Mama Bear

We were on our way home from the dog park when all heck broke out the car. "Something's wrong with Lucy!" Heidi cried. "She won't settle! I think it's a... BUG!"

Heidi hates bugs.

"What kind of bug?" I asked.

"I don't know! I can't see it! It's there though! I think it bit her!" Panic was rising in Heidi's voice.

"Should I pull over?" I asked, scanning the road for turn-offs and seeing none.

"It's some kind of fly!" Heidi reported.

"A deerfly?" There was one on our windshield when we left the park, and I had felt lucky we hadn't seen any before that. "Is it small and arrow-shaped?"

"That's it!" Heidi said. "It's trying to get her!"

"Swat at it so it doesn't land on her until I can find a place to stop," I advised.

"Oh my god!" Heidi gasped. "I GOT IT!"

Yes! With one mighty smack, Heidi had rescued Lucy from the evil deerfly.

"When it comes to saving my baby," she continued, "I don't play!"

Proper Introduction

If you had asked me two years ago what I thought of self-driving cars, I would have scoffed loudly and likely proclaimed both my distrust and lack of need for such technology. Certainly, my age and driving experience combined to influence my opinion that there was something wrong with trusting a machine to do a human's job.

But about 18 months ago we replaced our 2010 car with a 2018 touring model with all the bells and whistles. Among the safety features? Lane guides and smart cruise control which actually steer the car and hit the brakes whenever the car wavers or gets too close to an obstacle in the front or the rear. All of those things, along with the automatic lights and high beams, are adjustable and voluntary for the driver to use, but...

...after a year and a half and several long road trips, I've discovered that using them makes driving not only easier, but way more consistent and therefore more efficient. (And, this is just a hunch, safer.)

Oh, I'm aware that these features are also probably meant to be a gateway to self-driving cars, but if they are? Consider me hooked!

Mother Knows

"We met your neighbor in the workout room!" I told my mom this afternoon. "He lives right down the hall, and he's on your board."

"Richard," my mother confirmed, and then she cocked her head. "But he must have spoken to you first, right?"

"Yeah!" I shrugged.

What? She couldn't imagine me striking up a conversation with a total stranger?

How well she knows me!

Until Next Week

On our way out of Rochester heading home to the the Twin Cities for the weekend, we stopped at my favorite dog park to give Lucy a chance to run before our mini-roadtrip. At 11:30 AM, the place was deserted, but another car pulled in right behind us, and a chocolate poodle puppy named Tillie and her person joined. Tillie was energetic and respectful-- overjoyed to run at top speed with Lucy and just as happy to follow Lucy's idiosyncratic canine edicts.

All told? Those gals must have run a couple of miles, and it was with a long tongue and some heavy panting that we bid Tillie and the park good-bye.

Senior Tour

Today, when I stepped onto a court for the first time in 36 years, I finally got a chance to use the racquetball racket my nephews thoughtfully gave me for Christmas. I first played back when I was in college, and I loved the game because it was so easy to be a beginner-- I felt like I could play pretty well from the first time I dropped a blue ball onto the wood floor and ricocheted it off a few walls before slamming it again.

My roommate and I used to play 2 or 3 times a week, and my entire PE requirement was fulfilled with a combination of racquetball, bowling, and golf. When I graduated, perhaps the rudest awakening of the "real" world was that I could no longer wave my student ID and do all those things for free anytime I wanted to.

But today, at last, I found myself again smashing blue balls against the walls in an echo-y bright white room with a scuffed up wooden floor. It was a lot of fun! But... not quite as easy as I remember... maybe since I'm not in my late teens anymore, my worries about twisting this or straining that detracted a bit from the game.

Even so, I'm looking forward to reacquainting myself with this fair sport, and I know if it doesn't work out? Pickle ball is always an option!

The Runs

Target Run
Grocery Run
Dollar Store Run
Costco Run
TJ Maxx Run
Drugstore Run

Air B&B?

All set!

But, boy, are my legs tired!

It's Fun to Go to the YMCA

We thought it would be a good idea to join the Y here in Rochester so that we would have a go to place to exercise while we here. It was super easy to sign up online, so today we went down to pick up our ID cards, see the facility, and get in a quick workout.

It was gigantic, and we knew there were locker rooms, 2 gyms, several studios, 4 racquetball courts, a weight and machine room, massage, personal training, 2 pools, and a hot tub. It also turned out to be a place run by children, and at this time of year-- summer camp season-- its focus was also children.

Being teachers came in handy, though: being surrounded by kids felt normal, and we prompted the young employees to give us an overview, if not a tour, of the building. All in all? The place had everything we need, and the price was right.