It Was Five Years Ago Today.....

That I was working FedEx route 9 on a dreary, cloudy day in South Minneapolis. I was at Franklin and Blaisdel, when TOYH called me on the phone to say that the plane carrying Paul Wellstone had crashed. I was sick to my stomach. Wellstone was the first politician I gave money to. He was the first politician I put a sign in my yard for. He was and is the only politician that I thought was truly looking out for working schlubs like me. When he died, I honestly felt that the voice that spoke for me and my concerns in the halls of power was lost. No doubt he was a polarizing figure, and his politics turned off many people. But the political was not the personal for Wellstone. He was friends with Jesse Helms, his opposite and nemesis in so many ways.

I want to leave you with two things.

What if there were more pols, Democrat and Republican, like Wellstone who could be passionate advocates for their causes without engaging in the politics of personal destruction and childish, vindictive, obstructive game playing? People hated Wellstone's politics, but they did not hate him. Maybe if they were more civil with each other, government might actually work.

Think about these quotes from his Senate floor speech opposing the authorization to use force in Iraq. This was the speech that would supposedly have cost him the election.

"Of first and greatest concern, obviously, are the questions raised about the possible loss of life that could result from our actions. The United States could send tens of thousands of U.S. troops to fight in Iraq, and in so doing we could risk countless lives, of U.S. soldiers and innocent Iraqis. There are other questions, about the impact of an attack in relation to our economy. The United States could face soaring oil prices and could spend billions both on a war and on a years-long effort to stabilize Iraq after an invasion."

"We have succeeded in destroying some Al Qaida forces, but many of its operatives have scattered, their will to kill Americans still strong. The United States has relied heavily on alliances with nearly 100 countries in a coalition against terror for critical intelligence to protect Americans from possible future attacks. Acting with the support of allies, including hopefully Arab and Muslim allies, would limit possible damage to that coalition and our anti-terrorism efforts. But as General Wes Clark, former Supreme Commander of Allied Forces in Europe has recently noted, a premature go-it-alone invasion of Iraq 'would super-charge recruiting for Al Qaida.'"

Worst. Commute. Ever

Yesterday I had to leave work at 3pm to get home so that we could pick up Madster and 'Nika from their after school programs, go to KyKy's swim meet in New Hope and then to KyKy's first orchestra concert at school. Oh and the gas company needed to get into the house because they were replacing the line from the house to the main line out under the street. Anyhoo... I leave work at 3pm and I had to fight west winds of 30 mph with gusts to 40 mph. I think there were spots where I headed into gusts well over 40 mph. There were tumbleweeds on the transitway. I had grit on my teeth from all the sand being blown around at the Gopher Stadium site. I followed a guy on Portland Ave for a bit and we were both weaving around the bike lane because of the big cross winds. At least it was relatively warm during that mess.

KyKy did OK at her meet. She was under a bit of duress because her genius of a coach put her in 3 events. Here's the deal. KyKy told her coach on Friday that she had a concert that began at 7pm the day of the meet. The meet was in New Hope and started at 5pm. Coach was miffed because KyKy would have to leave the meet early. I, on the other hand, was extremely miffed because: 1) There were no exhibition heats that would use up swimmers to fill race spots 2) It was a 5 lane pool, so Southwest could not put 3 swimmers in every event. Therefore, there should be plenty of swimmers to fill the varsity and jv events, and KyKy would be able to leave early to get ready for her concert. But no, she HAD to be in a jv 200 free relay and thus did not have time to shower after the meet. We also had to stop and get something to eat because the concert would not be over until 8:15. What I don't understand is why coach can't juggle the lineup with 5 days advanced notice, and why there are not accommodations made for school events where participation is actually part of her grade. It sounds like passive-aggressive bullshit to me. Coach rarely pays attention to the jv, and now it's a big hairy deal that KyKy has to leave the meet early. I also feel there is no recourse to complain to coach or to her superior because coach is also KyKy's math teacher. With the level of maturity she's displayed so far, I wouldn't put it past her to knock KyKy down a few notches in school because her parents complain about her coaching. In any case, there is just one more meet and the season is done. If KyKy wants to swim next year that's cool, but it will be her wanting to be on a team. If she wants to improve as a swimmer, she's going to have to join a club to get better coaching.

KyKy's concert was lovely. 3 different ensembles played, and the director chose a few classical pieces and a few by local composers, one of them was a recent Southwest graduate. KyKy's orchestra sounded good, and she was excited to play in a concert with a group as opposed to recitals where she plays alone. A friend and neighbor of ours plays with the Minnesota Orchestra, so I'm hoping to get a few reduced price tickets to see what is by many accounts one of the top 5 orchestras in the world today. There you have it. The Stocking family, slightly more cultured than yogurt.

