So much….

First day was cool at APU. I didn’t actually make it to my workplace,  just a daylong orientation at Human Resources (which was quite helpful).  A little overwhelming with the 3-hour  explanation of the medical benefits and all…but so very helpful. I start my actual job training today.

So, I was already on brain-intake-information overload, then I find out about all the shenanigans my poor wife has gone through (good job dear) about our car–which let me just say, is utterly ridiculous. My brain shuts down. I restart with a caramel frappuccino…on the way to drop off the kids and head over to a meeting for parents with Autism in Manhattan Beach.

Yeah, after we dropped off the kids at Christy’s parents, it was only an additional 45 minutes away. Why did we drive that far? I’m not sure at the outset why we chose it, but there was a speaker there from the Lovaas institute, the creators/inventors of the ABA method for Autism. It was incredible. It was so overwhelming (again) for us to hear about it, and then to connect with other parents who had gone through the same thing. Absolutely overwhelming. (Brain is struggling to function on low fuel, but somehow continues on). We asked a question during the meeting, and the other parents just laughed and were like “We need to talk” and we were literally swarmed with support and love from these total strangers who had been through the hoops we are now going to be jumping through to make sure our precious boy gets the treatment he needs to make it. We exchanged email addresses, talked at length with folks, and got incredible knowledge and guidance. It was totally worth it, and a ton more….

Which leads me to this conclusion: we need community. I don’t mean just Christy and I, but we as humans. But let’s shrink it back down–I need community. I thrive on it. I love it. I need people there to share their life experiences with me, to laugh with me, to encourage me. The times we have experienced that while we’ve been here are the times that we’ve been lifted up and propelled to keep on going in this tough time in our lives. Thanks to our friends that have provided that aspect of our lives. It’s a definite must for us…I don’t know how people make it though without it…

Hey guess what? Kim is here…Kim–don’t forget to subscribe, and join the Midway Blogring!

Ok-check out Christy‘s blog to read about Nathaniel’s big debut on the silver screen…it’s all down hill from here. Next stop-the Oscars!

And yes-today is my first big day at work. I’m sure I’ll tell you all about it later.

Hmmm…Noah’s score isn’t that hot…
Christy said since they were taking pictures, she was smiling the whole way through…

Darn it! My score isn’t too hot. And where is Nathnaniel’s head?? How do these people get 400,000-900,000 points?? Is there a secret thing I need to shoot??

EDIT:
Last night was the season finale of Battlestar Galactica. We’ve always loved this show, but last night I saw the best season finale/cliff hanger since “The Best of Both Worlds” (Star Trek: TNG) aired in 1990. That’s 16 years!! This sucker was awesome!!!! Go sci-fi! And also, let me tell you, it makes sense that Ronald Moore (who used to work on Star Trek: DS9) is one of the creators/producers of the show. Absolutely amazing. Incredible.

and I just found out there’s a Pat & Oscars about 6 miles away from my house! WOW! I can’t believe it! Anyone want to go? Hmarsh?

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Well, my American Idol picks weren’t so great this week. My only correct guess was Kinnik, I did not guess Gedeon, Will, or Ayla. I did pick Will last week, I should’ve picked him again!! Argh! Oh well…my guess for the top three rocks, however. Here it is, in order from winner to third place: Katherine, Elliott, and Chris. Yep, there it is. I think that’s pretty tight, unless there is something crazy that happens, ala Latoya London. I sure hope not…

Last night I had my last regular class in Advanced Arranging for Small Ensembles (next week is the final). At last night’s class we had to turn in a rough draft (so to speak) of our final project (a two-minute arrangement with rhythm section and some horns–like saxes and trumpets and stuff) so he could make suggestions for the final draft. I think I was one of only three people out of the ten or so in the class that actually had a rough draft last night for the class to look at and for us all to listen to (a recording was also required).

I arranged Santa Fe from RENT, and was pretty proud of my little arrangement. It was pretty true to the original, yet set with saxes and a trumpet instead of vocals. Anyways, we played it in class and the prof started giving suggestions, but I really couldn’t understand exactly what he was saying. Maybe it was clear to the rest of the class, but I felt like the whole time he was talking in riddles…All I really heard was, “So what you should do for next week is blip-blarp zip-zap doodley-do and take a minute to blah blah blabbidy do-daddle.”

