The word is out...We're Moving!

I have been falling behind with my blogosphere up-keep the last month, mainly because we have been busy planning a move back to Cincinnati, Ohio. Yesterday, Chris gave his notice at work...and tomorrow will be his last day. The two-minute outpouring of love from Chris' boss (that's the sum total of both yesterday's outpouring and today's outpouring) really made his time here worthwhile. And that's all I have to say about that. (I guess I don't really need to wonder why Retta sent me that website link about sarcasm...)

We will be traveling to Pittsburgh over the weekend of Feb. 16th, and then on to Cincinnati for apartment hunting at the start of that week. We are excited! Our official move date will be March 3rd. Anyone want to come pack or babysit? :)

Here's what you really came to see...Boo Boo pictures. You might not recognize him. He is the GIANT smiling child in the center.

Catching Up...as if!

I'll tell you right now, there aren't any cute pictures of Owen that will be following this posting. We simply haven't had the time in the last two weeks...so, if that is all you are here to find, you can move on now. (But do check back soon...Owen would hate to lose his fan base!)

Starting backwards from right now: We are waiting for plumbers to come and install a new hot water heater. Our landlady has been MIA up until a few days ago...not that she announced her return to us, or returned our phone calls about the leaking bathroom ceiling and the 20 tiles that have fallen off our bathroom wall as a result of a different leak on the roof...do date, we have about 4 phone numbers and 3 email addresses to contact her. You would think we could have constant contact with all of that information. Sadly, none of them seems to be capable of overcoming her own call/email screening process, rendering them all equally useless.

I left a note on her door last night that the basement was flooding from an overflowing water heater (?) and the hot water was gone. Chris turned off the water flowing into the heater to stop the flooding...and that worked. This morning, she called us "on her way to the Bahamas" (that's where her boss does his best work, apparently, so his whole entourage travels with him there for weeks at a time.) She gave Chris a credit card number and permission to replace the heater. Which is great, except that, as Chris puts it, "I am so sick of the responsibilities of home ownership, with none of the perks of actually owning a home." He spent the greater part of the day on the phone, going to Lowes to sign a contract, and now overseeing the installation.

That's today. So far.

In the last week and a half since our return from Cincinnati, we have hosted wonderful company (last weekend). My friend, Jeremy, and his friend, Michael, came for a few days visit. We had a great time catching-up, and Owen was simply crazy about both of them. I had never met Michael before...but as soon as I learned that he had two cats and a pug named, Muggle, I instantly liked him!

Chris has done 4 days at ESPN over the last week...last Friday, Saturday, Tuesday and Yesterday...each driving up and back on the same day. These days are hard for all of us, mostly because they are long work days with a lot of driving on top for him, for Owen because Owen doesn't see him at all. For me, because I pulled a muscle in my back lifting Owen in his stroller up some stairs. Twice. The first time, I just had the injury and didn't know what had caused it earlier in the week, and then yesterday, while lifting the stroller...I swear I heard the "ping" just as I felt the painful jolt in my lower back. With my being the only one at home, there has been no avoidance of lifting, twisting, reaching and pulling to keep up with "Spudly Do-Right" Boone!

Owen has had his own set of spills and knocks this week. The more adventuresome he gets with testing his balance and walking abilities, the more he has slipped, tripped and thunked into what little furniture we have in our dining room. He even pulled over one of the dining room chairs while I was in the kitchen collecting his food for lunch the other day. Fortunately, it is a light-weight chair that fell forward and completely away from where he was sitting on the floor. This time!

We are all just barely keeping our wits about us. There has been NO SNOW, and that is truly a gift as far as I am concerned. I am glad my skiing friends in Boston are having lots of snow this year for their sake, but I don't regret having cold wet rain in New Jersey for our sakes!

I will definitely get some pictures up again soon.

Probably.


Soon-ish.



Right after I get a long, hot bath!

love,
one greasy grimy Mama



p.s. I lied, here's a cute movie...

First Words, Waves, and Super-modeling Without too Much Lead Paint in It

I chose this particular video carefully, as it is the only one of the bunch that doesn't show Owen licking the radiator...no doubt getting his full daily requirement of lead. "This radiator is delicious and nutritious; lots of iron in it!"



