A long weekend in the life of a girl (and her dad)

I'm proud of how Caroline is such an excellent traveling and adventuring companion. Here's where she ventured over the recent weekend: 

Friday: Time with friends at Legoland in Plymouth Meeting

She was moving too fast for me to catch up with her. I took a selfie with Caroline's stand-in instead. 

Saturday: Lunch with family atop Mount Pocono followed by setting up our campsite at Promised Land. 

A bit too much haze for good photographs of the landscape. 

Site 120, established with Caroline's help. 

Sunday: Adventures in Promised Land 

Taken from atop a rock on Whittaker Trail

Caroline and her friend along the trail at Conservation Island. 

Friday: Take down the campsite and go to a neurologist appointment in Philadelphia

MacMart lunch after the appointment. 

She holds up well under travel.

Subscriptions

Many, many years ago I regularly subscribed to the Philadelphia Inquirer. I would stare out the window hoping for it to show up in the morning, refusing to start my day until I had my fifteen minutes with it. The paper got thinner, though, and copies of it piled up unread, so I moved my subscription to an electronic one, then stopped it entirely.

When, however, a few summers back, I found myself having to explain the concept of a Sunday comic to my son, I realized that I needed the newspaper back. I've been subscribing again now for about two years. The quality of the paper has deteriorated over time: it offers less news and feels even thinner. But I liked being able to simply open up the paper today and show Sam where the MLB standings truly stood.

Reinforcing the sad truth of the Phillies' woeful season. Sam and I were shocked to see how well Atlanta is playing. 

Sports section on the day before the slowest sports day of the summer. 

When we eat breakfast together on weekend mornings, the newspapers are a nice substitute for screens.

There are two other subscriptions I invite into the home. One is The Week, which is a really good news review. Sam eagerly waits its arrival, and he was rather frustrated that it didn't show up this week (that publication takes off four weeks a year). So, he told me, he was left with The Economist, the cover of which he immediately quizzed me about.

Sam surprised me by recognizing the symbol as one Germany used in the World War I era. Then he asked me to summarize the relevant news story. My answer: the German economy is very strong, but there's a chance that the Germans save so much money it hurts the economies of countries they trade with. Sam immediately followed up: "Why?"

I decided, though, there wasn't time just then to get into the paradox of thrift and financial-account imbalances. However, if that publication piqued my son's interest, for just a little bit, about such abstract but important concepts, and if that publication's cover gives him a chance to reinforce learning about symbolism and history, then it's worth every penny of the overpriced subscription.

Sam and I do disagree about which covers tend to be better, those from The Week or those from The Economist. This sounds like a good debate to have over the years.

This cover, too, led to some schooling, but more about inside baseball than big macroeconomic things. 

A Belated Father's Day Reflection

About the only thing I didn't like regarding my most recent trip overseas was its timing. I left for the Institute on Saturday, June 17. One day before Father's Day. One day before my Father's Birthday. I wish going to the Institute didn't mean I had to miss that pair of celebrations. However, there were three small tales that give me cause to take great pride as a father, teacher, and son. 

Photo of me taken day after Fathers Day by the grave of one of my childhood heroes. 

First, I did get a chance to celebrate my dad's birthday early. We ate dinner with him on Friday and I had the joy of seeing him surrounded by grandchildren. He spent much of the evening with two of his granddaughters, Caroline and Lilith, watching a movie in the basement. I also gave him a book, Olivier Wieviorka's Normandy, a fairly dense academic treatment of D-Day and the subsequent battles in that region of France. When I got home I found out that Dad had read the whole thing. In less than two weeks. I'm gratified that he was so interested in my trip that he did that, but I can't say I'm surprised by this from a man who lives for his kids. 

Second, I learned later that the students on the trip nicknamed me "Dad." I can't help but be very flattered. Grownups outnumbered students on this trip. Fifteen versus plus fifteen teachers, a lead teacher, four staff members, and a guest professor (and his spouse). So, they were challenged keeping track of who was who. So, probably around Father's Day, I got the moniker Dad because, well, I guess I struck them as most dad-like. I could say something witty about my fashion sense or penchant for bad selfies to credit for this, but I'll keep it serious. I'm honored that the students on the trip saw in me what they think a dad is, and I'm very glad that that's where I find myself at this age after 19 years of teaching. 

Third, I got emotional at two points on the way home when I thought of Sam and Caroline. There was very little homesickness for me on the trip. There wasn't really the time or place to get mopey about being away. But as I settled in to my flight home, I watched the beginning of La La Land, which makes me think of Caroline very directly. I teared up. Then, I teared up again when, as the train rolled into Lansdale, I heard Sam yell from outside the train "I see Dad!" His joy was obvious. 

Truth be told, I didn't really want Sherry to bring the kids down to the station to meet me. I knew I'd have a student with me who was reuniting with her own family. That would be emotional enough. But then to see my own kids at the same time . . . I knew it would be a little much for me. It was. 

