. . . and that means another splendid Tuesdays With Kaelyn video over at the House of Carr. I must say that we went all out for this one. Hope you appreciate the effort. Just go on over to House Of Carr and click on the "film" tab. It's a larger file, so it might take a few seconds to load. Patience is a virtue.
Enjoy.
I didn't relay the problems the we experienced at the homestead on Friday. I guess I was trying to block the negative experience from my mind. You usually don't worry much about your toilet until there's a problem. A simple flush on the second floor yielded us a water leak that seaped through to the ceiling on our first floor, ran down the side wall and ended up in the basement. Fortunately, Carr Electric Heating and Cooling also specializes in plumbing.
After removing the toilet from its base, we discovered that the flange was cracked during installation [I remind you that we purchased a totally remodled condo, so this installation was performed just a little more than a year ago]. Instead of replacing it, they decided to try to seal it with a few screws and washers. This worked as long as there wasn't any problem with the flow. Once it happened, the water leaked through the flange into the ceiling area. Wonderful.
Thing is, we know of two other people who have had similar plumbing problems that this developer was responsible for. In all the instances, they messed up the installation and caused major water damage. The plumbers were dopes. It must be said.
Thankfully, the water damage to our drywall was minimal, but there's an area where you can see the effects. My parents stopped by on Saturday to visit and my father and I were able to get the toilet set properly with a new flange. Remarkably, everything works fine when you don't use broken parts.
We're past the warranty on our unit so the only way I could recoup the damages would be a lawsuit. And even though I have many a lawyer friend who would be willing to help out, it's just not worth it. I took some pics of the damage that I'm going to email them to the developer and kindly ask for a few bucks for the paint necessary to cover it up.
We still love our place, but working with the developer has been a nightmare. In the future, I'll drop the extra cash for a hardcore home inspection.
Very good day today. Started out with the snow fall. About three inches or so. I feel the need to apologize to all my friends who are new to Cincinnati that think we've never seen the white stuff before. I'm not quite sure when my town became snow ignorant, but the noon news warned people about leaving the house today. It's embarrassing.
Anyway, I have a new digital camera so I took it out to get some pictures of the park. I've not taken many snow pictures, but it was a good first try. Here are some samples. I did give them the black and white look because I liked it better.
Took the following pictures to show how the zoom lens works. Here's the actual distance:
And here's how it looks in the zoom.
Came back home and let Kaelyn have her first snow experience. Kelly said she was staring out the window at it all morning and she was excited to take a look at it. So here's how she reacted being near to it:
And here's how she reacted when she finally touched it:
I guess Kaelyn didn't realize the snow is cold. At least she learned a valuable lesson today.
So I thought that the snow would hamper our gathering tonight. For awhile I even pondered about switching my message to something different. Of course, I was clueless and we had one of our best crowds of the year. There was a great vibe and it brought a smile to my face.
I've had a difficult time getting into this new year. Not quite sure why. But tonight was just what I needed to get me excited about what this year holds for us. I'm definitely blessed.
Yes, Ice Cube spoke the truth: today was a good day.
Felt a bit nostalgic this week with the passing of Burton Kallick. You might know him better as Buddy of Buddy's Carpet Barn. If you're from Cincinnati you're all too familiar with Buddy and his commercials. In the early 1980's he started his carpet business and inundated the local airways with goofy commercials. He starred in all of them, with his distinct voice, a kind of Cincinnati draw. Buddy never scripted his commercials, which was very apparent. They were always horrible, as if by design. But they were always on television; it was vintage Cincinnati.
After selling off the business in 2000, he had been fighting cancer the past few years, finally succumbing to it this past Wednesday. I never personally purchased any of his carpet, but will always consider him to be my Buddy.
