Boxes No Longer Work

In our apartment it is very difficult to set up physical barriers for Katie. We don't have a layout that is conducive to baby gates or other traditional barriers. About a month or two ago, Wife ingeniously began to strategically place boxes filled with heavy items (such as books) around the apartment. These boxes have been annoying to climb over, but they have done the trick of stopping Katie from getting into certain things. Katie has now, however, figured out how to beat the boxes.

First, any boxes less than about 18 inches tall she can climb over without much of a problem. While it is hilarious to watch her climb up onto the box (or stack of boxes), she generally doesn't find the trip down to be much fun.

Second, Katie now thinks boxes are walkers. Katie stands up and pushes boxes of books all around the apartment. Wife and I are shocked that Katie has the strength to pull this off.

Third, Wife has placed some heavy boxes in front of drawers that she doesn't want Katie getting into. Katie just slides the boxes out of the way so she can have fun pulling everything out of the drawers.

Unless we can think of another way to contain Katie, we will be forced to baby proof everything in our apartment that is under 3 feet high.

This is what I look like when I sleep. Daddy and I will have a little talk about him posting this picture in about 12 years.

Who Visits Our Blog?

According to Google, our blog has had visitors from 52 states. How is this possible? Because they count DC and "Undefined" (i.e., not sure which state it came from). We have had visits from 98 countries and 2,252 cities.

Somewhat related - thank you to our regular reader in Hong Kong. Thank you for your multiple comments every week. When I have free time, I enjoy trying to translate your Chinese comments (you seem to really like Katie's blue eyes). Unfortunately, your profile links to what seems to be some pretty strange stuff (all written in Chinese), so I'm not posting it on our blog. If you'll take the links off your profile, I'd be happy to post your comments.

I'll be honest. This swing is a lot more fun when you're pushing me, not taking pictures.

Katie is Ready for Her Close-up, Mr. DeVille.

That's right, Katie had her first brush with fame. Friday afternoon Katie and I were going for a walk when we stumbled upon the filming of Miraculous Year (an new HBO series). As you may have noticed if you have read this blog long, it is not uncommon to see filming in NYC.

As pedestrians approach the filming location, there are usually a few production assistants standing on the sidewalk with giant signs warning people that by continuing walking ahead, they may be in the scene. This is nothing new to me, so I just kept walking. Katie was really excited to see all the chaos around us, so she was on the edge of her seat.

As we passed by, a producer quickly grabbed me. The producer asked if Katie and I would be willing to walk by a few more times. Everyone was gushing about how cute Katie was and, of course, she was playing it up! She loved LOVED the attention. Katie and I talked it over and we agreed that we would be willing to walk back and forth a few more times. So after a few minutes of walking back and forth on the sidewalk for the cameras (what a great day to forgo makeup), we were off to continue our walk. As we were leaving I was told that I should consider getting Katie into modeling or acting because she definitely was a star in the making.

I'm climbing on the fun stuff at the park. Yes, of course I can do it by myself.

Here's Lots of Money...Please Go Away

So, one of Baylor University's most high-profile alumni in the business world is currently unemployed. Mark Hurd, at the request of HP's board of director's, resigned as CEO on Friday. Basically, the news stories say that he was accused by sexual harassment but no evidence of that was found; however, in the course of the investigation, it was discovered that he submitted some expense reports that were not entirely accurate. I have absolutely no knowledge about this situation. All I know is (1) what I have read from the media and (2) what is found in Mark Hurd's separation agreement that was publicly filed with the SEC on Friday late afternoon.

From what I've read, this is what I find so fascinating: while executives terminated for this type of offense typically get no severance, Mr. Hurd was able to negotiated an exit package that may be worth more than $35 million, including a cash payment of $12.2 million (the total value of the package will depend upon stock prices).

Now, why was Mr. Hurd able to get such a severance package? I don't know. I do know that In exchange for the huge severance payments, HP will get a couple things that they wouldn't get if they just fired him for cause: (1) Mr. Hurd agreed to waive all lawsuits he has against HP and (2) Mr. Hurd agreed to not disparage HP after he leaves. So, I'm just wondering out loud...why are those two things worth some $35 million to HP?

Katie Likes to Play

Wife and I were playing with Katie when she indicated that she wanted to play on the floor. We obliged and put Katie down by her pile of toys near our bed. The tv was on, and we started watching something for a few minutes. Katie was being nice and quiet. We assumed she was playing with her toys. But it was just too quite, so wife sat up to look over at Katie. I know you didn't see this coming, but Katie wasn't playing with her toys. She had opened up the bottom two drawers of my dresser. Not only did she open up the drawers, she also emptied them for me. The floor is completely covered with my clothes.

