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.'"
Thursday, October 25, 2007
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
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.
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.
Thursday, October 18, 2007
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.
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.
Sunday, October 14, 2007
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.
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.
Thursday, October 11, 2007
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.
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.
Sunday, October 7, 2007
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.
Thursday, October 4, 2007
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.
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
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.
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.
Tuesday, September 25, 2007
Even I Haven't Looked At This Stupid Blog For A Week
And it's not because I was mugged while riding my bike. Speaking of cycling, I've passed a few milestones in the past week. SS Deathstar rolled over 3000 miles on the odometer and my yearly total has passed 4000. 5000 here I come, but it may take me the rest of the year. Earlier in the year, I was going on frequent rides with the Twin City Bicycling Club. It was very convenient, because there were a number of rides leaving a mile or two from the house, so I'd just bike over and meet up with the group. Many of those rides have disappeared and my usual Saturday morning ride is a thing of the past since Madster and 'Nika have karate 3 Saturdays a month. I try and commute 3 days a week minimum and I'll get out on my own for rides, but frankly it's much more fun to ride with other people. I did have the opportunity to do that the past two weekends. At the last minute I showed up at the Minneapolis bike tour and rode the 41 mile route. At the start we were reminded that this wasn't a race, and to enjoy the parkways of Minneapolis. Pfffft. I enjoy the parkways all the time, at least as much as possible while dealing with traffic. This was an opportunity to blow doors without having to worry about cars. I worked my way past the recreational riders and fell in with a bunch of riders of similar ability. Fun, fun, fun. I averaged 18 mph over the 41 mile course. It's fun to be a pretend bike racer sometimes. On Sunday Rob T. invited me to go on the Hiawatha Cyclery ride around Lake Pepin. 70 miles of hilly goodness with stunning vistas. During the ride, I had to apologize to my fellow riders for my pathological hatred of hills. When I see a hill I attack it. I want to get it over with and I hate spinning my way up slowly. I have to admit it feels pretty good passing people going uphill, but I always remember there are tons of people who could easily do the same thing to me (I'm looking at you Neil). That mindset of pushing and punishing myself while biking must be leftover from all those years and yards in the pool. It doesn't feel right if it's not painful.
Speaking of pools, last week KyKy said she wanted to quit swimming, but that notion passed in about 12 hours. It would make me sad if she was to quit, not because I think she should be gunning for some scholarship or because of the whole idea of accomplishment, determination, improving times etc. All those are good things. It's being part of a team that's important - having a group of friends that you share your suffering with. Southwest is a pretty big school compared to Emerson, so having people you are connected with makes H.S. much more manageable in my opinion. As of today, she's still having fun.
The Madster is part of an after school activity called GEMS - Girls in Engineering Math and Science. She went to a weekend workshop on robotics, with mixed results. Parts were boring (learning the programming) and parts were fun (problem solving with a partner). I really ought to make her post about it.
'Nika is, well, 'Nika. She's plugging along in school. Hasn't had too many breakdowns about not wanting to go. She is constantly keeping us entertained with her general goofiness. She and Madster are both digging karate. They're really committed.
TOYH's classroom time is winding down, thank God. After this coming Monday, she'll only be in class once a week, on Thursdays. That's not to say she won't have a ton of stuff to do, since she has a preceptorship in public health, but she won't be gone two evenings and every other weekend to class.
If you're frustrated by my lack of posts, tough. I might suggest that you sign up for a RSS feed, just don't ask me how you should do it. I know on my Google homepage, they have a widget called Reader that will connect to a blog and alert you to new posts. If you can't figure out how to set it up on your own homepage, I guess you'll just need to check in here every once in a while, until you finally get frustrated and stop reading this crap altogether.
Speaking of pools, last week KyKy said she wanted to quit swimming, but that notion passed in about 12 hours. It would make me sad if she was to quit, not because I think she should be gunning for some scholarship or because of the whole idea of accomplishment, determination, improving times etc. All those are good things. It's being part of a team that's important - having a group of friends that you share your suffering with. Southwest is a pretty big school compared to Emerson, so having people you are connected with makes H.S. much more manageable in my opinion. As of today, she's still having fun.
The Madster is part of an after school activity called GEMS - Girls in Engineering Math and Science. She went to a weekend workshop on robotics, with mixed results. Parts were boring (learning the programming) and parts were fun (problem solving with a partner). I really ought to make her post about it.
'Nika is, well, 'Nika. She's plugging along in school. Hasn't had too many breakdowns about not wanting to go. She is constantly keeping us entertained with her general goofiness. She and Madster are both digging karate. They're really committed.
TOYH's classroom time is winding down, thank God. After this coming Monday, she'll only be in class once a week, on Thursdays. That's not to say she won't have a ton of stuff to do, since she has a preceptorship in public health, but she won't be gone two evenings and every other weekend to class.
If you're frustrated by my lack of posts, tough. I might suggest that you sign up for a RSS feed, just don't ask me how you should do it. I know on my Google homepage, they have a widget called Reader that will connect to a blog and alert you to new posts. If you can't figure out how to set it up on your own homepage, I guess you'll just need to check in here every once in a while, until you finally get frustrated and stop reading this crap altogether.
Friday, September 14, 2007
This Makes Me Angry
http://www.startribune.com/462/story/1423126.html
That was the night I was to go biking with my book-club buddies, and most likely we would have been in the same area as this incident. Any seeming act of random violence seems worse than violence where victim and victimizer knew each other. Add to that the fact that the victim was a cyclist and it happened in my neighborhood, and now I guess I'm supposed to be more vigilant, but it just makes me angry. I'm angry that someone was killed. I'm angry that the perception of my neighborhood is that it is overly dangerous. I'm angry that because this has happened, I'm supposed to be more cautious or that I'm putting my family at risk by living here. (For those of you with sensitive eyes or ears, please stop reading now, you'll be offended.)
Fuck all that. I am not making any drastic changes because of this. We've lived here for 9 years with absolutely no problems at all. I have walked the streets at 1 am and later and have never been bothered. (When I worked at the hospital, I would take the bus home from my evening shift.) I refuse to live in fear. I like my neighborhood. I like the fact that we are centrally located in the city. I like it that many of our friends are living within 4 blocks of us. I suppose if I wanted to live a life with less "risk" I would move out of the city and I would stop riding my bike on any roads I had to share with cars, but I don't want to do either of those things. There is that old saw from FDR's inaugural, "The only thing we have to fear is fear itself." I'm coming to understand the profundity of that statement more and more. Not only because of where my family lives, but because of the times we all live in. This whole "war on terror" is complete and utter bullshit. Thousands upon thousands of lives lost. Billions and billions of dollars wasted on a senseless war. And for what? What is it that we really fear? Death? Economic hardship? What? Islamic take-over of the country? Loss of our "freedom?" (If freedom is your answer, I hope you have been dead set against the Patriot Act from the beginning.) I am personally sick of being told that everything we know and love is being threatened by an amorphous enemy, but to allay our fears we must declare and sustain a war against a people that never attacked us and never even posed a threat to us. And even if something terrible did happen, would it be our ultimate demise? We survived 9/11 didn't we? What have we got to fear?