Jim Borgman drew the following cartoon to observe Buddy's passing:
Let me follow up on yesterday's post concerning the Doomsday Clock. One of the main reasons these scientists think we're closer to the end of the world is the deteriorating state of the global environment. You have to be hiding under a rock not to know that our world is in grave danger because of all the evil we humans have inflicted upon it, from our aerosol hairspray to our burning piles of freon tanks. Unless we get our act together our children won't have much of a future, forced to wear gas masks while dog-paddling in a Waterworld all while enduring 100 degree temperatures in the dead of winter.
But all this begs the question: is global warming even real?
While there is a scientific base attached to global warming theories, we must admit that they are subjective interpretations of facts. Interesting enough, major media sources relate these opinions as unquestionable truth. But why would educated people perpetuate these theories if they weren't 100% true? Always look towards the lowest common denominator:
Money.
There's big money to be had by people willing to do research about global warming. Eccentric billionaire Richard Branson donated $3 billion dollars to help solve the global warming problem. For that kind of money you wouldn't want to admit that there wasn't a problem.
So back to the original question. Can we freely question global warming?
Not in public. Doing so in today's political climate will earn you the label of ignoramus. Some, such as CBS reporter Scott Pelley, would compare you to a Holocaust denier. This article tells about some Weather Channel climatologist who suggests that any TV meteorologist who denies global warming should be stripped of their certification. There are scientists who believe that global warming is a crock, but they lose major street cred for stepping out and saying it; additionally, if employed by a university, a researcher could lose research funding or tenure for stating their opinion.
My Christian worldview allows me a different perspective. The world was created by God to be used by human beings. We needn't worship this terra firma because it wasn't designed to last forever. Still, we're called to be good stewards of all God entrusted to us. I won't go around burning rain forests for yuks. But neither will I accept widespread persecution because I don't buy that the environment is the most pressing issue we face in this country.
Using only a half a century of reliable statistics to make concrete statements concerning a planet that is millions of years old [their take] isn't responsible, nor very scientific. So I ask politely: back off. To each his own.
I heard a rumor that Al Gore might be coming to town to give his Inconvenient Truth power point presentation. Maybe he can clear this up for all of us.
You know that things have really gotten bad when I'm thrilled with UC losing by one point on the road at Syracuse. A lot of Bearcats fans are jumping ship, not sure if they want to wait until they make it back to the top of the mountain. I, however, am sticking with 'em. Again, I declare that Mick Cronin is the right man for the job. It may take awhile, but we'll be OK. We're building character here people. In a related note, we got the latest issue of Cincinnati Magazine this week. The good news is that the cover is red, heralding "Bearcat Pride." The bad news is that the mascot is posing with President Zimpher. Could've done without that.
The Doomsday Clock moved forward two minutes this morning. I think I speak for everyone when I ask, "Who gives a ****?"
Apparently the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientist came up with this Doomsday Clock after World War 2 in order to show how close we were to the end of the world. The clock has moved nineteen times in the past sixty years. It's supposed to make us recognize the tenuous state of world affairs. Because of the North Korean nuclear threat and the supposed state of global warming, we're told that the end of the world is near. Be afraid.
What a bunch of crap.
Just look at the history of this thing. In 1947 we were seven minutes till the end. By 1953 that number was down to two minutes. But by 1963 we were back to twelve minutes. I'm not a math major, but I do know how to tell time. Uncle Rico could testify that there's no such thing as a time machine; you can't go backwards. A clock doesn't work that way. The illustration breaks down.
This is just an excuse for condescending scientists to make themselves feel more important than they really are. Every generation thinks they're living in the last days. Additionally, it seems every generation thinks they can somehow prevent this end through their own intelligence. Kudos to the Bulletin of Nuke Geeks for giving it their best shot.
By the way, I don't wear a watch.
Last week I took the opportunity to catch a movie in the theaters. This itself is an event considering I saw only one film all of last year [albeit just a month ago]. Additionally, I went by myself. I never go to movies alone. The first, and only other, movie I went to alone was a bio of Martin Luther. I think I'm liking the solo experience. If I had been a little braver in my younger days, I might have tried this more. Anyway, the film I chose to see was Children Of Men, adapted from a novel by PD James. It was released somewhat silently at the end of last year in limited venues and hit broad audiences just last week. I had read a couple of reviews that sold me on it.
