Yesterday we went in for the penultimate visit to the fertility clinic, the Transfer. We got some very good news: of the 9 fertilized eggs, 4 were excellent candidates for transfer and another 3 were on the verge. So we had two of the best transfer into Kim (aka The Vessel) and today another 2 or more will be cryogenetically frozen for a further attempt later on down the road as circumstances dictate.
Which leads the possibility of this conversation happening many years in the future...
Me: You know, you and your sister are actually the same age.
Child: No we're not!
Me: Yes, its true, you were conceived at the same time, we just put her on ice for a few years.
Heh, that cracks me up.
Thursday, August 30, 2007
Tuesday, August 28, 2007
Lava Lamp Goodness
I've always wanted a Lava Lamp. They fascinate me with their movements and gooey liquid looking textures.
A coworker brought in one for his desk and as I admired it he said I could take it to my desk as he was "past that". I jumped at the opportunity.
My rate of work progress has declined ever since then. And now, a haiku!
A coworker brought in one for his desk and as I admired it he said I could take it to my desk as he was "past that". I jumped at the opportunity.
My rate of work progress has declined ever since then. And now, a haiku!
Glowing lava lamp
Moving ever so slowly
Always in motion.
Moving ever so slowly
Always in motion.
Monday, August 27, 2007
The Waiting is the Hardest Part
On Friday we had our retrieval at the Fertility clinic (which is why I was not at work and hence, no blog post). It went very smooth and was a lot quicker than last time and more successful. In 2006 we had 8 eggs, this time we have 10. On the weekend we got more good news; 9 of them fertilized and we are currently scheduled for a day 5 transfer which puts us at Wednesday for the big day.
Of course, we had all weekend at home alone to think and wait and just drive ourselves crazy with worst case scenarios. And even though everything is going smoothly this time there is still no better than 50-60% chance it works anyways. So we wait.
Since Kim was right out of sorts after the retrieval, we stayed home and relaxed. Watched some movies, did some work. On Saturday I took a quick trip to Greenbush to wish my mom a happy birthday and give her a present, and on Sunday I finished a bit of drywalling in the basement which was a big deal for me since I had never worked with drywall before.
I'm back to a normal schedule this week except Wednesday, so regular posting will resume.
Of course, we had all weekend at home alone to think and wait and just drive ourselves crazy with worst case scenarios. And even though everything is going smoothly this time there is still no better than 50-60% chance it works anyways. So we wait.
Since Kim was right out of sorts after the retrieval, we stayed home and relaxed. Watched some movies, did some work. On Saturday I took a quick trip to Greenbush to wish my mom a happy birthday and give her a present, and on Sunday I finished a bit of drywalling in the basement which was a big deal for me since I had never worked with drywall before.
I'm back to a normal schedule this week except Wednesday, so regular posting will resume.
Thursday, August 23, 2007
Movie Review: Hot Fuzz
For a relaxing no-thinking evening we rented Hot Fuzz for the evening.
I was unsure what to expect. British comedies often have a vastly different feel to the slapstick comedy of Hollywood, and the first hour I was on the fence if it was a good example or an average example of funny from across the pond.
The pace of the movie picked up a bit as the second half began and I definitely was interested in the outcome. Then all hell broke loose.
The last thirty minutes was gut busting in its over-the-top outrageous nods to over-the-top Hollywood police action flicks of the past twenty years. I actually had tears in my eyes from laughing so hard and I'm sitting here giggling at my desk thinking of some of the scenes. It was that funny. It was as if the first 90 minutes was mere setup for the hilarity of the last 30.
I heartily recommend this movie to anyone that enjoys smart comedy and police action flicks. 5 out of 5 stars.
I was unsure what to expect. British comedies often have a vastly different feel to the slapstick comedy of Hollywood, and the first hour I was on the fence if it was a good example or an average example of funny from across the pond.
The pace of the movie picked up a bit as the second half began and I definitely was interested in the outcome. Then all hell broke loose.
The last thirty minutes was gut busting in its over-the-top outrageous nods to over-the-top Hollywood police action flicks of the past twenty years. I actually had tears in my eyes from laughing so hard and I'm sitting here giggling at my desk thinking of some of the scenes. It was that funny. It was as if the first 90 minutes was mere setup for the hilarity of the last 30.
I heartily recommend this movie to anyone that enjoys smart comedy and police action flicks. 5 out of 5 stars.