OK end of rambling rant.
That was the night I was to go biking with my book-club buddies, and most likely we would have been in the same area as this incident. Any seeming act of random violence seems worse than violence where victim and victimizer knew each other. Add to that the fact that the victim was a cyclist and it happened in my neighborhood, and now I guess I'm supposed to be more vigilant, but it just makes me angry. I'm angry that someone was killed. I'm angry that the perception of my neighborhood is that it is overly dangerous. I'm angry that because this has happened, I'm supposed to be more cautious or that I'm putting my family at risk by living here. (For those of you with sensitive eyes or ears, please stop reading now, you'll be offended.)
Fuck all that. I am not making any drastic changes because of this. We've lived here for 9 years with absolutely no problems at all. I have walked the streets at 1 am and later and have never been bothered. (When I worked at the hospital, I would take the bus home from my evening shift.) I refuse to live in fear. I like my neighborhood. I like the fact that we are centrally located in the city. I like it that many of our friends are living within 4 blocks of us. I suppose if I wanted to live a life with less "risk" I would move out of the city and I would stop riding my bike on any roads I had to share with cars, but I don't want to do either of those things. There is that old saw from FDR's inaugural, "The only thing we have to fear is fear itself." I'm coming to understand the profundity of that statement more and more. Not only because of where my family lives, but because of the times we all live in. This whole "war on terror" is complete and utter bullshit. Thousands upon thousands of lives lost. Billions and billions of dollars wasted on a senseless war. And for what? What is it that we really fear? Death? Economic hardship? What? Islamic take-over of the country? Loss of our "freedom?" (If freedom is your answer, I hope you have been dead set against the Patriot Act from the beginning.) I am personally sick of being told that everything we know and love is being threatened by an amorphous enemy, but to allay our fears we must declare and sustain a war against a people that never attacked us and never even posed a threat to us. And even if something terrible did happen, would it be our ultimate demise? We survived 9/11 didn't we? What have we got to fear?
OK end of rambling rant.
Thursday, September 13, 2007
You Know Something Is Wrong With Me When....
I skip a bike ride. So yesterday I felt pretty miserable all day at work. Stomach cramps and a general malaise is how I would describe it. The Madster had something similar on Tuesday. I was able to bike home from work without any embarrassing gastro-intestinal episodes, and when I got there, I piled the younger two into the car and off we went to KyKy's swim meet. She was in 4 JV races. We missed her anchoring a medley relay, but I think she swam a :33 on her split. Next was 200 free - 2:57. Not a great time, but she's never swum that race before so she doesn't know how to attack it. She swam the 100 in 1:18 and her split on the 400 free relay was 1:16. Not too bad. I wish the coaches would spend more time with the girls on technical stuff - stroke work, starts, turns. It's an easy way to shave time without having to kill the girls with swimming massive amounts of yards. Besides, if they're swimming all these yards and reinforcing bad technique, you've just made your life much more difficult for yourself as a coach. Southwest lost the meet. There were a couple hundred people crammed into the pool for the meet, and at times it was absolutely deafening. It was one of the more exciting dual meets I have ever been to. The two teams have another dual meet again later this season. It will be hard for Southwest to beat South from what I've seen. South has too much depth in the freestyle events for SW to overcome.
After the meet Madster and 'Nika and I were waiting in the hallway for KyKy. We bought some water from the concession stand, and it was very cold, which felt good after spending nearly three hours in the pool. I was feeling ok standing out in the hall, but when we left the building I crashed. It wasn't that cold outside, probably in the low 60's, but that, in combination with the cold water, pushed me over the edge. I felt like I had hypothermia almost immediately upon getting outside. I wasn't shivering, I was shuddering. We got in the car and I cranked the heat up and actually dreaded the walk from the garage to the house because I thought it would be so cold.
Now Wednesdays are my "book club" night. I get together with 3 other friends and we sit around on Matthew's porch and discuss a book we are jointly reading. And drink some wine. We really do discuss the books though. So far we've read all or parts of "God: A Biography" by Jack Miles, "Life Together" by Dietrich Bonhoeffer and "Irresistible Revolution" by Shane Claiborne. I really, really cherish this time with these guys. Often I don't get to bed until 2:30 am because of the intensity of the discussion. So last night we were going to forgo the discussion for a while and go on a little after dark bike ride on the trails around the city. We did this once before, and I was looking forward to last night. Alas, when I got home I called Matthew, told him I wasn't coming because I felt so crappy, and went straight to bed at 9:30, pulling two comforters over myself to warm up. I happened to wake up at 2:45 and I thought, "I've just slept 5 hours more than I normally get on Wednesday night." Still feeling a bit crummy today so I didn't bike, which bums me out because that would have been 4 days in a row of bike commuting - 108 miles not driven.
After the meet Madster and 'Nika and I were waiting in the hallway for KyKy. We bought some water from the concession stand, and it was very cold, which felt good after spending nearly three hours in the pool. I was feeling ok standing out in the hall, but when we left the building I crashed. It wasn't that cold outside, probably in the low 60's, but that, in combination with the cold water, pushed me over the edge. I felt like I had hypothermia almost immediately upon getting outside. I wasn't shivering, I was shuddering. We got in the car and I cranked the heat up and actually dreaded the walk from the garage to the house because I thought it would be so cold.
Now Wednesdays are my "book club" night. I get together with 3 other friends and we sit around on Matthew's porch and discuss a book we are jointly reading. And drink some wine. We really do discuss the books though. So far we've read all or parts of "God: A Biography" by Jack Miles, "Life Together" by Dietrich Bonhoeffer and "Irresistible Revolution" by Shane Claiborne. I really, really cherish this time with these guys. Often I don't get to bed until 2:30 am because of the intensity of the discussion. So last night we were going to forgo the discussion for a while and go on a little after dark bike ride on the trails around the city. We did this once before, and I was looking forward to last night. Alas, when I got home I called Matthew, told him I wasn't coming because I felt so crappy, and went straight to bed at 9:30, pulling two comforters over myself to warm up. I happened to wake up at 2:45 and I thought, "I've just slept 5 hours more than I normally get on Wednesday night." Still feeling a bit crummy today so I didn't bike, which bums me out because that would have been 4 days in a row of bike commuting - 108 miles not driven.
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
Yeah, So What If I Haven't Felt Like Writing Anything
Can't tell you why I haven't written anything lately. Well, yes I can. I'm lazy.
