What is it about us humans. We always, always stratify into the haves and have-nots... even at Disneyland.
The other night, my oldest son Gus' hamster got loose in the basement, and it took an hour to catch him. Lots of running around, moving furniture, and diving at the rascal, and we had to nearly empty two closets, so by the time we caught her the basement was pretty well trashed.
One of Gus' friends and I joke around a lot. Lately I have been intentionally mispronouncing his name (which I have always thought was the pinacle of subtle humor). He let it go for awhile and then one day, he answered, without missing a beat, "hey gramps." I've pronounced his name correctly every time since.
Here's a cool graph showing presidential voting patterns over the last 40 years.
Both boys graduated this week, one from kindergarten and the other from eighth grade. It was a nice chance to reflect on how well they are both doing... lots of friends, well adjusted, good grades, all that stuff that parents like. Now, I realize that this can change all too quickly at this age, but given the train-wreck of my junior-high years, I am very, very pleased with them.
13 comments:
I have always wondered about graduating from the 8th grade. We aren't in an agricultural society, they don't go to the navy after the 8th grade. What's the deal? My two younger sons graduated from the 8th grade and did so without the expected open house.
"Hey Gramps."
hahaha pwn3d.
(see urbandictionary.com for meaning)
Am I right in thinking that your oldest son made it through junior high without squirting the librarian with a water weenie stored in the "zipper area?" ;) He would have a pretty high bar to clear in terms of high school hijinx to outdo his old man, too.
knumb you really should start up a blog! I'd be a true fan ...your wit and brotherly charm is priceless!
As for graduation from 8th grade, they graduate from nursery school here in Canada. I think it gives the kids a real sense of accomplishment and can be a positive step in encouraging them to go on further to that next level -hopefully give them a "spark" to graduate again and again ...I think it's also about building social skills at a young age, the whole camaraderie thing.
Brad, i like the hamster story..real cute!
Somewhere I have a graph that shows not only the red-blue-purple spectrum but also sizes the states (or is it counties?) according to the number of voters. It gives the US a funny bulging shape, but it does correct the impression of the redness of the country. A lot of those red areas represent very few votes.
If I can track down the source or find it on my hard drive (which was "wiped" and "re-imaged" recently), I'll let you know.
Thanks Sarah,
For now I will have to settle for making easy pot shots on Brad's blog.
I don't have much original material of my own. My days are kind of stuck on wash-rinse-repeat.
Kent, yes, I too was a little surprised by the big deal placed on eighth grade graduation. When I graduated from junior high, I think they juste reminded us to go to high school the next year.
John, yes, the friend definitely pwned me me... No, Gus did not spray down the librarian. In this day of age, that would be a big problem!
Sarah, yes, John is very, very funny. He keeps people in stitches.
Jay, let me know if you find that map... sounds interesting.
i think it's so nice how the two of you brothers "balance" each other out! ;)
Sarah,
Let's see, what I have said about my brother is that he is good with money and has a great sense of humor. You say we balance each other out.
I'd be offended if it weren't so true!
Oh please...
Good with money? Bah, let me show you what we blow money on, horses, cars, etc. I'm trying to get better but....
As far as the funny bit, we balance each other out in my wife's eyes... she thinks Brad is funny.
As far as blogs, Brad has something to say. On a good day, I'm trying to be one of those crotchety muppets in the balcony.
Brad teaches America's youth and studies the sociological aspects of Christianity. I'm off to go crawl under a desk.
Growing up, Brad was good at tossing things for distance... and I was good at swimming. Nonetheless, I was Beaver Cleaver and he obliged, taking me to High School basketball games and to play ultimate frisbee with his friends. There are still people in Fresno from his era who know me as "Dog," my nickname.
I need to add, as far as the high school hijinx, I was in awe and a poor imitator.
Brad once painted a school antenna bright orange and put a garbage can on top of it. Five years later, I tried to emulate him by painting the speed bumps pink. My friend showed up with teh school colors and the speed bumps looked so good they were green and white for years after... no authority suspected they were the victims of a prank.
Oh, I forgot to mention that he's also a lot better looking than me!
I do, however, have many more squirrels in my yard. I have that on him.
Mmm... yea, that's why all the girls I was interested in at UC Davis were lukewarm on ol' KnumbKnuts but never failed to say "Oh I had the biggest crush on your brother."
Don't make me name names, your wife reads this blog sometimes. ;)
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