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Did it all by myself!

Don't be a douchenozzle

Palin for President!

No, not that Palin, you ninny.

These feet are made for walking

Walker walking from Christie on Vimeo.

Recipe Corner: Dark Chocolate Cupcakes

Since Monsieur Henry's birthday is coming up I thought it prudent to do a practice run making some homemade cupcakes for the big day. As always, my trusted cooking friends at Cook's Illustrated have a fantastic recipe. I can say it is fantastic because I just finished taste testing the cupcakes of my labor and they are yummy. A perfect Sunday accompaniment, for sure. Next to try is this cupcake with the chocolate buttercream frosting. (This batch is frosted with vanilla buttercream.)

Ingredients:
8 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces
2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1/2 cup Dutch-processed cocoa
3/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
2 large eggs
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon table salt
1/2 cup sour cream

Directions:
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line standard-sized muffin pans with baking-cup liners.

Combine butter, chocolate, and cocoa in medium heatproof bowl. Set bowl over saucepan containing barely simmering water. Heat mixture until butter and chocolate are melted and whisk until smooth and fully combined. Set aside to cool until just warm to touch.

Whisk flour, baking soda, and baking powder in small bowl to combine. Whisk eggs in second medium bowl to combine. Add sugar, vanilla, and salt and whisk until fully incorporated. Add cooled chocolate mixture and whisk until combined. Sift about one third of the flour mixture over chocolate mixture and whisk until combined. Whisk in sour cream until combined, then sift remaining flour mixture over and whisk until batter is thick.

Divide batter among muffin pans cups. Bake until toothpick inserted into center of cupcakes comes out clean, 18 to 20 minutes.

Cool cupcakes in muffin pan on wire rack until cool enough to handle, about 15 minutes. Transfer cupcakes to wire rack and cool to room temperature before icing.

Makes 12 cupcakes

Saying goodbye to Mr. Newman

"You can't be as old as I am without waking up with a surprised look on your face every morning: 'Holy Christ, whaddya know - I'm still around!' It's absolutely amazing that I survived all the booze and smoking and the cars and the career."

Methinks I need some alone time

Darr comes in from patio carrying baby

Me, in über excited voice: Are you going!?

Darr, in stern no-nonsense voice: We're going, as a family.

Me, in a defeated yet unconvincing voice: I hate family.

Best live blogging debate comment

"Obama is wearing a flag pin. McCain is not. WHY DOES JOHN MCCAIN HATE AMERICA?"

Courtesy of Ezra Klein.

Recipe Corner: Pumpkin Bread

One benefit of being at home and not in law school is that I can bake. A few days ago it was this recipe for spiced pumpkin bread - Henry's developing a fondness for various homemade baked breads. When Henry's a wee bit older and has a few more teeth, I'll add the optional walnuts. For now, though, this bread is quite tasty without 'em. I know it seems like a lot of sugar but the recipe does make two loaves.

Ingredients:
3 cups sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
3 large eggs
1 16-ounce can solid pack pumpkin
3 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts (optional)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter and flour two 9x5x3-inch loaf pans. Beat sugar and oil in large bowl to blend. Mix in eggs and pumpkin. Sift flour, cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda, salt and baking powder into another large bowl. Stir into pumpkin mixture in 2 additions. Mix in walnuts, if desired.

Divide batter equally between prepared pans. Bake until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 1 hour 10 minutes. Transfer to racks and cool 10 minutes. Using sharp knife, cut around edge of loaves. Turn loaves out onto racks and cool completely.

On a side note, tonight I made pumpkin pie. Since the recipe makes two pies, Darr will have an extra one to take into work tomorrow.

My white blood cells and me

And the best bailout quote goes to...

Rep. Mike Pence

"I must tell you, there are those in the public debate who have said that we must act now. The last time I heard that, I was on a used-car lot. The truth is, every time somebody tells you that you've got to do the deal right now, it usually means they're going to get the better part of the deal."

Trust Me

There's a good op-ed piece about the proposed bailout plan. Trust me? I don't think so.

Is anyone else worried when the media keeps making comparisons about how this financial meltdown is worse than the Great Depression?

10,000,000,000,000

10 trillion dollars in debt by the time bush leaves office?

Yikes!

Yikes!

Yikes!

I'll remind you of this.

I got this

PDS - Palin Derangement Syndrome

From the San Francisco Chronicle by Mark Morford.

"Every white woman I know is positively horrified.

