Friday, December 31, 2010
Peter's Christmas Pageant
I don't have anything to write about the the New Year, but I would like to share some Christmas songs from Peter and his classmates ( Peter is in the grey sweater and plaid tie ).
Note: The video below is actually too wide to fit on my blog page, so just double-click on the video if you want to see it full-sized on he YouTube page.
Rich
Wednesday, December 29, 2010
These Boots Are Made for Walkin' ( for more than 22 years )
Instead, I posted a picture of my boots. My late mother took me to a shoe store to buy these books back in August of 1988. I was about to head off to Cornell University, and my Mom wanted to make sure my feet were properly protected against the harsh Ithaca winters.
Well, more than 22 years later these books are still protecting my feet. They're still 100% waterproof and my feet have never felt the least bit cold in these boots ( BTW, in case you are wondering were you can get such great boots, I just discovered that this brand of boots ( Northland ) was discontinued in 1998 ). Now, I certainly don't wear these boot every day ( I only put them on when the weather is really bad ), but regardless of how often I've worn them, it's still rather impressive that these boots have lasted for more than 22 years.
So, their durability makes these boots rather special, but what makes them even more special is that they were a gift from my Mom. Whenever I put these boots on, it kinda feels like my Mom is still looking out for me all these years later. I hope these boots can last at least another 22 years, cause it will kind of be a sad day when I finally need to replace them.
Rich
Sunday, December 12, 2010
My Excuse
Why is that?
Well, there are a whole bunch of reason, but for now I'll just off one excuse.
As some of you know, I'm a HUGE sports fan. Prior to September of 2007, the only real "hobbies" I had ever had were watching sports, reading about sports, talking about sports, thinking about sports, playing sports, and listening to sports talk radio.
Starting around mid-September 2007, my favorite baseball team ( The Mets ) began a collapse of historic proportions that cost them 1st place and made them the laughing-stock of the baseball world. My favorite football team ( The Jets ) was in the midst of a 4-12 season, and my favorite basketball team ( The Knicks ) had completely sucked for about 7 years.
Around that same time, I started making YouTube videos, and I really don't think the timing was a coincidence. My traditional "hobby" was becoming far too depressing, so I was open to finding a new one.
Well my online hobby has been a lot of fun, and I expect it will bring me a lot of joy in the future, but over the last year, I'm found myself focusing back on sports. Last January, the Jets made a surprise run to the AFC championship game. There were playing well enough this year, that I found myself going on a desperate quest to buy an antenna. They were playing so well, that less than a week ago, they were tied for the best record in football, and they had me dreaming about finally getting to see my football team win the championship.
Well, in the last week, I've watched the Jets lose 45-3 ( !!!!!!! ) and 10-6, and all my dreams of a Jets championship have been dashed for another year ( I've been rooting for my 3 favorite teams for more than 100 combined seasons, and only in one of those seasons did my team win the championship ( and that happened way back in 1986 ). ).
So, I guess it's not surprising that less than 3 hours after the Jets last loss, I found myself writing this blog post. Does the Jets recent ineptitude mean that I'll be online a lot more in the near future?
Who knows? After all, after 10 years of sucking to high heaven, the Knicks are now on an 8-game winning streak.
Rich
P.S. So much for making this post short. I'm not sure if anyone is going to read this, but it was fun to to write again.
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Fall Fun
I expected to hear the sounds of leaves crackling and crunching when I did this. Instead I heard a faint rustling followed by a thump.
Rich
Saturday, October 30, 2010
Everything I never wanted to know about antennas, but I was afraid I would have to ask.
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Guest Blogger: My Mom
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Secret Hugs
"My baby" is my youngest son Peter ( 5 years old ). I know it's generally mothers who think of their kids as babies, but I'm a lot more affectionate than a typical Dad, and I think part of me will always feel like my kids are my babies, no matter how old they get.
That's why it kinda hurts a little bit that Peter has decided that he doesn't want to hug and kiss me anymore. His older brother Michael still gives me a goodnight kiss without fail each night, but Peter tells me in no uncertain terms that he only want to hug and kiss Mommy.
