Indiana Dunes--day 3

Thursday, May 30, 2019
Four people with opinions living in the same little hotel room is a bit of a challenge as the days go on.  People snoring, hogging blankets, putting their legs across the center line of the bed, leaving stuff all over the place, stinking up the bathroom, walking around not fully clothed, etc.  Mike wants the curtains completely closed; I like them all the way open.  He wants to keep the room at 66 degrees; I want it about 10 degrees warmer.  Noah ate sunflower seeds in the bed yesterday, which understandably made Sarah furious.  He claimed to clean them all out before they went to bed, but she woke up with sunflower seeds in her hair (she said it was 81 seeds, but upon counting again, it was only four, but still).  Heard just now: "Stop moving!" "YOU stop talking!"
Questionable weather today, so we're heading to Valparaiso to an amusement center with options for indoor fun.

Sarah got 164 on the Speed of Light game; Noah got 159; I got 155.  Mike didn't play.  It was so stressful, I almost had a heart attack. 

We ended up with 830 tickets.  Noah spent 400 on a Bears pennant. Sarah spent the rest, mostly on candy.

The cross on Mike's hat glowed during laser tag, so he was an easy target. Even so, he hit me more than I hit him.

Noah slaughtered us in laser tag.  He was Thor, Mike was Wolverine; Sarah was Robin, and I brought up the rear as Flash.  I'm really not good at laser tag. I get scared and scream a lot.  Noah is fast and stealthy.  

Noah had fun in the batting cages.

Noah lapped Sarah.  I'm pleased to see that she's a very cautious driver.  Gives me hope for when she starts driving real cars soon.

Mike and Noah enjoyed the Connect 4 Hoops game.

The weather turned out to be perfect when we left Zao Island, so we decided to make today the beach day instead of tomorrow.

Our own personal lifeguard with the biggest umbrella in history.

 

It took several tries to achieve this selfie.  We're still pretty selfie-challenged.

Sarah made sand castles.

After Noah got buried up to his neck, he was covered in sand and had to brave the freezing water to wash it off.

The hotel is starting to fall apart.  First, the elevator broke. Then the ice machine.  Just about time to get out of here.

Indiana Dunes--day 2

 Wednesday, May 29, 2019
Sad start to the day, because they found the body of the missing guy this morning.  The family found out while we were at breakfast with them (not with them, but just at the same hotel breakfast).  I talked to his mom and prayed for her.  She was pretty stoic at the time, but later she was just wailing.  There was much discussion about what to do with the body, and who would tell his girlfriend.  It was all just horrible.

We made it to the Trail 9 trailhead in the state park and hiked the whole thing (almost 4 miles).  It was amazing!  Forest, wetlands, dunes, and the shore of Lake Michigan (the very same place where the body washed up this morning, which I tried unsuccessfully not to think about). Perfect hiking conditions: cloudy, 60 degrees, not too hot, not too cold, not too many bugs, and not too crowded (we saw only one other person the whole time).

This fanny pack is one of my best friends.  It holds 2 bottles of water, my camera, sunscreen, bug spray, sunglasses, and maps.  I so appreciate it.  Mike hauled the backpack with snacks, jackets, toilet paper, etc. 

Sarah at the top of a dune.

Mike and Noah charging down the dune towards the shore of the lake, which was covered in fog.

Mike and Noah at the bottom of the dune. Sarah and I were at the top.

 

The forest part of the trail.

When we got back to the hotel, the boys got ready to go golfing.

Mike and I drove to the beach for a sunset date, but it was pretty cold and cloudy, so we didn't stay long. 

 

When we got back to the hotel, Sarah and I went swimming, and the boys watched baseball on TV. The highlight of Mike's day was when Sarah told him, "You're the butthole of humanity."  He said, "I think that's the nicest thing you've ever said to me."

