Must ... Play ... Magic ...

I've hosted a few Magic nights at my house or at a friend's house and they have been generally well received. I've had friends ask me when I'm going to have an event next. I have over fifty assembled decks of varying power levels ready to go whenever I get the opportunity to play. I have a complete set of boxes from the last two blocks ready to be drafted. But I haven't been able to find a time and a place to get together with friends and play. It's difficult to carve out time when all of my other obligations take precedence. And our house is not air-conditioned, making it ill-suited to summer gatherings.

One of the seemingly inexplicable parts of this whole situation is that I have a potential partner who refuses to learn how to play. My wife is an enthusiatic if not avid game player. We play Carcassone, Settlers of Catan, Power Grid, and Fluxx with friends. We'll play Hearts, Spades, and Bridge with other people. We play Hera and Zeus on occasion against each other. So it's not like she doesn't like playing games or only likes traditional games or hates card games. But not Magic. Ever. In all of the time that we've been together we may have played once.

But I'm seriously jones-ing for a game. As Jorge says "Nothing is better than attacking for two."

This weekend

This weekend was an extraordinarily productive weekend in the Rock household. Friday my wife stopped by Schnucks and picked up the Rug Doctor. While she steam-cleaned away to her heart's content on Friday and Saturday, Oliver and I went for walks. By the end of the day on Saturday the house smelled much less like cat urine than it had for a long time.

Sunday dawned bright and early in the Rock household. My wife and I decided to do some rearrangement of the furniture. Which would have worked well, except Oliver did not enjot being confined as we circled about him carrying heavy objects. We decided to call Sarahlynn and Paul to see if they could watch Oliver while we hefted and shifted. We were in luck - they had nothing more strenuous planned than a trip to the pool. My wife took Oliver to their house and dropped him off. We spent the rest of the day moving furniture about.

In the family room, we moved the TV in front of the windows in anticipation of having an entertainment center. Then we moved the couch against the fireplace, conceding that it is unlikely that we'll ever pay to fix it. The love seat fit in the spot vacated by the TV and a recliner came down from exile to take the place of a chaise lounge that had been downstairs. The net effect is that there is a lot more space in the family room and Oliver's toys have a corner that they can move into.

In our bedroom, we took apart the frame and shoved the bed in the corner of the room. That opened up a nice sized area so that we could place our night stands by the corner of the bed and put the chaise lounge from downstairs into our bedroom. This arrangement helps us with our peace of mind since Oliver still sleeps with us and can now crawl. We'll be buying some pillows to surround the bed in the case that he should crawl off the edge.

At the end of the day, we were pretty pleased with all that we were able to accomplish. It took us back to the days B.O. when we were able to be much more productive. But I think that we'll definitely take all of the days P.O.

Not a good week for Family pets

This morning my mother called to say that they took Paddy, our family's black dog, to the vet to be put to sleep.

This has NOT been a good week for family pets.

On Saturday, I took Ashon to the Humane Society. My wife and I had made the decision earlier in the week. I had called the Humane Society earlier in the week to see what the situation was with regard to the kennel space. No answer - left a message - no response. Saturday morning I got called in to work. On my way home I called the Humane Society to see if there was kennel space. No answer - didn't leave a message.

When I got back, I immediately grabbed our cat carrier (it's really a dog carrier that we found at a garage sale but it works when you are ferrying two cats to the vet). I brought it upstairs to the kitchen and cleaned it out. It seemed like such an odd gesture - like the alcohol swab on the needle before a lethal injection. But for some reason I wanted to make sure that that carrier was clean.

I found Ashon sitting on the basement steps and brought him into the kitchen. I called my wife in to the kitchen. She tearfully said her good byes and then I put him into the crate. Ashon doesn't like the crate and he let me know as soon as he was in there. I carried him out to the car and put him in the back seat. Ashon doesn't like the car and he let me know the whole way to the Humane Society. As he's howling part of my mind is trying to figure out if this is making it easier or harder to give him up.

I knew that this was going to be hard when I pulled up in front of the Humane Society. There was this big high school age guy sitting on the front steps unabashedly bawling his eyes out. I went in to the waiting room and found that it was full. Not a good sign, I thought. There was another college age woman there giving up her cat because she didn't have time to take care of him. And there were a couple of other dog owners. Some of the dog owners were in the wrong area. One family was giving up their dog because the mother had gotten another job in Chicago and couldn't take the dog with them.

Then it was my turn. I talked to one of the attendants briefly who outlined that they were short on space and Ashon was unlikely to make it to the adoption floor. After hearing this I called another shelter and asked if there was room. I was told to try back another day. Another attendant asked me what I was doing and I told her that I was thinking about giving up my cat. She said "Well, if he's one of ours then we have to take him back."