It's an interesting premise. Thirty years from now there's an infertility epidemic; the youngest person in the world is eighteen years of age. A world without children has gone crazy, and only Great Britain has escaped total anarchy [no, it's not a comedy]. England, however, is inundated with refugees, many illegal aliens, who are the target of mass persecution. When a young refugee girl is discovered to be with child, action is taken to remove her from the country to insure the child's safety. What ensues is a futuristic nativity story where the birth of the child is the greatest event of a generation.
The movie was powerful, masterfully filmed and brilliantly conceived. It's heavy on language and violence, so definitely not for the faint of heart. If you can't get out to see it, file it mentally for a DVD rental. It's worth it.
So now that we have the DVR I decided to get back into 24. We watched the entire first season [before it was "cool" to watch] as I loved the concept. But we stepped away in season 2. Kel's not a huge fan of all the gore, so it wasn't worth it. Now she doesn't have to watch it if she doesn't want to and I can fast-forward through those scenes. My opinion so far: it is what it is. There's so much hype surrounding the show but let's call it what it is: a soap opera with testosterone. I still think the acting is over the top [what's up with Chloe?] and that the sequences are pretty predictable.
Still, I'm going to give it another chance.
Jack Bauer is pretty cool.
postscript: Then again, after watching the entire episode, I never watched a soap opera where the nuked LA.
This might come off as harsh, but it's about time I start being more forthright about Cincinnati Christian University. I love the school immensely; I have two degrees from there, was employed by the school for 2.5 years, and was President of its Alumni Association. Despite any disagreements I might have with certain aspects of the school, I continue to be dedicated to its ministry and mission. That being said, let me show where they're not getting it right.
As I opened up the Enquirer's webpage this morning to check out what's happening in the city, this is what I see:
Nice little banner ad at the top there. As my wife was driving to work on Tuesday, she got behind a bus with a CCU ad on it [sure, it was a lame reference to "Deal Or No Deal" but noticeable advertising nonetheless]. There are also numerous billboards located around town selling the merits of our humble Bible college.
This is a huge step up. When I worked in recruiting there, our advertising budget was limited to what I could photocopy on a 8.5 x 11 piece of paper. I constantly had to tell people that we weren't a seminary for priests. So the branding effort enacted over the past few years is working. Enrollment is at an all-time high.
But what do you do once you get the people enrolled and on campus. How do you treat them?
Seth Godin had an interesting post about this today, reflecting on an experience he had with his small town's city council. The part that stuck out to me was this assertion:
"People don't renew or cancel their cell phone service because of the ads (the ads that might have gotten them to sign up in the first place.) They do it based on the service and the way it makes them feel. And people don't vote to re-elect a candidate because of her debate performance or speeches."
Back to CCU. Enrollment is up and that makes it appear that things are better. But I've heard of many horror stories from current students that they don't have the support staff to handle the increased number of students. They can't get access to their financial aid or registration info. So while more people are coming to campus than ever before, does it help the overall image of the school if they have a horrible experience? Of course not. Actually, it's even worse because you've opened up new avenues in which you name can be defamed.
My solution: I'd prefer that they now scale back the advertising campaign and use the remaining funds to work on infrastructure. Add enough staff to facilitate the enlarged student body in order to give them the best college experience they could imagine. Then you create happy alumni base that will do your advertising for you. That's where long term success is built.
I don't write this to open up a bash fest on my college. I know such a post will invite many people to unleash their "CCU sucks" rants. I'd rather you not. While the school does have its flaws, its still a great place that God is using in a powerful way to affect the world. I just have to call it as I see it.
Anyone can put butts in seats, especially if you dump enough money into advertising. But its what you do once you get them there that makes all the difference.
