Random: Bridge to Terabithia Review/Rant

First, if you are going to see this movie and do not want me to spoil it for you, stop here but know that if you are a parent or will be taking a child to see this movie, you might want to prepare yourself a bit before going.

We took the boys to see the movie over the weekend. It's PG and a Walt Disney movie so I didn't have a single thought before going that it might leave me feeling so irritated and frustrated. I expected something fantastical, something in the vein of Lion, Witch, and Wardrobe. I DID NOT expect to find myself needing to have a conversation with my nephews about death and dying. Seriously. Who would? All of the trailers and such gave no indication that the movie was along the lines of the movie "My Girl."

Almost to the end of the movie, one of the main characters dies. Because the movie is about a boy and a girl who imagine this alter world, there is lots of mix between reality and imagination. So, when the main character dies, you kind of think it's not really real. When you find out that it is, the movie is over. Just leaves you with a sour taste in your mouth. Joseph is calling for a trilogy where the girl comes back as Queen of Terabithia.

I have never been one to like movies with sad endings. I go to the movies to escape reality for just a moment. I pay good money to forget that in the real world children die. This movie didn't do it for me and didn't do it for the boys. I think it could have been a good movie if we had prepared the boys for what was going to happen and if we had intended to use the movie as a catalyst for a conversation about death and dying. But, since we weren't prepared in either way, the impromptu discussion was pretty awkward.

Random: Pregnant Woman Gets (Almost) Arrested

Let me set the scene. Tuesday evening. Dinner with the Cook family for mom and dad's anniversary. Benihana Japanese restaurant. Mom, dad, Jonson, Joseph, Russ, and I. The check comes... this is where our story begins.

So, at Christmas, I got these coupons from the Clear Channel radio station. KASE 101 was running this promotion where you could get certificates for various restaurants around town for half off or whatever. I bought $100 of gift certs for for $50 to Benihana. The coupon states that there are two restrictions: you can't use them on Mother's Day or V-Day (and some other holidays) and can't use them on the weekend. No biggie.

I put the coupons into the bill pad along with my credit card and soon the restaurant manager shows up saying he will only take part of the coupons. He starts of by being very rude and trying to bully me. So, I did a sit in and informed him that I was paying with my darn coupons or he could take a hike. He tried to run off with my credit card and I demanded that he give it back to me. He gave me some cock and bull story about some dispute between the restaurant and Clear Channel, to which I explained did not involve me. The saga went on for some time. Finally, the manager threatened to call the "law," which he did. Russ showed up and was PISSED!

Then, to make a long story short, the cops told the Benihana manager that he was off his rocker and told us that it was a civil matter and that they agreed with us but that they could neither force us to pay Benihana nor force Benihana to accept the gift certificates. After some discussion, we decided to just pay the bill and get the hell out of dodge.

Needless to say, the wrath of Russ is now going to be unleashed on Benihana's owner and the station manager of Clear Channel, with the goal of getting our money back (so we never have to frequent Benihana again) and taking a chunk of both groups hide, if possible. :)

At some point in the evening, I asked myself, do you think they would arrest an almost 8 months pregnant woman!?!

Baby Chronicles: The Bladder Blues

I know this may sound ridiculous to those of you that have never experienced pregnancy but, I have come up with a great research project for some smart young doctor. I would like her to find a way to either remove my bladder altogether, somehow eliminating waste in another way, or at the very least, temporarily reinstall my bladder to a different part of my body (perhaps an armpit?)... somewhere far, far away from my son and his kicking, punching, bouncing, twisting, jerking ways. I have been so desperate for this modification that I am appalled to admit that the thought of a catheter or porta potty in my office cube have both become viable options. Why, oh why, must the toilet be so far from my desk!?!

