Book Report

    Books are . . . well, they can be almost anything: amazing, enlightening, discouraging, somber, evocative, a waste of time or a breath of fresh air. It's even more fun when you get swings between one or more of these.
     I have in the last several days read The Time Traveler's Wife, in between sleeping and other, less pleasant activities. It was both disappointing and rewarding. Disappointing, because it should carry an R rating on the cover. Why? Language, inappropriate scenes, much more violence than the movie, etc. Rewarding, because it allowed me to better understand certain scenes from the movie, and confirm some of my hunches! Yes, I did see the movie, and I was right! (Warning - Plot Spoiler!) It was Clare's dad that shot Henry.
     Overall, am I glad I read the book? Unfortunately, no. While I enjoyed the writer's talent, and story, all the extraneous and overt, nay gratuitous scenes detracted too much from it. I would not recommend this book, even though I mostly enjoyed the movie. I am grateful that the movie producers chose to tone it down enough to make it PG-13, but it probably still deserved an R rating, even as a much watered-down version of the book. Normally, I like the book better than the movie, but in this case I will give it a tie. Each had their own pluses and minuses, neither was particularly outstanding, and my life would have been fine without spending the time on either.
     One question really bugs me: If a person is traveling through time, what dictates their place in space at their destination? H.G. Wells had his time traveler confined to a machine, thereby locking said traveler into one location. Ms. Niffenegger has the protagonist popping into existence all over the place. What is to prevent him from materializing in the middle of a lake, or a wall of his apartment? Hmm? Any ideas out there amongst my sci-fi fanatic friends?

Still sickly

Brief update today. Still have the yucks. Still sleeping lots. On quarters for another 48 hours. Hope nobody else gets this, especially Mrs. Penguin.

8 Hours in the E.R.

     I been sick. Ucky sick. It started Thursday night when I spiked a fever, had the chills and aches to go with it. Friday was nausea, headache and abdominal pain (Right sided under my ribs) progressing to the D word. I finally managed to get to sleep about 1:00 in the morning this morning, only to be woke up just after 4:00 by sharp, stabbing pain in my back, under my shoulder blade, and front, up under my ribs on the right. Couldn't get back to sleep and it felt like it was getting worse. Finally woke Mrs. Penguin up about 4:45 and had her take me to the E.R.
     I was so impressed by everything that happened in the first hour: admitted, questioned, I.V. started, x-rays and ultrasound of my gallbladder complete, 1.5 liters IV fluid, zofran 4 mg IV x 2, Morphine 4 mg IV, and Dilaudid 1 mg IV which took care of my nausea and pain. And then the day shift took over and things slowed way down. I drank my oral contrast for my C.T. by 8:00 (all 1.5 liters), but didn't go to C.T. until almost 11:30. I did get another 1.5 liters of fluid and 4 mg of morphine because the pain came back while waiting for the C.T., and developed a reaction to something I got while there. The results: nothing wrong with my gallbladder, diagnosis gastroenteritis.
     Discharged to go pick up meds at the pharmacy about 1:00 this afternoon with instructions to follow up with my PCM on Monday. Fortunately, because I missed Friday, plans were already in place to cover my 12 hour day call tomorrow. I had had Mrs. Penguin notify the on-call doc this morning and got a call from the boss this afternoon letting me know that my shift is still covered for tomorrow - Thanks everybody!
     That was my weekend so far, how has yours been?

Riffs on a Buck

    In case you missed the last post, we have a new member of our household, Buck!
    The funny thing about that name is how many variations we have come up with in the last 2 days. Here they are: (Bonus points if you can name all the pop culture references)


Buckminster Fullerene - And he's been neutered, so Bucky Balls is out.
Buckskin
Buckshot
Buck Naked (or Nekked, depending on where you are from and what you are up to!)
Bucket of Bolts
Buckingham Palace
Bucket of Chicken
Buckaroo
Buck Ninety-Eight
Buck Buck Buck Eighty-Nine
Buck Buck Goose
Buckle My Shoe


And then there is this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDnRFjOi3rA


Unfortunately, I can't embed this particular clip, but please follow the link. After we had decided on the name Buck, Boy Wonder quoted this for us. It was awesome. We were laughing so hard Mrs. Penguin was having trouble breathing, and I was having trouble steering.

Here he is!

Today is National Puppy Day!

