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You ain't no kind of man if you ain't got land. - Delmar O'Donnel (O Brother, Where Art Thou?)

I am on my way to becoming some kind of man. Anke and I signed a contract to buy a house today. Hooray! We hope to close at the end of January. We'll be located in Bellevue - which is just south of Omaha- near Fontenelle Forest. My commute to work will probably grow from 15 minutes to 20 - 25 minutes. And there is no covenant. I've had this discussion with friends before about how I don't believe in covenants. And it's usually me against everyone else in this, but I believe in personal freedom over property values. I believe in hanging engine blocks from trees . And I now have a tree (see the above picture) to hang one from. Just do me a favor and don't tell Anke about this plan. I'm not quite sure she would understand, and she may attempt to thwart me.
The back yard goes right up to this public hilly foresty land. There should be lots of wild life for nature geeks like me and Anke to enjoy.
The inside is very nice with high vaulted cedar ceilings and an open floor plan. The master bedroom is decent sized, but smaller than we have now. Our current apartment actually has huge bed rooms. The two kid bedrooms are rather small to my eye. But that is ok, because kids are small people. And I won't be the one living in the small room. Oh, and there is a wet bar in the basement. The back of the house is the really cool part. Look at those huge windows! Anke and I are really excited about this house. It will be a bit stark with furnishings in the beginning, but we think we can be happy living here until Corwin gets out of school. So that'll give us plenty of time to decorate. (Photos a borrowed from the real estate listing.)

December

No updates for a while. I've been lazy. What has happened this month?

I've gotten new glasses. Actually two new pairs. We had a lot of money left over from our annual medical flex spending account. Way over budgeted on that. Some day I think I should just get the lasic surgery and have my vision corrected. But the truth is I like glasses. I don't like the part where I wake in the morning and am blind or when they get smudged, which happens all to often with a toddler running around. But I like how I look with them.

I also got a new hair cut. Quite a bit was chopped off. It took a week or so to get used to, but I like it now. In the winter my hair tends to get rather flat with the lack of humidity in the air. I'll grow it out a bit when summer rolls around again. On the bright side, I think I look a good five years younger.

I got to see The Who on December 7. Maurice emailed me that he had been given four tickets to the show by his consulting firm. The Pretenders opened for them, and Chrissie Hynde can still rock pretty well for a 55 year old lady. My only complaint is that they didn't play Brass in Pocket. If you're The Pretenders how can you not play Brass in Pocket?! But I digress, they were good none the less. The only remaining members of The Who left are Pete Townsend and Roger Daltrey. These are two talented individuals. Especially Pete who essentially wrote all of The Who's material. It was a good show. It was also nice to be someplace where I felt young. I don't get that too often any more. Tickets were a bit on the pricy side, and I'm glad that I didn't have to pay for them. Thanks Mo and ProKarma.

Corwin was sick on Friday. Anke was sick on Sunday. Scotty was sick today. Corwin's pediatrician thought it was probally the Noral Virus. I'm feeling better now, but still don't feel quite right. We'll see how I feel in the morning, but I think that it may be another day at home for me tomorrow. On Friday I'm supposed to go to Des Moines and visit Eric and his fiance Diana (pronounced Dee-ana, a fine Chicana lass way out of LT's league). I hope I'm feeling better by then, as I'm rather looking forward to it.

Why am I not surprised

You are The Fool

The Fool is the card of infinite possibilities. The bag on the staff indicates that he has all he need to do or be anything he wants, he has only to stop and unpack. He is on his way to a brand new beginning. But the card carries a little bark of warning as well. Stop daydreaming and fantasising and watch your step, lest you fall and end up looking the fool.

What Tarot Card are You?
Take the Test to Find Out.