We finally have an Obama yard sign.

Thank you, Mica. She stepped up big time and got the sign, got herself a t-shirt, got me a sticker that she gave to her mom and got Ocean a button. GOBAMA! Not to be confused with Go Bama. It looks like Bama is gonna rape the butthole of my beloved Tennessee Vols. Damn it. This is a bad year for sport in the Horrocks house. The Jets are hanging tough, but the Yankees missed the playoffs and Yankee stadium is no more. What a shit way to wrap things up boys!

This is what I look like when I am trying to figure out what to do with a UPS return label...


This is what I look like when I am happily holding my son...


Anna went camping this weekend with her Girl Scout troop. She returned with some seriously chapped lips. Poor kid.


She actually reminds me of someone...


James is the new neighborhood kid across the street. He has a 16" Haro and very little fear. He seems pretty nice and is pretty stoked on BMX. He sets up these jumps in the street all the time...well, all the time when his grandmother isn't yelling at him to not set them up...


Mica is all moved in and looks cozy. Phoenix is lurking somewhere...


Corey is the ender. He does these nifty little nose bonk disasters. He has a twisted stem now. Shoulda got a Coalition.

PUNTOS!

I have to take a spanish test by Saturday. I am nervous about it...I really don't feel ready to take it, but then again I really don't think I can get more ready. I don't like this online class stuff. I'd much rather sit in the actual classroom and be surrounded by all manner of crazy folk. There is something comforting about being the oldest dude in the room. Part of being the oldest is that I feel like I have license to say outlandish shit and no one challenges me. I can say things like, "women should not be allowed to be firemen" and people just accept it. It must be the gray in the beard.

Garrett is getting bigger and bigger. And bolder. And I love him more than he will ever know...


Anna is totally killing it in second grade. She is such a sweet kid...and now that she has a friend in the neighborhood, she seems happier.


Corey did a rather boosty toboggan the other night. I gave him a "one more" and he wound up smashing his heel. Sorry about that, bro.

Summer has had a sword plunged through its face.

The death rattle of the cicadas over the last little bit seemed to be enough of a harbinger for summer's end. Cooler nights...different smells...not counting the odd superglue smell at the skatepark. I suppose I am ready for this, even though I count myself in the number that love a hot day.

Mica and I are trying to hack through the jungle vines of school. So far so good. I got a B on a test that I was sure that I failed. She constantly belly aches about how bad she does and then pulls an A out of her arse. That's how she goes. The queen of sandbagging to my king. We are a good match, I think.

For a moment, I eschewed homework to ride my bike a little last night. Corey got some new bars, which means I got my old bars back. Which means that I was compelled to put them on. Which means that I was not used to my bike at all. I think I broke my toe. Took some pics with the D100, and also realized that my flash is newer than the camera, so there is some jibbness to work out there.

Offering one is Billy. He called out the air and then complained that he can go higher with better shoes. SURE BILLY. I kid...


Andy Cornell is so good. And so nice. I used to think his sister was so hot.


Tetro is back. With a beard. And with some paint. I like the beard. Not sure about the paint.



Corey learned toboggan to disasters after I told him about Dylan Smith doing them in a behind the scenes video for Empire. He gets better and better in the bowl...it makes me sick.

Happy Birthday! Late!

Yesterday we celebrated Garrett's birthday, albeit a little late. But it was an excellent time nonetheless! The initial plans for cupcakes sort of pooped the bed, but the pizza was good. A few pics were snapped on the new (to me) Nikon D100...



The kids were pretty hilarious. Anna, Raven, Phoenix, Ocean and James from across the street showed up to send Garrett off Viking style into his third year of life. I think someone killed a frost giant, but I am not sure. Phoenix looks like he got into some bad meade in this one...



*overexposed as hell, but easily the funniest pic I have snapped in a bit

More chilled out...figuring this beast out...



This is blurry, but there is something about it I love. Probably the helmet.



Garrett got a train set. Now the puppy has some new stuff to chew on!



Corey and Shauna hooked it up with some motorcycles, bro. BRO-DOWN UP INS! WHAT WHAT?



Finally...my son loves noodles and cake. In that order.



More later on.

Job Light?

I am not a biblical man. At best, I am agnostic, at worst...well...

Having mentioned that, I was always fascinated with the book of Job in the bible. Mainly because, to me, it appeared to be the ultimate in deity vanity, but also because I identify with the central character. Life piles on me, at times, and I do my best to weather it and take it. The most recent act of Job-ism is my brand new ac unit's decision to shit the bed on some of the hottest days of summer. As mentioned in a previous post, this is supposed to be my vacation, but it has been anything close to relaxing. Yes, the unit itself is under warranty, but the labor...oh the labor. 100 dollars just to come look at it...then whatever they charge to actually fix it. So, being the enterprising man that I am, I get some help. Early diagnosis of the issue points to a bad condenser motor. John and I crack it open, clean the armature, put it back together and she spun up like a champ. For about 4 hours. Then she stopped working. Again. So, after poking around on the internet and talking with people that do this sort of thing for a living, I figure it must be the run capacitor. Through some clandestine means, I procure one and put it in myself without electrocuting anyone and the unit came right on. Woo! Then, 45 minutes later it stopped...so at this point, the general consensus is that the motor is just shot. Probably because the capacitor was going bad, so it seems to be a combo...but I have endured no air conditioning for 4 straight days. And I am hot. And miserable. Couple this with some insipid child visitation drama, a lack of a spanish text book for one of my classes and student loan anxiety...well, as you can see, I am about at my end. This is par for the course, however. Like I told Mica...if I found $5,000 in cash laying on the ground, something would break that cost $5,124 to fix. That is my luck.

On a side note, there are only two movie moments that make me cry everytime...Ray Kinsella asking his ghost dad if he'd like to have a catch and Chas telling Royal, "I've had a tough year, dad." Then hearing Royal say, "I know you have Chassie."

Fuck.

That's right.

I am a believer.



McCain and his pander bot Palin can go to hell.

Vacation? Um, I hardly knew her?

This is supposed to be a vacation for me this week. I rarely take what would be considered a chunk of time off of work. So this was a big moment for me...I was really looking forward to decompressing a bit, drinking some beer, painting some cabinets and riding some BMX. Well, that got blown the fuck up yesterday.

I just want some smooth sailing. It seems I am always weathering some sort of storm. If parenting stuff doesn't kill me, the broken AC will. Please...if there is something resembling a god...please...take it a little easy on me. For just a little bit. Please?

Sold the D70. I have a plan. I think. These were the last shots taken with her...

Johhny C up the tree on campus. Not the skatepark. We rode street.


Corey Mac 180 up the stairs...on CAMPUS. Woo!


Mean muggin...


Fuck you. I'm an anteater.