Time to Start Krogering
I took the back way out of my neighborhood and discovered how close I am to a shopping center with a Kroger. While I have certainly been to a Kroger, I have never shopped regularly at one. Krogering, it used to be called. It is a lot closer than Harris Teeter, so I will certainly consider it.
Continuing to Move
My move is progressing slowly, but steadily. The basic problem with a local move, a 3-4 week window of time, a far off scheduled date for the movers to move the furniture, and a dis-inclination to pack is that this move is taken me quite awhile.
Since nothing is packed, I walk into my apartment and grab handfuls of stuff to take to the car. Once the car is full, I make the 15 minute drive from Carrboro to Durham. Unloading the car is quicker and easier. It is a shorter walk, there are fewer stairs and there are no decisions to make. It is clear where to set it down.
At the current pace, I should be done with moving my stuff just in time for the movers to pickup the furniture on Thursday.
Watching our Film
About a month ago, a group of like-minded individuals banded together with a roll of Super8 film and shot a short film in downtown Durham. Read about in this post. The film was shot with all scenes in order, with no editing. We did not get to see the footage after it was shot.
Tonight was the premiere of our film, titled Hot Pursuit, as well as 8-10 others shot under the same conditions. None of the filmmakers saw their films before tonight. Since the films were silent, many filmmakers provided music to accompany their films.
As I recounted during shooting, we certainly had an adventure making this movie. It was an experience to remember. And if the film turned out good, well, then that was just a bonus. As it turned out, the film was pretty good. It had the look of a 1970s opening title sequence, which is what we were going for. It was also very funny. I don’t know if we got the loudest laughter because our group was laughing so hard. I can’t wait to get an online link so I can share it.
Afternoon at the Water Park
Today we finally had Peter’s birthday party. His birthday is in April, but trying to work out the logistics of busy kids, alternate weekends and friends’ schedules took some time. In the end two friends were able to join us for an afternoon at Wet n Wild Emerald Pointe waterpark in Greensboro. The two best parts of the day were renting a cabana so we had a place to sit and put our stuff, and a new slide called The Edge. This is like a skateboard half-pipe. You sit in an inner tube and go straight down one side and back up the other. You go back and forth a few times until you settle at the bottom. All the kids and I went on it. We apparently had the same terrified look as we started down the side, as we realized what a nearly straight down 40 foot drop felt like, and then grinned as we started to go back up.
Water Balloons
Today when I picked the kids up, Grace and the babysitter had a bag full of water balloons. They wanted to bring them to my house to play them. As is always the case, one popped in the car on the way, and soaked Peter.
We got to my house and Grace went up in the treehouse. They tried to have a catch, but I don’t think any balloon was thrown more than once before popping. Peter came in and said that the water balloon didn’t last very long. I told him that when playing with water balloons, you always need about a hundred.
Open Auditions for Hee-Haw
Dig those red cowboy boots
I just returned from Nashville, where I hung out at the Orpyland Hotel. The above photo notwithstanding, the inside of hotel is pretty amazing. There are themed areas (Magnolia, Delta, Cascades) that feature hotel rooms with balconies, water flowing through and lots of restaurants. Don’t try to eat after 9:00pm, because most of the restaurants are closed.
New House
I am slow moving in to my new house. I closed last Wednesday, and the kids and I spent the weekend at the house. We slept on the floor in sleeping bags, but they were just happy to have their own rooms.
Last night I moved the tv, which looks perfect in the living room. Cable (and internet) is not coming until Thursday, so I put on a Wilco DVD just to test the set up. Everything works great.
I have also starting meeting some of neighbors. Very nice folks. I am looking forward to settling in. The movers move my furniture on July 3, so I should have all the rest of my stuff in by then. For the time being, I am going back and forth between my apartment and my house.
Grace at Our New House
Not My New House
Today we had a client photo shoot at this big house in near Wake Forest, North Carolina (the town, not the university). This house was crazy big with 3 washer dryers, 3 staircases to get upstairs, a large second floor landing with 2 overlooks, a third floor home theater with 7 plush movie seats (with cup holders!). This 10,000 square foot home lists for $4.6 million.
Writing about Your Kids
Emily Bazelon, a Senior Editor of Slate.com recently wrote the following piece about writing about her children. As someone who tells stories about my kids, and posts pictures of them, I was interested in her thoughts about privacy, embarassment and the question of age. She also discuss the spat between dad blogger Neal Pollock and Gawker over cheese.
My 8-year-old son, Eli, recently tried to Google himself. We’d been looking up facts, and he liked the idea of finding himself out there in the ether. When nothing about him came up, he was disappointed. I was relieved. I don’t hide the pieces I write from him, but I don’t really want him to think of himself as a Google hit magnet, either. It’s one thing to know your mother writes about you sometimes; it’s another to revel in your own notoriety, however small.