(I walked in on Big Frog watching Monday Night Football on the last night of Fantasy Football playoffs.)
me: Are we winning?
Big Frog: We just need J. Cook to get 6 points.
me: Is that Jay or Jason?
Big Frog: I don't know. His first initial is J.
ne: What do you think it stands for?
Big Frog: Jeremiah.
me: Jeremiah? Was he a bullfrog?
Big Frog: No.
me: How can you tell?
Big Frog: I understood everything he said.
Joy to the world, y'all!
In wedding setup assignments, Big Frog graciously volunteered for something and wasn't heard.
me: No one notices the white guy.
After a query went up for someone to draft into the role, Big Frog made direct contact. And got the desired responsibility of carrying 20 pies. I have no doubt he can do that with aplomb, but if only 19 pies show up... or 18... 17... that means Big Frog is having a free for all with the other pies and a really big fork somewhere elsewhere.
Cyberhymnal.org is a wonderful resource. There are so many verses in so many old hymns that I've forgotten, and even more that I never even knew existed. If you use your computer to access it instead of mobile, there are even midi files for you to learn the classic hymntunes.
But its most valuable bit is that it's always with me because my phone is always with me. And so when Big Frog and I were listening to a hammer dulcimer hymns CD on a road trip, and I was chiming in on just the chorus, he called out, "Now for the mumbling part!" and I shamefacedly pulled out the Magic Hymnal.
(On the plus side, even though I couldn't come up with any of the verses of Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus, out of my head, when I saw them, I did know all 4 verses. Also 7 verses of Amazing Grace, although I would put them in a different order than cyberhymnal had.)
Many moons ago (last spring?), Big Frog was sleeplessly channel surfing and found a marvelous? thing. Late-night televised curling.
But not curling like this dude, Crush from Finding Nemo.
Curl away, my son!
Nope. Think significantly more Canadian than that. The kind of curling with a 44lb granite stone (Curiously, a curling stone weighs approximately, but not exactly, 3 stone.) with a handle, and sweepers wielding brooms. (Way back in high school, when my youth group went to play broom ball at the local ice rink, I thought we would be curling. Turns out broom ball is more like street hockey, sneakers and all, but played on ice.)
As Big Frog watched, he saw in the stands curling hats. CURLING. HATS. Like cheeseheads for Canadians. This was important enough that he remembered it and told me about it in the morning. We went online and there evidently is a significant market for these items.
(screenshots from curlinghats.com)
But would he want one? Would he wear one? Sadly (?), no. But a toss pillow, that might be fun (as long as it didn't weigh 44lb). I started stitching towards his birthday (admittedly without a fixed eye towards honestly getting it done in that time frame), got distracted into several other projects, and finally finished at Christmastime, if not technically for Christmas.
I've now known Big Frog longer than I didn't know him. I wasn't quite 18 when I started college, and that was 18 years ago. And due to our physics prof's wife (not that she was there, but she claims responsibility for our marriage), I met Big Frog my first week of classes, in physics lab. That prof's son, who was our ring bearer in 2001, is coincidentally starting his freshman year at Messiah this week.
Just last Sunday, I was talking to a high school senior who is taking AP physics this term. I told him that it could change his life. If I hadn't placed out of freshman physics, or if Big Frog hadn't been activated to serve overseas the year before, delaying his sophomore year, God would have needed entirely other means to bring us together.
Here's to the next 18 & beyond, Big Frog!
source: Blame it on the voices
Our mixed marriage on a night like tonight:
Big Frog: You broke his NOSE that one time!
me: We TOTALLY broke his nose that one time!
Or, simultaneously:
Big Frog: SQUAAAAAASH!
me: Go go go!
Go Ravens!
We have two guaranteed NFL head-to-heads/yr, & often another in the playoffs. Also we have a Big 10 head-to-head (most?) years, & one in cousins' league FF. So far we've never had all 3 in the same weekend, but I suppose it's possible.
Good thing the Sunday School on conflict resolution started today. :-)
"I'm breaking in a brand new pair of shoes Don't look at me like you think I've got the blues 'Cause I'm walking 'round and around and I'm seeing most of the town I'm just breaking in a brand new pair of shoes."
On a brighter note, here's an alligator video by one of my favorite children's illustrators, Sandra Boynton:
Big Frog got to Skype with his Collab mentees the other day. They greeted him with, "How's the afterlife?" and, "Welcome back from the dead!", which neither he nor I knew anything about. Don't you think that we would know at least something?
Turns out, one of our wonderful relationship-minded Collab friends, who was on the call, had come in the other day, mournfully reporting, "Big Frog died," which shocked her teammates, who had no idea that anything was even wrong with my hubby.
Fortunately, we're all getting better at asking good questions to get to the bottom of the matter. The team quickly learned how much this fabulous, hula-hooping individual appreciated & respected Big Frog. (Completely in earnest, not teasing in the least.) As she instantly realized what a galvanizing effect her words had on the team, she clarified, "I named my fish after you."
We didn't pay extra to choose our seats in advance, so we ended up flying rows and rows apart. Not a big deal, but...
Big Frog: I like flying next to you. You hold my hand when there's turbulence.
Middle Frog: Oh. There was turbulence? I was sleeping.
...Who (ostensibly a complete stranger) was next to you? Whose hand did you hold?
Big Frog: My own! And when a guy who's freaking out holds the hand of a guy who's freaking out, it's not very comforting!
Good morning, LORD! We are excited to see what surprises you have in store for us!
~ Big Frog's Wednesday prayer buddy
What if we invest in our people & they leave?
What if you don't and they stay?
TV host: There's a reason this is called Chopped Canada. One of you is going to be chopped.
Big Frog:I really thought that was going the other way.
me: Me too!
Big Frog: In this round everything must have maple syrup.
We've been caged together too long.
Had an interesting exchange with a friend recently about Wil having grown sons. It stemmed from Wil's recent blog entry. And although Big Frog has high school classmates who are already grandparents, we are really glad not to be there yet.
Joss also has kids, but the only other Whedons I can think of are his sibs.
