Beltane Blog

May 1st, 2010

Howdy folks! It’s been a bit over 1/2 a year since I sat down and put one of these blogs together. Where does the FaceBook crowd find the time? Today is Beltane, so go have a good frolic.

In stead of an epic bit of writing with 1o million photos, I have decided to present an epic video concerning my favorite topic, Olive.

Happy Spring and soon to be summer everyone! The video below is about 10 minutes long, so…

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…well it looks like You Tube removed all my audio. So to get the full effect you need to download the moving from me directly. It’s quite large so be prepared for lots of megabytes (85MB). If you do a right click/save as it should take about 5 to 10 minutes for downloading depending on your connection.

If you have any trouble playing the movie, try downloading VLC media player, which is a great media player to have anyway.

Hmmm…turns out just writing a big long blog might have been easier.

If you want to view the Youtube video, with the sound removed, here it is:

One Year of Parenting

October 27th, 2009

Wow, it’s amazing how parenting can really distort time. I can’t believe a year has gone by already. It’s been a wonderful experience so far, and I am very much looking forward to all the years ahead with all the challenges and joys they promise.

I know we haven’t put out an update to DingoPress.com since August, so let’s get right too it!

The most immediate big news is that Olive officially took her first steps on October 8th. Our friend, Carrie, coaxed Olive into taking her first few solo steps in our kitchen at Summerland. It wasn’t until today that I got to see it for myself. I was lucky enough to catch it on film. Above is a look at our little biped.

So that’s the latest big news around here, but a lot has happened since August. I just checked, and I have over 300 photos for the blog. I will have to do some judicious editing. Let’s pick things up from late August and our family trip back to Boston….

Back to Boston

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Olive was 3 months old when we first visited Boston. She was cute, but her personality was not much to speak of compared to who she has become. It really is an amazing transformation, and I understand why they call the first 3 months the “fourth trimester.” She was really just a little helpless blob those first few months. Now mom and dad have become the helpless ones.

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Our little princess is turning out to be a pretty charming individual. She takes after her mother with an ebullient personality, saying “Hi” to every stranger and strange dog on the trail yesterday while I pushed her to the top of Runyon Canyon in her stroller. She’s also into interior decorating, like her Mom, everyday she rearranges the books and cds on the bookshelf in her parent’s bedroom. Or at least that’s what I think her final plan is going to be.  …hmmm

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The plane ride to Boston was uneventful. Olive did great. My oldest sister, Jude, picked us up in her fancy new Subaru that she bought from Costco. We happily made it to Nana’s house where Mrs. Littles and Auntie Lee Lee became fast friends after some discussions about just who was in charge of the toys.

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Olive is still a little angel, even after her run in with Auntie Lee. That devilish training just didn’t stick this time. Although, she did come back to L.A. with much more confidence saying the word “No”. In fact, it’s her favorite word now. She uses it for just about everything. Sometimes at night Kate and I wake up to Olive just saying “No, no, no, no…” over the baby monitor.

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More Babies

Well some other great news we heard while in Boston, and I am pretty sure that it’s public knowledge now, is that my baby sister Renee and husband Ben are pregnant for the first time. Yippee, more babies!

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In fact, Renee is pregnant with twins believe it or not! Doubly blessed. It’s great news!

Early Birthday Celebration

My sister Michelle hosted a lovely cookout for us as the first event on our visit to Boston. We invited a bunch of our friends from the Boston area, their kids and all our family members. It was great to see everyone. My sister was a real sport to host the gathering the night before her family was heading out for a summer vacation. Olive had a blast playing with all the kids and collecting all the various soccer balls she could find. At the end, Michelle surprised us with a birthday cake so that Olive could celebrate an early birthday with all her family on the East Coast.

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Old Cape Code

After the cookout, we packed up an overnight bag and borrowed Auntie Lee’s car for a trip down to good ol’ Cape Code. We were the gracious guests of our fun friends Paul and Jen Harrington and there cute kidos Ava and Edith.

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Olive absolutely loved being with the older girls, and she had her first real taste of swimming in the wild and playing on the beach. It was a blast. Jen and Paul are always so fantastic and welcoming. We enjoyed ourselves completely. They have a lovely cottage in Harwich where we ate our fill of lobster and had a difficult time departing when the time came.

