The Decision

We had been dancing around it for weeks.  I tried to feel out Caz.  I wanted to see how much he knew.  Then Bam Bam came by to throw the football around with us.  He casually asked Caz, "Are you going to play football this year?"  I held my breath while I waited for him to respond.
     I should explain.  Duxbury's two football leagues for children, merged this offseason.  The town now has one program.  What does that mean?  That means Caz had to go back and play for the coach that drove him out of DYF.  That means I need to got with hat in hand and asked to coach with him.  I will gladly do that, swallowing my pride, if it means Caz plays football.  I know the decision is weighing in his mind.  That terrible season still haunts us.  I will do what I have to.  I will stay quiet.  I won't be negative in front of the kids.
     I took Caz out for ice cream.  I asked him to sit there quietly and eat his cone, while I did some talking.  The short version, is that I told him I knew it wouldn't be easy.  For either of us.  The right thing rarely is easy.  But you can't let fear dictate your decision.  Yes, it really does lead to the Dark Side.  I did give him an out clause.  But he had to make an attempt first.  In the end, Caz decided to give it a shot.  I really think it goes back to the wonderful season he had last year.  How is a a 1-8 season wonderful?  Well, you really have to understand the point of youth sports to get it.  If you don't, no one can explain it to you.

Jr Police Academy

The boys graduated from Duxbury Junior Police Academy today.  On their final day, they got to fire .22 rifles at the shooting range.  They got a kick out of that.  I think it's good.  I know the officers covered gun safety.  A health respect for guns, the danger they pose and the responsibility for safety that comes with them is a good thing to learn.   Especially with the fascination with games like Modern Warfare, Halo, and Black Ops.  It is too easy for the kids to get detached about the inherent violence.
     Lunch seemed to be a big deal for camp.  Pizza one day.  Chinese food the next.  Between the tasers, guns, prison visit and K-9 demo, I don't think they even missed Hightower and the crew......

Lawnmower Man

Caz hit another milestone in his journey to manhood.  He cut the lawn today.  Yep, that is a big step for a young adult.  A big step for Dad too.  Trusting your young son with sharp blades, whirling at 100 mph is not an easy thing to do.
     I didn't worry about trying to bag it today.  I kept him in 2nd gear the whole time.  I am sure he didn't appreciate that.  He did well though.  He struggled like all kids to maintain that good line, overlapping his last track.  Sure, I had to go back and hit the spots he missed.  But overall, he gets passing marks.  I just played with the weed whacker, so I could monitor the situation.  He didn't seem to mind.  I think he smile and was pleased at the end.  I know I was.

Clean Up in Aisle 5!

Let the clean up begin!  Who have thought there would be so much to do after a rabid zombie raccoon wanders onto your property?  What are the odds?  What am I talking about?  I am talking a very large, furry Rocky Raccoon, stumbling and bumbling like a drunken sailor, up through the cut out by the driveway.  Sure sign of rabies:  the slow, dizzy lethargic, motion.  No, it did not appear to be foaming at the mouth.  I think it was well past that.  A swarm of flies followed it, like it was a moving turd.  They knew it was only a matter of time.
     Rocky decided to wander up on my deck and take a nap.  Gizmo barked like mad at the sliding glass door.  Rocky didn't even bat an eye.  But the damage done by that?  Rocky could have left saliva anywhere there.  That is the danger with rabies.  Blood and saliva.  Blood is the reason that I need to condemn my shed.  That is where I trapped the thing, and Duxbury's finest took it down with 5 rounds, 3 from a 9 mm pistol and 2 from a .22 rifle.  As far as I am concerned, Rocky was a Zombie after the first shot.  He tried to get up after each round.  Nothing was going to keep him down.  Apollo?  Clubber?  Drago?  Bring 'em all on.
     Demi spent a full day power washing the deck.  I ran to get supplies.  At one point, I had 8 gallons of bleach and 5 gallons of gas in my car.  If I got stopped, I was going to look like Harvey Keitel in Pulp Fiction.  I threw out a stroller Rocky had tried to crawl into, along with some loose items in the shed.   I poured bleach all over the aftermath, once Animal Control came to collect the carcass.  What an ordeal.  I am just glad the boys were not out playing or walking Gizmo.  That could have been bad.   And here I thought I only had to worry about the coyotes.

Canonball!

Stay classy, San Diego!
     Neighborhood pool parties these days are quite the environment.  You tend to have the following:  a) adults in bathing suits and matching coveralls (shirts, sun dresses, etc) but who don't actually swim, b) kids who don't come out of the pool, c) way too much food and d) way too much booze.  Seems a recipe for disaster doesn't it.  I mean I am glad for the opportunity to hang out with some friends.  But there seems to be a big lack of the vigilance.  I know Demi and I rotate keeping an eye on the kids.  We check in with each other.  If one of us was to leave the pool area, we'd tell the other.  I don't see that across the board with the other adults.  There is a pretty big range of ages in the kids too.  Mine are in the older set, and as good as they swim, I keep watch.  I do see some parents right there with the younger kids.  Maybe it's just me but some of the adults seem way too comfortable, and way to preoccupied with the adult talk and beverage.
     I wouldn't think of getting bombed in that setting.  Some though, obvious have no problem with that. Hey, if one parent is doing the drinking for the couple and that's the deal they struck fine.  But I just don't want to be an idiot in front of my kids.  Or other kids for that matter.  My choice, I know.  It just feels like a bad idea.  

Stars and Stripes Forever

The 4th being on a Weds this year is just plan weird.  You can plan anything too big because there is work the next day.  Either you do something the night before or something small during the day.  We took our chances and made a family beach day out of it.  We planned to go early and meet up with friends and family.  It didn't look promising early on.  We left in a steady drizzle and in dark cloud cover.  Caz has been down on the beach recently, so this didn't help sell the plan.  I knew there was a reason I baked muffins.  Those did seem to help sway the boys.  However, they elected to eat in the car while we huddled under an awning with the other families. 

     Caz is definitely at that age where he doesn't want to always be with the family.  Believe it or not, I can remember back to those days and recall that frame of mind.  He gets bored at the beach now.  He doesn't want to sit in the sun.  He's beyond building sand castles.  He doesn't want to play games, although he did put the Kindle and DS aside for a while to play Penny Can.   Coco is starting down that path.  But he still likes to dig in the sand.  He likes to play in the water.  He's good for a game of bocce, ladder ball, or football.  They both play really well with the younger children.  Their cousin adores them.  The twins chase them around and laugh hysterically with them.  But I guess it's not fair to expect to my boys to play all day with them.  Or do want to hang out with adults all day.  The boys did dig the cookout portion of the day though.  Hot dogs from Buffalo were the big sell.  The boys were all over those. 

     It's funny, I used to want a short period of time at the beach to sit and read undisturbed.  But I do miss the days of spending hours in the water, or building sand castles, or switching from one game to the next.  There will be plenty of time to sit and read on the beach.  Like when I retire……

 

Re-Entry Burns

Like the Space Shuttle returning from a mission, re-entry from vacation can be bumpy.  This one has been very tough with the kids.  They are just feeding off each other, battling, as brothers are wont to do.  They can't be left a lone for a the length of a TV timeout.
     Caz is just plain angry at the world.  Coco is pleased as punch to push his buttons.  Of course, Coco doesn't think ahead that the target of Caz's rage is going to be him.  Even after we tell him that.  And again.  And again.
     Demi and I are a little spent too.  We are tired from driving, unpacking, and cleaning.  So maybe we have shorter fuses than usual too.  I am sure we will get there.  But so far we could use those heat tiles from Endeavor or Enterprise.