The Sushi Study

I have had my children participate in many clinical studies specializing in vaccine trials since they were babies through TASC Research Services. If they fell within a certain age group we were called upon, and I took the opportunity to participate in these important studies to advance vaccine availability. Most recently, Sabrina was in the Herpes Simplex/ Hepatitis A vaccine study.

About a month ago we received invitation to participate in a Five-Year Immunogenicity Follow-up Study on the use of a vaccine to protect against diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis (whooping cough), which Brandon received exactly five years ago. This new study is to describe the persistence over time of antibodies to the afforementioned, which means all they want is his blood....and this time they are going to pay $50.00.

Usually the studies are long, you need to chart your child everyday and keep notes and records of swollen needle sites, fever, rash, etc. and you were telephoned by a nurse to describe symptoms, everything and anything....for free. I certainly didn't expect compensation to receive the newest and greatest of medicines for my children.

Tonight Brandon signed on the dotted line, slowly and neatly, with such dedication and pride filling out a form which was being witnessed by a nurse, and he himself, agreeing to the study and allowing them to take his blood.

And with his 50 bucks, he wanted to give to his mom and dad to pay bills.

Tonight I went and bought him sushi for dinner, his favorite...and bought extra for his lunchbox tomorrow.

H2 Hummer Transformer Instructions

Brandon's H2 Hummer Transformer toy came with difficult instructions to follow, especially for an 11 year old kid. With practice and the help of Phil, he finally mastered the transformation. And since he's such a YouTube kind of kid, he decided to upload kid-friendly instructions.
So unless you have kids into this sort of stuff, you may find it boring. I have added a YouTube clip just for you at the end of this post.

Part 1 of 2

Part 2 of 2

AND, following is a cool YouTube animation in reverse transformation...

Cool Magic Trick....

Ladybug, Ladybug, fly away home...your house is on fire

An update to my "Royal Canadian Mounted Poops" posting which was about my son being accused of lighting a fire at a townhouse complex, the accuser...a 9 year old boy, and the need for my ..... OUR tax dollars at work to send two frickin' police cars to my residence to investigate .... and the continuing nonsense dealing with low-life scum, loser trash people who call themselves parents.

Last Friday this boy was caught with a matchbox of wooden matches, intending to set a gas can on fire. Enough said.

It makes one wonder how kids begin to think of destruction and blame and if this is just the first step into their career of crime. How sad some parents turn a blind eye to smooze their lives over as a functional family unit.

Oh, yes, the picture is depicting Hans Christian Andersen story about a poor little girl who tries to sell matches to the townspeople of a small town at Christmastime to no avail. Snow begins to fall and Christmas Eve is upon them. All find shelter except for the Little Match Girl.

The Little Match Girl strikes a match and envisions dolls and stuffed animals that come to life from the Toy Store. She strikes another match and sweets from the Candy Store come to life and dance for her.

and.....-sob- -sob- -sob-

My gut instinct tells me this boy will never see such fantastic plays such as The Little Match Girl, or Oliver, things my mom took us to when we were kids, as I pass down to the next generation - my kids - art, inspiration and wonderment.

He's striking a match for other reasons and it sure isn't about keeping warm.

Daymares

It appears Brandon is going through his tourettes phase again, with spontaneous yelps for no reason at all. I spy on him as he watches T.V. and out pops the occasional "YEAOWWW".

Brandon, are you aware you're making noises? "No I'm not....YEAOWWW".

This is probably why his teacher called last week to discuss Brandon's behavior during class. I wish teachers would just come out and say it instead of beating around the bush, "your god-damned kid is disturbing my classroom". Don't tell me his attention span waivers, don't tell me he's disorganized, and don't tell me his academics are fine but maybe an aid will settle him down. Jesus Murphy, tell me he's yelping!

Then maybe I can tell you prior to the sounds there were arm flips, like a huge chicken wing flapping up to make an armpit fart. Or maybe the eye squints, or the head jolts, or the hysterical cries in the morning, "Please don't make me go to school...please!"

Then maybe I can tell you prior to all these tourette-like symptoms, he was being beaten up and bullied by bigger boys. You would have heard about the bus incident when a Grade 10 boy held him down and rubbed a penny up and down his main artery in his arm...just to see it bruise. And the retarded bus driver did nothing about it but make Brandon sit up front with her.

Or the group of Grade 7 boys who snatched his bike away from him, rode the crap out of it trying to break the suspension, then throw it down the creek, followed by ripping his bike helmet off his head to spit inside it.

Or more recently, how he is being verbally abused by a drunkard father of some kid who falsely accused Brandon of lighting fire in their shithole of a townhouse complex. And when he walks home from school he is intimidated by brow-beating glares by that boy's skank mom.

And yesterday, when a kid grabbed Brandon by the neck and began choking him...he could barely get the words out, "I can't breathe".

Brandon walks inside the house and plops himself down, as if nothing happened at all. After a few minutes or so, he slowly begins to tell me what happened, almost like he's embarrassed or ashamed, "YEAOWWW".
He's worried I'm going to tattletale.

I've had enough of this bullshit and called the school principal today. I want a stop to this nonsense, but these bunch of hypocrites advocating a 'no bully - no tolerance rule' would rather incite instances when Brandon was being lippy. Okay, you know what, he's in Grade 5 and I don't care if he told someone to fuck off, he's still a little boy and shouldn't be strangled. And, while I'm speaking to you, I want you to investigate a mom who picks up her kid at school, too.

When Brandon came home from school today we had our regular little chat about our day, then off he went for a snack, settled himself down nearby to watch Scooby-Doo, and as I blogged and googled away, nary a whisper or a wimp, did I realize the silence.

Hey, Mom, look what I can do

No matter how hard you try to keep your kids from being hurt or mutilated or maimed, there's always someone who will challenge your safety net, "hey, let's play with gravity".

