OUT OF FRAME

What's Going On Back Home

2012-01-31T09:45:00.002-05:00

Just got some pictures yesterday from the project manager overseeing our home restoration back in Midland. Looks like a lot of progress has been made recently. The new cabinets came in and are being installed, and they're even laying down the new floor. Word is they're on the homestretch of putting our house back together. That's such a huge relief for Jenny and I. Can't wait to see the finished product.

Swiss Transport Museum

2012-01-29T16:55:00.005-05:00

Today we took a drive to the town of Lucerne to visit the Swiss Transport Museum, known locally as "Verkehrshaus der Schweiz." The museum exhibits all forms of transportation, from trains, to cars, to ships, and even planes. There's also a focus on communication and technology. The museum has a 3D film theater and even a planetarium. The kids even got to play around on the "green screen" and make videos. The weather the past week has been very grey and rainy, and today was no exception. So it was a good day for a visit to a museum.

Moving Day!

2012-01-29T15:43:00.004-05:00

Well...this week we moved into our new house. The moving container arrived Tuesday morning, and the movers carried everything in for us all day Tuesday and Wednesday morning. It was good to see the container. We had this underlying fear that something would happen on its voyage over here and that it would sink to the bottom of the Atlantic. Fortunately that didn't happen. Anyway, the movers did a good job putting everything where we wanted it. They even got our futon sofa all the way up to the third floor (as you can see in the pictures below.) Anyway, all of our furniture is here now. So now it's up to Jenny and I just to organize everything. But in the meantime it's good to get out of the temporary apartment and into our new home.

Life At Random

2012-01-22T16:42:00.010-05:00

Well...it's been a busy few weeks. Since we arrived 3 weeks ago we've gotten a new car, opened our banking account, and both kids have settled into their new schools. We registered with the local authorities, got our cards to ride the trains, been to Ikea several times already, got our Swiss insurance, a new cell phone, and we got our fingerprints taken and applied for "residency" in the country, We've even managed to do some sightseeing and sledding. It's only been 3 weeks but it seems longer than that. Anyway, now we're starting a busy week this week - the move into our new place. Our furniture arrives this week and the movers will be moving our stuff into our new place this Tuesday and Wednesday. So this is a big week for us this week. Even though this will be another transition for us we're all ready for it. We've been living out of suitcases for weeks now (actually since Thanksgiving if you count the water disaster at our house in Midland.) So we're anxious to move in and settle down a bit. In the meantime though we've gone on with life as usual (or as much as it can be right now.) Ben and Megan have been busy emailing and "Skyping" friends and family back home, we're tuned into American television with Netflix streaming and Slingbox, Ben and Megan have been fascinated with the trains and ferries, and we're managing to have fun and enjoy the natural beauty of Switzerland. The kids have even had several playdates already with our friends the McGaugh family. Life is moving along slow but surely. As Mike McGaugh and I tell each other all the time - "Every day gets a little bit easier."

(By the way, in the pictures below look for the most expensive bottle of Aunt Jemima syrup you will ever see. To give you an idea how expensive everything in Zurich is look at the price tag under the small bottle of syrup. It reads 19.90 Swiss Francs. That would equal about $20 in the states. SImply mind boggling.)

What's Glacier Up To

2012-01-18T15:10:00.003-05:00

Right now we're staying in temporary housing until our furniture and items arrives here in Switzerland. One wrinkle in all of this is the furnished flat we're staying in doesn't allow pets. We knew this going in of course, so Jenny's brother and his family were gracious enough to keep Glacier for us for a month or so until we move into our new place. Once that happens Glacier will get on a plane and fly to Zurich. But in the meantime she's having fun in Austin playing ball, going hiking, and playing with her friend "Ginger." Everyday Megan asks me about Glacier. We're all missing her. But we know she's in good hands, and we can't wait to see her.

"Explore Saturday!"

2012-01-15T14:35:00.002-05:00

Yesterday was probably our best day yet in Zurich since we've been here. It was "Explore Saturday!" All week this week we've been talking about riding the train into downtown and exploring the city on Saturday, so the kids and I started calling it "Explore Saturday" - hence the name. So in the morning we hopped on board the train in Horgen and rode the train toward downtown. The kids were so excited to ride the train. It was funny. When we arrived downtown we met up with our friends the McGaughs and we all walked up and down the "Bahnhofstrasse," which is a street in downtown lined with shops and restaurants (think Michigan Avenue in Chicago.) After a bite to eat we went to the kids favorite spot of the day, "Franz Carl Weber," which is a 4-story toy store. It's pretty cool inside. There's even a slide in the shape of a dragon that the kids can ride on. Anyway, later we took a nice stroll through a more historic area toward St. Peters Church and its Romanesque/Gothic clock tower. Afterward I learned St. Peters Church is the oldest church in Zurich, and was built around 857. It's beautiful. Its clock face peeks at you between buildings as you walk toward it. We ended the day after that. The kids were all tired but I think they had fun. It was an awesome day! Just walking around exploring a beautiful city. No agenda...just going with the flow. Welcome to Europe!

"Sledging"

2012-01-15T14:22:00.006-05:00

Here in Switzerland they call sledding "sledging." Today we got to experience sledding Swiss style. We drove up into the mountains with our friends the McGaugh family to the ski town of Alpthal, which is near the slightly larger village of Einsiedeln. This whole area is only about 40-45 minutes outside of Zurich. Anyway, the kids have been dying to go sledding somewhere so we got a recommendation about this place. The weather was perfect - sunny skies and temperatures around 30, so we had a nice time. And as you can see the scenery was beautiful. The kids had fun racing down the hill, but it was very steep...so we had a few wipeouts at times. But all in all it was a fun way to spend an afternoon.

First Look At Our New House

2012-01-13T07:14:00.005-05:00

Back in November Jenny made a trip out here to do some house hunting for us. She eventually chose a 3 level apartment in a terrace-style apartment complex in the small village of Richterswil (pronounced "Rickters-ville.") Yesterday we finally got the keys to the place, so Ben, Megan, and I all got our first look at our new home. It's a nice little place that's cozy inside and offers some nice views of the lake and mountains. On the ground floor there are 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, and a laundry room. The second floor has the kitchen, a 3rd bath, a living area, and a dining room. Finally, the third floor has a 4th bedroom and a "bonus" room. Best of all the apartment has 3 patio areas outside. It's technically an apartment (1800 sq ft.) but the layout and feel make it seem more like a small home. There's definitely room to spread out a bit and have some space. I think we're going to be very happy here. So in about 2 weeks or so we'll officially move in. So once we're settled in I'll give you a video tour.