Wait, that's not exactly true. It's more accurate to say that every thoughtful or liberal or intuitive or open-minded white woman I know worth her vagina monologue and her self-determination and two centuries of nonstop striving for equal rights and sexual freedom and exhaustive patriarchal unshackling is right now openly horrified, appalled at what the addition of shrill PTA hockey-mom Sarah Palin seems to have done for the soggy, comatose McCain campaign — that is, make it not merely remotely interesting and melodramatic, but aggressively hostile to, well, to all intelligent women everywhere.

Truly, among women in the know and especially among those who fought so hard to bring Hillary Clinton to the brink of history, nausea and a general recoiling appear to be the universal reactions to Palin's sudden presence on the national stage, stemming straight from the idea that there's even a slight chance in hell such an antagonistic, anti-female politico could be within a 72-year-old heartbeat of becoming the most powerful and iconic woman of all time.

They say: You've got to be kidding me. They say: This is what we get? This could be our historic role model? Two hundred years (OK, more like 2000) of struggle, only to have this nasty caricature of femininity try to hijack and mock and undermine it all?

It cannot be true, they say. The universe must joking, would not dare dump such a homophobic, Creationist evangelical nutball on us, this anti-choice, God-pandering woman who's the inverse of Hillary, this woman of deep inexperience who abhors birth control and supports abstinence education and shoots exhausted wolves from helicopters and hates polar bears and actually stands for everything progressive women have resented since the first pope Swift-Boated Eve."

Day at the park

Leave of absence

Unfortunately, Henry's latest blood work shows his numbers have not improved. We have decided I should take a leave of absence from school for the time being. We expect to know more next week when the results of this current round of tests come back.

There is a slight chance I may be able to drop to part-time status. Slight. WUCL doesn't currently have a part-time program. The circumstances are such that they are trying to accommodate my wishes. And because it is a small enough program, they just might be able to do so. That being said, in the event I can't or decide not to go part-time, I have been invited to come back next year and I do not have to reapply. Also, I'll get my same professors, so books already purchased will most likely be ones I can use next year.

Organic Spam

Darr found the juxtaposition between the attempt at healthy (organic Kraft Mac n' Cheese) and the absurdly unhealthy (Spam) quite amusing. I've already admitted my secret, but while at the store it occurred to me that Monsieur Henry seems to have a predilection for foods that are "bad" for you. What is worse for you than Spam? I snagged some and will fry it up this weekend to see if we can get the little booger to eat it and possible add a little fat to his svelte frame. (I swear this kid is growing taller everyday.)

Unicorns that poo candy

Some phrases are just so perfect...

Lifted from Indexed

Fiscal conservative is code for huge deficit

Posted with permission from Steve Greenberg, Ventura County Star, California.

