July 26, 2008
Saving Michael from Himself
Last week, I took Michael (7) to get a haircut.
Michael: "I want it short on top and long in the back."
Me: "You want a mullet?!"
Michael [enthusiastically]: "Yes!"
Me: "No (f*ing) way" (parenthetical comment not spoken, but clearly indicated by my attitude.)
Michael: "Why not?"
Me: "You'll understand at your wedding when I'm showing photos of you when you were young."
Really, he'll thank me later.
June 30, 2008
Back to Tokyo and Pokemon Center
We bid Jonathan, Tetsuo, and Toshiko farewell and headed back to Tokyo today on the Shinkansen. We were met on the platform at Tokyo Station by a bellman from the Four Seasons Tokyo, who took our bags and lead us on the short walk to the hotel. After a quick check-in and some lunch, I took to the boys to the Pokemon Center a few train stops away while the ladies partook in more retail therapy in Ginza.
The Pokemon Center is heaven for Poke-geeks like Andrew (10) and Michael (7). There was a big store full of everything Pokemon related you could imagine, from cards to video games to candy to nori (dried seaweed sheets cut into Pokemon shapes to put on your rice -- Michael bought some of this) to toys to clothes. They had someone teaching kids how to play the Pokemon trading card game, Pokemon videos playing on the overhead TVs, and rows of Pokemon capsule vending machines enticing the kids (the boys got Pokemon Pez dispensers out of one of the machines.
After they sated their shopping, we went next door to another room where you could play Pokemon Battrio, a video game the kids started playing at the Pokemon Center in Odaiba. You could also play Pokemon Battle Revolution, a Wii game where you use your Nintendo DS' to control your Pokemon; this is cool since your opponent can't see what moves you selected because the UI is on your DS screen.
They also offered a special birthday surprise if you had a Nintendo DS, a Japanese version of Pokemon Diamond or Pearl, and proof it was within a day of your birthday. The boys had their DS', their English copies of Diamond and Pearl, and proof it was within a month of their birthday, but that wasn't good enough. Oh well.
Some sick person planned this section of the Pokemon Center; the sun blazed into the room where the kids were playing Battrio, turning it into a solar cooker. In the focal point of the cooker, they had a cold drink machine selling Pokemon branded soda. Naturally, I bought one to keep me and the kids from catching fire.
June 26, 2008
Brothers or Friends?
Michael (7) to Andrew (10): "We're not friends. We're brothers."
Very insightful.
June 23, 2008
Our Camping Trip
I've had several people ask how our first camping trip went, so I figured I should post about our experience.
I left work early to get ready for our big boys weekend camping trip at Deception Pass. I did some grocery shopping and made a last minute decision to get a cook stove (a Coleman PerfectFlow InstaStart two burner job -- great decision). I picked the boys up from school and started packing the car. I had too much junk, so I had a bit of last second re-packing to do and we were off. We left Bellevue at 4:30pm on a Friday, headed to Deception Pass. The weather was miserable at home, and we were in continuous rush hour traffic pretty much all the way up past Everett, so we didn't get off to a good start.
However, as we got closer to Deception Pass, both the weather and traffic started clearing; by the time we got to the campground 2.5 hours after we left home, the weather was clear and beautiful. We found our site easily (even though the photo on the Parks website wasn't the right one for our site) and got the tent set up; then I went to get the sleeping bags and realized I had forgotten them at home during my mad repacking. My brain raced through the options - go home and get the bags, sleep on the pads wearing all the clothes we brought, bail on the entire thing... The boys looked on nervously as I sat with my head in my hands. I then realized that we weren't that far from civilization; we piled back into the car, drove to Oak Harbor (nine miles away) and bought three new sleeping bags at the Kmart. We were back in business!
We went and played by the water in the lovely sunset, had our fire complete with hot dogs and s'mores. Actually, Michael (7) cooked chunks of sashimi-grade tuna over the fire because he doesn't like hot dogs. We read ghost stories in the tent and listened to the EA-6Bs and P3s from the nearby Naval Air Station Whidbey Island fly their night missions (the aircraft noise was the only real bummer that night). Fortunately, the heavy rain that night drowned out the noise. :)
It was still raining when we woke up; I rigged a tarp over the picnic table and made coffee for myself as the kids slept in. By the time they woke up, the rain cleared up and didn't rain again. After breakfast, we played on the beach, climbed rocks, messed around with the driftwood, tried to find a geocache, and generally mucked about. The guys both managed to flood both pairs of shoes we brought (including rubber boots), so I had shoes drying by the fire.
Michelle landed from her trip to Tokyo, took a nap, and then came up to join us around dinner time. It was getting a bit nippy, so Michelle decided not the stay the night; Michael decided he wanted to go home too, so it was just me and Andrew (10). We had a great breakfast in the morning (pancakes and bacon -- wow, I forgot what a pain it is to cook bacon in a pan. Oven bacon rules!), packed up camp, and came home.
We all had a great time. The boys were already pestering me to go again, so I think it was a success.
