NEW PICTURES!!!

posted on: 2007-09-22 at 10:44:00 AM

Lots of new pictures for you! Angie and I enjoyed a crazy weekend camping near Mt. St. Helens with the 'Ver -- and he was FREAKIN' AWESOME. Along with all the pics of the camping trip, I took quite a bit of video --which I will soon compile and put up on YouTube.

Also, there are two new Oliver picture sections: Month 8 and Portraits. OH SNAP!!

The 8th month are just the newest batch of cute little snuggly-buggly Oliver-ly Waliver-ly pictures ^__^ The portraits are his first professionally taken pics from a really rad place called "Portrait Innovations."

Enjoy! AND COMMENT!

Labels: oliver, update

posted by Carl | 1 Comments | Leave a comment

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The Wilderness

posted on: 2007-09-20 at 8:12:00 AM

Sorry for the long pause in the blogging (again). I used to update this thing once every few days! GAH! I'm going to try to stop being such a slacker and start posting more -- I PROMISE!

So, what's new in CarlLand? Firstly, I just got back from a most bizarre camping trip. This was the first camping trip for Angie and I that included a baby. We were worried that he may not like the great outdoors, so we had our contingency plan afoot: cut and run. If he became a nuisance, we'd just toss him and all of our gear in the car and head back home. But to our surprise -- he was fantastic the entire time!

We went to Seaquest State Park in Washington State. We've been there before and enjoyed our experience the last time. We like it because it's the closest (reservable) state park to Mt. St. Helens and is also clean and quiet. Our plans were to spend one day near the volcano at the two observatories, one day hiking through the dense forest, and the rest of our time relaxing at the campsite.

Well, none of that happened (except the relaxing .. we relaxed a little).

On our way to the campsite, Angie tripped and did something nasty to her ankle which pretty much derailed our plans to go hiking. I had to put in a half-shift at work the day we left, so we arrived pretty late and only had an hour of daylight to set up camp. We were crippled from the beginning.

The first night was actually quite nice! The weather was cool and calm, Oliver was content, and we were able to enjoy some grilled steaks. We all slept through the night with no problems, too (I think Oliver was better behaved because he was sleeping in the same "room" as mom and dad).

The next morning looked promising: The weather was overcast, but all indications were that the cloud cover was low enough that the view of Mt. St. Helens was spectacular from the observatories. We wanted to get everything ready, so we drove out to get some necessities and then came back to the campsite to load up on firewood for that night.

That's when the car broke down.

We've been having this problem with the car for months now where the ignition won't turn over without hitting it with a hammer. Well, the hammer no longer worked -- so we were sitting there next to the camp host on a beautiful day .. stranded. Luckily the camp hosts were very nice and drove me to the nearest phone and helped contact a locak locksmith. It took a few hours for him to come out -- but he did. He expected the job to take "less than an hour."

When he was done completely dismantling the dashboard and steering column, drilling the old ignition, building the new one from scratch and installing it -- over three hours elapsed. Our day was ruined. No volcano, no picnic, no relaxing at the campsite. I do have to admit, the locksmith (of J&J's Auto Locksmith from Kelso, WA) was VERY professional, polite and reasonable. The experience wasn't all bad -- I got to chat it up with the camp hosts and learn a lot about Ford ignitions along the way.

The next day is when the weather went sour. Rain, fog, cold, rain, more rain, more fog, and then more rain. Determined like only we can be -- we still decided to head up to the observatories. The visibility was next to nothing. The view was WHITE. The funny thing is -- the view of the PARKING LOT was WHITE. The fog was so thick, we couldn't see the observatory itself until we were near it.

We headed back the next day -- and of course, I went directly to work that afternoon. As Soul II Soul would say: "Back to liiiiife... back to reality..."

