As much as I like to complain about the kid bugging me all day, it’s fun having him around for the summer. Being a family of overly connected, internet dependent people, we’re not usually fussed about making big vacation plans and opt for short outings over a few days here and there. The kid is currently off with the grandparents and my brother for the weekend, driving through the mountains in Miata heaven, or so it was explained to me. I think between trips like this, and the more standard vacations with his dad, he gets a good rounded summer that doesn’t keep him glued to a computer, and sometimes there’s actual learning involved which is always a plus.
I’m sitting here this morning looking over the calender and realizing that there’s only about two weeks before school is going to start. We don’t have anything planned for the time left, so it’s going to be chilling, maybe heading to a movie or two and generally just taking a break before we get back into the fall routine.
This year, I think it’s driving home with me a bit more, because the kid is off to high school this year. It’s that forced reminder, much like the grey that is starting to congregate around my hairline, that time is running along at it’s own pace and we’re just trying to keep up.
The site has some minor tweaking left, but generally everything works so there’s no rush. The kid is off to his dad’s tomorrow and they’ll be out of town for 10 days. The day after he gets back, I’m shipping him off for a weekend with the grandparents, just because the way schedules worked out. What I’m looking at is about 2 weeks of quiet down time during the day. I’ve been trying to do some writing in between the coding and it’s not working. There’s also the problem of trying to do it with a teenager fragging things in the same room.
I’ve also pretty much backed out of raiding in WoW as of right now. I’ve not really logged in this week because of trying to get some odd jobs done and getting my own stuff up and running, but the fact is, I’m not really missing it that much. I’m trying to make a point of scheduling my time, and right now, there’s no time for gaming other than the occasional minesweeper or mahjong while I’m thinking through things. Now if i can get exercise thrown in there somewhere…things will be set.
He has no internets on his phone
The kid’s Spanish class spent some time reading the Spanish version of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and as part of their lessons, they had to develop and create their own candy. I thought this was cool, and the kid came up with a rather creative idea using some normal candy type ingredients. What I found out earlier today, was that he was to make up a batch of his “candy” and take it to class tomorrow.
So what did he make? We dipped little squares of strawberry pop tarts in chocolate.
We have conversations occasionally that end up with movie references that the kid doesn’t get. I always end up looking at him and thinking, how has he not seen that yet. This is a list of the movies that the kid needs to see. It’s mostly stuff that I grew up watching, but not all, some of them are just films that made an impression on me. If I’ve left something off, give me the title and the reason for it to be added to the list. I’m more than happy to blame someone else for messing up the kid. I’ll cross them off as he watches them.
The official list of films the kid needs to see :
The Lost Boys
Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure
The Breakfast Club
The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951)
Aliens: Collector’s Edition
The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai
Big Trouble in Little China
Some Kind of Wonderful
The Shining