Ack! Where did the week go!?
Its been a busy week. Kim's had to go to the clinic every day and I'm the only database guy at work as my co-worker is on vacation. Combined it has been the perfect storm of responsibilities.
The good news is that the IVF treatment cycle is going very smooth and retrieval is happening tomorrow with no coasting involved. Compared to last year where Kim had to coast for 4 days and we are very pleased and hopeful it means a better chance of success.
Anyways, posting will be light until this cycle is complete, for better or worse.
The good news is that the IVF treatment cycle is going very smooth and retrieval is happening tomorrow with no coasting involved. Compared to last year where Kim had to coast for 4 days and we are very pleased and hopeful it means a better chance of success.
Anyways, posting will be light until this cycle is complete, for better or worse.
Monday, August 20, 2007
Weekend Wrapup
The weekend was very busy.
First off on Friday after work I picked up the repaired Corolla with the brand new shiny hood and windshield that obviously do not match the rest of the car from the body shop. It was kind of sad to give up the rental with its bigger engine and cool gadgets, but glad to have this upheaval behind us.
On Saturday the Father-In-Law came up to work on the basement bathroom and we put the vinyl floor down and installed the new door and its frame. The floor was relatively easy, the door was an adventure in amateur carpentry. We had to trim 5 inches off the bottom of the door to make it fit the opening and I imagine watching us trying to figure out how to install the frame would have been hilarious. But we succeeded in the end and the door actually swings closed like its supposed to.
On Sunday we headed out to the the country to visit Erin and the kids for the afternoon and give Holden his birthday presents. Kim got her overdue haircut and we BBQ'd some wieners and burgers. I was exhausted by the time we got home and soon went to bed.
First off on Friday after work I picked up the repaired Corolla with the brand new shiny hood and windshield that obviously do not match the rest of the car from the body shop. It was kind of sad to give up the rental with its bigger engine and cool gadgets, but glad to have this upheaval behind us.
On Saturday the Father-In-Law came up to work on the basement bathroom and we put the vinyl floor down and installed the new door and its frame. The floor was relatively easy, the door was an adventure in amateur carpentry. We had to trim 5 inches off the bottom of the door to make it fit the opening and I imagine watching us trying to figure out how to install the frame would have been hilarious. But we succeeded in the end and the door actually swings closed like its supposed to.
On Sunday we headed out to the the country to visit Erin and the kids for the afternoon and give Holden his birthday presents. Kim got her overdue haircut and we BBQ'd some wieners and burgers. I was exhausted by the time we got home and soon went to bed.
Friday, August 17, 2007
I Communicate Like A ... ?
| You Communicate Like a Man |
 When you communicate, you like to get to the point. You're not afraid to say what's on your mind - and leave it at that. Talking about your emotions drains you. You rather keep them to yourself. You prefer solving problems to wallowing in your sorrows. |
Thursday, August 16, 2007
Super Storm
I was in a co-workers office working on an issue when a deafening crash made me jump in my seat. It sounded literally like a pile of steel feel over or a dump truck crashed into a building. Turns out it was lightning and it preceded a massive downpour.
The storm lasted for about 5 minutes and the rain was coming down in huge drops at a 45 degree angle to the ground. Lightning and thunder, black skies, it looked like a hurricane.
Then it slowed.
And stopped.
And now we have a bright blue empty sky.
Weird.
The storm lasted for about 5 minutes and the rain was coming down in huge drops at a 45 degree angle to the ground. Lightning and thunder, black skies, it looked like a hurricane.
Then it slowed.
And stopped.
And now we have a bright blue empty sky.
Weird.
Wednesday, August 15, 2007
Tennis Blues
This is the third summer Andrew and I have played tennis once a week, usually getting in one set to 6 games first and one set to 3 games first.
Andrew is in better shape and great reflexes, so I have a hard time putting it past him with either a hard first serve or shots in rallies. On the other hand, in the past his attempts to hammer it past me would often result in his shot going out or hitting the net. In this manner I could maintain a certain amount of parity by simply getting it over the next back in the court.
Last year I worked a lot on my forehand to get my returns lower and faster, and this year I've been working on my backhand in order to, well, make it work at all. Andrew, being evil, is helping as much as possible in that case by putting it to my weaker backhand as much as he can. Unfortunately, despite making improvements something terrible has happened: Andrew has changed his style as well.
