Off the top of my head

Off the top of my head
Originally uploaded by tlillis4

I had a little pimple-like thing taken off my head Monday. Given my history both my doctor and I tend to err on the side of caution so off it went. The piece they removed wasn’t deep but was more than a centimeter wide so the suture looks ghastly. This is how I looked leaving the office with my "practically undetectable" pressure bandage.

Back when "keeping in touch" meant a letter or telephone this sort of thing could be kept quiet. Now that I FaceTime with the family I expect an explanation will be demanded. I wonder if they’d notice if I wore a toupée…

Happy “pretty good” Sunday

For “Super Sunday” there’s church in the morning, “Sexapalooza” in the afternoon and the “Super Bowl” in the evening. Ah, life in Columbus – can’t beat it!

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Judy and I joined Weight Watchers but I’m struggling a bit. How many “PointsPlus” is a pint of Barley’s Christmas Ale? Or how many activities points is pushing a toddler around at high speed in a red push car? I think “ah, these are problems to have”. Since we’ll be home for “the big game” today anyway I may make the nachos recipe that WW texted. And, yes, I will be taking a picture of them. So there!Actually, two out of three isn’t bad. We woke up much too late for church, the snow is really dumping outside (again) and I don’t think there’s stroller parking at “Sexapalooza”. We’ll go some other year – when Judy and I are older we’ll make the kids go “eeeeew”

The red car in question

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It’s a beautiful snowy morning in Columbus today. Perfect day to spend the day chasing my toddler around the house and spend the night chasing my wife around the house. See? Who needs “Sexapalooza“?

Update: I’ve learned something else today as well: never publish a blog post with a toddler tugging at your belt. It won’t turn out well!

Random Election Morning Thoughts

After two stout cups of coffee I’m reviewing the local “Voter Information Bulletin” to review the candidates’ platforms and qualifications. Some thoughts in no particular order.

• I was never a big fan of the League of Women Voters in Connecticut because they took political stands which were diametrically opposed to my own. They were (and are) in favor of a state income tax which, as has been been seen, is a job killer and they are in favor of public funding of candidates. I flatly do not want any of my money going to those race-bating gangsters in the “Working Families Party” and people will realize the folly of public funding when the KKK runs a full slate. Hardly a dispassionate group. I will need to see what the local group is like.
• I’m disappointed that the Ohio Republican Party wasn’t much more vigorous running in 3rd District. Chris Long seems nice enough but running an old white guy in the district is a non-starter. There are plenty of entrepreneurs in the district – I see them frequently at Cbusr and other events. There are untapped reserves (and unrepresented) voters in the 3rd. People who need to start their own charter schools because the public schools stick. People who are in favor of “No Child Left Behind” because it allows them to move their children to the Bexley system. People who understand that, if we don’t get the national finances under control, Medicaid will just stop. With the right person the district, if not winnable, would pull Democratic resources from marginal seats AND bring voice to an under-represented constituency. It’s a lost opportunity.
• The above goes double, in reverse, for the uncontested OH 16th Senate District. The Democrats couldn’t find anyone to run against Jim Hughes? I had to move left to join the Republican party yet I would consider an alternative. While a nice guy I haven’t been impressed with Sen. Hughes; a centrist Democrat would give him a good run for the money.
• There is “Hobson’s Choice” for State Board of Education. All want more state funding (and state control) of local schools. All want to take public (i.e. taxpayer) money away from private and charter schools. And all fall into the fallacious, nasty yet all-too-common trap of equating monies spent with quality. Just once I’d like to see a home-schooling advocate run.
• I’m disappointed with the lackluster group running for Franklin County commissioner. With the arena funding debacle there was an opportunity to bring some new blood in.
• Ohio needs more “Lillis Republicans” ��

And, joking aside, the fun has gone out of this since Chris Shays lost. OK, off to the polls!

Bill no posts!

This is irony. One of my pet peeves in the social media world is when people complain about other’s postings. After all, subscribing, friending or whatever-ing is strictly optional and you can always un-whatever them. But this morning I discovered a new trend quite annoying. It seems  many of my friends on Facebook posted, for want of a better term, “word pictures” declaiming some assertion or another. If you have a Facebook account I’m sure you’ve seen them. Without singling out anybody here is an example.

