timm. He is the technician for fun. and handles all their 40-some pieces from electric guitars to cables. Shane Timm joins us now from Dessau, Germany, where the band's just about to wrap up their tour in Europe. Thanks for being with us, Mr. Timm.
SHANE TIMM: Hey. Thank you very much. Glad to be here.
SIMON: What are you seeing? Where you been?
TIMM: Oh, wow.
TIMM: We've been all over the place. Gosh. We started off in London and then did a festival, T in the Park, in Scotland which was really neat. The craziest thing I've ever seen as far as festival goes with - apparently, what people get used to out here is these festivals that are nothing but mud and rain and puddles, but everyone is completely, like, dressed and ready for it.
But we did not know that was how it was going to be, so we're walking around, like, in tennis shoes and stuff, getting completely covered in mud. But regardless, it went well. The crowd was amazing. It was a great show. You know, we had to throw our shoes in the tub and let them soak for a while afterwards, but I think it was worth it.
SIMON: I'm told you were a car mechanic when you first came to the band.
TIMM: Yeah. As it turns out, it was not for me. I learned a lot and I can fix a lot of stuff, but luckily, the current monitor engineer for the band, Danny Hodges, he got hired on with the band and he threw my name out there at which point they said all right, bring him out. So I came out.
And the very first day that I even met them I was really, like, freaked out. I was like, OK, these are professional musicians. This is going to be intimidating. I can do it. I can do it. And then Jack's - one of the guitar pedals was screwing up so I took it apart, the very first day I met them, like, right there in the rehearsal studio and I fixed it.
So I was like, all right, there we go. It's starting off good. It started off good.
SIMON: How much equipment do you have to haul from place to place when you're on the road?
TIMM: I would say probably as much as what a circus does, minus the animals.
TIMM: We haul about 13,000 pounds I think is the last load we have. And the last time I counted all my backline pieces, I had 45 backline pieces that I've got to keep track of. Which, basically it's anything that the band will use on stage that doesn't involve, like, lights.
SIMON: Is there one piece of equipment that's given you any particular grief?
TIMM: Yeah. I would say that that piece would be Jack's first love guitar - a 1968 Gibson ES330. There's a lot of old wiring inside it and it's like it's a person, almost, and it wants to just mess with me. And it could be as simple as just, like, he sets it down on the ground a little bit, like, awkwardly, and then for some reason as it, like, wobbles around on the floor a wire decides to go. Because it's like, I'm real old, I'm rusted, I give up.
SIMON: Is there a song in particular that the band does that makes you think, boy, I'm glad I took care of that Gibson?
TIMM: Uh, yeah. "Barlight." "Barlight." Jack, he rocks out in "Barlight" big-time and without his guitar working on that song it would lose a lot of its power.
REUSS: (Singing) Never in all my life have I seen eyes as empty as these streets in my city on a Saturday night. And the green of your eyes say go, leave it all behind. But I don't need to reminded that change is going to come. I feel it on the tip of your tongue. And I feel alive, feel alive.
SIMON: When you're on tour do you get much chance to see anything other than your own show?
TIMM: Occasionally. You know, sometimes we have days off and I get to kind of venture around whatever area we're currently staying in. But my favorite thing to do most of the time is I just find the nearest coffee shop and I just go and I sit there and listen to music.
I hear music all day and most people would probably think that I don't want to hear any music, but it's nice to be able to just relax somewhere and go through your own playlist.
SIMON: So you got a favorite song from your band?
TIMM: To be completely honest, even though I hear it so much, "We Are Young" still gives me the chills every single time. I swear. I don't know what it is.
REUSS: (Singing) Tonight we are young. So let's set the world on fire. We can burn brighter than the sun.
TIMM: Because when they are playing that song live it is just powerful it's crazy. And the fans go nuts and it's just like such a blast every single time.
SIMON: Thanks so much, Mr. Timm.
TIMM: Absolutely. Thank you.
REUSS: (Singing) ...burn brighter than the sun. Now, I know that I'm not...
SIMON: Shane Timm, technician with the band fun. We reached him in Germany and we'll check in with them later this summer. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.


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Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Updated: Gibbs Penalties Out, "NASCAR Now" At 5PM On ESPN2
The news is out and it certainly is not good for Joe Gibbs Racing. Gone are crew chiefs Jason Ratcliff and Dave Rogers probably for the rest of the season. NASCAR likes to refer to these suspensions as "indefinite."
Drivers Joey Logano and Tony Stewart each lose 150 Nationwide Series points and both of the suspended crew chiefs are also going to be contributing 50 thousand dollars to the NASCAR Charity Fund. That is where the penalty money goes. In addition, JGR loses 150 championship owner points.
In a surprising twist that will probably be detailed later, five Gibbs crew members were also suspended indefinitely. Perhaps, those are the five that had access to the cars after the race and before the dyno test. That is pure speculation that will hopefully be updated by Ryan Burr and the NASCAR Now gang on ESPN2 at 5PM.
It would be important for Burr to clear-up any allegations made by ESPN's on-air announcers that either Logano or Stewart were responsible for placing the washers/magnets in those cars. That was the initial response, mainly because the normal procedure is for NASCAR Inspectors to prohibit any team members access to the cars being tested after the race. This will be a key element of the overall story. Were the drivers involved?
Update #1: The team members suspended were the car chiefs and engine tuners for each team, along with one crew member from the #18 car. Both Stewart and Logano are on probation until the end of the season, but the NASCAR press release says nothing about the involvement of the drivers.
Update #2: From Joe Gibbs - "We are, however, disappointed that NASCAR chose to place our drivers on probation, as they had no knowledge or involvement of this incident." That should help with the driver issue.
Update #3: "My name was used specifically in the incident," said Tony Stewart about the ESPN TV commentary. Nationwide Series Director Joe Balash was the one who told Stewart his name was used on TV. That means everyone is aware of this angle on the story.
The Daly Planet welcomes TV-related comments from readers. Simply click on the COMMENTS button below and follow the easy instructions. The rules for posting are located on the right side of the main page. Thank you for stopping by.
40 comments:
- majors house said...
It makes me really wonder if there has been cheating by those teams on the Cup side as well. I find it interesting that the Gibbs Toyota's are the only ones that have consistently done anything on either the Cup or Nationwide series and after they were caught cheating at Michigan because of the tapered spacer rule in the Nationwide car, it makes one really wonder if they have been cheating all along and Tony got out while the getting was good.
Maybe this will end their domination in the Nationwide series and let some fo the Nationwide only drivers have a fighting chance to show the true talent they really have without the Cup drivers invading their series.
- August 20, 2008 at 11:44 AM
- Daly Planet Editor said...
Going to be up to ESPN and SPEED to tell the tale, they are the only NASCAR TV partners left for the rest of the season.
- August 20, 2008 at 11:45 AM
- Vicky D said...
Big big penalties. This will be very upsetting to Joe Gibbs I'm curious when he will have a press conference. And Ray Evernham said they weren't cheating too.
- August 20, 2008 at 11:56 AM
- Kyle said...
JD quick question I have always wondered about.
When they hand out a $50k fine to a crew member, will that actually come out of his pocket? Or will the team pay it for him? I cant imagine that these nationwide car chiefs are making that much money a year where they can afford a 50k hit.
- August 20, 2008 at 12:07 PM
- Sophia said...
Very interesting and it does make you wonder about the domination..for this to happen after restrictions on Toyota's.....
I also agree whoever said the driver's did it, makes an apology...and I would be interesting in what Ray E says about his Monday comments now.
Thanks for the details.
- August 20, 2008 at 12:09 PM
- Daly Planet Editor said...
Sometimes the owner is in total agreement with what happened and the fine gets paid by the team.
In this case, these actions go against everything this team has stood for since it was founded and this is their first penalty of this kind.
I really don't know where the Coach or JD would find the reasoning to pay those fines. I am sure that there are some internal issues going-on right now at JGR and it should be interesting to see who shows up on Friday to lead and crew the Nationwide Series team.
