As I was thinking about what I would like to accomplish for 2012, I thought about my "11 goals for 2011".  I think this was partly a failure because I set too many lofty goals.  As the year goes on, life happens and your plans encounter detours.  So I think I’ll make six more generic goals.

Sort My Photos

I love taking photos.  Unfortunately, I’ve gotten lazy when it comes to taking the photos off the camera.  I’ve been sticking them into an "unsorted" folder and putting off filing them.  As I type this out, I have almost 5,000 photos (about 24GB worth) to file.  I want to be better at filing.

Improve FollowerHQ

I launched FollowerHQ last year and though I like it, I’m never fully satisfied.  I’d like to find some ways to improve on it.  I already have some ideas.  I just need to put them into code.

Promote Blog Posts

Currently, my promotion of blog posts involves an automated tweet when the post goes live.  Occasionally, I’ll tweet about it more, but all too often life takes over and I’ll forget.  I need to get into SocialOomph more to schedule tweets.  I also need to remember to post more on my Google+ page.

Cook More

I love cooking.  Sadly, due to many factors, I find myself reduced to making the same quick dishes over and over again.  In the last couple of weeks, I’ve relied on the microwave and/or canned foods all too much.  I want to cook from scratch more often and plan out meals again.

Give B More Breaks

B loves the boys and enjoys spending time with them.  However, having to deal with them (and their bickering and love of making loud noises) can wear her down.  She could use more time for herself.  (Either quiet time alone or girls’ nights out.)  I want to make a regular habit of taking the boys out (or keeping them in) so B can enjoy time off from being "mom."

More Date Nights

While B could use more breaks, I could too.  I’ll admit that there are times when I feel like we have so many things to worry about (home issues, boys, etc) that we don’t have time for one another.  I want to find more time for us to go out on date nights.

So there you have it, my resolutions for the coming year.

What resolutions/goals do you have for 2012?

Scroll graphic modified from one obtained via OpenClipArt.org.

Now that the new year is here, it’s time to look forward to the year ahead.  Of course, I never really got a chance to look back over the previous year.  So I’m figured I’d do that now.

2011 began with me resolving to finish what I started.  (Sadly, I wasn’t completely successful with this.)  I also began my yearly pledge to lose 20 pounds in 20 weeks.  Spoiler alert: I hit my goal and passed it.  Follow-up: I spent the rest of the year packing those 20 pounds back on.  And they brought some friends with them.  Going to need another one of these series this year also.

January also saw too much snow and ice, an EdenFantasys giveaway which had a record (for me) 116 entries (pssst…. Another one might be coming up soon), NHL expressing fear of dying, and me beginning my search for ideas for a trip for our upcoming 10th anniversary.

In February, we went to see the Albany Devils and NHL caught a hockey puck.  I also mentioned how I felt like I was repeating myself too often.  JSL engaged in some scientific inquiry and my boys and I got drawn into a guest post over at NoodleKnobs.

By March, I was ready for winter to be over.  Not only that, but I came down with a case of bloggy writer’s block. Luckily, a trip to Disney World for the Disney Social Media Moms conference was just the thing to cure both ills.  We went hunting for character autographs, saw some Disney Class in the form of Belle, found a lot of hidden Mickeys, got up close and personal with some butterflies, and saw some sand art get made.

April found me wondering how people handle stress.  We also took a semi-gross journey through the body and I mentioned how parenthood has shifted my concept of "gross".  As spring arrived, so did the birds and the bees (the latter of which were quite "busy").  I got to review the Green Lantern Colossal Cannon (great outdoors, a bit too much for an inside toy) and we celebrated Passover.  I also looked back on our Disney trip during April, including The Great Epcot Twitter Experiment, meeting Jen and John from CakeWrecks, getting jabbed in the arm by B for taking a certain photo on Small World, and riding Kilimanjaro Safari.

