An Open Cry for iPod Help

Knowing that I have the smartest blog-readers and blogmigos on the face of the planet, I thought I would float this question in the blogosphere before I do anything drastic.

For the last few weeks I've been having an issue with my iPod wherein my computer doesn't recognize it... If you've ever encountered this problem with your iPod, and know a good fix that doesn't involve doing a system restore (I've done that many times) or re-formatting my iPod (and thus losing everything) please email me at kempsblog at gmail dot com

If you don't have a quick fix and hear a loud, agonizing scream this Thursday coming from the Chicago area, have no fear; it will be me re-formatting my iPod and losing my 9,000 + songs, videos, movies, etc...

Thank you...

A Non-humourous post

Warning, the following post contains words and descriptions that may be unsettling to some readers.

About 2 ½ years ago one of my second cousins, “Mary”, was brutally shot and killed, all because she was helping a friend in need.

Granted, I didn’t know “Mary” that well, but her Dad and I hung out a lot when I was younger and even though we have grown apart as our lives took divergent paths, we still kept in touch.


(He was one of my older cousins - all of them were older, that’s what happens when you’re the youngest of the youngest - and, like all my cousins, did things with my brother and I that are usually reserved for siblings… but that’s how my family is, and I love that about them.)


When my Dad called me to tell me what had happened, even though I didn’t know her that well, she’s family, and the news was a swift kick to the gut.

Some back-story: back in October of 2005, the “accused” broke into my cousin’s basement apartment in Belleville, Illinois, using his shotgun to break out the window. From outside he shot my cousin’s friend, “Nicole”, as she watched television in the living-room; he then crawled through the window and gunned down my cousin “Mary”, her friend “Brandon”, and Nicole’s 2-month old son… with a shotgun… at close range…

The son was named after his Dad… the “accused” gunman…

…

The “accused” was arrested hours after the attack and charged with four counts of first-degree murder.

Delay after delay, the trial is just now getting under way… and I have to tip my hat to my cousin and his wife… they have not only taken Mary’s son to raise, they have been living this personal hell for over 2 years now of not only losing their daughter, but of their grandson losing his mother… and it’s all about to be dredged up again in court…

The judge also ruled that jurors would be barred from hearing statements the "accused" allegedly made to police after his arrest.

The hatred one can have is a strong thing, and... while I am famously (or infamously) a Liberal, I do support the death penalty in certain cases…

This is one of those cases. Even putting personal feelings aside, this man not only shot and killed 3 people under the age of thirty, but also a 2-month old baby… a 2-month old baby that was strapped into his car seat when he was shot.

I hope the bastard gets what he deserves...

It worked, for a moment

It was over…the J had just sassed me for what felt like the hundredth time that night (truthfully it was more like 2 or 3) but I was not going to have any of it. Having already placed her in time-out, the next step was clear… but just as I was about to lower the boom, she said;

“I love you Daddy.”

Sigh… no fair…

FLOOD

The Kankakee river is flooding, and it's yielding some incredible photos... like these that were taken by Honey Mustard today.


No, this isn't my house... but it's for sale if you want to buy it...

This is a park that we often take The PB & The J to... it's now partially under water

Needless to say, the water is not supposed to be that close to the bridge...

This gives you the best opportunity to see just how far up the river has come. It's expected to crest tonight and start dropping. Unless of course we get the rain/snow that is being forecast for tomorrow...

So what are you waiting for?

Today, Thursday January 10, 2007 is National De-lurking day, a day where readers of blogs come out of the woodwork and leave a comment rather than stay in the shadows lurking (see what I did there?)

Feel free to say anything you want, even if it doesn’t make sense… something I’m guilty of doing A LOT.

You can thank Aimee of Greeblemonkey for the hilarious button and the permission to use said button and Chris at Rude Cactus for keeping the spirit alive and not letting National De-lurking day fade…

So De-lurk already!