I have made it known to ESPN that fans of both Logano and Stewart are pretty upset that ESPN suggested the drivers placed the washers/magnets after the race was over. Trust me, I am hearing it from the Tony fans. Hopefully, NASCAR Now will address that issue since neither driver was suspended from the Nationwide Series.
Should be interesting at 5PM
- August 20, 2008 at 12:15 PM
- Sophia said...
Thanks JD. N Now may have one of their highest rated shows today.
Another example of SPEED's not having a race show during the week hurting that station, imo. Can't interrupt Pinks or Unique Whips!?!?
- August 20, 2008 at 12:18 PM
- Andrew S. said...
Sophia, Speed has the truck race tonight.
- August 20, 2008 at 12:25 PM
- Daly Planet Editor said...
We have got to get her back on the decaf!
- August 20, 2008 at 12:30 PM
- Sophia said...
Duh!! Oh yea! Forgot about the truck race tonight.
Embarrassing blond momento!!
- August 20, 2008 at 12:31 PM
- Sophia said...
- This comment has been removed by the author.
- August 20, 2008 at 12:31 PM
- Sophia said...
sorry for my deletions of late...things been posting twice. Blogger hiccups.
And I just now had my second cup of coffee :)
sigh...still blushing
- August 20, 2008 at 12:33 PM
- majors house said...
Dont' worry about it and Ithink that NASCAR Now will be the most interesting show on tv tonight and I would love to know what Ray Evernham thinks now.
- August 20, 2008 at 1:49 PM
- Anonymous said...
So where are the Truck practice and qualifying broadcasts? SPEED is a worthless network, even worse than ESPN.
- August 20, 2008 at 1:54 PM
- Geez said...
I agree that it will be interesting to see who shows up at Bristol. Do they appeal and have one more week with the current crew to prepare for their absence, or take their medicine from the get go.
My gut tells me that the coach is so mortified by this, hr will pick the later.
- August 20, 2008 at 2:01 PM
- Geez said...
I hate it when I answer my own question. :-)
They are apparently not going to appeal.
- August 20, 2008 at 2:04 PM
- Daly Planet Editor said...
Anon 1:54PM,
Still not quite sure what is going on with all of that. My only feeling is that the TV crew may still be setting up having just come from MIS.
Normally, we get qualifying with no problem on SPEED and sometimes practice depending on the logistics.
Your comment about SPEED is ridiculous. They just picked up all the Sprint Cup qualifying sessions that ESPN was not going to televise...during The Chase races! Please.
BTW - SPEED will be doing all the Nationwide and Cup practice and qualifying sessions at Bristol on Friday and Saturday.
- August 20, 2008 at 2:15 PM
- Newracefan said...
The ESPN report about the drivers had gone further than just ESPN. MY headline on Comcast.net homepage in the sports section had "Stewart Cheats" the other day. I was floored since I knew what was going on but WOW. It was changed to JGR and NW in the headline later in the week. Hopefully it will be addressed by NN or something, that statement was just inappropriate.
- August 20, 2008 at 3:19 PM
- Anonymous said...
@kyle---I haven't heard about all the teams but I know Hendrick pays the fines for all of his teams.
It's truly a shame :(. I wonder what heads will roll when all is said and done.
Other than the X measurement at TX a few years ago and Smoke got his car taken away, I can't recall anything serious from them previously. Even with the X measurement they said they just forgot to remeasure because it fit the template without the window and when they put the window in it no longer fit the template.
- August 20, 2008 at 3:22 PM
- red said...
jd said:
"I have made it known to ESPN that fans of both Logano and Stewart are pretty upset that ESPN suggested the drivers placed the washers/magnets after the race was over."
aside from the nascar angle of this story, what angers me the most is the comments made by espn personnel, accusing the drivers of placing the magnets or washers or whatever the hell was put under the accelerators. throwing these guys under the bus on air was inexcusable and they are both owed an apology by tim brewer and anyone else who jumped on that bandwagon. to make such an accustion without having any facts that supported it goes far beyond the usual "anonymous sources told us today that . . ." and moves right to the edge of slander. i don't know what brewer had in mind and frankly, i'm not certain i care. it was unprofessional and called into question the personal honesty of two active drivers without either driver having the opportunity to defend himself. inexcusable.
i will be seriously disappointed in the men and women of nascar now if this aspect of the story is glossed over or not even raised. i'm VERY pleased that coach made clear that the drivers were not involved and thereby brought the issue into the discussion. i am a strong supporter of nascar now this season and i hope they do an intelligent, professional job tonight.
(and if i were tony stewart, i wouldn't even TALK to an espn reporter for the balance of the season! they need him far more than he needs them and they have done him -- and logano -- a major wrong!)
- August 20, 2008 at 3:45 PM
- Daly Planet Editor said...
There is one thing that really needs to be sorted out. I kind of understand where the ESPN guys were coming from not having any info about the situation at all and being put on-the-spot on live TV.
Normally, the cars that are being torn-down or put on the dyno have several Inspectors around them. Just like the reason none of the crew guys can tough the winning car in Victory Lane.
The issue is still how did the washers/magnets get there? Tony said on his radio show that because of the big seats in the cars for MIS the crew members would have to go in head-first just to reach that area.
The guys have not only the big seats but leg extensions that sometimes run down almost to the pedals. Seeing as they have a passenger side window as well for MIS, Stewart's point was simply how did they do it?
Someone had to crawl in the driver's side window, go head-first down to the floorboard, insert a piece in a specific hole and then climb out.
In my entire time in NASCAR, that would NEVER be allowed for a car that was going through some kind of post-race inspection.
Maybe we will wind-up hearing that some Inspectors were called on the carpet for this mess as well. It will certainly be interesting.
- August 20, 2008 at 4:01 PM
- red said...
jd, i completely understand all the confusion and that is EXACTLY my point: it was (and remains) unacceptable and unprofessional for brewer to state on air that the drivers had to have done it whe he didn't have enough information to make such a blanket statement. what he could have offered was exactly the explanation you just offered and let fans ponder that. he didn't. he accused the drivers of being accomplices to the cheating. and that's what's making me angry.
i understand that his comments came at the beginning of this whole mess and that additional information has come out since then. i also understand that he was "put on the spot on live-tv" (although i believe that's part of his job, isn't it?) but you know, jd, i'm not going to give him a break on this one. this isn't simply "mis-speaking": he accused two drivers of cheating. he apparently never even considered what many fans immediately thought: how the hell could someone built like stewart move around in that seat enough to position anything under the pedal?
maybe brewer was thinking that the inspection (and by extension, dyno chassis) process is simply too stringent to permit any other scenario. i don't necessarily believe he thought that but, let's give him the benefit of the doubt. isn't there a way to make that point without saying what he said and calling out stewart by name? how about explaining the inspection process and then saying "i just don't know how that could have been circumvented, folks, i truly don't." i believe there was a different way to say it and THAT'S why i'm angry: he was unprofessional and accused someone of something without any evidence. AND he did it on-air AND the drivers involved never had a chance to defend themselves.
it's just wrong, jd, just wrong. and it speaks to my continuing argument that some of the men and women who are covering nascar are do not possess the skills needed to be in the positions they hold. brewer should stick to mangling tech center explanations, not try to "report a story." he just doesn't have the chops.
- August 20, 2008 at 4:40 PM
- Anonymous said...
I just read everyone's comments on the magnet-gate I sure hope that the drivers didn't have anything to do with it- especially Joey since he is brand new. Apparently according to Joe Gibbs, that a small group of employees were involved and he will deal with this as an employer. He will discuss with NASCAR about the drivers. I hope that the list of employees with be published and be allowed back in NASCAR. Mary
- August 20, 2008 at 5:09 PM
- Anonymous said...
updated on my comment: I meant to say that they will NOT be allowed back in NASCAR
- August 20, 2008 at 5:12 PM
- red said...
jd said:
"The issue is still how did the washers/magnets get there?"
and now that marty smith and nascar now have given coach time to say his piece, guess what? we still don't have that answer. marty asked, coach didn't answer and marty didn't press for details. obviously, coach knows what nascar knows and coach also knows who did what and when.
but the fans still don't have that answer. wonder why? and i wonder if any nascar "journalist" will get that information for us.
but, never mind. it's behind us now and we're talking jj in a truck and dj and brad discussing bristol from remote locations. almost as if it never happened . . .
