You ever insult an old friend and have to think about how to correct it?

Maybe it wasn't so much insulting as being annoying and self pitying. But he said something that insulted me a couple years ago and haven't spoken to him much since. I write him a sudden email yesterday, telling him that he said that thing that is something a few years ago and he said he doesn't care much that I was butthurt. My message appeared to annoy him more than anything.

And now I'm in an awkward position. I love the guy and want to keep talking to him, to an extent, and I want to say the right things.

Today I'm so f-ing tired from working late last night and Lucy will just have to suck it up. Well, it's not really that bad. I just read her a Curious George book and she wants to read her new big clock book now. Gotta go.

Time is even more running out to choose a name

I caught myself daydreaming of naming my little girl Alice and calling her Alleybee, Bee, Allie, Alley Dweller, Alley Walker, and then it hit me--what if that thing's a boy?

Any other parents care to share a story of when you found out the sex of your baby? Did you do it before birth? How did you react when you found out? Megan and I are letting the new baby's sex be a surprise. The due date is May 9.

Lucille was a surprise, too. We were pretty sure it was a boy, what with her turning upside down in the womb and making Megan have a c-section and giving us all this trouble and all. Cause, you know, boys are trouble. Or so the stereotype goes. And girls are made of sugar, right? Well, it was a funny joke, at least--calling the foetus a boy because it was already being naughty.

I don't know why I think I'm having a girl. Maybe I'm secretly hoping for one. And before I thought I was secretly hoping for a boy. Since Lululu and I had a playdate yesterday with lots of kids and I got to hold and bottlefeed a baby boy, and then play with a boy toddler who was walking with only a week or so of practice and give him pieces of my fish sticks, I realized I'd be okay with either one. Girls and boys are both beautiful and cool and interesting as hell.

Plus it will be a baby with a combination of Megan and mine's looks. I mean, look how Lucy turned out.

Gosh, Megan's belly is sticking out far. She's carrying a huge weight, and deserves commendation. So if any of you are Facebook friends with her, give her an extra shout out and ask her how she's doing. Because, you may not realize it, but people say things to pregnant women that are helpful in a negative amount all the time.

I need a fucking haircut. I'm sick of sitting and leaning on my hair and pulling it all the time. Goddam awesome long hair. It gets too awesome, I guess.

So I've got to start narrowing down a boy name. I'm gonna trudge thru some ... shudder... ugh... parenting-themed internet pages... kill me now.

I asked Ghhouughhool Krome "what should I name my baby boy?" and these three pages came up:

1. Gag me. I'm not exclaiming "Help!" And also, I'm not female and don't think like one. A skimming is all you need to get the idea from this idiotically written article, extended way beyond the point of being interesting and structured in an I-need-help-reading-good format.

2. Scary. Pictures next to every name, professionally taken. They make me not want to have kids. And I love parenting! All white babies, too.

3. A fucking quiz? Am I twelve years old?

The internet must be full of idiots who seriously ask those questions every day. Thanx Ghoughoul Crome. Time to look for baby name lists. Yes. Edit this search. Plz.

It's hard saving all the violent stuff till after Lucy goes to bed

But Metalocalypse, 24, Robocop 2, and all these other jewels at my disposal are definitely not gonna teach her good values.

Today she woke up at 6:20 a.m., took a nap at 10:40 (earliest in like almost a year), and was itchin to go to bed on time. So tired.

Finally, daylight savings time has caught up to her. I think. It's been ... how long? I dunno, one week, or two, but either way, the sun is out later in the evening and it gives me more energy.

I've been tweeting Robocop 2 quotes and scene reactions and stuff. Great 1990 style. Uber violent and the women are all... inferior to the men in some way or another. Maddening. And... extremely entertaining.

Girl names I like

 Adelina
Adriana (a dark woman from the sea)
Alala (war goddess)
Alarice (The ruler of all—feminine of Alaric)
Alvada
Althea (the healer)
Aeris
Armada (the armed one)
Brunhilde
Carlina (a free person)
Carlotta (Car? Lotta.)
Carmine (Car? Mine.)
Cassandra (a Trojan princess w/gift of prophecy)
Catalin (wizard)
Celeste
Celina (goddess of the moon)
Tifa
Ultimicia
Wata
Terra
Paine
Whatever

Notjessica

Notsara

Notlucy

Onetwothreefour

Ladiesandgentlemen

FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF (40 F's! That's the kid's name!)

There Should Be a Law Against My Name (ruled one or illegal one or underage illegal one)

Shitfuckpissassaxe

Battleaxe

Hey You

Kid

Hey You Kid

Get Over Here

Princess

Telephone

Chimney Sweep...For your ass

It’s either gonna be Alice or Beatrix.

If it's a girl.

If anyone's got suggestions, let me know. There's too much parenting to do to boringly look through all these girl names on momswhothink.com or org or whatever.

I like names that have to do with battle, majik spells, eagles and dinosaurs. I don't like names that are all flowery and pretty and shit. No woman should have to feel that pressure. But a battle-hardened woman--now that's one you can take home to your parents. No spoiled rich princess bitch names for me, thanks.

Okay, I do like flowery, pretty names.

Beautiful Home Owner

Lucy and I are out walking today like we do every day. We take one of two basic routes--either to the park, or up to NE 65th St. and turn west, walk until ... 8th Ave NE, and then back home. Today, after reaching 8th, we turned and walked south, and then turned east on NE 64th. Interstate 5 runs right over 8th. So it's kinda noisy, kinda dirty around there.

Up 64th, the second house on the left has this old, thick wallpaper looking stuff with a brick imprint, all over the outside. It looks cheap. There is a broken iron fence, with big gaps in it, and beyond that, the side yard of the house is this long rectangle with black plastic sheeting over the entire thing, held down by bricks. It's got lots of puddles and there's a big tree in the middle of it and Lucy likes to walk in there and pick up sticks and rocks and throw them in the puddles.

We did that today. It's like the third or fourth time I've let her do it.

This red SUV pulls up. Stops a good 10 feet away. I can tell they're looking at us, but I try not to notice. They pull up closer. A man's voice says, "Sir, that's private property. You're gonna have to get her outta there." It's this middle-aged man and woman. The man is driving.

I begin fuming a little, but I didn't respond to him at all. I just rolled my eyes and called Lucy along, off his pristine property next to his pristine house by the freeway, and we walk away.