started thisam not going to finish it
yet I will post it just the same...
sorry if it does not make any sense
MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND
ah.... Memorial Day Weekend
a three day weekend without a plan
no soccer games or bicycle races to offer structure
instead we follow the design of a few birthday parties... a few sleep overs... Saturday morning karate... and what ever else we can manage to organize in between
oh... sure Monday would have the requisite bbq and swimming pool
but the days leading up to that would lack a certain amount of structure
so many people leave town... we tend not to leave town on these three day weekends
somehow we think we can manage without a formal plan
there is plenty of in between time enough time that we could have scheduled something enough time that I should have scheduled something
where does the time go?
what did we do Friday after school?
I can not remember that far back
I hope it was fun!
I am certain we did something... yet I can not recall
today in the morning I went for a run... I am not a runner
in my youth I was an efficient runner
that was many years ago
that was also many pounds less ago
running is only fun for runners
it takes a good deal of running to get back into running shape
I am far from anything that resembles running fitness
I took it easy did a little stretching then did a mellow trail run
spent a little under an hour in the woods of Rock Creek Park only about 40 of that was spent running walked the hills and walked the final mile home in an effort to cool down and not tighten up too much
back at the house I got involved in some intense LEGO PLAYI worked to build a tower that got demoted to a castle
as it turns out... more LEGOS just creates more confusion
the kids have too many LEGOS someone needs to invent the LEGO SIFTER!
PLEASE SOMEONE INVENT THE LEGO SIFTER!
my older son was at a Birthday Sleep Over while my younger son was linked up with a kid from down the block
my wife Lisa had taken the boys up to Target in the AM
they walked so they were not without some exercise but after they each finished building their new Lego sets I felt it was time to get out
so... I proposed a bicycle ride
there was an effort to make this adventure end at another cash register
I suggested the rope swing
the rope swing is a winner nearly every time
the kid's trick to get soft ice cream was scrapped and the boys got motivated to ride to the rope swing
I played through my head on what I believed would be the most fun
in my mind I scripted rides that
involved short climbs and winding descentsthen I backed off instead... I tried to select the most flat most direct route for the boys
to our pleasure the road that I selected was shut off for repairs
ah... the pleasure to ride virtually car free!
we made our short ride in no time
not sure why I try to push the pace
I guess that is me just being me
FASTER FASTER FASTER
my seven year old son is faster on the bike than the average non-bicycle riding 10 year old
or so it seems on our rides with neighbors and friends
I guess that is what happens when the kids do not have an overbearing bicycle dad to crack the whip and push the pace on every bicycle ride
the journey is the destination
for the boys... the rope swing is the destination
but really... whether they know it or not... the journey is the destination
the boys enjoyed the bicycle ride as much as they enjoyed the rope swing
the ride was short and they wished that the time at the rope swing was longer
it can be good to keep it short
a shorter ride usually ends on a high note... leaving the kids wanting more
while a long ride can tarnish any memory of fun
the same goes for the rope swing
keep if fresh
no need to burn out on the rope swing!
okay... I did extend the ride home a bit
and yes
this was met with munchkin objection
I maintained our trajectory
our reroute took us on some dirt... "social trails"
the boys loved when things got a little twisty and there were some kid quality technical obstacles
once again reminding me that Washington DC needs some sort of bicycle for sport infrastructure
a pump track... a bmx track... legal mountain biking
something!
we got home
my older son Dean was back from his birthday party sleep over
lisa and I gathered the boys and took them to my mother's for another sleep over
which allowed lisa and I to go out dancing... See-I and Empressarios LIVE at U Street Station followed by a Thunderball DJ set
Lisa kept me out until 3PM
we rode our bikes to the club
a good weekend all around