i got up a little early. wee hours before dawn kind of early. i’ve been having trouble sleeping soundly and long so i get up and watch some obscure series on Netflix, read a book, or something. i did so this morning.
work was more hectic than usual for some reason. i had been teleworking earlier this summer but i was told to return to my office the second week in July and have been there ever since. this day was fraught with tension due to lack of staff but things were figured out and the work day ended pretty well.
i came home. my youngest daughter was coming over for the weekly visit and i always make dinner. it came down to two possible choices: taco salad or roasted gnocchi and veggies. we opted for the latter with fresh veggies from our garden. my daughter and i harvested, played with the dog, and then prepped the meal. it was a relatively new dish that my wife and i thought the kids would like.
we have been having dinners outside and wearing masks while inside with her because our bubbles aren’t quite the same. my son overlaps with hers a bit when he visits his mom but my daughter has too many connections outside of the home with work, classes, and her boyfriend. we do our best to maintain a high level of precaution because we know that many others aren’t and we do not want to be the ones who become a conduit for spread of the coronavirus. this pandemic has been challenging and i’ve found it to be almost more divisive for me than many of the other socio-political trends or movements happening this year. we very much enjoy being outside anyway so this hasn’t been much of a hardship. in fact, i usually cook outside on the grill- just not tonight.
we talked about my son’s virtual school experience, my daughter’s thoughts on changing her major, the latest pandemic occurrences, news from the white house, plans for an upcoming three-day family weekend, etc.
after dinner and cleanup, we rode bikes to the field at the nearby school to pass the soccer ball. we had to get my daughter’s bike out of the shed and air up the tires first though. it had been a minute and they were utterly flat. using my new handy dandy tire gage and compressor, we got it up to speed in no time. she hadn’t ridden in a couple of years, though. “my legs are tired already!” she exclaimed as we got to the end of our street just a tenth of a mile from the house.
my wife brought the dog and one of his fake tennis balls in her car. when we bring him to the field, we keep him leashed and harnessed but let him zoom free for a bit if no one else is around. he loves it. my son, daughter, and i passed the soccer ball. it’s always a workout and something we’re beginning to look forward to. during this pandemic, it’s been hard to get motivated to exercise. at least for me. all of my usual outlets have gotten canceled and shifting to new ones hasn’t been a priority. my son, however, has really taken off in his personal training efforts, having worked out a weekly routine of cycling, pushups, pullups, a bit of running, and heavy bag work. i’m truly impressed with his time management skills. until it comes time to remember to vacuum or take out the garbage. then he turns back into a typical teen.
anyway, we breathed hard, had fun, but the mosquitoes were beginning to eat me alive and the sun was setting making it difficult to track the ball. we hopped on the bikes and rode home. my daughter decided to take hers with her, finally, so i showed her how to load it in her trunk and secure it with a short bungee cord. she visited inside for just a few more minutes but left soon enough.
my son then convinced me to take us to get some ice cream. despite my own fatigue, i drove. we went through the drive-through at Baskin Robbins and each got something cold and creamy. back at home, we faded toward bedtime with the getting-to-be-nightly discussion of current events, philosophies, and online arguments my son is having on different threads on Tik Tok, Twitter, and other social media sites. but not Facebook. he tends to think of that particular “service” as the “old folks” channel. it’s during these discussions that he is honing who he is and why he thinks what he does, using me (and sometimes my wife) as whet stones. i have to admit that i used to absolutely love to debate and analyze and discuss and argue anything and everything like he does. i do enjoy seeing the light in his eyes though when we are talking and it keeps me going knowing that he is travelling the path of self-discovery and self-definition now, too. i’m glad to help.