Catching up

[Murfreesboro]

Ah, dry eyes. I'm taking glaucoma drops for the first time (started in March), and I think they're making my eyes dry, too. It's a small price to pay.

Glad to hear colors are still looking great!

[TheHeadlessHorseman]

Andy - I'm glad to hear that your procedures went well, I hope that you have been taking it easy.

Murf - I hope that you have been enjoying your Summerween.

This is going to be a short post, I got back on Monday and I'm just swamped with a pile of things to do at work, but I will be back with more details when I have the time to sit and type it.

I had some great conversations with Millie that I'm thankful to have had with her.

Phoebe won first place in her age group at the Nationals, the tournament went well with only one incident, and there was also a situation at the winners dinner that night, I'll explain later.

The kids are officially on summer vacation, and last week Sam told me that she wanted to work at the restaurant with me for the summer, I was confused at first because I would have thought that she would rather work with her mother at the bakery. Anyway, she started working here today and it didn't take long to figure out why she chose the restaurant ... there's a cute boy working here that she has a crush on, they are both working as greeters at the front of the restaurant, he's 14 and she will be 12 next month, I observed her fawning over him the whole day, but he barely noticed her, so maybe I don't have to worry about it. Man, she's growing up.

I've got to start decorating the businesses tomorrow for the anniversary celebration, and prepare for Phoebe's birthday, we will also be celebrating her win, so it's going to be a big party for her. Come on, you guys know the words, so say it with me ... because everybody knows ... what Phoebe wants, Phoebe gets.

[Murfreesboro]

Many congrats to Phoebe for being National Champion in her age group! Just think how few people are ever able to say that at any period of their lives.

Have a great 4th!

[TheHeadlessHorseman]

Thanks Murf! I hope that you and your family enjoy the festivities!

I have a lot to cover so I'm going to divide my posts, I'll be back later to tell you about the tournament.

The trip to Florida ...

As usual, we visited the various attractions, we went to Disney for only one day, and we went to Universal for 4 days this vacation. I swear to you that with Simpsons and Nintendo world, and the Universal Monsters, I enjoy the theme park waaaaay more than my kids do.

But the main reason we were there was because of Millie's birthday, but since her big birthday was last year, not that many family members showed up this year. On the day of her birthday my family decided to play a trick on her and put 101 candles on her cake, but the joke was on them because she actually blew out every single candle.

While I was there I got to have some of the most interesting conversations with Millie that I've ever had. I asked her if I could record the conversations for the next generations of the family and she was more than happy to sit there and tell us everything that she could remember from the last century of her life. In fact, she wouldn't stop talking, and I got about 10 hours of footage over the course of a few days. She told us things about her life and the family that even I didn't know before.

I also asked her about her memories of the Bicentennial 50 years ago, and she had some great stories about the various celebrations that happened. When I pointed out to her that she was a year old when the 150th anniversary occurred, she paused for a moment and said ... I guess I was, but I don't remember anything about it. Then I asked her how she felt about the upcoming 250th anniversary, and assuming that she makes it to the 4th, the possibility that she will have been here for 3 milestones in this country's history. Again, she paused, then said ... Well sh*t! ain't I f*cking lucky? With the way things are going, it looks like I'm still going to be here for the f*cking Tricentennial ... then she started to cackle.

But then she got serious and started talking about the current state of the world, and the horrific things that she's witnessed. She said that in her opinion the evil in the world today has far surpassed that of Sodom and Gomorrah, and she wonders why the good Lord hasn't come back yet to cleanse the world. She said that now, more than any other point in history, is when we need saving. Then she said ... then again, I'm still here, and I told you that I would be here until the end, so I ain't leaving until everybody else does. We were just staring at her silently because we didn't know what to say, she saw that and then said that there is also beauty in the world, and started talking about positive things.

I'm glad that my kids got to talk with her about life, and every time that we are there I tell them to appreciate the time they have with her because we don't know how long she has. She was also enthusiastic about Phoebe's upcoming tournament, and she told her to ... kill em all! Phoebe said ... I will grammy. That's what the younger family members call Millie. Before we left she told me that she is so proud of them, and she loves them so much, and she said that when she goes she will watch over them. I gave her a hug and I told her that we would come back to visit soon.

We will be calling her on the 4th, hopefully she won't be sleeping.

[Murfreesboro]

Oh, my, I really did laugh out loud at what Millie said about the US celebrations! What a treasure that you recorded ten hours of her conversation. Get those tapes duplicated, transcribed, whatever, Pronto!