How's about a joke?*

A NY City cop was on his horse waiting to cross the street when a little girl on her new shiny bike stopped beside him;

“Nice bike, did Santa bring it to you?”

“Yep, he sure did!” said the little girl.

The cop looked the bike over and handed the girl a $5 ticket for a safety violation, saying; “Next year tell Santa to put a reflector light on the back of it.”

The young girl looked up at the cop and said, “Nice horse you got there officer, did Santa bring it to you?”

The cop chuckled and said, “Yes, yes he did.”

The little girl looked up at the cop and said, “Next year tell Santa the dick goes underneath the horse, not on top.”

Thank you, I’m here all week. Try the veal, it’s lonely…


*Please note I did not ask how about a good joke...

I'm a guest poster...

If you have time today, head on over to Deep Muck, Big Rake and check out my guest post. It's a moral imperative...

Next Stop: Disney

I leave tomorrow for yet another trip to Disney World, this time not only with HoMu, The PB & The J, but the rest of HoMu's family...

All.

18.

Of.

Us.

Now, I could write about how much I'm dreading fearing looking forward to the trip... or I could beg for guestposters... but I won't.

Instead I'm asking for YOUR help.

I need some new music for my iPod and before perusing I thought to myself, what better source than my b-l-o-g-m-i-g-o-s and the rest of the blogosphere to get some ideas.

So I'm asking all of you... what new albums/music should I illegally download?

Merry Christmas Everyone!

Why explain it myself when I can let Mr. Linus van Pelt do it for me... enjoy!

The Kemp's Blog Players present:

A play in one scene: “5-Year Old Smack-down”

Cast of Characters:
Narrator: The Voices in My Head
Daddy: Kemp
Sweetie: The Peanut Butter
Sissy: The Jelly

Setting: Kankakee, Illinois - Friday, December 21, 2007. 7:45 AM.

The wind was out of the SE at 8 MPH, with an air temperature of 37 degrees Fahrenheit. It was foggy with visibility at 2.50 miles…

Sweetie: “Daddy, I was good this morning wasn’t I?”

Daddy: “Yes sweetie, you were very good. Thank you.”

Sissy: “Was I Daddy?”

Narrator: “She wasn’t…”

Sweetie: “Not really Sissy…”

Narrator: “Sisters…”

So Kemp, how are you feeling?

Like someone hit me in the crotch with a baseball bat that had just took a swing at a microwave.

In other words, some minor discomfort...

Leader of the Band...

An only child
Alone and wild
A cabinet makers son
His hands were meant
For different work
And his heart was known
To none --
He left his home
And went his lone
And solitary way
And he gave to me
A gift I know I never
Can repay

A quiet man of music
Denied a simpler fate
He tried to be a soldier once
But his music wouldnt wait
He earned his love
Through discipline
A thundering, velvet hand
His gentle means of sculpting souls
Took me years to understand.

The leader of the band is tired
And his eyes are growing old
But his blood runs through
My instrument
And his song is in my soul --
My life has been a poor attempt
To imitate the man
Im just a living legacy
To the leader of the band.

My brothers lives were
Different
For they heard another call
One went to chicago
And the other to st. paul
And Im in colorado
When Im not in some hotel
Living out this life Ive chose
And come to know so well.

I thank you for the music
And your stories of the road
I thank you for the freedom
When it came my time to go --
I thank you for the kindness
And the times when you got tough
And, pap, I dont think i
Said i love you near enough --

The leader of the band is tired
And his eyes are growing old
But his blood runs through
My instrument
And his song is in my soul --
My life has been a poor attempt
To imitate the man
Im just a living legacy
To the leader of the band
I am the living legacy
To the leader of the band.

Dan Fogelberg, 1951-2007

Before...

I make 'Bob Barker a happier guy' (thanks Devra), I stumbled across this. How about the 2006 Casino Royale opening credits with the 1967 Herb Alpert score from the original Casino Royale... pretty sweet. Enjoy!

