He'll have my head if he sees I've posted a big old photo to my blog, but this is my kiddo, taken at swim practice, today. I just love this shot!!I noticed I've forgotten to mention a couple of things, being an airhead and all:
1. Estella Time, Baby - Yes, the latest issue of Estella's Revenge is available for your reading pleasure!! Wahoo!
2. Josh Henkin Gets Crazy - Okay, kidding. He just did a whole lot of guest posting, here -- nothing insane, unless you consider 23 posts totally over the top. You'll have to page down a bit, since the official blog fella is back and Josh's posts end on the 4th of September; but it's worth the effort. Josh had some interesting things to say about writing and Matrimony (his book), politics and doppelgangers and punctuation. Here's one post. There, I made it easy for you. Don't ever say I don't do anything for you.
In other news (or, is it not?):
Sometimes I think that because of the focus on a hurricane's landfall (the eye, of course -- the nastiest bit, but I promise you those suckers are mean to their edges, especially on the eastern or "wet" side), a lot of other people who get sloshed, flooded, battered, lose rooftops and power and have trees crashing down upon them are totally overlooked by the press. I guess that's how they work, eh? Although, as we saw with Gustav, sometimes they look bored and miss the story completely. Anyway, just to let you know . . . I've been told that I-10 on the Mississippi Gulf Coast has already flooded. Florida is getting socked and I'd imagine people in Alabama and Georgia aren't too thrilled if they live on the beach. And, Louisiana . . . man, I would not want to live there. Sorry, Chris. Thinking of all of you on the Gulf Coast, wherever you are. And, I'm sending stay-safe vibes to all who are hunkering down, even Texans. That was a joke. I love Texans.
On that topic, we already have quite a number of Texas refugees in town. There are huge lines at the gas stations and we had a bit of a wait, but one of the cars was down to a quarter tank, so we sat patiently (one of us -- the hubby was tapping impatiently) and waited our turn. Then we bought pickles. Because, you know, you don't want to get caught without plenty of pickles if your refugees suddenly get a craving.
Okay, I'm done. No, wait! One more thing!!! C. W. Gortner, author of The Last Queen, left a comment at my post about his book. He's willing to answer questions. Anyone have any questions about Juana, his research, the writing, etc.?
Really, I'm finished, now. You can go back to your books. I hope you're reading something fabulous. Actually, tell me about it if you are. Had to ask.
What a cool picture!
ReplyDeleteI'm glad the hurricane missed you, but I'll keep the other States (and bloggers) in my prayers.
I don't want to be in Louisiana either :p We have lots of Texans here too but I don't think it's going to be all that much better for them here to be honest, lol. Hope y'all stay dry over there. I can't believe the I-10 is flooded already! That's nuts!
ReplyDeleteGreat shot of the kiddo! Are you playing sports photographer this year? You should! And I love your new banner too. I remember you trying to get a hummingbird shot forever and it looks like you got a really great one!
That is a great photo! I'd love to be able to post pics of my kid, but he won't let me take any!
ReplyDeleteOn the topic of good reads, right now I'm reading an excellent thriller, Tsunami by Gordon Gumpertz. It's a great read that's really well researched and thought provoking, and between it and all the news about the hurricanes makes me glad to live in the middle of the country.
Hi Nikki,
ReplyDeleteThe hurricane isn't going to miss us entirely, but it should be a matter of tropical storm-force wind and rain. If you look at the big map, here (page down past the little maps), you can see us in the outer, green bands:
http://tinyurl.com/4dxpov
I'm just hoping we don't have storms during our Saturday swim meet! I love swim meets. All those coastal residents can use your prayers. It's going to be messy, even though Ike is "only" a Cat 2. :)
Chris,
ReplyDeleteI think of you, every time those nasty storms are anywhere near. Yeah, New Orleans doesn't seem like much of an improvement over the Texas coast, but you know how hard it is to determine which way to run!
I was surprised about I-10, also. It seems a little early for that, but it's apparently the overall size of Ike that's the trouble. He's just shoving up water, everywhere.
