As an animal lover, I am a big believer in getting as many of your pets from a humane society as you can.  Sometimes there are reasons why a family might need a “purebred” animal (allergies to certain breeds, professional showmanship, etc.), but for the most part, I don’t really like when pet stores carry dogs and cats for sale, especially when they try to make “breeds” out of dogs that are mutts!  Case in point – we visited a Petland this weekend, just something to do to pass the time while we were in Fort Wayne, Indiana visiting the zoo, and I noticed that at least HALF of their puppy stock was mixed breeds!  The same animals you could buy (rescue!) for a small fraction of the price at a humane society, or even a pound, where they euthanize (KILL) animals just because they have too many!  And here these pet stores are creating more, just for profit and to “design” a custom-made dog for somebody that in my opinion, does not have their priorities straight if they’re willing to spend extra money just to have a “designer” puppy.  Petland, etc. will make up breeds; for example, the store we went to had “puggles” (a pug crossed with a beagle), cock-a-poos (cocker spaniels mixed with poodles), and “borderjacks” (border collie mixed with a jack russell terrier), to name a few.  Anyway, I won’t go into the reasons for choosing to adopt your next dog from a shelter vs. a pet store (except to say it will SAVE A LIFE!!!), but I just thought I would post a copy of the letter I’m going to send to my local humane society to thank them for the awesome family pet we adopted a few months ago from their shelter:

Dear Humane Society:
We just wanted to say thank you for our new family member.  We adopted “Sasha” from your facility on March 4, 2008.  We renamed her Beesley after a character from our favorite tv show, and not only has she learned her new name and some new tricks, she has become a very much loved part of our family.  She gets along with our 2 dogs just like one of the “pack”, and she is an energetic, obedient, and gentle playmate for our 3 young children.  She seems really happy in our house, and we couldn’t be happier after choosing any other dog for our new pet.  Thanks so much for taking such good care of her while she was a homeless dog and for having patience with us while we got to know her to see if she would fit into our family.  She fits like a lost piece of our family puzzle, and we couldn’t imagine a better dog…  well, except for our “old lady” of the house, the pack leader named Charity, who Beesley worships and spoils along with the rest of us!  Here is a picture of the kids with Charity and Beesley.  Thanks again!

One of the sites that I find myself visiting at least once a week is the Superman Homepage. This site is devote primarily to the Man of Steel but also features articles dealing with other DC comics heroes.   It features a timeline that traces  every conceivable  event  featuring the Last Son of Krypton  dating back to June 1938 when he made his first appearance in  Action Comics #1.  There is also a Who’s Who Database of characters as well as reviews of movies, television, comics, novels, music, even the Broadway musical It’s a Bird…. It’s a Plane….It’s Superman.  I think my favorite feature is The Super-Trivia Quiz.  Three questions posted at the beginning of each month that test the knowledge of even the most-die hard of Super fans.  One of this months questions:

In the 1940s Superman radio series what is the name given to Superman’s enemy who has Kryptonite flowing through his veins?

I have no idea.  I was not around in the 40s and have never heard the radio serial.

My youngest was inducted into the National Honor Society this evening.  And the Senior class gave their heartfelt thanks to a person who helped them in their young lives.  I’m curious as to how many of these young people will remember what they said during this evening.  Some will remember, because they truly felt that the individual mentioned made a very big influence on their lives.  Some will not.  Those that will not make me a little sad.   They have to spend a few minutes at least thinking about what they can say about these people, and  say something that at least sounds sincere.  But in a few short years this will be a silent memory or blank page in their lives.

Many people have said that High School are the best days of your life.  I, for one, am glad that they were not.  I’ve had many better days since then.  I have very few people I consider friends that I met while in High School.  I did not do any long term bonding with any high school classmates.  I still see a few around, and I’m friendly to  them, but we are not good friends.   My good friends I’ve met since High School.  Once I was grown up enough to see what is actually good in people, and they were able to see it in me.

Back to the National Honor Society….  I was never in it.  I was invited to join both my Junior and Senior years, but turned it down.  I felt that it was more of a “click” than anything that would do me any good in my future.  Did I make a mistake?  Maybe, but I will never know.   That person that had an influence on me… Yes, I had one.  My High School Math teacher.  I almost became a math teacher because of him.  Since I didn’t have his patience, I went into computers.  He is still at the school, retired from teaching, but coaching the golf team.  One of the students chose him as their inspirational person.  He still has that touch.

