Raise your hand

if you are tired of winter. First we had an ice storm Thursday. Folks around here are understandably paranoid about losing power for days at a time. The woman behind me at the grocery store check out said last ice storm they were without power for 8 days. Eight days! This morning on the news they mentioned that 150,000 people in OK are without power, 10 of those are from in and around Tulsa. Unfortunately for them that probably eliminates them as a priority. Better to be in a group of thousands.

Then it snowed on top of the ice all day Friday. It was the Christmas Eve blizzard all over again. Well, without the anticipation of Santa, presents, grandchildren and twenty pounds of chocolate.

May I suggest caution when under the icicles. I haven't seen such weapons since we lived in Utah.

The list of available snowshovelers of walkways has dwindled at our house. Emily's name was in first position.

May all the trees weather the storm and the two months left until spring for the really exceptional OK weather.

They can dunk

and dribble just like the olden days when we went to see the Harlem Globetrotters in our horse and buggy. They even had some of the same jokes like throwing a bucket of water into the audience. The joke is the water is gone, replaced with confetti. It had the family in front of us screaming, though. Ha ha. We endured some lame antics all evening and others impressive.

This guy stood in the stands right next to us to shoot a basket. He tried three or four times but was unsuccessful. It was a shame, so close.

It was a fun night, just not like I remember them. The HG's opponent, the Generals, had one familiar hoopster. Last season's Biggest Loser winner, Danny, from Broken Arrow. Emily and I are big fans of the show so meeting him was awesome and awkward all at the same time. You know how talented I am at small talk. My goal was just not to embarrass myself.

These boys

are 22 years old! (Watch out, Kasey, he's about to slap you. I'm not sure it could be used in a court of law but it appears to be clear, Geoff is a hitter. I know you have been trying to prove yourself otherwise but with this kind of evidence. . .) Their birthdays this year fall on the same day of the week they were born. Geoff's cousin, Kasey, showed up first on Monday the 18th and Geoff on Friday night the 22nd.

Twenty-two on the twenty second. Happy Birthday!

We've been partying

like it's 1999. Okay maybe not. Nobody in that picture looks familiar. Three weeks into the new year and this is what we have learned.

Something is delicious out on the frozen tundra.

Emily didn't have school for two days when it was cold. (no joke) Not enough snow outside so we baked them up in the house.

I love a kindle. Myself and a bazillion other gift recipients found one under the Christmas tree. All you have to do is push the small square button down on the right, and a minute later you have yourself a new book. I am on the kindle diet. I read a lot and yet I'll have less time when I have to get a part time job to pay for the habit.

Every good boy

and girl does fine. If I had back all the time and money spent on my kids taking piano lessons. . .

I would be so fine. But then we wouldn't have had all the fine piano playing

on Christmas Eve. And we would not be able to fondly remember the time I left the house, told the kids to practice the piano only to return and have Jenny blurt out in the first five seconds that her and Justin had in fact not practiced but they had agreed to say they had, both backing each other in their false claim, which Jenny said was Justin's idea and that Justin did not forgive Jenny for at least ten years or something.

We should have had Justin phone in a song.

Something smells

fishy. Or so I'm told. We went to the Aquarium while I had a cold. I couldn't smell a thing.

This tank had shrimp paddling around that you could let crawl into your hand. I am not sure why you would want to do that but Colton was about to gather enough for a cocktail.

Here Colton appears to benevolently feed the hungry, but with just one lick he pulls back on the rod and flings turtle food juice into the face of unsuspecting bystanders. Eeewww!

Eric staring at a tank of sharks and stingrays, as if he's longing for one last glimpse of Ariel. Whatever.

The nice otter caretaker told Kirsten to run back and forth in front of the tank and the otters followed, swimming back and forth as she ran. The otter down in the corner is waiting for her to get going again. The otter in the upper pool is just showing off.

Waiting patiently to touch the sharks and stingrays.

Colton sees something he wants.

And he's going in.
Kirsten's hair was half wet and the front of her shirt was soaked by the time she got done with the stingrays.

Looks like some serious contemplation in the shark tank, or under the shark tank I should say.

Lots of bull in the shark tank.