Paul and I used our collective software technology backgrounds to assemble a new grill. Surprisingly, no one was injured.

Mom and daughter where not pleased when finally we had to get up from the cottage beds and head back to Boston.

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Around Town

Back in Arlington, we visited with lots of folks around town including some fun cousins.

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That’s Jill’s kids Melanie and Meredith. Olive and Meredith really hit it off and although Meredith could just barely carry Olive, she lugged her all around the party that night. It was kind of a funny site to see. Olive thought it was great.

Below from left to right are cousins Melanie, Abby, Meredith and Molly.

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Back at Nana and Auntie Lee’s house, Olive was having a grand old time playing with all of Nana’s toys. Come to think of it, Nana and Lee were having a pretty good time themselves.

Staying at Nana’s house was great, but there were some moments when her mental state was questionable as evident in the photos below.

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She claimed the weapon was not loaded.

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Romi, Timo and Sophia’s House

Romi and Timo hosted a fun party at there place over the weekend. We saw lots of our pals from Boston along with all their cute kids. Timo cooked up some yummy food on the grill and Romi setup a beautiful altar in the yard for us to perform a ritual for prosperity. Many of the party goers joined in, and we had a fun time. Hopefully the gods hear our requests and this year we will all prosper.

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We also got to see a lot of the east coast babies up close and personal.

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Our hostess, Sophia, is happy to see us but cautions. Josie and Olive meet again, below, and find they share a common love of basket type objects.

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We also got to meet our new friend Hunter up close for the first time. He is just a wee one, and cute for sure, but his sister Katia is going to be the real heart breaker in this family.

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It was also great to see Bob and Emily, Jeremy, Laura, Ben and all the other old folks. I guess when the kids are around you just plum forget to take everyone else’s picture!

Back in Arlington, we met up with Kate’s friend Alison and her son Euan. Olive and Euan had a blast hanging out at Spy Pond. There are lots of cute pictures from this session, but here’s the one I like:

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At the end of our second week, we headed up to Maine for a visit with the Maine folks. We went to a lovely park outside of Portsmouth, NH in a place called New Castle. We met up with a bunch of family and some old friends. My sister Renee’s childhood friend Ellen was on hand with her kids Annie and Luke.

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That’s Molly in the wheelchair, Luke in the way back then from left to right is Melanie, Meredith with Bryce, Renee holding Olive, Ellen and her little’s named Annie in the front.

Molly has a rare disease called CDG Syndrome, but that doesn’t stop her from having a great time. In fact, she has a blast at these family events. It’s always great to see her and spend time with her because she is just a happy, fun loving girl. She learned how to say Olive’s name pretty well after spending a few days with her.

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Olive felt glamorous and popular. She was looking for someone to fetch her a Daiquiri and rub lotion on her skin towards the end of the day.

We finished up our time back east with a fun trip into Boston. We wound up walking all over the city. Olive tried steamers and corn on the cob for the first time at the Barking Crab on Fort Point Landing. It’s a great place for basic seafood in Boston. It’s a fun location.

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We spent some time chillin’ in the Boston Common.

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We went to check out the swan boats. We got there too late for the boats, but still in time for the swans.

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Well, that was our trip to Boston in late August of 2009. It was fun. Olive loved it and came back to LA a changed woman. She knew how to boss people around and that saying “No” and pointing at stuff could allow you to accomplish just about anything if your parents tend to fall over themselves trying to do your biding. Good times.

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Bye-bye Boston. Until we meet again!

Half Way

This brings us to the half way point in our blog. If you are at work reading this, maybe now is a good time to actually pretend to do some work.

 

The Actual Birthday

Olive’s actual birthday turns out to be on September 22nd. That was a Tuesday this year. Last year she was born in the wee hours of the morning on a Monday. This year we slept a bit later and then opened gifts from some friends.

Olive’s Grandpa Trent, his wife Bev and there son, Uncle Nate sent Olive a great big box. The box was filled with individually wrapped doll house furniture and cute dolls. It was all great stuff and Olive absolutely loved unwrapping it all. Kate caught some of her “oooing” and “aaaahing” on this video:

The Birthday Celebration

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The Saturday following Olive’s birthday, we invited all her friends and admirers over to Summerland for a day time cookout and cupcake eating party. It was a blast. I fired up the old Weber grill and Kate got the house in tip top condition for hosting lots of people under the age of 1 year. It was pretty cute to see all the little people partying it up!