     In honor of the titular fact, (actually coincidentally) we adopted a dog!
     For those of you who don't know, we had to put our previous dog, Mini, down last May. We have been doggieless since. We had the privilege of watching Tucker a couple weekends back, and it really reinforced to all of the Penguins in our house that we are a dog-type family.
     Over the last couple months we had established contact with the Miniature Schnauzer Club of Northern California, looking for a rescue dog to adopt. Yesterday, the 22nd of March we drove to a small town outside Sacramento to meet, and as it turns out, adopt, a wonderful new companion for our family. He is a larger miniature schnauzer, about 22 pounds and 16 inches at the shoulder. It was hard to resist his little bandit face, and the fact that he wanted to jump in the truck right away. We spent a little over an hour getting to know him and the foster home, and took him for a walk to a local park. When we left, the foster mom was very gracious and provided a collar, leash, toys, treats and enough food for a few days. I think she gave us nearly the adoption fee in extras. Thank you Nancy!
     Somewhere there is a family with a couple of children who are heartbroken. This is a wonderful dog. He was found dirty, matted and loose, with a collar but no tag or microchip. He is a quick learner, even if a little confused at the moment. He had been called "Jack" for the last few days while at his foster home, but "Jack" didn't seem to fit him. We debated his name all the way home, and all the way through the PetSmart store while we picked up some greenies (teeth cleaning bones), reward treats, food and water bowls, a comb and a brush. We got him a tag, but still couldn't come up with a name. Boy Wonder kept coming up with bizarre names like "Battery" to which this very smart dog would give him a look that seemed to say, "Absolutely not! I will not be called that!" We were only a couple minutes from the house when we came up with "Buck."  Buck is close enough to Jack that hopefully he can adapt quickly.
     He is a very good dog. He did get out of the house yesterday when one of the neighbors dropped by. He went across the street to say "Hi" to a couple of little girls, then came home with me as soon as he had said "Hi." He walks wonderfully on the leash, visits well with other dogs, and the only time he has barked is when Boy Wonder left the house yesterday. Buck could see him through the window and barked a couple times to try to get Boy Wonder to come back and get him.
     Our biggest issue so far was helping Buck figure out where to sleep last night. He had been sleeping with his Foster People in their bed, and didn't show any interest in the beds at PetSmart, so we didn't buy him one. Last night we tried placing him on Boo's bed, but he didn't seem to want to stay there. He paced up and down the stairs a few times, going to the couches, then coming to our room. He finally jumped up on our bed. I moved him to Boy Wonder's bed, and he stayed there until 3:45 when Boy Wonder made a bathroom trip. I tried to get Buck to go out to the bathroom, but he was having none of that. Buck moved himself to Boo's bed, and stayed there until he was ready to get up this morning. We weren't as quick out of bed as he wanted, so he woke Boo up.
     Buck and we at the Penguin household are quickly adapting to each other. Welcome home, Buck. Welcome Home! Be sure and click on the Title to see pictures of Buck (Jack) in action!

Happy Anniversary!

     Mrs. Penguin and I celebrated our 12th anniversary this past Sunday! Just think, she has been putting up with my wanderings and wonderings inescapably for a full dozen years, and an additional year and a half while she had the option of escaping! Your sympathy for her is entirely deserved! In that time we have lived in 3 states, 5 towns, and 10 domiciles. We have covered countless miles, worn out at least one vehicle, been separated for days, weeks, and even months at a time by my wanderings, and yet she patiently sticks by me. Thanks, Mrs. Penguin!

     Our official celebration involved a trip to Roseville to eat out, after which we went window shopping. The meal was fantastic - I strongly encourage you to check out the Claim Jumper restaurant nearest you. The shopping was an effort to walk off some of the calorie overload we ingested. The most exciting part of the evening was when Mrs. Penguin realized she had lost her glasses. A very frantic few minutes ensued, with much dashing about in a most penguinish manner, followed by great relief when the glasses were located (Babies 'R' Us if you must know!)
     On Sunday we went out for breakfast, lunch and dinner, but only because the power was off at our house and we didn't want to open the fridge or freezer and risk ruining the food inside. We shared all three of those meals with Boy Wonder and Boo, and two of those meals with friends from church.
     This anniversary was rather subdued, compared to the efforts I have made in the past, but Mrs. Penguin and I weren't really in a big celebration mood. Marriage is like that too. You have really exciting times, big ups and downs, but some of the best times are when things are just moving along smoothly. As I have matured, I have come to appreciate the smooth times as much as, if not more than, the big exciting times.
     I am certainly not implying that the magic is gone. It's just different now. A deeper, more abiding, sustaining magic. I know that the excitement is always within my grasp, and I don't have to always spend a lot of money or go to a lot of effort to be able to experience it. Unfortunately, I sometimes use this as an excuse to not make any effort, which isn't okay either. Sometimes I forget just how much I have put her through. I know I will never be able to make it up to her, but I should probably try a little harder, though. Happy Anniversary Mrs. Penguin!
     Whoever your Mrs. Penguin is, take a moment to say thanks, even if it isn't your anniversary!
    
     For more reflections on anniversaries, check out the post over at cfcworldmissions.blogspot.com.