(wonder if speed will do any better?)
- August 20, 2008 at 5:23 PM
- Sophia said...
Well, I am not a huge 100% on body language but I think it's safe to say, Joe did not look comfortable and knew a lot more than he cared to share at this point.
Probably wondering how to deal with the mess and he must be majorly honked off and disappointed.
But following up on Red' s comment about Tony's size, I would look for the smallest crew member and go with them for suspect #1.
I'm just saying...not that this is funny but to dive headfirst into a car is no easy feat and reach down that far..especially with the thicker panels of the COT I would imagine.
- August 20, 2008 at 6:01 PM
- Anonymous said...
When I was watching the race last Sunday and Tim Brewer from espn said that the drivers must have been involved I was shocked. Common sense lead me to believe that Tim certainly didn't have his commonsense hat on. Why would a rookie who has everything to lose cheat? Why would a wiley ol veteran who is leaving JGR cheat?
I hope Tony gives espn hell if they have the nerve (which I doubt) to interview him on Sunday. There has been a rift the past couple of years between Tony and espn and it makes you wonder if espn's director had their analysts put out this driver involvement to get a soundbite from Tony. I do know for a fact that the rift will continue.
- August 20, 2008 at 6:02 PM
- Anonymous said...
I always wonder why they do this penalizing a certain number of points and fining a certain number of dollars instead of the old fashioned disqualification or ban.
Banning a team from the next race would seem a much better penalty in some sense (which is what F1 used to do) because then the sponsors on the car lose their TV time in addition to everything else.
- August 20, 2008 at 6:09 PM
- Newracefan said...
Larry Mac will most likely address magnet gate along with Hammond, not so sure about NP since it was a NW issue and Chad has always been careful not to throw any other crew chief under the bus (you know that glass house thing).
It looks like Jamie was elected to try and bandage the driver accusations by Brewer but just dealt in facts so I'm not sure it helped much. Especially wiht the "no comments" I'm surprised Tony's people talked to her at all.
- August 20, 2008 at 6:11 PM
- Richard in N.C. said...
I thought the 2 JGR cars and some others were going to be dyno'd at the track, which I thought involved putting the car on the dyno contraption and running the engine. I wonder whether some part of the driver seat, headrest, etc. has to be removed in order to allow access to crank and run the engine at top RPM, which might allow an opportunity for some crew member to reach in to slide the magnets into place.
Depending on how the magnets were put into place, I can imagine that NASCAR might not want the details out until it has decided how to prevent such in the future and has so instructed all the inspectors at Bristol - and at this point I am sure that JGR is going to go along with whatever NASCAR says it can or cannot disclose.
- August 20, 2008 at 6:16 PM
- Anonymous said...
Richard in N.C. - The chassis dynos that NASCAR use are very similar to what the states use to "smog" test your car when you have to get the emissions tested ...
In this case, an inspector will hop in & press down on the gas pedal to get it to max rpm & varying levels in-between ...
- August 20, 2008 at 6:42 PM
- speedangel said...
Well the suggestion of the drivers' involvement is still very prevalent in ESPN's presentation of the story, if their scroll at the bottom of the screen is any indication. How it's presented gives the impression that it was the drivers' idea to those who don't follow NASCAR. I just read it and it says that Stewart and Logano were stripped 150 points for attempting to alter the numbers. It gives the fact that the crew chiefs were suspended as a side note and there's no mention of the other team member suspensions.
- August 20, 2008 at 6:48 PM
- Anonymous said...
NN did not apologize - I had it DVR'd & just watched it.
This is why I can't stand ESPN - say anything they want, and then pretend they never said it!
Rumors lies & conjecture is not solid reporting.
Its interesting that Coach is going to talk with NASCAR because the drivers got put on probation & were not involved. Seems to me Cuzin Carl should be on probation for the oil tank lid if Tony & Joey are put on probation...
The guilty persons should be on probation, or suspened a number of races, not the "till we wanna let ya back" model. Also NN did not report all of the suspensions, crew chief & car chief were mentioned, did they mention the engine tuners and other personnel?
Also why is it Hendricks teams don't get this kind of scrutiny when they were winning last year? Oh I forgot - Roush & cRusty weren't stirring up the pot.
Why doesn't NA$CAR tell the other auto makers to step it up, Toyota found a way to make their product better within the original rules.
So NA$CAR changed the rules mid season to make it "fair" for auto makers who complained.
Now that Carl is on a uptick will Fords be tested? No they aren't Toyota. They are "American" talk about your uneven playing field!
- August 20, 2008 at 7:12 PM
- Anonymous said...
Jo said: Why doesn't NA$CAR tell the other auto makers to step it up, Toyota found a way to make their product better within the original rules.
So NA$CAR changed the rules mid season to make it "fair" for auto makers who complained.
Now that Carl is on a uptick will Fords be tested? No they aren't Toyota. They are "American" talk about your uneven playing field!
Well from what I have heard the Chevy R07 is pretty equal to what the Toyota engine package is. But Chevy is not allowed to run that package at this point in Nationwide.
- August 20, 2008 at 7:22 PM
- SallyB said...
Lee Spencer has posted a very good article about this on FOX Sports:
Excellent explanation of the situation and why some think it's worse than cheating in a race.
- August 20, 2008 at 8:26 PM
- Anonymous said...
@reed--agreed. They burned bridges with him last year over the "swear" word. I still don't understand it at all. They were filming him chatting with Robby at least 5 minutes and we had NO audio just the booth wondering what they were talking about. And IIRC Mr. Petree even said something like "I wonder if we can listen in" and still no audio. Suddenly he walks by, declines to chat with ESPN and we suddenly have audio? Made no sense.
I don't recall hearing this before but I was enlightened in that TWIN clip, that Brewer caused Pat Tryson to quit in the middle of the race because of his talking. Seems he's not always wise when he speaks.
- August 20, 2008 at 8:35 PM
- Anonymous said...
As a retired mechanical engineer i just shake my head at the sloppy way NASCAR handles chassis dyno tests. To get a fair test you need tires/pressures equal, new air filter, CHECK throttle opens fully and water/oil temperatures are equal on all cars tested.If NASCAR was smart they would publish the above checks so teams would know they couldn't get away with these little tricks. BTW a Ford had the most horsepower on the engine dyno tests but Toyota got their engines restricted.
- August 20, 2008 at 9:09 PM
- Anonymous said...
Anonymous Anonymous said...
Well from what I have heard the Chevy R07 is pretty equal to what the Toyota engine package is. But Chevy is not allowed to run that package at this point in Nationwide.
August 20, 2008 7:22 PM
Is this another "we haven't approved it yet" like they did to Robby Gordon?
Anonymous Anonymous said...
BTW a Ford had the most horsepower on the engine dyno tests but Toyota got their engines restricted.
August 20, 2008 9:09 PM
As my Hubby says its Cashcar it doesn't have to make sense
- August 20, 2008 at 9:45 PM
- darbar said...
Well, at least Dale Jarrett said he didn't believe the drivers were involved. But as we all know, the "S" in ESPN stands for sensationalizing". It stinks that they are still implying the drivers were the culprits behind the magnet. But even Joe Gibbs made it clear that the drivers were not involved.
- August 20, 2008 at 10:12 PM
- majors house said...
Even if the drivers did not do it, I am not totally convinced that they did not kow that something was going on. I was really hoping that we would get some real fire out this story tonight, but as true to form, it did not happen.
- August 20, 2008 at 10:51 PM


text:
OSF Green Show: 6:45 p.m. Friday, Aug. 29, on the bricks at Oregon Shakespeare Festival, 15 S. Pioneer St. The band Jane Doe will give a free performance. The rock and blues octet is led by OSF actor Vivia Font, and includes OSF musicians from 2013 OSF productions and local bands and a rotating cast of guest artists. The festival offers free presentations and performances from local, national and international artists Tuesdays through Saturdays through Oct. 12. Call 541-482-4331 or see www.osfashland.org.