First Week Of School

2012-01-13T05:22:00.011-05:00

Well...it's been a big week for the kids. This week they both started at their schools. Megan's week was a bit tricky. Before we moved here we had a preschool already picked out. So she started on Tuesday and she was loving it. However, after she started her first two days we were hit with some unexpected administration and registration fees. What we thought we were going to pay turned out to be doubled. The costs were pretty steep, (by American standards I guess) so we decided to pull her out and put her in another preschool that was more affordable. The one she's in now is called "Keltic Kiddies" and it's a "preschool/playgroup" kind of setting. The owner is from the United Kingdom, so everyone speaks English. All along we've been planning on sending Megan to Ben's school in the fall, so we're just looking for someplace right now where she can go and have fun and interact with some children for a few months. I think this new school will be a good fit for her for the time being. In fact, her school is right next door to Ben's school, so that really helps me out. Her teachers' names are Ms. Steph and Ms. Rachel. Today was her first day and she really enjoyed it. She didn't want to leave when I picked her up. She really likes school.

As for Ben, his transition has been going super. As some of you know he's going to the Zurich International School (ZIS.) He's in a second grade classroom with about 20 something kids, and his teacher's name is Mr. Sullivan. An interesting note about his class: Ben is only 1 of about 4 American kids in the class. The rest are from countries like Spain, Sweden, India, etc...so only a few of the kids are native English speakers. So it's an interesting mix of children. I think that's great for Ben to have exposure like that. A lot of local families try to apply to the school so their children will learn English, so it's a very respected school in the area. As you may expect the school has a different way of doing things and procedures than his school in Midland, (like pickups, recess, drop offs, etc.) but Ben has adjusted well (and quickly.) Best of all he gets to play with his friend Michael from Midland everyday at recess. Jenny and I were talking to his teacher this morning. He said Ben was doing great so far and seemed to be fitting right in. As he was saying this to us I happened to notice Ben was already joking and goofing around with a few boys in the class. So he already seems somewhat settled in. The school isn't much to look at on the outside, with its Swiss modern architecture. But the inside is very nice and new. Ben seems to be enjoying it so far.

Kid's Day!

2012-01-08T14:29:00.005-05:00

Today we found a "bouncy world" kind of place here in our village. It's called "Planeta Magic," and it's about 5-10 minutes from our apartment. Our friends the McGaughs met us there and all the kids got to burn off some energy. These are all kids who are used to playing in basements and outside and all that. They're not used to playing in tiny apartments, so they needed to burn off some energy. They had a fun time. Ben called today "Kid's day!" Yeah...I guess it was.
It's so great the McGaugh family is here with us. We're all helping each other out and supporting each other as we all try to get settled in. It just makes life much easier. The best part is our kids all have friends and familiar faces around to keep them happy. It will come in handy this week...especially since the kids start school this week. Wish us luck!

Strangers In A Strange Land

2012-01-07T15:34:00.011-05:00

Well...it's been about 5 days now since we touched soil here in Zurich. We've been mainly hanging around our apartment trying to get adjusted to the time change, running errands with our relocation coordinator (Jacquelyn), and getting all our day-to-day things in order (like applying for residency, looking for cars, opening a bank account, insurance, etc.) Also, the weather has been very rainy and chilly, but the only snow we've seen has been flurries (though you can tell the hills and mountains above us are getting blanketed.) It's funny...even a grey, rainy day in Switzerland is still beautiful. Hopefully the weather will improve soon and we can get up into the mountains a little bit, but in the meantime we're enjoying looking out at Lake Zurich.

Also, the kids are doing great. You can tell they're interested in our new surroundings, and they seem to be going with the flow rather well. In fact, today Megan and Ben both said they liked Switzerland so far. So that was good to hear. Of course it helps that I set up a "Slingbox" on the cable TV at my parents' house in Texas, so the kids are still able to watch their favorite shows online (thanks Mom and Dad!) Yeah, the kids have been real troopers. The other day Jenny and I took them to McDonald's for lunch. They have had to deal with so much the past few days we thought they needed a treat. They liked the fact their favorite restaurant was in Switzerland. By the way, Ben sat down yesterday and wrote emails to his class back in Michigan, and some of his friends. To his surprise, he woke up this morning to find the entire class all wrote him emails back. So he had lots of new emails to read this morning. He was so excited.

We've been going to the grocery store almost daily. The food here in the stores doesn't have preservatives, so everything is sold in smaller quantities because they expect you to eat it in a few days. But on the flip side all the food we've had tastes so much better than it does in the states. The fruit and vegetables seem fresher, the meats seem more flavorful, and then there's the cheese and chocolate. Wow! We've even attempted to cook some Swiss cuisine (like sausage and "Rosti," which is like hash browns.) Also, all the people we've met have been nice and friendly. I do my best with what little German I know, and I try to smile as much as I can. In return folks here seem to notice I'm trying to make an effort and they are friendly and helpful. Of course it always helps when I have two cute children. Megan is the socialite of the family, so she always makes people smile when she spouts out "Auf Wiedersehen!"

Today we woke up and walked down the street to a "backerei," (the bakery) for some Nutella filled croissants. I was a little proud of myself because I ordered for all of us using mostly German. Fortunately it seems like wherever you go in Zurich everyone knows a little English, so we're able to manage if we speak in English. But it's my goal to use this opportunity to open myself to a new culture and language. It's my goal to learn German enough to be "functional," so I will be taking lessons very soon.

Well...that's about it for now. We're just taking it day by day here and patting ourselves on the back for our small victories, (like figuring out the grocery shopping, and navigating on highways filled with German traffic signs.) Not a moment goes by that I don't pinch myself to see if I'm dreaming. We still can't believe we actually moved here.

Anyway, here's some pictures from the past few days. Enjoy!

Auf Wiedersehen!

The Big Move

2012-01-04T16:00:00.004-05:00

Well...here we are in Switzerland. The weather has been decent, and surprisingly there's no snow on the ground (plenty in the mountains though.) First off, the kids did great on the flight over. Our original flight got delayed by 2 hours on Monday, which would have prevented us from making our connection in New Jersey headed for Zurich. So instead we were rerouted on Lufthansa on a flight from Dallas to Frankfurt, and then a flight from Frankfurt to Zurich. The kids did great despite the long hours on the plane. They both slept a bit, watched plenty of movies, and played their video games. We finally landed in Zurich and got a taxi out to our temporary housing, which sits next to Lake Zurich. Coincidentally our friends the McGaughs are also staying in the same building for the time being, so last night we all had pizza and shared travel stories. Today we met with our relocation coordinator (Jacquelyn) who took us to City Hall to apply for our residency permits, and then she gave us a tour of the grocery store so we would know what is what, and what is different compared to the States.
So that's about it for now. We're just taking it day by day. The kids are doing great despite the time difference (6 hours) and we've all been trying to adjust our sleep schedules. Next Monday is when school starts so I hope they'll be adjusted by then.

Christmas In Texas

2012-01-04T15:46:00.007-05:00

Before our big move we toured around Texas visiting friends and family and celebrating the holidays. The kids got to see all their grandparents, and play around with all of their cousins. Here are some of the highlights.