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Olive’s Uncle Bernard got her a special gift. He asked me to provide him photographs of Olive’s family members. Then he worked with a friend of his to have a story he wrote illustrated with all the family members as stars in the book. It was a great gift and one we will keep as a special reminder of this time. The book is called “Olive Paradis and the Ever-Widening Circle of Love.”

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Pretty cute. Thanks Uncle Bernard!

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Max and Aunt Alice came over early to help us setup and Olive helped Mom out with the baking of birthday cup cakes. It was a fun time for everyone.

Several days after the birthday party, we received a package from Auntie Lee back in Boston. We had sent her some measurements and she sent Olive the most adorable poncho and hat. Olive was very pleased with herself when she tried on this outfit. She request the use of our cell phone so she could call some friends.

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After the parties, she relaxed in her room with a stuffed animal party.

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October Weddings

After Olive’s Birthday party, I was given permission to head down the coast near San Diego for a camping bachelor party. Our friends Casey and Julie were scheduled to be married at Yosemite on October 10th. It turns out that my Niece Kate was also scheduled to be married on the same day in Maine. Sadly, my Kate and I over estimated our vast supply of wealth by just a touch, and after the big trip to Boston and some other surprise expenses, we were not able to make it to either wedding.

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There’s my niece Kate and her new husband Shawn. My sister Renee was the officiator at this wedding and our good friend Uncle Bernard was the officiator at Casey and July’s wedding.

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Kate and I were home cleaning closets and re-arranging our sock drawers while these fantastic events where going on. We were sad to miss them, but real happy for the excellent couples getting hitched.

All our love and best wishes go out to Kate and Shawn and Casey and Julie!

Marathon Niece In San Francisco

As a consolation for not being able to make either of those fantastic weddings, we scraped some funds together and booked ourselves a weekend getaway to San Francisco. We had a dynamite excuse for this trip. My oldest niece and godchild, Megan, was running her first marathon.

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That’s Megan with Olive at Kate’s Kitchen in the Lower Height district. We had a nice big breakfast and spent the day before the race together. It was great to see Megan. She is a hot ticket and she worked really hard to get herself in shape for the marathon. The race was Sunday morning, so we got together early on Saturday and did a small tour of San Francisco.

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We strolled down Height Street and into the park. Our first destination was “The Conservatory of Flowers.” This place is an amazing green house built at the turn of the century. It houses one of the oldest and largest house plants I have ever seen. The plant is a philodendron. It’s 100 years old, and about two stories tall.

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The rest of the green house sports some amazing micro-climates as you move from room to room and the flowers are amazing. If you are in town, you should definitely check it out.

After the Conservatory, we sauntered over to another amazing museum I have been wanting to check out called “The Academy of Sciences.” This recently opened museum also features a bunch of micro-climates and all kinds of amazing animals, fish, plants, and insects from around the world. We had limited time, so we focused on a tour of the rain forest exhibit which was just amazing.

In the rain forest exhibit, you walk from the floor of the rain forest up to the canopy. At each level, they present an exhibit of the various reptiles and insects. The entire place is filled with exotic butterflies just flitting around and landing on people like colorful little fairies. But once at the top, you take an elevator down below the floor to the aquarium exhibit which is outstanding.

The Big Race

We stayed at the St. Francis in Union Square. It just so happens that this is exactly where the marathon starting line was going to be. So Sunday morning before 7:00 AM we were roused from sleep by the sounds of some 20 to 30 thousand people running and cheering. I took some grainy video of the start of the race from the hotel room. It’s not the best footage, but you get a sense of just how big this race is.

This is the annual Nike Women’s Marathon. They run from down town here out to the embarcadero then up the peninsula coast, under the bridge and down ocean beach.  Apparently some 14 Million dollars was raised to benefit the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. This is a charity dear to our heart, seeing as if our dear sister Jill is a leukemia survivor.

