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Thinking out loud, week of 2010-09-05

@subdigit agreed; that's the challenge and why yw is so much more common. we should start a trend for mp! in reply to subdigit #

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Thinking out loud, week of 2010-08-29

@robshook i have a few ideas in reply to robshook #

@Dolly_Parton my grandpa is turning 90 in october and he wants you to come to his party! where can i send your invitation? #

@pipedownmrbrown well then it seems obvious where to look! maybe go next door and offer a hand? in reply to pipedownmrbrown #

@pipedownmrbrown lol well is he cute? in reply to pipedownmrbrown #

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Thinking out loud, week of 2010-08-22

I’m excited and nervous to be writing to you, and I hope that among the mountains of letters you probably receive each day, that this one will resonate enough with you to bring about a response.

I’m a big fan, but I’m not writing for myself. You see, in October my grandfather will be 90 years old. He’s the last grandparent I’ve got left alive, and he’s had a rough couple of years. In April 2008, his wife (my grandmother) was diagnosed with terminal brain cancer. She died in September of that year, and a lot of us thought he’d basically go along with her. You see, they’d been married for 61 years when she passed away, and none of us could imagine either of them without the other.

The following February, his eldest son, my uncle, lost a long battle with emphysema, and in May 2009, he lost his good friend and brother-in-law, too.

Still, Grandpa is plugging away. He has good days and bad days, but then, who doesn’t? He took a trip out to California last year to visit my cousin Cary, who lives in San Francisco now; it was Grandpa’s first flight in over 20 years, and he didn’t really enjoy the new security regulations. (True to form, he let the TSA folks know it, too!) And he still gets to see the family often, since most of us are close by. A couple of times a year, he gets out to the minor league baseball stadium and cheers on the team, eating hot dogs and french fries and enjoying the fireworks. He’s still living on his own, and he gets around the house in his bright red scooter. All I can say is—stay out of his way, or he could run you down with that thing!

Earlier this year, he decided he wanted to celebrate his 90th birthday with a party. It kind of surprised me that he wanted a party, but my dad and my aunt didn’t ask any questions: they just started getting things going. Grandpa loves his projects, and this one is no different. He’s chosen the food (barbecue), the music (country and western, “of course”), and supervised the guest list and distribution of the invitations.

Of course, the whole family is pitching in to help. My job? Well, I’m supposed to try to get the famous Ms. Dolly Parton to make an appearance! So I’m doing everything I can think of to get your attention, shorting of flying down to Tennessee to try and hunt you down! (I thought that might make it more likely you’d give me a restraining order than a “yes, I’ll come to the party.”)

Now Dolly, I know your schedule must be crazy. I can’t imagine that you are actually free, and willing to travel up to New Jersey, on October 2, 2010. But maybe I could convince you to send a card to my Grandpa Jerry? Or even record a little video wishing him a happy 90th birthday, and post it to your YouTube channel? I’d settle for a tweet if it were my birthday, but Grandpa doesn’t entirely understand what the internet is for, much less what the heck we do with Twitter.

You can reach me on twitter @sparklingwit, on Facebook, or right here via this blog… and I’ll also be sending you a copy of this letter to your official fan mail address, with my address and telephone number. Any token, any response that you can offer will be greatly appreciated, by my grandfather, my entirely family, and me.

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Dear Dolly: My grandpa loves you, and so do I

@StaplesTweets thanks… 1 employee said you match amazon, 2nd said no you don't, so i left the store. looks like 2nd employee was right. in reply to StaplesTweets #

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Thinking out loud, week of 2010-08-15

But it’s always been talking, rather than doing. Although I’m fascinated by politics, I don’t particularly think I play well.

I do, however, have a pretty strong dislike for my local state senator, Steve Saland. He’s been in office for years (in his current role for nearly 20), and he’s very well connected in this area. I’m not saying he’s a bad person, but his view on gay rights are enough to turn my stomach, and he’s far too beholden to the current system of dysfunction in Albany. In this year’s election, he has a viable opponent in Didi Barrett, who I’ve met or heard speak at two events since May, and to whom I’ve pledged my support and my vote in November.

Last night, Bill, Mike and I went up to her campaign office in beautiful Hyde Park, NY (where President Franklin Roosevelt got his start), and we offered our help for a couple of hours. Oh, we didn’t do too much… just some data entry of canvassing sheets… but it felt good to do something to help elect a candidate who supports my way of thinking perhaps better than Mr. Saland does.

Whatever your politics, find a way to get involved. Learn about the issues. Make informed decisions. Be a part of the process.

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Less talking, more doing

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Thinking out loud, week of 2010-08-08

left my power supply at home today so i'm relegated to using windows. #

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Thinking out loud, week of 2010-07-25

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Thinking out loud, week of 2010-07-18

So for a change, I detoured to The Memory Keeper’s Daughter by Kim Edwards. I found my way to the novel via a recommendation from my dear friend Tara; her recommendations on most things creative are a sure win.

To be honest, I found the book to be a bit slow getting started. After the disaster that was All the Presidents’ Children, I found myself frightened—could I even make it through the book? I couldn’t possibly give up on two books in a row, could I?

I worried for nothing. Once the book caught hold of me, there was no turning back. The captivating story set in the 1960s, and leading its readers right through the quarter century that follows, is the story of the Henry family. Dr. David Henry and his wife Norah set out to have themselves the perfect nuclear family, but when Dr. Henry discovers—during childbirth—that his wife is delivering twins, he faces a moral dilemma. You see, his son Paul is born first, and scores “a nine on the Apgar… very good.” Up next is Phoebe, and Dr. Henry recognizes that she has been born with Down syndrome.

In the 1960s, that meant an early death, following an unhappy life. In an instant, he decides to ask his nurse to take Phoebe to an institution, and he tells his wife Norah that Phoebe was stillborn.

This split-second decision shapes the rest of their lives. In time, I found sympathy for each of the main characters, and found myself wondering what I’d have done in Dr. Henry’s shoes.

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What would you do: The Memory Keeper’s Daughter