Can I Go Back...Please?...(Pictures, Make-a-Wish Trip, Ian, Fun Stuff, Video)
I came back from Florida for this?
And, as a follow-up to the last post, here is a video clip of Ian fighting Darth Vader:
We're still in the process of sifting through the pictures & videos, and I'm going to try flexing my video editing skills to come up with something that shows the scope of the whole trip.
SIU In the News (Fun Stuff, Responses to Our Culture)
You have to smile when your alma mater makes it into the news.
From the September 7, 2008 column of "News of the Weird":
Illinois requires all state employees to pass an annual 10-question, multiple-choice "ethics" test (whose format lends itself to simplistic answers that, for instance, most college students might handle easily). In January, state ethics officials declined to accept the passing grades of 65 Southern Illinois University professors because they finished "too quickly." Asserted a reviewing state official, anyone who failed to spend at least 10 minutes on the test was being unreasonable. [Inside Higher Education, 1-23-08, 5-5-08]
Pictures, Video from Sir Ian the Brave (Pictures, Ian, Video, Fun Stuff)
As Deb wrote on our Caring Bridge site, we had a special day yesterday. We attended the Renaissance Festival in Shakopee, MN. Deb was able to arrange for Ian to go backstage and meet a couple of the knights in the jousting troupe New Riders of the Golden Age. Ian was a little too nervous to ride on a horse, but they were gracious enough to allow Ian to teach a scoundrel a lesson in manners:
The members of the troupe were very gracious and friendly. We want to give them a special "thank you" for giving us another great memory.
Here are a few pictures from the event:
The master of ceremonies, Kelly Baker, is also the director of the group. He took time out of his schedule to show us how things are done, and made it a very special day.
A knight in the opening ceremonies
We had great seats for the tournament. One of the ladies of the court, Lady Jane (the one on the right), was kind enough to let Ian stand with her to get a better view of the action.
Sir Orrin performs a tight turn. Well done!
A salute from Sir William
In addition, we enjoyed the talents of Tuey Wilson, a longtime feature at the Renaissance Festival (28 years!). The man has an uncanny sense of balance:
By the way, the interruption in the video is me being hit with a Nerf dart. You'd think he would have the first couple of rows of the audience sign a waiver or something...
All in all, it was a wonderful day. We're making it a point to cram as much fun into the second half of our summer to make up for the first half.
As a quick aside, the boy is losing weight. The first half of the summer, we kept having to buy new clothes because he was outgrowing them. Now that his appetite is ranges from diminished to normal, his weight is going back down. Pong!
We had the joy of sharing Halloween this year with our friends, the Staskas. They have a lovely neighborhood with sidewalks and plenty of houses that participate.
This year, Ian is getting into Star Wars. Dad and Mom have allowed him to see the original trilogy (episodes 4, 5 and 6 for anyone keeping track). So, true to form, Ian was Luke Skywalker for Halloween:
The Staska children were a clown, and Obi Wan Kenobi. So, Luke and Obi Wan ran around the neighborhood, waving light sabers and shaking down the residents for candy. Having a clown join them made the experience just a little bit more surreal.
Things were just dandy until we ran across another little boy who was dressed up as a clone trooper (he's a bad guy, for those of you not in the know). Luke and Obi Wan used the force to confuse the trooper, so that there wasn't a confrontation ("These are not the Snickers bars you are looking for.")
A couple of weeks ago, we were able to go to Southern Illinois and visit family. It was great to see friends & family. It was also fun to get to show Ian the area where I grew up. He's old enough to start remembering people and understand that Daddy was actually a little boy once (a loooong time ago) and that this is where he was that little boy.
The primary difference between this past weekend and the previous four (or five...I've lost count) is not what we did, but what we didn't do. We did not paint. For one thing, it was rainy. Veeery convenient. Plus, we needed a break.
So, what did we do? In the search for new activities, we tried out The Works, an engineering/technology museum in Edina. It's small, but there's plenty for children ages 5+ to do. Ian wasn't very interested in or how or why something worked, but more interested in what was next. That, and building things. In the past year or so, he's gotten into Construx. Legos are for artists; Construx are for engineers. This kids going to design things, I know. Anyway, there was a nice variety of Construx pieces for him to create a race car, and then a downhill track to race against other cars. It's kind of like the track at Legoland at Mall of America, with two differences:
The Works uses Construx (obviously)
Whereas Legoland has 10,000,000,000 pieces but only five wheels in the whole place, The Works hasn't been ravaged yet, so there are plenty of wheels. One kid made a car that had eight or nine of them, and reminded me of the current Batmobile.
At any rate, two minutes after we got to The Works, I realized that I had forgotten our camera. There were some great photo ops there. However, we will definitely go back. In October, they're making "Fizz Rockets." What little boy wouldn't love that?
However, taking a six-year-old boy to a place like "The Works" can also be an exercise in frustration for someone like me. At each exhibit, I wanted to teach Ian why it was working; he just wanted to do it, and move on to the next one. Hopefully, now that he's done all of the exhibits, the next time I can spark some curiosity in him. Then I'll have my camera...
Afterwards, it was burgers, fries and shakes at The Convention Grill, followed by a walk around Lake Harriet. We got to watch the waves and the first autumn colors.
All in all, it was much better than being up on a ladder.
