Happy Leap-Day Digression-a-thon

I started this post on January 17th.  It digresses all over the place.  I'm just sayin'.  It has nothing to do with our house or our child.  I'll return to our regular programming next post.  Promise.

My current favorite song is "My Heart's an Autoclave," by the Mountain Goats.  It is the greatest song ever.*  I can listen to it over and over again.  You can watch a video of the song here, but it's not the version I've been listening to.  It's pretty great with just him on the guitar, but the album version has drums and other stuff.  There aren't enough songs out there about the autoclave.

*Please note, "greatest song ever" can change with my mood, but in any case, this song must be pretty great.  When I really like a song, I listen to it over and over again.  Kind of obsessively.  The perfect way to do this is on headphones, so that you don't disturb everyone else around you.  A previous favorite was "Skullcrusher Mountain," by Jonathan Coulton.  You can see a video of him performing it in LA here, but again, my version is a bit different.  Jake bought me a 99-cent download of that song, and I probably made him wish he hadn't, given the number of times I listened to it back then.  But how often do you find a love song in which the mad-scientist-lover-protagonist says to his beloved:

I made this half-pony half-monkey monster to please you
But I get the feeling that you don't like it
What's with all the screaming?
You like monkeys, you like ponies
Maybe you don't like monsters so much
Maybe I used too many monkeys
Isn't it enough to know that I ruined a pony making a gift for you?

"Maybe I used too many monkeys" is a favorite line of mine.

Oh but the digressions....where was I?  I was telling you about the "My Heart's an Autoclave" song and how I was thinking about "autoclave" and why I immediately associated it with music.  Something in my brain switched and I totally saw an album cover.  And indeed, with some handy help from Wikipedia (which was not dark today!), I re-remembered what I already knew: "Autoclave" is the name of a band that released an album called "Autoclave" in 1991 on Dischord Records.  While I can't say I remember listening to it then, I am quite sure that I played it on my radio show.  We probably played most everything out of the Dischord catalog on our station, WLVR (91.3FM!).

What's that, dear reader?  You didn't know I was a DJ?  Well yes, I was.

And here, I have landed at yet another digression: College Radio changed my life.  For the better, I assure you.  I don't know if these days the kids are so into the college radio, since there are things like [the] Facebook and Twitter that are apparently consuming all of their time, but being involved with college radio was the best thing I did in college.  I met all the right people (cheers, Ian, Elizabeth, Gab, Eric, and the list goes on...), and also all the wrong ones.  I got to feel important and connected and I cared about something bigger than myself.  After several semesters of having a show with Ian (we started out at the 1 - 4 am Sunday morning slot!), I ended up becoming the General Manager of the station for a couple of years.  Along with the other folks at the station, I moved the station's transmitter, booked Green Day just before they got huge, and messed around with CMJ's college chart listings.  It was awesome.

When I am asked to give some advice (and believe it or not, sometimes people ask!) about college, I recommend this:

Do something you're not supposed to be doing.

And I don't mean the easy kind of "not supposed to be doing," like plagiarizing or drinking too much or smoking too much.  Those are the easy things to do that you're not supposed to be doing.  Do something that takes some work, and that you care about, but that has no relation whatsoever to your GPA.  For me, that was radio, but it doesn't have to be that for everyone.  It should be something you care about, something that connects you with people, and something that challenges you.

Wow, where did the preachy advice-columnist persona come from?

Oh yeah, it all started with the autoclave.  I think that might be a great opening line for a story.   Where was I going with that again?  When I started this post, I had some sort of idea, but now it's gone.  Oops.  But I just couldn't let this post sit here unfinished.  So now, a month later -- on LEAP DAY! -- I am finishing it up.  And here's a funny note.  Back when I was looking up "Autoclave," the band, I was pleased to see that one of Autoclave's members (Mary Timony) is doing quite well with her new band, Wild Flag.  In the month between when I started writing this post and when I am finishing it, my favorite song has changed. I am now listening to the song "Romance," which is by Wild Flag on crazy-person repeat.  And thus, full circle, my digressions have come back around.

It all started with the autoclave.