Thank you! I'm doing the same thing I did last year, taking loads of photos and posting them to a swim pic blog. Parents can fetch them and print them out, if they'd like; I'm not asking them to pay me. I had an offer to get the yearbook contract, but at the time I needed to call, my mother had just passed away. I had no idea how much I was going to be around, so I just left it to the usual guy. Maybe next year I'll get paid to do the work, but I love it!!! Oh, yes, I stood around for about 45 minutes, playing with my settings and waiting for the hummingbird to show up, yesterday. Thank you! :)
Ruth,
ReplyDeleteI can relate. My kiddo hates having his picture taken, so I lurk around the pool and snap away when he's vulnerable. LOL At home, he always holds up his hand to stop me.
I used to live in the middle of the country. I loved the middle of the country.
I'll look up Tsunami, thanks! I clicked on the link and can't view a full screen, so I'll just google it with the info you gave me. I love disaster thrillers; must be a product of having grown up in the 70s. :)
Great photo of your son. Don't you just LOVE watching them do any, excell at anything. It just makes your heart swell and I can't imagine those people who don't want to have kids. they miss out on so much but then they don't realize it so they don't know what they are missing.
ReplyDeleteLove your new header! Did you take the picture?
Bree,
ReplyDeleteThank you and yes, yes, yes!! I get so much joy out of watching my kids (really, just kid now, since one has moved on) doing what they love best. And, you're right, it's impossible to express to people who choose not to have children just what they're missing out on.
Thank you! Yes, I took that photo of the hummingbird at the pool, yesterday. :)
That is a great photo! Nice action shot. And I love your new header pic too!
ReplyDeleteThat's too bad that you're still having troubles with your sidebar. I've had no problems lately, even in Firefox. (Of course I've probably just jinxed it!) At least you got your pickles! :P
Thank you and thank you, Nat! I had fun snapping away, yesterday. It was a great day to practice. Today, I might get blown off my feet. The wind is really something. We're getting those outer bands of Hurricane Ike.
ReplyDeleteI don't know what to do about that stupid sidebar. I may have to try to contact Blogger -- not sure how, but I'm really kind of tired of this problem. Yep, got my pickles! And, my car tanks are full, so I'm happy. :)
I love your new header (sorry if it isn't new--coming from google reader I don't always notice the formatting changes).
ReplyDeleteIt is beautiful and sunny today, but apparently even here in Dallas we are supposed to get pounded tomorrow. We have a lot of refugees in town--some staying with my coworkers. And what's NOT to love about Texans??? :D
Glad you were able to get your pickles before all of the refugees got them. :)
Trish,
ReplyDeleteThank you! It's a brand new header, as of yesterday. I stood out by the turk's cap bush at the pool and waited for the little fellow to come into the light (he kept trying to thwart my photographic efforts by sitting in the tree).
We're just now starting to get rain and it's disgusting and muggy (in the upper 80's -- yuck, yuck). We weren't actually supposed to get rain till tomorrow, so it doesn't bode well for the swim meet. Ike is so huge, it looks like even Oklahoma already has some outer bands. I would imagine you're going to get a good deal of rain and wind.
What's not to love about Texans? Let me think . . . ummm, they drive really, really fast. But, so do Mississippians. Between the two of us, my husband and I are either related to or friends with a lot of Texans. I say they pass just fine. Come to think of it, I wouldn't mind moving to Texas. :)
Thanks, pickles are very, very important. LOL
That's a great photo. Dig through your stash and offer him options, if he objects. (I'm thinking the nude-baby-on-a-blanket picture, the ever popular hugging an Elmo doll pic etc, etc.)
ReplyDeleteHurricanes don't just run through on a pinpoint basis? I don't know how you all can take this every year. Scary. STAY SAFE!
Carrie,
ReplyDeleteI'm just not telling him about the photo on the blog, but we do have a naked-baby-on-a-blanket pic or two. He was just so darned cute!
The hurricane thing is a total crap shoot. You never know which way they're going to turn or how much strength they'll gain. During a really active season, people are pretty good about evacuating, but when several in a row peter out they tend to start hunkering down and refusing to leave. We're back to sunshine with just some wind gusts, now. Ike seems to be shrinking a bit -- good, good! I'm happy with that!!