June 05, 2008
Getting Ready to Go Camping
As I wrote back in January, I resolved to take the boys camping this year and had booked a camp site. The fateful weekend is now here; we leave tomorrow afternoon for our big adventure at Deception Pass State Park. I think I have everything I need and just need to pack now.
We're all pretty excited, but I admit I'm a little nervous about how it will turn out since this is the first time I've ever really camped. Plus, the weather forecast is a little dicey (70% rain, 50% rain, 20% rain for the three days...). I'm sure we'll make it work.
Anyway, see you on the other side...
May 10, 2008
Even Kids Know Better
I was talking with the boys about the American Declaration of Independence the other day.
Me: "We hold these truths to be self-evident. That all men are created equal..."
Michael (7) [interrupting]: "What about the super delegates?"
Yeah, I didn't quite know what to say.
May 01, 2008
Bad Daddy
I'm a bad father. I try my best to instill the right values for the boys, but sometimes, despite my best efforts, the kids go wrong. I know they're just kids and they are each his own individual person, but I can't help but feel responsible.
The other day, Michael (7) saw me working on a competitive review of Firefox. He noticed their logo and said, "That fox is sooo cute and cuddly. I love it!"
I tried to explain how the fox was really the pawn of a joint communist and Al-Qaeda plot with potential connections to Darth Vader, Voldemort, and people with stinky feet, and that it was trying to undermine truth, justice, and the American way. He didn't care; the fox was cute. (I think I may have lost the argument with the Darth Vader connection.)
I'll keep working with him to reinforce our family values. I hope this is just a fad that he'll grow out of like being a Democrat or vegetarian. :)
April 25, 2008
Smooth Talking Kid
At my birthday party last week (eek, 40!), Michael (7) was talking to my friend Kristen.
Kristen: "What are you going to have for dessert?"
Michael: "You."
Kristen [with a practiced hand at batting away advances]: "Well, you know I'm not very sweet."
Michael [with a sly smile]: "Yes, but you're tasty."
Kristen: <silence>
I don't know where he learned that.
March 23, 2008
Cold Observation
Andrew (10) is normally my nice kid, but he made a cruel, but accurate observation the other day.
Andrew [earnestly]: "Dad, you're big but not tall, if you know what I mean."
Time to diet and work out more, I guess...
February 24, 2008
Michael is Hard to Impress
Andrew (10) has been working on a report on John Jay for quite some time so we talked about it a bit at dinner this evening. I asked Andrew what John Jay did. Andrew proceeded to list off his accomplishments:
- Signed the Declaration of Independence
- President of the Continental Congress
- Active in counter-intelligence during the Revolution
- Secretary of Foreign Affairs (now Secretary of State) under the Articles of Confederation
- Co-author of the Federalist Papers
- First Chief Justice of the US Supreme Court
- Governor of New York State
Throughout this, Michael (7) was unimpressed. Then, Andrew said "he went to Spain" (as the ambassador to Spain), Michael lit up and said "woo".
I guess all those other things were less cool than visiting Spain. Michelle then pointed out that she had just been to Spain. Michael was appropriately impressed there too. Not sure where his Spanish thing comes from. Guess we'll need to go to Spain sometime.
(I actually didn't know anything about John Jay before Andrew's report. Impressive dude. He helped free all the slaves in New York before he died too.)
February 12, 2008
Food from the Homeland
I think it's important as a parent to keep your children connected with their heritage. Food, clearly, has tons of cultural and ritual meaning, so it's an important tradition to pass down.
With this in mind, this weekend, I introduced the kids to Marshmallow Fluff, a staple food in the Midwest (I grew up in Minnesota.) For those of you unfamiliar with this gooey concoction, Wikipedia describes it as a "very sweet, spreadable, marshmallow-like confection".
Andrew (10), who loves marshmallows, hated the Fluff. I think it kind of grossed him out, like many traditional foods do. I'm sure he'll develop a taste for it as he grows up. He'll thank me for it when he's older.
Michael (7) discovered the magical combination of peanut butter and fluff (well, soynut butter in his case since he's allergic to peanuts). While he didn't love the fluffernuter sandwich I sent him to school with, he does love dipping granola bites into the mixture. Kids these days.
It's tough being a responsible parent, but I keep trying. I will probably introduce them to hotdish or Western Dressing next.
January 28, 2008
Play! A Video Game Symphony
As I mentioned last week, we took the boys to see the Seattle Symphony perform a show called "PLAY! A Video Game Symphony". The symphony played songs from various video games.
The concert was enjoyable. There were three large screens suspended over the symphony showing scenes from the games. While the scenes weren't set to the music, it was helpful to see the games with the music and fun to see old school stuff like the original Zelda or Mario games.
They also showed close-ups of the musicians playing; since we were about three rows from the back of the auditorium in the highest balcony, it was especially nice see musicians doing their thing. I wish they did this in all symphony performances.