Actually, he's made it really clear that he only wants to hug and kiss girls and never wants to hug and kiss boys. Those of you who have seen my YouTube videos know that I'm the last Dad in the world who would teach his kids strict gender rolls or display any attitude that would even hint at homophobia, so I really have no idea where he is getting this attitude from. However, things are what they are. It's really hard to change Peter's mind about anything. He's decided that he won't hug boys, and that mean no hugs for me.
Well, actually, it means no hugs for me as far as Peter can tell.
While Peter doesn't want to hug me, he still likes to do "boy" things like wrestle. So, I'll ask him to wrestle, and the next thing you know we'll have our arms wrapped around each other.
He thinks we're wrestling, ...
... but I know we're hugging. :)
Rich
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
I wanna be famous
Each Monday night, the boys and I sit down to watch their favorite cartoon "Total Drama World Tour", the theme song of which is "I wanna be famous".
"Total Drama World Tour" is the third season of the "Total Drama Island" series, which is basically a satirical cartoon version of "Survivor". I had watched parts of a few episodes during the first two seasons, and while I found the show to be quite clever and entertaining, I never could find the time to commit myself to following an entire season-long story-arch. However, this year I'm fully on board with this show because my kids are fully on board. I can't tell you how much fun it is to sit down with my kids each week to watch something we all truly enjoy ( Of course, we all kind of enjoy it on different levels. Michael loves the fact that it's a competition ( He can't wait to see who gets eliminated each week ), Peter loves the cartoon slapstick, and I love the cartoony stuff, the satirical aspect of the show, and hearing my boys laugh. ). It's not that I don't spend a lot of time with the boys otherwise, but it's just nice that three of us have this special "Daddy and the boys" time each week. I guess we'll eventually have a lot of "guys" time together when they start watching sports with me ( Micheal does sometimes, but he doesn't quite have the attention span for a full game yet ), but for now, watching cartoons together is as good as it gets.
As long as I'm on the subject of TV, I think it's about time that I say a few words about the "LOST" phenomenon. Well, not actually "LOSTt" itself ( which I never actually watched ), but just TV shows in general that have complex plot lines that extend over several seasons. You've got to be a little bit careful with shows like these. It's great when the show plays out to a conclusion ( like "The Fugitive" or "LOST" ), but it REALLY REALLY sucks if you get sucked into a show that winds up getting canceled before there is any resolution. I can't emphasize how much that SUCKS. For those of us who read and loved the Harry Potter series, just think about much it would have sucked if J.K. Rowling had died right before she wrote book 7. That's how much it sucks when a show you love gets canceled before there is any resolution.
You've got to be kind of savvy about which show you choose to follow, plus a little bit lucky. I've been kind of unlucky at times when it come to picking shows. I passed on shows like "LOST" and the new "BattleStar Galactica", but at about this time last year, I got sucked into a show called "FlashForward". "FlashForward" was based on an intriguing concept, but unfortunately, it got canceled after one season. Worse yet, the final episode ended on a cliff-hanger, so it looks like all fans of the show will be left hanging indefinitely.
( Why did it get canceled? Well, it was officially canceled for poor-ratings, but every problem has a root cause, and the root cause of FlashForward's bad ratings can be summed up in 2 words:
Joseph Fiennes
My God, is that man an AWFUL actor. Every time I watch him act, I'm stunned that he could have emerged from the same womb as Ralph Fiennes. As intriguing as the concept of "FlashForward" was, I should have stayed away from that show as soon as I realized that Joseph Fiennes was playing the lead role. That show was doomed from the start. Then again, he did play the title role in a film that won the Academy Award for Best Picture. Or course, I still maintain that "Shakespeare in Love" was by far the wost movie ever to win the Academy Award for Best Picture. I'm still stunned that it was even nominated for an Academy Award.
BTW, I have a theory about why "Shakespeare in Love" won the Academy Award. The movie is full of supposedly clever allusions to many of Shakespeare's works. The American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences ( the people who vote for the awards ) is probably full of a lot of poorly educated shallow types who like to think of themselves as great thespians who might someday perform Shakespeare , but who actually are not smart enough to comprehend most of his works. When those people watch "Shakespeare in Love" and are spoon-fed simple allusions to Shakespeare's works, they have the following type of reaction:
"Hey, that's a reference to 'Romeo and Juliet'! I bet most people wouldn't have gotten that reference, but I got it because I'm smart.