Instead of going for the smashing drives down the lines like he used to, he's become more conservative and the result is that a lot of the points I used to get from his mistakes have evaporated. In the last four full sets we played last week and this week, the results have been 6-1, 6-0, 4-6, and 6-0 in his favour. OUCH! That one set I won was the second set on Friday after he whipped me six to nothing first. It hasn't helped at all that my serve has been on and off too.
My only choice is to keep improving, working on getting the backhand to dependable (which I feel I'm making good progress on) and making my forehand shots even more deadly and accurate. I need to make fewer mistakes and force Andrew to work harder to make his returns. And maybe, just maybe, I can get back to respectable scores!
Andrew is in better shape and great reflexes, so I have a hard time putting it past him with either a hard first serve or shots in rallies. On the other hand, in the past his attempts to hammer it past me would often result in his shot going out or hitting the net. In this manner I could maintain a certain amount of parity by simply getting it over the next back in the court.
Last year I worked a lot on my forehand to get my returns lower and faster, and this year I've been working on my backhand in order to, well, make it work at all. Andrew, being evil, is helping as much as possible in that case by putting it to my weaker backhand as much as he can. Unfortunately, despite making improvements something terrible has happened: Andrew has changed his style as well.
Instead of going for the smashing drives down the lines like he used to, he's become more conservative and the result is that a lot of the points I used to get from his mistakes have evaporated. In the last four full sets we played last week and this week, the results have been 6-1, 6-0, 4-6, and 6-0 in his favour. OUCH! That one set I won was the second set on Friday after he whipped me six to nothing first. It hasn't helped at all that my serve has been on and off too.
My only choice is to keep improving, working on getting the backhand to dependable (which I feel I'm making good progress on) and making my forehand shots even more deadly and accurate. I need to make fewer mistakes and force Andrew to work harder to make his returns. And maybe, just maybe, I can get back to respectable scores!
Monday, August 13, 2007
Quiet Weekend
Kim and I had a fairly quiet weekend. She and her mom saw the latest Cirque de Soleil show on Firday night while I visited with Andrew and played lots of tennis and board games. Saturday we did some jobs around the house like mowing the lawn and working on the downstairs bathroom, and Sunday we made a quick trip into Kanata to do some birthday shopping for Holden.
So now we are in the tail end of summer and things are slowly getting back to normal. Kim is still off until September but we have the IVF thing going on so she'll be busy with needles, ultrasounds, bloodwork, and lots of other fun stuff. Oh joy.
So now we are in the tail end of summer and things are slowly getting back to normal. Kim is still off until September but we have the IVF thing going on so she'll be busy with needles, ultrasounds, bloodwork, and lots of other fun stuff. Oh joy.
Thursday, August 09, 2007
Book Review: Harry Potter Series
WARNING: Spoilers!
While camping I finished the seventh and final book in the Harry Potter series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. I was just going to do a review of it but decided rather to discuss the series as a whole.
The Harry Potter phenomenon is a touchstone for a generation, much like the Star Wars trilogy and Matrix trilogy. How could a book series, one aimed primarily at children at that, become such a cultural force? I'm sure there are many essays and articles discussing it, but I think it came down to three crucial points:
1) Reading for fun amoungst children has been degrading in the age of cable TV, DVDs, game consoles, and internet activities. Harry Potter grabbed headlines by making kids want to read for a change.
2) The story was age-appropriate for kids but also gripped the imagination of adults who picked it up.
3) The story is well written and interesting.
As people raved about it and the media ate up the hubbub, the sales rose and momentum rolled the series into history. There may have been better books written at the same time or since, but Harry Potter hit the perfect storm of being at the right place at the right time with the right stuff.
Now, what do I think about the series itself? Well, I already said it was well written and interesting but let me expand on that. Rowling's style is brisk and airy without sacrificing detail, something that appeals to today's sound-bite culture and makes the book easy to read. The setting is very unique and humourous at times, and the characters are well defined. Sometimes the characters are a bit one-dimensional, but I allow that a pass since it is a children's fantasy book. The action scenes, especially in the later books, are also well done and not glossed over but rather described in enough detail to picture what is going on nicely without getting bogged down in details.