I admit I was a little surprised by the quality of the scores. While some of the songs like Super Mario Brothers were just fun and nostalgic, the newer scores were often beautiful. Since video games have become as huge financially as movies (bigger now, I think), I guess it makes sense that they can attract a similar caliber of composer for games as movies. They sometimes felt a bit formulaic (for example, almost every fighting game broke into a martial snare drum beat), but I'm this may have been just the samples they chose. As a Microsoft guy, I was pleased how good the medley from HALO was; in particular, the opening bars of the HALO theme are really distinctive.
One interesting note: two of the composers, Jeremy Soule and Martin O'Donnell, were in the audience - not something I've seen before since most classical music composers are, well, dead.
The boys were well-behaved through the concert, although by the end of the three hour performance, Michael (7) was getting sleepy and fidgety (I was too). Andrew (10) really loved it though. All in all, it was a good first symphony experience for them.
In case you're curious, here's the program:
| Nobuo Uematsu | Play! Opening Fanfare |
| Nobuo Uematsu/Square Enix | FINAL FANTASY VII-Liberi Fatali |
| Koji Kondo/Nintendo | Super Mario Bros |
| Takenobu Mitsuyoshi/Sega | Shenmue |
| Joel Eriksson/Electronic Arts | Battlefield 1942 |
| Nobuo Uematsu/Square Enix | FINAL FANTASY VII-Aerith's Theme |
| Masato Nakamura/Sega | Sonic the Hedgehog |
| Tappy Iwase/Konami | Metal Gear Solid |
| Yoko Shimomura&Kikaru Utada/Disney/Square Enix | Kingdom of Hearts |
| Jeremy Soule/Bethasoft/UbiSoft | THE ELDER SCROLLS IV: OBLIVION |
| Nobuo Uematsu/Square Enix | FINAL FANTASY SERIES-Swing de Chocobo |
| Yasunori Mitsuda/Square Enix | Chrono Trigger/Chrono Cross |
| Jason Hayes/Blizzard | World of Warcraft |
| Akira Yamaoka/Konami | Silent Hill 2 |
| Martin O'Donnell/Microsoft | HALO |
| Koji Kondo/Nintendo | The Legend of Zelda |
| Nobuo Uematsu/Square Enix | FINAL FANTASY VII-One Winged Angel |
They also played a special additional score by Jeremy Soule, although I missed the title.
January 15, 2008
Seattle Symphony for Kids
Next week, the Seattle Symphony will be performing a show called "PLAY! A Video Game Symphony", described as:
Watch graphics from your all-time favorite blockbuster video games—including Super Mario Bros.,® HALO® and The Legend of Zelda®—on the big screen while Seattle Symphony, Vocalpoint! Seattle and Northwest Boychoir perform the soundtrack.
They have a show next Thursday (1/24) at 7:30pm and a matinee Saturday, 1/26 at 1:00pm. Both shows are at the incredible Benaroya Hall. Unfortunately, it's not cheap; the lowest priced tickets are about $50 each with most of those sold out on Thursday already.
In any case, I thought it would be a fun way to introduce the boys to the symphony, so we're going to one of the shows. I'll let you know how it is.
January 01, 2008
Happy New Year!
Welcome to 2008! I'm not really one to make New Year's resolutions, but I have been thinking about things I want to do this year. Mostly, I have a list of things I've wanted to do for a while that I never quite got around to. Over the past few weeks, I took some steps to get going on these. Here are a few things I want to do and the steps I've taken. (Blogging about them will also help create a little public accountability.)
Spend more time with the boys
I think the kids and I do quite a bit together already, but I think these are the prime years I have with them where they're old enough (7 and 10) to really participate and still don't mind hanging out with dad, so I want to double-down on our time together.
The kids have been bugging me to go camping beyond our backyard for some time, so I thought I'd start there. I haven't ever really camped (OK, we went once when I was two), so I've been dragging my feet a bit, but I really want to try it as well. I looked into camp sites last summer, but it was almost impossible to reserve one at that late date, and I didn't want to chance driving somewhere and not having a site. So, this week, I reserved a choice site at Deception Pass State Park (close enough to home that we can bail out if it sucks) in June. I'm pretty excited and will probably book a few more dates just in case we love it.
Incidentally, the Washington State Parks reservation system is pretty good. They show you the individual sites with descriptions and ratings of quality and privacy, have photo(s) of the site, and make it easy to see what dates are available. Good use of our tax dollars.
Work out more
As I've chronicled on this blog, I've been up and down with my working out. I definitely do best when I have scheduled events I'm working toward, so this morning (the first day of sign-ups), I signed up for the RSVP (Ride from Seattle to Vancouver and Party). It's a ride like the STP (Seattle-to-Portland) that I did two years ago. I tried to sign up last year, but I waited too long, and the ride sold out. I'll do the Chilly Hilly again in preparation too, but I'll probably skip STP. Good to have the goals on the calendar now. I may do another half marathon (probably Kirkland in May instead of Mercer Island in March).
