It's strange that it's Father's Day tomorrow, I day that I have never really observed because my father was never really around for me to observe it, and now it will once again hold some relevance because I will be the beneficiary of the non-holiday holiday. Just means getting stuff, really. But I could use stuff. My wife does have some things for me, which is kinda cool.

So far, I think I've been an okay dad. I cook for my wife whenever I can, help out whenever I can, I bought a CD called Golden Slumbers, which is a soft jazz compliation of lullabies for the baby. So far, we've not let the baby hear it, mostly I've been listening to it and being strangely comforted and tempted to use it for my wedding scoring. But I haven't put his crib together yet, and not assembled the swing yet. I'll get to it, just gotta get a bunch of other stuff out of the way first.

Today Maralise and Dansen are graduating, exciting for them. I'm going to the Fairhaven graduation and then taking off shortly after. Lots to do, and I've been procrastinating and doing miscellaneous things instead. Like writing a summary script, or a spec script, for the mockumentary.

Damn, I need to get moving.

The weird news keep coming.

In addition to my neighbor still being in jail, I presume, my brother got laid off by Cisco Systems yesterday. He's still employed till August, but man. He's at least got severance pay for 6 months, which is pretty nice, but still. Sometimes I'm happy that I'm working in at Freddy's, because you would think that we are essential enough to everyday life for the community to secure my position. Technically, my position as an auditor is a pretty secure one because stores in general, need their own independent auditor to ensure price integrity. It might actually be state law, but I'm not sure.

Which brings us to my idea of flirting with going into videography full time. It's a risky business move, but there doesn't really seem to be a shortage of work, but I'm not entirely sure. If I do pursue it full time, like my wife said, I would have to dedicate myself entirely to it. Constantly selling, constantly shooting, constantly editing. I don't mind doing both a regular job and video editing, but it's difficult to do both simultaneously. Unfortunately, it's the editing that suffers most because it's on my own time, and I'm stingy about how I spent my personal time.

We sorta decided that I should just sit on it and wait till next year to decide. After all, we have a baby to adjust our finances around, which is a good idea.

By the way, I am dying to get new camera accessories.

The glucose test last night was way too exciting for words. We took off shortly after my wife came home from work, tired and extremely hungry because she hadn't eaten since the morning. We got there, they made her drink a glucose drink which looked a lot like bottled nectar, then took an extraction of blood from her. Then we sat and waited for an hour. This repeated for about three times, for three hours, and four extractions. We had read every magazine in that place and I'm completely caught up in Popular Mechanics for the rest of my life. The lobby was also cool, so we spent a lot of time trying to keep relatively warm.

After that, we rewarded ourselves with Shari's and after that we just went home and crashed. Hopefully the test will come up in our favor.

I actually was able to get off work two hours early today and still get paid for it (because I edited the Freddy's video on my own time, and the time and attendance person, who is also my supervisor, thought I should get some shift time for it.). Anyway, I realized that I was actually elated driving home, I had a big smile on my face and everything. Knowing my wife was going to be home for lunch but not eating, since she has to fast for the whole day for the glucose test, I came in and almost scared my wife. She thought I was the domestically violent neighbor.

By which way, the dude is still in jail, I believe. I haven't seen anyone around the house for a long time, and their porch light is still on from the time he was arrested. Strange, slightly scary.

Like I told my wife, I'm happy after work on Thursdays because it's like, "Yay! Now I only have one job for three days!"

I wonder what my son wants to be when he grows up?

I'm also worried about my wife. She took a glucose test and now tomorrow night she has to go in for more testing, and if the test does concur that she's having too much sugar in her blood, she'll have to go on a special kind of diet. I think I'm slightly bummed out because I don't know how to cook like that. Can't imagine cooking and being careful about what I prepare. I got two bags of raviloli in the freezer and I don't know what's going to happen with it. Sigh. But tomorrow night, I will be at the doctors with my wife for a 3 hour test. Poor sweetie.

Was scanning the greeting cards today and there were a bunch of birthday cards that allowed me fantasize a little. Cards for grandsons, expecting mom cards... I remember being in high school and having to do the "career day" thing, whereby I decided to live by myself, eat top ramen, and work as a greeting card writer. It's piece work, and it's sorta a strange career. I was so sure I was going to do that for a living.

I do wonder what I'm going to do when we have a baby around. Hopefully I'll be done with weddings by then so I don't have to feel guilty about doing anything. I was also thinking how much fathers and sons will bond, being how I didn't really have a father around to hang out with me. Everything I do as a father will be guesswork and a lot of luck, I think. Haven't even had a younger sibling or nephew to have any experience. Hopefully I'll work hard at being a father because I would really like to give the kind of love to my boy like my father never did with me. I hope it does all pan out.

Well, my mother seems to be accepting of the new name, which is a good thing being how I'm sorta tired of this whole argument because there are a thousand other things that we should be happy instead of worrying about the name. I'm going to try to plan something when my brother and his wife comes up for the fourth of July, perhaps invite them up here or drive them up here and hang out. Seattle is so boring.

On the brighter side of things, my wife and I finally made a compromise with my Mum, who has been completely bend out of shape about the name Alex. She seems happier about the name, and I'm just wanting it to be back to normal. There was progress in the relationship between all of us, and when the name thing surfaced, I just felt horrible because it was impeding that progress and was threatening to destroy my relationship with my mother at some degree.

I know, talking with anyone and they would simply say that it's not fair, your mother shouldn't dictate what you should name your child. But it's difficult. It's not just her culture, it's not just her preconception, it's a combination of a lot of things that aren't to be taken lightly. Anyone can make a slight judgment and say that my Mom's being unfair, which I do think to a certain degree, she did take this more seriously than needed to be, but nothing's ever that simple. My wife and I also made a compromise, which may be a little silly, because we're working on a technicality, but it should suffice. All I wish for now is that everyone just gets along, because there's still so much to enjoy.

I think my wife is the greatest!

Last night was weird.

To summarize the story because I've already blurted out the whole account in a police statement, we basically called the cops on our neighbor who was dragging a screaming woman out of his house. The cops came and we were very much involved, and at 3 in the morning we woke up and heard the guy talk to the cops and get arrested. So now our family (at else my wife and I) are feeling a little bit of tension because this guy now knows that it was us who called the cops on him. The woman was bruised and she called the cops after we scared him away, and the cops were already en route when she called.

Anyway, I spent a good portion of last night worrying about the family, worrying about this man who lives next door to us, and is someone who will probably be pissed because he's probably sitting in jail for a short amount of time. We conciously lock the door now, and we're trying not to be afraid of him, but it's suddenly very strange because of what happened. I think everything should settle down and there shouldn't be any problems, hopefully.

You just never think these kinds of things happen, at least around you or the people you kinda know.