Conversations with Lucy (TM) and Various Local Adventures

A few days ago, Lucy and I had this conversation at the breakfast table:

Lucy: When will Carter have puppies?

Me: Oh, honey, Carter's a boy dog.  He'll never have puppies.

Lucy: So why didn't we name him Daisy?

The logic is strong with this one.

Or maybe not.

So today we had a great time at Fruitlands Museum, where they were hosting Animal Adventures, a terrific opportunity to meet (and touch!) some curious creatures. As you can see, Lucy was very excited:

Highlights from the show included this Kinkajou:

Lucy had learned about the kinkajou from the show Diego.  When she told me all about it (after watching the episode) I kind of thought it was a made-up animal.  I had never heard of such a creature.  Well, I stand corrected. 

We also got to see a skunk!  I didn't get a good photo of it, but it was adorable.  Oh, and it had been de-stinkified, so it was all good (non-smelly) fun.

A big hit with the audience was the Chinchilla:

 The chinchilla was Lucy's favorite part of the day.  That's one soft critter!

We also saw a snake, but Lucy chose not to join the other kids in the snake-handling:

It has been a busy week here for family and kid-focused events.  After all the Winter Fest stuff, there was Lowell Kids' Week, which has events for the local school vacation week.  On Friday, Jake took both Lucy and Ruth to see a concert, and on Saturday, I took Lucy to yet another Kids' Week crafting event, this one at the Boott Mills, where she made a snowman:

We also finished the Downtown Lowell Scavenger Hunt that we started on Monday.  It was great fun, and had us out seeking public art and architecture. With a little help from our Park Ranger friend, we finally found this bell:

It's been fun to explore Lowell!

There's always so much to like about Lowell!

Today we spent some time at events during Lowell Kids' Week.  Seriously.  More free, fun, family-friendly activities.  Lucy made her own bobblehead, got a balloon animal, and drew a picture on the Family Mural Wall.  Lucy also got to try on a Park Ranger uniform, and got to meet the famous Spinners' mascot, the Canaligator.  It was just lovely.

Yup, that's her bobblehead.  Awesome.

There was also a very cool downtown scavenger hunt.  The map featured pictures of different locations, buildings, and sculptures in downtown Lowell, and questions about them.  It was a good chance to grab a few photos of some of the lovely sites downtown:

That's the scuplture "Homage to Women."  I particularly like how the pigeon is getting into the spirit of things in this shot.

That's a cool clock, also featuring this thermometer:

Well, that's not a good shot of the thermometer,  but Lucy really liked how she fit right under it.
We also stopped by the Kerouac park that we always pass:

They have engraved quotes from his writing onto these large marble slabs.  I rather like the effect here of the reflection of the mill building on the shiny marble:

That's all from here. 
Oh, but wait.  I keep having to add to this entry. Lucy wants me to mention that there was also face-painting.  You may have noticed the big pink heart on her cheek.  Yup.  Facepainting.  She loves it. 
Also, I can't believe I didn't mention that we picked up our own (free) set of Lowell National Historic Park Civil War Trading Cards.  Seriously.  Trading cards featuring famous Lowellians who were connected with the Civil War.  Awesome!  Apparently there are other sets at other National Parks.  Now we need to go visit all the other parks.  (I think we might need to get Lucy a National Parks Passport.)  One of the set of five cards features Lucy Larcom.  Woo hoo!  Lucy LOVES Lucy Larcom!

Hope you're enjoying your Presidents' Day holiday in a presidential manner.

Winterfest-ier

Today we were back at Winterfest, and boy was it terrific.  We went the Museum Mitten Madness events at the Lowell High School cafeteria.  It was set up with all kinds of activities for kids.  Lucy got to meet The Cat in the Hat:

 

He was telling riddles.  They were pretty bad riddles, involving food puns she didn't understand, but it was all very funny to her nonetheless.  

The Cat in the Hat was at the Visiting Nurses' Association (VNA) table, where she got to make a paper chain featuring her favorite foods.

We also got to meet LuLu, the sheep mascot of the Textile History Museum.

