for the people who have their Christmas cards out already. I'm lucky if I mail any with any more frequency than one out of every three years.

for people who think the family newsletter is a riveting concept.

for people who think the family dog merits a column of her own. I am related to some deeply messed up people.

for the security guy who wouldn't let me into my kids school yesterday to get my son's backpack after the chimney fell down last week. In and out in three minutes, would it really have killed him.

for the woman who after watching us clean up after a "Breakfast with Santa" event yesterday load up on leftovers because "they are only going to feed this to the help." Not quite sure who she was going to feed with a plate of 20 sausage patties, but the site of the removal did stun me into silence behind my coffee mug. Beyotch wouldn't get her raggedy children out of there for another half hour after that. The Chef was asking me: "You want I should turn the lights off on em." Good thing I only have to cultivate customers. If I had to like them, this might go another way

for the schmuck board member who decided that we need to meet on the same night of the estrip holiday dinner. It's at Stillwater's, but still. I used to live in the apartment building that is their atrium so I'm curious. So my chair will be empty that night. Duty calls.

for the cheap bastards who show up at the Unitarian Church on Music Sunday to get their fill of classical tunage. It could be a really great setting, but it has gotten too big for its shoes. An orchestra joins the church's own fine choir. A potentially great morning of music is regularly tarnished by people who should know better crowding church members out. My daughters reported stuff getting sat on. A friend lost their seat to somebody who just shoved their stuff out of the way. A little respect, folks. c'mon. I know Kleinhans is pricey, but behave yourselves.

for the gaggle of mornons and knuckleheads who wrote the Zoo's website (Hey, I'm a webmaster now!) during our recent drama wishing my fate be the same of the polar bears at the Zoo they haven't visited since 1979. I've actually had no trouble at all with the surrounding silliness, but some of the hate mail and blogging on the News's website has taken mean spirited.

for the peee-tah spokes wench who started all the foolishness. Made my life interesting. I have absolutely no problem with somebody registering a complaint based on something they've seen with their own eyes. This all started from a Freedom of Information act report, not from a visit.

for anybody who takes Buffalo talk radio seriously.

for the polyester-clad press box usher at the hockey game saturday night. I had a pass you saw it, so piss off.

I don't have a box of hammers handy to smack the above so the rant will have to suffice.

Happy Monday, ya'all

Apparently, we're not cranking them out quick enough here

Okay, work was really dull yesterday. Went a little nuts with photoshop and the paramount tv web site. Enjoy

I've liked my schedule of late. I worked last monday, took 3 days off, worked friday, two days off, worked two day, got tomorrow off. You'd think with all those breathers you;d be refreshed and at your best, but here I am trying to find some rhythym[. Good thing my tuckus has been booted to our Amherst office, fresh start on Thursday.

Had an encounter that makes me think I am overestimating possibilities. I had been out a few times last summer with a woman and we seemed to hit it off. She had a plausibly impossible schedule during school. We kept in some touch and made tenative plans to make the trek up to Artpark for a free concert. She emailed me back saying she needs to drive with somebody so we should meet there and there will be some folks she wants to see and am I cool with her being a social butterfly?

It's hard to know where you stand in situations like that. Are we on a date or am I just another in a unknown circle of friends? It is probably the latter, but I was charmed in how she saw the world that I was a litle too encorcelled with the idea of seeing a little bit of it with her, but that shall not pass.

Single beat will keep on thumpin....

In other news, I'm a little bugged about President Bush commuting the sentence of Scooter Libby. I'm actually more bugged that there exists a man in his fifties who willingly calls himself Scooter. On one hand, Bush is the President and that office can do that. On the other hand, some criminalities did occur. Is this the first White House to cover up unsavory legalities? Hell, no. The whole thing will keep all the pundits off the street I guess.

Guessin the Sabres won't be quite such a big deal next season with their two big names playing elsewhere. If you were sick of them in May this year, I suspect you won't have the same problem next year. The free agents that are left won't have the impact on the team. Upshot is the gossip is that the Sabres aren't a fun group to work for. I'd like to try it sometime, however.

Speaking once again of work, I got a "resume update" for a communications opening I applied for. About 30 seconds on receipt, I got a digital rejection letter. Guess no more updates are forthcoming.

Got out for my first bike ride of the season the other day and did a few nerve hardening laps on Elmwood between Forest and Allen. About the time I found my comfort zone, my thighs gently pointed out how old they are. Before they screamed, I stopped.

I miss (e:joshua) 's beer reviews, but allow me to pass along this tip. Next time are coming back across the border, stop by the duty free in Ft Erie and pick up a twelve pack of Sleeman's Original Draught, it is toe-curling good.

Before the voices in my head form a choir, I'll let that be the last word.

Have a good 4th, everybody

Can't say you weren't warned

Lot of death lately. A couple of peripheral people in my life are gone or feeling the effects of losing somebody close to them. That combined with my recent posting about the passing of my former Anderson Place neighbor has me feeling, well a little morbid. My now former dad-in-law is in week 3 of chemo. His potential mortality has me thinking. It makes me want to pull over on my way to work and kick the folks smoking under the Roswell No smoking banner in the shins.

This has hit my ex even harder. I'm doing my best to help, but I'm coming to the fact that I signed my lease to leave the house formerly known as mine 3 years ago today. In the six months that immediately followed, I got to deal with the useless response from family members, at one point, she told me that she "wanted the family of her, our kids, and her partner" to find their way with the initial holiday season. Given that I didn't stray, that I took crappy jobs at night to support her and be there for the kids, I was dumbfounded. Point of that anecdote, other than to gloat that the partner is no longer in the picture I guess is to illustrate that despite being generally cool with each other, I resent the circumstances that brought us to this point. I think I'm pretty much over it all, but occasionally something can stir and piss you off all over again. I thought it would be best and easiest that I move (and it was), but it sort of felt like that me guilty in some way. I've struggled at times to remain Dad and buy into the logic that we were just broadening the sphere of people who care for the kids. I mentioned to my eldest that I didn't think a certain person held much regard for me. She, being an enlightened child, replied that I shouldn't sweat it, the certain person is like that with everybody.

Alas, it has made me wonder if I disappeared who'd notice, but when you think hope is evaporating, conversations can reveal a lot. We cleared the "table" of a lot, how things progressed too fast at the house after I left, steps we take together for the kids, etc.

I'm not quite sure where I'm headed with this. Figured getting it down would be better than having these things rattle around in my head. The first bad divorce realtionship send me an email the other day to say hi and I guess that triggered the flipping pages of my mental rolodex.

So, I'm trying to help and be a stand guy and help her when her transitional lesbian relationship takes up with a mutual friend, both of whom insist it's not a relationship from next door to the kids. They are pissed off at me because my kids know them both well, so I made them come clean to kids.

I'm such an asshole.

end of pity