Sunday, January 08, 2006
Off we go
I'm sitting here loading music on my new nano -- a surprise Xmas gift from Nicola. Oh joy of joys! I was hoping for an iPod, but I was sure it wouldn't come. But it did it did! Even better, the PC slot card that upgrades our laptop to USB 2.0 worked -- this option failed for me before -- so I've been enjoying nano-hood for the past couple of weeks. Through the sleepless nights in Oregon when my cold/cough kicked in...and now on my commute. I'm one of the white-headphone-cord mob now -- linked with every third or fourth person you see on the streets of San Francisco. They are nearly ubiquitous here...and I'm ok with that. I'm also over my bitterness: I was swearing that iPods had jumped the shark when my 63-year-old father got one for his birthday last month. This a guy who can barely use e-mail. But it was just jealousy. I'm all better now.
So, here begins my sincere effort to devote regular attention to my writing/expressing via this blog. There will be some nights that are tough and some that are easy -- like tonight, when Lindsay's early bedtime (she's either sick and/or dealing with the pain/phlegm/issues related to her two top front teeth coming in) and an early dinner (6:30) led to an abundance of free time, or so it seems. I'm sure there are a million things to do around the house as we still dig out from our long roadtrip.
It was a good weekend, although Ella has been more of a challenge lately. Is it just a stage, something normal for a nearly 6-year-old? Is it older sibling stuff? Is it divorced kid stuff? A fun melange of all three and more? Whatever it is, she's pushing the boundaries more and more, and we have struggled a bit to deal with the subtle shifts in our sweet kid. Ella remains, by and large, a sweet, well-behaved, bright, delightful little girl...I think it's her near perfect (? -- Daddy's subjective memory) track record that now has us flummoxed by the changes. Her on-a-dime shifts into pouty mode grow tiresome, as does her apparent need to get her way. Gee, Bill, that's not like normal or anything for young kids, is it? I suppose I shouldn't be too concerned...just another stage, right? Life is about change and transition.
A few photo highlights of our trip to Oregon, below. Rainy weather up -- downpours all the way. Nice visits with family and friends. And then snow and rain on the way down. Highlight: spending the day with my close pal Thad on his 40th birthday, and getting our first solo when the grandparents babysat Lindsay (too bad both Nicola and I were both sick!).
So, here begins my sincere effort to devote regular attention to my writing/expressing via this blog. There will be some nights that are tough and some that are easy -- like tonight, when Lindsay's early bedtime (she's either sick and/or dealing with the pain/phlegm/issues related to her two top front teeth coming in) and an early dinner (6:30) led to an abundance of free time, or so it seems. I'm sure there are a million things to do around the house as we still dig out from our long roadtrip.
It was a good weekend, although Ella has been more of a challenge lately. Is it just a stage, something normal for a nearly 6-year-old? Is it older sibling stuff? Is it divorced kid stuff? A fun melange of all three and more? Whatever it is, she's pushing the boundaries more and more, and we have struggled a bit to deal with the subtle shifts in our sweet kid. Ella remains, by and large, a sweet, well-behaved, bright, delightful little girl...I think it's her near perfect (? -- Daddy's subjective memory) track record that now has us flummoxed by the changes. Her on-a-dime shifts into pouty mode grow tiresome, as does her apparent need to get her way. Gee, Bill, that's not like normal or anything for young kids, is it? I suppose I shouldn't be too concerned...just another stage, right? Life is about change and transition.
A few photo highlights of our trip to Oregon, below. Rainy weather up -- downpours all the way. Nice visits with family and friends. And then snow and rain on the way down. Highlight: spending the day with my close pal Thad on his 40th birthday, and getting our first solo when the grandparents babysat Lindsay (too bad both Nicola and I were both sick!).
// posted by Bill @ 8:23 PM 
