Today we hooked a microphone up to the Mac. We gathered around and took turns speaking into the mike and creating different sound effects. Danny reported front and center, shouting into the Mac any chance he could. Kathy suggested that Danny get a little microphone for Christmas. Nicole chimed in that she would also like a little microphone.

Monkey mike monkey do.

Anyone who doesn’t think that Macs are changing the world has never been to the Cashel house. Who needs a television screen when the family can gather around the warm glow of a computer screen? We could probably draw a picture of a fire in a fireplace and add the crackling sound.

I guess MacSmell is next.

Last night we all went over to Mom & Dad’s for Ted’s 25th birthday. We gave him the computer game “WellTris.”

Today we played “WellTris.” The flag of Soviet Georgia is a favorite.

He also got a turtle-neck shirt that should be returned shortly.

Nicole went to Sunday school and to her friend Robin Polinksi’s 8th birthday party. She got some little play ink pads and stamps.

Danny and I took a small hammer out back and banged away at a roll of caps or “blow ups” as Danny likes to call them. He also knows these are the bullets to his long lost pistol that he got the morning of Nicole’s birthday and was allegedly stolen by one of her hoodlum friends after her birthday party.

We all scrambled to make St. Patrick’s 5:30 mass. (Hoping to get out 30 minutes sooner than IHM’s 6:00 mass… in time for 60 minutes!) While Kathy and I got dressed, the kids covered their hands with the stamps. Turns out the ink in the play ink pad is permanent, so after grabbing it from the kids, I went to church with ink on my hands just like Danny and Nicole.

We dove into Ted’s Honda Civic and, with only a vague idea of where St. Patricks was, we found it and drove in on the stroke of 5:30. Turns out the 5:30 mass at St. Patrick’s is really at 6:00 pm, so all but Kathy threw away the time in the parking lot with a frisbee. Nicole and Danny kicked through the leaves piled up by the cold, brisk winds of the past two days.

Kathy stayed inside. Too cold sensitive.

The priest had a long, elaborate sermon that tried to combine the parable of the 10 maidens and their torches with the Wizard of Oz. It was lost on all of us, and we didn’t get out of St. Patrick’s parking lot until 7:30. We missed 60 Minutes. Ted says we have a fair number of lates due us.

We did notice that Carol was quite right about not having her wedding at St. Patrick’s. No center aisle. I don’t know that we’ll go back. Not because of the aisle, but the priest and his pianist friend are a strange twosome. Plus, at the beginning of the mass we were told to turn to our neighbor and ask, “What prayers can I say to help you?” Sure enough, this man ahead of me did exactly that.

“I could use some help keeping these kids quiet this mass,” I joked.

“Very good,” said the man (who turned out to have a little girl with him much worse than Danny) and he went on, “And I would like help praying for those with out food or shelter tonight.”

Great.

“Actually, the boys in the Middle East could use our prayers,” I said. Then I realized that there weren’t going to be just males lined up to die in this war, so I hastily added. “The boys and the…” and it all kind of overwhelmed me in a millisecond that the familiar, haunting song “Bring the Boys Back Home” would be awkwardly more frightening this time.

“The boys and the girls need our prayers,” I added quietly.

“Yes,” said the man.

Danny and Nicole were very good for a little girl and a little boy.

Danny had a tough time tonight. Couldn’t finish dinner, didn’t get desert, had to go to bed early. He cried and cried. He tried everything he could to get out of bed, even volunteered to eat pineapple. Nothing worked.

I drew a picture of a crying boy on the kids’ Mac. Danny quieted down, watching from his bed. “What’s this?” I asked, pointing to the tear on the little boy’s face.

“Water,” Danny said.

“Where did it come from?”

“That little boy’s eye.”

“Why is the little boy sad?” I asked.

“His father… because his father put him in bed.”

Then I erased the tear, surrounded the frown, and flipped it over. “Why is he happy now?” I asked.

“His father read him a book.”

(Clever boy.)

Then I added his big bird doll who sleeps with him, and drew in closed eyes. “Now what happened?”

“He went to sleep… Can you print that?”

Today is Mom & Dad’s 30th anniversary. We celebrated last night at Carol and Bob’s with Ted, Grant, and Sue in attendance. The night was capped with an impromptu, madcapped noise-making session featuring Mom on her singing crystal glass, Ted on the hand-squirt, Grant on the monkey howel, and myself on the two-thumbed flute. Somewhere in there was the theme from “The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly.”

Danny and Nicole thought it was great. Dad and Sue figured we had gone crazy. In fact, Sue started pulling her hair out and screaming at one point which was a nice addition to the ensemble.

Got to wear jeans to work today as myself and the crew made room for the data processing consolidation into our training-room-turned-closet. Didn’t want to ruin our nice clothes with any laser juice.

Severe cost-cutting plans are underway. Shock will set in shortly among the surviving troops. The “new guy,” Brian Pomrenke has been left standing, unscathed, looking about, wondering how all the flying shrapnel missed him.

Yesterday we all got ready to go to Nancy and Teddy’s farm. Kathy got up early and went to the store to get all the ingredients to make rice crispy bars.

Teddy, barefoot and wet-headed Nancy, Shawn, and Brittany all showed up as we were getting ready to leave to tell us that everyone else had called in as no-shows.

So we didn’t go.

Instead, the four of us made lunch of the rice crispy bars, called up Carol and headed out to the crewing regatta at the Chatahoochee River Park. Carol brought Gibson and Cassie. Cassie did not throw up in Carol’s car. A break through not unlike potty training.

We had to park several hundred yards away from the park because it was so crowded. It was a beautiful day to sit around a watch the kids playing and take in a bit of sculling and skimming.

Vanderbilt’s women’s crew team had mechanical problems and were unable to complete the race. Later, Ted took the news rather hard.

What happened today?

Today we went to the park. It was my brownie saromony.

I got two pins. We had a snack there. Mom and dad and danny and daisys and brownies and jr’s were there.

Got the kids’ beds bunked last night in time for a prospective town house buyer who canceled for today and rescheduled for tomorrow. The house sure looks nice.

Nicole got her Brownie sash today. Ready to be filled with merit badges.

Danny had a Halloween afterglow today as he redressed as a Cowboy to go to college with Kathy. When he peeked in to see that none of the other kids were wearing costumes, Kathy asked him if he would like to hang up his cowboy hat and vest, and he nodded that would be best.

Big “restructure” for the IPS division got approval from Bob Woodson. Closing the Milwaukee office and cutting out all field reps. Got to regroup and figure out how to sell this stuff.

Should have work for at least 18 months. In which time, Kathy should finish school, get a fine job, and take the pressure off of me to work so hard.