The Pokey Little Puppy

UPDATE: Adolfo has been YouTubed

Since i’ve been using my mom’s truck i’ve been picking up Adolfo from school every day and i love it. Now that the weather is more mild the extended day class in usually outside having recess. Adolfo is usually deeply involved in running when i arrive. He runs like a rhino: head down and without the ability to stop himself – a juggernaut.

These days, I approach the yard slowly and try to stay out of sight of Ms. C, who, as soon as she sees me, announces to Adolfo that i’ve arrived. His concentration broken, he catches sight of me, jettisons his interests, and bolts in my direction. As his dirty smiling face gets closer to me I find myself wishing i could have had just a few more moments to watch him play on his own; a few more moments to watch him interact with the other kids, but before i can think about it too much he slams into my chest laughing and i lift him into the air with a half turn.

I scribble my signature on the signout sheet and together we get his things and return to the car.

Linked movie file is 10mb – it’s as small as i could make his 5 minute book report

Today he gave his first oral book report. He was supposed to retell “The Boy and the Tigers”, an Indian tale (India) that he really likes from his Golden Books Treasury. When i hooked up the video camera to the computer and started importing it, there he was sitting in a chair retelling – in a rambling sort of way – The Pokey Little Puppy.

Today also happened to be Adolfo IV’s half birthday. Carol had to stay late for a meeting, so he and i went to the 59 Diner for his half birthday dinner and a chocolate milkshake. I’ll post the photobooth pictures tomorrow.

Upon Arriving Home and Seeing the Moon and Spring

Upon Arriving Home and Seeing the Moon and Spring
Originally uploaded by killy.

Today a guy pulled up aside me and yelled at me for not using my blinkers even though i did use them. He was driving faster than he should have been, but i couldn't explain that to him as he was yelling so i just apologized. He sped off angrily and i thought if he wondered if i had gotten in front of him 'on purpose'.

When Adolfo and i drove up to the house i looked at my pitiful yard, (something i hope to remedy this weekend) and noticed some tiny buds growing out of a stem on my pecan tree. When i got closer i noticed the entire thing was covered.

Spring is here!

Twins!

My sister Sara just got back from her ultrasound---she is having twin girls! They are not identical and are developing well...She is due in July.....Hooray!!!!

Also, I am going to France for all of March. I leave March 4th and return? April 4th.

In Which We Spent the Weekend in Shreveport with the Trudeaus

The Mardi Gras Parade
Originally uploaded by killy.

I finally managed to get the photos up from our Mardi Gras weekend - the real ones from the parade, that is. Trudeau Sr. is an unquenchable whirlwind of energy whether he is at rest explaining the history of mardi gras or flailing around the streets of shreveport armed with an umbrella and a samba whistle. It's truly a sight to behold.

Paola's Baptism

Paola's Baptism
Originally uploaded by killy.

And here is the money shot. I thought her hair was going to drape down into the water.

Baptism

In Which We Spent the Weekend in Shreveport for Our First Mardi Gras
Originally uploaded by killy.

Surrounded by family, friends, and neighbors Paola Isabel Chavez was Baptized at St. Ambrose this weekend. This photo isn't from the baptism - it was actually taken in Shreveport on Mr. Trudeau's living room floor during Mardi Gras - but it's just too cute NOT to share.

I have meat...

and lots of it. Bob smoked maybe 10 racks of pork ribs and lots and lots of chickens for Paola’s Baptism.

Carolina Chavez

Carolina Chavez, originally uploaded by trudeau.

woo hoo
i LOVE painting my face!

Congratulations To D3!!!

I am exceedingly proud of and happy for David Fernandez who landed a job as an associate artist at NCSoft. He will be working on the Tabula Rasa title...

As you recall, a couple of years ago Dave up and decided to move to San Diego to learn 3D Animation and such, with the intention of getting work in the Video Game Industry. He has achieved his goal!!!

Felicidades to D3!!

Hammer & Coop

Mini Cooper, the car company, has a big new ad campaign coming out, and Anthony did the painting shown on these groovy 70s-style lunchboxes for them:



The lunchboxes are already up for sale by people on e-Bay, a bunch are also being given away in promotions, and he also designed an iron-on patch that people can pull out of magazine ads and actually use... The Mini Cooper commercials that are part of this campaign are pretty funny -- check out www.hammerandcoop.com

Here's the lunchbox on e-Bay: http://cgi.ebay.com/Hammer-Coop-Lunch-Box-MINI-Cooper_W0QQitemZ290084670322QQihZ019QQcategoryZ1410QQrdZ1QQssPageNameZWD10VQQcmdZViewItem

Living Wall

Here's the living wall I've been working on for a hotel in downtown Manhattan. The entire thing will take up 60' of vertical space and 25' horizontal. It will be in the backyard/courtyard of this hotel, and it will be the view that the hotel's guests have outside their room windows. The plants hang in panels, which are invisible on the surface level, and the top 20' is a kinetic sculpture of painted aluminum panels that move in the wind.

A waterfall cascades through the entire thing in metal trays. The whole thing takes a lot of planning and coordinated effort between architects, engineers, steel fabricators, growers, irrigation people, lighting people, and myself as the designer -- so it's not even going to be installed until 2008, but when it goes up I'll be posting the pics for everyone to see!

