Christmas Eve Spotlight: Clarice

Several times this season I’ve been approached on the streets of Santa Paula and very bluntly asked the question…”Gringo, who’s your pick for most attractive doe in a stop motion animation film?”. My answer never wavers, I do need not think twice about the answer-it’s gotta be Clarice. Clarice is the attractive little doe that inspires young Rudolph to come out of his crimson-hued shell and lets his individuality soar through the clouds and into our collective hearts. A modern day Howard Roarke rebelling against the establishment and excelling like no other reindeer…or architect.

And what really sets her apart from all of her peers is her confidence and her conviction when she tells Rudolph early in the film to get off your lazy butt, ditch the nose cover and learn to fly. “I think your cute” she seductively whispers to Rudolph which sends him into a frenzy like the amphetamine-riddled Johnny Cash of the early 60’s. She was the muse for Rudolph, she motivated Rudolph unlike others that surrounded him. Hermey the Misfit Elf and his delusions of dentistry was a mere nuisance to this petite siren of a doe. Hermey the elf dentist? An elf dentist?!? What’s next…a black president?

“I think it’s a handsome nose” she announces in a manner only Doris Day would be proud of. Now, either she’s nefariously setting him up to be completely ridiculed by his peers or she cares for him so much that she’s trying to boost his confidence thereby elevating him to new heights. My initial impulse is to believe she is as the Electric Light Orchestra once put it…an “Evil Woman”. However, since then I’ve come to the conclusion that Clarice has good intentions. I’m inclined to believe the polka dot bow on the top of her head represents symbolism at its finest! She's a present with a bow on top and a card which simply reads…

To: Rudolph
From: God



Am I becoming soft? Is there some deep fundamental change in my approach to the opposite sex now that I have daughters. This post is becoming very cathartic. It took writing the above paragraphs to take notice of this metamorphosis in my mind.

I hope Jeff doesn’t find out about this. He’ll kick me out of the club.

Happy Holidaze

Maybe all these women in my lives makes me appear more masculine. Perhaps me being the sole testosterone-laden carbon-based life form in the family makes me look tougher? Braver? Cooler?

Or just beaten.

One thing's for sure, I am not playing Barbies with any of them!

Parker and Jack

Jack and Parker. They're good friends, Jack calls her "Partner". Poor Jack needs a roadie to help him get setup properly. This is their first live acoustic performance. I believe they decided to stick with Americana cover songs for starters, then they'll move into more serious song composition exercises.

After paying some close attention to parkerJo's vocal "stylings" as of late, I think I can conclude that she is cursed with the bad singing gene passed along on her mother's side.

Laura made an appearance on the basketball court today. I guarded her all day, she's fun to play against-she plays tough but she's quite vocal when you make contact with her(a lot of ughs and moans and some odd sounding noises that I cannot explain). She shot well from the outside and played me hard on the boards all day. I must say, I was impressed by her. She's one girl playing with 5 other fairly tough guys and she was fearless, gutsy, and determined. Now fearless means she got rejected by her foes far too many times to keep count but still, she tried. And when she tries she has this smile/smirk she brings to the court that makes her look likes she's a 6 year old locked in overnight inside a candy store while she's shooting a jumper right in your face. I realized today just how thankful I should be for having a wife that possesses so many like interests. Laura is someone I can wrestle for rebound position with on the court, sing along with in the studio, engage in a fruitless argument which eventually devolves into a battle of wills with each of us seeking to be the one who gets the last word in, and she's always been a fun drinking partner at the bar as well (although I can't recall the last time that's occurred).

That's what I was thinking about today.

What Do I Want For Christmas?

I want this little girl to stop growing up so quickly.