I think a great many people are feeling apocalyptic vibes right now. I think my younger two kids are almost paralyzed by their intuition that we are living in the end times. They could be right, but it frustrates me that they aren't living their lives to the fullest, IMO. Dark times shouldn't be an excuse not to strive for better.

At any rate, I intend to celebrate this 250th Fourth of July. What a blessing for us and the whole world that our nation has endured for so long! I feel such sincere gratitude and admiration toward that founding generation, and I have to believe that God's providence has been guiding us.

[TheHeadlessHorseman]

In a way I understand how your younger kids feel. As I said before, when I was growing up throughout the 90s, and as we approached the year 2000, we were bombarded by people predicting that the end would arrive on that date. I knew people that were convinced that it would happen, so they didn't care to accomplish anything and they just sat around waiting for it. I was somebody that believed that that a big event would occur on that date, but I didn't think that the world would end, and I continued to get up every day and go to work because I had to pay the rent, and I was hopeful that the Earth would still be here when 2000 arrived.

Of course, nothing happened and life went on, then they said the world would end on X date, and then another X date, and when it doesn't happen people will use any excuse they can to explain why they got the date wrong, and why the end is still coming. I learned that there's no point in wasting your time here worrying about when the end will arrive, it will happen when it does, and it will probably be after we're long gone.

The conversations we recorded with Millie are already backed up on the cloud, and I'll be making digital copies for the rest of the family soon. I just hope that they appreciate her stories and the wisdom that comes from her years of experience that she has passed on to them.

Millie called us yesterday on the 3rd to wish Phoebe a happy birthday, the thing is that phoebe's birthday is on the 5th on Sunday, I guess she either didn't remember the date, or read it wrong, I mean, I guess that a 3 can look like a 5. When I told her that it was on Sunday she said ... Well, tell my ninja baby that I said happy birthday because I'm not calling back. Millie doesn't really know anything about martial arts, so she calls Phoebe her ninja baby. Then again, ninjas train specifically to be assassins, so maybe she knows something about Phoebe that the rest of us don't.

The businesses are decorated for the anniversary, and on Fri. we had a increase in customers, so I'm hoping that people will be out celebrating this weekend. The diner is ready for Phoebe's birthday party on Sun. I hope that she enjoys the 50s atmosphere of the party.

It's after midnight here, so I hope that everybody has a great day enjoying the celebrations with your families. Have fun, eat well, and live well. Stay safe and healthy my friends.

[Murfreesboro]

Maybe Millie has Phoebe's birthday tied to the Fourth in her mind. Either one day before or one day after, and she got it mixed up. I have a friend at church whose birthday s one day before mine, and she often thinks my birthday is one day before hers. She knows it's close, but she can't remember if I'm before or after her. Since I'm about 14 yrs older than she is, she probably thinks my birthday should come first, but it doesn't.

Yes, safe and happy Fourth to one and all! It's a little damp here this morning, but I--think-- it's supposed to fair off before fireworks tonight. Nashville had planned a two-day event for the 250th, but I read that they had to cancel last night because of some feisty thunderstorms in the early evening.

[Andybev01]

At first, my thought was to print out the hours of conversation with Millie , but then I thought it would probably be as long as an old printed encyclopedia set.

[Murfreesboro]

I think having her conversation in as many forms as possible would be a good idea.

[TheHeadlessHorseman]

I agree, and there are programs that can automatically translate audio to text that can then be printed. However, if I'm being honest, we are living in a society where reading is becoming less common with the younger generations, and it's reasonable to assume that will only get worse with the generations yet to come. It might be useful to The Smithsonian, but I doubt that they would be interested in it.

Phoebe's birthday party was great, I got to dance with both my girls, my wife, and my mother, it was a beautiful evening.

Well, you can read about the tournament below if you want to, but it's long and overly detailed, so I suggest that you just go to the end of the post.


My wife and I were concerned for Phoebe heading into this tournament, we knew that she would do well, but this wasn't going to be like the kids around here, and she would be competing against some of the best kids in the country, so we were worried about her, but her instructors were confident that the other kids didn't stand a chance against her ... and they were right.

