Paintball

There are some things that I will never understand. Like the attraction men (even smallish ones) have to that which is violent and aggressive and competitive. The constant need to prove who is the toughest. It must be something in the DNA.

Paintball is a game (some call it a sport) where the goal is to shoot your opponent with a little ball of paint that is blasted out of a small, light (and expensive, I might add) air-pressurized gun. The battle takes place in any number of locations, usually at the end of a gravel road in the middle of nowhere. A course is set up in a field or a yard or an abandoned parking lot. There are junk cars, makeshift "buildings" and blow-up barriers that serve as a maze that the players navigate as they "kill" one another. If you get shot, you are out of the game. The team that has the last man or men standing wins. There are prizes, but mostly the winners get bragging rights in exchange for about $100, which covers the entry fee and a case of paintballs.

Yesterday David and Al had some male bonding time as they travelled to Cedar Rapids for the night, and then to Shellsburg, Iowa (which is a "blink-and-you-miss-it" town just north of CR) for a tournament. David's team got second place out of 12. Not bad for 5 city boys.

I just wish he would put as much energy into his school work.

Photo Shoot

So I'm taking this online class on how to take portraits, and it requires some practice. So yesterday, since Al and David were on an overnight paintballing trip, Hannah and I set up the family room as a "studio." The assignment was to use window light and a reflector to shoot good portraits. Here are some of the results.

The lighting pretty much stunk since it was raining all day, so I may have to try it again today. But I'm getting the general sense that I shouldn't give up my day job just yet....

And so we begin again...

There are a few indisputable signs of spring....birds building their nests in our bushes, Al tilling the garden in the never-ending quest for prize pumpkins (somebody please tell me why he has chosen pumpkins, of all things!) and Hannah crouched behind home plate. Life once again moves at lightning speed as we race between games, practices, end-of-school-year events, and weddings (I think Darrin has had a wedding to sing at every weekend since the beginning of April.) But I don't mind. In case you didn't know, I loathe winter. So when the weather holds consistently above 50 degrees, even if it is accompanied by grey skies and a continuous drizzle, I am happy. I really don't mind the inevitable spring "cold" that hits when the pollen count hits near lethal levels (no, I do NOT have allergies!) I certainly don't mind mud puddles, though I'd prefer not to wade up to my ankles to take the dog into the back yard to poop. I sleep best in a thunderstorm. And I absolutely LOVE the daffodils and tulips that bloom in everyone elses' yard, even if I am insanely jealous about the fact that every deer and rabbit in a ten-mile radius seems to know that the smorgasbord is located at in my yard!

Ah yes, Spring is here!!

Photography 101

I was working on a scrapbook page today and I was looking for some "But-Bomb" photos. (This was David's way of pronouncing Batman.) You see, David went through at least two Batman costumes between about 2 and 4 years of age. He wore But-Bomb all day - He slept in his But-Bomb costume, he went to daycare as But-Bomb, he rode his tricycle to But-Bomb's house. But I digress...

I found at least a dozen photos, but this was the best. When I found it I laughed for at least five minutes - not only because a flood of But-Bomb memories overtook me, but more because I realized just how BAD I was as a photographer back in 1994. There are several rules for proper photo composition that I violated severely. Here are just a few:

1. Place your subject's eyes at the line that crosses the top third of the photo (David's eyes can't be seen, but if they could they would be at about the top 1/8th of the photo

2. Move in close to avoid unnecessary "dead' space around your subject (like half the photo being of the carpet!)

But the most important rule is this:

3. Avoid accidentally including a toilet in your photo (Oops!)

For those of you who have given me accolades for my photos, this is solid proof that photography is a learned skill. Oh, and here is the final product of today's work. Click on the photo if you'd like to read the journaling.

Reflections on a Half-Century of Life

Exactly 50 years ago today – April 5, 1959 – I made my first appearance on the planet. I love those websites where you can look up important events in history. So I looked up what was happening in 1959. Here are some highlights:

•Alaska became the 49th State of the United States
•Hawaii became the 50th State of the United States
•Fidel Castro came to power in Cuba, creating the first communist state in the west
•Mattel's Barbie Doll was launched
•NASA introduced America's first astronauts, John H. Glenn Jr, and Alan Shepard Jr., to the world
•The US Grammy Music Awards started
•The last musical from Rodgers and Hammerstein "The Sound of Music" opened on broadway
•The chartered plane transporting musicians Buddy Holly, Richie Valens, and the Big Bopper crashed in a snowstorm near Mason City, Iowa, killing all four occupants on board.