Plenty-o-stuff going on. We spent last Saturday down in Mason City for cousin Lise's wedding. It was my favorite kind of wedding - short. No special music. No long vows. No long homily. It was very traditional in that it seemed to follow a script based on the Book of Common Prayer. It was very nice. We adjourned to the Mason City Best Western for the reception and had a chance to catch up with cousins, aunts and uncles. Unfortunately we camped out at tables right under the DJ's speakers, so conversation across the table was sometimes a bit difficult. The last wedding we were at was cousin Trish's which was outdoors, and I don't remember the last time I was at a wedding reception with a DJ. The DJ introduced the wedding party with a very subdued kind of "Let's Get Ready To Ruuuuumble" enthusiasm complete with colorful disco lights. Thank you very much pro sports for making simple introductions into overly done productions. Meh.
KyKy has a big swim meet tonight against arch-rival South. South historically has had a strong program and has beaten up on Southwest for the last 25 years or so. South's coach thinks that this could be the year to break the streak, so it should be an nerve-wracking meet. KyKy will be swimming JV again, although she posted an awesome time in her last meet. She anchored the medley relay and split 30.3 seconds, which was a 4 second drop from the Edina meet. Her split on the 200 free relay was 33 seconds, which kind of surprised me after her first effort. If she can break 30 tonight, I personally think that she should swim a race or two on varsity. We'll see.
All the girls are getting back into the school routine with no major complaints. Homework has been manageable and they like their teachers so far.
I haven't been biking as much as I would like. We've been busy on weekends and schedules are crazy with school, swimming, karate so it is hard to get out and ride. In August, I dropped down from my 600+ mile a month pace to a little over 500. September is shaping up to be another 500 miler, which is ok because I should pass 4000 miles for the year this month and my goal of 5000 looks to be well within reach.
So there you go. Now fill up the comment section with football talk.
Plenty-o-stuff going on. We spent last Saturday down in Mason City for cousin Lise's wedding. It was my favorite kind of wedding - short. No special music. No long vows. No long homily. It was very traditional in that it seemed to follow a script based on the Book of Common Prayer. It was very nice. We adjourned to the Mason City Best Western for the reception and had a chance to catch up with cousins, aunts and uncles. Unfortunately we camped out at tables right under the DJ's speakers, so conversation across the table was sometimes a bit difficult. The last wedding we were at was cousin Trish's which was outdoors, and I don't remember the last time I was at a wedding reception with a DJ. The DJ introduced the wedding party with a very subdued kind of "Let's Get Ready To Ruuuuumble" enthusiasm complete with colorful disco lights. Thank you very much pro sports for making simple introductions into overly done productions. Meh.
KyKy has a big swim meet tonight against arch-rival South. South historically has had a strong program and has beaten up on Southwest for the last 25 years or so. South's coach thinks that this could be the year to break the streak, so it should be an nerve-wracking meet. KyKy will be swimming JV again, although she posted an awesome time in her last meet. She anchored the medley relay and split 30.3 seconds, which was a 4 second drop from the Edina meet. Her split on the 200 free relay was 33 seconds, which kind of surprised me after her first effort. If she can break 30 tonight, I personally think that she should swim a race or two on varsity. We'll see.
All the girls are getting back into the school routine with no major complaints. Homework has been manageable and they like their teachers so far.
I haven't been biking as much as I would like. We've been busy on weekends and schedules are crazy with school, swimming, karate so it is hard to get out and ride. In August, I dropped down from my 600+ mile a month pace to a little over 500. September is shaping up to be another 500 miler, which is ok because I should pass 4000 miles for the year this month and my goal of 5000 looks to be well within reach.
So there you go. Now fill up the comment section with football talk.
Tuesday, September 4, 2007
School
Everybody but me is back at it this week. KyKy left early today for morning practice before school. The Madster and 'Nika went out to the bus stop at 34th and Columbus we've been going to since 1998. This is the first year since we moved into the house that KyKy isn't climbing on that Emerson bus. She's joined the crowd of kids that have moved on to bigger and better things I guess. In 5 more years there won't be a Stocking at that bus stop anymore.
It'll be interesting to hear what KyKy and Madster's impressions are of their teachers. K is in a whole new school so we don't know any of the teachers, and since all of our friends kids are going to South, we can't get the dish on any of the Southwest bunch. The Madster is getting a whole new batch of teachers who are new to Emerson. They left a good impression on us after we met them at the school open house. We're hoping she has a great year. 'Nika is with some veterans who have been at the school since we started sending the kids there, so she should be fine. This week TOYH starts her final term at St Kates. 3 plus years into this slog and the light at the end of the proverbial tunnel is getting much brighter.
We were able to get stuff done around the house despite all our social engagements. On Sunday, we went to a little get together up in Vadnais Heights for our nephew's birthday. Monday, my sister Terri and her family stopped by with their bikes and a foreign exchange student, so we took a little tour around Lakes Calhoun and Harriet. Lovely day for a ride. In between these things, TOYH finished up the Madster's bedroom. She is now sleeping in a north woods cabin. The Dreadful Man came down, and with the help of The Madster, painted a scene on the one big blank wall of her room. On the one hand, The Madster wanted her room to look like the inside of a cabin. On the other, she wanted wildlife painted on the wall. Her solution? Paint the wall as the inside of cabin where the animals have broken in to eat the food. So there's a black bear and a raccoon munching away at the stores. Pretty clever, I thought. I spent the weekend painting trim on the outside of the house. It was looking pretty raggedy and white trash, so it got a power wash, prime and paint job. This was only the trim on the first floor, mind you. At the upper reaches of the second floor there's some peeling paint that will have to be dealt with eventually. I'm thinking, "Hire somebody." Unless I suddenly get ambitious and rent scaffolding and a truck to transport it, it's just going to have to wait.
It'll be interesting to hear what KyKy and Madster's impressions are of their teachers. K is in a whole new school so we don't know any of the teachers, and since all of our friends kids are going to South, we can't get the dish on any of the Southwest bunch. The Madster is getting a whole new batch of teachers who are new to Emerson. They left a good impression on us after we met them at the school open house. We're hoping she has a great year. 'Nika is with some veterans who have been at the school since we started sending the kids there, so she should be fine. This week TOYH starts her final term at St Kates. 3 plus years into this slog and the light at the end of the proverbial tunnel is getting much brighter.
We were able to get stuff done around the house despite all our social engagements. On Sunday, we went to a little get together up in Vadnais Heights for our nephew's birthday. Monday, my sister Terri and her family stopped by with their bikes and a foreign exchange student, so we took a little tour around Lakes Calhoun and Harriet. Lovely day for a ride. In between these things, TOYH finished up the Madster's bedroom. She is now sleeping in a north woods cabin. The Dreadful Man came down, and with the help of The Madster, painted a scene on the one big blank wall of her room. On the one hand, The Madster wanted her room to look like the inside of a cabin. On the other, she wanted wildlife painted on the wall. Her solution? Paint the wall as the inside of cabin where the animals have broken in to eat the food. So there's a black bear and a raccoon munching away at the stores. Pretty clever, I thought. I spent the weekend painting trim on the outside of the house. It was looking pretty raggedy and white trash, so it got a power wash, prime and paint job. This was only the trim on the first floor, mind you. At the upper reaches of the second floor there's some peeling paint that will have to be dealt with eventually. I'm thinking, "Hire somebody." Unless I suddenly get ambitious and rent scaffolding and a truck to transport it, it's just going to have to wait.