Walking Tour of Manhattan

In the last two days, Mommy, Katie and I have walked just under sixteen miles throughout the various Manhattan neighborhoods. Together, we have explored (listed in no particular order):

• Hell's Kitchen/Clinton
• Chelsea
  
• Times Square
• the Upper West Side
• Morningside Heights
  
• Midtown West
• Midtown East
• Gramercy Park
• Murray Hill
  
• Greenwich Village
• the Lower East Side
• the West Village
• the East Village
• (we also went to Woodside this weekend, but that's not in Manhattan)
  

Two thoughts based upon our exploration:

1. Each neighborhood has its own unique atmosphere. Surprisingly, just walking a couple of blocks completely changes the "feel" of the neighborhood.
   
2. We definitely live in the busiest, most "touristy" of all the neighborhoods we have explored.
   

I'm Just an All-American Girl

Just wait. Pretty soon I'll be jumping over these walls.

Memos

Click here for some hilarious memos from the best boss in the world. This is a collection of memos, all from the same company, written by the same guy. Here's a sample:

"Do not speak to me when you see me. If I want to to speak to you, I will do so. I want to save my throat. I don't want to ruin it by saying hello to all of you..."

I'm playing in the water and practicing my clapping with a friend

We're practicing our sharing. You just can't play in the water at the park without a cup.

The FBI vs. Wikipedia

Last month, the FBI wrote to the Wikipedia Foundation and demanded the the online encyclopedia remove a picture of the FBI seal from the article about the FBI. The FBI even quoted a statute as it threatened further legal action if the logo was not removed. In an entertaining response, the General Counsel of Wikipedia refused. Here's a quote to show the feisty nature of Wikipedia's response:

“While we appreciate your desire to revise the statute to reflect your expansive vision of it, the fact is that we must work with the actual language of the statute, not the aspirational version” [that the FBI had quoted in its letter].

You can read the full story here. I'm looking forward to following this story.

Shaq vs. Ending a Career with Dignity

Today news leaked that Shaq is on the verge of signing a one year contract with the Boston Celtics for the minimum salary allowable under NBA rules. Today is also the premier of the second season of the primetime television show "Shaq Vs." Coincidence?

Evidence the NBA has a Sense of Humor

A few hours ago the NBA announced the schedule for some "key games." The reigning NBA champions - the Los Angeles Lakers - will receive their their championship rings when they play the Houston Rockets. That's hilarious.

For those who don't get the joke: after last seasons when the Lakers also won the championship, the Lakers made only one significant roster move. Trevor Ariza, a promising young player who played a key role in the championship run, decided to play hardball with Laker management during his contract negotiations (at least his agent did). The Lakers instantly signed Ron Artest (who played for Houston) to take his place and rescinded their contract offer to Ariza. Ariza then signed with the Rockets for the same amount of money that the Lakers offered him. So, this fall Ariza will get to watch Artest receive the championship ring that likely would have been his if he handled his contract negotiations differently. Artest gets a ring while Ariza gets to be a mediocre player on a bad team.

This is my sailor outfit

You Have the Right to Remain Silent...

Now that most Americans (at least Americans who watch Law & Order on somewhat regular basis) have memorized the basic Miranda rights, the Supreme Court has gone off and changed them. To quote the AP:

"You have the right to remain silent, but only if you tell the police that you're remaining silent. You have a right to a lawyer — before, during and after questioning, even though the police don't have to tell you exactly when the lawyer can be with you. If you can't afford a lawyer, one will be provided to you. Do you understand these rights as they have been read to you, which, by the way, are only good for the next two weeks?"

You can read about the changes HERE.

Hi Daddy. You'd better hurry up and snap this picture. I won't stay here very long.

This is me looking very, very happy

How to Get an In-N-Out Burger in NYC

Here's an explanation of how to get an In-N-Out Burger in NYC.

Hey, now you're down at my level!

Ok, so today you gave me water, but no puffs. Can I please have some puffs?

I've got puffs and water. This deprived kid next to me doesn't have puffs or water.

What's inside of that camera?

I like my sock better this way. Yes, it's clean.

Let's go somewhere fun.

Playing in the water in the park

Walking by the Colbert Report HQ on a very hot Saturday afternoon