Kaelyn's developing well. We continue to teach her sign language and she now understands the following signs: milk, bath, yes, no, and bye. If she had to, I think she could get a job. In addition to this, she continues to work on her sounds. Recently she's been immitating us when we do a few certain sounds. If something on TV makes us laugh, she'll laugh. She also has a gutteral-type of laugh that sounds like "he-he-he-he-he-he." If we do it, she'll respond
It's really cool.
But my favorite is a sigh that she's started doing that sounds just like Nelson on the Simpson's. For those who aren't Simpson's fans, first repent, then listen to what it sounds like here.
Smart baby or smart-alec baby? You decide.
So about David Beckham's forthcoming $25 million contract with the MLS's LA Galaxy: do I think this will change the perception of soccer in America? No.
One player a soccer team does not make. Everyone likens this move to Wayne Gretzky going to the LA Kings. Yeah, how's the state of the NHL today? They play their games on a cable network that no one knows or even gets.
I love soccer but I've come to accept that it will never be an American game. We live within two hours of a MLS city and have only attended one game.
Get Ronaldinho in the MLS now, in his prime, and I might sing a different tune.
I like to think I'm one of those people that can't be held down by illness. But I'm not.
What started as a little cold last week has stuck around seven days. I haven't tasted my food in a week, nor can I inhale to tell whether or not Kaelyn needs a diaper change. This morning I gave in and called the doctor. He said it's a sinus infection/bronchitis thing that has sucked in my right ear tunnel and could cause me to lose my leg.
I made the leg thing up.
I know have a combination of three pills and an inhaler I'm supposed to use so I can get over this thing by the weekend.
At least it's not hepatitis.
If you're not a college football fan, you're probably sick of my writing so much about it, but this is the last you'll hear of it until the fall. So one again bear with me. Late last night I told Kelly that I secretly thought the Buckeyes could lose that game. They were favored way too much. But I couldn't imagine that Coach Tressel would let his team come out so lethargic. And never would I have believed that Florida would take OSU to the woodshed.
That was the most dominent beat down in any type of sports championship I can ever remember. Let me know if you have any other contenders.
And I should note, before I get too far, that we watched the game by ourselves last night. If I were with other people they would've called the Price Hill Church of Christ to rescind my ordination certificate.
So why did the Buckeyes lose so horribly? My thoughts . . .
Unlike many Ohio State fans, I've seen Florida play numerous times this year. And it must be said: that team never played so well. They were lucky to end the regular season with one loss; they should've lost three more games but those teams they were playing choked. They were consistently inconsistent, making foolish penalties and turn-overs. They were not better than USC this year. They were not better than Michigan. And they were not better than Ohio State.
Last night, however, they played flawless football- something they haven't done since the Spurrier days. But with no playoff, you don't have to be the best team. You just have to be good enough to win that one game. And last night Florida did it.
I've been rather sick the past few days. This didn't help. I'm taking four Advil right now.
Ten minutes to go in the game. I'm going to bed.
Despite having no appetite with this cold, I promise to eat some crow tomorrow.
Let me explain myself to yourselves. There's been a lot of discussion locally the past few months about Ohio State bandwagoners- those who have cheered the team only since Coach Tressel reinvigorated the program. I'm thinking it could be true because the Cincinnati media have covered the national championship game much more this year than the 2002 title and we saw a ton of OSU gear in Hyde Park this afternoon.
I have no academic affiliation with THE Ohio State University, but if I only followed my alma mater's programs my life would be pathetic [nothing impresses sports aficionados like an NCCAA Division 2 championship appearance . . . in soccer]. During my development years I assembled my sports loyalties and have stuck to them rather religiously. In case you're scoring at home:
Which brings me to college football. I always liked the sport, but growing up in Cincinnati, there wasn't much to cheer for here. So it was in the late 1980's that I declared my allegiance to Ohio State; I figured I lived in the state of Ohio, so that's good enough. I would watch them play every Saturday on the black and white television in the basement; no one in the house wanted to watch it, so I was relegated to the dungeon.
