"It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year"

It's that time of year already. Can you believe it? Two thousand six is just around the corner!

As you can see, I took Thevy to get her picture taken with Santa Claus, although I have no intentions of teaching her about him since I'm not a big fan of lies, superstition, and bull crap. :-P I just thought it would be fun while she's too young to understand what an icon of materialism this mythical man has manifested into. (Aw, shucks! Check out my alliteration! :-P) I hope to teach her the true meaning, if anything.

The pictures were definitely not worth their price. A huge rip-off, that I was about to go back to the mall and demand a partial/full refund. Maybe I'll still inquire about it after the holidays. Well, it was possible to just take your own pix, and I did snap a single shot with my digital camera, albeit, from an angle. And I wish I woulda done something to try to make Thevy laugh. But anyway... if you wanna get the mall's pics, at least at this particular mall, the minimum you had to pay was something like $10.99 for a 5x7 (not to mention blasted sales tax). And then a photo CD was $5.99. I ended get the top picture as a 5x7 and the bottom one on disc. I figured, though she's not looking at the camera in the first pic, it looks sorta-kinda-but-not-really touching how she's sharing a moment with Santa. And then with the 2nd shot, I thought I could just print out my own images.

Well, as you can see from the first pic, although it is a scanned image and so, won't be as clear as an original, it is very close to the print I received from the mall. Notice the color is lacking considerably compared to the other shot - the foreground is a bit washed-out, the background is rather dark. And the 2nd photo, you may not really be able to see it, but the image quality itself kind of sucks. You'd figure, a JPEG placed on a CD should be of fairly superior quality and that I should be able to produce some pretty awesome prints, provided I have a good printer. Now, my printer is not the best, but it's decent. And when I printed this last picture, the pixels were not that great!! For the amount of money I spent, it was SO not worth it! My friend Robert e-mailed the CD image of his nephew and Santa and the image file was way bigger, at the image itself was way clearer. I've been gypped!

So, looks like I just fed the pockets of those fat-cat capitalists and allowed Santa's fat azz to eat. :-P So...

MERRY CHRISTMAS, y'all!!!

"Baby Measles"

Roseola infantum or just "roseola" (roh-zee-OH-la), is a viral disease. They say it's caused by a kind of herpes virus - but not the sexually transmitted kind. Supposedly, it's common in babies between six and 24 months of age. It starts off as a high fever that last a few days and ends in a body rash. Well, apparently, Thevy's got roseola. :-/ We took her out on Thursday (to the mall), then Friday, her head felt hot. But she didn't exhibit any other symptoms. On Saturday and Sunday when I took her temperature, it was over 101 degrees. During the fever stage, she seemed to have lost her appetite, pretty much refusing to eat. She'd turn her head sharply if you put a spoon in front of her. I just had to nurse her all the freakin' time to make sure she didn't starve. Then, though she still felt hot to the touch, she didn't seem as feverish. Today, I noticed some red on her face. Later, I saw bumps on her chest, stomach, and back. And then I saw splotchy red spots on the side of her neck. But there's nothing you can do about it. You have to let viruses run their course. But there's no discomfort in the rash. You only feel slightly embarrassed taking her out in public. :-P I love showing her off, but I didn't want people to think "Ew!" when they saw her. It wasn't too bad while I was out (it seems to get worse, then subside, on and off), but I bumped into the mother of a girl I went to high school with, this silly guy I went to high school with, and then a high school Spanish teacher. The good news is, Thevy will probably never get roseola again. Supposedly, her body will have built the immunity for it now.

And just a little non sequitur... I saw this pic on an MSN.com:

Nick Koudis/PhotoDisc Red/Getty Images
and it just tripped me out a bit. I was tickled. Make anyone else laugh? Or is it just me. :-)

Imagine That...

Remember that one summer back in 2000 I spent 6 weeks studying abroad in the Middle East? And subsequently, two weeks traveling here and there? And then there was my obsession with a Palestinian guy I talked non-stop about for quite some time? Well, I've come across some info about him on the 'net. Check this out! Just like when I knew him in Jerusalem, he was into acting and theater. He even took me to the theater he was a part of in Ramallah. Now he's in Hollywood doin' his thing in indy films and other small roles, like playing historical figures in Discovery channel dramatizations/reenactments.

I used to be hella pressed over that guy! Wait'll I tell Peter about this. Hehe. And I do believe Bashar (the Palestinian guy) is married to the director/writer of many of the films he's been working on. Funny where life takes you. I remember when I was with him, that is partially how I started becoming more aware and learning about the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. I remember crossing the checkpoints from Jerusalem into the P.A. (what's considered the Palestinian Authority, or the territory that's "belongs" to Palestine, though I think ALL of that land belongs to Palestine). The way he had to show his ID card. Being an Arab male, he just had to go through daily harrassment. Heck, many people who couldn't readily be identified as a Jew had to deal with that crap. I know I did, too, on a certain level.

I also remember Bashar talking about how if he ever left Israel to go abroad, he would have difficulty going back. Even though he's a native Jerusalemite, apparently, Israel will try to prevent some Palestinians from returning. It's all in their plan to try to get a stronger, more complete grip on the land they stole.

Anyway, I just wanted to say, "Hey! I know that guy!", if you ever see him in a movie or show or something. :-P

Narnia

Peter and I went to the theater the other night to see "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe". I liked the movie. It was the first movie in the theater that I had seen in a looong time. I can't even recall the last film I saw.