What's Going On Back Home

2012-01-04T11:07:00.002-05:00

We had some news this week from our house in Midland. The workers there recently tore out all the old cabinets and countertops, and they're also removing the soffit up by the ceiling. Now we're waiting on the new cabinets to come in around the end of January. Once those are installed the new countertops will go in, followed by the new floors. Looks like progress is being made.

Life At Random

2012-01-04T11:03:00.002-05:00

As everyone knows a lot has happened in the past few weeks. Some notable moments included saying goodbye to our house, selling my 11 year-old car to my uncle, Ben getting a "group hug" on his last day of school, and bringing in the new year.

Family Picture...Gone Terribly Wrong

2011-12-30T23:49:00.002-05:00

We've been busy this week driving around Texas visiting family and friends. Several of us got our hands on a new app for the iPhone...titled "Action Movie." It's a free app that let's you add special effects to your movies. It's hilarious!

An Early Christmas

2011-12-19T23:47:00.004-05:00

Tonight we went over to my Aunt and Uncle's house and had an "early Christmas" before we leave town. It was mainly a chance to give the kids their larger presents so they can be packed away and sent to Zurich (too big to take on the plane.) Their main presents were toys they begged us for at Dineyworld...a "Cinderella Castle" and an "Epcot Spaceship Earth." After we returned home from Disney Jenny ordered them for their Christmas presents. The kids were very surprised and thrilled. It was nice exchanging gifts around a Christmas tree...since we don't have a tree this year.

The Heat - Ben's Last Game

2011-12-19T23:43:00.003-05:00

Ben played his last basketball game of the season last Saturday. The team has a few more games to play but with our coming move Saturday was Ben's last game. He ended up playing his best game of the season. He played good defense, and he hustled a lot. He even worked up the confidence to dribble a bit and attempt a shot. All in all Ben had fun playing basketball with his friends. He really improved over the course of the season and at all the practices. We were very proud of him for trying something new to him and different.

Life At Random

2011-12-19T23:38:00.005-05:00

Here are some random scenes from around the Frame household. I just realized all of these are "pre-kitchen disaster" (except for the last one of Glacier.) Ben, Megan, and I had several German tutoring sessions with Miss Ruth, we've had basketball games every Saturday morning, Megan took a few tennis lessons at the tennis center, and Ben was the top "Popcorn Seller" in his Cub Scout pack.

Nothing Says The Holidays Like...A Kitchen Remodel?

2011-12-18T21:05:00.004-05:00

Well, we finally got the number of the settlement that we'll be receiving from State Farm. All in all it was a generous total, so we shouldn't have any issue rebuilding our kitchen and basement. So last Friday Jenny and I went to a local designer here in town and picked out our cabinets, countertops, etc. The designer also showed us her plans for how the new cabinets will be arranged and how the kitchen should look when it's completed. So we made our choices and picked everything out. Now Serv-Pro and our designer will take it from here and get everything put back better than it was before. This ordeal has been a nightmare, and it has really put a cramp on our "holiday spirit," but we're trying to stay positive about everything. When everything is all complete we should have a nicer kitchen and a bigger basement. So all this stress will be worth it in the long run.

"Feliz Navidad everyone!"

Santa House

2011-12-12T14:01:00.009-05:00

I think I've mentioned a few times about the "Santa House" downtown. It's a building where kids get to visit Santa and look at tons of Christmas decorations. We took the kids there last night and they got to talk to Santa. Ben made sure to tell Santa that we would be spending Christmas down in Texas at his Nana's house. Santa said he would remember.

Christmas Pageant

2011-12-12T13:48:00.005-05:00

This kids performed in the Christmas Pageant at our church last night. Ben was a shepherd and Megan was a star. They had to attend a few rehearsals this week but overall they had a good time performing. Here are some highlights.

What Happened When We Came Home...and...What Happens Now

2011-11-30T13:54:00.014-05:00

After a long afternoon of planes and airports we finally arrived at home last Friday night at midnight. When we walked in (carrying 2 sleeping kids) we heard the sound of splattering water. What awaited us was a kitchen and hallway full of standing water. Evidently the thin plastic hose on the back of our refrigerator cracked while we were gone, and water leaked out all over the kitchen. To make matters worse the water seaped through the floorboards and vents and down into the basement. That's where most of the water collected and pooled up. We had about an inch of water in some places. All the dry wall in the basement was destroyed, and all the ceilings. On both floors all the floors were ruined. In fact, water had been leaking for so long that it spread into the living room, dining room, and study.

So now we're in rebuilding mode. All weekend SERV-PRO has been clearing out our furniture, ripping up ruined hardwood floors, ripping out drywall, and drying out baseboards. Our basement and entire main floor of our house are basically unuseable. We're basically walking on baseboards and concrete. We're basically living upstairs only as we wait for our insurance company to get the rebuilding process started.

In the span of a few hours we went from the happiest place on Earth to a nightmare. Jenny and I have gone through a range of emotions in the past few days, going from shock, to despair, to anger. Now I think we're moving into the acceptance mode, but we don't need this right now as we get ready for our move. This is such a bad time for this to happen.

So what happens now? Well...as of yesterday we're all "dried out." Serv-Pro and State Farm both came by this morning and we all did a "walk through" to assess all the damages and start the rebuilding process. I've elected to have Serv-Pro handle all the restoration (instead of trying to find a contractor on my own.) Throughout all this Serv-Pro has been great, so I'm not about to change course now. So anyway, everything that was damaged has been tossed out and gotten rid of, so Serv-Pro is going to begin installing new drywall tomorrow, so we're getting started right away. That's encouraging. Jenny and I need to go out this weekend and start looking for flooring, new cabinets, new countertops, etc.

We've been in this house for close to 6 years now, and a lot of the things we didn't like about our house we always kind of lived with. But now we have a clean slate on the basement and kitchen, and of course with all the floors, so we might make a few changes through all of this. Might as well. So if there is a silver lining to all of this it's that we get to customize the house more to our liking. Just trying to stay positive I guess.

Life At Random - Disney World Edition

2011-11-30T13:44:00.017-05:00

Our Disney trip was a success. My parents had a very memorable 50th anniversary, as all week every employee in all the parks congratulated them (seeing their pins on their shirts.) Some highlights included a dinner at the "Hoop-Dee-Doo Revue," dinner at the "T-Rex restaurant," and a special anniversary dinner at the California Grill. But most of all we all enjoyed seeing Disney World lit up, and all decked out for Christmas. At times it was pretty stunning.

Highlights From Epcot

2011-11-30T13:34:00.011-05:00

We ended up spending 2 days at Epcot. This was my parents' 2nd visit to the park. Back in the 80's my parents brought me here about a year after it opened, so it had been a while since my parents saw the "big ball." Highlights included the Finding Nemo ride and "Turtle Talk," riding Test Track, and taking Ben on his favorite Epcot ride "Mission Space." My favorite is always "Soarin'," and Megan's favorite is "Imagination with Figment." On our second day at Epcot Megan and Jenny had a "Princess Breakfast," and Megan got to see all the Disney Princesses.