BIGBOY

BIGBOY
Originally uploaded by TaggartCojanSorensen.

Since Killy helped me on this gig I figured I would share so people could get an idea of what we were up to. Besides drinking.

One Corporate Nation, Under the Dollar

Anthony wrote this letter to his dad, who, like many of us, voted for the Democrats hoping he was casting a vote for change. It is shocking that we are about to escalate the war, with the possibility of a new war with Iran also looming in the distance. As we continue to give up our civil liberties in the name of democracy, we must pause to ask ourselves what is happening to this country and how we can truly create change in the current climate of corporate-controlled government and media.

Paul, I'm curious what your insight is being in D.C. and if there is a ray of hope anywhere that people can actually change the system. I'm worried about what sort of world my son is going to grow up in -- sometimes it seems like a cross between "1984" and "Idiocracy."

Here's the letter, which I think sums up the situation very well ...

Dear Dad; I want you to know, I applaud your efforts to advance freedom and democracy. I just think to promote the democrats' agenda only further entrenches the status quo, which is a legislative body completely controlled by
corporate interests ; And an executive branch with dictatorial powers.

By helping the dems we only help advance the causes of the global corporations who own them, at the expense of our liberties and standard of living. We need to let the country know the fact that patriot act 1 and 2 combined with the military commissions act literally nullify all our rights described in the of rights.

The unconstitutional tactics the govt claims are reserved for terrorists have been used to send thousands to jail so far,
not one of them a terror related case. The mainstream media presented this bill as a way to protect americans.
The dems are making no effort to appeal these laws. We need to let people know they do not live in a democracy.
We need to tell people that the media is controlled by the same global corporations that control congress,and that since 2000, the govt has spent 1.6 billion in fake news stories to promote their agenda.
(Thats from the Washington Post ,google:1.6 billion in fake news)

If we really lived in a democracy, you'd be right, but unfortunately, our fearless leader is going to send more kids to die
no matter what (his words) the dems do, move on does or the american people want. He also has two more years with two new wars on the table no dem can stop either. Not that they even want to, they will vote for new wars just like they
voted for the iraq war, and then change their position to get elected, and do nothing but maybe a non-binding resolution.

As far as their accomplishments so far, the gap between the dems talking points and the reality is vast and shocking .
I actually read the legislation at congress.org to find out the truth. You wont get it on CNN. S1, the so called lobbying reform bill passed by congress is a shamefull attack on the first amendment, once you look past the dems talking points and actually read what they did. section 220 requires bloggers who get 500 or more hits a year and have any political content to register and report quarterly to congress or face criminal penalties "including up to one year in jail if someone knowingly and willingly fails to report". The bill actually would fine blogs 300,000. dollars for "offensive
statements". For the first time in history, critics of congress will have to report to them.

The student loan bill is nothing but a credit card scam, it reduces rates 3 points over the next three years, and then they go right back to the current rate,saving the average student 14 dollars a month for that limited period. Not a life changing number for students saddled with thousand dollar a month notes.

We have to start with the truth. If people know these facts maybe something will change, but if they keep voting for these criminals, and buying into the myth that one party is good and the other one hates america, we are doomed. The two party system is a divide and conquer strategy -- they vote the same on important issues. they vote for wars and vote to take away our rights. They let us fight over the stuff that will never be decided. I'd rather face the truth and educate people than live a lie, a big lie.

Love, anth

Star Reunion

Is anyone going to the University Stay reunion? I'm curious to hear what's new if anyone out there is planning to attend:

http://star.txstate.edu/content/view/2269/189/

Good Times In NYC

I took the train up to NYC on Thursday. I arrived just as Killy and Taggart were returning from a photo-shoot in the Bronx. We took the PATH over to Jersey City where Taggart had a room at the fancy Hyatt there that sits right on the water and overlooks the Manhattan skyline…

On Thursday night we went out to eat at … Veselkas. I ate super tasty kielbasa and we had pierogis and then I ate some beef stroganaff and it was good.

On Friday we met up with Ethan in Jersey City and enjoyed a tasty breakfast. Then we went to B&H photo and witnessed the fancy conveyor belt system. Then we went up to Times Square and saw the controlled chaos and were advertised at.

Killy and Taggart returned to the hotel to do another shoot and I went to the MOMA. The MOMA blew my mind, especially the selection of Paul Klee prints and drawings. I saw some of his stuff that I had never seen before like The Hero with the Wing .

Later that night we met up with Ethan and ate some delicious japanese food and then went out for the proverbial “just one drink” and it was great fun and then the next thing I knew we were zooming through Holland tunnel at lightspeed and then we are back in Jersey City and then Killy and Taggart had to get up at 5:45 AM to do another shoot while I slept in.

It was great fun to see everybody. I hope to have another excuse to head up to NYC again soon.

Also I wish I had known about Dylan By Freda, I would have grabbed a copy!

Dylan by Freda

Anthony's painting of Bob Dylan appears in this week's Village Voice.