In May, spring flourished and we headed outdoors to review Aerobie Sprint Flying Rings and to have a Green Lantern Party.  On Mother’s Day, we went to see the circus.  When B went on a Mom Field Trip to see Rene Syler, I took the boys to Free Comic Day.  Sadly, May was also when B & I went public with a bullying incident that happened to NHL.  We wound up having to switch schools thanks to this.  On a bright note, JSL received a camera for his 4th birthday party, something he had been asking for for at least a month.  I also tried out a new grill only to fail before succeeding.  Finally, TwitPic changed their terms of service which some people thought might give them the right to sell people’s photos.  This led some folks to switch services, but I decided to go another route.  I set up my blog to receive photos from my phone, allowing me to "TwitPic" right to my blog.

As June rolled around, I reviewed the George Foreman Next Grilleration™ Removable Plate Grill.  We’re still using it to this day.  The boys and I also went on a photo shoot where we walked 100 steps from our front door and took 10 photos each.  We also made some smoothies and I donated blood.  Our tenth anniversary rolled around so we had a date night.  Finally, our plants were sprouting nicely, including plenty of peppermint.  (I have lots in the freezer to use during the winter.)

As July rolled around, we went cherry picking (we walked away with 45.2 pounds) and visited Niagara Falls.  I didn’t shy away from controversy when I pitted Nutella against Dark Chocolate peanut butter.  I talked about the Netflix Apocalypse and gave Netflix some tips to improve their service.  We also ended our long search for a tenth anniversary trip by making plans to go to DIsney World without the kids.  Right after we made those plans, though, our bedroom television decided to break requiring us to buy a new one.  Finally, I ruminated on the newly launched Google+,  I mentioned why it’s requirement to use real names (as opposed to pseudonyms like "TechyDad") might keep me away as well as how Google could fix the issue.  Later on, though, Google released Google+ Pages and I was able to make a TechyDad Google+ page.

August began with my birthday.  (Peanut Avacado Sushi is delicious!) The month also saw my boys (and my) Phineas and Ferb obsession hit overdrive with the Phineas and Ferb movie,  (I think we annoyed B a bit with the excited yelling during the Robot Riot sequence.)  NHL delved into Harry Potter and the Smurfs.  They also designed their own superheroes using Hero Machine.  Stress relating to our upcoming vacation and piling expenses took their toll.  NHL celebrated his eighth birthday and I moved our sites to a new server and host.  As August came to a close, we experienced an earthquake (well, some of us did – my office appears to be earthquake-proof) and a hurricane.  The latter forced us to cancel our 10th anniversary trip to Disney World.

In September, we recovered from some self-inflicted Hurricane Irene wounds.  I also gave a travelogue of the trip that Irene cancelled.  On the lighter side, we discussed why mommy was ‘broken’, I celebrated 3 years of blogging, avoided itch cream after some ninja mosquitos attacked, and talked like a pirate Disney-style.  Netflix reloaded after shooting themselves in the foot and shot themselves in the other foot.  We ate some apples and honey to celebrate Rosh Hashana.  In a display of spontaneity, B made last minutes plans to attend SheStreams, leaving the boys and I to have some adventures on our own.

October began with me taking animation lessons from JC Little (aka TheAnimatedWoman) and then giving those lessons to NHL.  Around Yom Kippur, a foolish PR vice-president challenged TheBloggess who demonstrated her relevancy.  After picking 39 pounds of apples, NHL and I went on a photo walk.  Netflix backed out of their splitting plan, but not before we ditched the DVD plans.  I introduced the other woman in our bed, had some trouble with proprietary plugs and irritating interfaces, and made Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Ice Cream.  I also launched my super secret Twitter application Rout,  Finally, in time for Halloween, we were all turned into Zombies.  (Don’t worry, the zombification only lasted one day.  A case of the 24 hour zombie flu, if you will.)

The highlight of November was my release of my real Twitter Application: FollowerHQ.  I also had some more time with my boys when B went to a bridal shower.  This one didn’t go as smoothly, though.  I thought about how one should always speak up when confronted by bullying and had my parents visit.  (No, those two items are not related.)  Finally, I dealt with a deluge of spam.

