The _______ Life of Brent and Erika

Watch this please. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QmKnQjBf8wM

Chloe has a new hobby: hunting flies. Brent noticed this the other day. Chloe and Jojo were furiously sniffing/running around the living room, and he couldn't figure out why. Since Jojo's not completely potty trained (getting there...), whenever she starts smelling we start saying, "Out! Go Out! Do you need to go out?" (it's practically Pavlovian at this point...speaking of Pavlovian responses, there was about a two month period at my old job where I felt a sudden and urgent need to go to the bathroom every time I approached my locker. Odd.), but neither dog was interested in going out, and they just kept chasing this invisible something all over the house. Then Brent realized: it was a fly. They were chasing a fly. Chloe is now obsessed with chasing flies, and she has no regard for personal space as she does it. Brent has had many an "oof!" moment when Chloe uses his stomach as a springboard for getting the fly. Jojo will snap at flies, but she doesn...

Ahoy mateys! No, we have not taken up piracy--thanks to those Somalians, it's not as glamorous as it seems. No, it isn't International Talk Like a Pirate Day (we missed it again this year!). No, we are not dressing up as pirates for Halloween, and we didn't just buy the Pirates of the Caribbean box set. So, after eliminating all those other options, you guessed it! We found out that Wii Ware has started The Secret of Monkey Island series back up again! It's a fantastic and hilarious computer pirate game that, among other things, has you exchanging witty insults to determine your sword-fighting skills--if you lack the appropriate comeback, you lose. If your comeback is weak, your life goes down. If you're the better mudslinger, you win! It also involves talking with a Voo Doo lady, distracting the deadly piranha poodles, and saving the fair Elaine. Lately, I've been missing the pirate puzzle game quite a bit (coincidentally, doesn't that seem like it should...

Hi! It's Brent! I haven't written here for a while, but thankfully Erika does great at keeping this blog from dying! Work has been stressing me out a lot all year, but I am finally getting my classroom and students under more control now. We did something really fun last week, and the Daily Herald took some video of it. I'm not in the video, but many of my students (past and present) are featured--and yes, the kids trying to strangle each other are mine...

So, typically I avoid discussion of politics because I've found that it often introduces contention into relationships that I really value, and with no real benefit. However, I just learned that Obama has been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, and here's why I think it's a good thing (this is copied directly from a comment I just left on another blog): It's true that not much has happened yet in Obama's presidency (anybody see SNL's last opener? That checklist was satirical genius), but the fact that he's even TRYING is fantastic, and I think that this Peace Prize is well deserved. Obama has the numbers in congress to pass virtually anything he wants--the fact that they haven't just bulldozed through with a healthcare bill, for example, shows some progress in the right direction, a move away from the "This is what I think, and I'm in power, so I'm right!" mentality towards one of greater cooperation. Do I agree with all of Obama's poli...

Dear Alien Jojo, I think that at some point you came and kidnapped my Jojo who always sleeps through the night and replaced her with one that doesn't. Could you please bring the old Jojo back? It's cold now, and I hate getting out of bed multiple times in one night. Or, alternatively, if Alien Jojo is actually still just regular Jojo, I'm sorry that you maybe had a bad dream last night that made you whine until I held you for 20 minutes. And whoever you are, thanks for not having any accidents in the house yesterday. Love, Erika