Today I was reminded of the latest Broadway musical which will be coming soon to a mutiplex near you. Following in the footsteps of Hairspray, the forgettable Producers, and the dreadful adaptation of The Phantom of the Opera is Mamma Mia! the musical based on the music of the Swedish 1970s-80s supergroup ABBA. The big names in the cast seem to be Pierce Brosnan (who knew he can sing?) and Meryl Streep (ditto).

I very vaguely remember hearing the music on the radio during the heyday of disco. I was reminded of it a few years ago when I participated in a karaoke contest at an area bar and grill which an acquaintance operates.  A rather rotund man decided to give us his interpretation of “Dancing Queen” and brought the audience to tears from the hilarity.  His “performance quality” must have given him some points (or it may have been his nerve) because he come in second place in a group of 20.  I am pleased to say that I came in 5th.

My favorite team had a horrible start for the year, but they are finally starting to look like a ball team again.   Not that this is anything new to me, I watched and followed the Tigers for all of the losing seasons.  So many years it was like fielding a minor league team in the majors.  So very hard to watch, but I did.  Tonight I’m just rubbing it in a little that the Tigers beat the Yankees two games in a row now!!!.  They haven’t won many series (I’m thinking this is the 3rd with two ties), but it is very sweet every time they win the series against the Yankees.   Can you tell I know a Yankees fan??  I’ve been a Yankees hater as long as I’ve been a Tiger fan.  When the Tigers are out of the pennant race, I start rooting for anyone who is playing the Yankees (hee, hee).

What’s the use of coming here if not to get a look into my life?  Such a look into my life might include some of the websites I visit often, including some message boards. Just click on the title to go there and see what this sub likes to read and do.

Worthyboards: This is a Christian message board. It is part of a larger ministry, but I tend to stay on the message board. I don’t post often being more of a lurker, but if you see any posts by Qun Mang, that’s me. There is a prayer forum there so if you need a lot of people praying for you, sign up and put a post there. There are also some forums you can’t see until you sign up, and one or two you can no longer see once you do!

MAMEWorld.info: This is the message board for MAMEWorld.net, posted in my last retrogaming post. It primarily deals with the arcade game emulator MAME, but people sometimes post about retrogaming in general there. Just do yourselves a favor and walk carefully in the Loony Bin. This part of the site is not safe for work, if you get my meaning. I try to avoid certain posts on this part of the site, but there is much posted here that is actually interesting so that’s why I visit it.

English Amiga Boards: All Amiga, all the time. This board is everything dealing with the Commodore Amiga, a very popular computer in the late 80s/early 90s. That is, popular in Europe, not the U.S. English refers not only to the language, but to where the site is hosted. I had an Amiga 500 back in the days. A certain administrator had an Amiga 3000. You can also visit the main site, abime.net. From there you can find information on just about every Amiga game, read old Amiga magazines, and more.

Internet Movie Database: Most of you regular readers already know of this site. If there is anything to be found about a movie, you can find it here. TV shows as well, but the next site is a little better for it, excepting in some cases the forums. IMDB forums seem to be more popular, however you have to sign up to even read the IMDB forums let alone post in them. I’ve been using this site since before it became a website, when it was a database you downloaded from the internet and read via software you install for it.

TV.com: Same as above except for television shows. Their search engine stinks though. I typed in an exact title once and the search came up empty. I typed in a couple of key words and suddenly the show was found. Here you can read about the characters, the actors, episode guides, news about the shows, forums you don’t need to sign up to read (just to post), and more.

Geek.com and Neowin.net: A couple of sites with computer-related news.

Majorgeeks: Lots of software for Windows computers, including both shareware and freeware. If you need an application, try this site. They also have some news at the end of each daily roundup. They seem to be based in Florida, so a lot of news revolves around that state.

Well, I think that’s enough for today. Maybe I will post some more another time. There are also the sites I mentioned in my previous post, so check them out as well.