An Open Letter To ParkerJo and Georgia

The both of you owe me big time! I have made a significant sacrifice in my life for you two. I hope these paragraphs get thrown in front of your eyes sometime in your life when you are mature enough to comprehend its importance. I used to be able to come home from work and relax a bit…call it “decompression”. That is no longer an option but I can accept that, a lot of the times I am anxious to see you two as well. Also, on weekends your mom and I cannot get anything done anymore and that will probably be the case for the next two to three years. I have halted all future projects on the house until it is deemed that there is ample time to perform the task. (Psssst….don’t tell your mom about that one).

The reason I’m writing this is partly for the cathartic aspect of it. The other is to stipulate my own shortfalls. I am selfish, yet selfless too. Hopefully you’ll catch on one of my “selfless” days but heck, roll the dice and find out, I’m usually accommodating. I know this post might sound like I’m frustrated and/or irritated but I’m really not. I think we as children all take advantage of our situation and do not credit our parents with the sacrifices they make for us. Some of those are altruistic and some are simply for their own benefit. For example, one might consider having children for the tax write-off, or simply as a future investment when they’re grown up and you might need a vital organ, or perhaps we’re making the investment now for some long-term elder care in the future. Me, I just want to be like Papa Spears and develop a couple of little child music prodigies and profit off of their popularity.

Someday when you read this you’ll know that I love you both and wouldn’t change a thing. You two have brought something to my life I never expected and I’m grateful for it. But Georgia, you’re close to 6 months old and you are not crawling yet-get to it! Your big sister was walking at 8 months so you’ve got to get moving or mom will be on the phone with Easter Seals in no time!! And another thing…the more you look like me, the worse off your luck will be in finding boyfriends.

The Effects Of The Economy Are Starting To Hit Our Household In a Very Serious Manner

My theoretical “sweet tooth” is wearing black today. Mother’s Cookie Company, the makers of those fabulous Circus Animal Cookies has shut down. They will not be making those magnifantastically delicious cookies anymore. Can this really be? The English Tea Sandwich cookies are also a favorite of mine, the Peanut Butter Sandwich Cookies as well. What the hell is wrong with this country? Is this because we elected a black President? We can bailout AIG, Bear Stearns, and the rest of Wall St. including the Big Three car manufacturers but what about Mother’s Cookie Company? They’re an institution that’s been around longer than the automobile! What’s next Oreos?

I've amended this post due to BREAKING NEWS just posted on Google News...

It’s not that bad, news came out today that Kellogg Company has finalized a deal to buy Mother’s Cookies. Additionally they have plans to reintroduce the cookies sometime soon. But they better not alter one thing about that cookie. I'm going to be checking to make sure the shade of pink is of an exact hue and the sprinkles are the exact size and color scheme of the originals. If even one little thing is different, Tony the Tiger better grab his shank, because it's going to be war.

Sick Of It All

I’ve been feeling ill off and on for the past week. PJ’s been sick too, last night she kept waking up crying about how her ear hurting thereby hindering my ability to sleep more than 3 hours straight. I crawled into work late a half hour late today and have been holding my head in my hands most of the time. I’ve been racking my brain trying to get a water rate study and survey done for the past two hours and I just gave up. I’d rather sit here at my desk and write about being sick. This is by far my least productive morning in a long time, well, this month for sure-I know, it’s only December 3rd.

Holiday Profile

Thanksgiving is over and the Christmas crunch has begun. I fear this is the year that Laura explodes with “geekiness” over Christmas lights. Sure, I like Christmas lights and I enjoy walking around the neighborhood looking at them but Laura is a complete nerd when it comes to these lights. My enjoyment is supplemented a great deal by seeing Parker’s reaction to them. If Parker weren’t around I wouldn’t be much into them at all I think. But Laura is on a different planet when it comes to Christmas lights. She needs to start a support group to grieve with others during the rest of the year when Christmas lights aren’t up. I’m telling ya’ the girl is wacko for these lights. When she sees them she “lights up” like a “Christmas Tree”. I’m just glad she doesn’t want to go crazy with our house, we’re busy enough this time of year.