. . .
Hey, I think that line is from one of Shakespeare's sonnets! Boy, I am smart! It's great that they made such a smart movie for smart people like me. This is one of the smartest movies I've ever seen. This movie definitely deserves to win the Best Picture award."
Anyway, getting back to be original point this tangent, the people who watched "Shakespeare in Love" were probably also thinking "I can't believe that hack Joseph Fiennes is related to that guy who was in "Schindler's List" and "Quiz Show" ( BTW, I mentioned "Quiz Show" rather than the "The English Patient" because I loved "Quiz Show" and hated "The English Patient" almost as much as "Shakespeare in Love". ). )
Anyway, thus concludes my bashing of all things Joseph Fienness. I think I'm just bitter that he got one of my favorite shows cancels.
However, as upset as I was about the "FlashForward" cancellation, it's not the most disappointing premature-cancellation in my life. Even 14 years after the fact, I'm still upset that "Nowhere Man" was canceled.
To give you an idea of what the premise of "Nowhere Man" was, each episode started with the following monologue from the lead character:
"My name is Thomas Veil, or at least it was. I'm a photographer, I had it all: a wife, Alyson, friends, a career. And in one moment, it was all taken away, all because of a single photograph. I have it; they want it; and they will do anything to get the negative. I'm keeping this diary as proof that these events are real. I know they are... They... have to be."
Sound intriguing? It was to me, and from August 1995 to May 1996 I found myself watching this show religiously. Of course, the show wound up getting canceled after one season. I'll admit that the show had its problems ( It helps if a shows about mysterious conspiracies has at least some level of plausibility and has some logical consistency between episodes. A few episodes of "Nowhere Man" failed on both those counts. ), but the concept of erasing somebody's identity was so interesting that I couldn't help but tune in each week to see how things would turn out.
While it sucked that "Nowhere Man" was canceled fans were not left as badly hanging as the fans of some other canceled shows, because the writer/creator of the show was told that the show was going to be canceled before the final two episodes were produced. Two episodes certainly were not enough time to resolve all the plot elements, but I think the writers did a great job with the final two episodes. I don't want to give too much away ( The complete series is available on DVD, and I highly recommend watching it if you ever get a chance ), but the last scene of the final episode reveals something the makes you see the entire series in an entirely different light ( and fixes some ( but not all ) of the plausibility/consistency issues ). It was a great way to end the series, but it was a bit disappointing.
Anyway, I started writing this post on September 17th, and now I find it's the 28th. I'd better post this baby so I at least have one post for September.
Rich
P.S. Since I started this post, I dipped my toe in The Event. Two episodes so far, both very mediocre. Sure, the show has a lot of mysteries to reveal, but I'm not even sure if I care to know.
P.P.S However, Boardwalk Empire has been awesome so far.
P.P.P.S Just for laughs ...
Friday, August 27, 2010
Visiting my Dad ( a preview )
Rich
Saturday, August 21, 2010
Better late than never
Also, considering that the Summer is almost over, I thought I should probably follow through on my promise to finish telling you about what I did on my Spring vacation. For for those who have already forgotten, the "What I did on my Spring vacation" blog posts consisted of this post, this post ( This one has got LOTS of Cornell photos that I probably won't bother to post on facebook - I refuse to show the natural beauty of Cornell in facebook-photo resolution ) , and this post.
What happened next? Well, the story of the rest of that week, the rest of the Spring, and most of the Summer can be summed up in two words: Six Flags
This year, we decided to graduate from Sesame Place, and get a season pass to Six Flags. So far, we've already made 13 trips to the Six Flags complex near our New Jersey home. Clearly, there are a lot of potential photos to post, and you'll probably see those photos on facebook if I ever find the time and energy ( Which could potentially mean that I'll get around to posting these photos next Summer ).
Anyway, it's getting rather late tonight, but don't be surprised if I post some more stuff soon.
Rich
Friday, July 23, 2010
Are You There Rich? It's Me, Mortality.
