Picture Update

Pictures from October are up and available for your viewing pleasure.

Plenty of pictures this month that go way back to a fun birthday party at a pumpkin patch, as well as a few other miscellaneous photos.

Katie, Brian & the Ring Bearer

Our lessons learned from the rehersal included steps to make sure that Aidan got some sleep before the wedding. Unfortunately, since we were up so late the night before at the rehersal, we slept in. That left us about three or four hours of awake-time before we had to put him back down for a nap. Ugh.

After breakfast we went for a little walk in the back of the hotel and eventually stumbled upon a sign that said "River Trail." We thought it would probably be a good idea to try and tire the little guy out, so we started out down the trail. It turns out that the "river trail" is just that: A trail on a river. There's no walking, only boating. A canoe would be good. Boots, less so.

So we tried our best to run Aidan around in the parking lot, then headed out to Stew Leonard's again for their little petting zoo. Then we drove around Danbury again, but Aidan never did fall asleep.

Time was running out and I had to meet with the other groomsmen for some pictures and pre-wedding preparations, so we headed back to the hotel.

Renee was able to get Aidan to sleep before the wedding (although she had to be very quite while getting herself ready) and, in the end, Aidan was in a good mood for the wedding. But that was pretty stressful, trying to get a two-year-old down to sleep and awake all before 1 p.m.

Both Aidan and I were in the wedding (he, if you don't remember, was the ring bearer). As I was ushering people to their seats in the church, Renee was playing with Aidan in the main entrance. When the wedding was about to begin, Aidan then graciously escorted his mom to her seat and then the two of us headed back to the church entrance.

And we waited. And waited. Still no bride. After about twenty minutes (limo trouble) the bride finally did show. Aidan did very well with the wait, but almost went down the aisle a couple times, thinking it was "time." And I was beginning to get a little apprehensive about walking down with Aidan: Would he be able to make it? Would he see his mother in her seat and bolt? Would he need me to carry him?

None of my fears came to pass. Aidan seems to be the type of person who, once assigned a task, feels the need to finish it. So he took his pillow and walked down the aisle like it was the most important thing in the world. I couldn't have been more proud. In fact, I was probably making all sorts of facial contortions as I choked back tears and smiles. It was also hard to walk beside him, because I wanted to jump out in front and watch. This probably was the proudest moment as my time as a father.

My Aunty Evvy, mother of the groom, said it was about the only time that she was moved to tears during the wedding.

After walking down the aisle Aidan stayed with me for a little bit in our assigned seat, but soon went a few rows back to watch the rest of the ceremony with his mother.

Of course, the main attractions at a wedding are the bride and groom (usually in that order), but Aidan did come in a close third, much to Katie and Brian's delight.

Aidan was his usual self at the reception: All he wanted to do was dance, dance, dance. I'm not sure if there was anyone who danced more than Aidan. Everyone loved seeing him on the dance floor. Renee and I would try and eat a little something, but Aidan would always be right at our side, giving us time for maybe two or three sips of water before dragging us back out to dance.

He was dancing by himself sometimes, but he mostly liked to dance with other people, which was a first for Aidan. He particularly enjoyed the band, as he would sometimes stop and just stare at them in amazement. Then he would just boogie on over to another side of the floor and go at it.

So, another late night for Aidan. He partied so hard, it was the first time that Renee or I had ever seen him just fall asleep from exhaustion. Hopefully, he'll still be able to keep it together for just a couple more days before we head back to Austin, Texas....

Lessons Learned With No Nap

Ooops. We had to drop the rental car off yesterday in order to replace the flat tire (I thought they would just replace the donut-tire with a good tire, but they replaced the entire car). That took a little longer than expected (that and I had to get some sinus medication as I seemed to have delevoped a sinus infection of almost debilitating status).

But we also had to try on our tuxes to ensure we didn't need any alterations. Luckily, Dad-Dadoo and Grandma Jackie were able to watch Aidan for us while we replaced the rental car. Then the five of us headed out to the tuxedo place, but just as we arrived Aidan fell asleep.

Instead of letting him sleep, we woke him up. This was our first mistake. Thinking that the process of trying on the tuxes would be quick and easy, thus allowing us to head out and do some sight-seeing of the wonderfully autumnal environment while letting him sleep as we drove through the country side, we woke Aidan and brought him inside.

Aidan was grumpy and the process was not quick and easy. He never ended up trying on his tux at the store. My tux needed alterations, but this was done in a matter of minutes. We thought many some food would help Aidan's mood, so we tried to eat some lunch. However, at this point Aidan was hungry and tired — not a good combo.

The early afternoon was a mess and it required an Aidan-nap to get better, but he was too tired and hungry to willingly sleep. And we had the Rehersal coming up in a few hours, which requires Aidan's participation.