Festival Noons: Noon to 1 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 30, at Oregon Shakespeare Festival Carpenter Hall, 15 S. Pioneer St. Dramaturg Gina Pisasale, along with Sarah Rasmussen, director of "The Two Gentlemen of Verona," and Lisa Wolpe, artistic director of Los Angeles Women's Shakespeare Company, will present "Women Playing Men: A Look at Gender and Shakespeare's Characters." Admission is $12, $10 for OSF members or $8 for youth ages 6 to 17. Tickets are available at the OSF box office. Call 541-482-4331 or see www.osfashland.org.
Astronomy Event: 7:30 to 10 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 30, at North Mountain Park Nature Center, 620 N. Mountain Ave. Dave Bloomsness and Robert Black will talk about NASA's Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA), a modified Boeing 747 with a 2.4-meter telescope, and discuss their experience as Airborne Astronomy Ambassadors. Following the talk will be the opportunity to peek through telescopes with assistance from Southern Oregon Skywatchers. Pre-registration is not required. Call 541-488-6606.
Fundraiser Dinner: Seating at 8 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 31, at Cucina Biazzi, 568 E. Main St. The restaurant will donate proceeds to Friends of the Animal Shelter. Beverage, dessert and tip are excluded from the restaurant's donation. RSVP at 541-488-3769.


text:
The Five List 2013 (for now)
It's a new year. There's a new Five List:
1.Oscar Isaac
2.Nicholas Hoult
3.Anthony Mackie
4.Scarlett Johansson
5.Tom Hardy
And I just interviewed two of them this weekend!
When I head out on a trip, I usually load up my iPad with movies for the plane. Or for if I can't sleep. They have to be light. Ish. So the other night I watched 10 Years, a movie produced by and starring Channing Tatum alongside a decent ensemble cast that came and went last fall. Honestly, I wasn't expecting much and, perhaps because I had no expectations, it wasn't terrible, not at all. And then, Oscar Isaac...
GOD he is sexy. I was feeling it after W.E. but this time, in a formulaic storyline designed specifically to hook you -- sh-t, it worked. So well that, well, he's now #1. Which is actually good timing. 2013 is supposed to be the year Oscar Isaac breaks out. You'll see him featured in the Coen Brothers next film Inside Llewyn Davis.
If you've been reading my site for a while, you know that Anthony Mackie has always been my jam. That didn't change after I met him on the Gangster Squad junket on Saturday. He wore yellow. He was silly and charming and personable. He got on well with his colleagues, Giovanni Ribisi (strangely appealing in person too and doesn't have the Xenu eyes, fortunately), and Robert Patrick. I couldn't get out of that interview room fast enough. Mackie is so attractive it made me uncomfortable.
As for Nicholas Hoult -- I saw Warm Bodies just before Christmas and really, really enjoyed it. Warm Bodies is what Twilight should have been. You know how Twilight took itself so seriously? Warm Bodies is in on the joke. They get it. I mean, Rob Cordry's in it. Of course they get it. Hoult plays "R", a zombie crushing on a human called Julie (Teresa Palmer) and, obviously, they fall in love. He is ADORABLE. Even with a rotting mouth, he is adorable. By the end, Jesus, he made me want to listen to Taylor Swift songs.
And in person? It's too much. When Jennifer Lawrence said of him that he doesn't know how beautiful he is, she was right. You have no idea. Hoult currently has short buzzed hair. It brings out his bone structure. He has a model's bone structure. And he was dressed beautifully in a gorgeous sweater and skinny pants and nice leather shoes and then he speaks and he's wry and funny and smart and sweet and at one point he shrugged after telling me that everyone told him that he made the ugliest zombie in the entire movie and that was it, I was in. Maybe he should be Christian Grey in Fifty Shades Of Grey.
Scarlett Johansson? Because she's delicious. Whatever has come over her the past year, it's delicious. I have never liked and/or wanted her more.
There are frustratingly few recent photos of Isaac, Hoult, and Mackie. So I'm attaching new shots of Jennifer Lawrence, Nicholas Hoult's girlfriend (still, I hope, because I want to ship them!), out this weekend in LA ahead of Critics' Choice and the Globes.


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Enlarge / Alternate Images
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text:
NASET News Alert
Psychology Can Explain and Improve Bad Classroom BehaviorOctober 02, 2012
A new monograph published by the British Journal of Educational Psychology published September 21, 2012 brings together evidence from psychological research to help readers understand the causes of anti-social behavior and what can be done to curb it. Psychology and Antisocial Behaviour in School looks at the evidence from psychology for understanding troublesome behaviour in schools, dealing with behaviour in general, specific types of behaviour such as bullying, developmental disorders such as autistic spectrum disorder and ADHD, and with different explanations for social emotional and behavioural difficulties such as social identity, information processing and social competence. To read more, click hereBack to NASET News Alert


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Sunday, December 2, 2007
Sunday Sound Out
A song written by John Sebastian and released in 1965 by The Lovin' Spoonful.
Okay, Dawn, I am gasping. 1000 square feet? Are you sure? I thought I was the queen of making everything fit, but you put me to shame. What do you do - triple bunks in the bedrooms?
Eh, we just make half the kids sleep outside. Which half depends on how they're behaving that day.
I have a question, as well. I read an American parents forum (we are British) and this year there has been mention of Black Friday quite a bit. We've never heard it before, even on this forum that we've been on for over two years. What does it mean?
It's the day after Thanksgiving when all the crazy people get up at like 3:00 am to go shopping in huge crowds of people to get a Wii or a Tickle Me Elmo or whatever toy is hot this year.
Quick question for you - have you seen this video?!!
"Because I Am The Mom Song"
Yes, but only 495 times. Anita Renfroe is very funny!
I can't get to the website for Julian... I have tried before... it goes to the Carepages main page... what is the direct link to Julian's site?
A lot of you have written me, saying you're having trouble accessing his site. There isn't a link that takes you directly there. Go to Carepages.com. Look at the top right where it says "sign in", "create", "visit",or "register here". Click "register here" if you don't have an account. You have to set up an account on CarePages before you can access a page. I believe the only information they ask for is a username and a password. If you already have an account, click on "sign in" or "visit". After signing in, you'll see a box that says something like "enter carepage name". Enter "juliansworld" with no spaces. That should do the trick. It looks like he and his family had a great time in FL and Julian's doing well with his anti-seizure medication now.
QUESTION: What does 'ROFL' mean anyway? I must be totally lame.
It's one of these, I think.
Roaming Over Floridian Lakes
Raising Ostriches From Lithuania
Ripping Off Funny Leprechauns
Running Over Furry Lemurs
Rolling On Floor Laughing
Rhinos Overindulge Fresh Lettuce
Ruminate On Flavored Ladyfingers
Repeating Our French Lesson
Does this mean you didn't get any pumpkin bread? Or did you start over?
Are you kidding? I just threw a little more flour in the mixer and commenced baking.
You gave a mixer to a "one, two, three, five, six, eleven" year old? And then threw a bowl full of flour into this mix. At anyone one of those ages I might think that your decision warranted : psychological evaluation. In other words... You're crazy!!!
Here's a question for Sunday's post: What were you thinking?
Much like Homer, I was thinking, "Mmmmmm pumpkin bread."
Care to post your sugar cookie recipe?
I don't actually have a favorite sugar cookie recipe. Thanks to one of my readers, I found this though. Click here to see The Twelve Days of Cookies from The Food Network. Also, Hallmark magazine had a pull out section of cookie recipes in their fall issue. In their current issue, there are a bunch of cake mix recipes that are really yummy sounding! Have you guys seen this magazine? I had never even heard of Hallmark magazine until I received an email from the editor. I've got to say I'm not a big magazine fan, but I'm loving Hallmark magazine! There are no articles on "How to lose 50 pounds overnight" or "How to keep your lover happy" or "What BritneyAshleyLindseyParis Has Done Lately". It's a nice magazine with heartwarming and inspirational stories, good recipes, ways to spruce up your home, entertaining tips, ways to connect and much, much more. Because it's such a good magazine, I was honored and happy to say yes when they asked me to write an article for an upcoming issue.