I particularly try not to think about my own death. The idea of my own death frightens me. I'm not really afraid of the process of death itself, or any pain that might be associated with my death. I'm just afraid of what will happen after I die, or more accurately, what won't happen.
There was a time when I could comfort myself with the thought of an afterlife, but I think that time has passed. I still consider myself to be religious, and I very much want there to be a God and an afterlife, but I'm also a pessimist. I hope there's a God, and I hope's there a place for me in Heaven some day, but I'd be less than honest if I told you I was counting on it. I've discussed my faith in this space before, so if you've been reading this blog you kinda already know that my faith has been on shaky ground for a while now. I think one of the main reasons I've held on to my faith as long as I have ( and still have lots of HOPE that there is an afterlife ), is that I just can't imagine not existing. The idea of not existing really frightens me, so I spend most of my life just pretending that I'll always be around. However, every once in a while something happens that reminds me that I'm not immortal.
This time I was reminded by my glasses, or rather my need to get stronger glasses. I'm getting more far-sighted each year. I'm writing this blog post without my glasses on, but I don't think I'll be able to use a computer without glasses for much longer. I pretty much do all my newspaper and magazine reading with glasses on these days ( I got new reading glasses a week ago, and they make a HUGE difference ), and I'm probably going to start using glasses to write code at work ( I use a relatively large font at work, but I'm beginning to notice some eye strain. ).
So, my new glasses are great and all ( It's really nice to be able to see stuff without straining my eyes ), but they are also a reminder that there are some parts of the aging process I really can't control.
I think I've been fooling myself regarding the aging process for a while now. I've been blessed with a naturally youthful appearance, and I've been luck enough to avoid most of the typical aches and pains of middle age. I've got all my hair, barely any wrinkles, and I work out enough that I'm in far better shape than most 18-year-olds ( Yes, I have balky knees, but my knees have been giving me trouble since I've been 16. Thus, while my occasional knee problems are annoying, they don't really make me feel old ). However, there's really nothing I can do about they fact that my eyeballs are elongating. There's nothing I can do about the fact that whatever tissues were holding my eyes in their original shape are now slowly breaking down. Whether I like it or not, and whether I choose to accept it or not, my body is aging. I've definitely aging, and aging only leads to one thing. The Reaper may be pretty far down the road, but he's definitely coming for me.
OK, I'm not even going to try and gracefully segue from the topic above to a new topic. I'm just going to stop. If I keep writing about *that* topic, I'm going to drive myself nuts. I'll just finish by saying that I love life, and I love my life.
Carpe diem, folks. Carpe diem.
Rich
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
The Sequence
1, 4, 9, 16, 25, ...
He didn't have any problem coming up with the solution to that one. Before I could ask him a more challenging question, he decided to give me a sequence problem of his own. Michael asked me to give him the next number in the sequence below:
8, 7, 9, 5, 13, -3, 29, ...
I didn't find the question above too hard, but I challenge anyone else to find a 6-year old who can solve the puzzle above, much less design a puzzle like the one above.
Rich
Sunday, July 11, 2010
Hoop it up
Here's Michael with the hoop on the day I put it together ( Note: I set it up at the minimum height of 7.5 feet. It's important to keep the height of the hoop low when kids are first learning. Not only does it help their confidence, but it gets them into the habit of shooting with proper form rather than heaving the ball a basket that's way too high for them to reach easily. Speaking of proper form, take a look at the photo below. ).
I know it's a little bit blurry, but just take a look at that perfect form. Gee, it looks like the guy who taught that kid how to shoot really knew what he was doing.
Sunday, June 27, 2010
Coming Attractions
Friday, May 28, 2010
Saturday, May 22, 2010
It aint easy
Sunday, May 9, 2010
Bad, Bad Leroy Brown
"Bad, Bad Leroy Brown" is one of those songs the will always be ingrained in my memory, because I probably listened to it about 100 times in the backseat of the family car when I was a young child. My parents were both born in the 40's ( Dad in 1943 and Mom in 1947 ), and as such, they were among the first generation of parents to really pass Rock n' Roll music down to their kids. My parents pretty much always had the radio on when they drove, and it was always playing the most popular music of the day ( Actually, whether my Mom or Dad was driving, I think my Mom pretty much controlled the radio. Back in the 60's my Mom was one of these screaming teenage girls you would see at Beatles concerts ( She was at one of the Beatles groundbreaking Shea Stadium concerts ) ).
