A peaceful night of watching Caillou with my son and wife.. and snow outside

The weather outside is frightful. And for parents, hours of Caillou may be worse. But it’s all for the best. Ayden loves it.

Grinning and bearing it, and watching my son laugh his heart out.

ONLY 365 MORE SHOPPING DAYS LEFT UNTIL CHRISTMAS ‘13!

Does anyone else out there think it’s bizarre that here we are Christmas Day 2012 and so far today I heard about four flocks of geese flying south? Weren’t they supposed to have done this already?

It was Ayden’s second Christmas—and first white one..

He hardly slept, with excitement about the snow along with the possibility that Santa was about to eat a chocolate chip cookie..

Fun memories.

I hope you and yours had an equally beautiful time last night and today.

Christmas almost done.
My God so is 2012..

Since we don’t know where times goes, may as well enjoy it.

Ayden's second Christmas

He got it this year. Really ‘got it’.. knew about Santa Claus. He even believed that Santa’s reindeer took a ‘poop’ on our front yard. 

For a soon to be two year old, the gift opening session went pretty well. 

He barely wanted to open more after a few books he liked were opened first.. 

We kept it minimal this year. On purpose. 

Kids can be spoiled quickly. Right now, with Ayden being our only son, he is spoiled simply by default.

But there is nothing wrong with that.. 

It’s amazing to see innocence in the eyes of a child. Eyes that have not seen horrors or ravages of this planet. That is precisely why images of children who see those horrors make me intensely sad sometimes around this time of year.

Ayden Morris, you did well. Cheers to another year coming. Your third Christmas will be only better.

Merry Christmas to all out there. And to all a good night.

CHRISTMAS 2012
PEACE ON EARTH!*
*Maybe next year

The Pope tells Catholics to make a place for God in busy and fast paced world

The Pope tells Catholics to make a place for God in busy and fast paced world

East Coasters: Look how many snowstorms we may have to contend with in the next few days

We are going from a warm December.. to a frightfully cold period of time. Along with numerous chances for large scale snowstorms.

The first tonight —it’s minor. But it will be a white Christmas thanks to it (snow will easily brush off your car).. look for Santa’s sleigh tracks.

By the time the ball drops on 2013, we may be sick of snow already..

East Coasters: Look how many snowstorms we may have to contend with in the next few days

Christmas Eve 2012 is here.. Be safe everyone.

So my local Walmart had a mobile meth lab in the parking lot.. Merry Christmas.

Pretty big day in the Skook, even with it being Christmas..

It may be everyday that a meth lab in some town gets found, but not a mobile one. A meth lab on wheels.. 

Turns out that the owner of the vehicle was from Berks County. So Schuylkillians are in the clear on this one. But… it may be proof that you can find pretty much any item at Walmart.

This is it. 

NEWSWEEK is done.

At least in the print world.. 

Digital it will live. But thrive? I don’t know.

TINA BROWN said the Zeitgeist was against the publication. But why? Why not TIME magazine. 

I recall a few years ago when US NEWS AND WORLD REPORT died away from newstands, too. But what did that magazine offer? Morty Zuck had nothing but bucks.. nothing to give readers either besides long lists of the ‘best of’ that no one ever read. The people who made the US NEWS ‘best of’ lists probably didn’t even know that they made it..

TIME magazine is still alive. Thriving? I don’t know. They just chose BARACK OBAMA as their person of the year—a safe choice and predictable one.. Will they be next in the digital universe? Abandoning the stains of print in turn for the speed of the phone?

Lots of people will lament NEWSWEEK’s print passing. Some won’t. 

But one day, maybe when that solar storm does actually hit, we will yearn for the days of print. Yearn for the days when we can hold a magazine in our hands…

Or will we..

Reaction in India continues after gang rape on bus

There is so much anger in New Delhi that big protests are continuing in the city..

CNN reports:

Saturday’s demonstration was prompted by public outrage over what police said was the gang-rape and beating of a 23-year-old woman on a moving bus in the capital on December 16.

Authorities haven’t released the name of the rape victim, but protesters are calling her “Damini,” which means “lightning” in Hindi.

According to reports, the young victim of the rape had a metal rod inserted in her vagina and she suffered loss of her intestines..

There has been global anger with how Indian officials responded to the incident—such as questioning why she was out past 9pm with a male, ignoring her life threatening damages incurred by the incident..

Lovin' it? McDonald's serving up 'restructured meat technology' ..

Lovin' it? McDonald's serving up 'restructured meat technology' ..

And you thought your job stunk!

There are time you need to take news online with a grain of salt. And if it’s from the ONION you should just laugh, and not spread the headlines as though they’re true..

So when I read this SMOKING GUN story about a federal worker who was reprimanded for farting too much, I could not help but first think it was a joke. However, sadly in a way, as the story went on and copies of documents were referenced, it became clear that the Social Security Administration employee from Baltimore, really could not control his flatuence.

But the story of the man gets weirder.. According to a reprimand letter, he created a hostile working environment because of his repeated passages of wind.

And the office co-workers didn’t think grin and bear it.. No, they recorded the times and dates when he flatuated (is that a word?) ..

Now picture your own office, or workplace.. Picture a co-worker next to you breaking wind every half hour or so.. How long until you start keeping “documenation” on all of the times he farted in your space? Well, according to the SMOKING GUN expose, this SSA employee had 17 incidents on September 19, according to records kept by employees. And he even broke wind during a May 18 performance discussion!

There is now a legal fight taking place over the reprimand.. I don’t know how much further the public will be udpated on the farting government worker. But every time I see my social security deduction on future paychecks, I’ll raise a glass and bust an ass. Praise to the farting Social Security Worker! So misunderstood…

Another disgusting story about a shooting..
This time in rural Pennsylvania near Altoona..
Fox News reports:

A man fatally shot a woman decorating for a children’s Christmas party at a tiny church hall and killed two men elsewhere in a rural central Pennsylvania township Friday before he was fatally shot in a gunfight with state troopers.

So far it appears the shooter had no relationship with the victims..

Dreaming of a white Christmas? Your chances may have increased

Dreaming of a white Christmas? Your chances may have increased

The calendar now says winter, and the weather does too. The pale and hazy gray shade of winter setting it

Heading into the Christmas holiday season, it is important to remember what IS.. important in your life

I value a wonderful family, wonderful friends, peace, joy, happiness and sure a little fun now and then too.

But doesn’t it seem like this year has been tremendously bad? Maybe the world didn’t end up by God there’re times this year were we all sure felt like it would..

So that would be all the more reason to grab the hand of the person you love, spend time with the people you care about, and appreciate every waking moment because those moments are fleeting..

We're still standing

Time zones and end times

Well it’s tomorrow already in some places .. Has the world ended in Australia yet? Just trying to estimate my chance of survival ..