In junior high I proudly purchased a Starter jacket [remember those] that was a shiny gray with the letters "O-H-I-O- S-T-A-T-E" stitched to the front. It was awesome. I would watch players like Carlos Snow, a local product who went to a Cincinnati Public School dedicated to athletes [how was that ever legal]. I cheered for Kirk Herbstreit, an average quarterback who became a great football analyst. I saw an endless supply of incredible players come through the program: Chris Spielman, Joey Galloway, Terry Glenn, Eddie George, David Boston.
Those teams were coached by a wonderful man named John Cooper. He could recruit football players better than anyone in the country. Unfortunately, he never figured out how to get them to win the big game. As many of you know, the last game of the regular season the Bucks always play Michigan. In thirteen games against the Wolverines, his teams won twice, lost ten times, and tied once. Coopers first victory against UM salvaged and average season. His second victory was on the cusp of a loss to Michigan State, costing them a national championship.
Being a Buckeye fan at the end of last century was brutal. Three times in the 1990's OSU was undefeated until the Michigan game, in line for a national championship, and lost. Every year while in college I would bet a guy in the dorm [a devout Michigan fan] a pizza on the game. I bought him a lot of pizza.
Then . . . came . . . Tressel.
He knew both how to recruit and how to win. After being hired he appeared at the OSU/Michigan basketball game at halftime and stated, "I can assure you that you will be proud of your young people in the classroom, in the community and most especially in 310 days in Ann Arbor, Michigan." And he's never looked back.
So tonight, as I'm preparing to celebrate a second national championship in five years, I'm confident that I've never been off the bandwagon, so there was never any need for me to hop back on. I know who Earl Bruce is. I hate Desmond Howard. I even lived a summer in Columbus. So there's no need to question my loyalty.
With the Reds, Bengals, and Bearcats struggling, at least I have the scarlet and gray to rely on.
Go Bucks.
We are.
First, let's be honest: the best off-season move for the Bengals happened yesterday when Bill Cowher retired. I hate all things Pittsburgh but admit to having a soft spot in my heart for old Iron Jaw. He is a fantastic coach and always made the most out of the least amount of talent [see last year's Super Bowl team]. Cowher owned the Bengals in his sixteen years with the Steelers. Of all current NFL coaches, he's the one guy I would want in Cincinnati without a doubt.
Speaking of Bengals coaching, I've remained silent since the devastating loss of a week ago. This past season was an enigma; I saw things this season that I never have seen before in my life: Justin Smith's bogus roughing the passer call against Tampa Bay [cost them the game], a blown 21-point lead against San Diego [cost them the game], Rudi Johnson's fumble and the botched PAT against Denver [cost them the game], last week's missed field goal against the Steelers [cost them the game], not to mention the numerous arrests [cost them more than they'd like to admit].
This season had messed with my mind more than that of any other Cincinnati sports team. The only thing I can compare it to was Ohio State under John Cooper: you knew they had national championship talent but they never acted like it.
The thing that's ticked me off is the way that many fans have turned on Marvin Lewis. They complain about three 8-8 seasons in three years, but they've quickly forgotten how sucky we truly were. Just look at the stats during Marvin's tenure.
What I'm saying is this: schedule does indeed make a difference. The Raven benefited this year because they sucked last year. In the Bengals last Super Bowl appearance, their schedule was an easy one. But you can't blame it all on who they had to play this season.
Truth is, it pains me to admit this, the team isn't that good . . . yet. I really believe they're on the verge, but they desperately need some kind of defensive help to make it to that next level. But many fans are eager to jump off the Marvin bandwagon without looking at the big picture.
I say, give it another season or two. I'd be shocked if they're not a playoff team again next year.
We still have one of the best quarterbacks in the league. It's amazing that he bounced back to play like he did this year [see Dante Culpepper]. With Carson at 100% again, a team that was truly humbled this year, and an easier schedule, it'll all be good.
In Marvin I trust.
Nothing says, "Jesus is Lord" like going one-on-one with Hulk Hogan. Reminds me of the first-century church.