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There’s our champion above, no worse for the wear after running 26.2 miles in just about 5 hours. Good lord! I get tired just sitting at my office desk for less time then that. Needless to say, I was quite impressed by my godchild’s accomplishment and I can only chalk it up to hard work and excellent spiritual role models. Blessed be!

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We all went out for a big lunch after the race and then said our goodbyes. Great job Megan! You are a real hero, and I am glad my little one has such amazing and inspiring older cousins to look up to.

One More Thing

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The holiday of Halloween is coming up. In the catholic tradition, the following day is called “All Saints Day” and out here in L.A. folks from Mexico celebrate “Dia de los Muertos.” The ancient Celts and modern neo-pagans call this time “Samhain” and all of these traditions celebrate this time as the final harvest, Summer’s end and a time to remember and communicate with those who have left us.

With Samhain in mind, I’m remembering my father, John, who passed away around this time last year. It was on November 4th to be exact, but I left to spend my last few days with him on Halloween night. It was just a few weeks after Olive was born. My dad was a deeply spiritual man. He loved everyone he met and gave them all the benefit of the doubt without question. He was a committed husband and father. I have thought about him often this last year raising my little daughter (he had 6 of them!).

When last we met, he promised that he would watch over my little one. I have to say that he has done an outstanding job so far, and I pray that he keeps it up!

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I wish I could be back home with my mother, sisters and the rest of the family to celebrate his life and honor his passing from the hardships of this world. When we were kids, he would sing to us in bed. His voice is one of the strongest memories I have from childhood. In particular, I remember him singing a version of “Scarlet Ribbons.” I know he was a fan of Harry Belafonte, so I put this little video together below in honor and memory of Pa. With much thanks and appreciation for looking after my little Olive from your place in heaven over this past year.

Thanks for reading this far everyone. Have a happy and safe Samhain.

Until we meet again,

Jack

Summertime in Summerland

August 8th, 2009

Just a quick quick blog with some recent Olive pictures. She just got over a tough fight with Strep Throat but is doing great now.

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We will be in Boston August 17th thru the 28th. We hope to see all our east coast friends while we are there. Until we meet again take care.

And by the way. A big welcome to Hunter Xavier Nigro! He was born on Friday, July 31 at 11:45 AM 7 pounds 2.3 ounces, 19 inches. And yes, he is named after the Hunter S. Thompson. Go Ron and Kirsten. See you soon. Sorry, no great photos to share just yet.

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Here’s a cute video of some recent Olive activity including an update on her fight with Strep Throat at the end of the video:

 

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Where’s All The Money?

August 5th, 2009

Hey Everyone. I’m not communist, but maybe its time for a little bit of socialism? What are we a bunch of chumps or something? It was obvious that this was coming ever since the Regan administration, but take a look at the facts and tell me you don’t think this is outrageous.

Executives receive 1/3 of all pay in the US:

http://thinkprogress.org/2009/07/21/executive-pay-wsj/

American CEOs pay compared to average worker, US vs world. American Executives get over 400x what the average worker gets, the next nearest country is Venezuela at 50x:

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Wealth Distribution in the US:

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Tax rates on the most well off are ridiculously low after 30 years of conservative tax cuts for the rich. Here is a historical comparison to demonstrate:

Top Tax bracket info

http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2009_03/017201.php

The Flower Moon

June 7th, 2009

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This weekend’s full moon is known as the Flower moon. We connected with it here in L.A. where the weather has been stormy and the summer heat not more than a promise.

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Lots continues to happen in life. Parenting proves to be everything people said it was and then some. I am often very tired and often very happy. It also turns out that “Facebook” has become very popular, from what I hear, since last I wrote. I was going to sign up, but I think I will wait until it comes out in paperback.

The big news around here these days is that Olive has learned how to crawl as she demonstrates in the following video:

This crawling thing has just happened in the past week or two. We are scrambling to get a handle on the whole baby proofing thing. Fortunately, all that Olive wants to do is climb on Dingo. I’m not too sure if Dingo finds this the ideal situations, but he puts up with it.

For Easter we got all dressed up and went to see Cousin Anne sing amazing choral music at the local Anglican church. It was lovely and Olive wore a very cute dress.

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Her Grammy was in town for some cuddling and we all had a festival to celebrate the coming of Spring.