In the weeks leading up to the tournament Phoebe was training relentlessly for it, she has been trying to learn how to perfectly do a move called a flash kick, it's one of the hardest moves for anybody to do, even most adults with years of experience are incapable of doing it, but you know Phoebe, she won't let that stop her, it's just another obstacle for her to conquer. I'll try my best to describe the move to you ... the person doing the kick stands with their body perfectly straight, their arms can be by their sides, or in a punching position, then they do a backflip but they can't bend their knees or their body when they do it, and while they are doing the backflip they use their foot to kick their opponent in the face. Again, they must execute the kick while their entire body and legs remains straight while doing a backflip. Like I said, even the most experienced adults that have been training for years can't do it.

I must have sat there and watched Phoebe try to do it almost a thousand times over the course of a few weeks, and she's almost there, but she still bends slightly when she does it, she thinks it's because her body is naturally reacting to her gymnastics training, as the body naturally bends during a backflip. She knows that she will eventually get it right. She has also been in the basement hitting the heavy bag with kicks every day, and walking around the house on her hands lately, and doing vertical pushups against the wall, she says that it's to build her core strength, and her arms and legs are extremely toned now. Along with eating healthier, this kid is definitely serious about her training.

As usual, she plowed through the competition for both days of the tournament, and I know that I said the same thing about the last tournament she competed in, but I've never seen her so focused, and this time she went out there absolutely determined to beat everybody. She was just kicking the Hell out of everybody without hesitation, and unfortunately, she eventually hurt one of her opponents, but this time it wasn't intentional or malicious. The other girl was trying to defend against Phoebe's kicks, and she turned herself toward Phoebe, and Phoebe kicked her so hard that she broke her arm. I swear to you that I haven't ever heard a kid scream so loud before, and I legitimately felt bad for her, but that's the risk you take competing. They knew that Phoebe didn't do it deliberately so she didn't get any points deducted for it. My wife was quick to point out to me the vicious smile on Phoebe's face after she broke that kid's arm, and she wasn't happy about it.

So eventually she made it to the finals of the tournament, and the girl that she was competing against was very similar to her, she's 11 and she had a reputation for being ruthless to her opponents, she was undefeated and also the defending champion in that age group for the previous 2 years, So she was the favorite to win the tournament again. We watched her compete for both days of the tournament and she was always intimidating her opponents with her aggressive approach, so I thought to myself that Phoebe might have finally met a opponent with the experience and viciousness that she might not be able to beat.

Well, Phoebe went out there and beat the sh*t out of her, at first they were both throwing rapid fire shots at each other, both of them countering the other's moves, this went on for over a minute, and the crowd was going nuts, it was like watching a movie, neither of them would stop attacking, then Phoebe landed the first punch to her chest. The girl was pissed that Phoebe got the first point, the referee sent them both back to their side of the mat, but as soon as Phoebe turned, the girl tried to take a cheap shot at her by trying to kick her in the back, but as if she could sense it coming, Phoebe turned around and blocked it before the girl could hit her.

The crowd was cheering loud because she was able to counter it even though her back was turned to the girl. The referee gave the girl a point deduction for unsportsmanlike conduct even though she didn't have any points in this match yet, so even if she landed a hit on Phoebe she would be a point behind. But that was irrelevant because Phoebe was angry now, after she stopped that girl from trying to hurt her, I saw the smirk on Phoebe's face, and I could tell that she was going to punish her, and I knew it was game over for that girl.

When the match restarted, before the girl could react, Phoebe did a vicious spinkick to her stomach, the girl was stunned and hunched over in pain, and then she drove her elbow into her back, then she gave her a thrust kick to the face. The girl was knocked on her a** and her nose was bleeding, the crowd was screaming in excitement, it's the first time during the tournament that anybody ever knocked her down. The referee gave Phoebe a point deduction for it, and went to check on the girl, after a minute she got up and said that she wanted to continue ... big mistake. They were both without any points now, and the match restarted, the girl came running toward Phoebe and throwing punches, she outmaneuvered every shot, then she gave the girl a kick to the crotch. The girl dropped and the referee gave Phoebe another point deduction for it, meaning that she was now 2 points down, and he gave her a warning that if she gave one more illegal hit that she would be disqualified for it.

The match started again, and Phoebe arrogantly put her hands behind her and the girl ran toward her again throwing punches, Phoebe just stepped back again and again, moving herself out of the way while the girl was getting frustrated that she couldn't hit her, then Phoebe did another spinkick to her chest and scored a point. Another restart, this time Phoebe did a backflip then jumped toward the girl and kicked her directly right in the hip, the girl dropped again, you could tell she was in pain from it, she tried to get up but she couldn't continue, so Phoebe won the match, and the tournament.