Amen to cookies being the best food group!! I have friends that make fun of me for eating cookies for breakfast. My philosophy is if I'm going to eat a cookie I may as well start my day with it. :)
I know this isn't a question, but I had to address it. There's nothing wrong with eating cookies for breakfast in my opinion. They're no worse than say, Pop-Tarts, donuts, or coffee cake, right? If Paula Deen says that cheese is a food group, then cookies can be a food group too!
ROFL. I just wrote a 50,000 word novel in a month for NaNoWriMo. I couldn't have done it without my laptop (to probably hide from the masses) my headphones (to drown out their screams and cries for attention) and Pandora.com (for great tunage). Oh, and chocolate. How could I forget the chocolate? Good luck. I still have at least 50,000 words to go. But now that I discovered the secret ingredients to success (see above)then it should be easy right? Right??
Ummm sure? I keep seeing NaNoWriMo. I have no idea what this is, but it sounds like either the lyrics to a Wiggles song or a Native American name. NaNoWriMo, a lesser known Indian, was with Sacagawea on Lewis and Clark's expedition.
Believe it or not my wife is sitting right behind me right now playing Spider Solitaire. She's so good she plays it with two suits. How many suits do you play the game with? (A deliberate attempt at getting a Sunday night question answered.)
No suits. I generally, just wear jeans and a Tshirt.
Spider Solitaire ?? Do you play that on Pogo.com? I love pogo.com play often would love to play a game with you sometime if that's where you play.
I just play the game that came on my computer. I haven't had time to play on Pogo in months, but I used to play Canasta on Pogo with a few friends.
Did you know they have Ear Wax and Vomit flavored Jelly Bellies?
Yes! I also know, thanks to Max, a family friend, that eating a vomit flavored Jelly Belly will make you turn green and throw up in your mouth.
Men do not care what is on TV. They care WHAT ELSE is on TV!!!
Again, not a question, but oh so true!!!
So tell me, what time do all your kids go to bed?
About two hours after I tell them to go to bed.
How do you find the time to write??!?!?!?!?!?
I stay up until 1:00 or 2:00 in the morning.
I recently started a blog, which I find such a challenge to keep up with, even though I enjoy it...sometimes it creeps into my other responsibilities, like say, feeding my kids. Which leads to my next question: Do we have to feed them every day??
Yes, but popcorn, cereal, cookies, cheese sticks, and fries all count as meals.
As for the commercial dodging, do you have or have you considered TiVo?
Nope and nope. If he didn't get to flip through channels, he'd find some other irritating habit. Or, maybe I should say, I'd find something else to complain about.
Hey Dawn - Good for YOU for getting out. Might as well before the storm of 07 hits, right? This storm better produce they way they are playing it up - it is like SWEEPS week for the weather guys!
I had no idea there was a snow storm coming. I had to call my mom and complain because life didn't make sense to me anymore. My mom ALWAYS calls me when there's inclement weather on the horizon. Always! I guess she got tired of me scoffing everytime she warned me the weather would be bad.
(Did you know your carpal tunnel goes from your wrist through your elbow and all the way to your shoulder? I do NOW.)
Seriously? I thought the Carpal Tunnel connected Long Island to Connecticut!
Supercapes, CDs, eye pillows, handpainted shoes and more are now featured on Mamaslike!
42 comments:
- Deb in OPKS said...
After reading your blog since August I've been inspired to try one of my own. So tonight I sat at my laptop while my daughter and I were supposed to be watching Hairspray. At some point she reminded me that we needed to make brownies for her "half" birthday tomorrow. I didn't hear her, but instead of pestering me like she usually does, she didn't get my attention and then at 8:50 when I said it was time for bed she reminded me again and started to cry because I ignored her. Well, the brownies are done, but I guess I better find a different time to write!
Oh yeah, tomorrow I need to rewatch Hairspray up to the part where we turned it off so we can finish watching it together.
- December 2, 2007 at 11:47 PM
- her said...
NaNoWriMo = National Novel Writing Month, which is November. The challenge is to write a 50,000 word novel in 30 days. There's also NaBloWriMo = Nation Blog Writing Month, where you make a committment to write a blog post every day in November.
- December 3, 2007 at 12:56 AM
- Kristine said...
NanoWriMo = National Novel Writing Month. http://www.nanowrimo.org/ If you finishing writing 50,000 words during the month of November, you win. Win what? Bragging rights of course! My husband would love to do it, but can't commit the time. My sister and cousin tried to do it, but they got to busy playing world of warcraft. lol
BTW, I know exactly how you fit your 6 in your house. We have 5 kids in our 1300sq ft home. It's a tight fit, and you can't have as much junk as you would in a house 2x the size. Like my parents house. Everyone's stuff just accumulates there.
- December 3, 2007 at 1:10 AM
- Kristy said...
lol i love it when you answer peoples questions. it shows you really do care about us leaving comments for you to read. your great and oh so funny. thanks for my daily laughs. :)
- December 3, 2007 at 2:35 AM
- Kel Miller said...
NaNoWriMo is National Novel Writing Month, where lots of crazy people try to write a 100,000 word novel (quantity matters more than quality) in the month of November. I've never tried...
If you like ginger, try putting a handful of candied ginger in pumpkin bread. It's delicious :)
- December 3, 2007 at 3:02 AM
- The Intern said...
NaNoWriMo translates to National Novel Writing Month, It's a competition of sorts to see now many new novels can get written in a month . The winners get their books published, and everyone else who does one can get small runs published themselves for a fairly cheap price. It's really targeted at younger writers in college and high school (a lot of schools sponsor club meetings for it), but that doesn't mean everyone and anyone can try! It's every November, so really we've just missed this year. There is always next year though!
- December 3, 2007 at 5:19 AM
NaNoWriMo is short for National Novel Writing Month. :D
- December 3, 2007 at 6:03 AM
- TracyJ said...
I believe NaNoWriMo stands for National November Writing Month. It's when writers spend the whole month of November writing a 50,000 word novel.
I think if you google "NaNoWriMo" you'll find an official site or sites with the info about it. I, myself as a writer have never attempted it, but from other writers, they've told me it's fun for them and others, insane.
- December 3, 2007 at 6:33 AM
Good morning! I'm sure someone else has answered, but just in case. :-)
NaNoWriMo is National Novel Writing Month. It takes place in November, and people sign up for the challenege of writing 50,000 words. I didn't participate this year, but I have 2 years running prior and loved it. I didn't get anywhere near completion, but there's always next year! :-)
- December 3, 2007 at 7:17 AM
- Lucille said...
Happy December Dawn!
SO how much snow did you get in your neck of the woods?
It's pretty with the white covered lawn..isn't it?
I LOVE the Q & A Sundays and I will attempt to ask you something worthy this week!
PS_I think NaBloMo means National Blog Month in which people had to blog every day for a month. Ummmm..hello? Isn't that what you have been doing for months? Copy cats! LOL!
PSS_I actually got emails congratulating me on being FIRST on your blog again - tee, hee, hee!
- December 3, 2007 at 7:20 AM
- FUNKYSIREN said...
Now come on Dawn take it easy on us mums especially some of us have had a few kids like you [I have 5.. 2 of them in my forties] you know that pregnancies do bad things to our bladders and making us laugh is down right asking for trouble lol I so relate to you. Do you do art ???lol smiles and bladder in a knot Michelle
- December 3, 2007 at 7:29 AM
Hey Dawn!! I have nothing exciting to say, but didn't want to miss the chance to be the first to post a comment! I need some reward for getting up at 5 am today! Thanks for the blog.
- December 3, 2007 at 7:49 AM
- Melissa said...