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Olive has become progressively cuter and more of a little baby with a sweet personality since our visit home over Yule. She’s started eating real food and now she has two bottom and two top teeth. She really is a champion eater and Kate is great at preparing her excellent healthy foods like fresh avocados from the local California groves.

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Das Avocado!

Mid-May we were so very happy to have two visitors from the East Cost: Olive’s Nana Mary and her cousin Abby! They came out for Mother’s Day and wound up staying with us for a fantastic week.

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Olive loved having her Nana around and we were indulged with many a classic baby song that I remember from my youth, or possibly from other people’s youth. Who knows? Anyway, it was cute and here’s a sampling:

We knew cousin Abby is a big Red Sox fan, so we took the opportunity to finally check out Dodger’s Stadium.

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The stadium is about a mile from our house, but we have never been for a game. We thought it would be fun for Abby because Manny Ramirez had recently transferred to the Dodgers from the Red Sox. Unfortunately the bum got suspended for many games starting that week because he was taking female hormones.

Nana was very upset about this fact and demanded to see Manny to all the ticket takers and security guards. In the shot below I have successfully negotiated her release from possible jail time using the ‘crazy lady’ defense (that’s her in the crazy lady hat. Note the guards laughing in the background):

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It was hot in the stadium, so we took off after a few innings. Who won? Who knows?!

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Olive L-O-V-E-D! her cousin Abby. Largely due to the fact that Abby must be studying baby language the that University in Canada. She was able to babble right along in the Little’s language. The rest of us were left in the dark.

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We went to the Getty Art Museum to check out the gardens, architecture and exhibits. I must say, the garden was my favorite part.

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Kate and Olive like the whole thing, including the tram ride and lunch in the courtyard with Nana and Abby. But their favorite was a room made entirely of a Victorian era bed. Cozy!

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We ended up the week with a tour of Rodeo Drive. (Apparently, this is not pronounced like the place where cowboys punch doggies and ride bucking broncos, but rather like this “Row-Day-O”. That is funny.) Anyway, we were lucky enough to see some actual fashion models in front of Versace on Rodeo and snap some photos of the shoot. Check it out:

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Now that truly is the glamorous side of L.A.

Well, I’ve got to run. I am teaching Olive how to drive so I can check my email and not have to worry about getting pulled over for a ticket.

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Catch you all the next time Kate and I are able to do all the dishes and get Olive to bed at a reasonable hour.

IMGP2252 “Dad, you are hilarious and brilliant.”

Endless Generations

March 6th, 2009

I became a grand uncle this past weekend. My niece, Morgan, had her first baby. Little Bryce Scott Turner was born February 27th at 6:49 PM and he looks like a cute one:

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Things are going along just fine here in Los Angeles. Spring is coming and we are going to be glad to put the rains behind us. Things are going to be very green. That’s nice. Olive, Kate and I are coming out of several weeks with bronchitis, no worse for the wear. We hear there is a nasty stomach virus on the east coast and are very glad not to have that!

I am approaching 1 year without any tobacco. I celebrate on April 1st and will not be celebrating by having a cigarette, you can bet on that.

Congratulations to Ben and Trina. They got themselves a new family member named “Snicket”…yup, Sincket. I am not sure about the name, but a cute dog for sure:

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Olive is getting older and cuter. She had her 5 month birthday just recently and she is very happy and interactive these days. Ara, a good friend of Olive’s Grammy Melodie wrote her a beautiful guitar song which you can download right here:

“Olive” by Ara Duzian

It looks like her eyes are going to be beautiful blue eyes like her mom and both grandmothers and her hair is still looking pretty darn red. She’s a real sweet girl so far and we are all in love. Here are a couple of recent videos of her:

 

I’ve also been playing with Google’s Picasa web albums. You can check out some photos up there if you like by clicking this:

Jack’s Picasa Web Albums

And here is an embedded slide show:

That’s about all. Happy birthday all my fellow Pisces friends. Keep on believing!

-Jack

January Rain

January 23rd, 2009

We all made it back to Los Angeles safe and sound. The family had a blast in Boston. We saw a whole lot of lovely people. I got some new plants for the house when I got back to town to make it feel like more people were around.

There’s not much more to say. Bernard’s birthday is tomorrow. My sister Judi turns 50 on ground hog day and January is a raining month in LA.

