You can follow Kasparov's match against the computer, Deep Junior, by clicking here

It is an excellent site. They have a great replay feature. You can step through each move. Click and immediately go to any move and position. Plus, good commentary on the match.

In the most recent game, the third game, Kasparov made a time pressure induced blunder on his 32nd move with a rook, and ended up resigning. Kasparov won the first game in brilliant fashion, leaving the computer reeling after a bold 7th move with a knight pawn. The second game was a draw, though it was one Kasparaov might have won.

More snow falling today. It's a bit warmer though so the roads are wet but not real slick. So, getting to work was much faster than I feared it might be this morning.

Yesterday Rhonda took John to the doctor to have his ears checked out. His ears are in great shape the doctor (Doctor Kuku) said. He might need them only a few more months. Initially I thought we were told till he was maybe 4 or 5. Eek. He likes to swim so much, keeping those ear plugs in can be a hassle, but it will be great if he can just jump in pools and bathtubs without worrying about those plugs. John also got a hepatitis shot in the thigh. By all accounts he was not pleased about getting stuck with the needle.

Also, Rhonda said he was hard to control. John just wanted to run up and down hallways, and expressed displeasure at having to sit. The entrance has automatic doors so zoom, he just headed outside. He'll kind of look at you, because he knows he is supposed to stay close, but he just has this overwhelming urge to run around. I suppose all kids are roamers like that, but I wonder if that is a characteristic of kids who've been in an institution. If they have less of an internal brake when it comes to staying close to parents.

We had some oatmeal together before I left for work. John said "cereal...oatmeal". His friend Kyle was going to come over today, so we told him that, and John said "crying... let go". The last time Kyle came over, they squabbled over toys, and he remembered that! Funny. When I said bye-bye he said "hold you", he wanted me to pick him up and give him a hug. That's the first time he's specifically done that.

So last night I have to be at church by 8 for orchestra practice, as our ensemble will be playing this Sunday. Rhonda was still in the choir till 9, so I had to leave John in the nursery. When I went to leave though, he just started crying, wanted me to pick him up, didn't want me to go. Boy, don't know where that came from. He hasn't done that before. Usually it's zing and he's off.

I think I'll try the Modified Atkins Diet. What's that, you ask? Well, in addition to having all the meat, eggs, cheese and other protein I want, I can also have all the bread, sugar and carbohydrates I want.

You do all check out the astronomy picture of the day, don't you?

The weatherman says this about our weather here in Minnesota over the past year... Lovely...

June through October last year: Wettest in 111 years of modern records, with 29.89 inches, more than 12 inches above normal.

November through January: Driest in modern history, with about four-tenths of 1 inch, 10 percent of the normal 3.98 inches.

Rhonda said she talked to Deb, and that the background check from ND came back. So, she could send stuff on to the MN Whatever Department. Rhonda thought too that Russia had our home study. The folks in Russia are getting back in the swing of things, as their Christmas holiday is at the beginning of January, so things shut down for awhile. So, we might be able to go as soon as the end of March, will just have to wait and see.

When John wants to be picked up, he'll say "hold you". Still has yet to figure out the difference between you and me. I say to him, "It's 'hold me'. When it's you, you say me. When it's me, I say you, because to me you are a you and I am a me, but to you, you are a me, and I am a you." He just looks at me. The other night he said to me "rock" and pulled me over to the rocking chair and wanted me to rock him for a little bit. That's the first time he's done something like that. Rhonda said maybe in the orphanage he just never learned to ask for what he needed or wanted, and so at first didn't do much of that with us, but he's been doing more and more of that. He's been asking for something to drink for a long time now, will pull me by the hands to play with him, if he gets a bump he'll ask us to kiss and make better, and lately has been asking for food too if he's hungry, so maybe's he doing more of that.

Also, we're going to refinance our mortgage again for the second time in little more than a year. We're going to get a rate of 5.75 for a 30 year loan. It will save us about a hundred dollars a month in payment, maybe a tad more. So, why not.

More light snow this morning, making the drive to work rather slow going. Wasn't quite as bad as I thought it might be though. Roads are a mite slick, especially side streets. Freeway wasn't too bad. It's been heavily sanded and salted, plus all the traffic kept things from freezing. John is in a stage where his favorite thing is "happy joy joy", i.e. jumping on the bed. He likes me to hold him and help him bounce and sing songs. When we started doing this I'd say with him "happy happy joy joy", and now that's what he calls jumping.

Wow, Tampa Bay poleaxed the Raiders 48-21. 3 defensive touchdowns, 5 interceptions, it was quite a show by a great defense. I watched the game with all the important accoutrements, like pizza, pop, nachos... John did real well during the game, he kept himself busy playing.

Winter, blech. In addition to the cold weather, we're getting some snow today. I'll leave work in a minute or two, and I'm sure it will be a slow drive home. We might be getting light snow off and on for the next few days. I've caught some kind of cold again. Argh. Wish I could sleep in tomorrow morning, but we have orchestra practice from 8:30-10:30 am. Man, there is just no rest for the weary. I'd rather not go, but there isn't any other time to practice. Sunday is a national holiday, the Stupor Bowl. My friend Paul Foth will come over, and we'll all stuff our merry faces. Probably have pizza and nachos, among other goodies. Last year John was walking, but still kind of shaky, and had only just started getting himself to a standing position by himself. Now, he's a little monkey, all over the place, finding anything within hand's reach, so might be a different game watching experience this year. I hope Tampa Bay wins. I don't like Oakland. A city and organization of thugs and goons.