Saturday, September 1, 2007
Sigh....Again
So, we are well into the Labor Day weekend. Not to diminish the work that I do for Test Equipment World Domination Headquarters, but Labor day just doesn't seem to hold the same cache that it did when I was toiling away as a wage slave, humping packages for FedEx. That was labor, let me tell you. Oh well.
We are trying to make the most of this 3 day weekend. TOYH did not schedule anyone at the Massage Parlour for today, so we had the day to try and get some stuff around the house. After biking with KyKy to her dryland swimming practice (weightlifting), I came back to Casa de Stocking to do some work that has been put off for too long. This weekend, I am borrowing the 2500psi power washer from my father-in-law to peel the paint from some of the crappy looking trim on the house, and also to wash some of the dirt off the siding . So I washed off the siding, and peeled the paint off the offending trim in no time flat. While I was working on that, KyKy called to say practice was over and she wanted me to come back and ride home with her. But this was to be a family affair, so I aired up the tires on the bikes of everyone in the family and we set out to go pick up KyKy. KyKy was feeling adventurous, so she called just before we left and told us to meet her at the Lake Harriet Bandshell. Fair enough. We made it there in one piece, met her, drank down our water bottles and headed back home. On the way home, KyKy was captivated by the buena vista of Lake Harriet, and thus wasn't paying attention to where she was going. She drifted off the bike path and wiped out pretty good. She ended up with some road rash on her elbow and her knee. She was a little weepy about the incident, but I think that was more a matter of injured pride than the actual scrapes and bruises.
After we got home, we regrouped and prepared ourselves for ..... SHOPPING! I had to stop by the hardware store to pick up the paint and supplies for the trim on the house I had just denuded, and we also needed to make a pilgrimage to Costco to get ready for the start of school. Mission Accomplished. We came back and unloaded the booty, and I fired up the grill in the back yard so as to cook up some of the meat we had been storing in our freezer. (Speaking of freezers, TOYH and hauled up our little 3 (?) cubic foot freezer freezer from the basement to defrost it. Took out all the crap (meat) that was in it, brought it outside, set it in the sun, and waited until the ice chunks had melted. Good times.) We ate some grilled salmon and tuna we found in the far reaches of our upstairs freezer and pretty much called it a night.
The sigh in the title of this post comes from me listening to the Gophers football game on the radio. Halftime - Bowling Green 21 Gophers 0. Not encouraging. I'm not a huge football fan, but I want the team from my beloved alma mater to be successful. This year the Gophs have a new coach who apparently is chock full of enthusiasm. I really, really want him to be successful, just like I wanted the U's former coach, Jim "Geezo Beezo" Wacker to be successful. I really like coaches who are barely able to contain their excitemtent about their team. The coach between the current coach and Wacker was Glen Mason, who was a very, very good coach, but he always struck me as bloodless compared to "Wacky" Wacker. I always loved Wacky, he may have not had the chops to coach in the Big 10 but by golly you couldn't help rooting for him. Tim Brewster, the new coach, seems to have an untainted, golly-shucks enthusiasm for the game and for the U of M. More power to him. I really want him to succeed. I hope the Gophs pull it out. All this being said, I must ask if my sister Jen and her husband Francis if they are rooting for Bowling Green, being that they are graduates of that fine institution. American Studies. Storybook romance. Just ask them.
Just as an aside - I miss more than words can express Ray Christiansen broadcasting Gopher football. He has been off the air for a couple of seasons now, but he was the voice of Gopher football and basketball for as long as I can remember. Oh, for the days growing up listening him call a game, and then the post game show with Bill Diehl. Oma always had the radio tuned to WCCO when the Gophs were playing (She had the radio tuned to 'CCO all the time, I mean every waking hour). Ray was such a homer, a graduate of the U who lived and died with the fortunes of the team. He wasn't just a part of my youth, but my adulthood too. I knew nothing other than Ray when it came to Gopher radio broadcasts, and I miss him. Add to that the loss of Herb Carneal, THE ONLY VOICE OF THE MINNESOTA TWINS, who died just before the start of this year's baseball season, and the radio sports mooring of my life has been undone. I guess I'm getting old.
Upcoming: More exciting home improvement updates!
We are trying to make the most of this 3 day weekend. TOYH did not schedule anyone at the Massage Parlour for today, so we had the day to try and get some stuff around the house. After biking with KyKy to her dryland swimming practice (weightlifting), I came back to Casa de Stocking to do some work that has been put off for too long. This weekend, I am borrowing the 2500psi power washer from my father-in-law to peel the paint from some of the crappy looking trim on the house, and also to wash some of the dirt off the siding . So I washed off the siding, and peeled the paint off the offending trim in no time flat. While I was working on that, KyKy called to say practice was over and she wanted me to come back and ride home with her. But this was to be a family affair, so I aired up the tires on the bikes of everyone in the family and we set out to go pick up KyKy. KyKy was feeling adventurous, so she called just before we left and told us to meet her at the Lake Harriet Bandshell. Fair enough. We made it there in one piece, met her, drank down our water bottles and headed back home. On the way home, KyKy was captivated by the buena vista of Lake Harriet, and thus wasn't paying attention to where she was going. She drifted off the bike path and wiped out pretty good. She ended up with some road rash on her elbow and her knee. She was a little weepy about the incident, but I think that was more a matter of injured pride than the actual scrapes and bruises.
After we got home, we regrouped and prepared ourselves for ..... SHOPPING! I had to stop by the hardware store to pick up the paint and supplies for the trim on the house I had just denuded, and we also needed to make a pilgrimage to Costco to get ready for the start of school. Mission Accomplished. We came back and unloaded the booty, and I fired up the grill in the back yard so as to cook up some of the meat we had been storing in our freezer. (Speaking of freezers, TOYH and hauled up our little 3 (?) cubic foot freezer freezer from the basement to defrost it. Took out all the crap (meat) that was in it, brought it outside, set it in the sun, and waited until the ice chunks had melted. Good times.) We ate some grilled salmon and tuna we found in the far reaches of our upstairs freezer and pretty much called it a night.
The sigh in the title of this post comes from me listening to the Gophers football game on the radio. Halftime - Bowling Green 21 Gophers 0. Not encouraging. I'm not a huge football fan, but I want the team from my beloved alma mater to be successful. This year the Gophs have a new coach who apparently is chock full of enthusiasm. I really, really want him to be successful, just like I wanted the U's former coach, Jim "Geezo Beezo" Wacker to be successful. I really like coaches who are barely able to contain their excitemtent about their team. The coach between the current coach and Wacker was Glen Mason, who was a very, very good coach, but he always struck me as bloodless compared to "Wacky" Wacker. I always loved Wacky, he may have not had the chops to coach in the Big 10 but by golly you couldn't help rooting for him. Tim Brewster, the new coach, seems to have an untainted, golly-shucks enthusiasm for the game and for the U of M. More power to him. I really want him to succeed. I hope the Gophs pull it out. All this being said, I must ask if my sister Jen and her husband Francis if they are rooting for Bowling Green, being that they are graduates of that fine institution. American Studies. Storybook romance. Just ask them.
