06/03/04
I am always willing to waste my time. The wife is not so willing. Today looked to me like another fine day to watch TV. She declared it was a perfect day to take a walk. She just has a need to do something healthy or ‘familyish.’

So we loaded everybody into the van- her, her sister, five kids, and me. I’m sure we were illegal, but we were bonding. On the drive to the park it felt a little cool, but that was okay, walking would be slower and warmer.

When we got to the park the first thing we did was walk through the non-petting, non-feeding, petting zoo. The kids were happy to look at the duck, chickens, pigs, donkeys, am I leaving any out? In a very short amount of time they learned the differences in how their droppings smell, and perhaps, why chicken doesn’t taste like hamburger.

When we got to the trail area Ms. Pikachu ran back to me, and with a smile, reached for my wrist and said, “Let me help you Dad.” Nothing like treating me like an old man, she was having too much fun.

Of course, once we got on a trail it was like being in a jungle. There was very little air movement. Nobody else seemed affected. Perhaps the difference was I was wearing cargo pants, and a vest over my shirt, hmm, could be. Sweat poured off me like I was in a sauna, but everybody else seemed fine. If I ever do a list of life’s rules, one of them will be, “There’s never a water-filled cactus around when you need one.”

Of course, another little problem I had was that being cross-eyed my depth perception is lousy. Walking a trail with it's ruts and roots is a royal pain.

Eventually we escaped our bonding experience. Everyone else seemed happy and
bonded. I just wanted water, and some quality time in an air-conditioned environment. When we got home I drank all the water I wanted to, and the Super Nurse put an ice pack at the base of my neck- very effective.

The rest of my day was spent in front of the TV- what a waste.
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