Author: Shane

The Case of the Bread in the Night

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“Aw, shoot, we forgot to put the bread in the oven!,” I said.

It was about a quarter ’till eleven p.m. and I was just climbing into bed. Unfortunately two loafs of bread had already been rising on the stove, so it’s not like we could just put them away and save them.

“Just put it in the oven. We’ll hear the timer when it goes off,” said Sara.

“Are you sure? What if we don’t hear it?”

“Well, I’ll hear it for sure. And if we don’t, it will just keep going off until we do hear it.”

I wasn’t really sure that would be a good outcome in this situation, but I was so exhausted I did what I was told, climbed into bed, and fell asleep before my head hit the pillow.

The next moment I was jolted awake by the timer going off on the oven. I leaped out of bed before I had time to wake up, grateful that I had heard the timer. I stared blearily at the clock. Something about the time was nagging at me. It seemed wrong.

11:45?

In my haste, I slammed into the foot board while rounding the corner, waking Sara.

“Is it 11:45?” I asked as I ran from the room, confused.

The bread didn’t seem to be burned, but it was pretty dark and I didn’t seem to be thinking clearly. Just to be sure I turned on a light to check. In my sleepy state I somehow flicked the garbage disposal switch instead of the light, even though the two are nowhere near each other. Perhaps the bread was a *little* dark, but maybe not.

Surely if it had been cooking for an hour instead of half an hour, double the correct time, it would look burned, right?

I stumbled back to the bedroom.

“What time did we put the bread in? Wasn’t it like 10:45?”

“I don’t know. I think so, but that doesn’t seem right.”

Well, apparently it was right, and the timer had been going off for half an hour without waking us. It turns out that our bread is a hearty creature who laughs in the face of an extra baking. It was surprisingly edible. The crust was sort of thicker than usual, and a slice had to be eaten with plenty of water to avoid dehydration, but other than that it was fine.

I think it is safe to say we won’t be doing THAT again anytime soon!

(and by that I mean listening to my wife)

Quote Monday knows things

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Me: “What is it about swim class that makes you have to go to the bathroom?”
Evie: “Well…maybe the butterflies in my tummy just want to have a little bit more time before we have to leave.”

Evie: “How did you know what that was from?”
Me: “Because Daddy’s know things.”
Evie: “Oh yeah? What’s…one million plus one million??”

Me, singing: “Peoria! Peoria!”
Evie: “I don’t like to sing that anymore. It didn’t seem right to make fun of a street.”

Evie: “Do you know how to babysit?”
Me: “I think I can manage.”
Evie: “Well…you don’t sit on the baby.”

This is a different childhood

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Evie has been doing a lot of writing lately. They say a writer writes what they know…

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I’m Poor. Please Help. 2 Dollars Every Day.

I think a lot about the kids growing up in Chicago, and what a different life they’re going to have. We see a lot of “picnickers” (as we like to call them) in our neighborhood. Homeless people and panhandlers are just part of Evie’s surroundings. Normal.

On the way to Evie’s school, we go under a highway overpass. Beyond the fence is what can only be described as a homeless shanty town. There are mattresses and semi-permanent structures, even a grill. In the limited time that we spend at that intersection a few times a week, we’ve seen a lot of activity. Homeless people climbing in and out through gaps in the fence. The one homeless guy who sits on the corner every morning and takes in tons of cash, food, and cigarettes. Seriously, we sit at that light for a few minutes, max, and in that time he probably takes in at least $20, every day. When he gets food he puts it in a community pile for other homeless guys to pick through. One time we even saw the members of the community furiously shoving mattresses out under the fence on one side as the police were coming in on a raid from the other side.

Evie hasn’t asked me many questions about all this, considering. However, I know it weighs heavily on her mind. Obviously, given the picture. I don’t really know what I’d say to her. “Be compassionate about your fellow man, but ignore these ones and don’t make eye contact.” How do you explain that? I’m not even sure how I feel about it myself.

So, long story short, if you see Evie panhandling on the street, please help her out. No reason we can’t put her learned skills to good use.