To help encourage the nap, Renee and I ended up driving around Danbury; Aidan eventually fell asleep in the car. So we ended up driving around to keep him asleep.

While Aidan was sleeping, we went shopping for some Red Sox World Series stuff and in the process, I got an unintended fringe benefit. I would never have had this experience with purchasing some Red Sox stuff in Texas.

We went to Bob's Stores and they had all of their Red Sox merchendice right near the front door. But I was looking for something for Aidan and didn't see anything his size. So I went to one of the cashiers and asked: "Is this all of your Red Sox stuff?"

She looked at me and sarcastically said: "No. We're all out."

"Oh," I said. "I was looking for something for my little boy. Do you carry anything for toddlers?"

"Um ... not that he needs it or anything, but no, we don't carry anything for toddlers. All of our stuff is out front there."

"Okay. Thanks," I replied and walked back to their display. As I left, I overheard her say to a co-worker: "Why do they always have to ask me?" Ha! She was a Yankee fan. Small pleasures, eh?

We headed back to the hotel and woke him up after a relatively short nap and just a few minutes before we had to go to the church for the rehersal.

Aidan was a little difficult immeadiately following his nap, but after we arrived at the church he was his usual sunny self. He was a darling at the church and was remakably well behaved during the dinner, too, even though we were up way past his usual bed time.

At least we learned a valuable lesson: Make sure Aidan gets a nap in before the wedding....

Lance & Los Lonely Boys

Last night, the company Renee works for sponsored an event celebrating their 25th year in Austin, Texas. Lance Armstrong, who was sponsored by the company during last year's cycling season, was the main speaker for the event.

Renee and I decided that it would be a fun way to kick off our vacation to Connecticut, despite the threat of thunderstorms in the forecast. So, we headed out and through some light sprinkles we got a chance to hear Lance talk — mostly about his last year of racing and the Tour de France. In addition, we got to hear Los Lonely Boys during some heavier rains.

After a short night of fun (and anxiety, as the Red Sox were also playing in the World Series at the same time), we headed out on Thursday morning for Katie and Brian's wedding in Connecticut. The first leg of our trip was from Austin to Dallas; then it was off to Hartford.

As we were landing in Dallas, we learned that Los Lonely Boys were on our plane, just a few rows behind us. Kinda fun.

Anyway, we continued on our way and made it up to Connecticut without incident. We rented a car and headed down to Danbury to get situated in our hotel and visit with Renee's Uncle Charlie and Aunt Carolyn.

To get ready for our visit, we dressed Aidan up in his dragon costume and had him ring the bell. Everyone thought it was a laugh-riot as Aidan was shy and yet excited about being in his costume.

We headed out to dinner at Stew Leonard's, which has some pretty good pizza (good by Texas standards at least), but as we headed out, Uncle Charlie noticed that our rental car had a flat. Nothing like having to change a flat tire while on vacation (I can't remember the last time that I've had to change a tire).

Anyway, Uncle Charlie was very helpful with fixing the flat and our visit with Renee's aunt and uncle was a lot of fun. Aidan seemed to really enjoy both of them as he was running around and tickling (and getting tickled). He even got a chance to ride a red tricycle around in the house (what little kid wouldn't love to do that?) and the adults got a chance to catch up with each other for the first time in nearly four years.

Next on our travel agenda: it's time to get ready for the first portion of the wedding's festivities: The rehersal.

World Series Champions!

Wow. The World Champion Red Sox. No kidding.

This is awesome.

I'm jumping around the house and have a smile plastered on my face.

Final score: 3-0

The Sox never trailed in this World Series. Their last three starting pitchers never gave up an earned run. The Red Sox won eight straight post-season games, a Major League record. They had to beat the Angels (World Series Champs of 2002), the Yankees (the best record in the American League this year), and the Cardinals (best record in all of Major League baseball this year) to win it all.

The final out of the 100th World Series was recorded by a batter wearing the same number as Babe Ruth (3) on a night that featured a lunar eclipse for the very first time in World Series history. If there ever was a curse, it it gone now.

For the first time in 86 years, the Red Sox are the best team in baseball.

World Series - Game Three

Unbelievable. All the things that normally happen to the Red Sox at this point are happening to the other guys. Epic collapse? See the Yankees. Base running gaffes? See the Cardinals.

In what was looking to be another potential "average" game for Pedro, the Cardinals got to him early, putting men on base in the first three innings. At one point there were runners at second and third, with no outs. Pretty much any hit gets in a run, and there were ways to even make an out and still get a run across.

