Day 132

"My" GOD is a Traffic Cop. I am deeply religious and not at all religious all at the same time.  You will not likely find me in church on any given Sunday, nor will you hear me speak of my religious beliefs.  They are "my" beliefs and I am not a big fan of those that try to force their own belief system down your throat.  That being said, I think it a universal truth that a majority of the world believes in a higher power.  A moving force.  Whether that be based upon faith or fable, it is found in all "religions".  I...

Day 130 and 131

When you're hot, you're hot; and when you're cold, it's Tuesday. Time is a precious commodity that I seem to be lacking over the past several days.  Buttoning up the last minute details before we move has taken up a fair share of my limited resources.  Monday and Tuesday could  not have been more different from the standpoint of climate.  Monday was a sizzler.  Well into the upper nineties.  My continued battle with an algae filled pool leaves us with little relief.  To add insult to injury, I was forced back...

Day 129

I scream for Escrime: Breakfast with a long nosed fellow and a little crotch pot cooking for dinner. Day 129 would be a day full of history and an excellent day of exploration. We had made plans to meet another one of my wife's colleagues EARLY on Sunday morning. The day would start at 6 am or so and we would load our little ones in the car for a 2 hour drive east. The colleague is the French family I have mentioned in prior posts and their son is fairly accompished at Escrime. Back home, we call the sport "fencing". Now, after a full day of education,...

Day 128

Houston, we DON'T have a problem. A colleague of my wife's invited us to the beach on Saturday, and we were happy to oblige.  We spent the morning in the Centre Ville in the never ending quest to update our sad American wardrobe.  Not a terribly successful outing, but we managed to avoid major incident, which is often considered a success around our house.  Back home, we quickly fed the kids and hit the road for the beach.  After a gridlocked drive, we finally joined our hosts and let the kids splash in the water for the...

Day 127

How my children pissed on a perfectly good day . . . literally. Ever have one of those days where you are whipping its ass?  Today I kicked Friday so hard in the nuts that Thursday felt the ache.  Everything was falling into place.  Like Midas, everything I touched turned to gold.  Getting way more done than I should have and accomplishing so many tasks on the list I was certain that the weekend would allow for a little R&R.  Cleaned the house from top to bottom, wrote a couple of blog entries, studied French, and...

Day 126

. . . 6'4" and full of muscles.  I asked, do you speak my language.  He just smiled and gave me a Vegimite sandwich. Thursday just didn't go as planned . . . for anyone.  The day started out a complete mess and ended in much the same way.  In like a shit storm and out like a rectal exam.  I arrived at the school house to drop off my children and advised that the youngest had a school outing that required my attendance.  This was not at all in my plans for the day.  I was meant to be at home waiting on the arrival...

Day 125 Mark 2

Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division . . . My life as FILTH. First off, I would like to apologize to all of you Marvel purists out there.  I used the movie version of the famous acronym because . . . well because it is my blog and I like it better.  As you can see, we are on our way into a second post for the day.  My mind is in overdrive today and I am driven, no, compelled to put it all down on paper so to speak before my cranium ruptures.  Jokingly referring to myself as a "trophy" husband...

Day 125

War of the Roses, The French Paradox and striking a balance toward Gender neutrality. Ok, I am going to let my Redneck peek out from beneath my collar for a bit this afternoon, so hold onto your hats (preferably the 10 gallon kind). Much is made over the French paradox.  I have certainly mentioned it in prior posts, but I think it worth revisiting for a moment because a visit to the local "supercenter" produced a moment of reflection that I believe is worth sharing.  The paradox is this:  How does a culture that consumes so much...

Day 124

The appliances of life and linguistic perfection. My day would be spent in appliance shopping hell.  Our hopes for a Refrigerateur Americaine fell along the wayside with the discovery that the new house was not equiped with a waterline to feed the upscale appliance.  Instead we opted for a dandy French style fridge with a self serve water reservoir.  The concerning part of this purchase was that it was from a retailer by the name of Mister Good Deal.  Life lessons have taught me that any time a business uses the term "Good...

Day 123

Even Steven . . . the art of raising Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Perhaps it is best described with Newton's Third Law:  For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.  For every day of grief your children give you, there is an equal bounty of joy.  Sunday was a disaster and Monday was a pleasure.  The children's behavior turned 180 degrees from the day prior.  So much so that I was greeted with a special comment from the youngest's French instructor that he had been particularly kind to others on this day as well...

Day 122

Bonne Fete du Pere . . . "what one man can do, another man can do" Happy Fathers Day to all.  When asked how I wanted to spend Father's Day, my response was simple . . . SLEEP.  The family indulged and allowed the old man to sleep in past the usual waking hour around our house.  Not wanting to take advantage and drive my wife crazy I didn't over indulge.  The children decided to thank their father for being such a wonderful guy by being as poorly behaved as I believe they have ever been since they have been born.  By the...

Day 121

Foul Weather Friends. That's what I call them.  That's what I call my "true" friends.  It is quite easy to be a friend to someone when times are high.  Not so easy when they are a pain in your ass and demanding that you give them time that you often do not have.  A "true" friend answers the call, time and time again, expecting nothing in return.  A "true" friend is content in the knowledge that when you are needed and the call is given, you will be there in like kind.  This has always been my measure of friendship,...

Day 120

Life Aboard the S.S. Minnow As I recall, a three hour tour didn't work out so f_ _ _ing well for Gilligan and it didn't do me any favors either.  The plan for Friday afternoon seemed simple enough.  Load the youngest in the car . . . Check.  Pick up the eldest at the International School at 4 . . . Check.  Meet wife in the village where she works for an open house at the boys new school . . . SHIT.  I should have taken the darkening skies and sudden downpour of rain as an omen.  I turned my trusty 206 onto the Blvd,...

Day 119

The School Play from Hell After wasting a half year of my eldest child's education on the study of Samson and Delilah, the culmination of the International School's efforts would be displayed in all of its glory on this the 16th day of June, 2011.  We arrived early to ensure we got fairly reasonable seating to observe this spectacle.  Both of our children would participate, which is really where our day began.  The wife was off of work to deal with a number of administrative details surrounding our move which left little time for...