I like cookies as a food group. Good one. I started a "color" diet in grad school. On those all nighters, we would eat from the vending machines. So, as a way to balance our nutritrional habits, we decided that if you drink a Pepsi (from the red, white and blue food group) with a 3 Musketeers (also from the red white and blue food group) they cancel each other out, thereby no calories or guilt. My favorite food group? M&Ms. They go with anything.
- December 3, 2007 at 7:49 AM
Black Friday is also so named becasue it is typically the day of the calendar year when retailer's books go from being "in the red" to "in the black", thanks to our consumer spending.
- December 3, 2007 at 8:06 AM
Hi Dawn, Just thought I would tell you alittle funny my friends toddler said. First he was poking in his dad's belly button and he said " Dad..Your belly button is getting deeper!" Then at the dinner table he asked to see mom's belly, she lifted her shirt up alittle and he says..." Whoe You May Be Excused!" The darn things toddlers come up with. God Bless Them! Kristine in Michigan
- December 3, 2007 at 8:06 AM
- little.birdy said...
NaNoWriMo stands for National Novel Writing Month. The premise is that you write a 50,000 word novel within 30 consecutive days, i.e. the month of November. It comes out to 1667 words a day. If you complete the challenge, you say that you "won" NaNoWriMo (nah-no-wree-moe). The idea is to focus on quantity, not quality, and then to go back and edit later after the mad spurt of writing. I won this year, and it was very enjoyable, if slightly detrimental to my grades. XD The website is here: www.nanowrimo.org
- December 3, 2007 at 8:48 AM
NaNoWriMo = National Novel Writers (or writing) Month
basically you hold yourself to getting 50,000 words written in a month, with something like 2000 or 5000 a day.
- December 3, 2007 at 8:59 AM
- Michelle said...
Hi Dawn. Just found your site and your sense of humor is great. I gleaned that you are in Florida, am I wrong?
Check out my blog and let me know if anything looks familiar.
- December 3, 2007 at 9:00 AM
- Team Hanni said...
I love your blog. This is my first time commenting even though I have read daily since your awesome auction on ebay. I love that you are a "real" mom that can put words to the crazy stuff we do day in and day out. I don't know how you continue to be mom and entertain us all each day. You are amazing!
- December 3, 2007 at 9:52 AM
- Brenda said...
How about: Really Outrageous Ladies Ornery Laughter?
- December 3, 2007 at 10:15 AM
- Grandmother Goddess of the Garden said...
Thanks for the courage Dawn!
Barely Controlled Chaos-Life as I know it!
- December 3, 2007 at 11:35 AM
- nutralady2001 said...
Hi Dawn and all haven't visited for a few days....why? That thing called L.I.F.E( does anyone have an acronym for that)...... so doing a big catch-up
Regarding Julian's blog, yes all you have to do sign up with a free a/c and you can access it, it's called Julian's World.Then you can choose to get email alerts for every time it is updated.
I've been following it since you first told us about him, what a brave little boy and a brave family!!
- December 3, 2007 at 11:38 AM
- Round Belly said...
You said: "Okay, Dawn, I am gasping. 1000 square feet? Are you sure? I thought I was the queen of making everything fit, but you put me to shame. What do you do - triple bunks in the bedrooms?
Eh, we just make half the kids sleep outside. Which half depends on how they're behaving that day."
I thought I was the only one who threatened that based on children's behaviors. We also threaten it at dinner time. "If you behave like that at the table, you are going to eat outside with the dog."
but in reality we pull it off -with only 4 kids (until June). And our master bedroom has the 2 year old- who still falls asleep, happily and quietly the second you put him in the crib. And usually another kid is asleep on the couch in the Living Room- they all have beds, but often seem to prefer not to use them. And then 2 actually share a room- with bunk beds.
- December 3, 2007 at 11:54 AM
Okay, I saw your advert for Mamaslike 'supercapes...blablabla...handpainted shoes!!' I am a shoe addict! I leapt, as though I was already donning said supercape, to the website to find... hand painted children's shoes.
Oh, children's shoes. Ok, well, look, aren't they nice? Hmmm the joy was sucked out of the room. Here's me thinking they were some glorious shoe hand painted by some artisan master waiting to sculptingly adorn my feet. And of course, I'd have to find some glamorous occasion to wear them. Perhaps I'd phone up Richard Branson or Simon Cowell to see if they had anything spectacular to attend and needed a date.
Then, I checked the website and saw the children's hand painted shoes and remembered that my feet might not be as sculpted as they used to be, I don't have either Richard or Simon's phone numbers, I'm not actually single - which explains the napping angel next to me, and I couldn't afford them if they were painted by some old artisan.
Well, I didn't buy them anyway, I live in England, but I would recommend them to any Mum's needing shoes for their kids that already HAVE graffiti on them so it won't matter what their little one does to them!
Thanks for all the recommendations. If you ever need someone in, say Britain, to 'test out' some cool stuff and then write about them on your Mama blog, let me know. In between wiping food out of my daughter's hair, changing the Big Bird dvd for the 18th time and browsing the internet (ok, I might do some washing and tidying but I am referring to daily chores, not erm... less often), I could always try something out and tell everyone how cool it is.
And yes, I can be bribed!
- December 3, 2007 at 12:31 PM
- Brandi said...
You're post was funny, as usual.
Just an FYI for those who didn't already know. The name Black Friday refers to the money that businesses make on the day after Thanksgiving. It is usually enough to take them out of the "red" and put them back in the "black".
- December 3, 2007 at 12:41 PM
I love these Sunday sound off!
- December 3, 2007 at 12:57 PM
- Summer said...
so funny! :o) i'm so thankful for your wry wit and sense of humor. thanks for the chuckles!
- December 3, 2007 at 1:10 PM
- Rick said...
Man, oh man, did I ever score! Three questions answered the Sunday Sound Out - AND one of those being the first question to boot! Of course, I'll have to keep in mind that a silly question will get a response in kind.
Thanks I'm feel'n the love!
C. Rick
- December 3, 2007 at 1:26 PM
- A Moment in the Life of a Mother said...
When I read your story of the Pokemon cards on ebay I laughed til I almost pee'd my pants. I added you to my blog reader so I could keep on reading your post's. I don't usually comment becaust you already have so many comments by the time I get a chance to read your post.
But, I had to tell you that the story about the bread and the mixer reminded me of the time I was cooking for a youth camp with my dad. He wanted brownies for lunch desert and I had never used a commercial mixer. I think we were cleaner brownies off of the ceiling. It was awful. I didn't understand what speed was best to mix the brownies. It was everywhere. Talk about the fun everyone had telling what I had done. I finally got the hang of the machine and made many more deserts after that. Sometimes life can be so crazy, but thank God we can laugh and feel better.
- December 3, 2007 at 1:33 PM
I've never left a comment before, but when I recieved this in my email today, somehow it reminded me of you. Lol. Hope you enjoy it as much aas I did.
The Christmas Pageant
My husband and I had been happily
married (most of the time)
for five years
but hadn't been blessed with a baby.
I decided to do some serious
praying and promised God
that if he would give us a
I would be a perfect mother,
love it with all my heart
and raise it with His word
as my guide.
God answered my prayers
and blessed us with a son.
The next year God blessed us
with another son.
The following year,
He blessed us with
&n bsp;yet another son.
The year after that we
were blessed with a daughter.
My husband thought we'd
been blessed right into poverty.
We now had four children,
and the oldest was only
four years old.
I learned never to ask God
for anything unless I meant it.
As a minister once told me,
"If you pray for rain,
make sure you carry an umbrella."
I began reading a few verses
of the Bible to the children
each day as they lay in their cribs.
I was off to a good start.
God had entrusted me
with four children and
I didn't want to disappoint Him.
I tried to be patient the day
the children smashed
two dozen eggs on
the kitchen floor searching
for baby chicks.
I tried to be understanding. ..
when they started a hotel for
homeless frogs in the spare bedroom, although it took me nearly two hours
to catch all twenty-three frogs.
When my daughter poured
ketchup all over herself and
rolled up in a blanket to see
how it felt to be a hot dog,
I tried to see the humor
rather than the mess.
