April - Week 4

Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power. -Abraham Lincoln, U.S. president (1809-1865)

Monday April 23, 2001

This little blue and orange bar is actually a picture, if you double click on it it will expand into a panorama. I did a very crude job of stitching these photo's together... the program I use is not really very good at it... or I need practice...

School started back up again today... whew... it's still a hassle but it's a rut I have become accustomed to... I got the kids all trundled off to school, Christian is still being "home schooled" if he would buckle down he could finish up 5th grade in about a month... and be through with sixth by September... He is such a smart and creative kid... it exasperates me when he won't even try... 

ODD= Oppositional Defiant Disorder... ADHD=Attention Deficit - Hyper-Activity Disorder... FAS= Fetal Alcohol Syndrome... they are real... 20 years ago you could sum it all up as "The darn kid is just a brat", yup... but somehow the fact that he is a brat is mitigated  when you understand that he really doesn't have any way to control his actions... Medication helps Ritilan, Clonadine, DDAAVP and benadryl (to sleep) Christian is an insomniac too. All these medications only serve to slow his mind down a bit and give him an opportunity to make choices... without the meds he is a SCUD missile... the rocket is in the air but the destination is anybody's guess...

Education is a progressive discovery of our own ignorance. 

-Will Durant, historian (1885-1981)

Tuesday April 24, 2001

I added the Jesse Ventura script from Prairie Home Companion go to Saturday April 14, 2001. 

Christian really got to Christy today... he can really be maddening when he is being defiant... he didn't want to work today... he will do anything to get out of work... school work or house work. I took him with me to take Autumn and we walked again... he seemed better when we got home... he did his school work in about 2 hours... amazing what he can accomplish when he focuses... 

I worked with my tractor again today... I worked on the BMX track too... I moved the dumpster down to the bottom of the driveway... apparently the trash truck had a hard time getting to it... I used the tractor to cut him a little road so it would be easier next time... I was really getting tired of having to remember to move the truck every Tuesday at 0700. 

My hands are really starting to bother me... Arthritis... it is just in the first joints of my fingers now, I will try to get some stronger medication... ... I need to start getting religious about taking my Glucosamine/Condroitin ...and Tylenol...

Wednesday April 25, 2001

Autumn to Therapy...

Autumn had a short seizure tonight at the dinner table...

Found a great site on the the town I live in and the surrounding area... http://www.scvhistory.com/scvhistory/scvhistory.htm fascinating stories and pictures killed about two hours there... no time left to write... been a laid back day anyway...

Thursday April 26, 2001

Yesterday and today are (were) Autumn Therapy Days... I have a hard time accomplishing anything... Christy had classes both days... Student tonight instructor yesterday...

Another Seizure, she was with Christy at Peggy's Day Care... lasted for quite some time, About 6 minutes.

Friday April 27, 2001

Went to Kaiser in Lancaster to pick up medication for Christy and some ointment for Monica... Christy's pills were there but:

 " You are past the seven day limit, Monica's medication has been put back on the shelf, would you like me to reinput the order?" 

"Yes"

"Ok, you can pick it up tomorrow afternoon"

"So, where is the "Shelf", Downtown LA?"

"No, it's here"

"Soooo, it is here but I can't have it until tomorrow?"

Cold stare "Yes"

"Soooo tell me , if I came in here in five minutes with  a new prescription could I have the ointment in 15 minutes?"

Colder Stare "Probably 20"

"Soooo what you are telling me is that I am being punished for being one day past your arbitrary deadline... Right?"

Faint smile behind the cold stare... "Next... Next person in line please"

it is a 50 mile round trip to Kaiser... exasperating... bureaucrats come in all shapes and sizes... but power is power no matter where you find it..if there is power to be had there will be someone chomping at the bit to abuse it...

I went to see a Steven Segal movie... "Exit Wounds" as the title implies it is a pure violent escapist fun... insanely convoluted and improbable plot, but lots of action, some slick dialogue, the good guy wins. The best part of the movie was when the credits were scrolled over Tom Arnold and Anthony Anderson bantering on Tom Arnold's talk show... Like Regis and Kathy Lee... it is a riot... it is incredibly raunchy and I hated myself for laughing, the whole audience was in hysterics.

Christy wants me to build her a website for her business... I will mess with that next week... hard to accomplish anything on the weekends

Saturdays are strange, I can never seem to get much accomplished... too many demands for my time... after getting caught up on my e-mail I had to run over to the other side of town and pick up three kids and take them to Christy's church... I had Mokie with me, Christian was over at Shoen's house... since I was in the area I bought some donuts for everyone... 

To laugh often and much;

to win the respect of intelligent people

and the affection of children;

to earn the appreciation of honest critics

and endure the betrayal of false friends;

to appreciate beauty;

to find the best in others;

to leave the world a bit better,

whether by a healthy child,

a garden patch or a redeemed social condition;

to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived.

This is to have succeeded.

-Ralph Waldo Emerson, writer and philosopher (1803-1882)

Sunday April 29, 2001

I have been introduced to a small group of people on the internet who have been swapping e-mails for a long time... they are folks who became acquainted as contributors to a Chicago News paper bulletin board... it's sort of convoluted...I was verifying a quote and found the originator was a columnist for the paper, I started reading some of her columns and read some comments by a person that calls herself "The Lunch-Lady" I another column mentioned her name and what town she was from and I looked up her name in anywho and found her address and sent her a letter... she e-mailed me back and though we look at the world through different prisms we share a certain sense of humor... they seem to be a pretty diverse bunch, The Lunch-Lady, a telecommuting mom, a retired engineer and  2 others who have chosen not to divulge their identities yet... 

Paranoia is still rampant on the Internet... there are many who make a job out of promoting fear and distrust... several internet companies even promote the concept that "You're safe with us, we keep the evil perverts at bay while you play safely inside our network" so silly. The conspiracy theorists are coming back out from under their rocks too... frankly the concept that there is an army of sinister hackers out there waiting to invade my PC or overthrow the Government is just too wacky to contemplate. 

I sent a doctored picture to a friend, I put her head on a picture of a bodybuilder... she asked "

"Actually, I wonder if men find this look attractive."

Well, I wonder too... body builders generally are of a personality type that I find a bit off-putting... I am more curious about why they chose to look like that than passing some sort of esthetic judgment... Seems to me that attaining a body like the one in the picture is a symptom of a disease (or, better word)... a disorder... like bulimia or anorexia... I have learned over the years to be suspicious of anyone who is consumed by one single aspect of their lives... Fanaticism is not necessarily a bad thing... I just have no way to relate to it... I believe the world needs fanatical folks like bodybuilders, in order to move forward with science, music... virtually everything of value was accomplished by someone in possession of single minded intensity... Had Alexander Graham Bell been born with my personality he would have retired after 30 years as a telegraph operator... the sad part is that people predestined to become fanatics don't always become focused on the public good... some focus on their own vanities, some are consumed by the fanaticism of others... (thinking of the IRA, KKK, PLO, Religious Kamikazes of any denomination... ad-infinitum)

We will take Autumn in for her blood test tomorrow... I hope they find that the Phenobarbital level is low... I am getting concerned about the seizures... the Aides at school are concerned about her "zoning out"... she will sit very still and stare blankly some times... Petit-mal seizures are like that...

Monday April 30, 2001

Tractor Tire

Mike in trouble

Autumn blood test

Christian still being obstinate

Mokie & Calie got new shoes

"The Straight Story" with Richard Farnsworth