All-black penguin discovered

By Stephen Messenger, TreeHugger

Posted Wed Mar 10, 2010 3:06pm PST

Related topics: Animals, Science, Nature

More from Guest Bloggers blog

1951votes

 
Photo via Andrew Evans of the National Geographic.

King Penguins are notorious for their prim, tuxedoed appearance -- but a recently discovered all-black penguin seems unafraid to defy convention. In what has been described as a "one in a zillion kind of mutation," biologists say that the animal has lost control of its pigmentation, an occurrence that is extremely rare. Other than the penguin's monochromatic outfit, the animal appears to be perfectly healthy -- and then some. "Look at the size of those legs," said one scientist, "It's an absolute monster."

The under-dressed penguin was photographed by Andrew Evans of National Geographic on the island of South Georgia near Antarctica. As the picture circulated, some biologists were taken aback -- including Dr. Allan Baker of the University of Toronto. His first response was disbelief:

Wow. That looks so bizarre I can't even believe it. Wow.

While multicolored birds will often show some variation, Dr. Baker explains that what makes this all-black King Penguin so rare is that the bird's melanin deposits have occurred where they are typically not present -- enough so that no light feathers even checker the bird's normally white chest.

Andrew Evans:

Melanism is merely the dark pigmentation of skin, fur -- or in this case, feathers. The unique trait derives from increased melanin in the body. Genes may play a role, but so might other factors. While melanism is common in many different animal species (e.g., Washington D.C. is famous for its melanistic squirrels), the trait is extremely rare in penguins. All-black penguins are so rare there is practically no research on the subject -- biologists guess that perhaps one in every quarter million of penguins shows evidence of at least partial melanism, whereas the penguin we saw appears to be almost entirely (if not entirely) melanistic.

Whether or not the all-black look catches on in the penguin fashion world, it's nice to see someone dressing-down for once.

Stephen Messenger is a correspondent at TreeHugger, where this post originally appeared.

How Wude!

     Those of you from the correct generation probably recognize the Stephanie Tanner reference in the title. For the rest of you, once upon a time, not too, too long ago there was a show called Full House. Check it out.

    The reason I am writing is that someone "unfanned" the Penguin. How wude! Weally, weally, wude!

    Was it something I said? Was it something I didn't say? Was it the fact that the posts have been few and far between lately? I'll do better, I promise! Just give me a chance, please? Come back, former fan of the penguin, come back! Please!?

     Okay, the begging is over with. If you were even thinking of unfanning the Penguin yourself, kindly reconsider.

     Thank you!

A rose by any other name . . .

     We are all familiar, or at least most of us are, with the line, "A rose by any other name, wouldn't smell as sweet." I'm not sure if that is true or not, but do think that names are funny things. 
     Take for example, the name of this blog. It is "The Wondering/Wandering Penguin." If you missed my very first post, go back and check out how the name came to be. In short, Penguins are funny, they waddle when the walk, have a personal significance in terms of my relationship with Mrs. Penguin, I get to do lots of wandering around the world, and lots of wondering as I go. I often feel a bit Penguinish. Makes sense, at least to me.
     Imagine if you will that I had named this blog some of the other names I considered . . "The Blahhg," "Moose on the Loose," "Misplaced Moose," "Poor Wayfaring Stranger," or "The Roaming Gnome."
    While each of these had potential, what sort of message would I have been sending with the name of my blog? "The Blahhg" would have given the impression that it was, well, "blah." Who wants to read a blah blog? Not such a good choice, hmm?
    Next, consider the Mooses (meece, moose', what is the proper plural of moose?) I am not particularly Moose-like, and while I am occasionally loosed or misplaced, neither of those really fit my mental image of myself, nor did I feel it would give you, the reader, any insight into what you might find in the postings. Besides my good friend Peyton who got me started on this crazy endeavor is out searching for a moose, and I would hate to give our common readers the impression that he is looking for me.
    "Poor Wayfaring Stranger" gives the impression that I am either poor financially or spiritually, neither of which would be something I would care to advertise in a blog. I actually feel quite blessed in both regards. "Wayfaring" is similar to wandering, I believe, but without looking it up, I can't say for sure. "Stranger," well, those of you who know me know that they don't come much stranger than me . . . or at least that's the way my dad tells it! So PWS really didn't seem to convey the right message either.
    Roaming Gnome might have fit a little better if I were short like my friends "The Troll" or "Wolfie," but since I am average height for a male, and don't like to think that I am Gnomish in appearance, I summarily rejected it.
    Which left me back where we started on this post, a Wondering/Wandering Penguin. What other names do you, my fellow penguins, feel might have worked? Let me know . . . I'm wondering!

Poll closing

     I am going to give the polls a rest for a while. Very few people are submitting votes, so I'll leave it be. Maybe down the road we can take it up again. We'll see.
     It's Monday, Keep Waddling!