Highlights From Disney Hollywood Studios

2011-11-30T13:25:00.007-05:00

This was my parents first visit to Hollywood Studios. Over the years Jenny and I have grown to like this park more and more, and the kids are following suit. For the first time we literally spent an entire day here (and enjoyed every minute of it.) Highlights included Ben fighting Darth Maul at Jedi Training, the Indiana Jones Stunt Show, the Beauty and the Beast show, and lunch at my favorite lunch spot "The Sci-Fi Drive In." Of course no visit to Hollywood Studios would be complete without riding Star Tours and the Tower of Terror. This visit was Ben's first time riding Tower of Terror and he loved it. He loved it so much in fact that throughout the week he kept talking about how he wanted to go back and ride it again. So on our very last day we ran back to Hollywood Studios and rode Star Tours and Tower of Terror one more time.

Highlights From Animal Kingdom

2011-11-30T13:19:00.007-05:00

This was also my parents first visit to Animal Kingdom. We took them on the Jungle Safari and to the Finding Nemo Show. Ben, Jenny, and I also rode the Expedition Everest ride for the first time and we loved it (well...at least Ben and I loved it.) Ben and I also rode the Dinosaur ride (which is very intense) and Megan took Grandpa and Grandma to see the Birds In Flight show. And at some point during the day my kids' faces dramatically changed. I can't put my finger on it. Just something about them at the end of the day looked different.

Highlights From The Magic Kingdom

2011-11-30T13:08:00.008-05:00

We spent 2 full days running around the Magic Kingdom. Some of the highlights included a character breakfast with Winnie-The-Pooh, a "Princess" dinner with Cinderella and her friends at the castle, and a visit to the "Bibbidy-Bobbidy-Boutique" where Ben and Megan got transformed into a knight and a princess. Of course no visit to the Magic Kingdom would be complete without visits to our favorite rides, like Space Mountain, Pirates of the Caribbean, Splash Mountain, Peter Pan, Big Thunder Mountain, and my favorite...The Haunted Mansion. Out of all the Disney parks the Magic Kingdom is still our favorite.

Sneak Peek!

2011-11-14T11:14:00.005-05:00

As most of you know Jenny just got back from a 10 day trip in Zurich. She was there to get started in her new role at the Dow site in Horgen, but most importantly she was able to do quite a bit of apartment hunting. After touring several models and styles she found this "town home" in a village called Richterswil (pronounced Rickters-ville.) After sending me several pictures and videos of it, and after discussing it in detail over the phone for several days we decided to put in an application. And great news - today we were accepted. So here is our new place in Switzerland. (Still can't get used to saying that.)

Now I'm going with Jenny's description here (I haven't seen the place in person yet) but what I can gather the town home is in a cluster of other town homes that are all connected on a slope. So the whole complex is a multi-level group of small town homes. All the garages are below and then we ride an elevator to the 2nd floor where our place is. There are 4 bedrooms and 2 baths. We also have 3 floors evidently, with the bedrooms on the 1st floor, the kitchen and dining room on the 2nd floor, and then another living room on the 3rd floor. Best of all we also have 2 balconies with great views of Lake Zurich and the alps. That alone was one of our main reasons for being so interested in the place. We figured if we're going all that way to Switzerland it would be great for the kids to have a great view of the alps and the lake. Also, a lot of the apartments are very modern looking, and they feel like an office complex. We liked this town home because it felt more like a real house.

Anyway, here are some pictures and video that Jenny sent me. In the picture that looks out onto the lake there is also a small village in front of us with some shops that we can walk to. So that will be cool. When we eventually get there I'll show everyone in better detail the layout of the house. But for now we are very excited. Can't wait to see those views.

The Heat - Game 3

2011-11-13T21:16:00.004-05:00

Yesterday was Ben's 3rd basketball game and it was "Picture Day." After a "lengthy" wait for our pictures the boys played a great game. They were passing, rebounding, and shooting lights out. It was fun to watch. Ben seems to be enjoying playing, but you can tell he's also trying to figure the game out still. Most of the boys on the team are brand new to the sport so it will obviously take some time for some of them. But as usual we're very proud of Ben. He's trying something new and doing great. (On a sidenote - our community center is not very efficient. It took 3 games for our team to finally get their uniforms.)

At The Movies - Ben & Megan Edition

2011-11-10T23:08:00.003-05:00

For the first time Ben told me this year he wanted to watch some scary movies for Halloween. So with careful selection I tried to give him a "tame" mix of monsters, creeps, and UFO's. Of course I chose to share with him some of my "vintage horror/sci-fi" favorites. And the funny thing is, despite a lot of these movies being in black-n-white, Ben absolutely loved them.

CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON (1954) - Ben was a "swamp monster" for Halloween this year, and his costume looked very similar to "The Creature." So one night he put on his costume and we sat down and watched this classic. Both he and Megan were actually on the edge of their seats and kind of shaken up by "the creature." After all these years this movie still holds up. It still provides plenty of thrills and chills. Despite being a little scared Ben loved it.

GODZILLA: KING OF MONSTERS (1956) - For a while now Ben has been asking me to see a Godzilla movie. There are so many Godzilla movies out there I actually had a hard time deciding which one to show him. So I decided to show him the one that started it all so he could at least get an idea of what Godzilla is all about. He liked it, but I think he'll like some of the others better.

EARTH VS. THE FLYING SAUCERS (1956) - One of my all-time favorite 1950's films is WAR OF THE WORLDS. However, I thought that might be a little too intense for Ben, so I chose its look-a-like - EARTH VS. THE FLYING SAUCERS. Ben thought this was a cool film, and he wasn't scared at all. He thought the UFO's were pretty cool.

20,000 LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA (1954) - This was a different kind of "monster movie." Of course this was the classic Disney version of the Jules Verne novel, but I chose it for...yes...the scene with the giant squid. As you would expect Ben loved this movie. He loved the submarine, the monster squid, the funny seal, everything.

At The Movies

2011-11-10T22:00:00.007-05:00

When Halloween is in the air I usually find myself watching lots of horror movies - preferably horror movies from the 1930's, 40's, 50's, and 60's. Here's a collection of horror movies I happened to catch recently. And here are my reviews from the past two Halloweens: 2010, and 2009.

THEM (1954) - A great yarn about people being terrorized by giant ants (accidentally mutated by an atomic explosion in the desert.) A great 1950's paranoia film.

CURSE OF THE MUMMY'S TOMB (1964) - Made by Hammer Studios, this is a follow up to the 1959 "Mummy" film starring Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing. Not nearly as great as its predecessor, but the Mummy costume in this one is kind of creepy.

DOCTOR X (1932) - This is a gem from the early 30's. Starring the great Lionel Atwell and Fay Wray this is the story of a newspaper reporter investigating a series of murders that all occur during a full moon. What makes this a horror tale is the inclusion of several "mad scientists" all performing miscellaneous experiments (one disguises himself with synthetic skin.) This is such a creepy film for its time. Great ending.

