Gone Gray

Notes from the Bridge... Just kidding. I will tell you that in the past 24 hours I have moved 24 bags of dirt 4 times. From the display to the cart. Cart to my car. Car to the side of the house. Side of the house to the back of the house. I need to find a way to log this on Training Peaks. Digital learning is going well. Of course by Day 5 we have it almost down to a system and the skids head back to their mom's on Sunday. Checked in with all the teachers and all assignments were turned in. I'm ready to turn over the reigns of their digital learning to their mom, but for 1 week, I got to feel connected to their teachers and learning, so that was kind of fun. I feel for all of you though whose job didn't stop just because the kids were home and how much added stress that dumped on your lap. The weather has been awesome so we took a ride in the Jeep with the top down. Skids had a blast and my proudest moment is teaching them how to ask the truckers to honk their h...

B asked me to try and blog everyday  so we would have something to look back at when this is all over. Because eventually, it will be all over. Yesterday I spoke with my parents who are having struggles getting groceries. Mom is extremely medically fragile and immuno-suppressed and dad is 70+ and lives with mom. We are doing our best to keep them out of the public. They tried ordering groceries for pick up from Kroger, and after a 24 hour window, they didn't receive half of what they ordered. So I am trying to help. I finally convinced them to send me a shopping list. Last night I popped out to Wal-mart and put my hands on what I could. Today I tried to get to Kroger when they opened around 5 am to be greeted by a sign they are now open 8am - 9pm. I don't begrudge this decision at all, I just didn't know. I also tried to order pick up from Kroger, but it would be a greater than 24 hour window so I shifted to Wal-mart. We'll see what I can actually pick up. Digital...

The neighbors have accused us of being "super parents, over achievers". We like to remind them that our time with the kids is limited, so each custody is a sprint, not a marathon. This week is no different. I like to think I have my sh!t together. Because it's a sprint, I can usually balance my day job, my part time job, my officiating, the dog, and the family fairly well. I mean it took lots of times before I didn't cry at least once a custody from exhaustion, feeling of inadequacy, etc. but it did come around. Until this week. I have not grown up with the kids and their school progression of technology nor their connections with their teachers. We only have them 1 school week a month and sometimes that week is a vacation or shortened due to school closures. We keep up with their schooling the best we can to be encouraging, support expectations, make sure they know we care about their learning. But honestly, when it comes to the daily grind, their mom handles m...

I have no idea what's going on. What's over reacting? What's being socially responsible? What's being a good neighbor? What's being paranoid? Not thinking we are special here, but it's an interesting set up for sure. We have the kids, but only for 1 week. I guess that makes us a little lucky as we only have digital learning for a 2nd and 4th grader for 1 week unless their mom asks for a reprieve to which we will gladly help, but she usually has this stuff under control. B's office hasn't gone remote yet so we are waiting on that news. My lacrosse games have been canceled at least until April and then maybe the rest of the season. I am an adjunct professor this semester and my in-person class I was just figuring out has gone virtual. My "day job" works with a medically fragile social community supported by mostly family foundations. My sister is immune compromised. My mom is immune compromised. My dad is over 70. B's folks fall...

I remind all you smart people that social media is a highly filtered snapshot of the moments of life we choose to share.  Christmas day ended up being more of a learning experience than me and B had hoped for, but the weekend before.... B and I nailed Christmas. In odd numbered years the skids spend Christmas and New Year with their mom. For us that means no Santa. No stockings. No early deliveries. Santa comes to where they are waking up on Christmas Day.  We knew there would be no shortage of unwrapping presents since both B and I have very generous families so we choose to go with 1 box supporting an experience for each skid. Asharp got to dig through box after box to open gift-cards and appointment slots to the American Girl store. Her doll got a spa treatment; her hair did; some shopping and then Asharp, her doll, my sister, and I went to the cafe for a 3 course meal. I HIGHLY recommend the bistro experience if you have someone into American Girl. The Bistro wa...

Growing up, Sundays meant Olga's Diner. Late nights: Olga's. Christmas Eve: Olga's. It was the family go-to for breakfast on the weekends. We sat in the back because that was the smoking section and mom smoked. It was family owned and open 24/7. Olga's even sponsored my childhood soccer team for a couple of years. As I became a teen, it was our late night hang out after movies, youth group events, and then eventually after work.  Olga's was our under 21 hang out or where we hung out when we or a friend were still under 21. Before googlemaps and mapquest, we met friends there who were driving in from out of town as it was easier than explaining how to get to the house. The memories include: Grilled cheese, cinnamon toast, hot chocolate. Scrounging change to make sure we had enough money to tip. Every once in a while, the senior (70+ year old) server would yell at us for being too loud or moving around too much. Big conversations were had there. Laughs were plen...