Horses

I don’t know a whole heck of a lot about horses, except that they make for some pretty cute pictures. I got the chance the other day to take my daughter out to see a few horses, and she really enjoyed it a lot.

She is far too young to really do much with horses, and I am not the right person to be teaching her anyway, but it gave me more than a little satisfaction to be able to indulge her. She has a fascination with pink ponies (thanks cartoons), but was equally satisfied with her opportunity to see the real thing up close and personal.

Park Swings

I sure do miss the days of swinging in the swings at the local park. These days I like to take my kids to the park. It takes me back to my childhood when I was the one doing the swinging.

I was one of those crazy kids that gave my mother a heart attack everytime we got near anything that moved. I would swing just as high as I could and then jump out of the swing landing somewhere on my head. (Hey, I never said I was the brightest child).

If I were to pull the same stunts as an adult something tells me that I would get more than just strange looks from the other parents at the park. More than likely some of the mothers would have a few choice words to say to me about the kind of example I would be setting.

Alas, that is one chapter that has closed never again to be re-opened. In the meantime I'll do my best to convince my kids not to follow in my footsteps. Afterall those trips to the doctor's office really weren't all that fun.

Back To The Future - The Movie

Some of you readers may well not have been alive when Back To The Future came out. Which strikes me as odd since I don't think of myself as all that old. But my oldest boy (9 years) is into skate boards and rock and roll so I figured I would let him in on a movie from my childhood.

Whoa, what a trip down nostalgia lane that was. And what an eye opening experience in terms of how my thinking as well as our overall social thinking have changed in the last 24 years.

I’ve spent most of the last two decades working more than I should so that I can pay bills in order to enjoy the American dream. The time I haven’t been working I’ve been getting an education so that I can do more complicated work so that I can pay for more bills. The days of thinking how cool it would be to own a time machine have slowly turned into how cool it would be to have zero debt.

I think I should spend more time chasing after time machines. In a few short years my kids are going to be out of the “Dad is cool” stage. Will they remember me as the Dad who was always working and too tired/pre-occupied to do fun stuff or as the Dad who helped them chase their own dreams?

Fishing With Dad

One of my favorite memories as a child was going fishing with my brother and my father. We would take our poles out to various little lakes and streams and stay out in the wild catching trout and bluegill. It kept us out of trouble and you can sure be those were days when we didn’t watch too much television.

Now I get to take my own son fishing. It is a lot of fun, though I understand now why my dad wanted us to learn to handle our own tackle as quickly as possible. Sitting there doing nothing but monitoring the tackle for your kids can be a lot of work, though definitely worth it when you get to watch them reel in a big one.

I still enjoy fishing with my father. We don’t get to go out as much as we used to, mostly because we haven’t lived in the same state for a long time. Recently I moved much closer (thanks recession) so maybe there will be more chances to get together again. Maybe the three of us will be able to make some more happy memories that will get passed on down to another generation.

Why Are Pictures of Kids and Dogs So Cute?

Most of the time kids are annoying. I mean they have a lot of moments in life that are funny and many that are also cute, but most of the time they complain (if they can talk), make messes, or completely ignore you? Don’t get me wrong, I love my kids and I like kids in general. I like taking them to the park and on family outings and all that fun stuff, but that doesn’t explain to me why in general people find pictures of kids cute.

As for dogs, they are just one big mess waiting to happen. They rarely do anything useful. They cost a significant amount of money to maintain, and under certain circumstances they can be a real liability. Why then are pictures of dogs and kids cute?

I like my dog. I like to take her to the park and on walks and for family outings. She is a good dog. She sits quietly most of the time and plays nicely when the kids are inclined to show her any attention. But this still doesn’t explain why pictures of her are cute.