GODZILLA, MOTHRA, AND KING GHIDORAH (2001) - Ahh...the king of monsters. The only modern film I watched recently. Plenty of monster action, but nowhere near the best Godzilla movie.

ISLE OF THE DEAD (1945) - Set during the Greek war of 1912 this film stars Boris Karloff. Several people are trapped on an island, quarantined by a plague that is wiping out the local population. Unable to leave the island the people are haunted by vampire demon. The story starts off creepy but gets all muddled up at the end. Karloff is always great though.

IT! THE TERROR FROM BEYOND SPACE (1958) - The first manned mission to Mars is terrorized by an unknown monster. This is one of those classic "campy" sci-fi flicks from the 50's. But the monster looks great. Fun movie.

THE MAN FROM PLANET X (1951) - A mysterious planet is speeding toward Earth. At the same time a mysterious visitor has been discovered wandering the moors of Scotland. Another "campy" sci-fi flick from the 50's...and another great looking monster. Man, I love these kinds of movies.

MARK OF THE VAMPIRE (1935) - Bela Lugosi reprises his role as a vampire, only this is not a true sequel to his classic role as Count Dracula. Yes you have vampires here, but don't get your hopes up. This is a murder/mystery tale. What you would expect to be a horror film about vampires turns into a "film noir-who dunnit." Not what I expected, and disappointing.

NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD (1968) - The zombie film that started it all. Zombie films over the years have substituted story for gore, guts, and blood. You don't get that here. Yes, there are lots of creepy zombies and maybe a skeleton or two, but a lot of the gruesomeness here is left to your imagination. That's why this film is still my favorite zombie flick. "They're coming to get you Barbara!"

THE PIT AND THE PENDULUM (1961) - One of many film collaborations between Vincent Price and Roger Corman that featured the works of Edgar Allen Poe. Price was a true master of the genre. One minute he would be warm and friendly...next minute he wold be your worst nightmare.

THE BEAST WITH FIVE FINGERS (1946) - Starring Peter Lorre this is the tale of a severed hand on a murderous rampage. The film was just okay. Lorre's performance was great as usual, and the "hand" was pretty creepy.

THE GORGON (1964) - A wicked gorgon takes human form and terrorizes a small village. Made by Hammer studios this stars the great Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing. That alone made it great.

THE HAUNTING (1963) - Based on the book "Haunting of Hill House" by Shirley Jackson, this is the creepy tale of a haunted mansion with a dark history of death and insanity. Director Robert Wise incorporates "psychological fear" as opposed to monsters and ghouls. This is a classic case of "less is more." Very Hitchcokian in mood and tension. Don't let the "black-n-white" fool you. This film is downright scary and creepy.

THE REPTILE (1966) - Another Hammer production, this is the story of another small village in the countryside being terrorized by an unknown creature. When the police begin to investigate a series of murders detectives start to wonder who or what is doing the killing. However, the main problem with this film is we already know who is doing the killing even before we watch the first scene...uh...a reptile. Disappointing.

THE TINGLER (1959) - Vincent Price stars as a scientist who has an interesting theory - that fear is actually the result of a creature that inhabits all of us. Nicknamed "the tingler" the creature looks like a creepy caterpillar that attaches itself to your spinal cord. This movie was one of those "gimmicks" studios used to get people in the theater. The studio would install "buzzers" underneath theater seats to zap the viewers. Nicknamed "Percepto," the buzzers would go off during a scene in the movie where Price is chasing after the creature in a movie theater. Viewers would get zapped and think the creature is actually under their seats. The film is great. Of course I watched it on TV, but I would have loved to see it in the theater in its hayday.

Life At Random

2011-11-08T21:03:00.004-05:00

Things have been pretty crazy around here lately. Jenny's in Zurich right now and she's emailing me pictures of potential apartments everyday, Ben's playing basketball now, I'm still picking up from Halloween, and Ben is wrapping up his "popcorn sales drive" for Cub Scouts. Yes, things are busy right now...but they're only going to get crazier here in another month or so. Anyway, here's some random shots of the kids.

The Heat - Games 1 & 2

2011-11-05T11:55:00.007-04:00

I'm not sure I've mentioned it to everybody yet but Ben is starting a basketball season. We thought he might enjoy playing one more sport before we move. His team is called "The Heat," and the roster is made up of 2nd graders from his school. So he's having fun playing basketball with all his friends from school. This morning was the beginning of the season. We had 2 games, and in both we were the "blue" team. (The community center hasn't given us our uniforms yet, so we were using leftovers from last season.) Anyway, for a lot of the boys on the team (including Ben) this is their first experience with basketball, so everyone had "first game jitters." But by the second game everyone settled down and started to have fun. I was really proud of Ben. He missed a couple of shots but he played good defense and he hustled after loose balls. Best of all he said he had fun. I think he's happy to be taking a break from soccer and trying something new. Anyway, here are some highlights of our first two games.

Trick-Or Treat Party

2011-10-31T22:58:00.014-04:00

Happy Halloween everybody! It's been a long day here at the Frames. 2 school parties, "trick-or-treating" at Dow Chemical, our annual Halloween Party at the house, and of course trick-or-treating afterward. The kids of course had a blast tonight (as you'll see.) They started off having dinner and snacks, and then it was literally out the door in a mad rush to go trick-or-treating. The weather was great. Slightly cool and crisp, but not cold. In fact, the boys were running so fast from house to house that they were sweating. Megan did great. She couldn't keep up with the boys, so we took our time going house to house. She was so outgoing and cute. Everybody loved her. We also paid a visit to the "Spooky House" that I've written about. There were lots of people there looking at the decorations and watching the homeowner do magic tricks at the door. Ben and Megan even saw more friends there. Overall it was another great Halloween. I would say it was our best year decoration wise. This year I bought myself a fog machine and some black lights, so the front of the house looked even more dynamic than normal. Year after year we get a lot of compliments on our house, and we're starting to see cars parked out front just looking at the decorations. That's pretty cool. Anyway, we had a fun day. And give Jenny credit - she took time off from work today and helped out at both of the kids' class parties, and she even took the kids up to Dow for trick-or-treating at her office. As I write this we're both exhausted...but it was worth it seeing the kids have so much fun today. As you can see in one of the pictures below Megan practically fell asleep in my arms tonight. Every year we look forward to this day.

Ben's Halloween Party

2011-10-31T22:54:00.004-04:00

Ben's "Halloween Party" started out with a costume parade throughout the school. The way they do it is each grade and class all get in one huge line and parade through the school. The weather was great today so the line extended to the sidewalk outside, which was needed because there were kids everywhere. Afterward everyone played games in class and ate lots of tasty snacks.

