We may have had unusually pleasant weather for the Threshermen’s Show two weeks ago, but summer has come back with a vengeance. It has been hot and humid with little rain in sight. This week marks the end of summer break for us and Vicki has been doing the back to school shopping. The carefree days of summer are over for the year and it is time to get back to the books.
SELF-CONFIDENCE. Vicki asked Nate to make up his bed the other morning. This is usually met with protest, and to Nate’s defense, he is still a bit short for the job. Vicki finally prevailed upon Nate to do the chore ending with an encouraging, “I believe in you!” As the slump shouldered boy shuffled out of the room. She knew he still wasn’t very confident in himself when he retorted, “Well, not too much.”
THINKING AHEAD. So it was near bed time and we were lounging in the living room. Nate, who was told to go brush his teeth, took the posture of a flying super hero and left the room with enthusiasm and gusto. Watching her brother leave, Jenna laughed and said, “He sure is funny. I hope his wife will be fond of it.” When Vicki started laughing Jenna continued, “And I don’t even know what ‘fond of it’ means!”
CHECKMATE. I have decided it is time to introduce Ben to the game of Chess. One night before bed I got the Chess set out and began introducing him to the pieces. I showed him how to set up the board and he tried it several times. He caught on quickly. Nate, who was sitting with us, said he wanted to try so I cleared the board and handed him the pieces. That little boy set the board up perfectly the first time, even getting the king and queen on the right squares. Vicki and I were impressed.
FUN WITH FRIENDS. We drove to Clarksville Wednesday evening to visit Mr. and Mrs. Krantz. I have said this before but they are two of the loveliest people you’d ever hope to meet. They love children (you should see their playroom/toy closet), which was a wonderful thing because our boys were wound up that night. I believe Mrs. Krantz hugged the stuffing out of all of us. She is also a short person and this was the first time Jenna was as tall as an adult.
BEN IS SEVEN! All my life I have heard those older than I comment how quickly time goes by and kids grow up. Boy, you folks sure know what you are talking about! Ben’s birthday was Friday. We got out the DVD of home movies from the time of his birth. It seems like that happened last year!
We celebrated Ben’s big day by inviting two of his friends, Ethan Bibb and Wil Swann, out to X-TREME in Springfield. X-TREME is a new kid oriented restaurant. They serve pizza and sandwiches and have lots of games for kids to play. After this we came home for cake and to let the boys play.
Ben got a new bike from Mom and Aunt Mar. He is outgrowing his old bike and this one allows him to ride without hitting his chin with his knees (well, I exaggerate a bit here). Another cool present is his new rocket. It is launched by compressed air and will go up over 100 feet. And then there is the retro Atari game. This is sort of a fusion of the original 2600 console and the single joystick games that have been popular for the last couple of years. It features a number of the old cartridge games preloaded on the system and has two joysticks. Now the kids can play with each other as they save for their more modern video game system.
REMINISCING. Among the games on Ben’s new Atari is Warlords. That sure brought back memories. The original game required the paddles so using the joystick with it is a bit strange for me. And with a second pair of paddles the original Warlords would allow four people to play. This was one of our favorite games to play during tobacco cutting time.
Cutting tobacco is one of the most physically demanding jobs I’ve ever had. Not only was the work hard, but it happens at this time of year, right at the peak of the summer heat and humidity. Most of the time we would eat dinner at someone’s house, usually the person we were working for would provide the meal. After eating we would take our places around the TV for the rest of the lunch break and play some video games. Of course, we would have tournaments to see who was the best player. The teasing and bragging rights were all part of the camaraderie that stands out in my mind. Believe it or not, Aunt Mar was a force to be reckoned with in Warlords.
ONE BIG PARTY. Susanne Pitt celebrated her birthday yesterday. Mr. Jimmie had a big cookout for her. He started out by telling her they would have a few of their friends over. He updated her early in the week hinting that he had invited a few more people, but it wasn’t until she discovered a large stash of paper plates, cups and napkins that her suspicions were aroused. When she asked Mr. Jimmie just how many folks were coming he sheepishly answered, “Oh, about 150.” So we enjoyed a big blowout next door last night. It was a lot of fun and we even had enough of a shower to settle the dust. Fortunately, their dog waited until after the party to tangle with a skunk.
Joe