Here’s the latest mash up of videos and pictures from our cute friend Olive (Littles) Paradis.  Mostly, we take care of that girl. Can’t think of anything finer.

Love you all.

xo,

Jack, Kate, Olive and Dingo

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

November 23rd, 2008

This year we are thankful for so much. We miss our Pa, but we are so thankful that he was an amazing father. We are thankful for all the other great fathers we know and Kate and I are so thankful to be blessed with little Olive this year.

I know things are tuff, but there is also a lot of hope. I am thankful for all the hope. So, here’s a little video to remind us all of just why we need to be hopeful.

Best wishes to you and happy holiday season.

In Memory of John R. Paradis

November 16th, 2008

 

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John Ronald Paradis

Born January 18, 1934

Died November 5, 2008

I lost my dad this month. He died at home with his wife and children by his bedside. He has struggled for a long time against the ravages of advanced diabetes and heart disease. We were relieved to see him at peace, but saddened greatly by his passing. We know he is watching over us now.

Below is the remembrance I was honored to read at his funeral mass on November 8, 2008. My father was a hard working person with true integrity. He was very honest. He loved his wife and children and we loved him. He was truly compassionate and he will be missed by many.

November 8, 2008

It is impossible to summarize the life of my father. He was not a complicated man, so to speak, but he had broad interests born from a natural curiosity about everything. His broad interests fostered a broad appeal. From truck drivers to architects, from scientists to Haitian immigrants at the food pantry where he volunteered, he was truly fascinated by the people he met. He was eager to find out what they knew and to share what he knew.

I am his only son in a sea of remarkable, strong, loving, daughters who held him up, cherished him, and nursed him. My sisters sat with him through difficult hours, weeks, months and years up to the last peaceful minutes when they held his hand, sang his songs, prayed with him, and prepared him for his return home. As his son I cannot speak for my sisters but only for myself.

He would tell you that my mother is a saint, and he is right. From the first troubles with his heart, over 10 years ago, through a stroke, and many other challenges up to the last precious moments of his endurance, he was so glad that he chose someone like her to watch over him. She was his constant angel, advocate, protector and dearest love. I cannot speak for my mother or for all those doctors, nurses, nurse assistants, technicians and other wonderful, dedicated professionals who lent their support and compassion to my father and mother both over the years.

I cannot speak for his grandchildren who showed him love and respect, and energized him with the hope of new generations. At last count he had eleven grandchildren with more to come (I know it is eleven because I was very close up when I counted the eleventh). He left with the promise of great grandchildren on the way. Today, however, I cannot speak for his grandchildren, or his son-in-laws, daughter-in-law, or for the cherished friends who were a constant support and source of joy to mom and dad through good times and bad times. I cannot speak for respected business associates of my father, or for so many acquaintances who saw in him the spark of a good and decent man, or for any other except if it is to say thank you for coming to honor our father, grandfather, husband, farther-in-law, friend and great love of our lives.

And so for my part, I would like to share with you some of a letter I wrote to my father about 5 years ago. It was sometime after a stroke had left him changed slightly in his manner and method of communicating. As I say, this letter reflects my personal experience with my father. I was happy to share it with him at that time 5 years ago and to re-read it to him just recently. I hope it will show you what he meant to me as a father.

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Dear Dad,

You have changed. But you retain the essence of who you always have been. You have struggled. I cannot imagine the struggles you see your way through. You have grace. Your heroic passion is quiet, and now you show us grace. Perhaps your passion has grown temporarily depleted after raising 7 children and inspiring scores of grand children, but always your passion is what I remember most.

While I grew up your temper was famous, fueled by a deep passion in your convictions. You defended justice ferociously when those convictions were challenged. Woe to that thoughtless person on the mass pike who thought he could hit your bumper and speed away without you giving chase at high speeds like Starsky and Hutch, jumping highway dividers and yelling out your window. Woe to that little boy who thought he could play with matches and not get a full day’s lesson on fire safety, complete with a trip to the Shiners burn unit where, thankfully, the nurses turned down your request to view the burn victims.

