The Confederate Canuck: February 2010

I put Ella in the stroller this morning while I did a little computing. This is actually the first time she's ever sat in this seat, and she took to it quite well. I didn't notice until afterwards, but the "Evenflo" logo looks something like a halo over her angelic little head. Ha.

(R) and (D) Results

I've had a pet theory for a few years now that you can tell a lot about a person based on their physical features. It's my contention that people who share similar backgrounds, beliefs, or even hobbies will tend to look alike. By alike, I mean actual physical characteristics, not just personal fashion choices or mannerisms.

Part of my theory has been borne out by recent research. A new psychological study indicates that your face tells a lot about your political leanings. To arrive at this conclusion, college students were first shown pictures of American senators, then the yearbook photos of other students. Surprisingly, they were able to discern the party affiliation of everyone in question with reasonable accuracy. Apparently, certain facial features are associated with political parties: Republicans look "powerful", while Democrats look "warm" (I disagree on this point; to me, Democrats appear more "haggard" or "hard" around the eyes).

I thought y'all would be interested in helping me conduct my own experiment. Apparently, I completely underestimated the overwhelming and unmitigated interest in my little experiment, as my blog was engulfed with a grand total of THREE comments.

In any event, here is the correct answer key:

A. D (Ed Clemente, Michigan House of Representatives)
B. D (Ellen Lipton, Michigan House of Representatives)
C. R (Cameron Henry, Louisiana House of Representatives)
D. D (Damon Baldone, Louisiana House of Representatives)
E. R (Candy Ezzel, New Mexico House of Representatives)
F. R (Patrick Connick, Louisiana House of Representatives)
G. R (Donald Bratton, New Mexico House of Representatives)
H. D (Simone Champagne, Louisiana House of Representatives)
I. D (LaMar Lemmons, Michigan House of Representatives)
J. R (Patrick Cortez, Louisiana House of Representatives)

These are the scores of the THREE people who sporting enough to try and spot the Liberals, and kind enough to humor my whim (and shame on all the rest of you):

Joshua (whose comment I managed to lose someplace) - 8/10
Carrie - 7/10
Anna - 7/10

Congratulations, Joshua. Your Liberal-spotting skills are unmatched.

(R) and (D)

Mind helping me out with a little experiment? Reckon you can spot a Liberal from fifty paces? Go down this list of ten random US Representatives and decide which ones look like Republicans and which look more like Democrats. Leave your answers in a comment on this post. After I've gotten enough responses, I'll explain what this is all about.

A.

B.

C.

D.

E.

F.

G.

H.

I.

J.

CinderElla

Here's a picture of Princess Ella (and her poor dry face) in her new PJs, which The Beloved found at Old Navy for $1.98.

The Superstore

Americans have always prided themselves on doing things big, but I think "The Real Canadian Superstore" (which, technically, should read: "The Real Chinese Superstore") has got Wally World beat in terms of sheer size. The first store to bring the wide expanses of the Canadian prairies inside, Superstores are beyond huge. Isles seemingly sprawl half the length of a football field, and walking from one end of the store to the other feels like running a marathon. We've often commented that they should seriously consider offering a shuttle service from the bakery to the pharmacy.

While sitting outside in the parking lot one day (waiting for The Beloved to come back out), it struck me: Why does Superstore have handicapped parking places out front?

Don't get me wrong -- I'm all for making things easier for handicapped people. But if you have difficulty getting around, then a store the size of a cattle ranch is probably not the best shopping venue for you. And if you brought along your trusty Rascal (or, perhaps, a horse) to help you navigate those wide open spaces, then the proximity of your parking space to the door should cease to be an issue.

I guess the rest of us non-handicapped folks are just out of luck. When we sally forth in search of no-name comestibles or the latest in cheap Chinese goods, we have to hoof it a half a mile or so across the parking lot just to get inside the building, to say nothing of the couple or three more klicks we'll travel in search of our Cheesies and diet Pepsis.

On the other hand, all that walking around on concrete floors is apt to wear out our knees, hips, and ankles that much faster, which means we'll all be vying for those handicapped parking spaces before too long. Maybe then I'll appreciate them more.

The Victory

The American and Canadian Olympic hockey teams met today in an epic ice battle fraught with razor-sharp tension and raw emotion. A fierce love of hockey is probably the closest many Canadians get to patriotism, and we've all been inundated for months with ad slogans and banners championing the fact that Canadians invented and dominate this game.