To say that everybody was shocked is a understatement, Phoebe went into this tournament as a unknown 8 year old from nowhere, sure, there was some buzz around her from what she's done in our area, but nobody expected her to realistically go in there and beat and humiliate a 11 year old 2 time undefeated champion in her first Nationals tournament. The crowd was wild, the commentators were praising and criticizing her performance and the way that she won. Some people loved it that she taught that other girl a lesson, and others think that she's worse than that girl was. Some people started calling her Phoebe The Phenom, and Phenomenal Phoebe, while some people have said that she's the new bad girl of the tournament circuit.

But the fun didn't stop there, that night they held the winners dinner where the winners of each category and their families are invited to have dinner and meet with tournament officials and sponsors. We were approached by quite a few companies interested in sponsoring her, my wife and I politely listened and told each of them that we would consider their offers. The tournament officials and board members there were going around for photo opportunities with the winners, when they got to Phoebe they were telling her how much they loved her performance, and they were looking forward to her defending her title next year. I looked over at my wife, and I could tell that she wasn't happy, but my mother and my wife's parents were excited for her, and my father-in-law told them that she would definitely be back to mop the floor with competition.

Later in the evening, Phoebe was at the buffet with her instructors and coaches, and they were approached by the teammates and coaches of the girl that Phoebe beat. The kids there had won in their age groups as well, and one of them and the coaches congratulated her on the win, then the other girl there, she is 14, said that Phoebe wasn't that tough, and that she would kick her a** but she doesn't beat up babies. Phoebe scoffed at her and said ... you can try, but you're so pathetic that you couldn't beat me if I had 2 broken arms ... The girl got upset, and she said that she would beat her up right here, but she didn't want to embarrass her in front of everybody. Phoebe said ... well, don't let that stop you, b*tch! I'm right here, take your shot, and I'll beat you like I did to your girlfriend.

I honestly don't know in what context she used the word girlfriend in, if she meant it like most girls call their female friends girlfriends, or if she was implying that they are ... uh, anyway ...

The dining room went quiet, and the girl stood there looking angry, her coaches were telling her to walk away, and she should have listened, but you know how some people are, too stupid for their own good. She pulled away from her coaches and put her hands up like she was going to throw a punch at Phoebe, but before she could lift her arms up fully, Phoebe struck her in the chest with a punch, then she tripped her leg and her a** hit the ground, then she grabbed a tray of pasta from the buffet table and dumped it on her. The whole dining room erupted with laughter, then some of the tournament officials came over to diffuse the situation, and I immediately thought to myself ... Oh sh*t! I'm going to have to pay another fine ... but to my surprise, some of them told Phoebe that she handled the situation appropriately. My wife's father said ... damn right she did.

That night at the hotel my wife went to visit her parents for awhile in their room, while my mother and the kids were with me, and I asked Phoebe how did she know that girl was going to kick her when her back was turned? She said that she just knew, and that's why she made that b*tch suffer for trying to hurt her. My mother laughed and gave her a hug, and told her how proud of her she was. When my wife got back to the room she looked calmer, and she told Phoebe that she was happy for her. The next day we got back here. Last night my wife and I had a conversation about this, she said she doesn't want Phoebe getting into fights with teenagers, and she doesn't like it when she hurts other kids, and that one day she's going to meet somebody that she can't beat. I said ... maybe, but if that happens she will get back up and continue to fight because that's the way she is, and she didn't start that fight with that teenager, but she knocked her on her a** and proved that she can handle a larger opponent. I mean, shouldn't you be happy that your 8 year old can beat up a 14 year old bully? She said ... I am, but I still worry for her.

I think my wife is being hypocritical, I mean, we have already agreed that when our kids each turn 13 that we will start teaching them how to use firearms, and the reason that we put them in martial arts classes is so that they can defend themselves in this f*cked up world. So Phoebe can break wooden boards and people's bones, isn't that a good thing? I know that my wife hasn't ever been in a single fight in her life, I know because she told me, so she doesn't know what it's like, but would she rather that her kid comes home beat up, or would you prefer if your kid was doing the a** kicking? Besides, as I've mentioned before, Phoebe hasn't ever been in a fight at school, or anywhere else outside of a sanctioned environment, she hasn't ever bullied another kid or been mean to anybody, so why do some people think she's a bad kid? I mean, I know that she's a sweet kid, even my mother, my wife's parents, and Millie are proud of her, so why does it bother my wife?