In other news: I'm now working in the Tigard store. I don't mind it so much except for commute -- and the fact that it is in Tigard. I drive about 20 miles each way. I did the math and I'm guessing I'm spending nearly $1000 in a gas per year. I used to work in the west side (Nike, Excell Data Corp. and others) I do NOT miss the west side at all -- that place is not my style. The main roads have 12 lanes! When you're at a red light .. it can take ten minutes to get through! The thing that seems extra weird to me is that almost every driver is a single-occupant car. Where's the HOV lanes? Where's the bicyclists? Where's the anti-Bush bumper-sticker laden Toyota Priuses? I guess there is always Washington Square.. IF SOMEONE CAN SHOW ME HOW TO GET THERE!!! GAHH!!

I miss my old store, but I'm learning that I can't really grow roots as a "manager in training." Soon, hopefully, I'll be landing a permanent REAL manager's position complete with the manager perks.

The weather is changing and I'm LOVING it. I've worked hard to secure my studio and make it more toddler-proof. Angie and I rearranged the whole living area and put all the "safe" stuff on one side and all the baby-damaging stuff on the other. We're going to put a big fence down the middle and keep him supervised when he's in the "ouchie" side.

I am going to try to make a CD this Christmas. It's been three years. I sooooo miss being an active artist sometimes. LIFE IS BUSY NOW.

Labels: camping, fall, oliver, work

posted by Carl | 0 Comments | Leave a comment

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SORRY

posted on: 2007-06-18 at 11:04:00 PM

Sorry for the lack of updates lately. I have a lot I want to talk about as well as a ton of new pictures to upload. I AM A BLOG-SLACKER.

To tide you over until I am able to update this, here are two pictures that should keep you well entertained:


He's 5 months old! He PWNS you! In fact, I dare say, he 1337pwn3zzZZ!!!1two you. And if that wasn't enough. Here's a pic I took from the new LED Mac Book Pro's iSight cam:


Stay tuned boys and ghouls.

Labels: oliver, pwn, sorry, work

posted by Carl | 3 Comments | Leave a comment

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A LOT Has Changed!

posted on: 2007-02-17 at 3:33:00 PM

Where do I begin? Oliver is now five and a half weeks old! Where has the time gone? I've updated the Pics section with a collection of images from his first month of being part of this tiny blue marble we all live on -- CHECK THEM OUT!

I'd say "he's doing great," but that would be a bit of a lie. Angie and I took him to the hospital last week for another hearing check-up, and through many hours of intense testing, it looks as if he has mild permanent hearing loss. He has "combination hearing loss" which means he's having both middle-ear and ear drum issues. The middle-ear stuff should be able to be "fixed" through some form of medical intervention (of which we're not sure of yet). Even with that prognosis, it looks like he's going to live his life with a small hearing loss, which could effect his speech development.

Because of his diagnosis, he's now a part of the "Oregon Early Intervention Program" which will give us all tools and guidance through this.

Personally, I'm not worried or upset. I have similar mild hearing loss and my dad has lived most of his life with severe hearing loss. We're both just fine. There's a wonderfully expansive network of help within all circles of Oliver's life (family, medical, spiritual, etc.). I have accepted this and I say "make the best of it!"

Otherwise, the little bugger is kicking ass and taking names. In his first month, I've watched him pudge up and learn some muscle coordination. He's gained a few pounds and has a very healthy and predictable cycle. He's starting to crack little smiles on occasion! He's very lively and spirited and enjoys my interaction.

NEXT THING I KNOW HE'LL BE SHAVING AND ADDING FRIENDS ON HIS MYSPACE ACCOUNT AND RIDING HIS MOD'ed GAS-POWERED SCOOTER AROUND THE SCHOOL YARD! Heh.

So, the other giant news in my life is... wait for it... I QUIT MY JOB! It's a long story -- but the short version of it is this: I ran into my old boss in December while shopping at a local computer super-store. He had just become the store manager and after chatting with him for awhile, he showed an interest in bringing me into his store. A few months of interviewing and waiting passed, and I was actually turned down the position that I wanted originally! But later the position opened back up to me and an offer was made. It was too good for me to pass up.