I think there's something special about the memories we develop as a young child. We see the world differently as children, so reflecting on those memories gives us a perspective other memories can't. I think that music makes special memories too. I think almost all of us have our own personal "soundtrack of our lives". We all have memories of special songs which we associate with key moments in our lives. So, with that in mind, I think there's something extra special about the music we associate with our childhood. After thinking a bit about "Bad, Bad Leroy Brown", I started to reflect upon the songs that really caught my attention when I would listen to music in the back seat of my parents' car in the early to mid 70's. I quickly jotted down the first 10 songs that came to my mind. Those 10 songs ( in no particular order ) are ...
American Pie
I said this list would be in no particular order, but I decided to list Don McLean's "America Pie" first, because when I was three years old, I considered this to be my favorite song. I think there's something about the lyrical richness of this song that would enchant just about any small child. Listening to this song was almost like listening to a bedtime story. It was a story I really enjoyed, despite that fact that I had no idea what a levee was, and the song always made me wonder how somebody could possibly drink rye bread.
Saturday in the Park
This may be the best feel-good song of all time. The lyrics by themselves are really feel-good, the music puts you in a good mood as soon as your hear the first few piano notes, and I dare anyone not to crack a smile when the first brass notes play at the 18 second mark. This song ( understandably enough ) seems to be a staple these days at Saturday afternoon baseball games.
Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head
This is just a great song by one of the greatest American songwriters ( Burt Bacharach ), though I must admit that it was the lyrics ( by Hal David, Bacharach's long-time collaborator - Burt did the music and Hal did the lyrics ) that enchanted me as a child, despite that fact that a some of them don't make a lot of sense when you really think about it. I mean - I've always loved the image of the "guy whose feet are too big for his bed", but considering that I've never heard that expression in any other context ( Has anyone actually ever complained that his/her feet were too big for a bed? ), I don't think it makes any sense to say "Raindrops keep fallin' on my head. And just like the guy whose feet are too big for his bed". That being said, those lines still stick in my head all these years later, so I guess it's a great lyric.
Let Em In
I no longer consider this to be my favorite post-Beatles McCartney tune, ( I think I like both "Band on the Run" and "Maybe I'm Amazed", better than this one ), but back when I was a kid it was my favorite. There's something really kid-friendly about the repetitive lyrics, especially the parts where Paul calls out the names of all the relatives.
Cats in the Cradle
This is another one I loved as a kid because of the way it tells a story. Of course, now that I'm an adult with sons of my own, I find this song especially poignant today. This one can still choke me up a bit. This song really is to music what "Field of Dreams" is to movies. Perhaps only men can really "get" this song ( My wife still doesn't understand why "Field of Dreams" makes me cry. I, for my part, have no idea why she cries at the end of "Ghost'. ), but all men pretty much "get" it.
Love Will Keep Us Together
Did "Captain and Tennille" epitomize the the cheesiness of the 70s?
Undeniable.
Is this song incredibly catchy?
Undeniable.
Superstition
If this song doesn't make you move, you just might be dead.
Rich Girl
As a kid, I just loved the line "You can rely on the old man's money". Of course, as a little kid, I had no idea that "old man" meant "father". So every time I heard this song, I envisioned an elderly guy with huge bags of cash.
Paradise by the Dashboard Light
Considering the subject matter of this song, perhaps it's a bit inappropriate that I liked this song so much as a child. Of course, I really had no idea what they were singing about. I just knew a loved the back and forth during the "Will you love me forever / Let me sleep on it" part.
Squeeze Box
OK, so this song is really inappropriate for a child - but I swear when I heard the lines "Mama's got a squeeze box, Daddy never sleeps at night", I thought they were singing about an accordion!
Rich
P.S. I don't know how many responses I'll get to this post, but if you do respond, I'd love to hear your own lists of childhood songs.
Saturday, May 8, 2010
40 strikes back.