Month Eleven

Dear Henry,

Tomorrow you will turn eleven months old. Your weight check last month set off a change of events that still leaves me reeling when I think about it. I will always remember how your little big toe glowed when they put on the device to check your pulse, and how that glow bothered you so much that every time they attached it, you did everything within your power to pull it off. I am all too happy to forget the names of various diseases and ailments we've checked off the list that you don't have. You are, as far as we know, one step away from becoming a medical mystery. As long as you are okay, I'm okay with not knowing the particulars about what happened.You are unlike any other sick person I've known. Even taking in as few calories as you were, you still found resources of energy to zoom through the condo with your lightning speed crawl. Grandma Glynn timed you one evening when you refused to sleep. She walked you around the condo holding your hands. It took you approximately one minute to go from the dining room table, around the island in the kitchen, and back to the table. A favorite of yours is playing on Beauty the wonder dog's bed that sits in your room. The bean bag-like nature of this bed makes it a great toy to jump and roll around on. The company actually makes mini bean bag chairs for kids. I think it's safe to assume you'll be getting one of these when you're just a wee bit older and the fear I have of you bonking your head subsides. Unfortunately, because your white cell count is so low, you are confined to home for the most part. We can't have you gallivanting around the town because you can't fight off infection right now. Grandma one (from Montana) stayed with you the last couple of weeks and now Grandma two (from Canada) is here to watch you while your dad goes to work and I go to school. Your grandmas are quite taken with you, naturally. You seem content to share with them your world.Speaking of calories, your diet has been overhauled. Gone are the homemade fruit and vegetable purées and occasional chicken or fish dinners. Now, it's all about high caloric intake. And, since your palate is quite finicky, we offer you foods like Oreo cookies (you love the icing, further proof you're mine) and Kraft Mac n' Cheese. Your favorite is Häagen Dazs Fleur de Sel ice cream. You are also rather fond of yogurt smoothies. Any food we can add formula to, we do. It appears to be working. Last Friday when we stopped by the doc's office for yet another weight check, you had broken the 17 pound mark. Nice job, kiddo. I refer to your current menu as craptastic but you do consume good stuff like cheese, raspberries and bananas, and this crazy squash bread Miss Erin Beatrix's mom introduced us to. It's cinnamontastic, that bread.
You are spatially aware and have a propensity for engineering type projects like stacking Legos and placing lids on pots. When a successful lid placement has occurred you clap your hands and then look at us to make sure we're celebrating your achievement, too. You love to boogie. Your jungle mat has a setting that allows you to learn about cause and effect, and it goes like this: shake (so the music comes on), dance (while the music plays), quiet (realize you need to shake again), repeat (is there really an explanation necessary for this one?). It is clear you get your rhythm from me and that your love of dance comes from your father. Occasionally, we let Mabel and Ellie outside to frolic on the patio, and because we like the cats we leave the screen door cracked so they can come back in when they want to. You have taught yourself how to wiggle the door open a smidge more by using your head and shoulders, and once the opening is a touch wider, you can leave and return on your own accord. Sometimes you go out and come back in over and over again. Ah, technologies, we mustn't forget those. You love cell phones. Well, all phones, really, and remote controls and laptops, but your little mitts rarely get any of those. You've been watching us with the phone and you know it's supposed to go up to your head but I don't believe you quite know it's the ear area specifically that you should be focusing on. So when you do put the phone up to your head it's in such a manner to suggest you are combing the back of your hair rather than talking on the phone. This could be your first instance of multi-tasking. Or perhaps you are meant to be the inventor of the cell phone comb. The world is your oyster, my sweet boy.Every once in awhile, by accident, you find yourself standing on your own. I think it freaks you out because you immediately hit the deck and then crawl away from the area as if it has been tainted by thoughts of your future mobility. With a spotter you will walk using your little cart walker but it is a touch quicker rolling along than you are following on your feet so within a few steps you return to the safety of your knees and shuffle along after it. On a side note, we are aware that the length of your hair is such that you are starting to resemble one of the Beatles. As soon as you are all better, we'll get you a much-needed haircut. It'll be your first one. It is hard to believe that next month we'll be celebrating your first birthday. In many respects, this year has flown by and you've changed exponentially from the person you were eleven months ago. And yet, you are still reflective and relatively quiet. You are still good natured and fun to be with. You are still curious and studious. You are still you. And there is still so much more to come.Be well, little one. You are the most precious thing in the world.

Love,
Mom

Bike meets bar

If you have ever wondered what might happen if you enter a parking garage with limited clearance while a bike is strapped to the top of your car, I have an answer for you.

The bike will hit the bar that hangs in front of the building's gate, fall to it's side, rip up the bike rack it is attached to, and cause the bar to fall and dent the top of your car.

All I can say is this: Darr was driving.

Lies, damn lies & statistics

This chart is not a damn lie. It shows who exactly gets tax cuts and tax hikes. If you're reading this blog, Obama is who you want in the white house. (Unless there's someone out there in the top 1% -- more than approx 600K/yr. And if there is, we want to hear from you -- we got car repairs to pay for.)

Obama means more money in your pocket
Graphic by ChartJunk

Anyway, you know the old saw, "numbers don't lie"? Hah!, what a bunch of crap. Numbers lie all the time; you can make them say anything. The chart above presents things in the way that matters to individuals. It's represents things accurately. But check out this article at chartjunk. I know the Washington Post doesn't mean to distort the information ... they just aren't thinking.

Hat tip: Ezra Klein

Dude, where's my rants?

I've been laying off my habitual rants about the mainstream media lately. (Liberal bias? my ass.) But I couldn't resist linking to (the honestly pretty scary and reactionary, and yet not MSM) Talking Points Memo. This one is good: http://talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/216937.php

And here's the MSM, saying McCain sold his soul to the devil (I shit you not, it's savage out there)

Oh, and here's an Associated Press article where Palin lies about Obama's tax plan. Seems random, but the "Bridge to Nowhere" fib is pretty ground down. Reformer? my ass.

Honestly, I think Obama has a problem: McCain has nothing to lose. This is his last chance. He's a corned cornered dog: desperate, hungry and scared. You wanna fight that? This is not good for the world.