Just as an aside - I miss more than words can express Ray Christiansen broadcasting Gopher football. He has been off the air for a couple of seasons now, but he was the voice of Gopher football and basketball for as long as I can remember. Oh, for the days growing up listening him call a game, and then the post game show with Bill Diehl. Oma always had the radio tuned to WCCO when the Gophs were playing (She had the radio tuned to 'CCO all the time, I mean every waking hour). Ray was such a homer, a graduate of the U who lived and died with the fortunes of the team. He wasn't just a part of my youth, but my adulthood too. I knew nothing other than Ray when it came to Gopher radio broadcasts, and I miss him. Add to that the loss of Herb Carneal, THE ONLY VOICE OF THE MINNESOTA TWINS, who died just before the start of this year's baseball season, and the radio sports mooring of my life has been undone. I guess I'm getting old.
Upcoming: More exciting home improvement updates!
Wednesday, August 29, 2007
Finally, Some Sleep
We were finally able to get some uninterrupted sleep last night. The previous 2 nights we were awakened by window-rattling thunderstorm between 2am and 3am. While I enjoy a good storm, it was literally tiresome to wake up and wonder if the tree in the front yard was going to topple over on the house. Woke up this morning to glorious weather - cloudless 60 degrees, north breeze and NO HUMIDITY. TOYH has been trying to paint The Madster's room, and the dampness in the air has slowed the process way down. It's supposed to be nice through the long weekend, so hopefully we'll be able to get work done around the house and garden.
The cool, dry mornings are indescribably nice for biking. I felt chilled at the beginning of my commute wearing just a tee-shirt and shorts, but after a few minutes of riding, it felt great. I was able to play good Samaritan this morning on my ride. I try to make it a point to ask any biker who is pulled over if he/she needs any help. Today, I asked a fellow on the Greenway if he needed anything, and he said, "Do you have a pump?" Sure enough I did. We aired up his tire and we were on our way. I thought for sure I heard hissing from his tire, but he said he would be o.k. And he was. He didn't flat out again. I fell in behind him for the rest of the ride on the Greenway and then across the Lake St. Marshall Ave bridge. On the flats, he was booking along at about 20mph and I was able to keep up with him. When we got to the hill on Marshall up from the river bridge he slowed way down. Weird. I probably out weighed him by 50 pounds plus I had a 15 pound pannier on my rack. He was on a stripped down road bike all decked out in racing garb. Being that I was filled with so much goodwill after lending him my pump, I decided not to humiliate him by flying past him up the hill. If he had been a jerk, I would have absolutely no problem moving my old, fat body up a hill faster than a weenie, roadie poseur.
Tonight is the open house for The Madster and 'Nika's school. TOYH and I are very keen on meeting The Madster's new teachers since the exodus of 3 (at least) of the Gang of Four from last spring. I hope they'll be able to pull it together. 7th and 8th grade were so important for KyKy, and we don't want the other two to miss out.
The cool, dry mornings are indescribably nice for biking. I felt chilled at the beginning of my commute wearing just a tee-shirt and shorts, but after a few minutes of riding, it felt great. I was able to play good Samaritan this morning on my ride. I try to make it a point to ask any biker who is pulled over if he/she needs any help. Today, I asked a fellow on the Greenway if he needed anything, and he said, "Do you have a pump?" Sure enough I did. We aired up his tire and we were on our way. I thought for sure I heard hissing from his tire, but he said he would be o.k. And he was. He didn't flat out again. I fell in behind him for the rest of the ride on the Greenway and then across the Lake St. Marshall Ave bridge. On the flats, he was booking along at about 20mph and I was able to keep up with him. When we got to the hill on Marshall up from the river bridge he slowed way down. Weird. I probably out weighed him by 50 pounds plus I had a 15 pound pannier on my rack. He was on a stripped down road bike all decked out in racing garb. Being that I was filled with so much goodwill after lending him my pump, I decided not to humiliate him by flying past him up the hill. If he had been a jerk, I would have absolutely no problem moving my old, fat body up a hill faster than a weenie, roadie poseur.
Tonight is the open house for The Madster and 'Nika's school. TOYH and I are very keen on meeting The Madster's new teachers since the exodus of 3 (at least) of the Gang of Four from last spring. I hope they'll be able to pull it together. 7th and 8th grade were so important for KyKy, and we don't want the other two to miss out.
Monday, August 27, 2007
Why I Don't Like The State Fair
1) I have to change my very convenient bike ride to work because of all the traffic. Plus my in-laws live in Roseville 2 miles from the Fairgrounds. Getting to Roseville and back is very annoying this time of year, even moreso with a missing bridge.
2) I am tired of hearing about all the different kinds of food one can "get on a stick." It's not funny or cute anymore.
3) I am tired of turning on the local news and having to watch a bunch of Gomers mugging for the camera in the background so they can go home and say, "Hey maw, I gots myself into that there moving picture box in your living room. Didja see me?"
That is all.
2) I am tired of hearing about all the different kinds of food one can "get on a stick." It's not funny or cute anymore.
3) I am tired of turning on the local news and having to watch a bunch of Gomers mugging for the camera in the background so they can go home and say, "Hey maw, I gots myself into that there moving picture box in your living room. Didja see me?"
That is all.
Sunday, August 26, 2007
17 Years Plus One Day
We had a lovely time down in Southeastern Minnesota this weekend. We stayed at the Wenneson Inn in Peterson, MN which is between Rushford and Lanesboro. Peterson and Lanesboro were untouched by the floods of last weekend, Rushford was pretty much decimated. Peterson is smack dab in the middle of bluff country. It is very pretty down there. It is also very different down there. Peterson is a town of 269 souls that does not have a convenience store/gas station. It does have a bar, a liquor store (Chiggy Liquors), one restaurant, a feed mill, two B&B's, a combination carwash laundromat, and of course a Lutheran Church. Before you settle into where you're staying in Peterson, make sure you are prepared. If you don't have what you need, you can't get it in town, unless it is alcohol. The go to town for any sundries would be Rushford, but that town will be shut down for a while. The biggest town close by is Winona, which is about 25 miles to the north. The Twin Cities hardly qualify as a 24 hour city, but we've got 24 hour groceries and convenience stores. I have no idea where the closest all night store to Peterson is.
I noticed on the county roads leading to Peterson were filled with friendly drivers. I don't know how many times some stranger in an oncoming vehicle waved to us as we passed them. Either these folks are really friendly or else the most popular people in the county drive a car identical to our Crapmobile. I'm thinking they're just nice. Popular people wouldn't drive a Crapmobile. Or maybe they were being nice because they felt sorry for us.