So Kemp, what are you doing tomorrow?

I won't bore you with the details or the specifics of the procedure I'm having done tomorrow other than this; it will make a vas deferens in my life...

Things that make my head hurt #3

Where do I start?? Michigan Lawsuit Abuse Watch has released their winners for this years “Wacky Warning Label” contest.

Some of the “winners”:

• A label on a small tractor that warns: "Danger: Avoid Death." (“Important safety tip; thanks Egon.”)
• Second place: An iron-on T-shirt transfer that warns: "Do not iron while wearing shirt." (Is that where that iron-shaped scar on my chest came from? I thought I was the chosen one…
• Third place: A baby stroller featuring a small pouch for storage that warns: "Do not put child in bag." (One has to think this was a direct message to “Brandine” Spears…)
• Honorable Mention: A letter opener that says, "Caution: Safety goggles recommended." (“The goggles! They do nothing!”)
• Honorable Mention: A marker that warns: "The Vanishing Fabric Marker should not be used as a writing instrument for signing checks or any legal documents." (So that’s how the Bush(whacked) Administrations covers their tracks…)

What's even more frightening is knowing that there are people out there who actually need these warnings...

Update on The PB

The Peanut Butter has been released from the hospital…

She had the 48 hour EEG done and the readings showed no irregular brain patterns, no spikes and no seizures.

The Neurologist isn’t ready to completely take her off the medication yet, so she will be kept on 2 pills a night for the next six months, after which she will have another EEG to see where she is at that time.

The doctor also wants her to be tested for dyslexia, which is something I’ve been asking to be done for some time.

More details to come…

Also, if you ever find yourself at the University of Chicago’s Comer Children’s Hospital, be prepared to be pampered.

Some of the amenities; one patient per room… flat-screen HD TV… free on-demand movies… free on-line games… room-service type food service (they don’t bring it by, you order it when you’re ready and they then bring it to you…) and for the parents, a sofa that folds out to a twin-sized bed. A far cry from the thing I had to sleep on when HoMu was on bed-rest during pregnancy… those things were far from comfortable…

Time Apart

Regular readers of my blog know that The Peanut Butter was diagnosed with a “seizure disorder” a little more than a year ago and was prescribed medication to combat it.

When she started kindergarten this year, HoMu and I, along with her teacher, noticed that at times she wasn’t paying attention in class, was easily distracted, seemed distant and un-interested and sometimes would act as though she didn’t know something even though she did the day or even hours before.

Like we did before she was put on the medication, we started researching the side-effects of her medication again and discovered that these were indeed side-effects of taking it. So at her bi-annual exam with her Neurologist, we discussed with the doctor and it was decided that we would wean her off of the medication and, for the last 8 weeks, we’ve been doing just that.

After being dropped from 4 doses a day to 2, she showed a drastic increase in her testing and schoolwork, scoring a 27 on a numbers test weeks before when she was under full dosage to an astounding 49 (out of 50) when her dosing was cut in half.

She is now totally off the meds and, knock on wood, has not had a seizure during that time… and today she starts her 48-hour, in-hospital EEG at the University of Chicago Hospital (also where they were born) to see if she is still having them (she was having them in her sleep, hence the 48-hour EEG).

This is significant for two reasons: First; hopefully we can find out if she has, as most children who develop this type of seizure disorder do, grown out of the seizures.

Second: this means that she and The Jelly will be separated… for 3 days/2 nights.

For those of you reading that don’t have twins, everything you’ve heard about the connections that twins have with each other is, for the most part, true… and in the past, their separations have not worked out very well.

So this time we’re trying something different.