First words are tricky...there isn't some parent handbook that explains which words count as "first words" versus the words where you know what your child is trying to say, even if he doesn't used the diction of 'enry 'iggins. Owen says "Hi"...he has been for a couple weeks now. It sounds across between Hi and Hey, but we know what he means. Yesterday morning, Chris went in to greet Owen when he woke up. Chris said, "Hi Owen" and Owen replied, "Hi Da" just as casually as if he had been talking for the last 20 years. I mean Owen there. Chris and I have been trying to teach Owen to wave and say "hi" to each of us, so we devised a little game where I say, "Hi Dada" and Chris responds, "Hi Mama" and we do that back and forth a couple times, then include Owen, with "Hi Owen." Right now, Owen only says "Hi Dada" (sigh)...I can firmly state, "MAMA" and he will reply with an equal tone of "DADA". It is true that he is getting the sequencing correct, since Dada usually follows Mama when we play our game.

On to waving. Owen waves...but not on command. He actually uses waves as they are meant to be used; when greeting someone he wasn't seen in a little while, or when recognizing a newcomer. If I am sitting playing with him for a while, he will generally not wave when I try to prompt him. But, if I have been driving us somewhere, and am coming around the car to get him out of his carseat, he will wave hello as he sees me approaching. He waves at the cats when they honor him with their presence on the radiator in the dining room, and he also waves at pictures of his Dada when he is at work during the day. Oh, and he always waves (and laughs) at the big faces in Jessie's paintings hanging in our living room, as well as all of the face paintings hanging in Jessie's old bedroom and Tim and Jan's kitchen and basement.




These were two of my favorites as I was sorting holiday pictures off the camera today. I have a feeling there will be years to come of these two Hams (but these are Boones, not Hamills...) yukking it up together.

Owen Boone, Male Model. Let me show you my versatility...

"You've nominated me for the Nobel Peace Prize? But I didn't get you anything..."
(Hey Dad, it's like the Colbert Report...see the picture of Owen in the background?)

that's right, "Brrrr!" you're "cool" but happy in this shot

Now you're a TIGER...bite that zipper, get that zipper!

The Iowa Caucuses- A Retrospective by Bob Hamill

Do you hear that?
No, what is it?
It is the sound of silence caused by the sudden exodus on January 4th of a dozen Presidential candidates, at least two Presidential dropouts, their families, their staffs, their groupies, and of course the national press corp. Many of these people have spent much of the past year in Iowa (Chris Dodd moved his whole family here last summer).

For over a year the morning paper would announce who was here and where they could be seen. Farming groups, union groups, veteran groups, AARP groups, university groups, school groups, health care workers, state county and municipal employee groups, and private citizens all hosted forums for individual candidates, and where possible mini-debates with 2 or more candidates present. These were the larger scheduled events. There were also plenty of word-of-mouth private events, or the surprise visit and walk-through events at county fairs, local restaurants, parks, taverns, and no doubt the occasional Laundromat…not for votes, but to wash out one’s well traveled underwear.

Everyday- usually in the evening- there would be at least 4-5 phone calls from unknown numbers. (Early in the process Lee & I vowed not to answer the phone if we couldn’t identify the caller. But they can still catch you if you are expecting a call, and the closest phone doesn’t show the caller ID- GOTCHA!!) Most unknown calls were recorded messages- either inviting you to an event or telling you that a vote for candidate X will insure a return to the gold standard. The worst calls were to answer a survey: Do you want your children’s children to be slaves to a national debt that you created? Do you want affordable health care or your grandmother attacked by Muslim extremists- you can’t have it both ways! It’s your choice! Should Farsi be taught in public schools? Is President Bush a Great President or The Greatest President? If it wasn’t for the $40+ million dollars that has been dropped on the Iowa economy, it might not be worth it.

