Cinemateggrophy...

Sometimes I wish real life had a soundtrack playing in the background. Sometimes I forget that it doesn't. And sometimes real life does have a soundtrack playing in the background. Of my head.

The soundtrack has a unique power to influence perception. Granted, the filming, directing, etc., have a whole lot to do with it. But the soundtrack is the thing that gives that final punch, or sigh, or scream, or whatever, to create the desired effect.

Case in point: Creme the Egg (Happy)...



Wasn't that fun? All those free-wheeling, jet-setting, squealy eggs throwing caution to the wind, flinging themselves upon the mousetraps like a day at the beach. Those crazy, fun, suicidal eggs.

Contrast with the following: Creme the Egg (Sad)...



Epic, no? A moving depiction of the tragedy that is chain reaction--this is art at its most profound. I swear I saw this at Sundance and Cannes. And I needed Kleenex at the end. To see such a sweet life, lived to its gooiest, culminating in a slow-motion end. It really makes you think about the important things in life. Like candy.

A whirlwind of emotions. Different camera angles and film speeds, sure. But you know it's the music that brought a tear to your eye. I'll be just a little more contemplative this evening. Maybe even move slightly slower as the orchestra ebbs & flows to my Oriental Chicken Salad experience. Beautiful...

This Could Be Dangerous...

Baking Bites

Kudos to Anita, via John Shore's blog.

(C)anteloupe...

Driving on base earlier this week, where antelope roam free (and look for cars before they cross the street)...

His Highness: Look Mommy, canteloupe!!

Me: Good job! Those are antelope. Canteloupe's what you eat. Antelope are animals.

HH: Antelope?

Me: Yep. Antelope.

HH: Look Mommy, canteloupe!!

Big Frustrations, Little Gifts...

We were planning to visit AZ for Christmas. But then the Cat Daddy's leave was denied, as too many people requested leave during that time, and the Cat Daddy is still somewhat low on the totem pole, seniority-wise, which is a bummer, but is understandable. So he was told to choose different dates. He went with the Thanksgiving time frame. Two weeks of the Thanksgiving timeframe. It makes me tired, thinking of two weeks away from home, but we'll be busy helping the folks with various projects and, hopefully, getting to see lots of friends as well.

My wheels got to turning though, and I remembered that last year the home church did a 5k fundraiser around early December. Since I love both the home church and the running, this sort of thing is right up my alley. And guess what? They are doing the 5k again this year. And guess what? It's scheduled for when we're in town.

You might ask, "So then, Skerrib, are you running it?". And if you did, then I would say to you, "Is it sacrilege to say 'hell yeah'?"

Which is to say yes, I plan to run it...

...Butt bootcamp is in the works, but slow-going. My insurance referral ran out, and they likely wouldn't cover Sportsmetrics anyway, so the PT is working on a wellness plan (with Sportsmetrics incorporated) I can do mostly on my own to minimize out of pocket costs. My sacrum held for 2 weeks and 2 days before randomly tweaking itself. I'm tellin' ya, I followed all the rules, and it still went hinky. On one hand I hate it because chronic pain is the pits. Seriously, it affects me way more than just "Oh my back hurts," but it's not an "I'm going to the emergency room" or "I need to stop jogging" sort of pain. Kind of hard to describe, especially when trying to explain it to a new doctor every year or two, but suffice to say it's worth it to me to keep pursuing health in this area.

On the other hand, while disappointed I'm not terribly surprised, and after a couple of pretty bad days I had a decent day today. So for the time being it's that whole "good days/bad days" thing. Plus since it's already out of whack there's no sense in following my own made-up rules that didn't work anyway, so I'm getting tough about reprogramming myself to move symmetrically and practice good body mechanics. No more kneeling down when the better thing is to squat, and no more superstitious foot placement...

...Oh, and this week I'm playing drums on the worship team at church. I've played in practice before, but this will be my first time in big-church since we got here. The fishbowl is gonna take some getting used to, but I'm glad to be playing again. Jam for the Lamb...

Going Bananas...

The Littler One had bananas today. Dr. Sears (of whom I'm a fan) recommends waiting an average of 6 months before introducing solids to a baby, but he also recommends watching for babies' cues to see when they're ready. Well, during mealtime Mr. Grabby-Grabberson-almost-five-month-old has been going after my plate, forks, etc., for a while now, and he watches our food very carefully, so I've been contemplating the possibility that he might be ready to try some solids.

I hem & haw though. The Cat Daddy believes that I am staunchly against progress, but this is totally untrue. I'm not against solids--or progress--in any way. It's just that I'm plain lazy, and when the Littler One starts eating solids that means more work for us. Not a lot more work, but certainly more than latching him on and going about my business. Plus I need to dig out the heavy-duty bibs. Or order the ones they had when His Highness was in daycare. Oooh, those are the best bibs ever. We have a few--I was allowed to swipe some old ones--but I'm seriously considering pulling out the big guns and ordering a full dozen. And stitching some cute little yarn designs on them, like Ms. Rezina did. I know, I know. Daring is my middle name.

So anyway, I ran half a banana thru the Bullet and presto--banana soup. I suspect the Littler One's main priority was gnawing on the rubberized spoon, but regardless he sucked down several baby-spoonfuls of banana in the process. Actually, he sucked down about half of several baby-spoonfuls; the remainder ended up on his hands, my hands, his hair/face/neck/shirt, etc. None on the floor, but that's just a matter of time.

No rice cereal, you ask? Nah, I'm not much for the rice cereal. I like being a little rebellious when it comes to baby protocol (and our family food allergy history is minimal--I'm not totally flippant about it). Baby oatmeal's good. Goes great in applesauce. But not yet. For now, it's bananas.

But I seriously have to dig out some bibs...