Baby Chronicles: Jacey Jo

It has most certainly been confirmed that this child is MY boy through and through. He's a total punk rocker! At least, in his music tastes. On the way to work this afternoon, I was jamming out to some Joan Jett in my car and Jacey was going totally nuts. He also loves Poison and Aerosmith. A boy after my own heart. :) Aaaaaw. I couldn't be more proud.

Mom and dad came with us this morning to our 28 week sonogram. This time, dad did the waiting while mom came in to see her grandson. (They only allow 2 people in the room.) I could not even believe how big he has gotten since our week 20 sonogram. His head was MAMMOTH! I told the tech that he takes after his daddy. ;-p Here's a pic of his stinking adorable little profile. His tiny little slope nose looks so much like Joseph's!



They gave him an all clear on growth and progression. My glucose test came back good. Everything is progressing just as it should. They say that he is 2 and a half pounds right now and that if he continues growing at the same rate through to 40 weeks, he'll be born about 7 lbs. He is currently in the 32 percentile for his age range. True to form though, he wasn't too keen on them spying on him. He gave Dr. Darby a run for his money trying to get all the heart measurements they were looking for.

Last month, we went to Dave and Buster's for Lee's birthday and did the baby morpher machine. It takes a pic of daddy and momma and then comes up with a morphed version of what the two will make in a child. You can choose for it to create a male or female child and you can even tell it what color hair to make the child have. The pic on the left is Russ as a little boy. The pic on the right is the morphed version of Russ and I that the machine came up with. Fascinating!

Cook Clan vs. ALS: Superbowl

Well, folks, Sunday was a dissapointing day for the Cook clan. We felt certain that the Bears were gonna take it all. And, in the end, Grossman let us all down. Highlights of the game included Grossman dropping the ball, falling down, and lobbing the ball over the heads of receivers, not to mention throwing directly to the other team.

Dad is calling for Grossman's jersey, as are many Bears fans. I heard one reporter put it well... Grossman was the quaterback on a team built for the Super Bowl... Grossman didn't take the Bears to the Super Bowl, they took him. At the end of the day, I too would like to see Grossman canned but who knows what is in store for us next season. I'm hoping for a few months respite from hearing all the criticism of the Bears and second go at the championship next year, with or without Rexy.

Still, we had a great day spent in our Bears garb, lounging around, hollering, and of course, eating. Nan and I planned a little pre-game show and pre recorded it for dad. As soon as I can get the video uploaded, I'll post it here. Check back early next week.

WARNING Political Rant: Rick Perry is a Monkey's Butt

I woke up this morning to find that Texas had made the national news...again. This time, for some half-cocked, hair-brain idea of our governor Rick Perry. Evidently, on Friday he issued an executive order forcing all Texas girls entering the 6th grade to receive Gardasil, the HPV vaccine.

First off, I oppose the way that the executive order effectively circumvents the legislative process and usurps the authority of all the elected representatives that you and I put into office. I mean, the whole point of having a state government is so that we have a body that debates and decides on bills, hopefully taking into account the values and concerns of their constituency. Perry's willingness to sidestep the legislative process (especially on such a controversial issue) is disappointing and disconcerting.

Second, what kind of morons would we be to give our children a vaccine that has been on the market for less than a year?!? (And for a STD that they may or may not contract and if contracted may or may not lead to cervical cancer). In my opinion, we don't have enough information about the vaccine to know if it is safe. We do not know what may be the fallout for a drug so new.

And, finally, HPV is a sexually transmitted disease... it's not like whopping cough or chicken pox that any child could be exposed to. A 6th grader would have to be involved in some already risky behavior to even come into contact with HPV. If this were a vaccine recommended for adults, I doubt the government would be unilaterally taking on this decision making role. I personally would have to assess my own risk before deciding whether to take a vaccine for an STD. Why, then, is Perry taking away the right of a parent to make medical decisions for their own children?

There are several groups speaking out against Perry's little shenanigans. Of course, I have been firing off letters right and left to anyone I can think of that might have some impact. I can only hope that we will be successful in our efforts.