I love pickles too. Still sick this week and for lunch Thursday everybody looked at my plate funny because I had mashed potatos, corn on the cob, mac and cheese and huge pile of dill pickle slices. lol I have been on the quest for the pefect fried dill pickle recipe if you have one. :)
ReplyDeleteI am worried about Ike too. I know of someone who stayed behind in Houston in an area that she admits floods. My office manager is supposed to leave tonight to take her children to see her parents in Penscola so I really hope they did not go because I saw a picture of the waves by the main bridge in Alabama almost flooding it yesterday. :(
Just praying for everyone and that it is not as bad as it could be with the storm surge they are predicting. :)
Brittanie,
ReplyDeleteThat sounds like a plate full of comfort food! Yummm! I don't fry things (I know, weird for a person living in the South), but this one looks pretty good:
http://tinyurl.com/45y57b
I have a friend who stayed behind in Cleveland (NE of Houston) and a childhood friend lives in Katy, so I'm hoping they'll all be okay. So far, the Cleveland friend hasn't lost power, but it hasn't quite hit, yet. I hope your friend didn't go to Pensacola. This is a good time to stay home and not drive anywhere coastal. I haven't heard anything about storm surge, but I've been off reading in the other room. My biggest hope is always that the hurricanes will wear themselves out before they reach shore. It doesn't stop the heavy rain and someone's is going to get bashed, even when they're just down to tropical storm; but it's sure better than when they land at full strength, you know?
Thank you for the recipe. When my sister gets home next week we will try it. :)
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome. Tell me if it's any good, please!
ReplyDeleteMy boys are like that too. My daughter says click away. Maybe it's an age thing? She's 11 and the boys are 15 and 20.
ReplyDeletePrayers are with the folks in the path of Ike...ugh. It's a nightmare!
Fantastic shot of the kiddo, but even better is that gorgeous header!!!! It's practically impossible to get a good shot of a hummingbird, but you've done it. Kuddos.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of hummingbirds, we haven't seen more than one or two this year. What's up with that?! Last year we had a bunch. Hope they return next summer.
I just finished The Namesake and have started The Brief History of the Dead. So far, so good.
Nancy, you make me giggle every time.
ReplyDeleteAndi, aka The Hunkering Texan
J.Kaye,
ReplyDeleteIt very well could be an age thing. Kiddo really didn't mind being photographed so much till a couple of years ago. Now, I get a lot of photos of the palm of his hand.
We just got back from a swim meet, so I haven't checked to see what's become of Texas, but I always feel for whoever is anywhere at all under a hurricane/tropical storm. They're so destructive. Well, you knew that. LOL
Les,
Thank you! That crazy hummingbird was picking on me. Did I tell you I have a new camera body? David got me a Sony Alpha (again, so I can continue to use the old lenses) and I'm still trying to figure that sucker out. I was playing with the manual settings and just as I'd get it set for bright sun, he'd show up and fly straight into the tree! But, I did get a few shots and I do believe that camera is a tad better than my old one.
We didn't see many hummingbirds till recently -- maybe because we were having a drought, earlier in the summer. I did get nearly knocked off my feet by one that buzzed me in the driveway, though. That was a moment!
Oh, good, I'll want to hear all about TBHoTD. I had Daniel drag my copy back from Memphis because I really, really want to read it.
Andiloo,
You know I live to make you giggle. Still hunkering? We've just gotten a bit of wild wind and occasional rain, here. It made the swim meet more comfy than normal (but we were under a tornado warning, briefly -- I can do without that). :)
how cool ! You have your own Michael Phelps!!!!
ReplyDeleteDeslily,
ReplyDeleteIn a manner of speaking. I do have my own fishy. LOL
Oh my, but that is one awesome photo! Belongs on SI or something! And tough if he doesn't like it, I say. After all we do for them, heck, just in those first three months of gestation alone, I think we're entitled to a little showing off, don't you?
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you're having fun with your new camera (body).
ReplyDeleteSo far, I'm loving The Brief History of the Dead. It's very thought-provoking and well-written. I'm trying to get through all my weekend chores so I can spend the afternoon reading. Back to vacuuming up dog hair!
Debi,
ReplyDeleteLOL! I agree! We put up with enough that a few decades of snapping their photos should just be considered payment for services rendered. And, thank you!
Les,
I'm loving it. Hubby really ticked me off, yesterday, when he insisted that we leave halfway through the swim meet. I only got to snap 10 out of 22 events. So disappointing!!! But, after we ate out and cleaned up, I fell asleep with the cat, so I must have been more worn out from the heat than I realized.
Oh, yeah. I probably ought to vacuum cat hair. Have fun reading!
What a cool picutre! That's totally a Michael Phelps shot!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Suey!
ReplyDelete