OK, time for Useless Pop Culture Trivia Quiz. Who said "As God is my witness, I thought turkeys could fly", and why?
To reveal the answer, hold down the mouse and drag it over the section below, to highlight the answer.

Answer:

On the show WKRP in Cincinnati, Arthur 'Big Guy' Carlson had the idea for a promotion to drop turkeys from a helicopter over a shopping center parking lot, only to find, to sort of borrow a phrase from Douglas Adams, that turkeys fly in much the same manner as bricks do. Les Nessman, of "More music, and Les Nessman" fame, gave us the on air coverage of the horrific event.

I am turning John into a Trekkie! Already mentioned he likes the theme music to Next Generation. Also though, he loves to watch the doors open and shut on the show. Of all things. But you know why? Because they open and shut like elevators (slide open, and slide shut) and that's just what he says when he sees it! He points at the screen and says "acre", which is his word for elevator. And yeah, it looks like people are going in and out of elevators. Funny. I'm telling ya, he's obsessed!

But he is so sharp. Last night we watched a little bit of Caillou, an episode where they were on a trip and Rosie started crying because Mommie was out of the car. Later, when John was in his crib and I was saying good-night, John said "Rosie..crying..Mommie"! He remembered that Rosie was crying and why.

On Sesame Street, he likes the closing credits where they show, in cartoon form, a boat going by the Statue of Liberty, and a whole bunch of other stuff, including a bird flying through a tunnel. Sometimes they don't show those credits, and John always gets upset when they don't. He'll whimper a bit and say "boat...tunnel", cuz he wants to see it!

I have two new computers at work, to replace my one old one. One of the new computers is a laptop. They both have dvd drives in them! I'll never get any work done now. I'll just bring in dvds and watch them all day. Seriously though, it's nice to have one in the laptop, I can bring the laptop anywhere and be able to watch movies if I want to. I need two because I need to work on software with Microsoft Visual Studio 6 and with Visual Studio .NET, and they can't exist on the same computer, hence the need for two.

Practice with the band again at church tonight. We start after the choir finished, so we start at 9. That just gets too late. I don't think I'll do it again next year, maybe just play with the orchestra. If and when we adopt, I'll probably stay home with her on Sundays to help her adjust before leaving her alone in the nursery, like I did with John, so I'd probably quit then too.

Watched the movie To Catch A Thief the other night. Great, classic movie. Cary Grant is sui generis, always fun to watch him in movies. And Grace Kelly is so aptly named. Brigitte Auber is fun as the girlish free spirit. Her French accent is quite cute. That scene with the three of them on the swimming platform was great fun. Rowr! The solution to the movie seemed a bit forced. Grant claims he was on to the real culprit, even before being attacked at that villa, but how? We didn't see him find a single clue in the entire movie. (By the way, who did throw Foussard off that cliff?) I always enjoy Hitchcock movies.

Colder weather is coming our way this week. Can't complain though. Except for a ridiculously cold October, it has been a rather mild, snowless winter. Always seems funny to me that the coldest stretches of the year, January and February, come *after* the days start to get longer again.

John likes the theme music to Star Trek: The Next Generation. If he hears it playing he'll stop and look at the tv. I think he likes the strong brass notes. Sometimes he says "mikkis." At least that's what it sounds like. That's his word for music. He kinda gets the consonants c and s switched around.

In the Conference Championship Games today, Tampa Bay beat Philadelphia 27-10 and Oakland beat Tennessee 41-24. You gotta love the Bucs defense. They are so tough. And for the Titans, McNair is all heart and guts, but there wasn't much else today. Stupid turnovers, dropped passes, they didn't show up for the big game. So, Tampa Bay and Oakland in the big game next week. Should be fun to see that Bucs defense take on the Oakland offense.

In books, I am reading Possession by A.S. Byatt. No, I'm not reading this because of the movie, which I haven't seen. I'm working my way through the winners of the Booker Prize, which, for my money if I had to choose between the two, is a more reliable indicator of an exceptional book than is the Pulitzer Prize. This is a wonderful book. It is scholarly, the detective aspect of it makes for a sense of anticipation, and I enjoy the deft handling of poetry. I think 19th century English poetry was the zenith of poetry. Much like the 16th through 18th century were the heights of painting and music, in my opinion. I wonder why poetry lagged behind. I think literature did too to some extent. Shakespeare and others were earlier, but Austen, Dickens, and others, books that we still read today, didn't come till later. Maybe it takes longer for the written word to reach its potential.

John calls the computer the "coodoo". It sounds so cute the way he says it. Back to the salt mines tomorrow, sigh.

Where does the name "Peace Like A River" come from? It's the name of a truly wonderful novel by Leif Enger. He's from Minnesota. He's a Christian, and while the novel isn't specifically a Christian book, the influence is obvious. It is a beautiful story, read it when you get a chance.

Happy Birthday, Mom! Just talked to Mom on the phone a little while ago. Glenn and Joan and Grandma Schultz were also there, having some cake and ice cream, so said hi to them as well. Joan made a German chocolate cake! Mmmmm. Wish I could have some too. Got John put to bed a few minutes ago.

One feature I'll be adding to the site in the near future is the Picture of the Week. I want to change the picture that is on the initial page (at http://www.jeffkouba.com) on a weekly basis, so there's always something new to see.

Gotta go into work tomorrow, to try and finish up some parts of this project that just won't die. Oh well.

Hello! Welcome to my entrance into the wild and woolly world of weblogs. Here, I will bore your socks off as I muse about this and that. Actually, this will just be a place where I can post news about our family, or what is going on in our corner of the world. Come back often!