We arrived at about 8 on Friday night, ate a quick meal and settled in. Saturday we got up and had breakfast with two retirement age couples from Wisconsin, although one of the couples had just relocated to Michigan. For some odd reason, the conversation turned to taxes, and one of the men complained how high the taxes were in Wisconsin, thus they moved to Michigan. He then went on to say that the taxes are so much lower in Minnesota than they are in Wisconsin. Sound familiar Minnesotans? This is the same crap the anti-tax crowd in Minnesota spouts about Wisconsin. Oh! Oh! all our businesses are moving to Wisconsin because the taxes are so much lower. Then he went on to complain about where all the tax money was going. Well in Wisconsin it's going toward keeping the tuition at UW much lower than at the UofM. In Minnesota it's going toward the hundreds of miles of bicycle trails that can be used by anyone for free. (In Wisc. the trails aren't paved and I guess you have to pay to use them.) If you want low tuition, bike trails, bridges not falling down, and help cleaning up after a flood, pay you damn taxes. If you don't want to pay them, shut up and don't expect any help. You can just friggin' lump it. Fortunately, I held my tongue and didn't start spouting off about this stuff.
We (well at least I was) were glad to get away from the table and that conversation. We loaded up the bikes and headed to Lanesboro. The Root River Trail had washed out between Peterson and Lanesboro, so if we wanted to do any kind of riding on the trail, we'd have to drive a bit. On the way out of town we stopped by the town museum. Closed. TOYH got out of the car and crossed the street to see if hours were posted. There was a note saying, "Leave a note," if you want to see the museum. As she was crossing back to get into the car, a local man struck up a conversation about the museum. They got to talking. Turns out the director of the museum has family in Rushford and was understandably busy over there. Don, the man who TOYH was talking to, was spending time at his gas station. "But," I hear you protest, "You said there are no gas stations in Peterson." I will clarify. There are no working gas stations in Peterson. Don had bought this old Mobil Oil station in town, and it was his vacation home. "Some people have a cabin on the lake," he said, "I have this old gas station." He invited us in and showed us his collection of old timey gas pumps and other oil industry memorabilia. He had made it a comfortable space, and was cleaning cobwebs from the basement/grease pit. He showed us the office where the previous owners literally wore half inch divots in the floor with their office chairs. The grease pit had been covered up so he had more living (and less dangerous) space. There was a little stairway leading down to the basement/grease pit. The man who runs the town museum gave Don some pictures. One was of the original owner at the station. Another was of the original owner's son who took over the business. There also was a picture of the owner with his daughter when she was very young, and who is now in her 80's and still lives across the street. Utterly charming. Being in the station took me back to Roger Peterson's Phillips 66 station in Cambridge, and going there with Opa to get gas on Saturdays.
We got to Lanesboro, hopped on our bikes, rode to Preston, had a lemonaide, didn't see Neil on his Preston Century, and biked back to Lanesboro.
After our ride we had a nice lunch and then walked around the town. We ended up at a store that sells wine from the local winery. Mmmm sounds interesting. The vinters there are making wine with different fruits and I was eager to sample some. I am so glad they gave out samples. I was all excited about the rhubarb wine. A man with a bulbous nose passing out the samples (and imbibing quite often himself) showed us the list of wines and said from top to bottom on the list the wines went from dry to sweet. Rhubarb was one notch above the middle, so I'm thinking maybe kind of a sweet dessert wine. Nope. Tasted like the dregs of a pitcher of Kool-Aid that had not been stirred at all. We ended up with a cranberry wine which was supposedly "dry" but is still a sweet dessert wine, and some sort of grape varietal. We stopped at the Lanesboro museum and looked around for about 45 minutes. I find these small town museums fascinating. Every small town has a story to tell, a story it wants others to know about, a story for it's townspeople to hold on to. It is very easy to be engrossed by these stories.
Back to Peterson we drive, taking the indirect route, getting waved at by the locals. When we got back to the B&B I hopped back on my bike for another ride. I took the Root River Trail as far West and as far East as I could go before being turned back by closures. I averaged 4mph faster without TOYH dragging me down. When I got back to the B&B, I found TOYH out on the deck chatting with a couple from Edina, Ron and Margaret. They both grew up in Rushford (met in 7th grade now married 45 years, I think) and were back to help Ron's brother dung out his house in Rushford. We talked and laughed for at least two and a half hours. It was great fun, because we didn't talk about taxes, politics or religion. We retired to our room with some food we picked up at the market in Lanesboro. We skipped eating at the local establishment, Judy's Country Kitchen, because we ate there on Friday night and were getting tired of restaurant food.
When we got up Sunday morning, Pam the proprieter let us in for breakfast early, and we got to chatting. She and her husband Barry have put the Wenneson up for sale, and I was curious about life in such a small town. She ended up telling us about one of the neighbor boys in the town. He's about 14 years old and a hard worker according to Pam. One night Barry was getting home at about 9pm when he noticed that there were 3 teenager types trying to break into Judy's Country Kitchen. Barry thought that one of them was the neigbhor boy, who happens to work at Judy's. Barry chased them away, but wasn't certain that they really were the local boys. So what do you do when you see an attempted burglary in Peterson? You call the Mayor of course. Barry explains the situation to him, and the Mayor takes care of it, apparently giving the neighbor boy a stern talking to. The whole story had a Mayberry-esqueness to it. Local boy (maybe) attempts to break into his place of employment at a very early hour, is seen and most likely recognized by a neighbor who quickly calls the Mayor to straighten the wayward kid out. If it truly was the neighbor boy trying to break in, the Mayor kept it pretty hush-hush. The kid still has his job at Judy's.
I noticed on the county roads leading to Peterson were filled with friendly drivers. I don't know how many times some stranger in an oncoming vehicle waved to us as we passed them. Either these folks are really friendly or else the most popular people in the county drive a car identical to our Crapmobile. I'm thinking they're just nice. Popular people wouldn't drive a Crapmobile. Or maybe they were being nice because they felt sorry for us.
We arrived at about 8 on Friday night, ate a quick meal and settled in. Saturday we got up and had breakfast with two retirement age couples from Wisconsin, although one of the couples had just relocated to Michigan. For some odd reason, the conversation turned to taxes, and one of the men complained how high the taxes were in Wisconsin, thus they moved to Michigan. He then went on to say that the taxes are so much lower in Minnesota than they are in Wisconsin. Sound familiar Minnesotans? This is the same crap the anti-tax crowd in Minnesota spouts about Wisconsin. Oh! Oh! all our businesses are moving to Wisconsin because the taxes are so much lower. Then he went on to complain about where all the tax money was going. Well in Wisconsin it's going toward keeping the tuition at UW much lower than at the UofM. In Minnesota it's going toward the hundreds of miles of bicycle trails that can be used by anyone for free. (In Wisc. the trails aren't paved and I guess you have to pay to use them.) If you want low tuition, bike trails, bridges not falling down, and help cleaning up after a flood, pay you damn taxes. If you don't want to pay them, shut up and don't expect any help. You can just friggin' lump it. Fortunately, I held my tongue and didn't start spouting off about this stuff.
