Man, I suck at keeping this up to date. Here's the mid-2009 update.

1) Moved. Quit the job at the biotech company in SSF and moved to the aforementioned Oklahoma shaped state. Specifically, to the 80 year old house I grew up in.

2) Got a new job. Working for the local "keeping the lights on" company here in central Oklahoma shaped state.

3) CWG graduated. Proud holder of BA in Economics.

4) CWG affected by the economic downturn. Not so proud holder of no real job. Moving back to live in the 80 year old house I grew up in in the Oklahoma shaped state until the economy improves.

5) TAZ living in Texas shaped state. Working for one of those companies that helps businesses with thier new-fangled computation devices.

6) new doggy. See the other blog for details.

That's about it.

October 2008 Update:

1) The wife and I are a mere 2 weeks away from a long-planned vacation cruise. We are leaving out of a small industrial northeast state (think Sopranos), sailing to many exotic Caribbean islands, hopscotching over the western Atlantic dodging late-season hurricanes, visiting the poorest nation in the western hemisphere, and landing in a state that is way too hot, way too humid, has way too many bugs, and is way too red.

2) TAZ has moved to Waco, Texas-shaped-state to live with J&S. The reasoning behind this will follow shortly in a future post.

3) CWG is nearing the end of his time in academia, and preparing to move on to that next phase in his life -- drudgery. Anyone working for a drudgery distributor specializing in public transportation who may be looking for a bright new Econ major with a Philosophy minor, feel free to contact me.

4) ZZ has also obtained an AKC Canine Good Citizen to match that held by her surrogate sister.

As I write this, the big political season is winding to a close. Almost-President-Elect Obama and soon-to-be-forgotten-joke Palin will soon take their respective roles in history. California is trying to amend their constitution in two wildly stupid ways, and as of the writing of this article, both of these ridiculously misconceived ballot initiatives are winning. The wife and I have already voted (we are both "permanent mail voters" in our county), and we will actually be on an island consisting of two seperate countries -- one controlled by the Dutch and one controlled by the French -- on Election day.

Earlier this summer, CWG, the Wife and I rented a small land-yacht and visited a variety of "flyover" states, including the Oklahoma-shaped one that I grew up in. Ostensibly, this trip was to attend the nuptials of my niece. The trip was actually quite nice -- spending a couple of weeks with my wife and son, visiting all kinds of family, both hers and mine, going places neither of us had ever visited (the great salt flats, for example).

Shortly after our return home, we were visited by Panda and the Boy, and we got to show them all around the city and environs.

So, that's it for now -- hey, 10 months beats the crap out of 3.5 years, right!?!?!

The next one will even be shorter!

Hmmm... I just "re-found" this blog. Well, actually "The Wife" found it -- I had honestly completely forgotten about it until now.

So -- updates:

• Panda -- no longer lives with BCW, though still lives in the Oklahoma-shaped state. Now lives with (and is the mother of)
• The Boy -- my red-headed grandson.
• TAZ -- Went to boot camp, then came home injured. Still lives with us, is working for a large Micro-Menders shaped IT consulting firm
• CWG -- Finished 2 years at CCSF, now attends UC Davis, sharing an apartment with DQ.
• Add 4 years to all of the ages.

Add:

• Clemmy -- part Papillion part Toy Poodle (about 2x as big as either of her parents). 3 years old. Proud holder of the AKC's Canine Good Citizen certification. A supermodel, found on page 29 of "Designer Dogs: Hybrid Dog Breeds"
• ZZ -- 3/4 Shitzu, 1/4 Bichon Frise. A loveable nut with a really cute face.

Your humble narrator is now the humble narrator of 3 blogs:

1. My photo a day blog
2. My 500 days/500 words blog -- where I count down to the end of the Bush administration (3 guesses as to where I fit politically)
3. This thingy -- see recursive in the dictionary.

I still haven't found the KKK/Fried Chicken picture.

There's likely much more to write, and I promise that it won't take another 3.5 years to update it.

Funny Stuff

Here are a few funny things to start off the blog.

1. In South San Francisco, there is a little family owned taqueria named La Marena. They have REALLY good food, huge portions, and they won't break your bank. I highly recommend them if you are in the area -- but that's not the funny part. They keep canned and bottled drinks in a large cooler by the stairs. If you buy a soft drink, you are expected to just grab it on your way to your table. However, there is a large sign with English and Spanish. The Spanish translates fairly normally, but the English reads: "Please do not grab beer -- only employees". I promise that I will take a pic of this sign and post it someday.
   
2. TAZ, CWG, and DQ show up at my office today with a cake. Yesterday was my birthday, so I'm pleasantly surprised. At this point, I must digress a little. A long running joke in our family revolves around something that happened to me at age 16. We lived in OKC and my mom's yard shared a fence corner with the yard of a piece of rental property that was, at the time, rented by a number of, shall we say, herbally-enhanced individuals. One day, my mom finds some pot plants in our back yard near that fence corner. How the )*#$)(#* she knew it was pot is WAY beyond me -- I mean, these plants were MAYBE an inch tall with all of 1-2 leaves each. Anyway, she ripped up the plants and immediately blamed me. Now, I'm not saying I was ignorant of the herb, but I wasn't stupid enough to plant pot in plain sight in my back yard. My take on it was, and remains to this day, that the corner-neighbors tossed some seeds "over the fence". Now, back to today. 3:45pm, TAZ, CWG and DQ show up with this cake -- it is a "Toy Story" themed cake with a fence, clouds, greenery, and the words "Good times" written on the cake. Apparently, the local Albertson's wouldn't let them write "Happy 420 Tambourine Man -- Good Times" (my 42nd birthday, get it). Then, they proceeded to go around to all of my co-workers (including my boss) and invite them for cake and an explanation of the cake. Payback *WILL* be a bitch!!!
   
3. CWG was telling me about a great picture he saw on the Something Awful forums. Of course, he can't find it now, but if anyone has it or knows where to find it, I'd love to see it. Picture a KKK rally. In the back, someone (in hood) is holding up a big sign that says "Where can a brutha get some fried chicken up in this piece"
   

Something new for today that I hadn't ever experienced before: "Kewpie Station" by Kaki King -- Great accoustic guitar.

Cast of Characters

• OutaTuune -- This would be your humble narrator. I'm 42 years old, married, living in San Francisco, working for a small biotech firm on the penninsula.
  
• The Wife -- My wonderful partner in life. She's 45, currrently trying to recover her health from a Chronic Fatigue Syndrome downturn
  
• TAZ -- My wife's youngest son from a previous marriage. Funny beyond belief, he's shipping out to boot camp in October of 2003.
  
• CWG -- My son from a previous marriage. He's 17, going into his senior year in HS. He's a Something Awful freak.
  

Minor Characters (ie, those who don't live with us)

• J&S -- My wife's oldest son and his girlfriend. They live in a large, Texas-shaped state somewhere in the south central US.
  
• Panda -- My daughter. She lives with her mom (BCW) in a small town in an Oklahoma-shaped state somewhere else in the south central US. She's expecting my first grandchild (a boy) in mid September.
  
• CAC -- TAZ's sorta-girlfriend. Way cute!!!
  
• DQ -- CWG's buddy. His family owns a historic bakery in Chinatown.
  

This blog is my first shot at web based publishing. Read and comment as you see fit.