Hair Poll

I'm taking a poll on what to do with my hair because it's in this awful in-between stage. Please indulge me by casting your vote:

Option 1 - Cut it all off and pay tribute to more punk rock days by dying it platinum blonde

Option 2 - Suck it up and grow it out because long hair is oh-so-feminine

Option 3 - Cut it all off but buy a wig to wear on random occasions

Option 4 - Get hair extensions and pretend to be Lady Godiva

Billy & Anthony at McSorley's

Billy & Anthony at McSorley's, originally uploaded by amberscottfreda.

It's not often that Anthony and I go anywhere without Antonio, but today we treated ourselves to a day in the city with some old friends. We met up at McSorley's on 7th Street in the Village. It's a pub that was once frequented by Abraham Lincoln and Teddy Roosevelt, among others. I thought it was fitting that the pictures came out so old-fashioned looking.

Camera: Fixed!

I busted the LCD screen on my Canon SD550 the other day. After searching around on the internets for tutorials on how to fix the screen myself, and fighting off the tempation to buy a sweet new camera, I decided to send the camera off to be repaired…

I did more searching on the internets and finally settled on The Foto Geeks. Why did I choose to send it these guys? Did I read a positive review of their services? Did a friend recommend them to me? No! I liked their url! They spell “foto” like I do and they have “geeks” in the name!

Anyhow, despite a deep distrust of Michigan I sent my camera to these fellas. I am happy to say that the service was excellent. They informed me when the camera arrived, and confirmed that indeed the LCD needed to replaced. Less than a week later they called me to let me know that the camera was fixed. They charged me $105 for parts, labor and shipping.

The ole Ryan Kane special

Thomas sent me some of the pics from the old crew meet up over the holidays.

You Talkin' to Me?

Anthony's been rehearsing Robert De Niro's scene from Taxi Driver with Antonio. What do you think?

Different Kinds of Intelligence

This weekend I stumbled upon Howard Gardner, a Harvard psychologist who has identified different types of human intelligence. I found this fascinating, and a good explanation for why we can be highly intelligent in some ways, i.e. linguistically, logically, mathematically, creatively, etc., but may at the same time be quite average in other ways.

I think I'm above average in some ways -- I'm usually very logical and also very creative, I can put down my thoughts and feelings in writing pretty well, and I have a good memory for naturalistic facts and details, which he identifies as 'naturalist intelligence,' but I'm really very average in other ways, i.e. liguistically and mathematically.

Now I know why!

This may also help shed some light on why so many geniuses, i.e. Albert Einstein, many of the great composers, writers, and artists, etc. are so talented in their field but often extremely lacking in other types of intelligence, i.e. social/verbal/interpersonal skills. Check it out:

http://www.infed.org/thinkers/gardner.htm

Paola Isabel Chavez - Portrait

Paola Isabel Chavez - Portrait
Originally uploaded by killy.

Since the book club was cancelled, i took pictures late saturday night.

Monopoly Night

Monopoly Night
Originally uploaded by killy.

Last night we could have gone out. The Katzenbach Texas Office (there are three offices: Houston, NYC (head office), and Chicago) was having their annual meeting complete with Hotel conference room, dinner after the event and an 'after event' planned for late into the evening. They had split up the staff into groups; my group was scheduled to eat at the Grotto at 6 p.m.

Of course, this would have meant driving the kids to Sugarland so my mother could watch them driving back, going out, driving to get them and driving back again.

So we decided instead to celebrate mama's new job with dinner at Chili's and chocolate crunch ice cream bars and monopoly for dessert. While Candyland, Toot and Otto, and Chutes and Ladders are enjoyable for Adolfo, Monopoly has to be his all time favorite game (for now). He counts every dice roll, he buys everything he lands on, and he exclaims "yes!" everytime mama hands him a new property.

Naturally, the rules are skewed a little bit, but the spirit of the game is intact. We start out with no money. Instead we get $10 when we pass Free Parking and the regular $200 when we pass go. Also, all the zero's are cut off of the cost of properties - so Boardwalk only costs $40. Houses are placed onto the property as soon as you buy it - so it's easy to determine if it is owned or not. Rent is simplified too - $3 if you own it and $10 if you have a hotel on it, which costs you a measly $10 per property (they aren't very nice hotels).

Adolfo had a great time as he came out on top this time. "$20's go on top!" he yells as he stacks up his money.

end-of-the-world

end-of-the-world
Originally uploaded by Mattias Adolfsson.

what this artist does is wonderful!

Indoor

So I got invited to play on an indoor team. My first game was last night. It was so much fun!

It was also painful. Indoor Soccer requires so much sprinting! I thought that my poor little lungs were going to collapse!

Also, we are playing in the top (premier) level- which means no slacking and some pretty hard tackles. I think I may need to get new knees.

The field is great. It is that fancy new fake-grass stuff. It is so much like grass that you could play on it with regular cleats! I wore the sweet turf-shoes that Colin hooked me up with a couple of years ago. Thanks Colin!

We lost our game 9-6. For most of the game I thought we were holding our own, but then, the other team decided to beat us down and they did.

Can’t wait for next week. Going to bring an extra-lung, an oxygen tank, and a bottle of advil.