Brandon got into a lot of trouble over this....


Cousin Phil teaches Brandon new tricks:


I'm surprised Brandon even remembered to wear his helmet. Needless to say, that was the first and last attempt at ATV hotdogging.

Brandon's Grade 5 Speech

Don't Forget the Lyrics

Brandon's 11th Birthday

Buoys and Boys

There are several buoys already positioned in the lake. You have to make your own if you want to buoy your boat up on water, instead of taking it out the lake and parking it.
And, of course, of all the buoys this guy tied his boat up onto ours. Even though it is marked "private - SpongeBob", we will now be adding our site number to it.
Daniel made two industrial sized buckets of cement, and the chains dried inside the cement. They were really heavy and a pain to get to the lake.

It rained now and then, but mostly rained. The kids had to bundle up. Luckily, our beds are heated...very, very nice.

The sun came out just long enough to sit at the beach and have a beer.

Killing Lice

Tonight Pink Floyd is in town. It's a concert hubby would have killed for,



Except we needed to ready ourselves for camp trip...especially to set up our new "seasonal spot", which was announced to purchase last Sunday at $1,600 for the balance of the year. Yes, we took the spot immediately...it's a lake view spot for Pete's sake....and it will be ours forever and ever, should we opt out on our continued yearly agreement.

We finally got our camera out of warranty repair...I took tons of pictures of my night solar lights, not one picture turned out.

...where the lillies bloom...

Mary-call, Mary-call......the honeysuckle winds call her to distant place, beyond the stardust that fell upon mountain rise, laying softly towards where the lillies bloom.

I love that movie. If you google the young actress who starred in the movie, it shows just one film, just one role. She was fantastic! Then you wonder why she only did ONE movie....there are no other links, or other websites that talk about her...absolutely nothing. And in these days and ages, you can practically find out about anyone, anywhere, anywhooo.

Then I sort of wondered about my one-hit son
and my own situation with Brandon, who seems to lose interest in any adventure, or activity, or class session, etc. very quickly. Some teachers have hinted an A.D.H.D. disorder, and I hate to admit it but Brandon fits every symptom....

DSM-IV Criteria for ADHD
I. Either A or B:

Six or more of the following symptoms of inattention have been present for at least 6 months to a point that is disruptive and inappropriate for developmental level:

InattentionOften does not give close attention to details or makes careless mistakes in schoolwork, work, or other activities.

Often has trouble keeping attention on tasks or play activities.
Often does not seem to listen when spoken to directly.
Often does not follow instructions and fails to finish schoolwork, chores, or duties in the workplace (not due to oppositional behavior or failure to understand instructions).
Often has trouble organizing activities.
Often avoids, dislikes, or doesn't want to do things that take a lot of mental effort for a long period of time (such as schoolwork or homework).
Often loses things needed for tasks and activities (e.g. toys, school assignments, pencils, books, or tools).
Is often easily distracted.
Is often forgetful in daily activities.
Six or more of the following symptoms of hyperactivity-impulsivity have been present for at least 6 months to an extent that is disruptive and inappropriate for developmental level:

HyperactivityOften fidgets with hands or feet or squirms in seat.
Often gets up from seat when remaining in seat is expected.
Often runs about or climbs when and where it is not appropriate (adolescents or adults may feel very restless).
Often has trouble playing or enjoying leisure activities quietly.
Is often "on the go" or often acts as if "driven by a motor".
Often talks excessively.

Impulsivity
Often blurts out answers before questions have been finished.
Often has trouble waiting one's turn.
Often interrupts or intrudes on others (e.g., butts into conversations or games).




His Daddy and I know he has problems at school, whether it be in French or English, he seems to be confused and disorientated, and distracted, and out of sorts...like stardust that tries to find the lillies, yet land instead in a field of wheat in Saskatchewan or a corn field in Alberta. Such a waste of stardust.


I promised I would write more about Brandon, mostly because he has my blog linked as "one of his favorites".....and he reads it constantly, probably more for my "Family Guy" video clips.

Today, he wants to be a magician. So we allow it. Because he laughs and smiles....and focuses....as he levitates.

Release

<
Lately, it seems to be always about Sabrina.
Sabrina and her black eye.
Sabrina and her friends.
Sabrina and Space Camp and this and that....
and here how she looks today, with that mean black eye.
Here's what she wore as we shopped for stuff, things for our upcoming camping trip at Cultus Lake...like she was a big movie star...but we know she doesn't think that way, she hates drawing attention to herself.
Brandon is my kid, too....and he has his own issues. But he still creates Mother's Day cards, still communicates in French and Anglais.

Brandon loves our Hummer. He remembers every last detail of the purchase thereof...and relishes every visit at the Dueck GM for accessories, etc. He's a strange mixture of a kid. I love him so much I can't see fault. It pisses me off when people find fault in him. He prints so neatly.

Of course, this can't compare with Sabrina's ghosts...the ones she sees from the corner of her eye (which will eternally be by the corner of her eye, because this is her eye disease), as she awakens to her limited vision of light and dark and contrast, she sees them, ghosts.
I hope they are the kinds ones, like Alison DuBois in "Medium", after all...the name is French.

...and I hope those kind spirits open up the heavens arounds us for the May long weekend, so that we can shine, shine, shine, despite the miserable weather forecasts.

Capoeira - Cool Martial Arts

I've noticed I post many of Sabrina's activities. My son, Brandon, has many interests as well. He "loves" Capoeira and is currently enrolled in Kikara Kickboxing. He'd like to switch, but I'd much rather keep him in something safer, where they only learn to break opponents arms and legs and such, and not their necks. Capoeira seems to be more like martial-gymnastics-art, sort of like kickboxing, but with style.