As December arrived, and the year wound to a close, I re-introduced Rout.  This time, upgraded as PlusRout.  We also saw The Muppets and went to the New York State Museum.  I reviewed a magic set that NHL got as an early Chanukah present and NHL painted an Angry Bird.  I also decided to take some inspiration from the story of the Maccabees to stand up to someone who was (and continues to) harass bloggers and companies.  On the cooking front, I made a very tasty Spaghetti Squash sauté.  Finally, we did some bunk bed shopping.

This has been a very busy year and I can’t wait to see what 2012 has to bring.

How did last year go for you?

This weekend was quite busy.  We started out shopping for bunk beds.  You see, JSL is still in his toddler bed.  However, despite our insisting, he’s growing up.  He’s going to need a regular bed.  Unfortunately, the boys’ room is too small for two twin-sized beds.  So we’re going to have to go vertical.

We think we’ve made our decision, so now we just need to purchase it.  Then, the fun part will be preparing the boys’ room for the bunk bed arrival and setup.  I’ll need to dismantle NHL’s current bed, JSL’s current bed, move a ton of stuffed animals, move toys out of the way, remove some Cars wall clings (that the bunk will likely just cover up), etc.  Of course, I can’t do all this too early or the boys will have nowhere to sleep.

In addition, to looking at bunk beds, we needed to pick up NHL’s painted Angry Bird.  I knew that the colors would be more vibrant once it was finished, but I was still quite impressed.

The boys begged to do some more projects right then and there, but the store was closing in a few hours and we had to get home (refrigerator/freezer groceries in the trunk).

The next day, however, was a lazy day in.  It was Christmas Day and, while we don’t celebrate, we decided to make it a family day.  Ok, the fact that most stores are closed might have factored into it.  Plus, the laziness thing.  Having a lazy day in every once in a while is good.

We mainly spent the day playing computer games and watching TV, including the Disney Parks Christmas Parade.  The boys love parades, though they repeatedly expressed frustration over this one.  Too much singing and not enough characters.  Oh, and when NHL saw Justin Bieber, he let out a loud "Yuck!"  I was so proud. *wipes away a tear*

We ended Christmas Day with our traditional Jewish Christmas Day Dinner: Chinese food.  I lobbied to go out to eat.  Either to a nice, sit-down restaurant or to a buffet.  I even tried inviting B’s parents to come with us, figuring that would help push us to get ready.  Still, though the boys were dressed, B and I were still in our PJs.  (Like I said: Lazy day!)  So we ordered takeout.  I tossed on some clothes and picked it up.

Pretty soon, JSL was munching on rice with sweet and sour chicken sans sauce. (We call it "Chinese Chicken Nuggets" to get JSL to eat it.)  NHL had the sweet and sour chicken and some chicken and broccoli.  B and I shared some steamed vegetable dumplings, vegetable egg rolls, and General Tso’s Bean Curd.  (Bean curd is tofu and tastes better than it sounds!)  Behold, my Christmas Dinner:

Yes, I know what you’re thinking.  Jews eating Chinese food for Christmas dinner.  How stereotypical!  Well, it’s our tradition and I’m a sucker for tradition (and Chinese food).

Hope your Christmas weekend was wonderful no matter how you celebrated it!

It seems like only yesterday that I was lamenting the ending of August.  I was sure that the nice, warm weather was soon to be replaced by cold, wind, and snow.  Summer was over, but I was in denial.  It didn’t matter if the thermometer read 50 degrees instead of 80.  It didn’t matter when snow began coming down.  I was still in a summer frame of mind.

Of course, I could only maintain denial for so long.  Eventually, I had to give in and admit that fall was here.  After all, the crunching of leaves under my feet isn’t particularly “summery.”  Neither is the need to put on a jacket before going out.

But here we are now, November 28th, and I’m suddenly struck by how quickly the months have gone.  I barely realized that October had begun and then we were taking the boys trick or treating.  The candy stashes from that holiday weren’t gone when it was time for turkey and Thanksgiving.