Learn to play an instrument well
I took piano lessons on and off growing up (mostly off) but never really reached a level of reasonable competency. I've always wanted to play well, so I started piano lessons last month, taking the half hour before Andrew's lessons (can't skip my lesson without making him miss his). We also just had a little Yahama grand piano delivered yesterday. It's been fun playing again, and my instructor has me working on theory as well to better understand what's going on. This had added an interesting new dimension.
I thought about starting guitar instead (which I've also always wanted to play), but I'm much closer to competence on piano, so I figured that was wiser. (I also played clarinet for six years, but I don't have much interest in picking that up again. Not too many social opportunities for clarinet...)
Learn to speak another language to adult fluency
I grew up speaking Chinese at home, suffered through eleven years of Saturday morning Chinese school, took a year of Chinese in college. I also took four years of high school German (enough to get by as a tourist). However, I can't really do business or carry on adult conversations in either language. Since I'm closer to fluency in Chinese, I decided to build on that base. Although I'm basically illiterate in Chinese, I figured I'd start with my listening and vocabulary skills. I started listening to Chinese language podcasts. There are a few good ones, but my favorite so far is by a guy named Serge Melnyk (really). More on these later.
I have lots of other things I want to do, but I figured this is a good start. Hopefully, I can stick with these and build some good habits. What are your plans?
December 21, 2007
Islandwood
As I mentioned previously, I chaperoned Andrew's (10) fifth grade class for a four day, three night field trip to Islandwood, a 255 acre outdoor learning center on Bainbridge Island near Seattle. (Here's a link to the Live Maps view of Islandwood. You can also get a "bird's eye" view of the facility.)
I must admit, the trip was much more enjoyable than I expected. First, the facilities are incredibly nice; it's not like any camp I've ever been to. Islandwood was donated by Paul Brainerd (founder of Aldus Corporation) and has a donor role that's a who's who of the Seattle wealthy (apparently Steve Ballmer hosts the fund raising dinners at his house, for instance.) As a result, they appear to be incredibly well funded. The facility is constructed and operated as a demonstration of eco design principles and is LEED Gold certified. Everywhere you look, there's a sign saying how the toilets are saving water, how the counters were made from recycled yogurt containers, how the wood was recovered from state highway projects, etc. They even weighed all of the compostable and non-compostable food waste after each meal to teach the kids to take only what they need. (By the last meal, we only had three pounds of food waste for 100+ people. This is crazy low; apparently most Americans each waste four pounds of food per day.)
During the day, we broke up into field study groups of eight kids, two instructors (masters students in education), and an adult chaperone (e.g. me). We visited some of the various ecosystems within Islandwood such as the harbor/estuary, pond, and bog. We also did team building activities on their teams course. The instructors did a good job keeping it fun for the kids, using games and hands-on activities. I especially enjoyed the owl/mouse/seed game where they had the kids learn about the balance of nature. The kids were divided into owls, mice, and seeds. The seeds had to go plant themselves, a few seconds later the mice had to pair up with a seed, and then a few seconds later the owls would try to hunt the non-paired mice. There were some rules about what happened if you were caught, etc. and over a few rounds, you could see the mice numbers fall when there were too few seeds, etc. This was especially clear on the chart they created. Neat stuff and the kids had fun.
Another highlight for me and many of the kids was a night hike. We walked through the woods with no flashlights or other illumination. I was surprised how well I could see after a little while. We talked about night vision (rods and cones), listened to the forest (they did a blindfolded "trust walk" which was interesting), listened to some stories, and did the wintergreen Lifesaver trick (they really do spark when you bite them -- cool.)
The meals were good. Most of the food was made from scratch on site (e.g. they baked their own bread) and were very accommodating to the various food restrictions the kids had. The kids ate a lot and many gushed about how good the food was. I think many families don't cook much at home so the food really stood out for them.
We also lucked out and had good weather (read: it didn't rain or snow) the whole time. Given this was only a week after the massive rainstorm that hit the area the week before, I feel very fortunate indeed.
The kids were much better behaved than I expected. The Islandwood staff commented on that as well. The only real bummer was a few kids and a teacher in my dorm got sick (projectile vomiting, etc.) Other than this small outbreak of typhoid (not really typhoid) it was a great trip. I also really enjoyed getting to know Andrew's classmates better; I hear their names all the time, but I don't know many of the kids well. It was a great opportunity for me.
I highly recommend anyone who gets the chance to attend one of the programs at Islandwood.
November 07, 2007
Proud Papa
Conversation from this evening:
Michael (7) [unprompted and with conviction]: "I'll never ever go to Cal [University of California at Berkeley]."
Me [very politically correctly and with a mostly straight face]: "Well, Michael, despite the rivalry with Stanford, Cal is a very good school. I'd be happy if you went to Cal."
Michael [adamantly]: "No way. I'm never ever going to Cal."
That's my boy. I'm so proud. Go Stanford! (Now, he just needs to study really hard, and I just need to save a small fortune...)