Monday, May 3, 2010
I just kicked 40 in the nuts!
Saturday, May 1, 2010
Monday, April 26, 2010
Meet the Mets
I'd like to take a little break from posting about my Spring vacation to share a few photos from last weekend.
Last Thursday, I was watching a Mets game at home, when a commercial announced that there would be a "Mr. Met Dash" after Saturday's game. All kids 12 and under would be allowed to run the bases ( On the same field that the Mets play on! ) after the game. The Mets have been having these promotions a few times a year for the last 15 years or so, but I hadn't taken the kids to a "Mr. Met Dash" yet.
When Michael saw the ad for the "Mr. Mets Dash", he immediately exclaimed "I'm under 12! I could do that!".
It was at that moment that I decided what our family outing would be that Saturday.
The day really turned out to be PERFECT. I imagine it's the kinda thing almost every baseball-loving Dad starts to dream about when he first finds out that his wife is pregnant. It wasn't the first baseball game I've taken the kids to ( It was Michael 5th game and Peter 4th game - BTW, the Mets are now 5-0 in games Michael gone to and 4-0 in games Peter has gone to ( Michael has been at every game Peter has gone to ). Michael's been to 1 game in 2007, 2 games in 2008, 1 game in 2009, and 1 game this year ), but I think it was the nicest ballpark trip we've had as a family. The weather was beautiful, we got there early enough to do all sorts of fun stuff before the game ( Like photos with Mr. Met - see the photo at the top of the post ), the Mets won, Peter is old enough to understand the game at least a little bit now, and the kids got to run the bases after the game! The boys even enjoyed getting to the game. We decided to take commuter trains to the game to avoid traffic and the hassle of getting into and out of the parking lot. One of the boys' favorite TV shows these days is called Dinosaur Train ( Click the link to the left to hear the cool Johnny Cash style theme song! ). The whole time we were on the train, the boys pretended they were on the Dinosaur Train ( Michael kept asking the conductor to say stuff the conductor says on the Dinosour Train show ).
Check the photos below to see how happy Peter and Michael were during the game.
Eventually, the game ended, and we got to go on the field. Of course, I didn't get to run the bases, but as you might be able to tell from the photo below, I may have been more excited than the boys to be on a real major league field. I felt like a little kid. I found myself touching the outfield fences and the warning track dirt, and gawking as we passed the bullpen and the dugouts.
After Michael finished his run, he would up milking his time on the field just a little bit more. There was a reporter interviewing some of the kids that had run the bases. Michael noticed the microphone and the camera, and instead of running back to Ruth and me after he finished, the little ham decided to edge in on the interview. He lingered around as the reporter interviewed some other kids, and as soon as those kids left, he grabbed the mic and started chatting away.
It's kinda amazing when you consider that just 3 years ago, we were still wondering if Michael was ever going to be able to speak well enough to converse with people. He's such a little chatterbox now. :)
Anyway, I posted a few photos of Michael's interview below.
Rich
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Part 2 of "What I did on my Spring vacation"
After getting back from Cornell on Tuesday, we went to Medieval Times on Wednesday. In case you're not familiar with Medieval Times ( or it isn't obvious from the name and the photos above ), it's a dinner show ( lunch in our case ) that features Medieval nights, with stuff like jousting and sword fights. To be honest, I can't hear the words "Medieval Times", without thinking of the movie "The Cable Guy". Specifically, I wind up thinking about two Janeane Garofalo scenes:
This scene ( starting at the 20 second point ) ...
... and this scene ( starting at the 2:03 point ) ...
Of course, this is probably due to the fact that I've always been a big fan of Janeane Garofalo ( OK, I've actually always had a bit on a crush on her, as I've mentioned in this blog post and this video ), but I've had a hard time taking Medieval Times times seriously since that movie came out. Well, to be honest, even before that movie came out, I was never a big fan of all that sword and sorcery stuff ( Perhaps this is why I didn't like LOTR that much ). This may come as a shock to some of those I played Dungeons and Dragons with in high school, but I primarily played D&D for the sake of being social ( For some this reason this reminds me of a line from Judd Nelson's character in "The Breakfast Club" ( try to guess which one ) ). I also went to a few Renaissance Fairs with friends, but once again, I was going for the friendship, rather than for all the sword and sorcery stuff.