We (well at least I was) were glad to get away from the table and that conversation. We loaded up the bikes and headed to Lanesboro. The Root River Trail had washed out between Peterson and Lanesboro, so if we wanted to do any kind of riding on the trail, we'd have to drive a bit. On the way out of town we stopped by the town museum. Closed. TOYH got out of the car and crossed the street to see if hours were posted. There was a note saying, "Leave a note," if you want to see the museum. As she was crossing back to get into the car, a local man struck up a conversation about the museum. They got to talking. Turns out the director of the museum has family in Rushford and was understandably busy over there. Don, the man who TOYH was talking to, was spending time at his gas station. "But," I hear you protest, "You said there are no gas stations in Peterson." I will clarify. There are no working gas stations in Peterson. Don had bought this old Mobil Oil station in town, and it was his vacation home. "Some people have a cabin on the lake," he said, "I have this old gas station." He invited us in and showed us his collection of old timey gas pumps and other oil industry memorabilia. He had made it a comfortable space, and was cleaning cobwebs from the basement/grease pit. He showed us the office where the previous owners literally wore half inch divots in the floor with their office chairs. The grease pit had been covered up so he had more living (and less dangerous) space. There was a little stairway leading down to the basement/grease pit. The man who runs the town museum gave Don some pictures. One was of the original owner at the station. Another was of the original owner's son who took over the business. There also was a picture of the owner with his daughter when she was very young, and who is now in her 80's and still lives across the street. Utterly charming. Being in the station took me back to Roger Peterson's Phillips 66 station in Cambridge, and going there with Opa to get gas on Saturdays.
We got to Lanesboro, hopped on our bikes, rode to Preston, had a lemonaide, didn't see Neil on his Preston Century, and biked back to Lanesboro.
After our ride we had a nice lunch and then walked around the town. We ended up at a store that sells wine from the local winery. Mmmm sounds interesting. The vinters there are making wine with different fruits and I was eager to sample some. I am so glad they gave out samples. I was all excited about the rhubarb wine. A man with a bulbous nose passing out the samples (and imbibing quite often himself) showed us the list of wines and said from top to bottom on the list the wines went from dry to sweet. Rhubarb was one notch above the middle, so I'm thinking maybe kind of a sweet dessert wine. Nope. Tasted like the dregs of a pitcher of Kool-Aid that had not been stirred at all. We ended up with a cranberry wine which was supposedly "dry" but is still a sweet dessert wine, and some sort of grape varietal. We stopped at the Lanesboro museum and looked around for about 45 minutes. I find these small town museums fascinating. Every small town has a story to tell, a story it wants others to know about, a story for it's townspeople to hold on to. It is very easy to be engrossed by these stories.
Back to Peterson we drive, taking the indirect route, getting waved at by the locals. When we got back to the B&B I hopped back on my bike for another ride. I took the Root River Trail as far West and as far East as I could go before being turned back by closures. I averaged 4mph faster without TOYH dragging me down. When I got back to the B&B, I found TOYH out on the deck chatting with a couple from Edina, Ron and Margaret. They both grew up in Rushford (met in 7th grade now married 45 years, I think) and were back to help Ron's brother dung out his house in Rushford. We talked and laughed for at least two and a half hours. It was great fun, because we didn't talk about taxes, politics or religion. We retired to our room with some food we picked up at the market in Lanesboro. We skipped eating at the local establishment, Judy's Country Kitchen, because we ate there on Friday night and were getting tired of restaurant food.
When we got up Sunday morning, Pam the proprieter let us in for breakfast early, and we got to chatting. She and her husband Barry have put the Wenneson up for sale, and I was curious about life in such a small town. She ended up telling us about one of the neighbor boys in the town. He's about 14 years old and a hard worker according to Pam. One night Barry was getting home at about 9pm when he noticed that there were 3 teenager types trying to break into Judy's Country Kitchen. Barry thought that one of them was the neigbhor boy, who happens to work at Judy's. Barry chased them away, but wasn't certain that they really were the local boys. So what do you do when you see an attempted burglary in Peterson? You call the Mayor of course. Barry explains the situation to him, and the Mayor takes care of it, apparently giving the neighbor boy a stern talking to. The whole story had a Mayberry-esqueness to it. Local boy (maybe) attempts to break into his place of employment at a very early hour, is seen and most likely recognized by a neighbor who quickly calls the Mayor to straighten the wayward kid out. If it truly was the neighbor boy trying to break in, the Mayor kept it pretty hush-hush. The kid still has his job at Judy's.
Friday, August 24, 2007
The Big Meet
KyKy had her first meet as a Southwest Laker swimmer last night. The Madster, 'Nika and I trekked out to Edina to see the Hornets beat up on Southwest. The Edina coach is an old teammate of mine from St. Cloud State, and I talked to him for a while. I haven't seen Jeff in more than 20 years. He was saying that the team was down this year. For Edina that means they won't be vying for a State Championship. The last time they won state was 2004. Last year they finished (gasp!) 8th. Art Downey is still helping out with the Edina team. I think he has been coaching since our ancestors stopped swimming and crawled out of the primordial soup eons ago. Probably what makes him a good coach.
KyKy did a great job. Mercifully, the coach put her in the 50 free and the 200 free relay for her first swims. She's only been practicing for a week, and she hasn't been swimming seriously for a couple of years so they didn't stick her in the 500 or 100 fly. I think she swam about a 34 second 50 free and took 2nd in the J.V. race. She forgot to hit the touchpad at the end of the race, so her time didn't register on the scoreboard. She anchored a J.V. 200 free relay and her split was 33.2. It'll be a big day when she breaks that 30 second barrier.
Tonight TOYH and I leave for the thriving metropolis of Peterson, MN for our 17th Anniversary weekend. I feel like I want to just sleep for 36 hours.
KyKy did a great job. Mercifully, the coach put her in the 50 free and the 200 free relay for her first swims. She's only been practicing for a week, and she hasn't been swimming seriously for a couple of years so they didn't stick her in the 500 or 100 fly. I think she swam about a 34 second 50 free and took 2nd in the J.V. race. She forgot to hit the touchpad at the end of the race, so her time didn't register on the scoreboard. She anchored a J.V. 200 free relay and her split was 33.2. It'll be a big day when she breaks that 30 second barrier.
Tonight TOYH and I leave for the thriving metropolis of Peterson, MN for our 17th Anniversary weekend. I feel like I want to just sleep for 36 hours.
Wednesday, August 22, 2007
Bleh
I've been inexplicably tired this past week and I don't know why. The weather has been dreary, so maybe that's part of it. Because of all the family obligations, I haven't been able to bike to work much, and even when I did, it didn't get me out of the doldrums.
