We have a winner!!!

For the second consecutive year, Kellie Clark has won First Place in her category in the School Science Fair. This year, Kellie competed in the Behavioral and Social Sciences category. She measured the number of items one can recall from a written list versus an oral list to determine if the memorization process differed. She clearly demonstrated that we can recall a written list better than one read to us.

She received a first place medal and an automatic invitation to regionals. Congratulations, Kellie, we are very proud of you!!!

Snowtubing

This past Friday, the Clark family joined a group of friends for our third annual snowtubing trip to Ski Roundtop near Harrisburg, PA. Here's a few shots from the trip.

Kellie & Chelsea hanging out in the lodge.

Austin taking a break from the slopes.

Chelsea.

The whole crew.

Austin & Austin in the Holiday Inn pool.

Denny with a little vino by the pool.

Ron, Denny, and young Jackson at dinner.

No More Braces!!

Yesterday, Kellie had her braces removed after a short, but successful application. They left a single wire behind her bottom teeth, but it can't be seen. She will be fitted for a retainer next week, which she will have to wear for another year. She's really happy to get them off and if you call her, she'll tell you all about it.

Boys Night Out

Last night, Dad, Uncle Mike, Charles, and Ché went to the RBC Center in Raleigh to see the Wolpack host the UNC-CH Tarheels. The preferred outcome didn't happen and the Wolfpack dropped their first home game against their cross state rivals.

Final School Board Vote

Those of you that have read about my continuing saga about keeping my kids at the local Elementary School will be glad to know that the School Board formally passed the latest zoning recommendations with an unanimous vote. Kara will not have to change schools, and all my efforts were not in vain.

The Blizzard of '06

For once the weathermen were right and we got all the snow we expected.

View from the Front Door

Darrell and Denny

Kara

Austin - Sledding

Denny and Kara

Ron and Amanda

Naked Pictures

Motorcycle porn.

Cheerleading Competitions

Cheerleading competitions typically last all day, involve marathon sessions of hair care, makeup, uniform adjustments, interminable waits for warm-up time and long award ceremonies. How does an experienced Cheer parent cope with this? Here, a group of seasoned professionals shows us how it's done:

Report Cards - Term 2

Here are cumulative reports cards as of term 2.

Kellie

Course	Term 1	Term 2
Language Arts	A	A
Spanish	B	B
Social Studies	A	A
Science	A	B
Math	A	B
Physical Education	A	A
Chorus	A	A

Austin

Course	Term 1	Term 2
Reading	B+	C
Writing	B+	C
Math	C	B
Social Studies	C+	B
Science	B	B

Kara

Course	Term 1	Term 2
Reading	S	S
Writing	S	S-
Speaking	S	S
Listening	S	S
Math	S	S+
Social Studies	S	S
Science	S	S
Art	S	S
Physical Education	S	S
Music	S	S
Handwriting	S	S
Technology	S	S
Work Habits	S+	S+
Conduct	S+	S+

American Masters Competition - Baltimore MD

Kellie competed in the American Masters competition in Baltimore, MD last Saturday and Sunday. Here are a few shots to commemorate the event:

Click on each picture for a closer view.

Kellie with Lori Hughes

Kellie with Victoria

Kara helping the team get ready.

Kellie with a former teammate (Paige)

Kellie getting ready

Dinner Saturday Night

Psycho Cheer Moms

RAH! Lightning Storm Team Photo

Lunch on Sunday

Kellie & Kate Love

Book Group

Tracy joined a neighborhood women's book group and they are holding their first meeting this morning. Maybe she will chime in later and tell us how it went. Francine Willis and Amanda McCormick are also in the group. Amanda actually started the group and selected the first book. It looks like a great idea because all the members do not work during the day and this is a chance for a little adult conversation.

Uncles

I thought that I would brighten the day of all the ladies out there with this shot taken the day of Grandpa's funeral.

Left to Right: Mike Clark, Denny Clark, Howard Whetzel, Ray Littleturtle. For those of you that don't know him, Howard is Dad's adopted brother from the Onondaga tribe in New York.

Click on the picture for a better view.

Kellie Clark

Report cards are coming out this week, but Kellie has already been informed that she made the Honor Roll. She received her certificate and special mention in the school newsletter. She also had a big cheerleading competition last weekend. I'll have pictures in an upcoming post.

Aspect Ratio

I have a question for the more astute among us about HDTV and television aspect ratios; Why is it common for people to watch a deliberately distorted image? I just spent a nauseating 2 hours in front of a wide screen television watching the Superbowl. The reason is simple. When an HDTV broadcast is viewed it looks great, but that is to be expected. This is not what I am talking about. I am speaking of the common tendency to always use the wider screen even for normal aspect ratio broadcasts. The standard aspect ratio for horizontal to video measurements is 4:3. The new widescreen format is 16:9, or a ratio that is far less square.

When a picture designed for a 4:3 ratio is projected onto a 16:9 screen, the image is literally stretched to accommodate the larger screen. This has the very disturbing effect of squashing the screen and distorting the images. For me, this produces an image that makes me dizzy. Isn't there a way to produce a correctly oriented image, by using side bands?

I suspect that it might be me, because everyone who shows me these distorted screens wants to tell me how great it looks. It looks like we might be about to launch into the HD era, but until this problem is fixed, count me out.

Basketball Game

Last weekend Austin's basketball team had their most exciting game yet this season. The Tarheels (gag) were down 15-10 with 3 minutes to go, when they exploded for 13 points to finish the game 23-17. Acting more like the Cardiac Pack than their namesakes, his team drained three 3-pointers in the last 3 minutes to salt the game away.

The key to the game was their suffocating defense that opened the door to several scoring opportunities. The other team broke down during the press and they capitalized on the errors.

The Coach has been preaching defense in practice and I think they understand it now. The game was a joy to watch, if only to witness the unbridled joy that 11 year old boys exhibit when a close game goes their way.

Action Shots

Cheerleading Competition

Kellie's cheerleading squad had their first big competition this past weekend in Upper Marlboro, MD. Recent practices have been less than stellar, so expectations were somewhat lower than normal. Defying the odds, RAH! Lightning Storm placed third in their division and earned an American Masters national bid. These competitions seem to bring out the best of her team, and I am proud that she never seems to be bothered by the pressure. Her new nickname is 'Ice'.

Needless to say, Kellie is shocked that they didn't win, but they really did place much higher than could be expected. The competitive season is about to kick into high gear, and they look good coming out of the gate. They should be able to build on this for a strong showing in the bigger competitions yet to come.