matching tracksuits

fun in threes, sometimes fours

the boy

Pre-Thanksgiving 2021

It's been such an odd Thanksgiving Eve. The only thing I did today that was in line with every other day-before-T'giving was to mow. That only makes sense if you're in the south, I guess.

In the evening, the kids played chess. The Boy won the first game on time; that did not sit well with the Girl, who promptly paid more attention to her time management and checkmated him in the second game.

"She is so competitive," K said.

"But look at it this way," I said. "She could have pouted when he won and refused to play with him again. Instead, she was angry and wanted another shot."

Chess

Playing Around the House

Genesis 2021

My best friend D and I took the Boy to his first concert last night: Genesis. With that show, I've achieved the concert trifecta the two of us always dreamed of: U2, Pink Floyd, and Genesis. D is missing the Floyd, but he last night was his second time seeing Genesis, so I guess we're more or less even.

After the show, the Boy and I had a final memorial picture:

Of course, I took a few short videos and stitched them together:

Then I did it again with my friend's clips included.

Scouts Cooking

Around the House

Bay’s Mountain

Saturday in Tennessee

Book Fair

The Boy wanted to go to the bookfair. For someone who doesn’t like reading, or at least claims he doesn’t like reading, he certainly does get excited about getting new books.

The trick, as with every reader, is to find books he likes — and in his case, that means books that make him laugh. The Dog Man series is a favorite, so he bought the newest installment, Grime and Punishment. Yes, it is making the allusion you’re thinking. Other books in the series include:

  • Mothering Heights
  • Fetch-22
  • Lord of the Fleas
  • A Tale of Two Kitties
  • For Whom the Ball Rolls
  • Brawl of the Wild

I don’t know how many other kids know the allusions, but I explained them all to the Boy. I couldn’t talk intelligently about two of the books, though: For Whom the Bell Tolls (which I’ve never even attempted to read) and Catch-22 (which I tried to read in high school but just never got into).

Afterward, a bit of guitar practice. D, my best friend since forever (as my kids would say), is coming to town next weekend for a Genesis concert in Charlotte: it will be a boys’ night out, just the three of us. The Boy’s first concert. He’s preparing a little concert for D with a few little surprises sure to make him smile.

As for the girls this evening? They’re at L’s third and final club tryout. She’s been offered positions in the top teams of the other two clubs she tried out for this weekend, and I expect the same from this club. It is, after all, Excell, for whom she’s played for two years now, playing sand, grass, and indoor with them. I have a feeling, though, that she’s not going to go with them this year.

November Ride