September 25, 2007
Herbie the Mousebot
Last weekend, I took the boys to Robothon, a robot festival at the Seattle Center run by the Seattle Robotics Society. In addition to battle bots (you could pay $5 to pilot a battle bot!) and other cool exhibits, you could buy a robot kit for $40 and someone would help you build it.
The kit was a "Herbie the Mousebot" from Solarbotics. Herbie has two light sensitive eyes and will chase the brightest light around. His whiskers and tail are touch sensitive; if they hit anything, he'll turn around. The two little motors drive Herbie along pretty damn fast. Herbie also has a taillight, so multiple Herbies can chase each other around. I have another kit (and a newly purchased soldering iron) to build before I can test this out. (I guess technically we have a Horatio, the black mouse, and Harriet, the white mouse.)
I took about two hours to build the thing. I've somehow managed to avoid learning to solder until this point, but I've always wanted to learn, so I figured this was the time. The boys were pretty interested at first; Andrew helped me solder and assemble the kit, but they quickly moved to watch the robot sumo battles that a school group was having the corner (I wanted to see it too.) The moment of truth arrived when I put the nine volt battery it. It worked! The motors ran and the speeds varied with the light. Actually, one of the motors was stuck at first, but it was because the tires were on a little tight. Fortunately, I didn't have to do any real debugging. I noticed some of the other builders had to reflow some solder joints - non-trivial once the kit is together.
We tested Herbie in our dark living room. The robot scurried around the room, bumping into stuff, backing up and jetting off in other directions. We could get it to follow a flashlight beam pretty easily. When we weren't paying attention with the flashlight, Herbie ran into the kitchen since the light was on. Scared the hell out of Michelle. Michael (7) thought that was really great...
More important, I passed the "dad test". These are terrifying moments where you have to prove you're a competent dad to your kids. I know they'll soon realize I'm just another loser, but I'd like to delay that as long as possible.
Anyway, Herbie is really very cool. There are a lot of other cool robot things going on for kids in Seattle including First Lego League and Junior First Lego League that I may need to check out for the boys.
Congrats to Aimee and Ives!
Well, I finally got rid of my little brother Ives two weeks ago. After 35 (almost 36) years, he finally found someone who can put up with him long enough to marry him. All jokes aside, Aimee is a wonderful woman with great family and friends. My brother seems very content now and is lucky to have her. I just hope Aimee knows what she's getting...
Aimee and Ives had the wedding in Evanston, a suburb just north of Chicago and the home of Northwestern University. This was the first time I'd been to Evanston. It's a cute town, right on Lake Michigan. I see now why my Northwestern alumni friends really like it there. We stayed at the Hotel Orrington, which was centrally located, so we could walk everywhere.
The rehearsal and the wedding were very nice. My brother has a habit of getting teary on days ending in y and was a mess at my wedding so long ago. Of course, his wedding was no exception. At the rehearsal dinner, he choked up while handing out gifts, but I do give him and Aimee credit for holding it together during the ceremony itself (although it looked like they came close to losing it.)
As the best man, I gave a short toast (4 min, 30 seconds as timed by my friends - I had a reputation for overly-long toasts. Under five minutes is OK...) I was doing fine through the toast, working without notes and was almost done when out of nowhere, my throat constricted and I couldn't speak. I had a a terrified thought that I might dissolve into a teary mess and wouldn't be able to finish, but I pulled it together and got through it. I honestly hadn't seen or felt the surge of emotion coming. Wild.
After my toast, our fraternity brothers (Ives and I were both Kappa Alpha at Stanford) sang Kappa Alpha Rose to Aimee, a tradition at KA weddings. Aimee was a good sport about it, even though she doesn't have the "wealth of golden hair" described in the song (we did change the "eyes of blue" to "eyes of brown" in the song though.) Despite the fact most of us haven't sung the song for 10+ years, it didn't sound terrible (I sent the words to everyone ahead of time as a refresher.)
The boys looked really good in their black suits. Andrew (10) was the ring bearer, and Michael (7) was an "honor guard" along with another little boy. Michael wanted to carry ninja swords to help protect the ring, but Ives wisely demurred.
The weekend was especially fun for me because I got a chance to see tons of family and friends. We had almost all of our cousins, aunts, and uncles from both sides. It's been a long time since I'd seen most of them, and this was the first time I'd met my cousin Alice's husband and daughter. I also went out with my cousin Gary for beers, which was a new experience since the last time I saw him he was still way underage.
Ives and I have a lot of friends in common since we were both in the same fraternity at Stanford (Kappa Alpha) and both worked at Microsoft, plus one of Ives' friends from high school came out. As a result, I knew almost all of his out-of-town guests and had a great time catching up with them all.
Anyway, I wish Aimee and Ives well. I'm looking forward to having nephews and/or nieces soon...
September 02, 2007
The Moral of the Story
Last night the boys and I watched The Sandlot: Heading Home, the third of the Sandlot movies about different generations of neighborhood kids learning about baseball and life on their sand lot ball field (this description makes the movies sound like they have way more merit than they really do.)