I actually asked him towards the end, “So, I think I’m not super clear on what you mean exactly”. And of course he replied with more zip-zarps and blip-blaps, to which I replied, “Ok, I’ll work on it” with a look of utter confusion on my face. Please don’t misunderstand, I’m not being arrogant here, I think I just work better with clear instruction, and I got more of this idea of, “I want to hear a little more of you in this piece” kinda response. To which I have no idea of how to respond. I’ve had a lot of time between last night and now to think about it, and I guess he wants me to be a little more creative with the piece, and less programmatic about the process–which will stretch me some. OK, I can handle that. I just was flabbergasted by my inability to figure out what he was trying to say…I guess we’ll see next week….

Hmm, one more quick note about that class. I haven’t posted this yet because I didn’t want to come across as being mean, but there is a girl in my class that smells strongly of acidic, tomato-based pasta sauce that has been made in a smelly kitchen. It is pretty horrible smelling. I’ve really tried to figure out how else to classify the smell, but I can’t…no offense to whoever it is out there, but it’s stinky…

Also- welcome Becky B to the blog world. Post!! We’re all waiting!

And DAD- keep picking your American Idol picks! You’re losing points for not picking!

Sara came and checked out APU today. I hope she comes! It would be great for her…go Sara!

OK- here’s a quick pick…you can see Mike in the background, too…

Oh-and I have to include this coupon to my favorite restaurant ever…you San Diegans make good use of it!!

They have NEW PASTAS now! Check it out!

EDIT ADD: I guess I’m going with Kevin and Bucky. Man, as much as I’d like Gedeon to go (his speech freaks me out–way too much pronunciation going on there…) I think he’s staying. And as much as Bucky having a twin brother is cool, they’re going home…but it’s definitely not as clear-cut this week…and now it only gets harder…
VOTE!!

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Oh yeah, I’m awesome…

I found this from 1995. I totally rock and you KNOW you want one too…

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First off, I have to say that we played NERTZ last night and it was awesome! Not only did I win, but it was super fun hanging out with Heidi, Becky, and my beautiful wife. For some reason we were exchanging poop stories, and I haven’t laughed that hard in a long time. Yahoo! AND we’re going to make it a regular thing, so if you live up here in LA and want to play, let me know! (oh yeah, and check out Heidi’s blog for a scanned in copy of the scorecard.)

Well, it’s kinda hard for this week on the predictions of American Idol. (See Mike’s blog for rules, etc… if you don’t know what I’m talking about). Many of the girls did a good job, and I’m not sure who America doesn’t really care about enough to vote them through to the Final 12, but here are my predictions for the girls this week…I saying that for sure Kinnik will get the least votes (she was pretty horrible) and second to last will be Melissa. I’m not too incredibly confident on these, but I do think that Melissa has the least built-up fan base out of anyone else. People love the basketball chick, and the adorable Kelly Pickler, although they’re not necessarily as strong as Mandisa or Katherine–and let’s just say Thank goodness that Ryan took a few minutes to clear up that stupid misunderstanding that was circulating the net…argh to those stupid net nerds who start rumors!

Not much else–I’m just working on my final project for my arranging class, and doing a couple last things before I start my fulltime job at APU on Monday. You guys can be praying for the part-time church job situation. We’ve gotta get something going there, and we’re hoping that it’ll work out at Rose Drive Friends Church, but things are a tad bit slow so far…

Oh yeah, and Christy and I have been running again lately. It’s pretty hard after not running consistently for several years. Man, I used to pop off a 5 mile jog 5 times a week, but not anymore! Wow, I guess that was way back in ’98-’99. Since then I’ve dabbled in exercise, but never been as out-of-shape as I am now. Blah. HEY-when you’re in shape, stay there! It’s hard to get back after you lose it!

Tell me this picture isn’t adorable…

24 spoilers ahead for 3/6′s episode…goodbye Edgar Styles. I’m going to miss you.
All I have to say is that in consideration to Mike’s hacksaw rating, this episode gets eleventy billion out of ten hacksaws. That’s all I gotta say.