Indiana trip--day 1

Tuesday, May 28, 2019

My dad arrived to take care of the cats, plants, and house, and we left around 10:30 a.m..  I felt good leaving everything in his capable hands and knowing that the cats would be loved.  It was a fun ride.  We listened to Mr. Stinky Feet's Road Trip, as usual, and did a couple mad libs.  I asked for a noun, and Mike said "crack" and for the next noun, Sarah said "heroin".  Mike said he was referring to a crack in the road, but it was too late.  The rest of the mad lib had a decidedly druggy theme.  Sarah still has her injured middle finger in a splint (from her random shaking-out-a-homework-cramp injury), so when she holds that hand up, it looks like she's making a rude gesture. When a semi cut us off, Noah yelled, "Show him your splint, Sarah!"  We had a long discussion about whether we would be in the same time zone in Indiana.  We also weren't sure if Indiana is doing daylight saving time. Sarah announced that her phone said it was 1:08, and the van clock said 12:26.  We said even if Indiana is in a different time zone, it would be off by exactly an hour, not some random number of minutes.  We ended up deciding that Sarahland is in a different time zone from the rest of the world.  Random road trip quote from Sarah to Noah: "My brain noises are more entertaining than your music."

We arrived at the hotel (Comfort Inn and Suites in Porter, IN) at 1:30 and were shocked at how cold it was outside.  It was in the 70s in Illinois but was only 55 here!  We had to wait about ten minutes for the hotel clerk to appear.  When he finally showed up, he had a bloody tissue hanging out of his right nostril.  Mike just looked at him and asked, "Do you have an issue?" which made me and Noah laugh.  He told us we couldn't check in until 3:00, so we drove around exploring the area.  Our first stop was the visitor's center, where we picked up some maps and brochures.  There were some activities, like nature rubbings, puppets, etc.  It was a nice place.

Then we tried to find the dunes and/or the beach.  We found the entrance to the state park, but there was an entrance fee, and we didn't want to pay since we weren't planning to stay long.  We followed the signs to a learning center, but that ended up in a strange camplike place where Sarah rode this turtle:

and then we left, having never found the learning center.  We came back to the hotel and saw a missing persons flyer.

I took a picture of it and made a mental note to keep my eye out for him.  We settled into our room (223).  It's a cheap hotel but nice enough and meets our requirements.  On our way to the pool, I saw a guy who looked like the missing guy in the flyer, so I held up the flyer next to him and asked, "Is that you?"  He said, "It's my brother."  Then a news camera showed up and started doing a story on the missing guy.  I hope they find him.

We had a good time playing in the pool.  I was glad I remembered to bring a ball and frisbee.  The pool and hot tub were nice and clean.

I took some flyers of the missing guy to distribute when we went to dinner.  We ate at this place called "Country Pride Restaurant".  Mike's meal came with a salad bar, which he didn't want, and all I was going to order was the salad bar, so the waitress just let me have his and didn't charge me. It was a good salad bar with lots of vegetables and beans.  Noah ate way too much (his whole meal plus two trips to the salad bar and soup) and was pretty miserable when we got back to the hotel.  He said, "Is it possible that I ruptured my stomach? Because it really hurts."  Sarah said, "You're just pregnant with your food baby."
Boys are watching Cubs on TV and girls are getting ready for bed. Big storms coming overnight with high winds and heavy rains.  Hope we can get out and do some hiking tomorrow.

Bird feeders and curious kids

Yesterday I used a post hole digger for the time.  Whoever invented that thing is a genius!  I wouldn't want to dig a hole without one. While I was engaged in this activity, my neighbor boy appeared at the fence, and we had a typical conversation.

Cole: Hi!
Me: Hi, Cole.
C: How do you know my name?
M: Because I'm your neighbor. I've known you since you were born.
C: I'm five.
M: I know.
C: Whatcha doin'?
M: Digging a hole.
C: [logically enough] Why?
M: Because I'm going to put this post in it and put a bird feeder on top of the post.
C: Why?
M: Because birds are awesome, and they need to be fed, and they're fascinating to watch.
C: Oh.
M: [after finally getting the hole deep enough and planting the post] Do you think I should have screwed on the bird feeder before I planted the post?
C: I don't know. Daaaaa-aaaaad!
M: No, no, that's ok.  I'll just get a ladder and screw it on. 
C: I have to go inside now.
M: Good idea.  This might not be pretty.
C: Why?

Indeed it wasn't pretty as I maneuvered the ladder various times, trying to get some even footing on the rocks and then contorted myself all kinds of ways to get the drill at the right angle.  But I got it done and by the time I put everything away and came back inside, there was already a bird perched on the feeder, which was very gratifying.

 I had to make some repairs on this old bird feeder, and Marty inspected my work.

 This toad hopped over to see what I was doing.