I do have some complaints though. I was often annoyed at students and alumni of the Slytherin house at Hogwarts were almost always portrayed as cowardly, conniving, and leaning towards evil and brutality. Some alumni get redemption such as Regulus Black and Severus Snape, but the current students during the seven books are never redeemed. It frustrated me. It seemed to simplistic, black and white: the students of Gryfinndor were good, those of Slytherin bad. I would have liked a bit more nuance, something to demonstrate the good qualities of a Slytherin student. Ah well.
Overall the series is enjoyable. In order of most favourite to least, I rank them:
1. Chamber of Secrets (II)
2. Goblet of Fire (IV)
3. Order of the Phoenix (V)
4. Deathly Hallows (VII)
5. Prisoner of Azkhaban (III)
6. Halfblood Prince (VI)
1. Philospher's Stone (I)
And the series I give 5 out of 5 stars. Definitely recommended to anyone with a bit of imagination.
While camping I finished the seventh and final book in the Harry Potter series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. I was just going to do a review of it but decided rather to discuss the series as a whole.
The Harry Potter phenomenon is a touchstone for a generation, much like the Star Wars trilogy and Matrix trilogy. How could a book series, one aimed primarily at children at that, become such a cultural force? I'm sure there are many essays and articles discussing it, but I think it came down to three crucial points:
1) Reading for fun amoungst children has been degrading in the age of cable TV, DVDs, game consoles, and internet activities. Harry Potter grabbed headlines by making kids want to read for a change.
2) The story was age-appropriate for kids but also gripped the imagination of adults who picked it up.
3) The story is well written and interesting.
As people raved about it and the media ate up the hubbub, the sales rose and momentum rolled the series into history. There may have been better books written at the same time or since, but Harry Potter hit the perfect storm of being at the right place at the right time with the right stuff.
Now, what do I think about the series itself? Well, I already said it was well written and interesting but let me expand on that. Rowling's style is brisk and airy without sacrificing detail, something that appeals to today's sound-bite culture and makes the book easy to read. The setting is very unique and humourous at times, and the characters are well defined. Sometimes the characters are a bit one-dimensional, but I allow that a pass since it is a children's fantasy book. The action scenes, especially in the later books, are also well done and not glossed over but rather described in enough detail to picture what is going on nicely without getting bogged down in details.
I do have some complaints though. I was often annoyed at students and alumni of the Slytherin house at Hogwarts were almost always portrayed as cowardly, conniving, and leaning towards evil and brutality. Some alumni get redemption such as Regulus Black and Severus Snape, but the current students during the seven books are never redeemed. It frustrated me. It seemed to simplistic, black and white: the students of Gryfinndor were good, those of Slytherin bad. I would have liked a bit more nuance, something to demonstrate the good qualities of a Slytherin student. Ah well.
Overall the series is enjoyable. In order of most favourite to least, I rank them:
1. Chamber of Secrets (II)
2. Goblet of Fire (IV)
3. Order of the Phoenix (V)
4. Deathly Hallows (VII)
5. Prisoner of Azkhaban (III)
6. Halfblood Prince (VI)
1. Philospher's Stone (I)
And the series I give 5 out of 5 stars. Definitely recommended to anyone with a bit of imagination.
Wednesday, August 08, 2007
Movie Review: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
There was one problem with Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix movie when Kim and I went to see it last month after camping: I had read the book. Twice in fact. And I read it again last week because I knew the movie had left so much out that I felt kind of cheated a bit after watching it.
Barely any Kreacher? No 'Weasly is our king' renditions? No St. Mungo's Hospital and Neville's parents? "They are all important!" I wailed.
Truth is the movie was quite good. The pacing was well done, the actors were decent, and the action at the climax was acceptable... except that weird cloud flying thing... was that supposed to be Apparating? If so, two huge problems: 1) apparating and disapparting is instaneous with no billowing clouds of smoke or flying, and 2) there is a charm on the Ministry of Magic to prevent apparation within its walls. It really ruined that part of the movie for me and I just know the directors and writers did it for more flash over substance. I hate it when movie directors do that. Asses. That being said, the rest of the climax was good. Seeing Dumbledore and Voldemort slug it out in a duel of master wizards was nice and satisfying.
Overall I give this movie three and a half stars out of five.
Barely any Kreacher? No 'Weasly is our king' renditions? No St. Mungo's Hospital and Neville's parents? "They are all important!" I wailed.