The basic (and not very subtle) message of the story is to do what you love and to value friendship above all else and things will work out fine. After the movie, I asked the guys what the moral of the story is.
Andrew (10): "I dunno."
Michael (7): "Always wear a cup when playing baseball."
Well, I guess that was an important lesson from the movie too.
Battle Sail!
The boys and I went to the Olympia Harbor Days today and went out on the Lady Washington for a battle sail. The Lady Washington is a tall ship sailing vessel, a replica of the original Lady Washington that traded for furs in the Northwest in the late 18th century; she was recently named the official Tall Ship Ambassador for the State of Washington (nice to see the state legislature really working hard...) She's was also the Interceptor in Pirates of the Caribbean and in Star Trek: Generations. She often sails with her companion, the Hawaiian Chieftain, another replica tall ship, as she did today. During a battle sail, the two ships maneuver for position and shoot blanks at each other with their cannons.
The Chieftain appeared to hold all the cards. They are a little bigger, a little faster, and better armed. (Chieftain carries four three pound deck guns to Lady's two three pound deck guns and two one pound swivel guns aft.) What's more, today, she had the weather gage (she was upwind of us), which is normally a huge advantage in sail combat. Once we motored out into Budd Inlet and raised sail, Chieftain fired a shot to signal the start of hostilities and then bore down on us. As she drew near (slowly in the light winds), we unleashed a salvo from our deck gun and swivel gun. Chieftain was unable to respond since she doesn't carry any guns that face forward. We tried to tack repeatedly, but in the shifty, light winds we had difficulty (never really tacking). As we flopped around, we blasted Chieftain several more times. Chieftain never got a clean shot at us and resorted to firing at the pleasure boats that were watching the battle. (It's OK by me to sink a few Bayliners.) According to the captain, they typically try to keep the fights pretty even otherwise the passengers on one ship get bummed, but today, I declare us to be the clear winner.
The ship itself was cool. I've been on tons of tall ships before, but I've never sailed on one. It was neat to see how all the stuff works and how much harder it is to do everything than on a modern sailboat. They definitely have a hard time pointing (sailing upwind) and tacking. The crew was nice and seemed to know what they were doing; they have a mix of volunteers and paid crew. I'm seriously considering doing their two week volunteer training where you live onboard for two weeks and learn the ropes (literally). They do an evaluation, and if you pass, you can be a long term volunteer with them. It would be very fun.
Unfortunately, the boys didn't love it. Michael (7) for all his swagger, doesn't really like loud noises, so the cannon fire wasn't a hit with him. Andrew (10) had a better time but somehow got it in his mind that he was going to help with the cannons and be allowed to go aloft, so he was a little disappointed. However, he is game to go on their week-long family expeditions they do in the San Juan Islands every year. I'd love to do that with him next summer.
One a side note, this is the first time I've really done anything in Olympia (which is the state capitol.) It's pretty small and a bit worn out, but the area by the water front looks very fun.
August 26, 2007
Marshmallow Guns
Earlier this summer, the boys and I picked up a mess of PVC pipe and made marshmallow guns. Once you assemble the guns, you put a mini marshmallow in by the mouthpiece and then blow the marshmallow out. The marshmallow will negotiate all the turns in the gun and exit the muzzle - kind of cool really. The marshmallows melt in the rain, so clean-up isn't difficult either.
We got the initial instructions from Instructables. We used 1/2" (internal diameter) PVC pipe and cut the pipe into a few standard lengths (we used 3" and 7") for flexibility in recombining the pieces. Instead of the recommended hacksaw, we used a pipe cutter. This was easier and safer for the kids, didn't require a vice or bench, and produced cleaner cuts. This was the first time I've bought PVC; turns out you can only buy it in 10 foot lengths, so you'll have plenty. There was a hacksaw near where the PVC was in Home Depot so you can cut the long pieces down into something that fits in your car. (I got nervous when I saw the PVC initially...)
We didn't glue the pieces together (friction worked fine) so the boys were able to build all kinds of variants. They quickly learned that while the idea of a multi-barreled gun was attractive, dividing your limited lung power n-ways reduced the power.
The whole thing was super successful and very fun. We've since made water guns hooked up a hose and have been trying (unsuccessfully so far) to build a gun powered by compressed air (I've added a tire valve to a 2 liter bottle and pressured it with a bike pump.)
It's worth noting that I'm deadly with a four-foot section of straight pipe. I can hit the kids anywhere in the backyard with a marshmallow while sitting on the deck. Don't mess with Dad.
Of course, if it's worth doing, it's worth over-doing. Check out these crazy marshmallow guns...
August 08, 2007
Michael wants a servant
Michelle and I were joking about moving to China today. Michael (7) started getting concerned about the idea and asked if we were really moving. He was getting a little teary and crunched himself on the floor.
Michelle: [craftily] "Well, you know you could have your own servant."
Michael: [gleefully] "Really? My own servant?"
Michelle: "Yes, maybe two."
