Happy Fat Pants

Stray Cat Strut

2007-02-04T21:03:00.000-08:00

Our landlord decided that he didn't want us to have a dog, but was ok with us getting a cat, so...today we did. The day's journey took us far and wide in the Philadelphia area. We started out at our place in West Philly, went to church out on the Main Line, then drove up to North Philly to an animal shelter (and went by Rasheed Wallace's high school on the way!); their pickins were a little slim, so we drove down to a pet store in South Philly that was hosting an adoption event with animals from that same shelter, and there we found the cat that we're now calling Adrian. Yes, that sounds like a funny name for a cat at the moment, but we're hoping to get a playmate for her at some point in the future and are planning to name him Rocky. She's a sweet little cat, and so far seems to like to be around people. Here are a few pictures of her.

New Things

2007-07-06T10:36:00.000-07:00

So...no updates in a looooooong time. Two new things. 1)We are planning to move back to Hillsdale at the end of the summer. 2)We are waiting for the arrival of a new and small human. We don't know if it's a he or she, but we had the first ultrasound this morning and this is what the Hutchling, as Dennis aptly named him/her, looks like at the moment. The first is a profile shot as the Hutchling chills in a warm, dark place. The second is an arm either waving or giving the rock 'n roll horns, and the third is a foot with the toes curled up.

Two More Baby Pictures

2007-07-20T08:37:00.000-07:00

We had an echocardiogram for the baby on Tuesday, which thankfully went very well. At the end, One-Eyed Willie (just look at the pictures) decided to give us a little wave after smoothing his hair (and no, my phrasing doesn't mean it's a boy. But we have to pick one or the other, as referring to the child as 'it' is unbecoming).

A Poem for Easter

2007-04-07T22:37:00.000-07:00

Seven Stanzas at Easter

By John Updike

Make no mistake: if He rose at all
it was as His body;
if the cells' dissolution did not reverse, the molecules
reknit, the amino acids rekindle,
the Church will fall.

It was not as the flowers,
each soft Spring recurrent;
it was not as His Spirit in the mouths and fuddled
eyes of the eleven apostles;
it was as His Flesh: ours.

The same hinged thumbs and toes,
the same valved heart
that — pierced — died, withered, paused, and then
regathered out of enduring Might
new strength to enclose.

Let us not mock God with metaphor,
analogy, sidestepping transcendence;
making of the event a parable, a sign painted in the
faded credulity of earlier ages:
let us walk through the door.

The stone is rolled back, not papier-mache,
not a stone in a story,
but the vast rock of materiality that in the slow
grinding of time will eclipse for each of us
the wide light of day.

And if we will have an angel at the tomb,
make it a real angel,
weighty with Max Planck's quanta, vivid with hair,
opaque in the dawn light, robed in real linen
spun on a definite loom.

Let us not seek to make it less monstrous,
for our own convenience, our own sense of beauty,
lest, awakened in one unthinkable hour, we are
embarrassed by the miracle,
and crushed by remonstrance.

Telephone Poles and Other Poems © 1961 by John Updike. Reprinted by permission of Alfred A. Knopf, a division of Random House Inc.

Locks of Love?

2007-03-08T08:47:00.000-08:00

More news from Italy. I think Constantine would be...interested.

Lamppost has lock on love on Rome bridge

By ALESSANDRA RIZZO, Associated Press Writer 1 hour, 49 minutes ago

ROME - In Rome, breaking the chains of love requires a hacksaw — literally. Sweethearts in the Italian capital have adopted a new ritual as a symbol of undying love: hanging a padlock on a lamppost on the city's most ancient bridge and throwing the key into the Tiber.

The craze has drawn hundreds of couples in the few months since it started — causing city officials to wonder whether the ancient Roman bridge is suited for such an overwhelming display of passions.

"The rite has reached a dimension that will be difficult to cope with. We must guarantee the bridge's decency while preserving this beautiful practice," said Marco Perina, a city official.

Some couples write their names or a message on the lock. They throw the key into the river over their shoulders to avoid seeing where it falls.

