Some things that have been occurring to me lately:
- I would probably fail most history and sociology classes these days, because I wouldn't agree with the instructor that everything my grandparents believed was stupid.
- If anybody else in my 'village' had ever tried to raise one of my children, I probably would have wanted to punch his lights out.
- Look for the word 'detroit' to come into the language as a passive verb denoting civic chaos and impotence, such as 'Hey Bob, you still waiting for the cops to come out on that break-in? Looks like you've been detroited.'
- How much fun could a movie that's part mystery be, if everybody in the audience knows that the first wealthy male character to come on screen will eventually turn out the villain? I've had this experience literally dozens of times the last few years, most recently with 'The Lone Ranger'. Honestly, I don't think I need to say 'SPOILER ALERT', when every person in the theater knew Tom Wilkinson was the bad guy in the first five minutes. Hollywood is killing itself by constantly writing to formula.
- Hate to see summer pass and autumn looming. Maybe if I lived someplace other than the upper Midwest...
Wednesday, July 31, 2013
Saturday, July 6, 2013
It Happens Every Summer
It's been two weeks since our annual Ribfest reunion in Pecatonica, and I've finally had a chance to pull together some memories and impressions from a whole week of family time:
- Our family trip to Brookfield Zoo was a blast. There were seven adults and two toddlers, and we covered the whole place in one beautiful, sunny day. I'll never forget little Elijah, with a very determined look on his face, pushing the boys' wagon from behind up and down the asphalt walkways. Priceless.
- Brian, bounding down the stairs one morning, proclaimed to his Nonna 'There you are!', as if his night's sleep was just part of a grand game of hide-and-seek.
- Anne's friend Chris is from New Jersey, and he seemed puzzled that there are truly no street lights where we live.
- First experiences for the boys: running through the sprinkler, playing with the puppy, swinging plastic golf clubs, walking down to the stream to watch the fish. I think the fish got a little shell-shocked, because the highlight of that last was actually bombarding them with gravel from the bridge. It was a good thing Brian was wearing bib overalls for his visit to the country, so that we could grab him from behind as he leaned out over the water.
- Watching the storms roll up out of the west. It's a lot more open where we live now, and we can really see the weather as it arrives. The cooking crew had the same experience on Ribfest Saturday in Pec, as a big storm full of wind and rain hit us about 11:00AM. Gotta love that shelter house!
- Getting a chance to reconnect with people from both sides of our family. There were about one hundred and fifty of us there, and the party went on very late. How much fun is that?
- Our family trip to Brookfield Zoo was a blast. There were seven adults and two toddlers, and we covered the whole place in one beautiful, sunny day. I'll never forget little Elijah, with a very determined look on his face, pushing the boys' wagon from behind up and down the asphalt walkways. Priceless.
- Brian, bounding down the stairs one morning, proclaimed to his Nonna 'There you are!', as if his night's sleep was just part of a grand game of hide-and-seek.
- Anne's friend Chris is from New Jersey, and he seemed puzzled that there are truly no street lights where we live.
- First experiences for the boys: running through the sprinkler, playing with the puppy, swinging plastic golf clubs, walking down to the stream to watch the fish. I think the fish got a little shell-shocked, because the highlight of that last was actually bombarding them with gravel from the bridge. It was a good thing Brian was wearing bib overalls for his visit to the country, so that we could grab him from behind as he leaned out over the water.
- Watching the storms roll up out of the west. It's a lot more open where we live now, and we can really see the weather as it arrives. The cooking crew had the same experience on Ribfest Saturday in Pec, as a big storm full of wind and rain hit us about 11:00AM. Gotta love that shelter house!
- Getting a chance to reconnect with people from both sides of our family. There were about one hundred and fifty of us there, and the party went on very late. How much fun is that?
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