Now, we stand on the precipice of the winter holiday season.  The stores have long ago begun the annual Christmas assault – putting up decorations and playing music the minute Halloween was over as if Thanksgiving didn’t even exist.  Radio stations are going Christmas Music 24-7.  Shoppers are crowding malls for deals (and getting a little too aggressive, I might add).

I feel like someone has pressed fast-forward on the world’s remote control.  Can someone please find it and hit pause for a bit?

I’m a confident father who is ready for whatever life can throw at me.  If my wife wants to go to a family event, blogging conference, or anything else, I’m more than happy to watch the kids solo.  Most times, it’s father-son-son bonding time.  Fun times at the park, going out to eat, or just hanging around watching TV.  These things I can more than handle.  I live for these moments.  However, when something doesn’t go right, though, I feel my wife’s absence.

Don’t get me wrong.  I miss her when everything’s running smoothly.  It’s just that, when things are going well, everything’s going according to plan.  I’m comfortable on-plan.  The boys are having fun, B’s having some much-deserved time off, and I’m getting extra bonding time.  It’s win-win-win-win.  When bad things start to happen, though, I miss her insights into what we should do as well as her assistance in handling matters.  I just don’t feel as sure of myself when flying solo.

On Friday, B left for a family function.  That night, after going to sleep, JSL woke up with a coughing fit.  It sounded like he was congested and having trouble breathing.  I tried getting him to settle, but it wasn’t happening so I pulled him into my bed.  Usually, this helps him breathe better since his head will be elevated more.  It didn’t seem to help much, though.  I was up half the night with him.

The next night, after talking with B on the phone, I tried to get JSL to drink some liquid children’s Mucinex.  Now, JSL is afraid of taking this medicine.  He’s afraid it’ll make him puke.  He’s so afraid that he gets himself all worked up and… you guessed it.  He puked.  All over the hard wood floor and carpet (and again in the tub.  Somehow, he missed most of his clothes.

At this point, he was not only sick, but overtired.  There was obviously no way he would take his medicine.  Normally, I would change him and then B would stay with the boys while they fell asleep and while I cleaned up the mess.  Instead, I needed to stay with them.  I tried cleaning up the hard wood floor’s mess while asking NHL to get JSL in his pajamas, but that only resulted in NHL laughing at JSL’s shirt being on backwards.  *sigh*  Over I went, corrected the error, got the boys ready for bed (teeth brushed and gone potty), and asleep.  Then, I cleaned the floor and rug.  Then, I cleaned the tub out and reexamined JSL’s clothes just to be sure.

I’m so glad that B’s home again!

I was going to write a review post today, but that will need to wait for next week.  Last night, I got the news that Steve Jobs passed away.  While I might not own any Apple devices (B has an iPod Touch that her parents gave her when they didn’t use it anymore), Steve changed the way I use computers many times.  He designed computers with graphical interfaces when needed to type in commands.  He saw a future in computer animated films and helped make Pixar what it is today.  He saw a digital future for music and pushed the music industry towards this future at a time when illegal file sharing was seen by the industry as pushing them to ruin.  He innovated in smart phones, tablet computers and many other areas.

Steve wasn’t just a technologist, though.  He had some pretty wonderful views on life in general.  Here are some quotes from a commencement speech that he gave in Stanford in June of 2005.

Sometimes life hits you in the head with a brick. Don’t lose faith. I’m convinced that the only thing that kept me going was that I loved what I did. You’ve got to find what you love. And that is as true for your work as it is for your lovers. Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So keep looking until you find it. Don’t settle.

Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.

Of course, for full effect, don’t just read his words, but watch and listen to them too.

Rest in Peace, Steve.  You will be remembered for changing the world for the better.

During the recent open house at NHL’s school, we spoke with his teacher.  During the conversation, she urged B to relax about some things, saying it is under control.  B admitted to being quite a Type A personality.  That got me wondering: What type personality am I?