On a side note, I was talking to my mother about Phoebe, and she thinks that she might have MPD or something like that. She said that it's interesting the way that Phoebe can switch her personality from a regular little girl that is adorable and just wants to have fun, and asks the quizzical questions that any typical 8 year old does, and then it's like she just flips the switch and she becomes a vicious and remorseless person that will hurt anybody without hesitation when she's competing. Then my mother said ... You know, that reminds me of your father ... The way that he would show the whole world this nice guy facade, and nobody ever knew the evil in him until it was too late. I nodded affirmatively, then I asked her, did you notice the smirk? She said ... you mean the same one that you and your father have when you're about to unleash Hell on somebody? Yes, I saw it, but it doesn't mean that she will ever be anything like him, because you are aren't like him, you're a better man than I ever expected you to be, and I know she will grow up to be a good person like you. Then she said ... I honestly wish that I was as strong as Phoebe is, and I don't just mean physically, I'm talking about her spirit, that's why nobody can get under her skin. My mother is right.

Of course, with this win comes new opportunities for Phoebe, and while my wife and I absolutely agree that we won't allow any corporate sponsorship until she's 16, I also don't want her to miss out on some of the opportunities that will be presented to her. I know from my experiences growing up, and the opportunities that I was cheated out of for one reason or another, that I won't let those opportunities pass her by.

Anyway, she doesn't have any tournaments until Sept. and I'm sure you guys are tired of hearing me go on and on about this, so you won't have to hear anything about my ninja baby for awhile.

[Murfreesboro]

Well, that's a very impressive account. I do understand your wife's concern, too. Mothers are always going to worry about any potential harm to their children. That's just the way we're built. I'd be worried that Phoebe, an unknown in this tournament, might be targeted at future tournaments. But she appears to thrive in this type of competition, so as long as she's enjoying it, and channeling whatever latent aggression she has into her sport, good for her.

That 14-yr-old was unsportsmanlike to taunt Phoebe outside the arena. She brought that episode on herself.

[Andybev01]

Oh I'm not tired of these stories at, all.

[TheHeadlessHorseman]

The one thing that impresses me the most about Phoebe is her level of dedication at this age. If you look at some of the most successful people, regardless of what field they are in, they started out with unyielding dedication to their path at a early age, and they continued to pursue their goals even when others doubted them. People like Schwarzenegger, Stallone, and countless athletes that achieved the highest accolades, and surpassed expectations because they knew that they were the best, even when they were younger.

When it comes to sports, I'm the laziest bastard you will ever meet, and the rest of my family isn't athletic either, so I honestly don't know where Phoebe gets her physical abilities from. I have watched her training, and this kid is a machine, she's always looking for ways to improve herself, and now that she's doing yoga and eating healthier, she knows that the results are worth the effort that she's putting in, and no matter what, I will always be there supporting her on this journey.

When you're number 1 and at the top, you're always going to be the target, it doesn't matter what it is, in school, in business, in life, everybody that is beneath you is hungry and they are coming after you, that's why you have to fight endlessly to retain your position. I know from experience, I can't tell you how many people thought that they would open a restaurant across the street to compete with us, even before I started working here, and each and every one of them is gone because they didn't understand anything about business, and now we are the only restaurant on this whole street, and still standing after almost 60 years.

So I know that people are going to be targeting her at the tournaments, because they want her spot, but they don't no what she's capable of, and they are going to find out the hard way. As for that 14 year old girl at the dinner party, I get it that she was angry about her teammate that Phoebe beat, and if she was just throwing insults then Phoebe would have just argued back because she's really good at getting under other people's skin, but as soon as that girl raised her arms and Phoebe saw a threat, she reacted accordingly and put that girl in her place.

Would that girl have actually tried to hit Phoebe at that moment, or was she just acting tough in front of everybody? It's hard to say, at the tournament her teammate was going to illegally kick Phoebe when her back was turned, and throughout the tournament their whole team was aggressive against the other competitors, so they seem to have a reputation for being a**holes, so she might have been willing to punch a 8 year old to make herself feel like a big shot. I suppose the good thing is that they are from another State, so it's not like Phoebe will run into them around here, though even if they did, I'm sure that they would regret it.

If that girl and her teammates are looking for revenge at the tournament next year, they can try, but it won't go well for them, that 14 year old won't even get to compete against Phoebe for a few years because they are in different age groups. Phoebe is currently in the 6-12 age group, so it's going to be a few years before she competes in the 13-18 group, and by then that girl will be 18, so she has to wait to fight Phoebe, and if I'm being honest, if she's this damn good at this age, think how lethal she will be in a few years.