The Madster was pretty happy with the birthday haul yesterday. A couple of stuffed animals, and then some techy stuff. We got her a cell phone. Sigh. I suppose we could do without them, but with our crazy schedules, we want to have at least one of our kids per school to have one. Obviously the kids don't carry them around in class, but it sure is nice to be able to leave text messages for them when plans change (which they always do). There are now 4 cell phones in the family, but you'd never know it. None of us are sitting around gabbing in public places or at home for that matter. Because of work, TOYH gets the most calls by far, but she rarely picks up calls when they come to her phone. It's more of a messaging service for her. This will all change when 'Nika, aka "The Phone Vulture," gets a cell phone. She loves to answer the phone and she loves to talk with friends and family on the phone. I will give you all advanced notice when she gets one so you can buy your Verizon stock, or whatever carrier we will be using in the future.
We also got The Madster Sims 2 Pets for the computer. We had gone back and forth about getting her what she really wanted - plain old Sims 2. They seemed to have ratcheted up the hanky-panky quotient from Sims 1, so TOYH picked up Sims 2 Pets instead. All was well until I read on the Sims 2 Pets box that the Sims 2 game was required to use Pets. Crimeny. Now we've got to decide what to do again. Anyone familiar with Sims 2? It's rated Teen, so The Madster will probably....Wait, this just in. The Madster called me from her new cell phone saying they made the exchange for Sims 2 and she's having trouble installing it. I guess I know what I'm doing this evening. BTW, what ever happened to Sim City? Francis? Anyone?
The Madster was pretty happy with the birthday haul yesterday. A couple of stuffed animals, and then some techy stuff. We got her a cell phone. Sigh. I suppose we could do without them, but with our crazy schedules, we want to have at least one of our kids per school to have one. Obviously the kids don't carry them around in class, but it sure is nice to be able to leave text messages for them when plans change (which they always do). There are now 4 cell phones in the family, but you'd never know it. None of us are sitting around gabbing in public places or at home for that matter. Because of work, TOYH gets the most calls by far, but she rarely picks up calls when they come to her phone. It's more of a messaging service for her. This will all change when 'Nika, aka "The Phone Vulture," gets a cell phone. She loves to answer the phone and she loves to talk with friends and family on the phone. I will give you all advanced notice when she gets one so you can buy your Verizon stock, or whatever carrier we will be using in the future.
We also got The Madster Sims 2 Pets for the computer. We had gone back and forth about getting her what she really wanted - plain old Sims 2. They seemed to have ratcheted up the hanky-panky quotient from Sims 1, so TOYH picked up Sims 2 Pets instead. All was well until I read on the Sims 2 Pets box that the Sims 2 game was required to use Pets. Crimeny. Now we've got to decide what to do again. Anyone familiar with Sims 2? It's rated Teen, so The Madster will probably....Wait, this just in. The Madster called me from her new cell phone saying they made the exchange for Sims 2 and she's having trouble installing it. I guess I know what I'm doing this evening. BTW, what ever happened to Sim City? Francis? Anyone?
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
This Is Why I Am An Idiot
Last night TOYH and I went to a booster meeting for the Minneapolis Southwest Swim Team. I must say that this crowd of parents is different from the parents we encounter at Emerson. We were probably the only folks there last night that shop at thrift stores because we want to, not because we like the "shabby chic" look. All the parents last night spoke English as their first language and none of the moms had shaved heads. The coach made it sound like the team could be pretty good this year, yet this group of folks didn't seem like it was filled with "hockey parents" who were going to demand that their daughter swim varsity or else.
I had forgotten what kind of commitment it takes to be a high school athlete. KyKy is coming home exhausted, mostly because she hasn't swum that much in the past few years. But there are morning practices, weight lifting, Saturday practices, practices before meets. The coach mentioned that the varsity would be swimming up to 8000 yards a day. I'm thinking that has got to be accomplished in 2 practices. I don't remember swimming 8000 yards in one practice in H.S. I probably did it in college, but that seems like a pretty tall order for a two hour H.S. practice. Coach Pam allows for very few absences from practice - injury/illness, religious (KyKy might convert to Judaism so she can get Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippor off) or freshman orientation. I suppose there might be a couple of other reasons, but you get the point.
I don't recall ever skipping any practices in my freshman through senior years in H.S. I wonder how many thousands of hours I spent in the pool or on the field in those years. I was totally dedicated to sport in H.S., and my grades reflected that. If I had been as dedicated to school work as I had been to sport, I probably would have done better than "above average" in school. I don't think KyKy will slough off school like I did, but she might burn out, which I never did. I didn't care about school as much as I should have.
That being said, I'm so pleased she's on the team. She's going to make friends, have fun and accomplish things with them that she'll look back on fondly later. Being on a team, whether you are a successful athlete or not is simply a good thing. There might be times when you want to quit because of all the hard work, but because you have friends on the team, you stick it out. I'm hoping the team gets her in their clutches.
The team captains pick out the design of the suits the girls will wear in the meets. The suits don't have any purple in them partly because the team is combined with Washburn H.S., so finding a purple and white, blue and orange suit off the shelf is probably impossible. What's cool about the suits is that they have 612 emblazoned on them. Why? That's the area code for Minneapolis (and Richfield too I think) and there are only a few H.S. swim teams left in 612, so when Soutwest goes to regions with all the 952 suburban powerhouses, they're goin' to represent.
Word.
I had forgotten what kind of commitment it takes to be a high school athlete. KyKy is coming home exhausted, mostly because she hasn't swum that much in the past few years. But there are morning practices, weight lifting, Saturday practices, practices before meets. The coach mentioned that the varsity would be swimming up to 8000 yards a day. I'm thinking that has got to be accomplished in 2 practices. I don't remember swimming 8000 yards in one practice in H.S. I probably did it in college, but that seems like a pretty tall order for a two hour H.S. practice. Coach Pam allows for very few absences from practice - injury/illness, religious (KyKy might convert to Judaism so she can get Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippor off) or freshman orientation. I suppose there might be a couple of other reasons, but you get the point.
I don't recall ever skipping any practices in my freshman through senior years in H.S. I wonder how many thousands of hours I spent in the pool or on the field in those years. I was totally dedicated to sport in H.S., and my grades reflected that. If I had been as dedicated to school work as I had been to sport, I probably would have done better than "above average" in school. I don't think KyKy will slough off school like I did, but she might burn out, which I never did. I didn't care about school as much as I should have.
That being said, I'm so pleased she's on the team. She's going to make friends, have fun and accomplish things with them that she'll look back on fondly later. Being on a team, whether you are a successful athlete or not is simply a good thing. There might be times when you want to quit because of all the hard work, but because you have friends on the team, you stick it out. I'm hoping the team gets her in their clutches.
The team captains pick out the design of the suits the girls will wear in the meets. The suits don't have any purple in them partly because the team is combined with Washburn H.S., so finding a purple and white, blue and orange suit off the shelf is probably impossible. What's cool about the suits is that they have 612 emblazoned on them. Why? That's the area code for Minneapolis (and Richfield too I think) and there are only a few H.S. swim teams left in 612, so when Soutwest goes to regions with all the 952 suburban powerhouses, they're goin' to represent.
Word.
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