In most respects, I’m a Type B.  I’m laid back and am willing to let things happen.  I’ll take action when I need to, but I try to stay calm about it.  Perhaps this is my mother’s influence (she always told me not to “rock the boat”) or perhaps this is the result of being bullied growing up (staying unemotional was a way of protecting myself).  In any event, I’m willing to just accept what happens and make the best of it.

This aspect of my personality makes completing projects difficult.  I find myself relaxing about deadlines and putting off important work to relax with video games.  I often-times need a Type A personality pushing me to move past the deadline.

On the other hand, I can be very Type A at times.  I don’t like going out without some sort of plan as to what we’re doing.  Just “seeing what happens” isn’t my kind of outing.  I might not plan out every second of the excursion, but I’ll want to know the basics.  Furthermore, once I have a schedule of events in mind, I’m very resistant to changing it.  When Irene threatened to ruin our Disney World trip, I clung to the schedule up until the last moment.

With projects, my Type A personality kicks in during the middle of a project that I love.  I begin to chart out every aspect of the project, assign an estimate for completion and plan my work over the course of the next week or so.  I’ll spend hours coding one little feature because it needs to be perfect.

I can see the buds of this duality in NHL.  He’ll be very laid back about some topics, not particularly caring when (or if) something gets done.  Suddenly, though, Type A NHL will kick in and he’ll obsess over whether something is perfect or exactly when something will be done.

Of course, at this stage of his development, it’s quite clear where the A-B line is.  If you ask him to do something, it gets put into the B bucket.  Clean the toys on the floor?  Sure, that’ll happen.  Eventually.  (Maybe.)  Meanwhile, if it is something that he wants, into the A bucket it goes.  What TV show is on right now?  Sorry, mom and dad, but right now Looney Tunes Show is on and it’s a new show and I’ve got to see it right now and I know it’s being recorded on the DVR but it’s ON RIGHT NOW DON’T CHANGE THAT CHANNEL!!!!!!  (insert Stabby Face ala The Animated Woman.)

I guess, as NHL grows, I’ll be getting a taste of my own Type AB medicine.

Most people who know me would say that I’m very even tempered.  Perhaps to a fault, even.  I can take abuse after abuse and keep my calm while trying to resolve the situation.  Indeed, if we’re ever in a situation where we need an even head, I’m the person who makes the call.  When we need someone to be forceful and perhaps even raise their voice a bit, B handles it.  (See?  We compliment each other’s talents nicely!)

However, I have a confession to make.  I actually have a very bad temper.  A horrible one, in fact.  The problem is, my temper doesn’t usually flare against people unless they are very close to me.

Growing up, I was bullied mercilessly, but I rarely lost my temper.  Meanwhile, my sister could make me blow my top with a single word or action.  She was so good at it that she made it into an art form.  She would do something to me designed to make me lose my temper.  I would blow my top and get physical (e.g. push her down).  She would cry to my parents.  They would see her down and me standing over her and I would get punished.  At the time, I thought it was horribly unfair.  It still is, but I understand it more now that I’m a parent.  When you have 2 kids with conflicting stories as to what happened, the best you can do is rely on what you have seen occur.

Later, my sister got married and moved out.  My father became the person who pushed my buttons.  In this case, he didn’t mean to do so.  It was just that I was living back at home after the freedom of college and was having trouble following the “it’s my house, you’ll do it this way” rules.  So we’d fight (verbally, rarely physically), not talk to each other for a week and then (spurred on by my mother who hates conflict) would make up just in time for the next fight to begin.

Once I moved away from my parents, we got along much better.  He’ll still get on my nerves from time to time, but not to the “I’m not talking to you for a week” level.  Now, the people close to me are my wife and my kids.

I’ve written before about how I get quiet during arguments with B.  This is primarily because of my temper.  If I talk while I’m upset and my temper flares, I’m likely to make sweeping generalizing statements that are highly hurtful and not true at all.  This will not only hurt my case (nothing shatters your argument more than a poorly thought out personal attack), but will hurt B’s feelings.  While it might feel better in the short term to rant and rave rather than hold back, it’s better in the long term to calm down before discussing sensitive topics.