The batter hit the ball to the second baseman, and the Red Sox were in such a configuration that they were essentially allowing the Cardinals to score. Instead, Jeff Suppan, the ex-Boston Red Sox (is he still on the payroll?) got a case of brain freeze and stopped half-way to home plate. The runner was out at first and Suppan looked like a deer caught in the headlights. Better yet, a squirrel that didn't know which way to go on a busy street. Suppan was tagged out at third, killing their best chance at a run.

Instead of scoring a run, with the man on second advancing to third with only one out, there were now two outs and a runner at second. The Cardinals never got a better opportunity because Pedro woke up and retired 14 batters in a row. First time in a long time for Pedro. Game over. Crazy.

Not only have the Sox taken a 3-0 lead in the Series, they haven't trailed for one moment in the game. This is not the Red Sox of old.

Still, there's one more game to go. Anything can happen, as we know, but 86 years of bad luck seem to be turning around. Law of averages or something, right?

There are going to be a whole lot of happy people after the Red Sox win their next game.

Weird fact in case you missed it: The Celtics won their first championship against St. Louis (1957); the Bruins broke a 41-year Stanley Cup drought against St. Louis (1970); and the Patriots won their first Super Bowl against St. Louis (2002).

Beig Plane wit a Kila

We'll be heading out to Connecticut in a few days to attend my cousin Brian's wedding. Aidan has been very excited about the trip and has been talking about it a lot lately.

He's also been talking about time and things that happen in the past and future. However he seems to get easily confused with the words.

For example, he keeps talking about how we went to the Texas Renessaince Festival with Silas and his mom last week. But everything is last week.

We took him for a haircut the other day and offered him a lollipop as a reward for good behavior. He came back with:

"I got my haircut last week and got stickers."

And he's got a lot to say on the wedding:

"My goin to Netikt last week," Aidan would say.

"Yes, we're going to Connecticut next week," I'd answer.

"And I wear a kila and scare Mommy."

"You're what? You're a kilo?" I ask, hoping that I didn't just hear him say "killer."

"No," Aidan says. "I wear a kila."

"Oh. A ... um ... carrot?" I ask again, knowing that it's not a carrot, but not wanting to say "killer."

"No." Aidan makes a deliberate pause. "A kila."

"You ... um ... oh! You're going to wear a tuxedo!"

"Yeaaah. Like you, Daddy. And I scare Mommy," Aidan says as he put his hands up like claws and scowls.

"Why are you going to scare Mommy?"

"And she run away."

"Huh. Really. Why are you scaring Mommy?"

"And we go in a beeeig a-plane to a weddin. And we see Gran-Daddo an Nama Jackie an Auntie Jowie an your mommy."

"Wow. That sounds like fun. What are you going to do there?"

"In a beeeig a-plane, Daddy. An I wear a kila, just like you."

"But," I say again, "what are you going to do there? Are you going to be in charge of the rings?"

"Um. Yeah. I hol 'em," Aidan says. "An we go in a a-plane."

Rinse and repeat three-times daily.

Other recent Aidanisms:

Pretty much any time that Renee and I try to talk to each other and the topic is not about Aidan, he'll put his finger to his mouth and say: "Shhhhh. Baby's sleeping." I'm not too sure where he got this from, but it's regularly said around our house now.

He's also been taking to calling us "Mom" and "Dad" lately. Two-and-a-half years old and we're already Mom and Dad. They sure grow up fast, don't they?

World Series - Games 1 & 2

Wow. Totally amazing for two reasons:

1. No team with any amount of bad World Series karma should be able to win a World Series game if they commit four errors in a game.
2. The Red Sox have won two World Series games and have commited four errors in both games.

The Red Sox had to struggle to win the first game, but they never fell behind, and eventually won 11-9. This despite four errors and two consecutive errors by Manny Ramirez.

The second game is more amazing, if only from a rational perspective. The Sox again commit four errors, but this time, there's no struggle. It was domination from start to finish and an easy 6-2 win.

The other incredible part about Game Two is that Curt Schilling pitched again on his bad ankle and only allowed one unearned run. The story is that, when he woke up that morning, his ankle felt so bad, he thought he wouldn't be able to pitch later that day. But with a few adjustments he managed to get that issue addressed. However, after pitching a few innings,

Schilling said afterward that he tweaked his hip flexor in the third inning — "things keep piling on," he said — and he doesn't want to think about whether he'll pitch again in this series.

Still, how does a team win — not once but twice — with four errors. This completely defies explaination. I'm almost to the point where I feel we can be openly happy about our situation.

Oh, and supposedly, there's going to be a lunar eclipse that will be viewable from St. Louis during Game Four of the World Series. This is the first time in World Series history — this is the 100th Series — that this has happened. I'm not saying it means anything; I'm just putting it out there.

The Good Life (and food)

It looks like there's more evidence that a diet that follows a traditional Mediterranean diet provides lots of health benefits, such as a healthy blood profile, maintains healthy weight, and increases the odds of longevity.

