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Tuesday, August 19, 2008

NBC Olympics

I've been watching the Olympics more this year than any other in the
past. Thank goodness for a DVR. I've always heard there were more
events than gymnastics, swimming, and track. This year I did watch
fencing, and I heard the kayaking was good. But I was not the only
one this year to notice.

No Bolt

I guess I will jump over to the BBC's site for better coverage.

School has started

We went through all the uniforms last week, and found out Rachel has nothing that fits. So I took her down to South Salt Lake to buy a uniform. Apparently I seriously embarrassed her because I asked for help. It won't be the last time, I am sure.

We met the kid's teachers last week as well. That kind of alerts April and I that school is close to starting. Rachel has an established teacher who knows us. Patrick and Thomas both have teachers new to the school. Patrick is content with his, and Thomas is ambivalent.  April was not too impressed with Patrick's teacher because she asked what grade Patrick was in. Patrick replied that he was in her class. Later she told April she was happy to have our daughter in her class. I'm concerned with Thomas. He will only do the minimum required of him most of the time. This means April and I need to keep up on what
he is doing.

Rachel's teacher sent home a form that asked what we should have the teacher look for, and what we expected. Rachel is like Thomas in that she will only do as much as expected, but unlike the loud and boisterous Thomas she will attempt to be invisible. I was the same way. One December day in seventh grade I was late to English. Entering the class, the teacher asked what I wanted. I proceed to apologize for being late, and she asked if I was in this class, then checked the roll. After finding my name, she told me to just find my seat.  There were a few more similar incidents from middle and high school. Then again, there were a few troublemaker incidents as well. With 30+ students, it's not hard to disappear.

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

Wrong category

Google Reader is fun to use. It gives me recommendations base on
what I am currently subscribed to and my location, etc. I've found
some good blogs such as Raymond Chen, Jon Skeet, Switch on the Code
(a site that posts examples of code), and the like. It also picks
up local universities like BYU, U of U, and USU, and personal blogs
(the example that sticks in my mind is Mormon Child Bride).

Today it found Utah Freemasons. I did a preview, and it seems
to be a series of talks. I clicked on an entry, and since I was
at work (shhh...), I get this:

The Websense category "Non-Traditional Religions and Occult and Folklore" is filtered.
     
I don't think Freemasons fits into any of the three here.

And it begins again...

This week starts in on the tons to do. So far,
Thomas had soccer practice on Monday, and April
had a school board meeting on Tuesday.

Wednesday Thomas is in the Striker tournament, with
a game at four. Patrick has a soccer practice
at six, and there is a Ticonderoga meeting at seven.

Thursday Thomas's game is at four again, and April
has a Girl Scout service unit meeting at six.

Friday is the fun day. Rachel is going to Audra's
birthday party, April's work has a party at Cherry Hill
starting at twelve, Thomas has a game at six, and
the SOM is at seven.

Thomas might play Saturday, and he and Patrick need
a haircut before school starts on Monday.

Wednesday, August 06, 2008

Savanna 2008

April and Rachel flew to Savanna, Georgia on Sunday with the Girl
Scouts. It's the birthplace of the Girl Scouts, if that helps it
to make more sense. The flight over was good, but April said within
ten minutes of getting to the hotel they were headed to the ER
to take care of one girl who split her chin open jumping on the bed.

The next day was a ghost tour. Rachel talked to me about it for
a good ten minutes, which means she enjoyed it. The debate after the
tour was about a picture that was taken, and later showed a
glowing orb that was not there when the picture was taken. Rachel
told me that the hotel they were staying in is supposed to be
haunted.

Sunday, August 03, 2008

Cache Valley Cup 2008

Patrick's soccer team went to the Cache Valley Cup in Logan again
this year. They lost the first game on Wednesday 3-0 (with the first
goal being scored by one of our own team). The outcome was not
unexpected since this is the first time I'd seen all the new
members of the team. They played well, except for getting goals.
There were lots of opportunities, but it seemed to me that on several
fastbreaks the boy would stop to try and line up a shot. By the time
he did, a defender was there to stop it.

There have been a few changes since winning it all last year. The team
lost 4 players including the keeper and forward. Both were really good,
and the forward was incredible. The team has picked up 5 new players,
and several positions were changed. The best part for Patrick is that
he is now the forward about 1/4 of the game, which is what he loves.

The second game on Thursday was about as hard, except that we won 3-1.
The one goal on the other side would cost us a place in the finals, but
that just means I don't have to drive to Logan early Saturday morning.
Patrick got one of the goals, and narrowly missed getting another.
He was upset with me because I didn't see that it was him that
scored. I saw the ball get kicked to the center, but the line judge
blocked my view, and then the ball sailed into the goal. The coach
also told me 'Left foot!'. He noticed during practice a few weeks
ago that Patrick dominate foot is his left, after coaching for more
than a year. Of course, then I get the typical question about whether
he writes left-handed (he is right-handed). I write left-handed, but
bat and throw right-handed, so it's not all that strange to me.

The game on Friday was at 3 PM, so April took Patrick up. It was
a win 12-0, but since we let the other team score yesterday, we
were out of the finals. April did talk with the other team we
played today, and they said this game was just like the rest of the
games they played in the tournament. So it could have been worse.