It's quite a change of scenery for a bridge that has seen more war than love since it was built in the second century B.C. Ponte Milvio served as the battlefield between rival emperors Constantine and Maxentius in 312; it was the backdrop of the Italians' struggle for independence in the 1800s.

Today the pedestrian bridge is close to the Olympic stadium — a soccer battleground — north of the city's historical center.

The idea of the love locks is not new in Italy. But Ponte Milvio owes its new reputation mainly due to two novels depicting the love of Roman teenagers. The books have sold a combined 2.5 million copies and were both made into movies.

The padlock ritual has spilled into a music video and inspired a prize — "The Golden Padlock" — awarded to the best love message on
Valentine's Day. In the process, it has started drawing tourists to an area that is usually off the beaten track.

Such huge attention also caused some undesired consequences. Hundreds of locks were stolen last week — although they were found the following day and are to be put back in a ceremony expected to draw the city's mayor.

A check ordered by city officials showed the locks posed no threat to the stability of the lamppost. But officials are looking for an alternative site amid fears the bridge may be damaged. One possibility is to put up a "lovers' lamppost" in a square near the bridge.

"We want to keep this tradition alive. It's becoming like tossing a coin in the Trevi fountain," said Perina.

All in the Family

2007-03-07T10:47:00.000-08:00

This might be the craziest news story I've seen out of Italy in a while. Guess it's not just Americans who go nuts over grades.

Parents beat up principal over grades

Mon Mar 5, 8:58 AM ET

BARI, Italy (Reuters) - An irate Italian family beat up a principal because they were unhappy with the grades a young relative had received and a ban on cell phones at school.

Three male relatives, including the father and grandfather of the student, punched and pushed principal Ugo Castorina at the Lombardi middle school in Bari on Saturday, police said.

They were angered by grades on the latest report card and by a recent ban by Castorina on cell phones at the school he has run for the past 22 years.

Castorina was taken to hospital and treated for mild contusions. Police escorted him back to the school.

"Some people may not like it but standards must be set and rules must be respected if a school is to function," Castorina told reporters.

Cat Update

2007-02-13T20:45:00.000-08:00

As you know, we named our cat Adrian. But: we had some friends over the other night, and when one of them called the cat, we realized we had misnamed her, or, rather, that we had given her an incomplete name. Our friend's beckoning made immediately clear what the cat's full name should be. So now, if you want to address our feline friend by her full and proper name, it is: 'Yo Adrian'.

For example: right now, Yo Adrian is drinking out of her water dish on the other side of the room.

UPDATE: Oh, snap! I just glanced back at the comments from the previous post and realized that Kirk had already preceded all of us with the true name, so give the man some props as well.

Someone Offered to Sell Me Drugs on Friday

2007-01-28T21:25:00.000-08:00

While I was waiting for the bus on Friday evening, a guy walking by offered to sell me some drugs, using a figure of speech I'd never heard before. Here is the reconstructed dialogue, as best as I can remember it.

The scene: I'm sitting on a bench waiting for the bus. It's cold. A guy comes walking up the sidewalk and we make eye contact.

Him: Are you looking for the trees, man?

Me: Huh?

Him: Are you looking for the trees, man?

[I look over my shoulder to see if I can figure out what he's referring to, thinking that maybe I'll spot some trees in spite of the fact that there's a GIANT BUILDING behind me. I turn back.]

Him: You really didn't hear me?

Me: No.

[He leans in close.]

Him: You looking for the trees? You know--the herb?

Me: Uh, no.

Him: Oh, ok.

That was pretty much it.

What American Accent Do You Have?

2007-01-24T13:37:00.000-08:00

This quiz must be pretty accurate, or else my own particular results are just a very accurate fluke. And by the way, we do speak standard English straight out of the dictionary.

What American accent do you have? Your Result: The Inland North You may think you speak "Standard English straight out of the dictionary" but when you step away from the Great Lakes you get asked annoying questions like "Are you from Wisconsin?" or "Are you from Chicago?" Chances are you call carbonated drinks "pop."
The Midland
The Northeast
Philadelphia
The South
The West
Boston
North Central
What American accent do you have? Quiz Created on GoToQuiz

Blast from the Past

2007-01-22T20:59:00.000-08:00

On our way back to the U.S. last summer, Allison and I stopped off in Wales for a couple of days, and my brother Ryan met us there. Here is an artsy photo of him that Allison took.