Unethical banana consumption

Sure, I saw the sign, but I ate the banana anyway. In the library. And I chewed with glee.

How ethical of a lawyer am I going to be if I can't abide by a "no food" rule in the law library?

Under the mattress is looking pretty darn good these days

You know those folks who foster a healthy fear of banking institutions to the extent they keep their money in their own home rather than subject it to market volatility? Those folks must be laughing all the way to, well, the room in which the money is stashed. As for me, I cringe now every time the financial statement comes. I mean, I know we're supposed to be thinking long term on those retirement accounts but could there be less hemorrhaging, please?

It's not all McCain's fault

Continuing ARGH....

The McCain campaign's decision to lie about, well, everything, really needs to be understood as more than the outcome of John McCain's consuming ambition. It is a rational and obvious response to the rules laid down by the media. ...

Earlier this year McCain made poverty tours and offered policy speeches. No one cared, Obama retained his lead. It was only when he began offering vicious attacks and daily controversies that he began setting the pace of the coverage. ...

None of this, of course, absolves McCain of what he has done. He has sacrificed his honor and dignity with astonishing enthusiasm. ...

Go ahead, read the full article, you know you want to.

Let this serve as a shout-out to my new favorite blog: http://www.prospect.org/csnc/blogs/ezraklein

Hitting the bottle

Since grandma one went back to Montana and grandma two from Canada won't be showing up until tomorrow, we spent much of the week out at honorary third grandma's house in Newberg. While there, Henry was introduced to an obnoxiously friendly barn cat we named BOC (for Big Orange Cat) and two puppies, Gizmo and Zoey. Miss Zoey is a teeny little puppy and she was ferociously cute with her little puppy teeth and hyper puppy behavior.

Henry's latest drink o' choice - beside milks from mom and co. - is the Stonyfield Yogurt Organic Smoothie, to which we add formula to bring up the calorie count. The pic above is one taken of Henry on the front lawn of the ranch enjoying said drink. Look closely and you can almost see the beginnings of a belly protruding. Sweet.

ARGH!

Lifted from stuff that happens

And a good epic poem from the NYTimes (Read it out loud in your head!)

Lucky number 17

Henry is gaining weight! Woot! At his latest weight check, Monsieur Henry was up to 17 lbs. Our diet of Oreo cookies (he likes the icing, a lot), Häagen Dazs ice cream (fleur de sel caramel ice cream is his favorite), Kraft Mac n' Cheese and the like appears to be working. Now, you might be thinking "well, that doesn't sound like a very good menu for a baby," and you'd be right. We didn't think so, either. Which is why we were steaming and pureeing Henry's food from the start, using vegetables we got from our CSA (Luscher Farm) and picking up the rest at New Seasons. I bought a book and was kept busy preparing such favorites as cheesy leek puree and parsnip, spinach, and potato puree, and Henry's favorite, apple and pear puree w/ raisin and cinnamon. Our doctor assures us we can resume healthier options once we are no longer at the critical mark for weight. Until then, I'm not even going to feel guilty about his craptastic diet.

Sort of like cheating but not

Who has time to blog every single day when there is a baby at home and the law to learn at school and a husband who likes baked goods? Answer: Not me. And yet, I signed up to do blog 365 and have come this far it seems like I can't give up without putting in a valiant effort. So, I'm backdating this blog a day to cover what was supposed to be yesterday's post. Although, really, I think I am covered because I've been blogging at my school blog. I'm not a cheater after all. Phew.

Go, Science, go!

From the AP:

The CERN experiments could reveal more about "dark matter," antimatter and possibly hidden dimensions of space and time. It could also find evidence of the hypothetical particle — the Higgs boson — which is sometimes called the "God particle" because it is believed to give mass to all other particles, and thus to matter that makes up the universe.

Sweet.

A world without

Grandma one has gone home and grandma two is about to receive a call to come for a babysitting visit. What would the world do without grandmas?

Wtf?

Did I just read McCain is now beating Obama in some polls?

More fun from the patriarchy

Darr: Don't push your luck, young lady.

Me: Or what? You'll batter me? I know the legal definition now.

Darr: This is why you don't educate your women.

Freedom

The word you are looking for is...

Accuracy of McCain's claims

FactCheck.org is a "nonpartisan, nonprofit, consumer advocate for voters that aims to reduce the level of deception and confusion in U.S. politics." They recently went over some of the claims McCain made during his speech. Conclusion: he flubbed a little.

You can read their summary here.

