The Magic Show

Today, Kasia and I went to see a magician/comedian at the library. It was the beginning of their "Catch the Reading Bug" summer reading program. I think the entire county of Currituck must have turned out for this guy, because the place was packed.

Aside from pulling a rabbit out of a hat and doing the locking ring trick, this guy was able to perform a magical feat that I have never seen in my life before. He was able to keep Kasia entertained for a full 45 minutes. Of course, the show was an hour long, but she did sit through most of it and laughed and clapped for the guy.

Kasia the Kondiment!

Kasia's goal in life has always been to be some kind of condiment on a really large hotdog. Over the weekend, she was able to fulfill that dream. She's now kind of bummed because she's having a hard time picking a new life goal. I'm really pushing for learning to read, getting potty trained, and earning millions of dollars for her parents. Maybe next weekend.

Because $600 For a Purse is Freakin' Ridiculous!

Kara, Kasia, and I spent a lovely day at the mall over the weekend. It had been so long since we have been to the mall, just to walk around and window shop. I really was having a good time, but I think that Kara was embarrassed to be seen with me.

It all started when we were in Restoration Hardware. Now, I always loved Restoration Hardware because they always had those cool retro gadgets that looked like they came out of the '50's. Sadly, most of that is gone now, and what's left in its place was a bunch of stuff that was rather pricey. I was nearly floored when I saw a floor fan that they were trying to sell for $210. You've got to be kidding me! It looked like something my grandmother had stored away in her closet. I was checking this thing over to see if there was something special about it, like if it also doubled as a back massager, but no. It was just a fan. How can you charge $200 for a fan? That's when the embarrassment started. Kara told me to be quiet and not draw too much attention to ourselves. These people charge $200 for a stinkin' fan and I'M supposed to be embarrassed!? Please. You know something's wrong when your store makes The Pottery Barn seem like a bargain.

After Restoration Hardware, we went to the Coach store. I promised Kara that I wouldn't embarrass her. In fact, I told her that I would just say the exact opposite of everything that I was thinking. After being greeted by the very happy saleman (some would even say jolly.... or gay) I believe I used phrases like: "I'm so happy to be here." "Wow! $600 for a purse? What a bargain." "I can't believe the deals in this place." and "I'm going to buy two of these, at least."

I'm not really sure what happened after that. I couldn't find Kara for about an hour, and eventually we met up at the food court to have some dinner.

I love the mall.

EPCOT Forever!

A while ago, I was in a thrift store and saw a classic 1982 EPCOT license plate which I just had to have.  The lady who managed the store never thought that anyone was actually going to buy that old thing, but thought she'd put it out anyway.  It was only $1.

But look how AWESOME it makes the Saturn look.  Just the right color.  Just the right size.  I have to say, style and design really hit its peak in 1982 when this plate was created.

Happy Father's Day!

We had a great Father's Day here at the southern branch of the Gruetzmacher compound.  No father could ask for a better day.  First, Kara let me sleep in and then made me blueberry pancakes.  Then, we headed off to Little Birdies for a round of miniature golf and a little play for Kasia.

I've been playing miniature golf for years, and one question that usually comes up is "what is the most difficult obstacle on a miniature golf course?"  Is it the windmill?  The gorilla that smacks your ball away?  The water wheel that you have to hit just right?  No, as it turns out, the most difficult obstacle on a miniature golf c

ourse is a two year old girl.  Our two year old daughter to be precise.  Or to

 be even more precise, Kasia.  

As if trying to put around wooden barriers wasn't hard enough, Kasia adds the extra pressure of time.  From the moment you first hit the ball, you only have a few seconds before you have to hit your ball again.  If you wait too long, she'll snatch the ball right off the green.  

Here she is after having snatched all the balls and sat with them on the 12th green.  Keep in mind, that we were supposed to be on the 15th hold when this happened.  We took too long in between puts, and off she went with the balls.  We learned our lesson.

Eventually though, we got to the 18th hole where the balls get sucked away and never come back.  Kasia was having a hard time believing that the balls were truly gone.  But she eventually got over it and we went and played in the play area for a little while.  

Later that afternoon, Kathy, Jeff, Shawn, and Chatam came over for a good old fashion Father's Day cook out.  We put our grill to work, and enjoyed a smorgasbord of food including everyones favorite: spaetzle.  

We hope all you other father's out there also had a wonderful time.  

The Power of Wii Fit

Wii Fit is so powerful that:

I lost ten pounds in two days with Wii Fit.

I grew half an inch after using Wii Fit for thirty minutes.

I just finished my first marathon with the endurance given to me by Wii Fit.

After twenty minutes on Wii Fit, I now double as a floatation device in case of a water landing.

Most importantly though, Wii Fit is so powerful that it broke my Wii.  That's right.  Not even the Wii can withstand the awesome and mighty power of the Wii Fit.

So not only did I spend $90 on a scale that tells me I'm overweight, but now it doesn't do anything at all.  On the plus side, I am ten pounds lighter and half an inch taller.  The thing really is THAT powerful.