Lucy went from station to station, making each craft, including a beaded bracelet, a decorated fleece scarf (the pink one she's wearing in the pictures), a feathered and bejeweled mask (shown here):

and a rag doll.  She played bean bag tosses and a hockey game (that she played last summer at the Folk Festival):

She also got some crayons, a coloring book, a fire-fighter hat:

I didn't know they came in hot pink!  She got to visit some real sled dogs:

and there were CUPCAKES (to celebrate Charles Dickens' Birthday!)

There is just SO MUCH to LOVE about LOWELL!!!!

WINTERFEST

It's WINTERFEST here in Lowell!  We love Winterfest.  We went down to partake of the festivities tonight and it was downright balmy out there!

We watched the first round of Human Dogsled Races:

There were also fire-dancers and fire-eaters (sorry, no photos of that, but it was pretty impressive).  Lucy had the best seat in the house (and a glowstick):

And then we had a special treat: the largest marshmallows we've ever seen:

They had a whole toast-your-own thing happening.  Lucy opted to keep hers in their raw state, though she did taste my toasted one (hence the string o' mallow-sticky-goodness on her face there).
We're in for more fun tomorrow, with more sled races, kid-friendly fun (free cupcakes, balloon animals, a magician!), and also a visit from actual sled-dogs (Lucy is particularly excited about this part).  We'll hopefully have more to post after the events.

Live-blogging the (last bit of) the Superbowl

So here we are, watching the Super Bowl.  Many of you will be surprised by this.  But we've sort of adopted our local culture in all its sometimes alien rituals.  And yelling "GO PATS!" periodically is part of that ritual.  Generally, the only football we watch is the football that appears on the TV show Friday Night Lights, but we've made an exception.  (By the way, even if you don't like football, Friday Night Lights is amazing and you should watch it.)

Lucy even got into watching a bit of the first quarter.  She and Ruth stared at the screen for a while, not quite understanding what was going on.  I had to go a dinner with a job candidate, so I missed all the first-quarter excitement.  But I got home in time to see the halftime show.  I was kind of excited to see the Madonna show.  I can't believe she did "Vogue," which is a horrible song.  While watching, though, I was hit with a high school memory I'd thought I'd forgotten, when my friends Lisa and Cara and a bunch of other girls and I did a talent show lip-sync to the song.  We were not, however, carried into our performance by Roman Centurions, as Madonna was this evening.  Wow, Madonna.  I would have made some other musical choices, but it was a fun show nonetheless.  The high point was when the two drumlines came out for "Express Yourself."  I love a drumline.  Seriously, there should be more marching bands for halftime shows.  I guess I'm seriously channeling my high school self tonight.  Oops.

So we're up 17 - 15 right now.  GO PATS!

Updates as events warrant.

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Conversations with Lucy (TM) Super Bowl Edition:

So Lucy was very excited about the Super Bowl, but we found ourselves wondering just what she knew about the game.  We were surprised by her excitement, and then we realized just how little she understood "the Super Bowl" when she asked "When can I see it flying?"

Excuse me?

It turns out, Lucy believed that what the world was gearing up for was the "Super Bull," which, in her mind, was a sort of Super-Man like Bull.  Of course.  Completely understandable.  Who WOULDN'T be excited about seeing a flying bull?  With super-powers?  Come to think of it, I would MUCH rather be watching the Super Bull right now.  Would he wear a cape?  Would he have a lasso of truth?

Once Jake cleared up that it was not, in fact, a "bull," she wanted to know why it was called a "Bowl."  Anyone?  Bueller? We don't know either.  So she had a lot of questions, and we had very, very few good answers.

But she was down with the whole "GO PATS!" thing, so she's all set for school.

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Bridget's Super Bowl Commercials Review:

I was appropriately charmed by the Matthew Broderick commercial, which I know was for a car, but I'm not sure which one.  So, uh, I'm not sure that's actually a success for the advertiser.  And let's face it, I'm pretty much smack in the middle of the demographic for that ad.

I really liked the commercial for the Samsung Galaxy Note, though it is a product I will never purchase.

The Clint Eastwood commercial was just creepy.

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Crap!  NY just scored.  21 - 17.  Crap!
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Crap!  We just lost.  Again.
A Super Bull WOULD have been better.