Did anybody else see the movie? Or read the book when they were younger? I remember being exposed to C.S. Lewis' tales back in elementary school; perhaps in fourth grade. I don't know if I read all or some of the books. I need to go back and read them now so I can compare them with the movie.

Can any body recommend any good movies for me to see? New or old? But only good stuff. Every now and again we do Blockbuster and one of the films we rented was "25th Hour." I had first heard of the film from a colleague in grad school who liked it. Then I heard about it from another individual. When I saw it, I was kinda surprised to see that it was a Spike Lee production. But overall, I didn't really like it. It just wasn't a good film to me. And Ed Norton - what a sucky actor! I saw him in "Red Dragon" and maybe one other film, and I don't think the guy can act! I'm not sure if it's his voice that makes me feel that way. He has this annoying voice and I feel he should play roles where he's being bullied or something. He seems like he should be the guy who's picked on; the victim. Doesn't he just seem like an over-sized Haley Joel Osmet? Except that I like Haley Joel (though now that he's hit puberty, it's kinda weird. "Second-Hand Lions" was so-so, but I liked him much better in "Pay It Forward"!)

I also recently saw "Mr. and Mrs. Smith". While I found it entertaining enough, I just didn''t find Angelina Jolie to be that credible when it came to the action. I mean, with her firing those weapons and what not, I didn't believe that she was doing anything. Basically, if it came down to it, I don't feel like that she could handle shit. Do you know what I mean? But Jennifer Garner, on the other hand, she makes espionage look like so much fun! :-P

Anyway, I'm no Ebert. Lemme stop with the wannabe movie reviews!

Okay, so we want another dog. I want one for Rocco, Peter wants one for the baby. We're interested in getting a French Bulldog. The only problem is that they're hella expensive! Do you know that these dogs go for over one grand and up to and sometimes over two??? That is crazy ridiculous!! I think I might be willing to splurge a few hundred bucks for a pet pooch. But over a G? Yikes! That money could be better used to buy supplies and pay vet expenses for the dog! I'd consider a pound puppy, yet, there are several problems with that route. What are the chances that I would find such a breed there? Would the dog be male or female and how old would it be, which would affect its temperment? I think with Rocco, it might be better to get a female dog, and I would want one young enough who could get used to him and the baby. So many factors... So, if anybody's got any good leads on where I could get one of these dogs... Let me know! Or, if you wanna get me/us a nice Christmas present.... :-P

Ha

I thought it was funny when good ol' Ken called me a "crazy loon-ball liberal" in his blog. I mean, I might be considered a leftist regarding certain views.


But it's not like I'm for lowering the drinking and driving ages! :)

Besides, Ken, remember, I'm a conservative when it comes to certain issues! I'm for traditional family values and I'm pro-life. But I am by no means a far-right Christian fundamentalist like you, you Bible-totin' pervert! :-P (I'm glad you finally admitted it! hehe)

And I'm still anti-unjust-war! You know something I found quite appalling? When one of my friends whose brother is in the Army told me about his early experience in Iraq. Do you know that this fool (the brother) would kick down doors and shoot indiscriminately because he had the mind set of a bigot? He had the mentality that "they" were all the enemy. That kinda shit pisses me off cuz I know he's not the only one to think like that. :-(

Any way, in more disappointing news, I just read that the network ABC has cancelled my favorite show. "Alias" will be completing it's fifth season in May. *tear* Life's just not fair!

Where Does the Time Go??

Can you believe it? Baby Girl is already 7-months-old! I took her to the pediatrician today. Originally, it was only to get her follow-up, second flu shot (apparently, not only is she in a high-risk group, but she's gotta get the shot twice). But I was a tad concerned because she had a cold and I wanted to be sure that that's all it was and that it wasn't some other more serious illness. Luckily, the doctor said it's only a cold. She got her shot and she didn't even cry! That was good, because when your baby cries in pain, you wanna cry, too.

I pointed out to the pediatrician how Thevy continues to be so happy-go-lucky. At her 6-month appointment, he had asked if she was exhibiting the typical stranger anxiety that many babies her age show. At the last appointment he said he she was the only baby who didn't cry when he held them. He agreed with the comment a friend's sister made, that she was "cuddly". Yes, that girl will go willingly to strangers. Only a couple of people have made her cry, and I think that may have been because she was tired. And when she's tired, she can get quite fussy.


So, Thevy's the pass-around baby. Last Sunday (the 20th), when I went to Ayanna's house for a mass birthday celebration, all these people I didn't know practically had a chance to hold and snuggle with her. And at Thanksgiving she was also quite a hit. People in the mall or passing by or whatever often stop and point (in a good way =P) or make some comment when they go by. It's a lovely feeling to see how your child can bring smiles to people's faces. :)

And I wish I was rich enough to allow Thevy to bring smiles to the faces of the staff of this school near my house. But gosh darnit!! I cannot afford to pay $1300 a month in tuition. :( I would really love to send her there, as they teach the kids sign language and Spanish, the child-teacher ratio is 3-to-1, and cleanliness is a priority. (They have an 18-step diaper change process, which includes washing their hands before and after the diaper change, as well as washing the child's hands, to prevent cross-contamination. They also make sure to clean the toys after one child has been gnawing/sucking on it by washing, rinsing, sanitizing, then air-drying it.) But alas, such a significant amount of money is a potential mortgage payment. :( Any donors willing to help? Thevy would LOVE a benefactor! :-P

Poor thing!
I startled her when I snapped
this photo in complete darkness.