In spite of changing over
twenty-five thousand diapers,
never eating a hot meal
and never sleeping for more
than thirty minutes at a time,
I still thank God daily for my children.
While I couldn't keep my promise
to be a perfect mother -
I didn't even come close...
I did keep my promise
to raise them in the Word of God.
I knew I was missing the mark
just a little when I told
my daughter we were going
to church to worship God,
and she wanted to bring
a bar of soap along to
"wash up" Jesus, too.
Something was lost
in the translation when
I explained that
God gave us everlasting life,
and my son thought it was
generous of God to give
us his "last wife."
My proudest moment came
during the children's
Christmas pageant.
My daughter was playing Mary,
two of my sons were shepherds
and my youngest son was a wise man.
This was their moment to shine.
My five-year-old sheph erd
had practiced his line,
"We found the babe wrapped
in swaddling clothes."
But he was nervous and said,
"The baby was wrapped
in wrinkled clothes."
My four-year-old "Mary" said,
"That's not 'wrinkled clothes,' silly.
That's dirty, rotten clothes."
A wrestling match broke out
between Mary and the shepherd
and was stopped by an angel,
who bent her halo and lost
her left wing.
I slouched a little lower
in my seat when Mary
dropped the doll representing
Baby Jesus, and it bounced
down the aisle crying,
"M ama-mama."
Mary grabbed the doll,
wrapped it back up
and held it tightly as
the wise men arrived.
My other son stepped forward
wearing a bathrobe
and a paper crown,
knelt at the manger
and announced,
"We are the three wise men,
and we are bringing gifts
of gold,
common sense
and fur."
The congregation
dissolved into laughter,
and the pageant
got a standing ovation.
"I've never enjoyed a Christmas
program as much as this one,"
laughed the pastor,
wiping tears from his eyes.
"For the rest of my life,
I'll never hear the
Christmas story without
thinking of
common sense
and fur."
"My children are my pride
and my joy and my greatest
blessing," I said as I dug
through my purse for an aspirin.
Jesus had no servants,
yet they called Him Master.
Had no degree,
yet they called Him Teacher.
Had no medicines,
yet they called Him Healer.
Had no army,
yet kings feared Him.
He won no military battles,
yet He conquered the world.
< /SPAN>He committed no crime,
yet they crucified Him.
He was buried in a tomb,
yet He lives today.
Feel honored
to serve such a Leader
who loves us.
If you believe in
God and in Jesus Christ His Son,
send this to all on your buddy list.
- December 3, 2007 at 4:14 PM
always nice to see another sarcastic lady out there.
- December 3, 2007 at 5:03 PM
So tell me, what time do all your kids go to bed?
About two hours after I tell them to go to bed.
Oh my goodness!!! Where you at my house last night?
- December 3, 2007 at 5:19 PM
hello? no comments? am I first after one day?!?!?!?!
- December 3, 2007 at 6:53 PM
Dawn's post is almost 24 hours old and no comments!?!?
Based on what I'm seeing here, guess that "inclement weather" turned into WHITE-OUT conditions...
Anyway, LOL at your brief commentary on women's magazines.
I HATE those stupid articles...How to make a man happy?
With or without clothing, hand him the remote control and tell him to click 'til the cows come home!
Nancy Binky
- December 3, 2007 at 7:17 PM
- My Semblance of Sanity said...
I love when you do this!!!
- December 3, 2007 at 7:49 PM
- reader said...
I've been coming by off and on ever since your e-bay auction. Surely it's time for another?
I got tagged, and now it's your turn: Seven Random Facts About You.
Hope you feel like playing!
- December 3, 2007 at 8:38 PM
- TPDesign said...
Dawn Thank you so much for reading and responding to our comments! It makes us feel important! BTW you rock. Especially after meeting you at Thanksgiving, I have no idea how you have the time to do everything...
Thanks for the inspiration and thanks for the help. One day I hope I can return the favor!
- December 3, 2007 at 10:01 PM
Tip: Rice Krispie Cookies are especially justified in the morning, because they are primary cereal. And esp. if you put peanut butter in them. Very nutritious. Also, Haystacks - because the are a combination of breakfast cereals covered in chocolate. :)
- December 4, 2007 at 9:00 AM
- Laura K. said...
Thought you'd like to know that jelly beans have BUG PARTS in them!!!! Google it! totally fact! I saw a special on discovery about it.
- December 4, 2007 at 9:41 AM
Any food that has grain in it, refined or not, is a breakfast food. That's why oatmeal cookies, rice crispy bars or granola bars can be thrown at the kids to eat for breakfast as they run to the bus stop.
mommeeof9 on live journal
- December 4, 2007 at 9:07 PM
- Valentine the Destroyer said...
Ah, the wonders of Black Friday. Having spent the last nine years of my life devoted to working in retail in some way, shape or form, this is always fun. I've noticed it's a bit different since I moved from Jersey to Florida. There, 3 AM is "normal". In Florida, however, people line up days - yes, DAYS - ahead of time. People actually camp out here. We had our first Ikea open a few months ago, and people started lining up four days in advance. The scary part is, all the news stations around here love covering this kind of thing. As if there weren't enough real news happening.
- December 4, 2007 at 9:10 PM
- Sara said...
Yikes, there is a lot of incorrect info about NaNo here! Go to the site (www.nanowrimo.org) for the full scoop. Basically, the challenge is to write 50K in the month of Nov. You get bragging rights and a cool certificate you can print out. There is a young writers program aimed to school groups/young writers as well, but NaNo is for the "adult" crowd. I've done NaNo for 3 years and love it- and now I'm a regional leader.
- December 5, 2007 at 12:30 AM


text:
The break from the mid winter chill & snow will be returning compliments of the series of clippers moving through over the next several days to come. Each clipper will bring a little shot of snow that will be followed by colder & colder air as we progress through the next 5 to 7 days, quite possibly leading to the feel of the Arctic once again come the middle of next week with some wind, but probably not as much as the last bout we had last week. Either way, it's looking quite brutal & could very well last longer than the last outbreak.
The snow chances will be frequent with a little general snow with each clipper and some lake snow at times, especially next week that could pile up more significantly in spots, possibly including the Greater Rochester area, with the Arctic air in place. Stay tuned for updates through the weekend for the latest on the cold & snow coming...
Have a great day bloggers!


text:
Friday, March 28, 2008
War Stories
30 comments:
damn you drackman!ReplyDelete
hornets are way cool! i have flown a lot in a pointy-nosed jet too but for the sake of anonymity will have to let everyone guess what it was. will add elemental mercury to the cyanide and hydrofluoric acid free zone rules even though it's not dangerous. we can certainly use it to create more paperwork.
You guys are so freaking funny. Wonder why Dr. Gregory House doesn't steal your material???? Maybe he hasn't seen your blogs!ReplyDelete
'gregory' huh? he's a douchebag. you, however, ginger jar, are not.ReplyDelete
- Anonymous10:42 AM, March 28, 2008
It's not "non-toxic". Mercury is just not well-abosorbed by the gut. It generally passes through without complication. There's much more toxic forms of mercury that are able to enter the body with ease. Elemental mercury, among all toxic variants of mercury, appears to be the least toxic of all.ReplyDelete
Entertaining I'm sure, but it is extremely fucking stupid to ingest mercury.
"Thermometers contain the less toxic elemental form of mercury and have almost never been a safety issue in peoples' homes. However, in the 1970s and '80s, workers at the Staco thermometer plant in Poultney, Vermont, began to notice a common series of health problems—headaches, bleeding or sore gums, upset digestive systems, and coordination problems. Upon investigation, mercury was detected in the air of workers' homes, on their clothing and furniture, and most tragically, in the bodies of many workers and their children. This was the first time in which the children of mercury-handling workers were proven to have been affected. "
proves nothing anonymous. there is no mention of the mercury poisoning in the plant being related to ingestion of elemental mercury... my guess is that it was aerosolized or in a slightly different and highly toxic form. here's for the lawyers, DO NOT HANDLE MERCURY IN ANY FORM OR YOU COULD DIE, and here's from the california poison control center.ReplyDelete
here's from the california poison control center.ReplyDelete
Wow. Who knew the CA PCC could be so factual? Aren't these the same guys who labeled silcone and botox as mother's milk?