This is particularly interesting to me as I'm trying to accomplish much of what this study seems to encourage, as by definition it looks like I do have the metabolic syndrom. Additionally, and perhaps just as important to me, it also supports a vegetarian diet:

In an Italian study of 180 people with the metabolic syndrome, those who ate a healthy Mediterranean diet had less inflammation and insulin resistance.

Patients on the Mediterranean diet ate twice as much fruit, vegetables, beans, nuts, whole grains, olive oil, and omega-3 fats (largely from fish) — and half as much saturated fat — as the control group. Both groups consumed roughly equal amounts of alcohol, total fat, protein, and carbohydates.

After two years, signs of insulin resistance and inflammation (like C-reactive protein and interleukin-6) were lower and blood vessels were more flexible in the Mediterranean dieters than in the control group.

What's more, the Mediterranean group improved more than the control group on all measures of the metabolic syndrome — large waist size, low HDL ("good") cholesterol, and higher-than-optimal blood sugar, blood pressure, and triglycerides.

Although those in the study did get most of their omega-3 fatty acids from fish, there are plenty of vegetarian sources.

Another study in this particular issues of the Healthletter also mentions that those who follow the above mentioned Mediterranean diet are also less likely to die in their 70s and 80s. Throw in a moderate application of alcohol and regular physical activity, and the study group was 65% less likely to die of any cause during their 70s and 80s, including heart disease and cancer.

Voting in America

A while back, a friend of mine told me that he has no plans to vote this year. He hasn't in the past and he probably won't in the future. The crux of his reasoning, as I understand it, is that he doesn't really like either Presidential candidate (although I think he does prefer one over the other). Additionally, and more fundamental to his decision, he doesn't like the system. In his mind, the system itself is corrupt and essentially broken. So why should he participate if he doesn't like the rules?

After everything that happened in the 2000 Presidential election, there is plenty of evidence to support the idea of a broken, possibly even corrupt system (there are still votes from Florida that have never and will never be counted; Bush only won that state — and the Presidency — by 536 votes).

But here's where I disagree with my friend. I think that we need to get as many people as possible to participate. People need to be encouraged. As fewer people vote, the more elitist the process becomes. And that necessarily means that the people elected will also be more elitist. And that, in my opinion, is just as bas as a broken system.

So, think about it. You may not want either candidate. But one candidate or the other (or even a third party candidate) is probably more palitable than someone else. Think about the things that are important to you. Maybe you are only a single-issue voter. Maybe only social security or the war on terrorism is important to you. That's enough of a reason to go and vote for one of the main Presidential candidates right there.

Go to the polls and let your voice be heard. And more importantly, vote on the local issues. Get a local voting guide and educate yourself on the issues (if you're in Austin, Texas, check out our local voting guide here).

If you are looking for more information about the Presidential Candidates in (I think) a fair and balanced manner (but it never really covers the issues, just looks at their personal histories to this point), I would highly recommend checking out PBS's Frontline. There are video clips you can view online as well as a radio version to listen to, so you should be able to get the information you want in any number of ways. Of course, you can also check your local TV listings and try to catch this on TV as well....

ALCS - Game Seven

It was Mickey Mantle's birthday yesterday. Bucky "Bleeping" Dent threw out the ceremonial first pitch. No team in Major League Baseball history had ever won a post-season series after trailing three games to none.

And as recently as Sunday night, the Red Sox were only three outs away from being eliminated by a team widely regarded as the most successful sports franchise in history. Needless to say, I was very cautiously optimistic about our chances of winning.

But there was a certain swagger about these Red Sox, especially since Game Four. And the Yankees seemed to be uncharacteristically wilting under the pressure as each game progressed.

Johnny Damon started the decisive Game Seven with a hit, then stole second base. Manny Ramirez followed that up with a hit, but as Damon took off for third, he hesitated. Still, he continued on towards home plate. My expectations soared — an early run would be huge — but he was thrown out at the plate.

Aidan, who was hoping and asking when he could clap, started to clap with me as Damon crossed the plate, but we quickly quieted him down. And I was beginning to think that we may have squandered a Great Opportunity.

But Kevin Brown, the Yankees starting pitcher, has had virtually no success against the Red Sox recently. And tonight proved no different.

Aidan finally got his chance to clap immeadiately following the missed Opportunity. David Oritz hit a home run, putting the Sox up 2-0 (I still couldn't help thinking that it would have been 3-0 if it weren't for the play at the plate).

Brown then loaded the bases in the top of the second inning by allowing a hit and two consectutive walks. And up came Damon again. First pitch from a new pitcher and the ball flew out of Yankee Stadium. Huge.

