Letters to Holly

Wednesday, September 13

It's A Girl

Kathy and Travis welcomed Anna Claire into Mayberry yesterday at noon. Kathy went in for her regular checkup, and the doctors were concerned about insufficient amniotic fluid. They did a C-section, and everyone is fine. Kathy thus had no labor which makes her, of course, less of a woman. Hey, I got here through a C-section, and so did Esther's kid. So did all of you, if I remember right. So we each can kill Macbeth.

I ran three miles Tuesday. I deliberately ran slower and burned up more calories by running farther. I'll start using weights and running on alternate days and hope to run on roads starting next week. Travis, I assume, will still run on Oct. 27, but he may be shot after his first month with the baby. If he can't do run at all, I still will, but if he can't complete the race, I'll stop when he does. No need making him feel weak.

Your Sister was asked to fill-in for the JV volleyball coach, who herself is a new mother. Your Sis isn't going to do it, but it's somewhat flattering to be asked. The only reason to try to fit that into her schedule is to stick it to all the parents who grumbled about her coaching methods. I mean, they couldn't bitch about the results; they went something like 15-5. But she can't take that on now. She stepped away because of teaching workload. It was a tough call for her, but it was final. The athletic director, I'm lead to understand, feels like this is the varsity coach's problem to fix, but the AD is the one who hired a pregnant coach. He needs to find a solution. We suggested to ourselves that Angry Dad get his chance to run the team, but I doubt the other parents will be any happier with his style, and I suspect the girls will mutiny.

Picture of the Day
Behold the bionic arm.


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Tuesday, September 12

For the Record ...

Did very little yesterday. The pets were fed, we were fed, Kathy and Travis were fed, and then we went to bed. Not all together, mind you.

YOUR SISTER’S TEAMS:
NFC: Detroit Lions (0-1) /Philadelphia Eagles (1-0)
AFC: Oakland Raiders (0-1) /New England Patriots (1-0) /New York Jets (1-0)

MY TEAMS:

NFC: Carolina Panthers (0-1) /Philadelphia Eagles (1-0)
AFC: Miami Dolphins (0-1) /Pittsburgh Steelers (1-0)

The first weekend of games is over, and a few facts emerged. The Raiders may be the most hapless team in the league, the Packers are a close second, and players seem to be working in fifth gear. The games I saw all included lightning-quick passing defense. Teams are swarming the receivers with gang tackles, and that opens up running lanes.

Moving Picture of the Day
A drag-and-drop map quiz of Africa and the Middle East. The Stans ruined my curve.

In the News
We watched the President's address last night, and it sounded like a weak book report. Bush had to say something or he'd appear aloof. What he said last night had no meat to it. Until the end.
The attacks were meant to bring us to our knees, and they did, but not in the way the terrorists intended. Americans united in prayer, came to the aid of neighbors in need, and resolved that our enemies would not have the last word. The spirit of our people is the source of America's strength. And we go forward with trust in that spirit, confidence in our purpose, and faith in a loving God who made us to be free.
That sounds like Crusade-talk, a mistake he made initially after 9/11 when he actually used the word "crusade" to describe our response. When he talks of "the spirit of the people," it introduces a vague reference that becomes concrete, that of a communal faith, one shared religion. And that last sentence sounds no less than "we're gonna Christianize the hell out of you." I'm not paranoid about state/church theories, but this is a final word that sends the wrong signal to me, not to mention those who already think we're trying to force American Christianity on the world. We cannot waltz into the Middle East again and proclaim to bestow God-blessed civilization on them. That's just a rationale for colonialism. If that's what this administration thinks 9/11 ultimately means -- an opportunity to occupy and proselytize -- then they really are a clueless batch, and we need to get them out of office.

Finally, not for nothing, but five years after Pearl Harbor, Word War II was over. Just how committed are we to win this War on Terror, and is it a war or a foreign policy? I'm not sure it's anything more than an excuse.

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Monday, September 11

I'd Rather Talk About Something Else Today

Your Sis has a school-bred cold and spent the weekend in a headfog. She went to another Ladies Night party on Friday but crashed Staurday and Sunday. I ran at the gym again to the dulcet tones of Nine Inch nails. I also got to see the space shuttle launch. I ran two miles on one of the newer treadmills, and it hurt a lot. I've developed a rib pain in the last two runs, and I'm puzzled as to why. My style hasn't changed, and I'm not running farther.

After that run, I decided to try to fix the lawnmower one last time. I removed the sparkplug and dry-cranked the engine to shift some excess oil around. Then I put the plug back in. It again wouldn't start. I looked at the plug, and it looked just like every plug I've seen. Then I realized almost every plug I've seen has been a discarded one. I zipped to the local hardware store and bought a new one, jacked it in, and the mower cranked right up. So I mowed the lawn, and this is a bad idea when it's 1 p.m. and you've just run two miles. But the lawn hadn't been mowed since FDR's second term, and we finally had enough dry weather for the grass to be mowable. I set the mower to the highest setting because the grass was clogging the blade otherwise. It stopped twice, and I cleaned out the grass glumps with a hose. Also, the next-door neighbors' grandkid was alone and bored, and we chatted while I fixed up the mower. It didn't want to crank up, but a new load of gas fixed that problem. I got the whole lawn done, and that grass monkey is finally off my back. I also, apparently, don't need to buy a new mower.

That night I went with Travis and Kathy to a local sports bar where an Ohio State alumni group were holding court to watch the game against Texas. I was clearly the odd man out, the only one not wearing an Ohio State shirt. We were also easily the youngest folks there by about thirty years. I was persona non grata quickly; one superfan made a point to high-five everyone after a strong showing by Ohio State, and I was passed over almost every time. But I got to eat wings and drink beer and wolf down a burger, so screw him. I also got to buddy up with Kathy's mom, who seemed to like me once she realized we didn't believe pro wrestling was real.

On Sunday, we did nothing but watch pro football.

Your Sis cleared out about 20 epsiodes of "Mad About You" from the TiFaux while I was mowing or getting groceries, and I'm just about to start inking the Star wars drawings.

Your parents left for vacation Friday, and I started taking care of the pets. They found someone to feed them on weekends, so I don't have to make that drive for a ten-minute job.

Picture of the Day
John Travolta as Edna Turnblad in the movie version of the Broadway musical Hairspray. The musical was based on a film wherein Edna was played by Divine, a legendary drag queen cult diva. Edna is thus always played by a man.



In the News
Yes, it does feel like five years has gone by. I was driving to work and heard the first news reports on NPR. When I got to the Creative Loafing office, we watched a tiny, grainy TV set and started work on the next issue of the paper. I kept track of info with the CNN and New York Times websites. I got home about 4 p.m. and watched ABC news for hours and hours. But, of course, almost every channel had switched to some news feed. If there's one moment of footage I remember most from those hours, it's of Buckingham Palace playing our national anthem.

I saw your note about posting comments, and Blogspot is just as frustrating on this end too. You can always email me.