You are passionate about your children, that they live righteously; that they deal with situations honestly; and that they treat people with respect. You defend your children passionately with words and deeds against all forces of disease or evil intention. You are passionate about God and your church, your family in Heaven, and your hoped for reward – which I know must be there waiting for you. Perhaps your reward is your brother Bob who died in the war, waiting to hug and kiss you after all these years and walk with you through the gardens of Heaven. Or perhaps it is a party thrown in your honor by all those souls who have found their way out of purgatory and into heaven on the wings of your meticulous and constant prayers for their salvation (or even from the prayers others have said at your consistent urging). Or perhaps you will fly at your own will across the blue sky and white cotton clouds, or heal sickness with a magic wand, or walk through walls, or see the future. Whatever you decide should be yours there.

You have done a fine job and I know God smiles on you even as you struggle over the decades to this strange moment in time when empires reform, when things are forgotten and when more and more people question long held convictions. Children – good and right thinking souls – pursue ideas you do not believe or pursue. People you know struggle with beliefs that you once shared. Righteousness and majesty waiver in the country your brother died defending. The values of working hard and supporting a family, of giving to the community and dealing honestly in business seem to unwind over so many years. You sense a distance between where you are and where you envisioned you might land.

Yet, still you persist. You hold on. Your passion is present in your consistency. Your will to fight rests beyond the surface; concerned with other things, with deeper things. I want you to know that I believe you are destined to live in a heaven of delight where your dreams reach the potential you know they hold.

But first I want to thank you for your mortality. And by that I mean, thank you for showing me that one can be a man of great strength and a man who suffers through great errors. All of us, all of us have taken missteps, have snapped, tripped, fallen, and broken. The best of us get up and work toward some redemption. That you never turned your back on me when I fell – or even when I made a callous choice – is why I struggle still. I know you have inspired many others with your kindness and your compassionate, encouraging way. We use what you give, and so we learn to live with firm beliefs backed by passion. And we choose to get up and struggle when we must, just as you do.

I may have grown in a way that extends you to such a degree it seems unclear to you, but I feel you in my heart. I am different from you, yet I contain a precious essence of you. My blood, my tenets, my way with the world, and my way with the inner world crafted of delights and sorrows, fears and expectations all pulse strongly with a light of your design. What we did together over the years is a beautiful package of anecdotes and images in my mind. Your passionate responses were set off by your deep impulse to love. Your actions were always instructed by love.

You tell me your stories and prayers. You show me how to use tools. You give me your thoughts on people and negotiations. I have your songs in my head. I carry with me your love to know something, some fact, some process, some relationship, the joy of knowledge for knowledge’s sake. All of it I have locked deep in my heart and mind. I feel it in my gut. You are quiet now, but all this will be passed from me into the hearts and minds and bellies of children. I thank you for these gifts, for my life, for the love you share and all that you have taught. You are the fine strong master of expanding love, extending out through your children and your children’s children. You have been an excellent father throughout the precarious and joyful moments of our life together.

I look forward to feeling your presence over these years to come. I know you are walking a line none of us yet has seen so close. But on this side of the line I am certain there is love, because I see it. And on the other side of the line I know there is love because you have told me so and I believe you.

With great love and respect from your admiring son,

Jack

October 2008 143

It’s All About Olive

October 15th, 2008

I guess that’s the way it’s going to be around here from now on. And it’s fine with me because that girl is damn cute!

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Olive will be four weeks old this coming Monday and I will be heading back to work full time. I am definitely feeling depressed about having to leave my lovely ladies, but we need to keep food on the table.

It’s really been fantastic to be home with everyone and see Olive make such amazing progress in such a short time. I am really looking forward to the coming hours, days, months and years of her sweet life. We are headed back east in December and I am praying that my dad will hang in there long enough to hold Olive. He is coming home after a very, very long stint in the hospital and our thoughts are with him and my family. They are in for a lot of care giving in the coming months and all of our love is with them. Can’t wait to see everyone when we come home!!!!

Anyway, here are the goods (Olive at just under 1 month old):

 

 

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Olive and Uncle Bernard Bernard

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Someone can’t wait for the day when he can lick someone else from head to toe. (It will be a long, long time)

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Bath times are fun times.

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The fine art of baby wearing.

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Cousin Max. Delicious or gross?

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Kate, Olive, Melodie, Max and Alice