I've been with my current job for over four years (since October of 2002). My little video game store is an extension of my soul -- and it was VERY hard to let it go. I've calculated that I have probably spent nearly 9000 hours in that stinkin' place! I love my staff and I love most of the regulars that shop there -- and it will be hard to let them go. But I can't lie. I'm very happy to be done with that company. As much as I've loved about that job, I have also found nearly unbearable -- especially their technology decisions (we ran on MS-DOS 6.22 for most of my stint there... WTF?).

I gave my two week notice and finished out my tenure while training the "New Carl." His name is Mike, and I think he's going to do a great job. Amy and Julia have been awesome through all this (although they were sad at first). It will be nice to be JUST their friend .. and not their friend and boss. I was thrown a going away party complete with cake and punch. If you can't tell, the cake says "U Suck, Kbye." ^__^

The last day there was awesome. My newest employee was interviewed by the regional loss-prevention manager because some other employees (ones not at my store) suspected that he was dealing drugs IN THE STORE, WHILE ON THE CLOCK. Well, during his interview, he fessed up to not only doing that, but a lot more (stealing). Wow. He wasn't even ratted-out! He was simply .. acting stupidly. Evolution at it's finest! Yay Darwin.

Also, the credit card machine failed. Over six hours on the phone with various support personnel, giving up our main phone line and fifty feet of copper phone cable finally fixed the problem (read: the company MAKES HORRIBLE TECHNOLOGY DECISIONS).

So now I am on a very small break in between jobs. I start the new job on Wednesday. Tomorrow is the Daytona 500 and I cannot wait to see my boys in HD! I wonder which driver Oliver is going to root for?

Labels: hearing loss, nascar, new job, oliver

posted by Carl | 1 Comments | Leave a comment

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Ack!! UN-PAUSE

posted on: 2007-01-28 at 9:02:00 PM

Hey everyone! Sorry for the lengthy delay.

Before anyone panics... OLIVER IS JUST FINE! He's been a doll ever since we got him home and is has been the cutest, smooshy-est faced, little stinky-butt that he can be. Actually, his butt doesn't stink very much, so maybe that's just the cutesy da-da voice coming through.

The past few weeks have been a change (as I'm sure you could expect). I've been doing the morning / early-afternoon shifts and Angie has been doing the night shifts. Oliver has been pretty quiet and sleepy most of the time, but there have been a few days where he's been fussy -- and the magic of being a parents is LEARNING what cries mean what and when the best time to do certain things are.

We've been taking him from doctor's appointment to doctor's appoint .. SIIIGH. Personally? I think he's JUST FINE. But it's like every little tiny thing that might be wrong is analyzed under a microscope. I've even witnessed multiple doctors giving multiple, wildly disagreeing prognoses -- but I digress. His health is utmost importance.

In other news, I'm still on vacation -- with all the driving appointments scheduled, and Angie still recovering from her surgery, I feel compelled to stay home and care for everyone -- as much as I can, albeit. We went to Oliver's first LAN party last night .. and *FOOM* I lost a computer! So a lot of the things I had planned to do have been put on pause -- thank goodness I've given myself one more week of freedom(??).

I'll post another (much more descriptive) post soon. I will also post a TON of new pics (don't worry .. there is no lack of digital images). Also, one of my goals is to compile a movie from the hours of HD video we took at the hospital during the pregnancy -- but I'm still working out the Sony software to convert their proprietary AVCHD format .. blah.

Comment please! I'll respond.

Labels: oliver

posted by Carl | 3 Comments | Leave a comment

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HOME AT LAST!!!

posted on: 2007-01-16 at 6:29:00 PM

WOW... What an amazing week it has been! Oliver is now one week old .. and he is proving to be a very well-mannered baby! He's cooing and snorting with the best of 'em, and can't be too much cuter, to boot!

Angie and I were supposed to leave the hospital Saturday morning, but we were asked to stay late because Oliver lost too much weight (over 14% of his birth-weight) during the last few days of our stay. We were discharged officially, but given the room as a temporary place to hang out until the doctors felt comfortable with Oliver's weight.