Megan's Halloween Party

2011-10-31T22:49:00.002-04:00

Megan had a great time at her "Halloween Party" at school. Everyone got to show off their costumes, they sang Halloween songs, they made crafts, and ate lots of snacks. Jenny and I were in charge of the "cookie decorating" station. That was fun. Megan really enjoyed having us both there for her party. It was fun. My favorite part were the Halloween songs. Megan and I have been rehearsing those all week.

All Hallow's Eve

2011-10-30T22:41:00.005-04:00

Well...here are the kids' costumes. Megan is a bumblebee, and Ben is a swamp monster. They love their new costumes.

So today we spent the day getting ready for Halloween tomorrow and our annual "Halloween Party" (a tradition since 2007.) Also, our friends the Manchesters invited us to join them up at the Country Club for a Halloween Party. The kids got to play games, decorate caramel apples, decorate pumpkins, and eat lots of snacks. Best of all they got to try out their costumes.

"Congratulations Bees!"

2011-10-29T23:25:00.006-04:00

Tonight was our "soccer party" to celebrate the end of the season for Megan's soccer team. The party was at our friends' house. There was pizza, cupcakes, and of course trophies for the kids. At one point of the night the party turned into a big "dress up" party as everyone raided one of the girls costume chests. At the end of the party I handed out the trophies and I asked each kid what their favorite thing about playing soccer was. The best line of the night was from one of the boys. His favorite part of playing soccer was "the snacks."
Anyway, Megan did great playing her first season of soccer. Turns out she has a real talent for the sport. She and I had a fun time playing together. As I told some of the parents tonight, as your child gets older you'll see teams and seasons come and go and they'll eventually start to blur together. But you'll always remember the first time they played a sport. You'll always remember their very first team.

Once Upon A Dream

2011-10-29T23:11:00.004-04:00

As I mentioned below Megan had to leave her soccer game early in order to make it to her dance recital in time. (She was even wearing her leotard under her soccer uniform at the game.) She's been taking a ballet class for the past 2 months, and today her class performed a dance to the song "Once Upon A Dream." Ben and I were at his soccer game at the time, so it was just Jenny who saw it live. But I have here some pictures and video from the the show. Megan is the 2nd from the right. As you will see she did great. (By the way, I apologize for the videography. My wife needs some practice with the camcorder.)

The Tornadoes - Game 8

2011-10-29T23:00:00.003-04:00

Today was also Ben's last soccer game of the season. They were also the "white" team but no "win" for them today (the team they played was the best in our age group.) Still though all the boys had a fun time playing their last game. We had several shots go wide of the goal and we even had 2 hit the post. It was just one of those games where the ball doesn't bounce your way. Ben sure has made a lot of friends through soccer over the years. He and his friend Parker (Sean's son) first started playing together when they were 4. (Those are the last two pictures at the end.) They've been playing together ever since. It was a little sad today to say goodbye to "Midland Soccer" for a while. We've all made a lot of friends.

The Bees - Game 8

2011-10-29T22:50:00.003-04:00

Today was Megan's last game of the season. We were the "white" team and good news...our team won 9 - 4. Megan played the first quarter but then she had to rush off to her dance recital. But everyone else picked up the slack. The kids definitely saved their best game for last today. It was nice to end our season with such an impressive win. Ironically, the team we played today was also the one that beat us at our first game this season. So today was a true benchmark on how much the kids improved over the season. Anyway, we had a great season. I'm so proud of Megan and the rest of the kids. They had a great time and they learned a lot.

When "Fall" Goes Wrong

2011-10-28T09:01:00.009-04:00

On several occasions I've written about how I love fall on this little blog of mine. The spectacular fall foliage, the indian summers, going apple picking, apple cider and donuts, getting ready for Halloween, and of course picking out pumpkins in the pumpkin patch with the kids. Every fall we visit a few of the local farms and let the kids run through the corn mazes, pick out pumpkins, get some cider donuts, etc. It's one of my favorite times of the year. In fact, I took this picture just this morning after dropping the kids off to school. Lots of color still going on.

Now normally I would think fall should be enjoyed by everyone, but now I'm not so sure. Take this story for example. Here's an intelligent family who got lost in a corn maze in Danvers, Massachusetts and had to call 911. Now I really try not to laugh at other people's misfortunes, but come on. It's a corn maze for crying out loud. Yeah you can get turned around, but when worst comes to worst you can simply...I don't know...walk through the corn and get out. My favorite line from the story: "We thought this would be fun! Instead it's a nightmare!"

Now if you thought that was ridiculous here's something even worse. Here's a couple (also from the Boston area) who got lost in an apple orchard. My favorite line from this one: "I just followed my wife. I mean she's the speech pathologist. She's a teacher. She knows everything."

Couple lost in apple orchard calls 911: MyFoxBOSTON.com

Now as ridiculous as getting so lost in a corn maze that you have to call 911 sounds, I guess I can understand it to a point. I mean after all, a corn maze is meant to be confusing. But an apple orchard? Apple orchards are STRAIGHT LINES! The apple trees are SPACED OUT! If you get lost...I don't know...TURN AROUND AND WALK BACK TO THE PARKING LOT!

"Congratulations Tornadoes!"

2011-10-24T21:30:00.007-04:00

Ben's soccer season is quickly coming to a close. This saturday is his team's last game of the season, so tonight we held a "team party" to congratulate all the boys on a great season. The boys enjoyed food and cake, and afterward everyone got a cool trophy. Sean, Andy, and I are all very proud of these boys. This is probably the hardest working team we've ever coached, and the results definitely show on the field. We are all very proud of them. The "end of season" party is always one of Ben's favorite parts of soccer, and it's a great way to unwind with our friends after a 2 month season.

"The Spooky House"

2011-10-23T21:56:00.007-04:00

We're a week away from Halloween, and that means it's time for "the spooky house." Every year one of the houses in our neighborhood goes all out for Halloween...and when I say all out I mean ALL OUT. Here's what the house looked like on Halloween last year. Pretty incredible huh? I told you it was all out. We make an effort to decorate our house for Halloween and make it spooky, but this house takes it to a whole other level. Keep in mind...this is someone's house. You would think the neighbors would hate this house but everyone kind of likes it. You see people walking by and slowly driving by looking at all the decorations. Ben and Megan are fascinated by the house, and Ben is now brave enough where he wants to walk up to the house and get a closer look at all the characters. Our favorite is the rock band - known as "The Dead Beats." The guy built all 4 characters from scratch, and he even constructed a stage and lighting for the band. Then he rigged up the lights and characters to sync up with the audio. It's pretty amazing. On Halloween night the owner of the house stands at his front door and performs magic tricks for the kids. You would think the guy is very odd, and maybe you're right. But we've gone by his house a few times and the guy seems nice. Yes it's a little strange to turn your front yard into "Night Of The Living Dead," but from someone who is the only one who decorates his house for Halloween on our street I admire anyone who just wants to entertain the kids in the neighborhood. Makes Halloween all more fun.