Changing that old story

My new positive, Christian, vegan friend asked me what is the most difficult thing about eating more fruits and vegetables.  I told I don't really like vegetables very much (a little-known fact about me).  She said, "Perhaps you can change that old story and start looking for evidence that you love to eat vegetables. What’s your favorite vegetable and why?"  I asked if onions and garlic count, because I love the way they taste and smell and I almost always start every recipe with them.  She said yes, they count.  Then I remembered that I like roasted vegetables, like potatoes, asparagus, even brussels sprouts, so I ended up saying I guess it's mainly just raw vegetables that I'm not crazy about.  She said, "Look at that!  You like vegetables."  

Later in the day, I was teaching about meter and rhyme scheme in English.  Noah was grumbling about how he hates poetry.  I showed him the exchange I had with my friend and suggested that maybe he could change the old story that hates poetry.  He said, "Yeah, but I don't even have onions and garlic."  I figured he would enjoy limericks (who doesn't?) because they're short and funny, so I taught him the meter and rhyme scheme and gave him some examples.  I left him an assignment to write one while I went to get Sarah.  I told him to at least write a poem of five lines and follow the rhyme scheme but not to necessarily worry about the meter just yet.  He agreed that he could try that.  When I got home ten minutes later, he had written this little gem:

I want to kill myself.
Poetry's bad for my health.
I don't give a frick
about this limerick;
Please put this back on the shelf.

He even admitted that he had fun writing it and kind of sort of almost likes poetry.  :)

The struggle is real

I'm assembling another "bar style" meal and thinking about the struggle of the last two and half years.  Tonight it's a chili bar.  First, I cook the celery, add diced tomatoes and kidney beans, and remove all that from the pot and keep it in a separate container, because Sarah won't eat chili that contains those objectionables.  Then I cook onion, garlic, and peppers, and add crushed tomatoes and seasonings.  This is the main base that everyone will eat.  The worst part is cooking the nasty meat.  I think about rainbows and unicorns while I do that in the microwave for the people who feel they can't live without meat. Also on the bar are: cooked rice, refried bean dip that I made a few days ago and thought it would make a nice addition to my bowl, and a bag of cheese that I threw on the bar while thinking again of pleasant things.  We do a lot of bars anymore.  It's how I survive in this family as the only vegan.

When I first realized that eating animals was completely unnecessary, I was relieved and happy and excited to tell other people that they too can be free of causing suffering.  I naively didn't expect all the pushback.  Not a single person was relieved and happy.  Instead, they all went right on eating animals.  I've thought a lot about why people do that.  I think it comes down to some combination of three reasons:
1. They've always done it and can't conceive of not doing it.
2.  They like the taste, and that's more important to them than the lives of animals.
3.  They don't really believe that all their nutritional needs can be met by eating plants.

I'm no longer relieved and happy and excited, because living like this is terrible.  I feel like I'm an inconvenience and annoyance to everyone.

Just when you think you've heard them all....

In the 16 years that I've been homeschooling, I've fielded all kinds of questions from skeptical strangers, but today I heard a new one.  "I don't know how you can homeschool.  What do you do about P.E.?"  She seemed truly aghast at the thought, and I almost laughed.  P.E.? Really?  Of all the things I've stayed up at night worrying about, P.E. has never been one of them.  That comes so naturally I don't have to give it a thought.  We hike trails, walk around the neighborhood, play basketball in the driveway, rollerskate in the basement, lift weights, run (well, Noah does; I don't), rake leaves, sweep the garage, shovel snow, do workout videos, weed the garden, etc etc...
Then she asked, "Do you meet the state requirements?"  She was very concerned.  I assured her, "Yes, we do." 

Next on her mind was...
Woman: What if they ever have to go to public school for whatever reason? Would they be able handle it?
Me: My daughter started public school in 8th grade, and now she's a freshman at the public high school.  She's handling it just fine.
Woman: Is she behind all the other kids?
Me: No, she sits in the front row.  (I even gave her a wink to let her know I was making a little joke.)
Woman: I mean...academically?
Me: She gets A's and B's.
Woman: That's amazing that she was able to figure it out so quickly!
Me: Well, she did learn things at home...
Woman: But wasn't she overwhelmed being in a class with so many other kids?
Me: No.  She is very social and loves being around lots of people. 
Woman: Well, my cousin's wife's brother-in-law's daughter's husband's ex-fiancee homeschools their kids, and they are always home. They wouldn't know what to do if they had to go to a class with a bunch of other kids.

Thankfully our time together was up at that point, and we drifted away before I could learn the fate of every remote homeschooling situation she knows.