I was SOOOOO READY to leave. Holy GOD! Five days (four nights) of sleeping on a hypo-allergenic cushion who's temperature control was a broken set of mini-blinds was not my cup of tea. BUT -- it was a fun stay nonetheless. The view was spectacular! Each of the Family Birth Center rooms at Legacy Emanuel have a view into the "Children's Garden," as well as many windows into other rooms across the veranda -- which proved to be a source of countless hours of entertainment for me. I also spent time wandering around the hospital at night. It is really cool to see how they run .. so orchestrated and fluid in the mire of chaos.

Angie was outstanding. She recovered from the doctors slicing a giant gash into her lower abdomen better than anyone had expected! The first two days were trying, but after the fourth day, she was up and walking around without any help. By the time we left the hospital, she was running under her own steam.

I posted lots of baby pics for your perusing pleasure! Check out the NICU pics, and the post-NICU pics (** WARNING: the NICU pics include some that are not very pretty).

We left the hospital on Saturday evening with a spring in our step. Oliver, Angie and I were ready to go home. Little Oliver got his first ride in his new car seat as Angie and I hobbled out of the hospital with grandma and grandpa Scripter, great-aunt Claudia, and various nurses in tow.

Two quick anecdotes: 1) While in our room, I was reading a book on Einstein and time travel-- and in the book they discussed how things can be separated in time and space, and as an example, they said "you being born, and you reading this book NOW.." (I was born at the very same hospital, so the book ASSUMED I was reading it somewhere different than I was born).. HA!! 2) Oliver was wrapped in the very same blanket I was wrapped in 11606 days ago as I left the very same hospital. EPIC!

As Angie and I trekked home, only one quick stop at Walgreen's slowed our progress... SIIIGGGGHHHHHHHHH!!!

Sunday was a quiet day for us. Angie and I needed one day to feel things out and make sure we're not doing things horribly wrong. Luckily for us .. we weren't!! Oliver has been a little trooper and has only fussed when he's needed something (food, diaper change, cuddle time, etc.). The rest of the time has been filled with relaxation and cleaning (which .. all of a sudden .. is VERY WELCOME).

IN OTHER NEWS: Monday night was the midnight launch of the BURNING CRUSADE, which we sold at midnight at my store. I decided to go ahead and work for a few hours. I got my copy and .. even though I'm only level 3 .. HOLY CRAP. I guess 8,000,000 subscribers can't be wrong! Draenei FTW.

I awoke this morning to find a blanket of white snow atop everything outside. It was SOOOO beautiful! The temperature was below freezing (well below), yet people tried to venture out. As the countless hours of local news has proved ... PEOPLE ARE STUPID. Something like 60 Tri-Met buses were stranded, as were hundreds of semi-trucks and passenger vehicles.

I managed to walk a few miles and take the light-rail to get the other copies of Burning Crusade that I had pre-ordered (Angie and I both wanted a copy -- and I made a cool $100 on Ebay). Seeing all the whiteness -- and all of the Portlanders traversing around in 20 layers of clothes was quite fun. There were a lot of smiles exchanged.

Now I have to start thinking about what I'm going to do. I have one more week of real vacation. Once back at work, I have four weeks of "half-time" where I work 20 hour weeks. WOOOHOOO!

Labels: Burning Crusade, oliver, snow, WoW

posted by Carl | 4 Comments | Leave a comment

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Time is Tight

posted on: 2007-01-08 at 10:07:00 PM

Well... Here it is. The baby is coming .. and far sooner than we had expected! Little Oliver will make Earth his home tomorrow morning at about 8:30am via slicing open Angie's tummy and giving him the fast track. That's about ten hours away -- HOLY SHIT.

We went to the hospital this morning for an amniocentesis to run tests on Oliver's maturity (specifically, his lung maturity) -- and let me tell you, watching a giant floppy needle go into Angie's belly.. and then to see clear liquid sucked out .. was really effing crazy.