Johnson's Giant Pumpkins

2011-10-23T20:54:00.007-04:00

This afternoon we drove to a nearby farm for some more fall fun. We drove out to some farmland to Johnson's Giant Pumpkin Farm for a cub scout activity. The kids had a good time looking at all the giant pumpkins and fall displays. We also bought some awesome cider donuts. Megan also got to ride a horse. Whenever she sees "horse rides" she always wants to do it. Anyway, we had a good time. If you want to see something cool check out what we did for our cub scout activity. Here's a hint - it involves flying pumpkins and a trebuchet.

The Tornadoes - Game 7

2011-10-22T15:02:00.007-04:00

An hour after Megan's game finished we got ready for Ben's 7th game. Good news! The Tornadoes won today 6-0. We were the "green" team and our boys were running on all cylinders today. Every single player had their best game of the season...including Ben. Ben had a shot on goal, his friend Miles, and a lot of other players who don't usually score. Everybody was involved and working together. For Sean, Andy, and I it's such a great feeling when we see weeks and weeks of practices finally pay off. You sometimes wonder if your boys ever retain what you're teaching them, so when you see a game like today it really makes you feel proud. Anyway, as you can see in the last picture below I had to wear an OU hoodie. Sean and I have been coaching our boys soccer team for 6 seasons now. Sean is a Michigan St. alum, but he also grew up in Norman, OK for a time when his mother went to school at OU. So he is also a huge fan of OU. Every fall we make a bet on the "Red River Rivalry" - the loser has to wear the other school's hoodie for our entire soccer game. Well...as you know Texas got destroyed by OU this year, so today it was my turn to wear the "crimson and cream." It was all good though. When our soccer team wins a game 6-0 I'll wear anything you want.

The Bees - Game 7

2011-10-22T14:54:00.007-04:00

Megan's soccer team had their 7th soccer game today. They played another great game. We were the "green" team, and Megan had two goals this morning, and she almost had a third. The morning started off a little chilly, so the kids were in hats and gloves, but it warmed up pretty quickly. Also, my Uncle Doug stopped by today and watched both Megan's and Ben's soccer games, so that was fun. It's hard to believe but next Saturday is our last game of the season. Seems like just yesterday we were holding our very first soccer practice. Megan has had a great time playing her first ever soccer season, and she's done great. She clearly has a talent for it.

The Bees - Game 6

2011-10-15T21:14:00.003-04:00

Today Megan's soccer team played their 6th game of the season, and we were the "green" team. As I mentioned below the weather was awful today, and I think that effected some of the kids today. We lost the game, but the good news is Megan scored three goals. I got a shot of her scoring her 3rd below. Man! She is turning into a scoring machine. She's really turning into a solid soccer player. Both Megan and her friend Abby (the girl next to her in the photo below) have turned into a very talented duo. A lot of the kids on the team are a little shy and afraid to kick the ball at times, so most of our offense goes through Megan and Abby. Anyway, all these kids are having fun in their very first soccer season (as you can see below.)

The Tornadoes - Game 6

2011-10-15T21:03:00.005-04:00

Today was game number 6 for Ben's soccer team and we were the "white" team. It was a brutal day weather wise. All day we had wind gusts up to 30 mph, and the temperatures were very chilly. As you can see from the pictures everyone was wearing their hats and gloves. Yet despite the inclement weather the boys played a great game. Ben had a great scoring chance. A friend of his passed the ball his way right in front of the opponent's goal. Ben had a great shot at the ball but he couldn't catch up to it in time. Anyway, the game ended in a 1-1 tie, and at this age you take a tie as a victory. This team continues to improve and get better from week to week. The other coaches and I are all very proud of this group. Only 2 more weeks and then it's all over.

Pumpkin Day - 2011

2011-10-09T16:32:00.006-04:00

Fall is in full swing up here, so today we took a drive to a local farm for our annual "pumpkin day." Today is the day where we go to LeCronier's Farm to pick out our pumpkins in the pumpkin patch and pet all the animals. Right now we're in the middle of a 2 week long "indian summer," so the weather was phenomenal. The kids took a hayride out to the pumpkin patch, Megan got to ride a horse, and the kids got to pet lots of baby animals. They had a great time. Visiting local farms like this one and the apple farm a few weeks ago are some of the staples we like to do every fall. The kids always look forward to it.

It Really Is A Small World

2011-10-08T23:08:00.001-04:00

I think most of you know by now that we are moving to Zurich, Switzerland in January. Jenny and I are running around with our heads cut off trying to tie up all the loose ends before we leave. Well...a few weeks ago we gave Ben permission to start spreading the news at school to all of his friends. So as you would expect he practically told the entire school.
So one day Ben was sitting in the cafeteria eating lunch with his friends. He was busy telling his friend next to him that we were moving when his friend Michael cut in. Here's basically how the conversation went:

Michael: "Ben! Where did you say you were moving to?"
Ben: "Switzerland."
Michael: "Cool. So am I."

So it was through the two boys that we found out our friends the McGaughs are moving to Zurich as well in January. They are friends of ours who also work at Dow. Ben and Michael are cub scouts together and close friends, and Megan and Matthew (the youngest boy) are friends and they're on the same soccer team. This is just an amazing coincidence. The boys are going to be in the same school, and all of us are going to be touring Switzerland and speaking German together. Wow. All of us parents were just estatic. Since then we've all had dinner together to discuss this whole Swiss thing. Anyway, it's an unbelievable story.

So believe it or not Ben and Megan are moving to Zurich with their friends. How amazing is that?

The Tornadoes - Game 5

2011-10-08T22:58:00.002-04:00

Ben's soccer team had their 5th soccer game of the season today. Today they were the "green" team, and they got a rare "tie." Since I was coaching Megan's team at the same time I wasn't able to attend Ben's game, but Jenny did. She said they were winning the entire game until the other team tied it up with 30 seconds left in the game. I heard from all the parents that it was a very entertaining game to watch and that the boys played great. Ben also told me he had a shot on goal. He didn't score but he got close.

The Bees - Game 5

2011-10-08T22:48:00.004-04:00

Today was game number 5 for Megan's soccer team. Today we were the "green" team, and the kids played great. The team we played had two skilled players, so it was another tough day for our kids, but they kept their spirits up and they played hard. Megan continued her scoring streak with another goal (that's 5 goals in 5 games.) What I love is everytime she scores a goal she comes running back to me and gives me a hug. Another boy on our team not only scored his first goal, but added a second one as well. Anyway, we had fun today. It was another beautiful day and the kids played great. These kids are very cute. Megan and I are having a great time.

The Tornadoes - Game 4

2011-10-01T23:30:00.003-04:00

Ben's soccer team played their 4th game of the season today. They were the "white" team, and even though they lost they played great. They only lost by 1 point, and the entire game was hard fought and very exciting. Ben and his best friend Miles love to play defense, and they love to do it together. I got this great shot below of the two of them stepping in unison toward the ball. Pretty cool.