John Cleese on Football

An interesting perspective on America's sport.

Go Netherlands!!!

For those of you who don't know, and I'm guessing that's most of you, the Euro Cup 2008 is currently underway in Switzerland and Austria. While it's not a big deal for most of over here in the good ole U. S. A., it's a big deal overseas.

I've always been a big fan of the Netherlands for some reason, and have proudly cheered on the Oranje for a number of years now. They are one of the few sports teams that I actually own branded apparel. During the World Cup 2006, I was devastated when they were knocked out by Portugal (while managing to receive more red and yellow cards than any game I've ever heard of).

In the Euro Cup though, they are off to a much different start. They just defeated the world champions, Italy, 3-0, and they are now the favorites to win it all. Though, since I'm now writing about it, they'll probably lose three straight. I'll take my chances.

Wii Fit to Be Tied

Nintendo recently release their new addition to the Wii entitled Wii Fit. The concept behind it is that you do different activities on the balance board and it helps you stay in shape. A video game that helps you lose weight? Needless to say, it's tremendously popular right now.

So for the last couple of weeks, I've been on the lookout for one. All the stores are sold out, and they're selling on eBay for twice what you pay in the store. Then as chance would have it, I found it (the last one) at a Best Buy the other day.

How is it, you ask? Well, I drove all over town and spent $90 for a scale that tells me I'm overweight. Great. I could have told you that. Nintendo however tells me with a cute little animated balance board that dances around the screen, so it doesn't seem so rude.

So far, the only thing that has gotten thin is my wallet, but who knows, maybe that will change. According to the included game, I only have to drop 17 pounds before it will consider me "Normal." 17 pounds!! That would put me back at a weight that I haven't seen since I stopped ridiging a bike everywhere (aka, when I turned 16). Keep your fingers crossed that I will one day reach that "Normal" threshold.

Kasia's Breakfast Habits

For some strange reason, there are certain things Kasia needs with her in order for her to eat her breakfast.  Usually those things are her baby doll and a little ceramic bear that she likes to look at while she eats.  Other times, she wants whatever new toy or discovery is currently occupying her interest.  The other day, she wouldn't go anywhere without a bar of Irish Spring soap.

Today, she became obsessed with one of the drawers in our bathroom.  So, out came all the bottles, lotions, and creams.  Naturally she had to have all of them with her as she ate her oatmeal.  If this continues, we're going to have to get a bigger table.

Happy Birthday Mom!

While visiting, Mom celebrated her _1st birthday.  Kara made a beautiful Chocolate Suicide cake for everyone to enjoy.  Happy Birthday Mom!

A Week With Dale and Shirley

(Mom, Dad, and Kasia next to the Electrical Fence at the 

Weeping Radish Brewery in Jarvisburg, NC)

We've had some house guests for the last week.  Mom and Dad (aka, Dale and Shirley) made the long drive down from Chicago in order to see their adorable little granddaughter for a few days.  After making a a brief pit stop in Annapolis to visit the Naval Academy, they braved the torrential rains of an East Coast spring and headed down into North Carolina.

They arrived a day early after deciding to cut their Baltimore stop out of the trip.  The weather had turned nasty, and so it was decided that it was better to spend an extra day with Kasia than to slosh around the wet streets of Baltimore all day.  

We had a great time.  During the week, we went and explored all there was to see in Elizabeth City (not a lot).  We also went to up to see Smithfield, VA to walk down its antique-store ladened streets and enjoy lunch along the waterfront.  We made a day trip down to Manteo, NC to walk the waterfront.  Everywhere we went though, Mom managed to find something to buy.  After all, you can't return home after a trip like without having something to show for it.

But perhaps the highlight of the entire visit, was our trip up to see Bacon's Castle.  Good old Nathaniel Bacon... and his castle.  Except that it wasn't a castle but rather a really old brick house.  And it didn't belong to Bacon.  In fact, Nathaniel Bacon never stepped foot in the house, and the place actually belonged to a family named Allen who were the enemies of Bacon.  Confused?  Me too.  But one thing I do know is that the woman who gave us the tour knows more about that house and about a bunch of people nobody really cares about than I know about anything.  How did the last owner of the house die?  She knows.  Car crash... the husband died instantly.  The wife died a few days later.  She was 82.  The tour guide claimed she had more stories and could go on for hours about that alone, but we begged her not to.  

Good old Nathaniel Bacon....  Seriously though, he could have been this country's founding father had he not died during his rebellion.  By the way, is it just coincidence that Bacon's Castle is outside Smithfield, VA which is known for it's ham and bacon?  Interesting.

After learning all this interesting history, my parent's decided to pack it up and head back home.  Like Johnny Appleseed heading west, Dale and Shirley had the knowledge of Bacon that they needed to spread through out the country.  And off they went.  Now, we're returning to our normal routine.  It's a little quieter, and little emptier in the house.  

We can't wait for Mom and Dad to come visit again.  Maybe next time we can go see the Jackson Gray Confederate Memorial and learn some more unknown history.