That leaves the kids.  Ideally, I’d like to say that I keep an even temper at all times and never yell.  This isn’t an ideal world, though.  I try to keep an even temper and not yell, but lately it seems like the boys have conspired to push my temper to the brink.

First, NHL will refuse to do what we tell him to do and insist that things have to be done the way he wants them done, WHEN he wants them done.  Then, JSL, having just seen his brother get in trouble, will repeat his brother’s actions perfectly.  NHL will yell and scream while JSL will make mocking faces.  My blood starts to boil as I raise my voice telling them to behave.  Finally, I’m yelling outright at them and sending them to their room.

When they’re in their room and I’m calming down, I’ll get hit by a streak of guilt.  They’re testing boundaries and need to be given firm reminders of what is and isn’t appropriate, but I feel awful when I yell at them.  I *want* to be the fun loving parent who plays with them all the time and has a blast.  I don’t want to be the rule-setting parent who comes down hard on them if they decide to scream and try to run away from us in the middle of a store.  However, I have to be both.  It’s a tricky line to walk sometimes.

I definitely have room for improvement in not letting my temper get the best of me.  I’ve had success in the past with the “repeating things three times” method.  (Tell them once.  Say “Second time… [repeated message].”  Then say “THIRD TIME! [repeated message]. Do NOT make me repeat myself AGAIN!”)  I need to force myself to rely on methods like that more than yelling.

Do you ever find yourself losing your temper with your children?  What do you do when this happens?

Some days, it just doesn’t pay to be a grown up.  I remember, back when I was a child, “expenses” was a fancy word which my dad might use to tell me why they couldn’t afford to buy me that new toy that I wanted (after I had gotten tired of the other once-new toys I had).  Money was a boring subject which only got interesting when you found some on the sidewalk.  As an added bonus, the perspective of monetary value was all skewed.  That’s a fancy way of saying that I thought I was rich when I found $10 on the ground.

As I got older, I began to understand more and more what money was and how important it could be.  To some degree, I was still protected from the harsh realities.  My parents paid the bulk of my tuition and other assorted costs.  The rest were paid by loans.  Oh sure, I’d need to pay those back, but to a college student, paying by loan (which wouldn’t need to even start being repaid until you graduated) was essentially the same as free.

Once I graduated, I decided to get a job.  This wasn’t so much because I needed the money, mind you, as because I wanted to accomplish something.  I had decided against graduate school because that seemed like more theoretical work and I wanted to make stuff.  Meanwhile, having left the college dorms behind, I moved back in with my parents.  Yes, I bought a car and thus had payments to make, but the lack of rent, repair costs and more kept me from feeling the harsh sting of reality.

Still later, I got married and B and I lived in an apartment.  I was finally in The Real World.  We made rent payments, paid our phone and cable bills and made sure all the other expenses were taken care of.  I saw that splurging on something for me made a dent in our saving account balance and so I tried to rein in my urge to splurge.

When we had NHL, of course, the expenses multiplied.  Suddenly, there was this little guy who almost literally ate money.  We needed money for clothes for him (which he went through all too quickly), money for diapers for him (which he’d fill up for us), and, once he began eating solid foods, money for food for him.

Next, we moved into a house.  This was the American Dream, right?  Own your own house?  Well, at times the Dream seemed more like a Nightmare.  Some days, it felt like everything in the house gathered in a great big conga-line waiting for its turn to break.  It felt like money went out for repair costs as fast as it came in.  Add in a second child and I often felt like I was running on a monetary treadmill.  One that someone turned up to level 20.  Jane!  Stop this crazy thing!