In Memoriam

One of the most enduring taboos in American politics, the airing of graphic images from the September 11 attacks in a partisan context, died today [4 Sept 08]. It was nearly seven years old.

The informal prohibition, which had been occasionally threatened by political ads in recent years, was pronounced dead at approximately 7:40 CST, when a video aired before delegates at the Republican National Convention included slow-motion footage of a plane striking the World Trade Center, the towers' subsequent collapse, and smoke emerging from the Pentagon.

The September 11 precedent was one of the few surviving campaign-season taboos. It is survived by direct comparisons of one's opponents to Hitler.

-- Boston Globe Blog

Note: If you have the stomach for it, you can see the GOP 9/11 "tribute" at YouTube. To my eyes, this is less tribute than it is exploitation. It makes me so sad. Keith Olbermann has a personal comment at the end which is worth watching.

Dang.

Henry's neutrophil count has dropped.

Henry's weight has dropped.

We've got another two appointments with different doctors at DCH - a gastroenterologist and another hematologist.

Reactions on Repubs

Megan (a.k.a. Miss Avery's mom) shared her thoughts on Palin at Casa de TiVo and it got me thinking about my own reaction to the RNC. On a broader level, the base of the Republican party leaves me confused. In McCain's speech last night he outlined his version of "change" and spoke of the normal things you expect to hear from Republicans. Things like getting rid of "big government" and "lowering taxes" and "cutting government spending," to name a few. I can't help but wonder what it is that those things mean to Mr. McCain. I fear his idea of getting rid of big government is whittling away our right of personal autonomy, not protecting our rights to make decisions for ourselves [read: abortion]. I fear his idea of lowering taxes means reducing taxes for those earning the most and for large corporations, not reducing taxes for the low to middle income families and small businesses. And I fear that for him cutting government spending means reducing social services, not budgeting for all of our nation's needs in a responsible and caring manner [read: runaway national debt as a result of the current Republican in office].

When Republicans* continually elect members to Congress that vote against education, that vote against health care for all, that vote against ending an illegal occupation of a foreign country, that vote against the environment, that vote against protecting the rights OUR FOUNDING FATHERS established for this country, that vote against seeking real answers to our dependency on oil...what are they voting for?

*This is a generalization.

I'll take "Infectious Diseases It Could Be" for $600, Alex

Docs informed us today they think Henry might have had roseola. Being the Google-happy camper that I am I looked this up on several different sites and can already tell you that there are a few symptoms Henry hasn't exhibited that are indicative of this infection and one big symptom he has exhibited (the low blood cell count) that is only seen in rare cases of infants that are infected. BUT! If this is what it turns out to be, this is very good news for those of us at Life at the condo. Mainly because it means Monsieur Henry is over the worst of it, his fever broke and the rash said adios a few days ago.

On a side note, Henry had a sweat test this morning to rule out cystic fibrosis and more blood work, which we very much hope shows his numbers returning to the normal range. We expect to know more tomorrow after we speak with Henry's pediatrician.

Update: Henry does not have cystic fibrosis - woohoo! And his white cell count did increase. Not by much but any increase is better than none.

In the beginning

Ouch!

I hit myself on the back of the head.

And now I see a black spot.

It's a rectangle, about the width of a pencil and about three times as long, and sits at a 30 degree angle.

It's traveling across my screen.

From top right to bottom left.

Slide slide slide down. Pop up.

Slide slide slide down. Pop up.

Slide slide slide down. Pop up.

Each time it gets a bit lighter.

Harder to see.

Now it's gone.

The mind is a crazy crazy thing.

John McCain is a cylon

Don't tell me it never crossed your mind.

Hat tip Concurring Opinions

Boy outfit #2

This doesn't really qualify as an outfit given that it is just one piece, but it is our current favorite bedtime ensemble so it is going to be noted as a worthy item to purchase for your baby's wardrobe.
Shopping guide info:
1. pajamas - Hanna Andersson, purchased at Hanna Andersson

And now a banner brought to you by the folks at Life at the condo

You didn't think I'd let the beginning of the month go by without a banner change just because I'm in law school now, did you?

Help me understand

So, I'm generally pretty down on MSM, especially their profound ability to parrot any and all rumor and innuendo without any sort of rational ... I'm getting ahead of myself. Anyway, this was pretty good, you can just feel her incredulity, but it's really impossible to get beyond spin here.



(Oh, "Campbell Brown" and "Tucker Bounds" -- these people are not from my neighborhood.)