The Fiddlers made a special point of tuning in to tonight's game. Not because they're religious hockey fans like many other Canadians, and not because they particularly mind if the Canadian team wins or loses much in this year's Olympics. No, such is their fondness for their neighbors to the South that the Fiddler clan dropped everything and sat down just to see to it that the Americans lost.

You might imagine the bitter disappointment -- nay, the anguish -- that ripped through the hearts of Canadians worldwide as the unthinkable happened: the Canucks lost... to the Americans. After months of swagger, the Canadians were beaten at their own game by the very country they most wanted to defeat.

[Bonus: At least three of the players on Team America hail from Southern states.]

Of course, the Canadians can always take solace in the fact that the Canadians whupped those pesky Yanks in Women's Curling earlier today. But when they exercise those newly-won bragging rights, they'll just have to mind the fact that they're just about the only people in the world that even know -- or care -- what curling is.

The Quiet Man... er, Woman

Even more playing-on-the-bed video goodness.

Just Lookin'

Ella was laying on the bed and talking away sweetly to herself until I grabbed the camera and hit the "Record" button. Then she clammed up and was just lookin'.

The Chicken Dance

Here's a video of Ella smiling at the annoying robotic singing Elmo chicken... thing. Babies are easy to impress, eh?

Facebook Addiction Disorder

Are you a Facebook addict? Do you feel a pressing urge to share intimate details of your life with relative strangers? Do you have a need to notify the planet of your every thought or feeling? Is your sense of self-worth based on the fact that you have over two hundred imaginary friends?

If this is you, there is help. With time, patience, and a little effort, you can overcome this consuming addiction and get back to living your life in the real world.

I enjoyed this recent article in the Winnipeg Free Press by Janine Legal on her efforts to break her Facebook habit. Perhaps her words will be of encouragement to some of you other hopeless Facebook-junkies out there (you know who you are).

The Blustery Day

I'm just now getting around to posting some pictures that I took on the 7th as we were on our way out to the farm to pick up Bobchi for Sunday dinner. It wasn't a blizzard by any stretch of the imagination, but it was snowing and blowing and dark.

The Cherub

For Valentine's Day, here's a picture of a little nekkid cherub we found bathing happily in our sink one day:

Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives

This is our absolute favorite Food Network show, bar none. This show always makes Julie and I want to open up a restaurant someplace.

The Cereal

As Ella experienced her six-week growth spurt on Monday, we came to the conclusion that milk just wasn't going to cut through her cravings. Julie and I began to experiment with rice cereal, which I give to her with a dropper the last two feedings before bedtime. She swallows it well, tolerates it beautifully, and it gives her enough oomph to sleep through the night without needing a nocturnal nosh. It seems a bit odd that Puddin' is putting down solid food at just six-and-a-half weeks old, but then, we don't call her "PorkPie" for nothing.

The Sweetometer

The Sliding Hill, Round 2

Shiloh and I took on the sliding hill again on Tuesday.

About to take on the hill.

Holding on tight.

Trying not to die.

Doing something stupid.

The Family Jules

Happy Birthday to a doting wife, caring mother, and loving friend.

The Photo Album

Looking through some old photo albums today, I found these pictures of Julie as a little girl. Wasn't she pretty?

There was also this one of Julie as a baby. I've decided that Ella looks just like her.

The Happy Baby

When I was little, I thought I'd open up a daycare one day called "The Happy Baby". I don't have the daycare yet, but I do have the happy baby. Here's a video of Ella playing in her chair this morning.

The Pre-Party

We went out to the farm this afternoon to get some things ready for Julie's birthday supper tomorrow, and Shiloh got a chance to bust out and play in the snow.

The Posters

Since certain people thought I needed something "productive" to do with my free time and meager chopping abilities, here are a couple of posters for Joshua's upcoming "Stations of the Cross" walk.

The End is Near

Bathroom Blitz Week officially began yesterday (I know, I know, week-long things usually start at the beginning of the week rather than at some dubious point in the middle, but Wednesday to Wednesday is a week, too, right?).

After rolling back the carpets, covering the furniture with plastic, and alerting the townsfolk to stand clear, Shiloh spent two entire days in his gitchies. Yesterday was a bit hectic, but today Shiloh went all day with only one small accident.

There's an end in sight! Way to go, Shiloh!