The Bees - Game 4

2011-10-01T23:20:00.003-04:00

Today was Megan's 4th game of the season. The game was in the morning, and it was pretty chilly (which is why you'll see so many kids wearing hats and gloves.) Anyway, today we were the "white" team...and unfortunately we lost. As a coach who has coached several seasons all I can say is "it was just one of those days." All my kids were just off today. For starters, we were short-handed. Also, several kids acted like they were still asleep and wouldn't focus, and I even had one girl who refused to play in the game (she sat on the bench the whole time with her mother.) Anyway, so that's what I mean. There were just a lot of things going against us today. Anyway, despite all that Megan scored our only goal of the game. So this season in 4 games she has 4 goals. She's doing great. Due to our odd circumstances today I had to play her the entire game. And even though she was tired at the end she kept her head up and tried her best. I was really proud of her today.

Johnny Appleseeds

2011-09-28T13:45:00.004-04:00

This past weekend we celebrated the first weekend of fall with a trip to Leaman's Green Applebarn to pick some apples. The weather was perfect and the trees were filled with apples of all kinds and colors. The kids had a great time. After we filled our bag the kids stuck around and played on the playground, and we even took a hayride. As for me, no trip to the apple farm is complete without a snack of "apple cider and cider donuts." So awesome!

From The Shelf

2011-09-28T13:30:00.004-04:00

WORLD WAR Z - Written by Max Brooks this is the story of a worldwide war between humans and zombies. Now I'm not much of a zombie guy when it comes to horror, but I had heard great things about this book so I decided to check it out. And man...am I so glad that I did. I know we've all seen a plethora of zombie stories in books and movies involving "a worldwide pandemic" and hordes of shuffling zombies chasing the last survivors. This book isn't really like that. What's refreshing about this book is how it's written. It's written in the voice of a journalist who is hired to document a worldwide zombie pandemic that happened years ago. So by the time you start reading the first page you already know how the story ends - the humans won. That's not the point here and that's what I loved about this book. The entire story is made up of a series of interviews with survivors and government officials and military personnel from around the world who give their testimonials and share their experiences handling the zombie outbreak. So the book reads more like a historical account than a narrative story. The great thing about this book is even though you know it's about zombies, you feel that if there ever was a "zombie pandemic" this book is exactly how things would go down all over the world. The way governments would turn on their citizens, how survivors would turn into pockets of resistance, and how the medical world would be clueless, etc. It's all totally believable. That's what makes this book so great. After I finished this book I gave it to a friend of mine. I always like the idea of giving a good story to someone, and this is one of those books. This was a great read!

At The Movies

2011-09-27T21:42:00.005-04:00

BREAKING BAD: SEASON 3 - The adventures of Walt and Jesse continue in the 3rd season of this great show. Walt and Jesse produce the best crystal meth in the southwest and everyone from the feds to the Mexican cartels want it. The writing in each episode is absolutely perfect, with a great mix of drama and wit. Jenny and I are such big fans of this show. It just gets better and better with each new season. I have to admit, when each episode comes to an end I get a little sad. I just don't want this show to stop. It's that good. If you aren't watching this show right now on AMC do yourself a favor and start watching Season 1. You will be rewarded.

CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM: SEASON 7 - You might remember I've praised this show in the past. Larry David (the former writer and creator of SEINFELD) stars as himself in a "fictionalized" account of his life. The writing and tone in each season is right out of Seinfeld (except for the language of course.) If you ever liked SEINFELD you would love this show. In fact, I would say this season (Season 7) is the best one yet. The entire season follows Larry as he tries to put together a "Seinfeld Reunion" show for NBC. The entire SEINFELD cast is here throughout the entire season...right up to the finale where we see what a "Seinfeld Reunion" show would have looked like. This is by far the best season yet for this great show.

SUCKER PUNCH - This is a movie I'm not sure I liked or disliked. Even after a lengthy discussion about it with a friend of mine I'm still undecided. In short, the story is about a young girl nicknamed "Baby Doll." She is institutionalized by her abusive stepfather. Trying to cope with her new disturbing world she retreats to an "alternative reality" where she begins to envision a plan that will help her escape the mental facility. Okay...so that's the story. Sounds simple enough right? Hold on there buddy - this film is very confusing. Throughout the film you are left wondering "what is going on here?" The story is vague and the acting isn't that great. Yet despite all its flaws the film has moments of brilliance. The best scenes come when Baby Doll enters her "alternative universe." During each imaginary experience the film becomes an energy filled music video bursting with eye candy and rocking music. All the imaginary scenes are the strength of the film. So because of this I was constantly going back and forth on this film throughout the entire movie. First I hated it...then I liked it...and so on. Anyway, I'm still confused by this film but in the end I kind of liked it.

TRANSFORMERS: DARK OF THE MOON - This is the 3rd installment of this hugely successful (and highly juvenile) franchise. In short Transformers are giant robots that turn into cars and machines and fight each other for supremacy. The only reason I saw this was...well...I had a free ticket. There's that but I also heard the 3D in this movie was exceptional, so out of curiosity I checked it out. Well...the movie is as loud and pointless as its predecessors. No surprise. But what did surprise me was the use of 3D. This was one of the few times where I enjoyed watching a movie in 3D. In fact, I would say the 3D makes the film better (if that's possible.) Anyway, this movie is pointless, but the 3D is actually pretty fun.

THE TOWN - Ben Affleck directs and stars in this drama about a bank robber who falls for a girl - the same girl he held hostage at one of his earlier heists. The two begin a romance as he tries to hide his true identity from her. As the relationship develops Affleck's co-conspirators start to question him on his relationship as they risk being caught. This is one of those Boston-based movies that's filled with a lot of bad Boston accents. Yet I was surprised that I actually liked this movie. Pretty good for a rental.

SUPERHEROES - I saw this documentary recently on HBO. It's about real people who dress up as super heroes and go out into the night fighting real crime and helping people. I thought this documentary would show these people in a humorous light and we would all laugh at them. They kind of do that in the beginning. But by the end of the film you begin to feel a little respect for these people. Yes they're weird, and no they're not stopping criminal masterminds. But there's nothing wrong with anyone simply trying to help other people in need - even if it's giving food and water to the homeless on a hot afternoon. Pretty good film.

The Tornadoes - Game 3

2011-09-24T21:23:00.004-04:00

Today was a special day for Megan because it was "picture day." Well...today was also a special day for Ben. Ben's soccer team had their 3rd game of the season today and Ben started the game as goalie. And good news - the Tornadoes got their 1st win of the season today! We were the "green" team today, and the boys played their best game to date. They were running on all cylinders, working together and playing focused. As a result they won 6-1. Between Ben and the other goalie they only allowed 1 goal. Ben always does a good job as goalie. He's got a decent leg for punting, (so he can get the ball out of there) and once in a while he comes up big with a good save. Another highlight of the game was Ben's best friend Miles got his first ever goal today. For several seasons now Miles has been trying and trying to get that first goal, and it finally happened today. The entire team and all the families were excited for him.