People have asked me how if “feels” to turn 50. My first response is, “Where the hell did the time go?” Seriously. If I look back, here’s what the timeline “feels” like:

If you do the math, Brent’s birth should be almost midpoint on my timeline, but it doesn’t FEEL that way. Somewhere around 1982 I jumped onto a runaway freight train careening down a mountain. And it just keeps gaining speed. Frankly, I wish it would slow down a bit so I could enjoy the view.

I had a lot of things I had hoped to accomplish by the time I turned 50. Most of them I’ve achieved. Some I haven’t yet. Some I never will. For some people, like my dear husband, turning 50 was just another day. I, on the other hand, believe that some days are meant to be celebrated in a bigger-than-usual way. My family and a few friends surprised me Friday afternoon with an informal gathering at our house. I know that it took a lot for Al to plan it, and I was genuinely surprised and touched. Everyone that came leads a super-busy life, and I was honored that they carved a little time out for me.

But last night it hit - the sudden realization that, as Al puts it, I’ve just passed the 50 yard line and the end zone is in sight (with Al everything is either a sports or poker analogy.)
A very dear and deserving friend, who also turned 50 this past week, posted her birthday party photos on her Facebook page. There were at least 50 people there. They were all people I knew, dancing and having a blast. I felt like a jilted teenager who hadn’t been asked to the prom, and I realized that I probably don’t have 50 real friends to my name. Perhaps I’ve collected a few degrees, published a few articles, and achieved a certain amount of status in my career. But it may have been at the cost of what really matters – close friends, a healthy family, a strong marriage. And as my husband was laughing it up with his online buddies so loud I could hear him from the basement, I had a private meltdown in my bedroom.

This morning I went to church at Walnut Creek Community Church. Josh McDowell, world renowned author and speaker, was conducting a series of talks. Darrin led the music to open the service, and the band was definitely playing their “A” game today. As I allowed the music to infuse my spirit I realized that it is for THIS that God has brought me to this day - to see His work in and through my son. In that moment I recalled a time some years ago, when Darrin was in his teen years, that I asked God for a day like this. “If you will grant my children the faith to walk in your will, Lord, I can ask for nothing more.” While I may not have everything on my childish wish list, I have been truly blessed.

I guess turning 50 isn’t so awfully painful after all.

Things that make you go hmmmmm......

It's spring break. The kids are out of school. I've taken a few days off work. It's 70 degrees outside and the sun is shining. I even got a perfect report from my dentist today. What could be better?

Strippable wallpaper - that's what could be better. In fact, that is what this crap was called when I purchased it ten years ago...vinyl coated, strippable wallpaper. I remember vividly because the selection process was one of the most difficult decorating decisions I've ever made. I now know that the term "strippable" actually means that it strips you of all sanity.

I loved this wallpaper. It was simply perfect for a then 39 year-old mother of four who had just returned to Iowa after living for 15 years in the Chicago area. We have a field in our back yard, so the whole vintage farm/country theme seemed just right. Ten years and a few nicks and tears later and it's no longer so appealing. I'm ready for a new look.

I made a to-do list a mile long for my spring 'break.' Stripping this wallpaper was but one of the things on the list. I figured it would take a day to get it down, and a day to paint. Knowing that Murphy's Law always prevails when it comes to home improvement projects, I doubled that estimate. 4 days....totally doable. Never did I imagine that the flipping spit would come off like peeling sunburned skin. After all, I had primed the walls before it went up ten years ago, and I bought the tools and the chemicals that the dude at Home Depot told me I needed. But after 4 hours of work yesterday, and two hours today, I have about 8 square feet of wallpaper and 3 square feet of drywall removed. I'm guessing there is about 200 square feet to go. Which means my original estimate of four days to complete the project was a tad low. My revised estimate: With any luck I'll be finished by the time David graduates from high school in 2011.

This day is too great to waste - I'm going for a walk.....

Braces!

It seems to be a rite of passage for these kids...getting braces. Hannah has actually had her's on for a couple of weeks, but these are the first photos of her soon-to-be million dollar teeth!