They Lost In A Heartbreaker

Last night the Southwest and South girls swim teams went head to head for the second time this season. South won the first meeting pretty handily, as they have been doing for the last 25 years or so. Southwest's coach juggled the lineup a bit to try and pull this one off. After the 100 breaststroke, SW was ahead by 2 points. A win in the 400 free relay would guarantee a win, a 2nd and 3rd place finish would result in a tie. Unfortunately SW took 2nd and 4th in the relay and lost the meet by 2 points. There were a few girls crying after the meet. They really thought they could break the streak so this ended up being the biggest meet of the season, and to lose by 2 was a bit much. There was a little bit of gloating on the part of the South fans (the students, not the parents) which was hard to take, but I guess it becomes a lesson in losing gracefully. KyKy split at :29 on her leg of the medley relay, dropped her time about 35 seconds in the 500 to 7:40 and had a 1:12 on her split in the 400 FR. I'm still not sure what to think about the coach and the team. The coaches, in my estimation, haven't been developing their junior varsity swimmers, which if they want to beat South, they're going to have to do at some point. KyKy has 2 weeks until j.v. sections, and then the season is done.

While we were at the meet TOYH called from home to say that her phone had been stolen from her studio while she was working on a client. This is not just a phone, but her calendar, all her contact information, school stuff - a good chunk of her life is on that thing. I've tried backing up her info on the computer, but the software on the two machines doesn't really work together. To lose this thing would be a gigantic pain. As it turns out, there are some teens doing some kind of group therapy in the same building. TOYH went over and told the group leaders what had happened, and they said they would look for her phone. They found it in the stairwell of the building. Someone got bored with it pretty quickly I guess, or else they figured out that she doesn't have any games on it, so it wasn't worth keeping. All is well for now.

This Weather Is Getting Depressing

It seems like it's been cool and rainy for two weeks now. Most importantly, I've missed a couple of days biking because of the weather. Yesterday, however, was glorious. I got up early and hooked up with the gang from Hiawatha Cyclery. I didn't really know what to expect, but it turned out to be a bunch of middle-aged guys riding their bikes and chatting with a stop for coffee at about the midpoint. Really nice, friendly group. I actually met the infamous "Lunatic Biker." He's a local biker/blogger who writes some very amusing (rated R for language) stuff. The ride itself wasn't that great (except for the company of course). It was so laid back and relaxed that at one point I looked down at my heart rate monitor and my pulse was a whopping 69. While riding my bike. I'm in fair shape, but this is really slow. Next time I go with them, I'm riding my fixie because at least when I'm on that, my legs are moving all the time.

Now this morning I went out on a TCBC ride. It kept threatening rain and it would spit on us every once in a while. I like the folks I ride with in the Club but sometimes I don't understand them. I think I was the only rider to actually ride his bike to the start of the ride. Everyone else rolled up in their cars. A couple of them had bikes worth 3 grand or more, and most of them were outfitted in at least $400.00 worth of cool weather/rain gear. I showed up on the cheapest bike (my fixie) and about $100.00 worth of cool weather clothing. Toward the middle of the ride somebody flatted out, so we all stopped until he had it fixed. It was in the mid 40's with a breeze so stopping and starting is a real pain. Until you get moving and warm up, it can be a bit chilly. As we continued on, we reached a point where the ride can be cut short or we can do the whole thing. The rain started dribbling again. Guess who was the only one to complete the whole route? Yup, Mr Cheap Bike wearing jean shorts and walking shoes. Some of them were cold, or didn't want to ride in the "rain" despite the fact that they has spent a lot of money on clothing for just this situation. Sheesh. Now I've spent a lot of money on bike stuff, including clothing, but come on, if you give up when it's 40 outside and you're wearing all this high tech stuff, it seems to me you've just wasted bunch of dough. My goal this winter is to keep riding until the temp drops to zero. We'll see.

Today was the day that all the ladies in the family were to trek up to Brooklyn Park to get their hairs cut by our fabulous hairdresser friend. Unfortunately, or maybe fortunately, Tanya had to cancel. TOYH had it all worked out so that between multiple trips all of us wouldn't have to spend the whole afternoon and part of the evening at Tanya's. I guess they're going to try again on Thursday. I myself don't have Tanya cut my hairs anymore. It just takes too dang long, although she does a fabulous job. A few weeks ago, I went to Phil's Barber Shop on Nicollet and Diamond Lake Road. (That's spitting distance from Nana's last apartment before she moved to the "home") Phil did a fine job, but I think he needs a hearing aid. When I would make chit chat with him, he wouldn't respond or would ask questions about something I had already told him. Maybe I'll go back or maybe I'll try and find another barbershop. It seems like most of the shops around here cater to African American clientele, so I'm not sure what they'd do with me.

Aaaand They're Off

The Madster had her braces taken off yesterday. Beautiful. She was pretty dilligent about hooking up the rubber bands the last few months which pulled her teeth into place and expedited the whole process. These braces were brought to her at great expense. I believe she has been through 3 dental plans, each one paying progressively less for orthodontic coverage. I used to joke with my old FedEx colleagues that I would stay with the company as long as the kids needed braces because their dental plan covered for half of any orthodontia. Would have saved me a couple of grand if I was able to do so. When I asked her how it felt to have them off her response was, "Slimey." Delicious. Well it's two down and one to go as far as braces go cuz 'Nika is definitely going to need them. Only a couple dozen more trips to Family Orthodontics and the Stocking curse of Hillbilly teeth will be broken.