I want to say that I did everything in my power to help make sure that the cat got the best chance at continued living, but I didn't. I put his cage on the counter and filled out the paperwork. Honestly. Which means that I wrote down that he'd bitten me. Which means that I wrote down that he was peeing all over our house. Which means that I heard that other attendant say that he was unlikely to make it to the floor and still left him there. I really want to tell you that I think that Ashon is available for adoption. But I knew that as soon as I left the house that he would probably not make it to the adoption floor. I could have taken him home and tried again another day when there might have been more space at the Humane Society or another shelter. It's not like Ashon would have bitten Oliver this week. A good person would have had the decency to do that. Wouldn't he? Instead I left. I came home and cried with my wife.

I'm sure that having Ashon in the house was not a good long term idea. I know that giving him up is the best decision. I just went about it poorly. I'll often jokingly volunteer that I'm a bad person. Maybe I'm not joking

Mornings with Ollie

This morning was the first morning that Oliver and I did what will become our normal morning routine. The cat woke me at 5:30 with his mewling. Filled food dish back to bed. Then Oliver woke me up screaming around 6:00. Bellow for wife attempt to change diaper. After my wife finished nursing Oliver I was faced with a dilemma - attempt to garner as much sleep as he'll allow me or start my day with a run. Regretfully I got up and got dressed. Oliver and I went for a short run down to the park and back. For the next hour or so, I tried to get ready for work while not leaving Oliver alone for long enough stretches that he would notice that I was gone and begin crying. When I finally had him ready to go I carried his day care bag, my work bag, and, oh yeah, Oliver out to the car for the ride into work. For the past nine months I've been commuting at 5:45a and 3:30p so the traffic was a bit of a new beast to deal with. Twenty minutes later Oliver was safely ensconced at day care and I was on my way to the office. It's just that now I need a nap.

Getting rid of my cat

Last night my wife and I made the overdue decision to get rid of one of our cats. Ashon has been with us since we moved into the house five years ago. At his best he is the kind of cat that will walk up to you, snuggle in, let you pet him, and then nap in your lap. When you are getting the water ready for a shower, he'll stick his nose in the water and lap it up as it comes out of the faucet. He's very friendly - I don't think a single salesman or workman has come through our house without the cat rubbing himself up against them. He'd be perfect for an elderly woman with no cats who just wants someone to talk to. But we aren't that family.

Ashon has a number of annoying habits. He is very insistent when it comes to the punctuality of his meals. He will howl outside the range of reach until someone gets out of bed and feeds him. At 5:30 am, 3:30pm, 6:00pm, and sometimes 9:00pm. He is a fat cat, which means that any food that is left in the dish will be gobbled up whether it's his dish or the other cat's. As a fat cat, he is fearless. That means that even if you are stomping down the stairs with a loaded laundry hamper, he won't move. I can't tell you how many times I've stepped on him or tripped over him. I don't mind that so much except for when I'm carrying Oliver. He has a sixth sense that enables him to figure out where you are going to go next so that you can trip over him again. He is the dominant cat in our house and will pounce on the other cat and groom him.

Ashon has developed the unfortunate habit of peeing on our furniture when he's angry with us. This has been an ongoing problem since we got him. Couches, rugs, love seats - you name it he's sprayed it. At this point our house smells like one big litter box. It doesn't bother me all that much - I have almost no sense of smell, but my wife complains about the smell constantly. It also becomes a problem when we leave for a weekend and come back to a game of what-did-he-hit-now.

I think that we could deal with all of his bad habits. But at his worst, he is borderline dangerous. Twice I've been bitten on the hand by him and sent to the hospital. In his own defense, once he was cornered and once he was reacting the the unnaturalness that is a pug, but he has also gotten hissy and spitty when he was cornered by some toddlers at my birthday party a couple of years ago. Given that we will soon have a toddler of our own, this may be the right time to get rid of the cat. I can't risk the possibility of Ashon biting Oliver.

This isn't a decision that I take lightly. But I have to do it. So this Saturday I'll take him down to the Humane Society. And it just breaks my heart.

A Strange Day all around

Today has been a strange day all around. First off, after months of talking about it, my wife and I have made the day shift. I'm now the Morning-Get-Oliver-To-Day-Care guy and my wife is the Rescue-Oliver-From-Day-Care gal. So I got to sleep in a little bit today and tend to Oliver's morning needs. He didn't want a bottle and he didn't want food, so this may end up being a struggle, but we'll see. We ended up meeting my wife in this same manner that we had been meeting her in the afternoon - this time in the morning.

Then I took Oliver to day care. When we got there the downstairs door was wide open and the lights were flashing. Ummm not a good sign. I took Oliver to his room and his caregiver explained that the center had lost power when the storms hit and they would be open for a while, but at 1:00, they would have to send the kids home because it would be too warm. In the mean time if the power came on, they could keep the kids the full day. Okay... So I called my wife and we arranged for her to pick Oliver up from day care when the center had to shut down. It was just odd to leave him in such an obviously unsecure place. I mean I lived in Chicago and had to have a school day locked in the gym when Laurie Dann went psycho. That's the last thing I want to have going through my mind dropping my son off at day care.

Now I'm midway through a work day that's usually almost over by now. It shouldn't feel that way, but it does.