Note to self: move out of CA at first chance...
- Anonymous4:05 PM, March 28, 2008
Damn, I aint never worked in no thermometer factory and I got sore gums, digestive problems and bad coordination too. "Generally passing through without complications" sorta sounds like benign to me. Wish my Sonic coney island chili cheese dog was as uneventful. And allthough he sounds like him, annonymous isn't Dr. Pric.ReplyDelete
"A pointy nose jet"?ReplyDelete
That sounds highly technical. Must be a fine, fine machine.
- Anonymous9:05 PM, March 28, 2008
When I was a kid, well over half a century ago, out in the country, my brother and I would sometimes find little globules of mercury on the side of the highway. We played with it, marveled at it, but never swallowed any. I've always wondered where it came from, whether it was toxic.ReplyDelete
dear amy,ReplyDelete
in fact, military pilot lingo typically refers to 'fast movers' or 'pointy nosers' to indicate fighters like the F18 pictured above, the now retired F14, the F15, the F16, the harrier, and the F22 etc...
propellor driven aircraft like the P3 and C130 as well as jet tankers and jet freighters like the KC130 or the C5 have snub-noses and are subsonic.
helicopters are also known as 'helos' or 'rotor wing' aircraft.
the old A6 was a fighter-attack all-weather aircraft based mainly on carriers but had a snub nose so it is an outlier.
also, if you are lucky enough to fly a 'fast mover' or 'pointy nose jet' then you are more likely to refer to yourself as a 'hornet driver' or 'falcon driver' than a pilot.
drackman can correct me if i'm wrong but we used to do the same job albeit for different services.
911doc sends
anonymous, in terms of where the mercury on the side of the road came from another anonymous seems to think it came from the 'Staco thermometer plant in Poultney, Vermont'.
Sorry... it just sounded gay.ReplyDelete
I learned something today, thanks for the info. :-)
no worries... actually love talking about it. my pilots were the best folks on the planet. we are lucky to have them on our side.
So how long did radar shite toxic waste? Tee Hee. Ha Ha.ReplyDelete
Can't type in finger splint.
Well, I guess this story kills that way of offing myself...ReplyDelete
- Anonymous6:55 AM, March 29, 2008
Amy, there was a "don't ask don't smell" policy at the time, so I'm not sure if Radar recovered his Mercury later. Funny how in Air Force aerial refueling the Tanker is the "male" and sticks its long probe into an opening on the female fighter. Marine and Navy fighters wernt having none of that gayness. They have their probes and stick them into a receptacle from the tanker.ReplyDelete
i have flown a lot in a pointy-nosed jet tooReplyDelete
Point-nosed pilots make me hot. Terrible thing to live near the now-defunct El Toro Marine Base...
Uh...Dr. Drachman, I'm not the same Amy who was asking about the gayness probe. But that's cool and all. Just thought you should know we're not the same gal. I mean, It is the most common name and all.ReplyDelete
ok, sorry damn finger splint. It's blocking my brain waves. I mean Dr. Drackman.ReplyDelete
- Anonymous11:33 AM, March 29, 2008
Lynn, that was the best thing about the flight surgeon gig, having women think you were a pilot. Its like they put some kind of pheremones in those flight suits.ReplyDelete
Its like they put some kind of pheremones in those flight suits.ReplyDelete
Damn, a government conspiracy. I should have known.
- Anonymous3:18 PM, March 29, 2008
Funny how in Air Force aerial refueling the Tanker is the "male" and sticks its long probe into an opening on the female fighter. Marine and Navy fighters wernt having none of that gayness. They have their probes and stick them into a receptacle from the tanker.ReplyDelete
That is just hilarious! Thing is, military aircraft are extraordinarily sexy; my absolute favorite for sexiness and sheer beauty is the Warthog. I got a private pilots license late in life, after the brood left home, flew mostly the Cessna 150 (great for seat-of-the-pants flying over mountains) and the C-172 RG. Pilots and people who work in or around airplanes are so interesting.
BTW, probably the mercury I played with as a kid was splashes from a passing tanker of thermometer mercury as another commenter suggests. Never harmed me though a neighbor said it could poison me through my skin!
dear anonymous. spot on with the A-10 warthog. it is my favorite flying machine and i call it the flying tank. but sexy? i would call it very ugly and mean!ReplyDelete
- Anonymous8:37 AM, March 30, 2008
Air Force jets ARE sexier than their Navy and Marine sisters. Its the landing gear. Hornets and Tomcats have to be able to take the pounding of landing on a short carrier, while air force jets usually land on 10,000 foot long runways. Look at that landing gear on the Hornet, fat and stubby, like Senator Clintons calves. An F-15, F-16, or A-10 teeters on thin spindly legs, like Heidi Klum in highheels.ReplyDelete
I am so ashamed to admit that my father is retired from the Air Force and I can hardly tell a jet fighter from an Embraer.. (Sorry, Dad!)and it is only a small exaggerationReplyDelete
However, growing up on base, I saw some fine specimen of the male population. :-)
And lastly, to avoid confusion with the blue Amy, I now declare myself: Amie.
Air Force jets ARE sexier than their Navy and Marine sisters. Its the landing gear.ReplyDelete
Gee, I don't know, Frank. I would watch an entire squadron of F-18's screech into the El Toro Marine Base for lunch, and, Lordy, how it made my knees wobble.
- Anonymous7:03 PM, March 30, 2008
Umm Lynn, El Toros been closed for years, sure made quite the impression on you:) Not sure if I'd call it "screeching" though. El Toro just moved down the coast to Mirimar, you should go down and check it out when a squadron returns from a deployment, 12 hornets, usually in groups of 4 thunder in at about a 1000 feet and 400 knots, make a 90 angle of bank turn, and land in sequence, its better than a Blue Angels show in my book.ReplyDelete
- Anonymous7:06 AM, March 31, 2008
Sep 18, 2007 - Edmonton - A new environmental study proves atmospheric mercury emissions end up in fish in as little as three years.
4/8/2004 Study: Pregnant women eating too much fish
Of the 4 million babies born in the USA in 2000, more than 300,000 of them — and as many as 600,000 — may have been exposed to "unacceptable" levels of methyl mercury because their mothers ate a diet rich in fish, a study finds.LINK
Then you guys complain of stupid patients that need to be removed from the gene pool.
- Anonymous7:41 AM, March 31, 2008
Annonymous, are you Doctor Prick returned from the grave? Don't eat the fish then, I'm sure it'll contaminate your precious bodily fluids. What about cats though, they eat fish, and I haven't noticed any shortage of them lately, nor have I seen a bunch of deformed kittens scurrying around dumpsters.ReplyDelete
Umm Lynn, El Toros been closed for yearsReplyDelete
Yes, I've lived in the area for thirty years and am painfully aware of when the base closed. I was speaking in the past tense in my previous post. And, yes, they made a huge impression on me. While all the soccer moms passed petitions around to make "my boys" stop their flying overhead, I was busy raising my eyes to the skies thanking them for their sacrifice and service. It hurts like hell to drive past the base these days. I swear you can still feel the energy emanating from the base - even if there are RVs parked on the runway (a complete sacrilege).
Not sure if I'd call it "screeching" though.
Guess it's a tomato/tomahto thing. When an entire squadron blew in overhead, it sounded like screeching to me. OTOH, maybe I need an ear test.
El Toro just moved down the coast to Mirimar, you should go down and check it out
Yes, I know. I get a small dose when I drive down to San Diego. It's not quite the same thing because all I see from the freeway are tanks and helicopters and a ship anchored off the coast. No jets. But it's still enough to get my blood pumping. Sigh.
oh anonymous!ReplyDelete
did you not know? it's not MERCURY, it's FLOURIDE! Listen to Drackman... he knows! Do not drink the water or it WILL contaminate your precious bodily fluids!