When Damon hit his grand slam, Aidan was in the bathroom using the potty with Renee. I started yelling and clapping. Aidan and Renee both came running out hooting and hollering and then we all stood in front of the TV clapping and clapping. Aidan was very pleased. And the Red Sox were up 6-0 after only two innings. Crazy.

Derek Lowe pitched a great game, allowing only one hit and one run, but was lifted in the seventh inning with an 8-1 lead for Pedro Martinez. I'm not sure why this move was made, and this was a potentially huge mistake. Suddenly, the very quiet Yankee fans came to life, probably thinking that Pedro would be the cure to what ails them. He promptly gave up two runs. The crowd goes nuts and I start getting more apprehensive. But he retires the side with no further damage.

At this point the Red Sox were up 8-3 and I was starting to get a little nervous. Too much history, too many bad breaks. All the bad omens, like Mickey Mantle's birthday. But my sister's birthday is the same day. That has to count for something, doesn't it? And what more could a Red Sox fan ask for on her birthday?

A Red Sox win. And that's what she got.

For the first time ever in MLB history, and for only the third time in the four major North American leagues (out of 239 chances), the Red Sox overcame a 3-0 deficit in a best-of-seven series to win, joining the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs and the 1975 New York Islanders (the Leafs won the Stanley Cup in accomplishing their feat while the Islanders nearly accomplished the feat twice in the same season, losing 4-3 to the Flyers in the Stanley Cup Finals).

Still, regardless of what happens in the World Series, the Red Sox have accomplished something pretty amazing, while the Yankees are now saddled with the most dubious post-season accomplishment in baseball history. Quite a turn of events.

On my way to work today, I heard a story on NPR about the Red Sox win and it sent chills down my back. I suddenly wanted to roll down my window and shout at the top of my lungs, honk my horn and go crazy. But somehow that seemed a little out of place in the middle of grid-locked MoPac in Austin, Texas.

And to all those Yankee fans out there who are finally (and for the first time) experiencing what it's like (if however briefly) to be a Red Sox fan, I offer these sincere and heart-felt words:

Good luck next year.

ALCS - Game Six

I had to watch the game, regardless of superstition. Curt Schilling was back, his ankle still bothering him and blood showing on his sock from the sutures keeping his tendons in place. Insane.

And the result was insane. Put this in historical perspective: 25 teams in Major League Baseball history have been down 3-0 in a seven game playoff series. None of them have been able to force a game seven. The best any team has done was the 1998 Atlanta Braves and the 1999 New York Mets; each lost their respective series 4-2.

The Red Sox are the first. Schilling pitched a magificient game, Arroyo gave me an ulcer, and Foulke made me dizzy, but the Red Sox pulled it out, winning Game Six 4-2 and forcing the definitive Game Seven.

The two teams have actually pitched enough innings to qualify Game Seven as Game Eight; the two extra-inning games played in this series are only one inning short of the equivilant of a nine-inning game.

Still, regardless of what happens tonight, win or lose, the Red Sox have put the fear of Steinbrenner into the Yankees and Yankee fans. The Yankees at this point are the ones playing with an ungodly amount of pressure, while, as Bill Simmons mentioned, "this Red Sox team is still playing with the house's money."

ALCS - Game Five

I am exhausted. I don't think I'm capable of watching any more baseball. And actually, I haven't been watching much of the last two games. It appears that when I do watch the game, the Red Sox don't do too well. I submit as evidence, the two-run first inning of Game Five for the Red Sox: Bases-loaded, one out. I turn the game on and the inning is over. I then watch the top of the second inning and Pedro serves up a home run to the first batter he faces. I turn the game off and they keep the lead. Except that I turn the game back on and then the Red Sox give up three more runs to fall behind 4-3.

I'm obviously not allowed to watch these games.

But I can keep track of them on the Internet, which is really quite annoying. I just sit there continually hitting the "refresh" button, hoping that there's isn't too much lag between game-time and Internet-time.

But I couldn't take it anymore. With the game finally tied 4-4 and heading into extra innings, I thought, perhaps, that I should take a peek on the TV. But I stood fast and continued to keep up to date with the Internet. That lasted until the 13th inning. I finally gave in.

I turned on the game, only it took me a while to find out what channel it was on (turned out to be on FX). The Red Sox didn't score in the bottom of the 13th. And I wasn't about to watch the top of the 14th, mostly because I couldn't stomach it and also for superstitious reasons. So I channel surfed.

I arrived back at the game at the exact moment that the very first batter stepped into the batters box for the Red Sox half of the inning. A good omen, I thought. And so it was. With two outs and runners on first and second, David Ortiz hit a lazy ball into shallow left-center and Johnny Damon was able to come around to score. We won.