And here's one of Allison. Not sure what she's doing with that hand.

And this is my best 'Ahem, may I help you?' look.

In other news, I got a lot of hair cut off on Saturday. First haircut since before our wedding. I also shaved about half of my face.

But I won't tell you which half.

Athens Terrorism

2007-01-16T21:03:00.000-08:00

These are our friends Nick and Joanie at their wedding this past summer. As you can see, they are possibly the most photogenic couple on earth. This is especially evidenced by the fact that in the second picture, in spite of their having gotten MARRIED that day and having stood in front of cameras almost constantly, they still look totally put together, while Allison's eyes are closed and my hair looks not all that dope.

Anyway, that was by way of introduction. They're spending the year in Athens while Nick studies at the American School of Classical Studies there, so when I heard about the rocket attack on the U.S. embassy last week, I emailed Nick to get his first-hand account. Here is part of his email:

So the American School is about a 5-10 minute walk or so from the US embassy...on my walk from my apartment to the school I have to cross the major street that they were talking about and the point that I cross the street is about a 2 minute walk from the embassy

We had a trip to Eleusis this morning and I had to be at the school at 7:30 am and I probably crossed that street at 7 am or so...everything was blocked off and there were cop cars everywhere...I had no clue what had actually happened until later in the day...it took our bus about an extra hour to get out of the city because there was so much traffic

Let's hope nothing else like that happens.

Big Sandwiches

2007-01-08T21:26:00.000-08:00

Ok, so it's been a while. What can I say? I'm a delinquent.

Anyway, Allison and I live a few blocks away from what has to be the best deli in Philadelphia, and possibly the world. It's called Koch's. Their sandwiches are ridiculously large, especially when you get two of the guys working there into a competition with each other. Which is what resulted in the picture below.

Mine, which is on the left, started out as a Genoa Salami sandwich. As you can see, it's about as big as my head. He weighed it after he made it. I think each half weighed around 3/4 of a pound. I couldn't fit it into my mouth to take a bite, and I have a big mouth. Allison's started out as some sort of Turkey sandwich.

After eating, we sat on the couch. For a long time.

Danish TV Here We Come!

2006-11-06T09:30:00.000-08:00

Last week after church Allison and I ended up getting interviewed by a Great Dane (who was a nice guy and spoke very good English). He and his cameraman were apparently going to different churches in the U.S. to inquire about the interface of religion and politics in America for some sort of program for Danish television, and I heard tell that the program is supposed to air sometime today. So all you folks with cable on steroids can tune in. I'm wondering if they'll edit my answers to make them sound even dumber than they did in the first place, but you'll at least enjoy Allison's contributions. I hope that this is not some Michael Moore-esque hatchet-job; but, as I said, the interviewer seemed like a nice guy. Anyway, our friend Bill was there and happened to have his camera with him. He took a few pictures and emailed them to me, so I'll post them here as well.

Fall Football

2006-11-04T14:28:00.000-08:00

Two of Allison's uncles were in town today, John (a Central Michigan alum) and Dennis, so while Allison was in class we went to see the Central Michigan/Temple football game at the Philadelphia Eagles relatively new and beautiful stadium, Lincoln Financial Field (though I must say I hate it when stadiums have names like this). Here are a few photos from the day, which was a perfect one for football.

Temple's marching band giving a little pregame performance:

Uncle John (in the Central sweathshirt) and Uncle Dennis:

Two action shots:

Also, it was military appreciation day, so here are some soldiers. One of Temple's players was promoted in the Marines at halftime as well.

Woo-HOO! Got a Win Tonight!

2006-10-22T21:32:00.000-07:00

Philly Love

2006-10-22T21:13:00.000-07:00

While Allison was in class yesterday, I got the bike put back together and went for a little ride. I went for another one this evening, and brought the camera along, so here are a few shots.