In all of the tests so far, we've heard things such as "OFF THE CHARTS!" and "Ummm.. this baby is HUGE!" from doctors, nurses and techs alike. All indications are that Oliver is going to be a behemoth 50 lb. flipper baby (ha ha .. inside work joke). Seriously, we're looking at 10 lbs.+ -- And to think, he's two weeks early.

So... These past few days have been crazy. We're cleaning, organizing, doing laundry, doing more laundry, cleaning more, also we're doing laundry and cleaning. *** SIGH *** I am so tired (and don't even go there... I know).

Am I excited? Sure! Am I scared?.. Well, from time to time I'll project ideas of what having Oliver living here with us will be like, especially the first few days, and that's when my blood pressure rises and I get the heeby-jeebies. But I chase those thoughts away with the calmness that is simply living in the moment and knowing that I can only do as good as I can do -- and through nature's miracles -- that's usually good enough!

Tonight was a great "last supper" in that it was spent with my best friend, Chandler. He, Angie and I ate at Ya Hala (Lebanese food .. YUM). It was a great, relaxing, moment before a very long and stressful next few days / weeks / months / years / decades, I'm sure!

Here is a little last-minute tour of the Scripter house .. pre-baby ^__^



I'll send periodic updates from the hospital from my phone. Stay tuned.

Labels: oliver

posted by Carl | 1 Comments | Leave a comment

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Happy New Year!

posted on: 2007-01-02 at 8:09:00 PM

Wow... it's 2007 already. Holy shit!

Last year has been undoubtedly the single most bizarre year of my life to date -- and in saying that, I hope to sweet Jesus that I do not have another year that is even MORE bizarre.
The holidays were a whirlwind. At work, Christmas time equaled ANGRY MOM time.

"Thanks for calling Game____ where you can trade in games to reserve Wario Ware Smooth Moves, This is Carl, how can I help you? I'm sorry, we do not have any Wiis in stock."

I've already gone over that one on my last blog .. but let me say it one more time... It's not the supply of the Wii that is low .. it is the demand that is high.

Christmas with the family was nice. I spent time on Christmas Eve at my mom and dad's with Emily and Paul. We exchanged gifts and had a pleasant time. Mom and dad decided that this year was the year they used real candles on the tree -- which was awesome except that the tree was DARK until we lit the candles. There is something programmed deep within my subconscious that has a problem with Christmas trees that are not brightly lit during the time when one opens presents... but I digress.

Christmas day was spent with Angie's family, which was nice. Her mom and dad seem to be doing quite well (given their situations). Her brother is as nice as ever and it was a very heartwarming experience to spend the actual day of Christmas with the in-laws.

Angie and I decided to treat ourselves to a present this year .. which is something that we've wanted for years and years and years (and have also wasted many dozens of trips to Fry's chicken-ing out on) .. an HDTV. In reality this was Angie's purchase, but I supported it 100%, and ... OH MY HOLY GOD IS IT NICE.

The story is a long one, but I will keep it simple: We shopped around for one that was within our price range, and ended up running into an old friend (and coworker) of mine who we haven't seen in many years. His name is Mike, and he now runs his own home-electronics store. After catching up on each other's lives, he offered to sell me any TV at cost -- which obviously changed our budget a little, and allowed for us to look into some televisions that we hadn't originally researched.

We ended up getting the Mitsubishi 57" 1080p rear-projection HDTV (6-color wheel, 2x HDMI inputs, freakin' amazing picture quality). Subsequently, we also got an upscaling DVD player (Phillips), and the newest digital-cable package w/ HDMI.

Let me just say that .. this is the future! True 1080p HDTV is absolutely beautiful. It shows a much more realistic picture which I have personally never fully experienced. I went to the trouble of locating a 50' DVI cable to attached my computer to the TV .. which is a sight to behold. World of Warcraft can play in life-size. That's right... LIFE SIZE. Wow wow wow wow.

So yeah... 1 more week for baby (see Oliver's blog). I'm all crazy-nervous and excited.

Labels: christmas, hdtv, oliver, wii

posted by Carl | 0 Comments | Leave a comment

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