Old September Blues

It's good to be back home. Florida was hot and sticky, as expected, but I'd say it was a successful trip. The girls were great on both flights, although Lily was getting antsy on the way back. The wedding went off without a hitch, although it didn't look that way at first. Jen and Easton had their wedding at an art gallery in St. Augustine, which was pretty cool, but it was a busy weekend and the gallery doublebooked a private art exhibition at the same time as the ceremony. Hannah and Lily were flower girls and it looked like Lily wasn't in the mood to cooperate, but when it was time for them to walk down the aisle, she was great. Of course, she conked out during the reception and ended up snoozing in a corner for a few hours, but that's okay. On Sunday morning, we drove back down to Orlando and surprised the girls with a trip to Disney World (although Hannah guessed it about halfway there). Disney is a gigantic vending machine with mouse ears, but the girls had a blast. They got to meet all the princess characters they love, went on a couple of rides, saw the Downtown Disney parade, ate a lot of junk food, and generally had fun. On the downside for me, I caught a cold and left my favorite fleece on the plane yesterday, so that sucks.

Rock and roll hoochie koo:

• It was sad to hear of the death of Steve Irwin, the self-styled "Crocodile Hunter" who met his end after taking a stingray barb to the heart. The girls know him from their endless viewings of the Wiggles' Wiggly Safari DVD, which features Irwin in a prominent role. In fact, they were watching it yesterday on the flight back from Orlando. Strangely enough, another featured player in the Wiggles world, Paul Hester, committed suicide last year; he was Chef Paul on the show, but was better known as the drummer of Crowded House and Split Enz.
• I enjoy the writing of Chuck Klosterman, although I think this stupid "voice of a generation" stuff is a bit much. I've only read one of his four books, but the dude is without a doubt a talented mofo. He's got that snarky pop culture referencing and subreferencing thing that I enjoy going on.
• The NFL season is starting next weekend, and I have to say, I'm pretty excited. And on the horizon, the NHL is getting ready to open training camps. And the baseball playoffs will start next month, although I'll just be rooting against the Yankees. It's a great time of year.