Come along for high adventure on the high seas of the Bahamas with John’s Boy Scout troop. It’s a DaddyMom six-minute highlight reel of our week-long experience aboard Ciganka: 14 scouts, 4 dads, 2 crew, 1 boat.
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Sailor John and Cap’n DaddyMom
Set sail for high adventure
October 1, 2009 by
John meets Mr. FICA
September 30, 2009 by
John received his very first paycheck of his life tonight. After successfully completing a project for a client, John received his just due–well, almost. Some guy named FICA took a healthy bite from his hard-earned money. A few more checks like this and he’ll probably start paying more attention to news about taxes.
Cannon run, part deux
September 27, 2009 by
When an idea grabs hold of the DaddyMom, there’s nowhere to go but done. This cannon thing has taken on a life all its own. Last week, John, Zuzu and I came face-to-face with a limitation of kiddie carrrier (our Expedition). Not to be deterred, I found the trailer hitch John couldn’t (it was hidden where I told him to look) and set it up for business.
Our circuitous route from Castle Ridge to the cannon took us through Lake Jackson. And, you simply can’t pass through the birthplace of a Texas legend without paying a visit to Buc-ce’s #1. Stella and John took my detour in stride. Our pal David, meanwhile, is still trying to get a feel for my ADHD sense of direction…
Okay, it would have worked better had it said “half off,” but it communicates the same thing. And, John’s all in favor of the idea. Of course he is: he’s a teenager and my son.
Our noble gal rests where we left her. Sorta. Last week, it was standing the other way. As luck would have it, this was better. All we had to do is get it across the room and out the door. Oh, did I mention it needed lowering about five feet?
It’s all loaded in this picture. I didn’t snap a picture along the way because all hands were engaged in the move. Stella, David, John, Suzy (the store owner), and I managed to get it down from that rusty gate in the upper right corner and onto the trailer. Easy peezy. We rolled it forward till the barrel was pointing out toward the trailer. Then, lowered the barrel until it was about six inches above the trailer’s deck. A short plop and there is stood–on it’s end. Pivot it on the barrel and lower it to the wheels and bam, we’re good to go. Don’t say NO to the DaddyMom.
68 short miles to our house; miles of opportunities to make new friends with countless “patient” Texas drivers on the Gulf Freeway and Beltway. It sure turned heads when we passed through the “hood” on the way to our house.
And now, we have the safest driveway in the subdivision. And, here she’ll stand until the final installment of our cannon adventure. In a couple weeks, I’ll drive it to the final destination: the Quarterdeck of Wizard Academy’s Tower.
Parent night at Woods High
September 22, 2009 by
Traveling between Woods and JP2 is a journey from one planet to another. Before you think it is all peace love and Montessori tie-die, first item on the agenda: introducing members of the National Honor Society. John was quick to point out it was made up of mostly seniors and a few juniors. Next year he has no excuse. Every visit to this school reminds and confirms to me that this is the perfect place for John.
BUT WAIT: Let’s sing for world peace
(I’m not kidding. We all sang the UN peace song.)
Light your own candle and sing along (three times like we did):
Light a candle for peace, light a candle for love,
Light a candle that shines all around the world.
Light a candle for me, light a candle for you,
That our wish for world peace will come true.
Avast me hearties:
Every pirate needs a cannon
September 19, 2009 by
Cannons don’t sink ships. Pirates with cannons sink ships.
I don’t know who said it first, but, beings that this is Talk Like A Pirate Day, it seems the winds are in the sails for me shipmates (John and Zuzu) and I set sail for Colonel Bubies on the shores of Galveston Island to harvest us a proper cannon for the quarterdeck of the Wizard’s Tower.
The mission began at a meeting of the Worthless Bastards about a month ago. Roy mentioned that he’d picked up a captain’s wheel at Colonel Bubbies and there was a cannon there too. It was a perfect storm of adventure for me: short drive, low investment, big prize. And here’s what it got us:
It’s not a perfect beauty now, but once I get a pal or two to work on her, she’ll be shipshape in no time. And, will find a proper home under the Austin stars. For now, though, it be the perfect observance of Talk Like A Pirate Day. Keep a sharp eye out, lad, for ye never know what scalawags the tide will wash up on these gulf coast shores.
And, finally, no Galvatrez visit would be complete without some snarky DaddyMom sniping:
Galveston’s Junior League at work. Nicely done, don’t you agree?