Things our kids should know (before college)

/ Shane / 9 Comments

I feel like I was more or less prepared to live on my own at the start of college. However, both from our personal experiences, whether they were from ourselves or seeing others, and from seeing other parents with college-age kids, it seems that many people are unprepared to handle the day to day activities required to live on your own. In most cases, it seems it’s not because the kids are too young, or too irresponsible, or had parents that were too overbearing. I think mostly it’s just a case of overlooking things; nobody ever really discussed some of these details with them. Main things are covered, but the little details slip through the cracks.

So Sara and I attempted to put together a check list of things we’d like our kids to know by the time they start college. Granted, we’ve got a little time before this is really an issue for us, but the Internet is forever and the list will stay here until we need it. A lot of these things are probably applicable to living on their own in general, but our experience is specifically with college being the first time out on our own, and there are some challenges that are specific to that area.

In no specific order:

  • Know how to write checks and balance a checkbook.
  • Know how to wash and dry clothes. This includes trying a variety of machines, at least one of which is a pay machine, before going.
  • Expectation management: Expect to go to all your classes, buy all your books, etc. College is now your full time job; you should expect to total 40 hours/week of class or studying (which is probably less than recommended but more than needed to just skate by–this should be a good intermediate amount). Believe me, it still leaves you plenty of free time.
  • Live in the dorm for at least one year to meet new people.
  • If you have a credit card (and I think both having one and not having one are okay), do not charge more on it than you can pay off that month–EVER. Waiting until you have the money for something builds character, and being fiscally responsible means you’ll ultimately have more stuff in the long run (and live a longer, less stressful life in which to enjoy it!)
  • If you live in a dorm, enjoy the fact that you don’t have to cook, but make good food choices.  Eat a salad every day (oh, the prep-work that you are missing out on)!  Eat at least 5 servings of fruits and veggies daily.  Don’t exclusively drink pop (it is gross and full of chemicals).  When you live on your own, realize that simple meals at home are cheaper and healthier than lean cuisine and take-out.
  • This is the only time you will ever have a free gym membership!  Figure out how to use the machines, take advantage of any free or low-cost classes you are curious about, and play wallyball!
  • Know how ATMs work. Understand ATM fees (don’t use another bank’s ATM).
  • Know basic household maintenance (how to change a light switch, how to remove and clean the trap under the sink, etc.)
  • Know basic sewing skills (how to hem pants, how to sew on a button, etc.)
  • You don’t need to be the cleanest person in the world, but you do need to be responsible for yourself.  Make sure you know how to vacuum, dust, sweep, do the dishes, take out the trash, etc.

Anything we missed? Anything you wish you knew when you (or your children) went to college?

Checkers Redux

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About a month ago, I reported on Evie’s progress playing checkers. I am now willing to say that she is as good as any adult (and probably better than some). Last weekend she played 6 games of checkers against adults, and she won 3 of them. I don’t think I would have done any better myself. I think it’s a pretty impressive feat for a 5 year old.

Basically the difference is that she’s shored up her last few weaknesses. I alluded to them last time, but it doesn’t hurt to tell you about it now, since she’s already past all that. She used to really focus in on one objective, such as getting a king with a particular checker, and therefore miss other moves she should be making. In fact, she used to focus almost exclusively on getting kings, but not really on using the kings she had. This sort of tied in to having trouble being aggressive with her kings at the endgame, running from your inferior numbers and allowing herself to get trapped in corners. Finally, you used to be able to make mistakes and she wouldn’t capitalize on them.

All of that is over now. Mastering those things has allowed her to improve at the more advanced skills. Now she’s looking ahead several moves into the future, and setting up traps. She is really, *really* good at setting up traps. In fact, she has a trap that she springs so often, Sara and I have named it “Evie’s Choice”. Somehow (and I seriously can’t understand how she manages it at least once per game), she maneuvers a king in between two of your kings, meaning that you can save one, but not both.

The fact that she sets up different traps than I do is fascinating to me. First off, she learned that one on her own, because nobody else runs it. Second off, is it something about her personality, or age, or brain structure that allows her to see these traps developing instead of other patterns which are obvious to me? Because I totally cannot see “Evie’s Choice” coming.

In any case, if you’re coming to play some checkers, you better plan on bringing your A-game.