Ted Turner's Paper Straw

We ate at Ted Turner's "Ted's Nebraska Grill" recently. Ted puts out a mean burger (buffalo or beef), but the straws he uses are also of interest. They're dubbed as "earth friendly" and are made out of heavy cardboard-like paper instead of plastic. My straw worked surprisingly well for the first 25 minutes or so, but then it started to really soak up the liquid and became rather soggy. It never quit working completely though.

The GNR Dr. Pepper

Dr. Pepper has delivered on their promise to give out a free bottle of soda to the world if Guns 'N Roses released their long awaited album "Chinese Democracy" in 2008. The album came out and I recently received my free DP coupon from the good doctor.

The Gift Horse

One of the highlights of the Christmas Stockings (or Socks if you prefer) this year was the miraculous growing animal. Start with a small animal about the size of a quarter... in this case a horse:



Submerge the thing in water for a week or so... and wa-la - you've got a much larger horse.



Pull it out and it shrinks back down over the course of a week.

Then you can start the fun all over again! And, of course, whatever you do - avoid looking at it in the mouth!

The Top of the Playlist - 2008

Similarities from '07 with the playlist count...

Collective Soul, The Connells and the Scissor Sisters continue to represent.

"Nana"

A couple of days a month we are treated to a healthy, hungry baby and we're experiencing that now! Jack has learned what a banana is and now says "Na-na" He even insisted on getting a banana before he finished dinner last night and once I finally figured out what he wanted he was quite pleased.



We've tried the "grazing platter" approach the last few nights with him and experienced reasonable success. This method of feeding requires that the beagles be kenneled as we just load a plate with a variety of foods and let him grab a bite as he runs by.

Earlier tonight he discovered how fun/funny it was to turn pages in his animal book (which has now lost part of its cover) with Mom providing sound affects.

Ranger's Birthday

It's coming up. The jovial beagle was born nearly 13 years ago I believe. This year he's itching for the new iFeast in hopes that I will give him my old iPod to use with it.

Beagles Go To Sbarkles

The beagles went on a field trip to sBarkles. Folsom's do it yourself dog wash.

Here they are loaded up and ready to go. The Jeep makes it much easier to transport the animals.

They came back quite clean though for $26 (and that includes a 20% coupon) I'm not sure how often they will be going back.

The Zoo!

Jack had his second trip to the zoo yesterday and saw a lot of animals, rode the train and went to the playground.

There were lots of animals this time including monkeys, tigers, bears and wolves.

Here's the tiger...and the wolf.

And a strange looking albino peacock.



Mom and Jack check out a deer.




Jack isn't sure what to think about becoming the face of a mountain lion!



After the zoo Jack had his first train ride. Here we are all boarded and ready.



We ended at the playground where Jack is developing an afinity towards slides.

Jack Frost Experiences His First Snow

all right - it was mainly ice because the Sierras are experiencing another dry January so there isn't all that much snow. But we found some ice that wasn't too far up and did a little sledding.



Here Mr. Jack Frost is king of the snow! We walked and sledded for about 10 minutes before the little guy fell and busted his lip. That ended the day for us.

The AC/DC Show

We saw AC/DC tonight in Omaha and it was a pretty great rock concert. The consistent highlight was seeing Angus Young go absolutely nuts running around the stage with his guitar. He's one of the strangest dudes in rock with his shorts, tie, and weird facial expressions, but he was incredibly energetic and is a great performer. This is the best pic I got at the show with my lousy cell phone cam.

Here's another one I found on the web of Angus in action.

The set props in the show were also pretty cool, though none of my pictures really came out. The first prop was a life sized train engine that rolled out blasting flames and smoke. Later some kind of scantily clad balloon woman the size of a Thanksgiving day float inflated out of the train and rode it like a toy horse. During "Hell's Bells" a giant AC/DC bell lowered from the rafters which lead singer Brian Johnson swung from and appeared to ring. During the encore, they played "For Those About to Rock We Salute You" and six full sized cannons rolled out and blasted at the appropriate times during the song. Nifty, but my ears are still ringing!

The Most Wonderful Time of The Year

The post Christmas sale on Holiday Candy. I scored two interesting items at the local Longs Drugs at 75% off.



Ghirardelli Holiday Chocolates which include two new flavors I haven't yet tried: Pecan Pie and Eggnog. Both get good marks as you would expect. The flavors are right and not too strong or too weak.

I haven't yet gotten up the courage to break into the Strikin' Strawberry Candy Canes featuring a chewy center but maybe soon!

College Football Bowl Pick'em Results

Bill declared champion thanks to a one point victory!!!!
1 Bill 367 19 of 34
2 Dad 366 19 of 34
3 Robert 337 18 of 34
4 Erin 270 13 of 34
5 Mullins 264 15 of 34

A New Hat Trend?

Jack models an emerging trend in baby hats...a container of animal crackers. What isn't seen here is the big pile of crackers he dumped to enable to the hat modeling.

Dalian China Facility

Here's an interesting photo of the new Intel fab in Dalian China that a friend sent me. It is on the outskirts of town so you can see farmers bringing their crops in to sell occasionally. Interesting contrast...

Forgot Your Sunglasses?

I don't want to hear any whining the next time you forget your sunglasses!

Cat Chat

Mullins and I recently engaged in a three-way video conference. The third party was Riley the cat!

Jones Pear Tree Soda

We sampled Jones Pear Tree Soda over the holidays. It tastes pretty good, although I was hoping for a more intense pear flavor. Will (seen here holding the soda) kept expecting an alcoholic aftertaste that you could only get by mixing in your own booze.

Holiday Snaps - Round Two

Here's another round of holiday snaps from Arkansas. Steph also plans to send out a snapfish review which will contain more but in the meantime...

Bill introduces Jack to the secret bucket head society

Jack goes for a car ride while finishing up Christmas shopping in the mall. This was his only happy experience in the mall and just before one of his greatest tantrums ever!


Here Bill and Erin prevent Jack from climbing the stairs

Mom and Jack play the how hard can I pound the spoon on the table game. It turns out the answer was pretty hard. Thus the pot holder.


Jack turned out to be a huge fan of Grandpa's harmonica playing. He'd grab the harmonica and take it to him hoping for a serenade.


Mom's famous Christmas Crescent is almost ready to be served. No - you don't have to eat all the candied fruit.


Jack anxiously awaits the Christmas Gifts. He served as the official package delivery elf this year and did an admirable job.


Granny and Jack enjoy a night out on the town


Followed by some reading time before bed


The president of the secret bucket head society


Jack couln't get enough reading time


Many of us enjoyed this bottle of rum we discovered deep within Mom's cupboard. The debate continues - was it 50 years old or not...


We arrived home only to find another round of gifts from Aunt Jasper and Uncle Dermie. Here's Jack in his new chair preparing to open his gift.

2008 Christmas Card

Next year order 80..!