On to New York for Game Six. Who is going to pitch for either team is a bit of a mystery as the two teams have played 26 innings, exhausting both bull pens and even used several starters to get through the games.

Yet it looks like the Red Sox will be able to pitch Curt Schilling for Game Six, which is either a good thing or a bad thing, depending on his ankle....

And, as usual, here's Bill Simmon's take on Game Five.

ALCS - Games Three & Four

Well, I was hoping that I could just combine the last two games into one and then be done with it. However, it seems as though the pain and misery will live on a little longer.

In what was pretty much a must-win situation, the Red Sox came out swinging in game three. A three game sweep in Fenway Park would give them a shot at winning the series, anything less leaves them having to try and pull out a game in Yankee Stadium, a place they have struggled to win.

Yet, despite their ability to score runs in Game Three, the Yankees scored more. A lot more. Final score: Too Many to eight. I watched some of this game. It was high-scoring and took forever to play (a post-season record for a nine-inning game, as I understand it). I turned it off when it was 12-8; my dad called to update me that he too was going to bed. It was 13-8.

As usual, Bill Simmon's take.

This effectively ended the Red Sox season. Sunday night's game was a mere formatily. And my secret hope was that they would just go quietly into the night so I can put this silly baseball season behind me. At this point, the only positive thing that I've gotten out of this season was that I learned that Howie Long, one of the all-time great players on one of my all-time favorite teams (the Raiders) is also a life-long Red Sox fan. He's got my vote for President.

Instead, the Red Sox won last night. They are now losing the series 3-1. The Yankees need only one more win and have up to three more chances to get that win. Two of those three chances are in New York.

Baby Dragons

The other night, Aidan and I were at home alone, while Renee was out grocery shopping. I was trying to encourage him to go to sleep, but he kept telling me that he wanted to "go to night," while pointing to the east. I thought that was terribly odd and I wasn't sure how he knew that it got dark in the east before it got dark in the west.

So, we got into my car and I drove around until he fell asleep. Only later did I realize that Renee had told him that we were going to see knights.

And that's exactly what we did yesterday. We went to the Texas Renaissance Festival with Silas and his mom. Silas and Aidan both dressed up as little dragons and both were quite popular. Every was taking their picture. At first they were a little shy, but soon they were hamming it up, holding hands and posing.

It did get pretty hot, and I'm sure the cosutmes weren't helping things any, but both Silas and Aidan seemd to enjoy the attention. They would take it off when we took breaks for food and drink, but would want to put the dragon outfits back on as soon as we started walking again. It was very cute.

Unfortunately, we don't have any pictures from the event. We did bring the camera, but we forgot the battery at home in its charger. But even if we had brought the battery, it wouldn't have mattered, as there was only room for about seven more pictures on memory card. Oh well.

Still, we had a very good time. The very moment we arrived, Aidan wanted to "see the knight." While we couldn't see them right away, we did share with him where the knights could be expected to be found on the map. From that point forward, he enthusiastically point to the map and say "that's where the knight is, next to the swimming pool" (it's beside a small pond).

Dinosaur Roar

Aidan read his second book the other night (the first book was back in March)...

The book is Dinosaur Roar, and while he doesn't actually read it, he definitely has it memorized; he can go through the whole book, page by page, and recite what is supposed to be said for each section.

He's also starting to sing along with songs on his favorite CDs. We normally listen to a Wiggles CD on the way to school in the morning and he'll sing virtually all of the words to most of the songs and he'll even hum the guitar solos (or sometimes the kazoo solos).

ALCS - Game Two

Ugh. The Red Sox have scored enough runs at this point in the series to have won a game, except they allocated the runs to the wrong games. If we could have taken the runs scored in game one and swapped them with the run scored in game two, the series would be even. Instead, the Sox lose and are now down 2-0 in the series.

According to FOX, the Yankees have won 14 of 16 series when up 2-0. Not a lot of hope there. And the last 13 teams to fall behind 2-0 in the LCS have lost the series. Even less hope there.

At least the teams now play in Boston, but the Sox need to sweep the Yankees in there — win all three games there — to have any hope at all. And they will have to do this with the likes of "Brandon" Arroyo, Wakefield and Lowe. And it looks like Schilling is done for the rest of the season, how ever long that may actually be.... Huh. Not a whole lot of hope there either.

Check out Bill Simmon's Page Two article for a candid blow-by-blow account of the game, which is a strong reflection of how I saw the game, too. And I was thinking that Jack Nicholson thing back in the first game.... (you'll understand after reading Simmon's piece.)

And FOX's coverage of the game continues to annoy. Have there always been that many close-up shots of people's faces during a baseball game and I've just now became sensitive to it, or was this new? It was driving me crazy last night. And they kept cutting away to other "features" or replays and barely got back to the live action in time, sometimes missing it entirely; they once kept the Red Sox second-baseman in frame as he fielded the ball and threw it to first, never actually showing if he got the runner out at first.