So, as you might have guessed, the trip to Medieval Times wasn't actually my idea. My aunt had gotten the boys ( and Ruth and me ) tickets to Medieval Times as a Christmas present, and we figured my week off would be a good time to go. In any case, even if I was really into the Medieval Times stuff, I knew I would enjoy it if the kids enjoyed it - and the kids certainly did enjoy it.
Before the show, we got the boys some toys swords. Look how happy Peter was to have a sword ...
Michael also was excited ....
.... which meant it was inevitable that they would have a little sword fight of their own before the show:
I won't bother to post a bunch of generic pictures of the show ( you could find that easily enough on your own if you are interested ), but I will post the picture below just to give you an idea of what the show looked like ( We had front-row seats! ).
As you can see, horses were involved. That was a bit of a problem for me and my allergies. Despite the fact that I took a lot of Claritin before the show, I was having a real hard time breathing by the time it ended. If I hadn't been having so much fun watching the boys react, I probably would have left the show about halfway through.
So, I did watch the show to the end, and all in all I was impressed by the show they put on. It wasn't exactly my cup of tea, but it was impressive to watch the "knights" clang they swords together so hard in "battle" that sparks came of the swords. Interestingly enough, that was the one part of the show that Michael didn't like. It scared him so much that he hid under the table while many of the sword fights took place.
He's a very non-violent kid. :)
However, he got a little bit braver towards the ends, and watched the entire final battle. As a coincidental bonus, the knight that represented our section ( The Black and White Knight ), was the winner that night, so the boys went home really happy.
So, while I don't think I'll be going again ( unless I can bring SCUBA gear, so I can breathe air that doesn't have horse hair in it ), I was glad the boys had a lot of fun.
I know my Aunt occasionally reads this blog, so big thumbs up on the gift, Aunt Barbara!
Rich
Saturday, April 17, 2010
The Best Feeling in the World
I was walking from the train station to my home on Friday evening on particularly dreary day. The weather was cold and windy, I was feeling a little bit under the weather, and things had been really stressful at work. In additional to all that, I was worrying ( perhaps irrationally ) about my mortality. Without going into to details, let's just say I was worrying about "tumors" that had been developing. They turned out not to be "tumors" at all ( I was actually having a pretty bad allergic reaction to something unexpected. The allergic reaction was making my lymph nodes go nuts which led to painful "tumors", some of which were probably abscesses ( according to Ruth ( It's good to have a doctor in the house! ) ). After a week of avoiding the "something" and taking antibiotics and prednisone for a few days, everything cleared up ), but for a while I was worried about the possibility of dying of Cancer ( I'm 40 now, and my Mom was only 42 when she got the cancer that killed her at the age of 49 ).
So, in any case, I was feeling about as down as I could be at that point. However, that all changed when I got my front door.
I could hear them even before I opened the door ....
Michael: Daddy! Daddy's home!
Peter ( from the second floor of the house ): It's Daddy! It's Daddy!
Peter ( running down the steps ): Daddy, Daddy - you're home!
Michael and Peter ( crashing into the other side of the door ): Daddy! Daddy! Daddy's home!
Then, I opened the door, and the hugs started.
The next few seconds were a blur of hugs, but eventually Peter asked me to pick him up. I picked him up, gave him a big hug, and said "I love you Peter!". Peter responded with "I love you too Daddy!".
That, my friends, is the best feeling in the world. All my troubles evaporated when I walked through that door. My troubles evaporate at the end of every workday when I walk through that door. Walking though that door is almost always the best part of my day.
I feel so lucky to be a parent. I wish everyone could experience what it feels like. I don't think I'll every tire of it.
Of course, these moments are a little bit bittersweet at times, because I know my kids won't be so sweet and affectionate forever. However, I'll enjoy it while it lasts, and being around them will always make my heart happy. :)
Rich
P.S. I really hope I get to be a grandparent someday. While some people dream of playing golf or fishing during their retirement, I dream of spending my retirement caring for my grankids. My kids will never have to worry about paying for daycare or a nanny as long as I'm around.