Fun with Nature's Trash, Fat Faces, and The Albers Join the (Early) 21st Century Technologically

Over the past week, thanks to some pretty cold nights and about a week of 20-40 mph winds, our trees have puked forth most of their leaves. Not surprisingly, Gabe loves playing with them and in them. Several times, Libby has taken him out to rake paths and mazes through the leaves that he could walk through, then Wednesday, Finn came over and he and Gabe took some time to play in the leaves.

Finn and Gabe burying themselves.

Button, not being buried, but strangely enjoying the itchy nature she's been placed on top of.

The relationship these two are developing is actually starting to show some hints to what it will be like when they are older (provided, of course, they can still stand to be around each other by then). Gabe is pretty obviously the instigator, and Finn is a pretty dedicated follower. Frequently, Gabe will do something (usually none-too-bright, like tipping the little push-car he's riding over backwards while he's sitting in the seat), then, seeing the "fun" Gabe is having, Finn will repeat the move. Here, Finn is following Gabe in diving into the leaf pile--possibly an unwise move considering my proclivity for covering up fire hydrants and bale hooks with leaves, just for fun.

In other news, Libby took a picture of Gabe, Button, and I lying on the floor the other night. When she took it, I considered making it my new profile picture for this blog, just because I haven't really updated it recently. Then I looked at the picture and changed my mind.


There's no denying that it's a cute picture of the kids, both lying there with their plugs in their mouths. I, on the other hand, appear to have been building up my winter fat stores in my head. So this picture isn't going to pass muster, I'm afraid. My head is weird like that. I'm not sure if it's a time of the year thing, a diet thing, or a my head thing, but sometimes my head gets disproportionately fat compared to the rest of my body (which, I can't deny, doesn't look to svelte in this picture either--I blame my being fat). Probably it's a medical condition of some sort, or a symptom of one. Maybe from having a "brain cloud" (yeah, that's right, I made a "Joe vs. the Volcano" reference). Who knows.


In other, other news, our family has joined the early 21st Century of technological advances! Yesterday, Libby bought a GPS system so she could use it to help her find her way to Butthole, Texas or wherever it is that Sean Astin University (the school where she's getting her Master's degree) is.

Of course, she didn't clear it with me before she purchased it because she knew my response would be, "But you are the 'master of the map' and can find your way ANYWHERE. What do you need a GPS system for? And, besides, they're too expensive." Really, though, something along this line is my response to the purchasing of just about ANY new technology. For almost a decade now, I have purposefully let myself fall behind in technological trends--it's just too much of a money sink AND requires constant vigilance to keep up on the new trends and options that are available. We owned a cell phone way before they started to become cool (a first generation "flip phone"--the one where the little cover flipped over the mouthpiece, but the entire thing was still roughly the size of half brick), and we maintained regular cell phone service--and made the appropriate upgrades every couple years--right up to the point where they started putting cameras on the phones. Then, I put the brakes on. "Why do we need a camera in our cell phone? We HAVE a perfectly serviceable camera, and it doesn't take shitty, grainy pictures, to boot."

From there it's been a slippery downhill slide for us technologically. I still own a cell phone, technically, but it's almost five years old and is a Virgin prepaid (which means the phone was actually about four years old when I got it--so, in all likelihood, the phone actually predates the point where I stopped caring about cell phone technology). I have no interest in owning a blackberry, iphone, or any other internet-capable device. Admittedly, I don't NEED anything like that--and I BARELY need a cell phone at all--because I have near constant access to the internet at home. And god knows I hardly ever get to leave the house.

Anyway, for quite some time, I've classified all technology of the non-housebound variety as "a waste of money," and GPS is just another one of them. Had it not been for her rather extensive travel schedule over the next week, we STILL wouldn't have much cause for a GPS device. I mean, it's not like we're exploring parts unknown on a regular basis. But, for the sake of this trip, I do have to grudgingly admit that it will be a handy tool to get Libby where she needs to go. Grudgingly.

All the same, I guarantee, after this trip, the GPS will end up in our Worthless Technology Drawer with the scores of other pointless gadgetry we've collected over the years but not thrown out because we felt too guilty after wasting all the money we had. Such is life, I suppose.