ALCS - Game One

All day long I've had to explain and talk about the game to co-workers. By the end of the day, I was so excited, annoyed, anxious, etc., that I was too tired to even care. But that's crazy talk.

At one point, I even fell asleep. This is a true statement. Yankees/Red Sox, American League Championship Series and I fell asleep. I'm getting old.

By the way, I fell asleep while trying to put Aidan to sleep, not while watching the game, although the game was on at the time (and we were losing 6-0).

The game was good. I guess. It was sort of exciting. But out of everything that happened, I just didn't want Mussina to pitch a perfect game. I would have been happy with a shutout loss. Luckily, Mussina lost his bid for the perfect game. Bill Simmons from ESPN's Page Two did a great job of recounting the game, so I won't bore you with my version, other than to say "whatever he said goes for me too."

And about FOX's coverage of the game ... they did a terrible job. I really hate that flaming radar gun reading. And Scooter. The first time I saw Scooter was back in April when FOX broadcast the first Red Sox/Yankees game of the season. I thought it was a terrible idea then and it sure didn't get any better last night.

Tim McCarver ... was an idiot. Not only did he get the name of a Red Sox pitcher wrong (called him Brandon Arroyo; his name is Bronson), but he then pitted "Brandon" Arroyo against Pedro Martinez in Game Two. Now that would be worth watching.

Al Leiter was the highlight for FOX, but he seemed timid at times. His observations were right on, and I liked to hear how he thought his fellow pitchers were doing, as well as his insights into strategies they might try to implement. But he looked uncomfortable wedged in between McCarver and Joe Buck. That might have been because there wasn't much room for another human sitting in a chair to fit between McCarver and Buck ...

But all of this is just evidence to tell you: I wanted to win this game, but I didn't have very high hopes, not even before the game started. The Red Sox won game one against the Yankees last year and it didn't amount to much (we lost the series). The Sox won the first game in the '86 World Series. Heck, they won the first two games of that series, and that didn't amount to much either.

On the other side, the Yankees had lost the first game in a post-season series four consecutive times, only losing one of those series (to the Florida Marlins).

The Sox do need to get it together tonight; a win gives the Sox home field advantage. A loss means they have to win all three games at Fenway Park to have a chance. Not impossible, but definitely difficult.

Probability Waves & Baseball

I've been listening to Fabric of the Cosmos on my daily commute and the section that I'm on currently is discussing the nature of time and probability waves. I find this all very fascinating and thought I'd share a little bit here.

Waves of all types are very similar. Seen one wave, you've seen them all. The easiest wave to describe is a wave in water, since we can actually see the waves in motion. (I've simplified my example a bit in order to help keep the main point in focus.)

Let's say that you have two rocks that you throw into a calm pond. You throw one rock to your right and one to your left. What will happen is that the waves generated from each rock will eventually meet. The resulting pattern of waves, also known as the interference pattern, depends on how the waves interact. For example, if the waves from both sides meet at their crest, the resultant wave will be twice as high as it was originally. If the waves meet at their troughs, the resultant trough will be twice as deep. If one wave is at its crest while meeting a wave at its trough, then the waves cancel each other out and the result is flat water.

Light waves would interact in a similar way, except that the trough would be dark and the crest would be bright. Commingling two beams of light with different waves would produce an interference pattern with regions that would be considered a base-line brightness (the strength of just one beam of light) with bright and dark regions.

Scientists have conducted studies in which they split a laser beam from its original source into two beams. These two beams are then converged at a single point, and the result is an interference pattern. This is interesting considering that pointing a laser beam directly at one point doesn't result in an interference pattern. Thus, when a single beam is split in two, each beam takes on properties of their own and do not necessarily have the properties of the "original" beam.

The next experiment was the same as the previous one, except to slow down the rate of the laser beam so that only one photon would be released at a time. Statistically, it would seem, each photon would have a 50/50 chance of going to the left or right at the splitter. At the final end-point, one could expect to find the photon and discover if it was coming from the left or the right when it was measured.

However, what actually happens is that there's no way to determine if the photon came from the right or left. What results from this experiment is an interference pattern. Meaning the photon came from both the left and the right. Pretty crazy, eh?

Scientists use quantam mechanics to help explain this (and the clever thing about quantam mechanics is that it doesn't allow for you to go back and verify the experiement — by interacting with the test subject (for example, measuring it), you will alter the end result, thus making the whole process self-defeating).

What quantam mechanics has to say about about a single photon producing an interference pattern is this: it travels in a probability wave. That is, a photon doesn't occupy a single point in space, but travels instead as a probabilty wave.

