Almost here

Today we found nearly every toddler in Columbus. They were ALL at COSI running around. For each wild, screaming toddler was a much slower moving set of parents trying to keep up. Frankie thoroughly enjoyed herself. We're getting ready to celebrate the beginning of the new year (and the reopening of daycare).

I tried to embarass the dog with these silly reindeer antlers but they just kept slipping off her head while she looked at me funny. She just wanted a piece of turkey. She's so single-minded.

It's only $55K

Friends of the Hummer H2.

I wonder if that's true? The site claims if you're a business owner, the entire $55K for a H2 is deductible!

"Jump, George Bailey, jump!"
. . . Chris Butler

Pounded

Columbus got pounded by snow and overnight, ice. It's let up and now the cold sets in. This is a view from our bathroom window. Most of the house is encapsulated in ice. But, next Monday a balmy 42 14 degrees will be upon us!

Yes, we have plenty of tp and milk and we're hunkering down for a big one.

Columbus Public

In December the Inidividuals with Disabilities Act was reauthorized and still no exemption for special ed kids was included; they must perform to their age level. A high school kid who may not be able to sign his own name must be able to take a test with a bunch of other kids his age or bring down the class average and make the school fail. That makes sense.

If that weren't enough, Bill Bush of the Columbus Dispatch wrote yesterday that this reauthorization also prompts a Columbus city-wide reinforcement of a ridiculous level of qualification of special-education teachers (much greater than that of their general education counterparts) and may make 1/2 of the 600 teachers eligible for lay-off:

A letter will go out next month to the parents of Columbus special-education students in the seventh through 12th grades saying that their teachers are not highly qualified, even though some have advanced degrees and decades of experience working with children who have disabilities.

The teachers then have until mid-April to become highly qualified, which could mean months of college course work, professional development or online training. If they don't, their lower ratings will be repeated on the schools' state report card.

Good job person of the year.

Why would anyone go near such a system for employment?

Unfortunate Events

NPR has a story on Lemony Snicket, the author of A Series of Unfortunate Events. One book from the series (I believe the "The Ersatz Elevator") was one of the first books Frankie was ever read (a couple months before she was delivered).

"These books are about children staring down their fears" is a quote I was happy to hear Michele Norris use in the interview. While these books are a tad dark, I always found the kids to be resilient and they always stay together. The interview and series are great. I haven't finished the series but will revisit them having heard the interview.

And, it's Christmas time, give the globe a shake.

Suzi-q

Just wanted to remind all of you our Suze is still the Queen, gets plenty of attention and is the only one unscathed by the recent "events" of the household.

This Just In

Local barista at Kafe Kerouac, Shawn, brought to my attention his debut in a Foolish Bison Production entitled Midnight in America, a play by Philip J. Hickman.

The Davis Center
Franklin Park
1755 E. Broad Street
$10/$7 student, 8 pm, Dec 10, 11, 17, 18

Too late for a sitter for us, but I doubt it will disappoint, go see it. Let me know how it was.

Time for Money

If you've spoken to me for about a nanosecond, you might gather I'm a bit obsessed with the daily grind - of anyone. What people do for a living and their satisfaction from those endeavors is a topic I'll always be fascinated with.

A great place to spy the minutia of someone's daily work life is, of course, blogs. Another place to glean such information is on one of my favorite radio shows, Sound Money on NPR. The particular segment I enjoy is called A Day in the Work Life. I didn't realize until today those audio clips are archived. Skip TV tonight and give 'em a listen. The clips are only about 3 minutes long and have nice pics to look at.

Klezmer and Hollis, 'tis the Season

Big holiday kickoff weekend. Hung lights, everything, went nuts. Saturday night, a perfect seasonal meal hosted by good friends, thanks guys! Last night we went to a Klezmer concert in Dublin by Shirim with Frankie's friend Benjamin and his mom. They let kids dance on their stage. Frankie took 'em up on the offer and paraded around patting her ample belly. This image is a bit blurry but I didn't want to use flash so I wouldn't disrupt the musicians. Klezmer music is pretty happy stuff. We had fun. Frankie had even more fun - rubbing her belly in public. So, click the "link" below, bookmark this post, and you'll have fast access to my favorite Christmas Carol, Christmas in Hollis. Happy holiday season all.

Che, The Man

Don't ask why. Today, give pause for Che Guevara.

After his death, Guevara became a hero of Third World socialist revolutionary movements; he remains an iconic figure, although more widely admired for his spirit than as a theoretician or tactician of asymmetric warfare.

Have a good weekend all; go hang lights and enjoy yourself.

Columbus Blogger Meetup Iminent?

Citizen Keith, local blogger, has been checking around and listing us locals to see if the time is right for a real live Meetup could occur. He's assembled a pretty good size list so far. Meetup.com has a tentative meeting scheduled for December 15th at Victoria's. Maybe that'll actually happen this time.

...stay tuned