Stroller test drive.

This morning Lili and I took a walk to the bustling Bloomsburg downtown to run some errands and to see some people. We recently purchased a sun stroller to replace her original stroller as the go to conveyance and to take up less space in the trunk. So today, after I assembled the new stroller, Lili and I took to the streets.

A few things became evident right away:

1. The handles are a little low for my comfort. I am 6 feet 1 inch tall and have to stoop to hold the handles of the stroller comfortably.
2. When you hang a diaper bag on the handles it tends to become inconvenient. It bumps against the rear wheels and slows the stroller down.
3. The wheels are small which makes them unsuitable for off-roading or for the uneven sidewalks of Bloomsburg.
4. The stroller is much smaller than the old one which gives it amazing maneuverability. This is a big bonus since Lili and I frequently enter stores on our journeys.

This concludes my report on the sun stroller test drive.

Summertime and the living.

It is, in case you haven't looked at the calendar, July. Summer is starting to fly by and head for its twilight. And once again I find myself wondering what have I done so far. The answer is as usual - nothing. My daily ritual is not filled with glorious adventures to say the least. I rise from my slumber, go to my part-time (at best) job, and spend the rest of my time trying to wrangle my daughter while doing battle with the apartment.

The battle against my apartment has grown beyond just a mere conflict and into an all out war. Every day, armed only with my wits, I attempt to keep the apartment clean before the three of us mess it up again. I mostly fail in my attempts because chaos rains supreme in this dwelling. The idea that I, without my wife's help, could get this mess under some form of control is as laughable as the new CBS show, Greatest American Dog.

Cell phone use.

This article says that 25% of European Union households prefer mobile phones to their land line counter parts. My wife and I have only been using cell phones for a few years. We got rid of our land line after we realized that we were only using it to get on the internet and paying more than a cable modem would cost. At this point, we wouldn't even know what to do with a land line phone if we got one again. I wonder how many other Americans have also cut the line.

Old Ford.

18 months.

This is Lili. Today she is eighteen months old. In, what seems like, a very short time my wife and I went from having a baby to having a toddler. Soon she'll turn two and drastically change our lives once again. Happy half-birthday, Lili.

New glasses.

Book titles.

These are the titles of books I would like to see printed:

• Complete Idiot's Guide To Complete Idiots
• Left Hander's Guide To The Right Wing
• Chicken Soup For The Chicken's Soul
  
• Ventriloquism For Dummies
• Cat Skinning For Beginners
  

Flower stump.

RIP, George.

George Carlin, perhaps the greatest American comedian, has died at the age of 71. He not only made me laugh, he made me think. When I was in college, the highlight of my career as a college journalist was covering his concert on the campus of Bloomsburg University for our school paper. Thank you, George.

Puddle sky.

This day in history.

Operation Barbarossa was Nazi Germany's invasion of the Soviet Union. The invasion was made possible by Germany and the Soviet Union dividing Poland therefore bringing the two countries into physical proximity to war. This was the beginning of The Great Patriotic War as World War II is known is Russia.

Automotive stuff.

I found this very useful article on Lifehacker, the site that has "tech tricks, tips, and downloads for getting things done" as its motto. I guess if you can't get there, getting things done is out of the question.

Waiting.

Sometimes local residents display peculiar behavior like gathering in front of an empty stage in lawn chairs. Since there have not been any recent crop circles or UFO sitings, the only reason for this gathering is a production of Waiting for Godot. In the summer, around here, there is never a dull moment.

Thought of the day.

The Roman Empire conquered what was then the known world using horse carts and wearing sandals. The roads and structures that they built still stand pretty much unchanged after centuries. When the Roman Army would take an enemy city they would raise it to the ground leaving nothing behind. Sometimes we should take a lesson from history.

Carnival.

Summer time around here means fire company carnivals. These are small events that usually last four or five days and raise funds for a fire company that holds the carnival. Since the majority of towns around here are small, we don't have professional fire departments. Local fire companies, as the saying goes, are professionally staffed by volunteers. These fire companies have the proper training and the right equipment but because they are volunteer, money for new equipment is very difficult to come by which is why they hold carnivals.

Father's Day.

Today is my second Father's Day. Last year my wife surprised me with a weekend trip to Gettysburg, my favorite town in Pennsylvania. This year we did not make any concrete plans so we are still working on getting out of the house. Yesterday we ordered new glasses, went strawberry picking at a beautiful spot atop a huge hill, and swam for the first time this summer. Now, having been exhausted by all that activity, we are hanging out in the bedroom. Lili is only one who is actually dressed and ready to go. We must venture out and do something. The question is what.

Picking strawberries.

Flag day.

Storm damage.

We just had a thunderstorm that lasted about fifteen minutes. In that time we were subjected to rain, hail, and lightening strikes less than a mile away. When we got home we found this sight around the corner from our house. This tree is completely blocking a street.

Tennis courts.