Michael: [big smile] "Sweet. Let's go."
July 25, 2007
Michael Figures Out How to Shotgun
Michael (6) was reading a kids' science book this evening and saw an experiment he wanted to try. Basically, you fill up a plastic pop or water bottle, put the cap on it, and then poke a hole in the side near the bottom. If you open the lid, the water comes out (obviously). There's some more on the how much further the water shoots out when the bottle is more full, water pressure, blah blah, etc.
Without me saying anything, Michael eyeballs the rig for a second, puts, his lips around the hole, opens the top, and drinks the water out quickly. He was a little messy about it, but certainly less than most of our old pledges.
I figured he'd get to this one day, but six is a little young to be shotgunning even water. Precocious kid...
July 19, 2007
A decade of parenthood
Andrew turned ten today. Michelle and I are a little wigged (OK, maybe a lot wigged) about having a ten year old kid. How many ways can you say old?
June 17, 2007
Blogging from my phone via FlickR
This picture is from today. Andrew (9) and I were power washing fiends. It's an impotant skill to pass down from father to son. Andrew decided to write his initials in the dirty chair. Bit gross really.
May 27, 2007
Blake Island Adventure
Yesterday I took the boys over the Blake Island for our regular adventure outing. Blake Island a small island a few miles away from downtown Seattle in the middle of Puget Sound (map). It used to be a private estate owned by William Pitt Trimble, until his wife died of an accident, after which the heartbroken Trimble abandoned the estate. It's now a state park with a Native American arts and culture center called Tillicum Village (complete with salmon dinner and dancing show - not bad actually). It's only reachable by private boat or tour boat (the Argosy cruise line runs back and forth).
We've been to Blake Island once before a few years back on the sailboat we owned, and Andrew (9) went recently on a field trip. The guys have both been badgering me to go back since they like the driftwood covered beach, so I relented. We hopped on the 11:30 boat (the only one that runs this time of year) and spent two hours playing on the beach. Andrew, predictably, started building a huge house of driftwood, aided by a pretty girl who was camping nearby (lots of camping on Blake Island). Michael (6), equally predictably, enlisted my help sending driftwood "battleships" out into the water and trying to hit them with rocks. The weather was pleasant enough and everyone had a good time. We got a bit of lunch from the snack bar at Tillicum Village (I had a salmon salad - the salmon here is good since they pin the salmon on cedar stakes and cook it over an alder fire as part of their dinner show) and then caught the 2:30 boat back (again, the only one they run during May.)
It was a bit expensive - normally $40/adult, $12/kid minus a AAA discount for the round trip boat rides - plus the crazy Seattle parking rates (I paid $22 for parking across the street from Pier 55 where the Argosy departs.) Add to that the cost of snacks on the hour-long boat ride each way. On top of that, with the single boat sailing each way, you really only get two hours on the island. I think the next time we go back, we'll camp for a few days. The island has great views of Seattle and Mount Rainier, a fun beach for kids, and miles of wooded hiking trails. There are good facilities (bathrooms/showers, water, fire rings, and the snack bar with firewood/charcoal, lattes, and ice cream), and it's easy to get to.
In any case, it was a fun outing, and any day that I get to ride on a boat is a good one in my book.
May 22, 2007
Jack-o-Michael
Michael (6) lost his first tooth today. He's been hoping for this for some time now, looking forward to the cash the Tooth Fairy will bring. He had considered ways to rip out more of his teeth so he could get more money. Definitely a results oriented kid.
Apparently, the going rate for teeth in his school is a video game! I think this might just be for the first tooth; regardless, the Tooth Fairy is significantly more stingy around these parts. Michael left a note under his pillow for the Tooth Fairy asking for the new Pokemon Silver game; the buck or two the Tooth Fairy leaves will have to suffice.
May 05, 2007
Sobering Realization
Someone made a surprising observation the other day. Now that Andrew is nine (almost ten really), we've already passed the halfway point of the time he'll likely be living at home. We have less time together ahead of us than behind us.
This made me a little sad, really. It was a big wake-up call that we need to really spend more time together as a family during these next few years. It's even more important given that he's less likely to want to hang out with his parents as a teenager.
I guess I better think of something fun to do together for tomorrow...
May 02, 2007
Hierarchy of Cute
The other day, Michelle took a look at Michael (6) and said, "You're very cute."
Michael, without batting an eye replied, "I'm not as cute as a chicken in a dress."
Not sure where that came from.
April 08, 2007
Geocaching with the Herons
Last weekend, Andrew (9), Michael (6), and I had a grand ol' time geocaching in a park in Renton (a suburb on the south end of Lake Washington). We even found the cache this time (not always the case, unfortunately).
First, a little about geocaching for the uninitiated. Geocaching is a game where people hide caches and then list the coordinates on Geocaching.com. More often, there are multiple sets of coordinates, each leading to a clue that plays into a subsequent set of coordinates. Seekers then use their GPS' to work through the coordinates/clues until they find the cache. The caches vary, but they're usually some container with a logbook and some trinkets (the boys each picked up a small toy in this last one.) The guys (and I) love geocaching because it's a treasure hunt; it adds a lot of dimension to our hikes. It's a good excuse to play with gadgets too...
