Things aren't always going to be like this.
One day, when things turn around and I can afford it, I am going to have a small piece of jewelry commissioned for Schuyler. I envision something like the work of Jeanine Payer, except within normal human price range. Perhaps I'll find an up-and-coming jewelry artist who'll take on the work one day.
The quote that I want for Schuyler is, perhaps predictably, from the lyrics to an Andrew Bird song (although actually, it's a cover of a Handsome Family song) called "Don't Be Scared". It seems to me to be about an imaginative child who, for whatever reason, lives in an internal world.
I have one of those children.
Whenever Paul thinks of rain, swallows fall in a wave and tap on his window with their beaks. Whenever Paul thinks of snow, soft winds blow round his head and his phone rings just once late at night-like a bird calling out, "Wake up, Paul. Don't be scared. Don't believe you're all alone." "Wake up, Paul," whisper clouds rolling by and the seeds falling softly from the branches of the trees.
Don't be scared. Don't believe you're all alone.
I want her to have those words for the rest of her life, always to remind her that she'll never be alone. I hope that's true, too.
Rob - Check out stickyj.com.
ReplyDeleteThere's some good stuff there. I sort of like this one, maybe with Chinese characters for father, mother and daughter on the front.
ReplyDeleteSchuyler would lose her happy little mind if she had a Fairy charm. That's very interesting and cool.
ReplyDeleteI like the "no comment" shirt but I really, really would like an adult size "you talk too much" t-shirt! Any thoughts where I can get one? I would love to have one (or several). Please help this quiet gal. :-)
ReplyDeleteHey, Mark G here. Speaking of shirts, here is one that I would TOTALLY buy in a heartbeat:
ReplyDeleteThis pic ( http://biopicture.cafepress.com/3/637913.jpg )
Rob For President 2008
Excited About Our Future
Your entries always bring tears to my eyes. You say how I feel inside, but I can never get it out like you do. I've probably said that before and I don't want to sound sappy.
ReplyDeleteEmily is up to the PECS stage using Boardmaker pictures. We are intensifying usage this summer and all I can imagine is laminated and velcroed pictures everywhere. I've even had nightmares about it. But at least she'll be able to tell me something more than she can now.
I really look forward to higher technology in the future but I'm not looking forward to stingy school districts. Yeah, yeah, everyone says that your school district will do this and that, but don't believe it.
AND I can't wait till Schuyler gets her own blog. :)
Becky
Why wait until things turn around to buy a piece of jewelry? You can always beg for money!
ReplyDeleteHow true! Thank you, Anonymous Assmonkey!
ReplyDeleteEveryone, please send me money. I promise to spend it foolishly. But I'll send you a thank you note when you do.
Don't be all alone...hmm....I just wrote about that today, so guess you better check out my thoughts.......go to me little bloggie!
ReplyDeleteRob, when was it that you posted that entry? (And if I remember right, you didn't "beg" for money, you said that if someone was considering helping out, it would be a good time. God knows we've all been there before.) Months ago, right? it was even before you started blogging.
ReplyDeleteI know the people who leave ugly comments here, the ones that get through and (I assume) the ones you delete after a while. I read their blogs, and I even correspond in email with some of them (which is why this is anonymous, sorry.) One of them gave you a hard time because she thought your health problems were your own fault (she has some pretty screwy ideas about diabetes, I _KNOW_ you know who I'm talking about); now she's writing about how unhealthy she feels, in spite of her dietary "expertise". Another criticized your financial problems, even hinted that you might be making up your diabetes (wtf?) to get money. Now she's writing about her own money problems and is borrowing from her parents, and at the same time whines about her job, which she probably should be grateful to have at all.
My point is that you are a person with strengths and weaknesses like everyone else. I can only speak on my own behalf, but as far as I'm concerned, your weaknesses are no worse than anyone else's and your strengths as a writer and as a dad are why I keep coming back.
Anonymous (sorry, don't want our "friends" to know who I am)
People who are stupid shouldn't comment on other peoples blogs.
ReplyDeleteWe dont do this to be critized for every move we make.
Sometimes I am not sure why I blog. I forget about the great people I have in my life when the ass monkeys come out to bestow all of their lovely perfect wisdom.
Did it ever occur to you that perhaps *you're* the Assmonkey for having to beg for money?
ReplyDeleteJesus. Let it go already.
ReplyDeleteEveryone enjoying the anonymous commenting being turned back on?
ReplyDeleteAnd speaking of music . . . the Red Stick Ramblers are in my town Sunday night . . . thanks to you, I know who they are, and am planning to go!
ReplyDeleteI think we've all misunderstood the poor anonymous poster. See, those messages are code -- this poster is begging for a heart transplant.
ReplyDelete(Nods) It's kind of like THE DAVINCI code.
I applaud the fact that you are a big enough person to not only keep the anonymous comment feature turned on (since many of us Rob fans don't blog, but like to comment), but to also post the negative comments that are made here. That being said, I certainly wouldn't think less of you if you acted as an assmonkey filter and just deleted the obviously dickish posts made by these jealous fuck-mouths.
ReplyDeleteJust a thought.
Mark G
Enjoying you not censoring the negative comments...
ReplyDeleteWell, I've said this before, but it's not that I delete the negative comments so much as I delete the ones that are obviously just trying to piss me off rather than make an actual point, or if a bunch of people come over here and say almost exactly the same thing at almost exactly the same time, and then I check my stats and see hits from some closed forum on ezboard.com.
ReplyDeleteI also delete the ones that make nasty comments about my daughter, because that creeps me the fuck out.
ReplyDeleteSchuyler is an adorable little girl! I love this photo of her. :-)
ReplyDeleteI should thank you too Rob - and mention that if you want to come to Pittsburgh June 6 - 11 (you know, with all the extra dough you coerce people to give you by making up children and sicknesses that you don't really have), you can go to the 3 Rivers Arts Festival with me and see both Andrew Bird (Wed nite) and the eels (Sat). Thanks to you I'm looking forward to seeing both!!
ReplyDeleteI'm trying to phrase this as tactfully as I can, but I have a hunch it'll go awry... but it's a legit question, not a dig. A while back you were angry because someone made a comment about Schuyler "not complaining" or "suffering in silence" or something, and people were up in arms at how disrespectful, insensitive, and positively Neanderthal that was (I thought it was just an ill-considered turn of phrase). But... "No comment" and "you talk too much" t-shirts are okay? The "suffer in silence" comment didn't even register with me until you complained about it, but the "No comment" t-shirt made me do a major double take, so I'm curious. Is this a siutation like, "Don't you tease him, he's my brother, I'm the only one allowed to tease him" or is there some other difference?
ReplyDeleteI've written at length about Schuyler and those of us who take care of her taking ownership of her monster. Go read that if you're really interested.
ReplyDeleteThe most pertinent line from that entry, I believe, is "Her monster doesn't get to mock us if we mock it first."
If you think we're mocking Schuyler, I don't know what to tell you.