I rode toward Center City on Spruce, which eventually turns into South St.

A lot of the buildings in Philadelphia have murals painted on one of the outside faces. Here is one such on the corner of Fitzwater and...something. Can't remember.

The train tracks with train approaching near the Schuykill River.

Skyline. Allison works in the second building from the left (tallish darkish building with what appear to be frog's eyes sticking out of the top).

Nine Tonight

2006-10-21T07:56:00.000-07:00

Ok, not really--more like eight or so tonight. The wiffle told me before she left for class today that the Seeg was scheduled to sing before Game 1 tonight, and was kind enough to leave the article up on the computer for me to verify...and it's true! It's true! So tune into the game a little early tonight for some sweet Seger action.

Montepulciano

2006-10-20T18:48:00.000-07:00

I stopped on the way home tonight and picked up a bottle of Montepulciano d'Abruzzo, which made me think of, well, Montepulciano.

The End of an Era

2006-09-29T21:41:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was a big day. For the first time in my just-over-quarter-century span, I relinquished my Michigan driver's license, held in high esteem since that glorious day in 1995 when it was first granted for faithfully completing Mr. Seppala's driver education course and some sort of written exam (these were the days of yore, when no driving test was required by Leviathan). Now I am officially a member of the Keystone State. I would put a picture of the new license on here--but, hey, there's some sensitive information on there. I imagine this was a more momentous occasion for me than for the lovely bride, who has held Michigan, California, and Maryland driving privileges in quick succession before joining me in the land of cheesesteaks and soft pretzels.

After the next ten days (in which time we must perforce submit our vehicle to inspection, without which it shall bear no new plates--a requirement wondrous and strange to a former resident of a Pleasant Peninsula), look no longer for a stoic license plate of royal blue pierced with white figurations: no, now look for a band of blue-inscribed white enclosed by a blue stripe atop and a yellow one below.

Back in the Saddle/ The New Apartment

2006-09-20T21:40:00.000-07:00

Ok, we're going to try to get this thing going again now that we're a little more settled in and Allison is a little more bipedal. Here are some shots of the new apartment that we're (mostly) moved into.

First, two of the living room/dining room/guest room:

The bedroom:

The kitchen/study:

Little lovelies

2006-07-19T08:55:00.000-07:00

Eric and I have arrived safely into Chicago! As you can see, we are plenty of reasons to enjoy being here. Aren't they sweet peanuts?

Ciao, ciao, ciao

2006-07-12T13:00:00.000-07:00

Eric and I are six hours away from our taxi pick-up for leaving in the morning. 4:30 am, ick.

We want to thank you all for joining us on our little adventure. And a special shout-out to all of Happy Fat Pants special guests (in order of appearance) who REALLY joined us on our adventure: Ryan Hutchinson, Mom Hutchinson, Dad Long, Mom Long, Aaron Long, Kirk and Abbey Schultz, Dan and Liddy Young, Vanessa McCray, Jaclyn Goodfellow, Jeralyn Goodfellow, and Michelle Dolgos.

Let's do it again sometime.

Viva l'Italia.

Fifth, Dante's Tomb

2006-07-03T11:23:00.000-07:00

The poet Dante, exiled from Florence, is also buried in Ravenna (where he died) in a small building. Here are a few pictures.

Third, the Mausoleum of Galla Placidia

2006-06-29T09:19:00.000-07:00

These didn't come out so well, but here they are anyway. These are from the Mausoleum of Galla Placidia in Ravenna.

The first is usually thought to be St. Lawrence going to his martyrdom on the grill. On the left side of the picture is a book case containing the four Gospels in separate volumes.

The second is a beatiful decorative pattern containing stars and flowers.

Fourth, the Arian Baptistery

2006-06-30T04:36:00.000-07:00

Exterior of building, the base of which is now far below current ground level.

Dome mosaic of baptism of Christ. From left to right: personification of River Jordan; Christ (with dove of Holy Spirit); John the Baptist. Ringed by procession of Apostles.

Same, but closer.