Anyway, the park where we geocached is the Black River Riparian Forest; the unique thing about this park (other than the fact the Black River has been gone for the almost ninety years since the Montlake Cut lowered the water level of Lake Washington) is that it's home to a huge heron colony, one of the biggest in Washington. As you can see from the photo, the trees are filled with heron nests. I understand they've laid their eggs already; the ones that survive predation from the bald eagles that have taken up residence very near by (we could easily the eagles' nest) will hatch in a few weeks. I want to come back then and see the hatchlings learn to fly. It was pretty cool even now.
A few tips if you go:
- Bring binoculars. The viewing area is across a creek, so you need magnification if you want to see anything.
- Bring a loooong lens. If you're planning on taking photos, you'll need a lot of reach. I had my 70-200 2.8 with a 1.4x tele and didn't have nearly enough reach to get a good shot. I don't think 500mm with an extender would be crazy. Compounding the difficulty, the birds move quickly and its often overcast here. High ISO, fast shutters, and stabilization are key. I was shooting on my monopod, which was good. There was a guy using a tripod next to me, but he seemed to be having problems tracking flying birds. Much easier on the monopod.
- <spoiler warning>The geocaching clue tells you to count the number of nests and work that into the equation. While I was busy getting frustrated counting the nests through the binoculars, Andrew noticed the value canceled out in the clue (you added it at the beginning and subtracted it back out at the end). Good thing one of us can do math.
If you're interested in trying to find this cache, it's GC5602 on Geocaching.com.
February 20, 2007
Avatar: The Last Airbender
These past few days have passed in blur as sick Michael (6) and I watched a season and a half of Avatar: The Last Airbender (which, coincidentally, is the featured article on Wikipedia today - what are the odds?) As you know, we don't have TV (well, really, we don't have a TV signal), so we downloaded the show from Xbox Live and watched it via our Xbox 360. Pretty slick. Unfortunately, this left me dreaming about the characters last night in my feverish sweat. Ugh.
The show is actually pretty good and does a lot to be somewhat accurate in its use of Asian language (unlike cartoons I grew up with like Hong Kong Phooey); there are even little jokes and insider stuff in the Chinese they use for names, and the martial arts forms they use are distinct and pretty good.
That said, I couldn't let my life be destroyed by this cartoon, so today, I read the episode summaries for the rest of season 2 on Wikipedia. I feel much less compelled to power through the rest of the episodes now and feel some small measure of control coming back into my life. (Once again, Wikipedia proves the world is full of people with too much time, but I'm grateful...)
Still, it's a good show if your kids absolutely must watch something on TV. (Of course, you could just kill your TV...)
Home Sick
I've been home the last two days with a sick Michael (6) as well as for a day and a half last week. I sent back him to school on Friday after he was out Thursday. He seemed OK and wasn't very convincing telling me wasn't feeling well. I figured he just wanted another day of Xbox and no school. By noon however, his teacher had called saying he wasn't feeling well and had a fever. (I'm a bad daddy.)
He had came down with the tracheitis that Andrew (9) had the week before. He had a deep, barking cough and was generally miserable. When he's sick, he gets clingy. On the one hand, it feels good to be wanted, but it sure makes it hard to get anything done at home when he's like that.
I started getting sick too after hanging out with the Typhoid Brothers, although so far my symptoms are not the same. I had a pretty high fever and was a bit delirious yesterday. My body is achy too, although I'm honestly not sure if that's related to my illness or the ten miles I ran last weekend.
Michael seems well enough to go back to school tomorrow; I'm dying of cabin fever and am ready to go back too.
February 02, 2007
Grumpy Morning
I went in to wake Michael (6) up just now and kissed his cheek. He turned to me with a mean look and said, "Stop sucking on my cheek" and then pulled the covers up.
Cheeky kid.
January 18, 2007
Pun with Raccoons
Our raccoon came back this evening, knocking at our sliding door. We haven't seen him for a long while (maybe years), but he's been knocking on the doors a bunch recently.
Andrew (9): "Why does the raccoon knock?"
Michael (6): "Because he's knock-turnal." [Big grin, waiting for a laugh.]
A funny, scientifically correct pun. Scary.
Zune: More Brand Awareness Needed
Andrew (9): "Could I have an iPod? Maybe an iPod Nano?"
Us (two Microsoft employees): "Well, maybe for your birthday we can get you a Zune."
Andrew [confused]: "An iPod Zune?"
Um, I think we still have a long way to go on Zune awareness...
January 13, 2007
I'm a Hero
Michael (6) just said, "Daddy, you're my hero." Sure, it was just because I picked him up and helped him get another jar of his favorite jam out of the pantry, but it made my day. It's good to be a dad. (Of course I have no illusions about my place in the world.)