Thoughts on Childhood Foods For Guests, Entertainment, and New Glasses

It's been interesting finding foods that our two exchange students like. Sometimes they'll like one food, and then a day later, not prefer it. Lunches have been interesting, and so have breakfast. But dinner they've been pretty okay with. We've been doing a mix of various foods with rice, classic "American" foods.

But one thing I know, is how to make foods that kids will eat. Call it having a love for the "classics" or just figuring that like all kids, they love something that's tasty, even if it's healthy.

So tonight we had Chicken Noodle Soup and Grilled Cheese. My mom had said she thought they wouldn't like the Grilled Cheese since they didn't like cheese for their tacos or some other things with cheese in them. But we made an extra grilled cheese just in case and cut all the sandwiches into triangles. After trying one sandwich each, they ended up eating a good portion of them.

Julia Child was right. Butter makes everything taste fantastic. But melted cheese and butter? Now we're talking real amazing food.

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Thoughts on Fireworks, The Fourth, and Popsicles

I've always been a fan of fireworks. But I think that's mostly because I love the smell of sulfur. Yeah, it's not the best smell for you, but it always reminds me of Independence Day or New Years.

Not to mention, I used to help at a fireworks stand. It was a good way for our Youth Group to earn money. And it gave you some experience in customer service long before you could get a job. We got to test the fireworks that were brand new, that way we could explain what they looked like to customers - besides the basic description written on the side of the package.

And I've known quite a few people who would make their own fireworks. They live further into the country than I do, but it was a cool - although dangerous - hobby to take up and create whatever you wanted to show off to neighbors and family.

Thoughts on The Magic School Bus, Alpha & Beta, and Catching Up

I used to love The Magic School bus as a kid. And honestly, who wouldn't? It was a kids show that taught you a lot about the world you lived in - unless of course that was under a rock. Who wouldn't want Ms. Frizzle as their teacher?

Thoughts on Weight Watchers, Softball, & Picture Posts

Dude.  Weight Watchers.  What gives?

I gave you a try about a year ago and, yeah, you worked for me.  And it was awesome.  I feel like I really learned something in those three months; I really got the drive to eat better, to exercise, to see what I could do about my weight and living the way I wanted to.

But, now, I hate you.

You worked for me.  But you're driving my mother crazy.  And it's killing me.

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Thoughts on Harry Potter, The Coffee Wars, and Tron Light-Car

It's crazy to think that the Harry Potter phenomenon is finally coming to an end. Or at least, movie wise, it's coming to an end. The books have long since been over, but they still have many hearts and minds of readers captured and immersed in the world of witchcraft and wizardry.

I came in late to the entire bandwagon. By the time I started reading the books, the first two movies were already out. Once I had caught up, I blew through the series in no time, and quickly joined in with millions of others who were obsessed with the series. Midnight book releases, movie showings, everything I could attend that was HP related, I was there for.

Thoughts on Plot Directions, Retirement, and The Ice Cream Truck

Projects are tough to keep up on. In the initial start, I'll have plenty of momentum and easily find time to continue work on what I'm doing; when suddenly I'll hit a wall.

My 2009 WriMo is one of my most complex plots to write in only 30 days. Besides being a romantic comedy, it includes themes of acceptance/tolerance, self-discovery, and more, all wrapped around a homosexual relationship at the heart of the story. I'd written basically to the end, but hadn't quite typed up the ending due to my inability to decide on how it should conclude. So rather than do anything more to it, I printed the entire story out and marked it up with my red pen. While incomplete, it's been read through and edited.