I am teaching two ‘Introduction to Public Speaking’ classes this semester and this week are final exams and final speeches, so I can’t cancel class. HoMu will be staying with The PB in the hospital and I will be down here with The J. But since I teach tonight until 10:00, and in an attempt to make The J more at ease, one of my SIL’s graciously said that The J can stay with them… so rather than staying up late until I pick her up… and rather than staying with a set of grandparents, she will be with one of her Aunts and Uncles and three of her cousins…

Hopefully my nephews and niece will help The J get through this first night… my wife will help The PB get through her first night… and me? Well… in front of people I will be the strong father, stoic and solid. But when I get home tonight, with no one around, and when I start thinking about my wife and daughters and what one of them is going through at the hospital and the other is going through away from her sister… I’m sure I’ll sit down for a nice cry…

And I have no problem with that…

The iPod Meme

I wasn’t tagged by Sarah, per se, but I haven’t done a meme in a while, so here ya go… and in the interest of full-disclosure, we reset* our iTunes a few months back when we got our big-ass external hard-drive, so the numbers are probably a tad off…

How many total songs?
8,142 plus 5 videos, 2 TV episodes, one short-movie, and a plethora of photos

Sort by Time - Shortest and Longest…
“A Conjunction of Drones Simulating the Way in Which Sufjan Stevens Hasan Existential Crisis in the Great Godfrey Maze” (:19) by Sufjan Stevens from Illinoise
“Alice’s Restaurant Massacree” (18:30) by Arlo Guthrie from The Best of Arlo Guthrie

Sort by song title - First and Last…
“A” by Cartel from the album Chroma
“99 Luftballons” by Nena from The Download Album

Sort by Album - First and Last…
“(What’s the story) Morning Glory?” by Oasis
“Youth” by Matisyahu

Sort by Artist - First and Last…
A Tribe Called Quest
ZZ Top

Top Five Most Played Songs…*
“American Idiot” by Green Day’
“Superman” by Lazlo Bane
“Piece of my Heart” by Janis Joplin
“Suddenly I see” by KT Tunstall
“Hear me in the Harmony” by Harry Connick, Jr.

Find the following words. How many songs show up?
Sex: 221, Death: 123 , Love: 326, You: 2,058, Home: 201, Boy: 372, Girl: 421

First five songs that come up on Party Shuffle… Click HERE to get some information about how the iTunes’ and iPod’s shuffle algorithms work
“Rolling off a Log” by World Party
“Girl, You’ll be a Woman Soon” by Urge Overkill
“Waiting for my Real Life to Begin” by Colin Hay
“Ain’t That a Kick in the Head” by Dean Martin
“My Sweet Lord” by George Harrison

I won’t be tagging anyone because, well, it usually falls on deaf ears anyway… though I will tag my good friend Scott… remember him?? Let’s see if he’ll come back to the land of bloggers…

BTW; Scott is engaged...

Memories

Kemp’s Note: I know I’m going to get thrashed for this song by, well, quite a few of my blogmigos, but a memory is a memory, and it can’t be changed…

Memories are a strong thing, a strong thing that stays in the recesses of our mind and comes out with certain cues we get… the smell of cookies baking reminding you of your grandmother Florence… the sight of a red sky in fall reminding you of your beloved Uncle Nishan… and music, perhaps the strongest mental cue there is.

The best time of my early, pre-adult, pre-bill paying life was college… I had a circle of friends (most of whom I still stay in touch with) that were close, one of which would eventually become my wife.

Since my roommate and I had the largest apartment out of the group, everyone would congregate there… and one particular moment has stayed in my mind more than others.

It was me, HoMu, my roommate and the rest of our little gang. There were only two days left in the semester before winter break… and the six of us were having a beer (imagine that), talking about life and the holidays and the future. It was a great time… and then, if by design, it started to lightly snow outside and the below song started playing on the stereo…

The images… the sounds… the feeling of all of us sitting there and talking are fully ingrained into my brain, and whenever I hear this song, I’m immediately transported back to that time… and those friends. A time of youth and few responsibilities… a time that saw a love blooming… and the holiday season upon us.

Memories…

Enjoy the song… it’s Mariah Carey’s, “All I Want for Christmas is You”

Things that make my heart hurt 2

I don't think they quite understand the concept...