I haven’t been posting as much as I used to lately.  This is because of the surge of activity in our lives…  It’s also led to me making less phone calls to catch up with people, so let me fill you in this way about what’s been going on with us…

Taylor has been needing lots of dental work in Toledo.  It’s been treacherous, but we have only ONE appointment left, and her teeth look (and now that the pain is gone today – feel) great!  She’s been handling it all SO well that she is the dentists’ and dental assistants’ favorite patient.  I think they will really miss her.  After she leaves the office though, she has a really hard time with the bleeding, and today was especially bad for her, and she also had some pain.  But she came out of it all ok, and if she takes good care of her teeth from now on, we shouldn’t have to go through anything like this again!

Despite all the bleeding, pain, and the $30 price tag for gas (!), our trips to Toledo have been kind of a fun time for just the 3 of us – Mom, Dad, and biggest sister – to hang out.  We’ve been going out to eat, and stopping at the zoo a lot.  That zoo membership they got me for my birthday last year has REALLY paid off!  We’ve been watching the family of orangutans they have at the Toledo Zoo – there’s a mom, dad, a 4-year-old, and an almost 2-year-old.  Seeing them week-to-week, I’ve gotten to know their personalities and have grown a little attached to them – when our trips to Toledo stop, I will miss them!  The patriarch of the family, a VERY large orang named Boomer, is a gentle giant.  His hands alone are about the size of my 8-year-old’s leg from hip to knee!  While most males of his species are solitary creatures, Boomer enjoys being with his family, and he even assists with the rearing of the young, something almost unheard of for male orangs!  Today, Kutai, the mother, carried her youngest baby with her and sat on the window of her exhibit that positions her directly above the guests.  People were looking up at her, and when they took their camera out, she smiled, teeth and all!  I of course did not have my camera with me today to capture this awesome zoo moment  🙁  The keeper was saying that Kutai enjoys looking at books, and she can recognize pictures of herself vs. pics of other orangs, so is it possible that she understands what a camera is?!?  I think the orangs have taken over the gorillas as my favorite zoo animals to watch.  They are just so intelligent and their actions are so individual…  Last week when we were there, we heard the zookeeper talking about how they escaped from their exhibit after it was first built.  Seems they watched the contractors build their new exhibit from an adjacent one, and apparently noticed when they missed caulk in one little spot.  As soon as they were let into their new exhibit, they went right over to the spot, pulled the fence from the wall, and out they climbed, leaving the zookeepers to fetch them from the roof!  Sounds like something that would have happened to Jack Hanna 🙂  The orangs were inside on such a nice day today because the keepers were hooking up their water toy – when they push a button, it soaks guests who walk by on the outside of the exhibit!  That should be lots of fun; I really hope I can make it there at least once this summer to see them activate it, but with the new baby and all, it’s doubtful…  But anyway, it was a great day at the zoo, and we even saw a wild woodpecker, pecking away high in a tree!

Monday night, the girls had their “sibling class” at the hospital.  It was really fun and informative.  They saw the room where mom and baby will be staying, then they diapered and swaddled “babies” (fake of course!) and made little t-shirts for their new sister.  The one thing I would recommend for the class that they didn’t include however, is an emphasis on how older siblings can even help mom way BEFORE the baby comes by being well behaved, picking up some extra chores, or just doing the chores they are asked to do.  We’ve had some difficulties in these areas lately, and they are lucky their wonderful father has picked up all their slack around the house!  But other than that, the sibling class was great and they loved it.

Zoo trips aside, just the same business around here as usual…  Taylor is still taking her piano lessons, her school will be over for the summer in June (5 or 6 weather days to make up; I’ve lost count!), Sammie really likes her school, especially now that they go outside every day they are able, and Disney is growing by leaps and bounds, totally walking, totally talking, making her way towards two…  help us all 😉  Seriously, though, Sammie’s terrible two’s had already started by the time she was the age Dis is now, and I wouldn’t say they are over yet!  So I am optimistic that Disney’s will seem like a piece of cake comparatively…  and hopefully 🙂

While I was heading to my eldest daughter’s place last Saturday, I did a bit of shopping in the Toledo area. I was looking for an animated Superman series on DVDs. I found them. What got me started on this, was finding Superman DVDs in the cheap section of some local stores. Anywhere from $1 to $8 for 4 stories. The animation was ok, but most of the story lines were very good. Not at all like the Superfriends that were on TV when I grew up. The producers of these shows seemed to put a bit of thought behind each story. I was happy with the few shows I had.

