Random Thinking

[  Mood: Shocked ]
[  Currently: Watching  ]
A couple of days ago, the NY Post referred to Paris Hilton as a celebutard obviously playing off the words celebrity and retard. The latter is a word that is very offensive (so offensive I don’t even like looking at it) and yet the Post thought nothing of using the term. And it isn’t the first time they have used the term. I wrote a letter to the editor but I haven’t heard back from them.

And then yesterday a radio station in Ohio had a contest to see who could identify the song sung by Mongoloid Mike, one of the station’s DJ imitating his idea of a person with Down syndrome. The radio station management was quick to apologize (apparently the president of the local Chamber of Commerce had contacted them) but it was one of those corporate non-apologies. At least it was better than nothing.

[  Mood: Sleepy ]
[  Currently: Reading  ]
The forum tour modification that I added is pretty cool but it is a lot of work. I wish the author of the modification had included the basis of the tour so that I could enhance it rather than write my own. But the author is German so naturally his tour is in German. I will probably be working on this for a long time.

If there are any specific features that you find confusing or hard to use, please let me know and I will make sure that I give that topic good coverage.

[  Mood: Amused ]
[  Currently: Listening to  ]
I have found a site with lots of really cool enhancements to add to a phpbb forum. So I have become obsessed with adding as many as I can to the site. For example, I have added this whole blogging feature, the special announcement block, the calendar, caching of templates (you can’t see it but it should speed up the forum),and the forum tour. (The last one will take a lot of work to get it set up but it will be worth it.) Other features such as the map and the watched topics that have been around for awhile were added from enhancements I found on the “official” phpbb site. But this other site has loads of enhancements. The next one I will be working on is a friends list for PMs. Should be fun.

[  Mood: Angelic ]
[  Currently: Watching  ]
I found an enhancement that can be added to the forum that allows blogs to be integrated into the forum. With user groups, I can allow members to have their own blogs. So far I have only set it up so that the moderators can have a blog but there is no reason that I can’t give one to anyone who wants one. I’ll have to think about whether they makse sense or not and how people would you use them with the forum. I think it could be a nice enhancement to the forum.

It was her knee this time. And the answer is, “no, it didn’t while in recovery” and “yes, it does now”.

The surgery went very well and Michel is feeling better than she has in a long time. We should be home in about an hour.

Mikey isn’t home. And the house is way too quiet. He is away at camp until Sunday. No therapists. No aides. Just Beth bouncing around the family room playing Dance, Dance Revolution and Michel and me trying to figure out what to do with ourselves.

On Tuesday, we took Mikey to his school to meet the bus to go up to the camp. They use these big buses with fancy seating and ceiling mounted DVD players etc. like you take when you go to Atlantic City. Last year when we took him to the bus, we couldn’t get him on. He was crying and kicking and we finally decided to just drive him up to the camp. This year he was a trooper. He didn’t want to get out the car when we arrived at the school so I had to carry him but he didn’t cry at all when I carried him on the bus. He just sat down, crossed his legs, smiled, and looked out the window. He gave me a big kiss goodbye and that was it. We left him on the bus, Michel cried a little, and we went home.

Michel called the camp last night to check on Mikey and they said he had a great day. When they arrived, he didn’t want to get off the bus, not because he didn’t want to to go to the camp but because he had such a great time on the bus! He was the first up yesterday morning and had everyone outside to play soccer (or as the director who is from Wales calls it, football) by 7 AM. He even ate in the cafeteria without any trouble, sitting with the rest of the campers. The director told Michel that she sees a lot of growth and maturity in Mikey since last year.

I miss my little guy, even though a little break is good for everyone, especially since tomorrow Michel is having surgery on her knee. Yep, that’s right. I’ll blog more about the surgery tomorrow.

Here Comes Your Man by The Pixies.

Stupid song (according to Beth) on my iPod: I Melt with You by Modern English.

Yesterday was a bad day for me. Every once in awhile I get these days where my pulse or blood pressure drops and I’m just not myself. I spent a lot of the day confused about what exactly was going on and drifting in and out, if that makes any sense. Apparently I said something that really upset Michel and she slept on the couch. The weird part is that I have no memory of this whatsoever. I remember trying to get Mikey to sleep (he didn’t fall asleep until 2 hours after his bed time) and I remember Michel being annoyed at me about something but then it’s all just a blank. I feel much more myself today although I’m still a bit tired, almost like a mild hangover. For those of you who don’t know, I have Vasovagal Syncope, although it has been a year since I actually passed out.

Thursday was a big a day for Beth. The braces that she has had for the last 2.5 years are gone. Her teeth are nice and straight and beautiful. Even her orthodontist was impressed at what good care Beth took of her teeth while she had the braces on. She had the braces taken off first thing in the morning so I told her she could stay home from camp but she wanted to show everyone. I’ll give a shout out to Dr. Michael Katz in Plainview for anyone who is looking for an orthodontist. Beth has a retainer that she is supposed to wear at night that will help keep her teeth straight and she has been very good about wearing it so far. The best part is that Beth can now start high school without braces. How cool is that?