Truth is the movie was quite good. The pacing was well done, the actors were decent, and the action at the climax was acceptable... except that weird cloud flying thing... was that supposed to be Apparating? If so, two huge problems: 1) apparating and disapparting is instaneous with no billowing clouds of smoke or flying, and 2) there is a charm on the Ministry of Magic to prevent apparation within its walls. It really ruined that part of the movie for me and I just know the directors and writers did it for more flash over substance. I hate it when movie directors do that. Asses. That being said, the rest of the climax was good. Seeing Dumbledore and Voldemort slug it out in a duel of master wizards was nice and satisfying.
Overall I give this movie three and a half stars out of five.
How I Spent My Summer Vacation
Let me tell you, going back to work after two weeks off is always horrible. Getting up early, stuck in the office all day, going home and having to worry about household chores, it all sucks. So yeah, no post yesterday even though I was back at work. My bad. Regular posting resumes today.
* * * * *
So my summer vacation. Two weeks and a long weekend thrown in for good measure. So, what did I do?
Well, Kim and I started the first week by heading out camping at Bon Echo Lake provincial park for a week from Sunday to Saturday. We were worried about the weather but it turned out great with warm days and cool nights and no rain up a little bit on the day we packed up. We had the Kids for all but the first and last days and we went swimming, climbed up Bon Echo rock, fed the chipmunks, went to the nature shows, and ate lots of campfire s'mores. Well the kids and Kim ate the s'mores, I was more of a haystack-cookie-type guy.
* * * * *
The second week we were to have up the third child for our summer experiment, but seeing as how bored Ophelia was at times during her week before vacation we persuaded Mikaela to bring her sister along for company, so we had the girls for half the week. We did some fun stuff like checking out the Nacy Drew movie, going to the Children's Museum at the Museum of Civilization, going to the beach at the river in Carleton Place, a trip to Greenbush to visit with my cousins Taylor and April and play at the farm, and attempting to go berry picking (but the berries were all picked out by the time we got there).
* * * * *
As we went to take the girls home on Saturday, we had just got on the highway and up to speed when the hood on the car flew up and smashed the windshield. I was able to brake and pull over without incident, but the windshield was criss-crossed with cracks and small shards of glass were on the dash, and the hood was bent backwards all to hell.
We called CAA for a tow and a cab to take Kim and the kids back to the house to call their mother for pickup. The car is at the bodyshop now and I'm driving a Chevy Malibu rental while the insurance claim is processed and repairs are made.
So Kim and I spent the long weekend at home. Her parents and grandparents dropped in for supper on Sunday and Monday we relaxed and watched some movies together.
Coming up later today: Harry Potter book and movie reviews.
* * * * *
So my summer vacation. Two weeks and a long weekend thrown in for good measure. So, what did I do?
Well, Kim and I started the first week by heading out camping at Bon Echo Lake provincial park for a week from Sunday to Saturday. We were worried about the weather but it turned out great with warm days and cool nights and no rain up a little bit on the day we packed up. We had the Kids for all but the first and last days and we went swimming, climbed up Bon Echo rock, fed the chipmunks, went to the nature shows, and ate lots of campfire s'mores. Well the kids and Kim ate the s'mores, I was more of a haystack-cookie-type guy.
* * * * *
The second week we were to have up the third child for our summer experiment, but seeing as how bored Ophelia was at times during her week before vacation we persuaded Mikaela to bring her sister along for company, so we had the girls for half the week. We did some fun stuff like checking out the Nacy Drew movie, going to the Children's Museum at the Museum of Civilization, going to the beach at the river in Carleton Place, a trip to Greenbush to visit with my cousins Taylor and April and play at the farm, and attempting to go berry picking (but the berries were all picked out by the time we got there).
* * * * *
As we went to take the girls home on Saturday, we had just got on the highway and up to speed when the hood on the car flew up and smashed the windshield. I was able to brake and pull over without incident, but the windshield was criss-crossed with cracks and small shards of glass were on the dash, and the hood was bent backwards all to hell.
We called CAA for a tow and a cab to take Kim and the kids back to the house to call their mother for pickup. The car is at the bodyshop now and I'm driving a Chevy Malibu rental while the insurance claim is processed and repairs are made.
So Kim and I spent the long weekend at home. Her parents and grandparents dropped in for supper on Sunday and Monday we relaxed and watched some movies together.
Coming up later today: Harry Potter book and movie reviews.
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