Basically, and as I grasp the answer, what we are seeing is the whole history of time. The probability cloud produced by the photon is, as Richard Feynman stated a "sum of histories" that particals might travel over any given point in time, going back to the beginning of time. This means that a probability cloud is taking into account all of time all at one moment.

But why doesn't something like a baseball show properties of a probability cloud? Why does a baseball, when hit to the outfield, travel in one definite path with one definite end-point? Well, first of all, we are actually observing a baseball. If we were to observe a photon, it would stop travelling as a probability wave and travel like a particle. This is part of the frustration of proving such a theory. And the cleverness of quantam mechanics.

Still, we can also answer the baseball question in terms of quantum theroy: The answer here is that it does travel with a probability cloud. However, a baseball is relatively large (enourmous, really), and its average trajectory — or sum of histories — is pretty much what we see; there really isn't all that much deviation for something as large as a baseball.

Yet on a quantam scale, on the scale of something the size of a photon for example, there is a discrepency in trajectory.

Still, considering the state of Red Sox baseball, if there are any dropped balls or if any infielder has problems fielding a ball during the course of the next couple weeks ... well, it might not have been the outfielder's fault entirely. I'm not saying it's a curse, exactly, but maybe a probability wave run amuck.

Title Hopes, Part 3

Well, here we go again. Just like eveyone planned. It's the American League Championship Series, starring the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees for the third time since 1999.

The hope, at least for me and every other Red Sox fan, is that the Sox are at least five outs better than last year.

I see the series going seven games again: the teams will probably split the first two games in New York, the Sox will win two out of three in Boston, and then the last two games will be up for grabs, much like last year.

But with the addition of Schilling, I have to say that I like our chances in game seven, if it comes to that. But the teams are very evenly matched, so it really could go either way. It will be interesting to see how intense this series turns out to be, as last year the Yankees lost to the Florida Marlins in the World Series, and some attribute that to the Yankees just being too exhausted from the series with the Sox.

Stem Cell Research & Iraq

This has been gnawing at me since I heard it and I just have to get this out of my system ...

I wasn't able to watch much of the Presidential Debate on Friday, but I did see some of it. The one full section that I was able to see was about stem cell research. And during the President's turn to speak I discovered that Bush can be deep and insightful. Sort of.

What happend is that I became very confused about Bush's stance on stem cell research and mapping that to the Iraq war. For example in the debate President Bush said, regarding stem cell research:

"To destroy life to save life is - it's one of the real ethical dilemmas that we face."

And he goes on to say:

"I had to make the decision do we destroy more life, do we continue to destroy life."

And, ultimately, his stance is against stem cell research — or at least there he will not endorse further destruction of embryos past what has already been done.

It seems as though he put a lot of thought into stem cell research, understanding the benefits and consequences and where that all fits into his beliefe system. When it's all tallied up, it seems as though he is not fully supporting stem cell research, despite the benefits, since it "destroys life."

Mapping this over to the Iraq war ....

It is fairly common military-speak for people to say that it is necessary (and good) to sacrifice life for the betterment of a particular situation, especially once a war has started. Ideally, we're talking about soldiers here and not civilians, but the reality of it is that civilians do get hurt and killed.

So, I'm confued. Sacrificing the lives of grown adults (and civilian children) is okay, especially if we can depose a hated leader (and despite any other consequences, such as civil unrest/war, etc.), but destoying embryos isn't okay, even if in doing so, we find the cure for terrible diseases.

Am I missing something here? Wouldn't the more consistent view be to oppose or be in favor of both (i.e., be for the war and for stem cell research, or against the war and against stem cell research)? Or is that just too simplistic?

Quit Your Cursing

Well, it happend almost like I predicted. The Yankees swept the Twins, effectively forcing a rematch between the Yankees and Twins in the post-season, which is a good thing for the Red Sox.

But this means that the Sox have to face the Angels (and not the A's). While the Sox are not as strong against the Angles as they were against the A's in the regular season, this matchup is still more favorable for the Sox than a Red Sox/Twins series would be.

So, things are looking good, or at least going the Red Sox way in the early goings. However, there's no way they can win the World Series if people keep saying they will win. it just doesn't work like that ...

Whole Grains for General Mills

Kudos to General Mills!

General Mills announced Thursday that it will convert all of its breakfast cereals to whole grain.

General Mills spokesman Tom Johnson said the whole-grain conversion will include 29 cereals, including Trix, Golden Grahams, Lucky Charms and Rice Chex. Other General Mills cereals, such as Wheaties, Cheerios and Total, already were made with whole grain.

Lona Sandon, a nutritionist at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, said the new whole-grain cereals will be a huge improvement from their predecessors.