Many months later...

Yes.
The blog has been directionless... and un-piloted.

But - a new direction is revealing itself. I want the blog to be a portal and repository of all things Ivo and Burl are interested in. Something they can drive.

So, Ivo wants to learn about "ancient cities." Burl is into infinity.

Look for links and pics soon...

Here is a video of Ivo and Burl on Xmas morning 2011. Ivo knows his ski goggles enhance his coolness. Burl is offended to receive cool-making goggles, complaining, "I'm already cool."


Ivo 251211 by thehoneybees


Here is Burl lip-syncing to Darth Vader:


burl starwars sync 210112 by thehoneybees

Ivo and Burl love Grocery Store Wars:

Lost Cities Photos - from national Geographic. These are pictures of the ruins of ancient great cities. These cities were "lost" to people for hundreds (sometimes thousands) of year. They were rediscovered and excavated by archeologists.

Here is a link to a great site about ancient Greece. There are sections on city states, mythology, and even some games.

Here is a fan-made video for They Might Be Giants' Infinity.

Here's something about counting to infinity.

oh yea...

I'll be posting a video of Burl being trampled on the bouncy thing... at the zoo...

what it feels like to lose your child at the circus

We lost Ivo at the circus. When I say “we” I mean, "Burl and I." Lost Ivo. At the CIRCUS!!!

Now, I don’t want to blame Burl, but he did have to pee, after we got back to our seats from intermission...

It is every mother’s dream to lose her child at the circus. It took 4 days shy of precisely 6-1/2 years for me to contrive a scenario in which Ivo and I would find ourselves separated by a line of not-quite-compliant performing baboons. As the reality that these seats, filled with other blond kids, were our seats … and Ivo wasn’t there was sinking in… I was scanning-the-crowd, I’d asked him 3x if he wanted to come to the bathroom with us – and he was having a good time with the group of kids… and he is 6-1/2 and has been doing a little being-in-public-by-himself stuff – and it’s all gone well so far. But, ahhh , the CIRCUS!!! I am freaking out now – but I wasn’t then. I was in FIND-HIM mode, and I knew I would.

I admit to having had a concern that he might attract the untoward interest of an animal larger than he. I was scanning, picturing him in my head; his blue shirt with #7 on it and a bull embroidered over the left chest and exactly how his hair was – I figured I’d spot those first. I was looking/prowling the stairs, eye on Burl. It was dark. The spotlights were starting to dart around the arena. The rave music throbbed. I decided I could move faster without Burl. I asked the woman next to us if she would keep Burl for me. Burl said fine. I was calm I turned to go and saw the Ringleader, standing in the spotlight with a little boy in a blue shirt with the #7 on it and a bull embroidered over his left chest. His eyes were pointing to the floor in the tremendous light. It looked heavy on him. It looked like he was trying to see out. He looked bright and I thought, “perhaps Ivo is a volunteer-participant from the audience.” I had struggled to hear clearly, the mic was sooo loud, the music, all beats and lights. I was wondering how Ivo was doing, if he had wanted to volunteer or had it been an accident? had he answered a quiz-style question correctly? The ringleader said something about “lost boy,” “mother,” “he’ll be at the sound system.” Had Ivo realized what he was doing?

The woman next to me said she’d watch Burl and I walked up a flight, over and down a flight, was passed by a baboon at the end of a family of marching baboons. Crossing the arena floor, I approached the sound system, not seeing Ivo. The thought of the loose baboons and the whatever-else animals there were returned. Where could he be? I had just seen him… in the spotlight. Long seconds later, he was behind the sound tech. The technician’s back was to him. The circus was not set up to mind errant waifs. Ivo was really on in own, in the center of a strange cement land full of circus animals. He was freaked.

We didn’t make a big deal of it. It’s fine now. I think this is like earthquakes. I know someone who was hit by lightning twice in his life. I do not know anyone who has had their house fall down in more than one earthquake. I will not lose him at a circus ever again. Ivo will not lose his way at a circus. He will never again windup standing in the middle of a one-ring circus, under the bright lights with the cheesy, preposterously dressed, booming loud ring leader. We have a better understanding of crowds, lights, excitement, impulse control and both of our judgments.

There is more to tell of tball, father's day and others - but not now.

more soon

Just finished a paper. Big transition time of year. Lots of goood. Burl and Ivo and Ryan are awesome

more soon

ok - it's under control

Boys in bath 12 May

Well, nothing to freak you out and motivate like thinking you've lost a diary you kept for more than 3 years...

thank goodness it's back... something about "unusual activity on yr acct" and so google/blogger deactivated my old blog - which I had to access thru and old email/pw and then google texted me a code to enter... kinda cool.

Things are fine -but they could be better... the weather is depressing - and aside from a constant battle to avoid succombing to depression - in general, I have an end of times kind of feeling... there are so many things that are up in the air - and I don't know on which side the coins will land or whether or when... There's an unsettling crisi-tunity aura - though, probably a lot of it is in my head... and if the sun ever shines again, I'll forget all about these crappy weeks which followed an over-long, unneccessarily cruel winter... I hope so...

Over memorial day, the boys and I (and mabe Ryan) are going to Maine to see my uni roommate and her family... They'll be in Boston for her huz's 20th uni reunion. It's the year of our 20th too - so, we're having a private reunion - and I can't wait!!!

I'm taking a summer course on Myth/archetypes... it starts on the same weekend - but should be ok.

Blue sky pics from mother's day - last sun I can remember - and short lived!!!

I made a hair appointment for Friday afternoon - I'm this is what I think will help me out of the funk.

omigosh my old blog is gone!!!

I'm gonna cry!!!
o no o no o no o no o no~~~

Spring Firsts

Many FIRSTS on this first day of SPRING!!!

• Ivo's first loose tooth FELL OUT - We're awaiting the Tooth Fairy tonight!!!


The first pic is Ivo with tooth this morning. The second is without tooth this afternoon!!!

• Burl had his first HAIRCUT - When he looked in the mirror, Burl said, "I look like someone else!!!"

The first three pics are Burl with all the hair he's ever grown - including dreds in the back. The last two are Burl with his new do!!!

We had a playdate with a classmate of Ivo's and Ryan's friend, wife and 8 year old came to visit. They confirmed that hottubs are AWESOME - which is what I've been saying for a couple weeks. And now we're going to get one!!!

YAY!!!

The weather is changing - it's feeling Springy. There's melt and dead grass and even some intrepid green things poking up through the muck. Exciting!!! This has been a very hard winter - mostly because of the incessant viral attacks on Ivo and Burl. Also, the obscene amount of snow. Ryan and Gail hiked into the camp yesterday - over a meter of snow... but looking good!!!

We skyped with Mike, Jenny, Maddie, precious little Nolan and Mom - how fun! We are planning to invade their space next winter - that'll ease the winter suicidal tendencies:) So exciting:)

Burl has invented a new super hero - Gliderboy!!!

I'm starting week 8 of a 9 week semester. So far I've written 3 papers - one more to go - the final. Then taxes. Then HOTTUB!!!

This week, I'm going to a conference in Fredericton - it was great last year - and I expect this year to be even better - especially cuz I'll get to hang out with Lindsay at least 2 nights:

It's so good to have good news in the midst of the horrors occurring on this crappy planet... Japan earthquake, tsunami and, yes, multiple nuclear meltdown which worries me that I'll soon be unwittingly feeding my kids radioactive food - maybe food-labeling will improve? Sure, why not... And the start of another unwinnable, never-ending war - this time in Lybia. What about Bahrain, Yemen, Syria and the rest of the Middle East kleptocratic dictators...

HOTTUB