mbietz July 17th, 2007
We’re moving into the house this week. It’s basically taken over my life – it’s hard to do anything else when everything you own is in boxes. But we’re making progress. And it has been wonderfully easy compared to some of our other moving experiences. Oscar didn’t even complain too much (although he did barf in the cat carrier – he gets the carsickness).
mbietz July 11th, 2007
We watched the MLB All-Star game last night. Ugh. It’s like watching a little league game where the coach is trying to make sure everybody gets to play, but without the cute kids. I like home runs as much as the next guy, but I’m still more impressed by good defense. But the whole selection process means the great defensive players (like Kahlil Greene) don’t have a chance of getting in. And, once again, the NL lost.
But what really made me groan was the broadcast itself. The commentary focused more on steroids and team politics than what was transpiring on the field. When they did happen to mention the game itself, it was all batters all the time. The commentators didn’t seem to know much of anything about the players that they hadn’t read in their online profiles, and the statistics they threw out were as banal as they come (and usually the same ones that were shown at the bottom of the screen).
Of course, Fox supported this broadcasting triumph with its best technical team. I think it was the first time the guys in the trailer had been to a baseball game, let alone filmed one. They came back late from commercials and special features, so that they missed pitches and plays. They were doing close-ups when they should have had wide shots (and vice versa). They did in-game interviews with the managers, who were too distracted by the game to say anything worth listening to. And what baseball game would be complete without a guy in a kayak, whose sole contribution to the evening was accidentally dropping his dog in the water. I think top honors, however, are awarded for showing a personality profile for a player who had already been pulled out of the game.
It made me miss Matt & Mud.
mbietz July 8th, 2007
I got back from North Dakota earlier this week after Grandma Mary’s funeral. And, in another blow to our family, Uncle Bob (Grandma Mary’s brother) died 6 days after she did. My parents and I were on the way to visit him in the hospital in Langdon, but when we arrived, we found out that he had passed about 15 minutes earlier. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to stay for his funeral.
Getting to North Dakota was no fun either. I was supposed to fly up on Friday, June 29, but I woke up to discover that my flight had been canceled. The earliest I could get re-booked was Saturday afternoon. I’d still be able to get to Grandma’s prayer service and funeral, but I missed my Aunt Elsie’s ordination Saturday morning. On Saturday, my flight from San Diego to Minneapolis was fine, but then they canceled my Minneapolis to Grand Forks leg at the last minute. Luckily my Uncle Ross and Aunt Lila and their family had just flown in to Minneapolis from a wedding, and were driving to Walhalla (400+ miles), so I was able to catch a ride with them. We arrived in Walhalla around 5:30 Sunday morning.
The funeral and related events were intense and wonderful and overwhelmingly sad. For me, the most meaningful and memorable part of the weekend occurred after the visitation and prayer service Sunday night. We were still at the church, and Melanie and Dad started playing folk songs on violin and guitar in the sanctuary where Grandma was laying. Soon Mom joined in on one piano, and Aunt Elsie on the other. And the rest of the family and some friends joined in playing and dancing and singing old songs. Making music together has always been such a huge part of our family, and I couldn’t think of a more appropriate way to say goodbye to Grandma.
My family has a flair for pomp and circumstance, and Grandma’s funeral was no exception. The family and clergy processed to and into the church accompanied by a bagpiper, although Grandma would have been mad that as a result we started the funeral 20 minutes late. After the funeral, the bagpiper also led us from the church to the cemetery for the burial service.
After all of that, I’d love to have some time to recuperate, but life keeps coming. On my calendar:
Wish me luck!