The question that continues to come up regarding Iowa & New Hampshire- why are they first? They are not even typical of most states or even their regions. Here is a snapshot of Iowa (New Hampshire can live free or die all by itself):

State population- 2,982,000
Median Age- 37.8
% of population >65 yrs- 14.7%
% of Race: 94.9% White; 3.7% Hispanic; 2.3% Black; & 1.4% Asian
Education- High school graduate- 86.1%; College degree- 21.2%; Advanced Degrees- 7.4%
Median Income- $42,865
Home-ownership- 72.3%
Below the federal poverty line- 7.3%
Iowa has 25% of the country’s richest deepest top soil and 90% is under cultivation
In 2006 Iowa led the country in production of pork, corn, soybeans, and eggs
Iowa ranks 3rd nationally in total farm receipts
Of the Fortune 500 companies- more than 100 have production facilities in Iowa.
25% of what is produced in Iowa is shipped overseas
(pretty good considering Iowa is 1500 miles from either coast)
Iowa’s largest cities have a population of <200,000 people

Some political stats- about Iowa
The Republican Party was founded in Crawfordsville, Iowa
Current registration: Democratic- 638,573
Republican- 607,034
No Party- 809,236
Iowa’s 2-Senators are both in their 4th terms- Charles Grassley, Republican
Tom Harken, Democrat
Last Presidential election: 50% for Bush
49.3% for Kerry
In the last 8 elections, Iowa picked the correct party nominee 12 out of 16 attempts.
(2 of those missed were Reagan in 1980 (IA picked Bush,Sr., who became Vice-Pres.
& Bill Clinton in 1992)

Time for personal opinion
I think Iowa (and probably New Hampshire too) succeed as first caucus/primary states because they are (1.) good places for campaigners to practice their skills. As a candidate, if you say something stupid, it is better to say it in front of 20-people (who might forget it) than 20-million on a televised debate. (2.) Buying media spots gets expensive. In Iowa & New Hampshire television time has to be more affordable than in more populated states. Both locations are better places to test the effectiveness of your own advertising. There is just 1 more thing: the weather. It sucks, especially in January. If Iowa & New Hampshire lose 1st in the nation status, it will be due to weather-that-sucks.

How Caucuses work
This is an evening event to include working people. Typical sites for each precinct to meeting in include public schools, community centers, and in more rural areas, party rooms in restaurants or taverns. Doors open at 6 PM, but to anyone arriving after 7 PM, the doors are closed to latecomers. If people are already registered with their party, they just sign their name on the election rolls. If they want to change their registration, they just have to file a new registration form- but can do that on the spot. Each party determines their own rules.

The Republicans have a well organized meeting that begins and ends on time. Attendees vote by secret ballot or by a show of hands. Once the group’s preference is recorded (non-binding) the attendees may discuss any planks that they want to submit to the state convention for consideration in their party‘s platform. Everything, including the small talk, should be over within an hour. Balloons optional.

The Democrats have a more interesting meeting structure. Representation to county and state conventions are based on the viability of any candidate represented. Our precinct has 6-7 votes at the county conventions and so 15% is the minimum representation that is needed to be viable. For example- if 100 people register before the doors are closed, then every candidate represented must have at least 15 people supporting them. If there are only 10 people supporting Mike Gravel, then that group must convince 5-other people to join them, to qualify for 1-vote. If they cannot add to their number, the 10-people supporting Mike Gravel, should go to their 2nd choice to make another candidate viable or add to an already viable candidate’s strength. The interesting part is that unless you arrive as undecided, you will want to add to your candidate’s number of supporters, but others will want to pull you towards their choice.

My precinct had very good turnout with 453 participants at the Democratic caucus. This also raised the bar for viability because to obtain a single vote- a candidate had to have 68-supporters. Lee and I both joined the Richardson group, but with a total of only 20-votes, we dropped out early. Biden’s camp had 46-supporters- still not enough to be viable. Dodd & Kucinich only had 5-each, but Kucinich had already asked his supporters to go with Obama. Edwards had 60 supporters, still shy of viability. Hillary had 76, and Obama had 246! It was definitely a win for him. With the little bit of shuffling- Edwards and Biden were both made viable (1-vote each). Hillary had more support than Edwards, but by the rules, they each only had 1-vote. Obama remained the big winner with 3.5.

Having exercised our right to be heard, we returned home to CNN and local news to learn that both Chris Dodd and Joe Biden had dropped out of the race. Well Richardson is still in the race, but unfortunately not due to our support. Still it is nice to enjoy the quiet of January evenings ever since the 4th day in the month.


Respectfully submitted,

Bob Hamill
Cedar Rapids, Iowa