The daily grind is well, the daily grind. Multiple trips every week to karate, swimming, youth group etc. I have a much greater appreciation for all the trouble Mom went through when we were growing up and needed to be taxied about. I'm beginning to dislike the constant drives to SW High School. There is a freeway and a couple of lakes that stand between us and the school, and it's a pain to get there. When KyKy is done with swimming, she'll be able to take the school bus home - until track starts, which she is threatening to go out for. I'd like to see her bike or take the city bus, but at this point in the school year it' getting a bit cool (and eventually too dark) for her to be riding around.

We're counting the weeks until TOYH is done with school.

Still Don't Feel The Need To Get A Gun

See the October 4 post. Also, last evening 'Nika and I were watching old M*A*S*H re-runs when we heard a pow, pow, pow. It wasn't firecrackers cuz of the way they repeated themselves. It was probably some dimwitted homeboy busting a few caps. Neighbor kid called in a panic, but 'Nika was on the phone and we didn't answer because she didn't click over on call waiting. Cops didn't even respond. I don't even worry about those things anymore. Gunshots have been very infrequent this year in our neighborhood.

You Can Just Call Me The Angel Of Death

So Tuesday afternoon I pick up KyKy from swimming, and as we pull into the garage, the dogs are going nuts in the yard. I'm thinking that they're just excited to see us. This was not the case. They had managed to catch a squirrel and Max was worrying it. The squirrel was squealing, KyKy started yelling at Max, and 'Nika came out and started yelling at the dogs also. Max dropped the squirrel, so Grover picked it up and started shaking it around, more yelling ensued until we got the dogs to leave it alone and get them back in the house. So there is Mr. Squirrel lying in a puddle of mud, twitching. I dispatched it with a couple of blows to the head with a shovel. Yuck. As of today, I still don't feel the need to go out and buy an orange vest and a long gun to reinforce my bona fides as a killer. I guess that means I can cross Blackwater off of my list of potential employers. I do wish the dogs would pursue the mice in our house with the same bloodlust they apparently have for squirrels.

Monday Nights Are Done

TOYH is done with Monday night classes. For the first time in 3 years she'll be down to one class a week. Only three more months until she's finished. Last night she took the practice NCLEX test, which is the test to pass her national boards. (I think) Nursing schools are having their students take this preliminary test to get an idea of where their students are at. TOYH was pretty mum about how she thought the test went. This means she probably did very well on it. Normally after a test, she comes home and feels all depressed because she thinks she did such crappy job. "I'm a failure and a fraud, and I'm going to die homeless and 10 pounds overweight," kinda thing. And she ends up getting an A. Always expect the worst is her motto I think.

She also received a job offer from Abbott Northwestern yesterday. This is a great news, but probably not something she is going to pursue. One of the conclusions she came to on her internship was that working as a floor nurse is not what she'd really like to do. It would have to be a pretty sweet set up for her to take a job there. 6 shifts every two weeks and no evenings. I don't think that'll happen. She's getting her name out with the Minnesota Visiting Nurses Association hoping to land a job in the public health setting. That would be sweet.

The girls spent the weekend with The EG on a photo trip on the North Shore of Lake Superior. Photo ops were pretty slim because it rained quite a bit. They did have an adventure on the way back though. The EG thought she had lost her wallet on the day they were to come back. Luckily they had gassed up the van the day before, so they wouldn't be stuck. As they toddled back home eating grapes and Teddy Grahams and drinking Gatorade, KyKy discovered she had $9. Stopped for ice cream bars, of course. When they were unpacking the van at our place, EG's wallet showed itself in the back of the van. Relief.

'Nika almost didn't go on the trip because she found out on Thursday that she had gotten a D on a test and would have to re-take it on Monday. She was distraught. "I'm a failure and a fraud....." Turns out that she was supposed to make note cards to study for the test. She didn't finish her cards because she was using the dictionary to look things up and it was taking a loooong time. What she didn't realize was that she was to make the cards using the glossary in her textbook. She re-took the test on Monday - B+.

Yesterday we received the results from the MN Comprehensive Assessment (or whatever it's called), the benchmark tests that the kids take in school. I am happy to report that all the kids are meeting or exceeding expectations in math and reading. I am not happy to report that there is an inordinate amount of time spent in the classroom teaching to the test. Thank you No Child Left Behind.

The weather has generally be craptastic for the past 4 days, so not much bike riding. I'm itching to take my fixed gear out for a longer ride. Rob T gave me some bullhorn handlebars that I actually installed myself on the bike. It's not the prettiest job, but not too bad for an amateur.