There's no such thing as a free trip to Europe. My opportunity to go on that research trip was paid for, but had a cost in that I missed two weeks with my own two kids. And those two weeks started at Father's Day. But in some ways, I feel like I was a dad on loan to a group of students who afforded me the honor of seeing some of dad in me. It's hard not to be proud of that. 

New Toy at Old Playground

We returned to Knobels Sunday. Great time. Love it. Used $99 worth of tickets on rides, though we only paid $91 for the tickets . . . I really can't stop thinking economically with that park. But I spend enough time on that last year.

Sam enjoyed the coasters, though he did make himself nauseous by the end of the day. So nauseous he couldn't eat at Hoss's. That will probably be the final time I ever get Sherry to eat at one. By the way . . . enormous phase shift at Hoss's. Now one orders from a menu at the table. Stunned, I am.



Let's get back to Knobel's. Sam and I think that Twister beats Phoneix by a hair. Both are long coaster rides (each is longer than two minutes). Flying Turns probably isn't worth another $3 from me, but that's okay. I did get to ride my first roller coaster with Caroline, who lost a tooth on her second Phoenix ride. Sherry, of course, enjoyed the Haunted Mansion which she claims hasn't changed in four decades.

I brought my new toy along: a new camera. I probably spent a bit too much on it and the awesome lens for it, but I resolved that my Normandy trip would be a once-in-a-lifetime chance to see some amazing places, and I want to record it faithfully. I practiced picture-taking a lot at Knobel's, on random things as well as my kids. Here are some of the better shots.

After our first trip. 

Twister, from the ski lift. 

Of Caroline, on the ski lift. 

There's the baby tooth that trip #2 on Phonenix removed. 

Sam

Boo!

Okay, that's creepy. It's an attempt at playing with aperture and filter. 

The kids are finished school but I'm not, quite yet at least. This trip to Knobel's is one that I hope can be an annual tradition for a little while.

Unintentional Snow Day

I really didn't expect a snow day in June, but that's what happened.

A telephone ringing at 4:55 in the am hardly ever heralds good news. Today it was just weird news: word that due to "shelter in place" procedures and "working with authorities" stuff all CBSD schools were closed. After a while I found out that all the hubbub was over an escaped non-violent inmate. It's kind of strange that such a situation will shut down a 20,000-student district, but I guess one doesn't want kids waiting for the bus while a fella in handcuffs is doing a Dr. Richard Kimbal impersonation.

If today's day off was weird, tomorrow's day back will be even weirder.

It's funny, though, how quickly a free day off can fill up. I took care of quite a bit of church business. Had a former neighbor come by to fix some locks. Completed some grading. I also attended a school awards ceremony that I didn't even know was occurring. Given the mostly empty rows of chairs in the back of York Avenue Multipurpose Room, I think most parents were unaware of it, too.

There was, however, a chance to update this blog and post a picture (a forbidden picture, perhaps) of Caroline from her dance recital, courtesy of my mother- and father-in-law who were able to sneak in a photo of her tap routine.

Excellent. Scales balanced.

Balancing the Scales on June 3

There was a big Caroline event yesterday but it's largely lost to film. Caroline's dance studio held their annual recital. She was splendid. And, the well-run nature of the recital and the obvious rapport between the grown-ups and the girls reassures me that she's in good hands there.

But to make sure I'm not favoring Sam too much (my photos from yesterday are mostly from our trip to Reading that afternoon) I'm including some photos from Caroline's spring fashion show.

Caroline's Bitmoji. 

I should point out that the pink activity tracker has a purple wristband that we can use instead.

One big surprise, though . . . it would seem teal is Caroline's 2nd-favorite color.

The First Summer Trip

A few photos capturing my day at Reading's World War II Weekend with Sam follow.

P-39 Airacobra, which I don't remember seeing before. Sam and Jacob were excited to know that the hole in the propeller cone was actually for a 20mm cannon. 

Favorite plane ever. 

A Red Army veteran holds court with the help of a translator. 

Sam learns about a paratrooper's kit. 

Sam with a grease gun. 

Kendra told me to look for this Weasel. 

B-17 comes in for a landing. 

B-17 touching down.

A Japanese torpedo bomber. 

An Avenger. Really, it's a shockingly large aircraft for carrier use at that time. 

FDR impersonator.

Not a great B-29 photo, but the plane was spectacular. 

Perhaps our favorite father-son moment was on the way out of the event when we were turning onto US-222 and "FiFi" made a banking turn above us. The view from our minivan was splendid. Of course my safety-minded driving prevented me from reaching for the camera.

That would be Sam's favorite moment. For me it was the joy of taking him from one living history reenactor to the next, engaging in conversation, and Sam hanging in there for it. This will be an annual event for some time, which is good. After all, Sam promised that some year for my birthday he'll get us a plane ride. When he's old enough to have a job. And, he warned, that will be the only present I get that year.