View and Download M. Night Shyamalan’s 2-min AMEX commercial here. It is sooooo cool, and this is AMEX’s site, offering it for a download for your iPod, not someone’s illegal site…I love it!!!!

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Mmmmmmm…I’d like to say thank you to the academy for awarding Crash the Oscar for Best Picture! What a great choice! Mike was telling me a while back that the academy often likes films that tackle a somewhat controversial subject, and that those films often win best picture (Schindler’s List: The Holocaust, Philadelphia: AIDS, Million Dollar Baby: Euthanasia, and Crash: Racial and Cultural Prejudice).
So, we all thought Brokeback Mountain would win because it is the first film to really tackle homosexuality in the mainstream (which whether you like it or not, is a big part of our culture, no matter how much you try to hide from it). Now BM was a pretty big hit; the studio and the filmmakers never expected it to A) make so much money, or B) play in cinemas all over the country (it was expected to be a limited release, to the big cities only).  And for all of you out there who would bash the film simply because of your personal feelings on homosexuality as a lifestyle, I would like to say, that’s not the reason I’m glad it didn’t win. I’m glad it didn’t win because I think Crash was far more deserving. The topic of homosexuality is here to stay as much as a lot of conservatives wish it was not. However, the topic of prejudice reaches far more deep and wide to every corner of this country and our world than than former does. I believe that most everybody has dealt with prejudice in some form, whether taught to not do it, or have been on the receiving end of someone else’s prejudice attitude, or whatever–it is far more poignant than anything else was. In my opinion, Crash definitely deserved the Oscar. However, it is my 2nd favorite movie this year, behind Munich. I will always love Steven Speilberg.

And the American Express commercial with M. Night Shyamalan was so incredible! My 2nd favorite movie maker…and I hope to see that commercial again! It was awesome!

We went to San Diego yesterday for a friend’s baby shower, and also played some games with our friends down there. It was fantastically fun! I was quite distracted at the NERTZ game by the Oscars going on while we were playing, hence my horrible defeat. I cannot however make any excuses for our loss at CatchPhrase–except that the women took a terribly long time with their clues everytime they got the disc, always landing it in our laps the very instant the buzzer went off. Stupid girls!!!

Oh well, it was SOOOO fun!

Just some pics…

I’m getting good at this Buzz Lightyear thing! (and Nathaniel loves it…)

I’ll post more later…

LOST was absolutely incredible tonight. If you don’t watch this show, you really have no idea what you are missing. There is such a sense of awe and mystery to the whole thing that is completely compelling. There are so many characters that are used so well in the storytelling that you never get bored watching the show, AND almost everyone’s character is really complex right now. There are a lot of things happening on the island, it is almost too much to keep track of. I’ll tell you this, however, this series is not in danger of losing it’s audience by revealing too little, like many critics claimed was possible at the end of the first season. An unbelievable amount of mystery has been solved, yet when a mystery is solved, a new one appears. It is brilliant–totally brilliant. There are no other words. I hope that this entertainment does not leave us soon, it would be a shame.
There are a lot of TV shows on right now, and many of them are very good. But there is one show you should watch…and that show is LOST. Get it. Buy the DVD, or borrow it. Get the rest of season 2 on iTunes–get caught up and get with it. It’s phenomenal.

As for American Idol, I think I told you this already…but here it is again:
Going home Thursday night–Brenna, Heather Cox, David (The Crooner), and Will Makar. Not that I dislike any of those people, (I actually like Will M) I just think America is not voting for them right now. The guys were tough to judge tonight, but Simon said it right when he said that Chris’ performance was the only one that would stand up in the “real world” right now. He was good–very professional!

There is other great stuff going on with us, just check out Christy’s blog to find out….hopefully she’ll post soon! Noah updates coming soon from her…

Also-I enrolled in classes for next quarter! Yay! Can you believe I only have two weeks left of this quarter? Crazy…My new classes start March 27th: Advanced Arranging for Medium Ensembles and Recording Techniques. I’m excited!

Oooh! Hooray for 12,000 hits! Thanks guys!