Then, I watch the complete Justice League on DVD. I’m fairly certain I have all the episodes. And there were references to things that happened in the Superman Series and maybe even Batman. I just had to get them to find out what went on. I tried looking to rent, but I figured out, I was just going to have to buy them. Lucky for me there was a special that day. I now own seasons 1 through 3. I watched Season 1 and will watch the others soon. A very good way to pass the time.

Now I have to see if I want the complete Batman and Batman Beyond series……

Sorry but no “American Idol” post tonight. I grow continuously disenchanted with it the more I watch. Pure and simply, it is nothing more than a popularity contest with the teeny-bopper who happens to have the quickest finger choosing the winner.

Last night, one of the three shows I try to make it a point to watch every week had the obligatory “Special Edition.” “Deal or No Deal” featured a fantastic Star Wars themed game. The contestants who played were both huge fans of the series. The first was a woman who was a Vietnamese refugee whose youngest memories involved seeing Episode 4 in the movie theatre. Instead of the 26 delightful models who usually hold the cases, there were 26 Stormtroopers (yes they were members of the 501st Legion). As an added bonus, Carrie Fisher
(her royal highnessness herself) appeared to root the contestant on. Man, has she aged!

The second contestant was treated to an appearance by the eight-foot walking carpet, Chewbacca and everyone’s favorite astromech droid, R2-D2. Both contestants had to face the Dark Lord of the Sith, Darth Vader as the banker. The voice was no James Earl Jones but not a bad imitation.

I almost forgot to mention that in the second half of the show, the models appeared with their cases dressed in replicas of the slave girl outfit worn by Princess Leia in Jabba the Hutt’s palace in Return of the Jedi.

A very entertaining episode. I wonder why they did not procure the rights last year for the 30th anniversary of the original film.

I have mentioned in the past occasionally running into students who I know from church. The most interesting response one has ever given me was a few years ago in a district I used to sub in. It was an afternoon position and the kids just came back from lunch. Then one boy just shouted out, “Hey, I know you!!!” Well, as is often the case working with so many kids, plus my faulty memory when it comes to names and faces I only vaguely remembered him, but at least I knew from where I knew him, so I said so then slyly looked up his name. From that point on I got to know him better at church, as well as his brother who would enter the 4th grade the following year. Today I found myself in a similar situation. He didn’t blurt it out like the one a few years ago, but quietly let me know. Unfortunately my memory of him was no better than that other time. In my defense I should say that I work two services and interact with about 80-90 each weekend. Some I interact with more than others, and he unfortunately was one of those others. No sly tricks this time though, but I mentioned that I may have to have him put in my cabin at camp this June so I remember him better.

So of course this wouldn’t be as interesting a post if there wasn’t more to this story. After the kids had PE in the morning, they came back and switched classes for science/social studies (my class went to social studies, another class came in for science). So then another boy told me he remembered me from church too! After telling him I didn’t recognize him, he confessed he’d only been there twice as a guest of the first boy. So, not as much coincidence then since the first boy was involved. Later, after lunch, you guessed it… I ran into someone else from my church. What three in one day? Is God telling me something? If so He will need to be clearer unfortunately- this mind of mine isn’t seeing it. I actually ran into someone from church picking up his daughter for a dental appointment. In fact, I had worked with him one year in AWANA. He was the new director of TNT boys (Truth in Training, 3rd-5th grades) and I was a leader. Anyway, care to guess which class his daughter was in? Just by my asking the question you know it was mine. She didn’t know me though as far as I know- it’s possible she goes to the service I don’t lead in. I’ll have to find out.

Speaking of AWANA, I had one of my bigger memory freezes with the former director of the 3rd-5th grade boys. After about six weeks of working with him once a week, I saw him at a churchgoer’s get-together at someone’s farm. He saw me and said hello, and I recognized that I knew him, but I suddenly couldn’t place where I knew him from! Ah, that mind of mine- short-circuits from time to time. Once I said so and he told me, it was the biggest duh! moment ever.

Well, until next time.

Update: Here’s a story about someone with a memory opposite of mine:

Would you like to remember every day of your life?