Furniture shopping part II

With young Oliver getting ready to start crawling, my wife and I went furniture shopping this weekend in search of an entertainment center. Our requirements were 1) it would fit but not dwarf our 27" TV, 2) it should have pocket doors, 3) it would preferably have a darker finish, 4) it should be solid wood and not particle board, and 5) we should be able to get the piece for close to $800.

Pieper's had nothing in stock like what we needed. Thomasville and Ethan Allen were amazingly overpriced. We finally found something at Broyhill at Brentwood Crossing that was close to what we were looking at. The salesman greeted us with the "good news" that everything was marked down 20%. The piece that we were looking at was marked down to "only $920" (pre-tax) We told the salesman that we were looking to spend more like $800. As we were leaving the store, he hailed us and said that he felt like a used car salesman and $920 was the most that he could offer, but he'd go to see his manager to see what he could do. When he came back he said that his manager would go as low as $860 (pre-tax) - any more and they wouldn't cover their costs. I'm thinking that it was amazing that exactly halfway between what we wanted to spend and their sale price was the amount at which they would not make their profits below. The used car salesman disguise seems to be holding up. Post-tax even $860 is over $900, so we're still in the market for an entertainment center.

Oliver's not crawling yet, but he's on his way. If only we could say the same about the entertainment center.

A Whole New World

My wife tells me that Oliver is likely going to move from the Infant room that he's in now to the Transition room. The big move is going to happen because Oliver is going to be big and mobile enough to fend off the bigger kids. Big is onvious, but did I say mobile? Oliver looks like he'll be crawling any day now. He's getting on to all fours somewhat reliably now. Then will come to rocking and then off her goes. Very exciting stuff. Especially since my wife and I may have the least baby-proofed house ever. Our piles of stuff have piles of crap.

Looks like soon all of us will be in a whole new world.

A good customer experience

Last night, my wife and I decided to go shopping for flooring for the soon-to-be-crawling Oliver's playroom and a part for the soon-to-be-rehung kitchen fan. We stopped by Home Depot on Hanley. We couldn't find the part for the fan, so we went to the flooring depertmant and checked out their selection. We couldn't find anyone to help us and ended up just checking prices. Then on a whim, we decided to head down the street to the new Lowe's on Hanley. We went in the store and buzzed around the fan aisle again not finding anyone there or our part. Then I hit the call button and the goodness began. A very helpful employee named Antonio showed up and helped my wife look for the part in question. He didn't find it, but I can say that every nearby aisle was scoured for said part. Giving up we headed over to flooring, which was actually Antonio's department. I asked a couple of questions about the difference between two types of flooring. Not only did Antonio know what he was talking about (not a frequent occurance at the big chain stores), but he took the time to tell me about each type of flooring available. When my wife and I decided that we wanted the one type of flooring that they had successfully clearanced out, Antonio was there offering to call stores in other areas to get us what we needed. Eventually Oliver's patience ran out before we were able to get the flooring ordered, but Antonio said that he'd check on it the next day. I was so impressed with his performance that I found his manager and told him that it had been a good experience.

On the way out of the store, I reflected that I felt good for a) having had a good customer experience and b) taking the extra step to make sure that Antonio would be rewarded for his diligence.

The benefits of a week in AZ

One of the big benefits for me as a father for my trip to AZ is that I'm getting better at recognizing when Oliver is tired and getting him to go down for a nap. I wouldn't say quite yet that I'm proficient at it, but I'm getting better. Yesterday I got him to go down for a hour and a half nap. If we can keep this up, it will free up some time for me to get stuff done around the house.

One of the big benefits for Oliver is that he was with at least one of us 24/7 and got to spend a lot of time rolling around on the floor. This week we are starting to see the fruits of that time - my little man is getting ready to get ready to crawl. He's just about at the point where he'll get up on hands and knees reliably. I just hope that I'll be there for the big moment when he starts crawling around.

But it's a wet heat

I'm back, so all of you stalkers can get back to stalking me. I just got back from Phoenix. While I wasn't excited by the prospect of spending a week in Phoenix in August, I was looking forward to spending some time with Oliver.

The weather in Phoenix cooperated to some degree. Many of the days that we were there, it rained in the valley of the sun. It made it a little more humid, but the taste I had of dry heat was somewhat unconvincing.

Being a dad on vacation was a bit odd in that I was always looking for something that we could do that Oliver would enjoy. What could he touch or see that would be exciting to him? While I would have enjoyed going rock climbing more often, it wasn't something that I could do with Oliver. The Desert Botanical Garden was interesting, but again not much that I'd prefer that Oliver touch. Still we got some good pictures of our trip which I'll post later this week.

As it was I ended up getting sick and thus spent a lot of time with Oliver in the hotel room. Being a single-ish parent when you are well is difficult, but it becomes that much more difficult when you are sick. My wife helped out by bringing Oliver with her to meals so that I could nap.

Saturday we drove from Phoenix to the Grand Canyon, detouring through Sedona. On the way back to Flagstaff where we were staying that night, Oliver let us know that this was entirely too much driving in one day. The next day we had to drive two hours from Flagstaff to Phoenix to catch our three hour flight home. Oliver let us (and many people on the flight) know that this was also too much travel in one weekend.