I don’t like this trend – don’t like it at all! If she (yes, it was a she) loves her husband then a status or picture of would be most welcome. It would be in her own words and the expression would be both genuine and personal. It might also prompt comment such as to why she’d post it today. But the clear answer in this case is “oh, I just found it and shared it”. It is bloodless. To illustrate, contrast the above to the following Twitter posts.

(Yeah, Kulp’s a good man) I suppose I should see if there’s a way to restrict FaceBook from showing “picture status” on my wall. If I do, I’ll post the instructions (and not in a word picture, either).

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Perhaps I should wait until I see the WWDC keynote speech but I was disappointed with the new features in iOS 6. For one thing it will ruin Christmas! Instead of interesting, geeky gifts my brother-in-law and I will just update each other’s Starbuck’s cards in Passbook and that will be that!

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And just so you don’t think I’m above posting pictures (but at least I do it in my blog and not on my wall).

Any resemblance to persons living or dead….

Columbus Diary #001

I’ve been know as being pretty stiff-necked under normal circumstances but today the description is particularly apt. Yesterday afternoon my dermatologist took three pre-cancerous lesions off my skin – two on my neck and one on my back. This is both better and worse than it sounds: better because it’s cheap insurance against a worse outcome and minimal surgery; worse because it’s right on the border of “carry on” and “better slow down” wounds. For example, my start-stop attempts at steady workouts are fixed on “stop” for the next two weeks. It feels like a stiff neck…until I move. Only then do I get a rather painful reminder of the larger magnitude of work that has been done. This is in contrast to my last mis-adventure: the thoracotomy. There the combination of lack of lung capacity and large wounds in my side were a persistent reminder of my unwell physical state.

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State of the League event at Crew Stadium

Yesterday was the “State of the League” event at Crew Stadium with the MLS Commissioner Don Garber, Columbus Crew President & General Manager Mark McCullers, and Columbus Crew Owner Clark Hunt. I was invited by virtue of my season ticket which, it turn, I have by virtue of my wife (who knows me all too well). Each person gave a short talk that was surprisingly informative. Then came the “Question and Answer” period; were these questions penalty kicks they would have floated over the goal. They didn’t come close to answering my questions but, to be honest, I didn’t expect them to be that bold.

My Questions

• Did the MLS front office have any involvement in arranging Brian Ching’s return to Houston?
• Did they “facilitate” at all the return of Eddie Johnson prior to Dec 23, 2011?
• How is MLS – SUM relationship playing out? Do you think this will be a long term arrangement or will MLS bring marketing “in house” sometime in the foreseeable future?
• When choosing an expansion location is it more important that the market be large even if soccer hasn’t been particularly successful (e.g. Minneapolis, Phoenix) or is it more important that the soccer team is successful even if it’s a smaller market (e.g. Charleston, Orlando).
• Do you think oblique hints of the Crew leaving Columbus hinder marketing the club?

Again, I don’t blame them for not answering these questions. Hell, even the press doesn’t ask questions these sharp. Speaking of which, there were some pointed tweets about the press not being invited. I suspect that had something to do with there being only one table of free food.

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Our Hero?

Upon reflection, this is the second time medical mayhem has been followed by a Crew event. The first official outing after my stay in hospital last year was to a taping of “Crew Xtra“. Both then and yesterday I was in pain and not myself; I shouldn’t wonder if my fellow Crew fans are beginning to think of me like Colin from “The Brittas Empire”.

Caution: Man at “work’

I haven’t been writing in a while. In fact, I haven’t posted regularly to a blog since before I met my wife. This means that there will be plenty of lousy writing before the good material appears. Sorry, no help for it.

This is the only warning you will receive.

It’s Christmas all over again (yeah, again!)

As merchants keep trying to pull the holiday season into Labor Day there is (quite rightly) a debate as to when is the appropriate time to start thinking about Christmas. Since moving to Columbus I’ve come up with a simple series of signs which indicate when to roll out the holly.

1. When Starbuck’s starts selling Egg Nog lattes
2. When Barley’s has a their Christmas keg tapping ceremony
3. When Kroger start stocking the low-fat eggnog

Two of these conditions have been fulfilled. The third, Barley’s ceremony, is this Thursday, November 17th. Usually, they have a local notable perform the ceremonial tapping of the keg. Last year it was Columbus Crew great Frankie Hedjuk. This year it is going to Jeni of Jeni’s Ice Cream fame. I’m hoping they will let me purchase a growler of this years brew.

 

A growler for the growler I always say!