Why the sudden interest in money?  Well, as you know, we booked a trip to Disney World for just the two of us.  This is a splurge for us as our usual “time to ourselves” is a meal out (preferably someplace we have a coupon for) while B’s parents watch the kids.  Still, it’s our 10th anniversary so we figured we’d do something special.  Considering that our honeymoon was also in Disney World, this will, in some ways, be a second honeymoon for us.

Still, once the trip was booked, that conga-line marched on.  First, our bedroom TV went dead.  This was an old, CRT, non-HD television so it was bound to die eventually.  I lugged it downstairs and brought in a spare TV we had.  (Also, an old CRT, non-HD set.)  Except, that set was dead too.  So we had to buy a new TV.

Then, last night as I was shutting down and preparing to go to sleep, I tried to close my laptop.  I felt something odd, like it was snapping in two.  Alarmed, I opened it up and saw that it was coming apart.  Panicked, I booted it back up.  Luckily, it still worked.  I just couldn’t close the lid.  So I backed up my laptop, shut it down, and carefully put it to the side.  Now, I need to find a place to repair it and hope it doesn’t cost too much.  If it does, it might be cheaper to just buy a new laptop.  Either way, it’s another expense that we really didn’t need.

Some days, being an adult is overrated.  Can I go back to being a kid again?  Maybe just for a day?

If I ramble a bit today, it’s because I’ve been burning the midnight oil lately.  I came up with an idea for a Twitter application (more on that later) and, after a few false programming starts, suddenly found myself in a coding zone.  I would come up with new ideas and then implement them quickly.  As midnight approached each night, I would suddenly get a burst of energy.  My mind would race with ideas and bug-solving solutions.  I wouldn’t be able to go to sleep because I needed to “just code this one last thing… or maybe this one then I’ll go to sleep…”

Of course, I’m not 22 anymore.  I can’t code all night, sleep for four hours and then take on the new day full of energy.  Well, I can to a small degree.  Being a parent has shown me just how little sleep I can survive on.  When your baby wakes up every hour or two and stays awake for hours on end completely oblivious to the fact that it is 2:30 am, you find out just what sleep deprivation is like.  Luckily, our boys aren’t like that anymore (usually).  They go to sleep (albeit with various degrees of cooperation) by 8:30pm and sleep until 6am (when NHL, weekday or weekend, wakes me up to ask if it’s ok for him to go to the couch).

Still, I’m turning 36 in a couple of months.  Thirty-Six.  I’ve got to start realizing that I’m not a young man anymore.  After three late nights, I was really tired.  I probably should have gone to sleep early last night.  Still, I stayed up until midnight.  I might have even been fine with that, but other events conspired against me.

First, it was a call from work with an issue.  I helped as much as I could and then went to bed.  At 3 am, I got a second call from work.  At the same time, NHL woke up and asked to come into our bed.  After a half an hour, my call was done and I tried to get back into bed.

I got less than a half hour’s worth of sleep before JSL woke up crying.  He asked to come into our bed, but that just couldn’t happen.  One kid in our bed is a tight fit.  Two kids and there would be no room for us grown-ups.  So I asked him if he’d want to sleep with me in NHL’s bed.

I grabbed my pillow and cuddled with JSL in NHL’s bed but couldn’t fall asleep.  Right outside our window, some birds apparently decided that 4am was the perfect time to tweet and squawk incessantly.  This went on for about another half hour.  I finally fell asleep and slept fitfully for an hour and a half when B woke me up so I could go to work.

I think I’ll go to sleep at 9pm tonight… Unless I get some coding ideas for my new Twitter application.  Then maybe I’ll go to sleep an hour later. Or two hours.  Or… wait, how’d it get to be 1am so quickly?!!!

Ok, I know I said “more on that later” about my Twitter application, so here’s a teaser.  It’s an application designed to make it easier to manage your friends and followers.  I’m quite proud of the work I’ve done and can’t wait to release it.  My biggest obstacle right now is that I need to figure out a good name for it.  I’m hoping to find something catchy with an available dot com and Twitter handle.  I’m open to ideas if anyone thinks of anything catchy.  I’ll even credit you in the application when it launches.