NORAD Tracks Santa in 3D

Once again, NORAD will be tracking Santa Claus' annual trip around the world beginning on Christmas Eve, using their high-tech Santa tracking system. Thanks to modern technology, using Google Earth you will be able to receive real-time updates, in 3D, of Santa's progress around the world, including pictures from NORAD's Santa Cam. Be sure to visit NORAD's Santa tracking web site on Christmas Eve!

Day of the Ninja

Today, December 5th, marks the international celebration known as the Day of the Ninja. Annually, since way back in 2003, people around the world use this day to celebrate ninja culture and discuss why ninjas are better than pirates.

How will you celebrate the Day of the Ninja?

I will celebrate by remember someone who, for me, was the ninja. That's right, Lee Van Cleef from the 80's classic, The Master. Don't remember The Master? Well, we here at Spike the Wave do. And as long as we live, he will not be forgotten! Arrrrrrgh!

Thanksgiving and its Aftermath

We had an enjoyable Thanksgiving Day. I hope you, gentle reader, did as well.

Dinner was hosted by my parents. Along with my family, excluding the girl (who had fled the state for the week), attending dinner there were Brother Jon's family, Sister Mary's family, and Heather and her wee bairns. And my parents were there, too, since it was their house after all.

For dinner we had turkey, hot dogs (for those who don't eat turkey), mashed taters, corn stuff, two kinds of stuffing (double the goodness), some sort of weird red gelatinous substance (my wife claimed it was something called "canned cranberry"), black olives, and gravy. Lots of gravy. Thanksgiving dinner just would not be complete without gravy. Why? Because gravy makes it better. Mmm...

But I digress.

After dinner, some of us shuffled into the family room where we watched the remainder of the annual Thanksgiving football game, at which NFL players give thanks by tackling each other. Then we watched Judge Judy scold people for being idiots. The kids played board games, with the older kids playing one board game where they followed the rules of play, and the younger ones playing another board game in which the game pieces became fascinating toys.

My wife, Sarah (with an "h"), and I celebrated Black Friday, the big day after Thanksgiving day of super-duper sales, by not shopping. Though The Doug did go out super early with his hunting friends... he was successful! Actually, I did go out later in the day for duct tape ("it can fix anything!"). And I put up the exterior Christmas lights, since walking around on the roof is one of my favorite pastimes. Then that night, we all got stomach flu. That was fun. But we're all feeling much better now. Especially now that it's snowing! (see FSOTY post)

Today is FSOTY

What is FSOTY? Well, gentle reader, it stands for First Snow Of The Year.

It is snowing today! Life is good.

We now return to our regularly scheduled programming.

30 Days Until My Doom

Today is November 15th, which means that, in exactly one month, I turn 40. Huzzah! Most people approach such milestones in their life with a sense of doom & gloom. But not me!

To help with commemorating this date, that is today, nature has kindly provided us with a cold, grey, dreary, rainy kind of day. So, while I may not feel gloomy today, I guess nature does.

But that's okay... I actually like these kinds of days. Except when my vehicle loses its traction and careens into a ditch. Then it's not so fun. But that hasn't happened for several years anyway. And I got an SUV out of it!

The only thing I dislike about the weather we're having today is that we're not expected to get any snow. I like watching the snow fall, don't you?

Today is also the beginning of deer hunting season, rifle & shotgun edition. I overhead a group of deer talking about it this morning. As with past years, they're all planning to hide in caves & garages until the hunting season ends, at which time they'll return to their favorite activity... playing chicken with vehicles moving at high speed.

They were talking on the local news this morning about how all the deer hunters are whining about how ammo costs several times more than in past years. Babies. In my day, we hunted deer with slingshots. We were lucky if we managed to merely annoy a deer. And we liked it that way!

I once used a slingshot, I think when I was in high school. Yeah, I ignored my mom's warnings and managed to shoot myself in the eye. My friends called me "slingshot eye". But it's all good. And besides, now my eye is stronger than ever! But not as strong as Steve Austin's since he was all bionic and stuff.

Yeah ever wonder what a bionic cat would be like? We've seen bionic men, women, and even a dog. But what about a bionic cat? Would it's super strength help it sleep better on the couch? Or help it be better at ignoring you when you enter the room? If one of our cats were bionic, it'd probably bust through a window trying to chase after birds or squirrels.

We have several bird feeders at our house, which provide us and our cats with a lot of entertainment. The birds, that is, not the bird feeders, which really don't do anything besides just hanging around. There was a really loud bird at one of our feeders the other day. I secretly think it was using a little bird-sized megaphone.