A Nice Way to Start the Week

I attended West Lyon Elementary through 3rd grade. My dad was my principal and my mom was the speech therapist. When my parents had to work at school on the weekends, my sister and I would get to play in the gym with the scooters (remember them?), balls, and sometimes Dad would even pull out the trampoline out for us.

We'd also get to go into the teachers' lounge to drink a pop before we left. I'd go for a Mountain Dew. I always got a kick out of this guy on the bottle.

It was cool having your parents work at your school. You got to see them during the day, and after school you got to do stuff that other kids couldn't. 

Although she can sit on a skateboard, I've been trying to build Charlotte's confidence for riding her scooter. I thought the school grounds would be a good place for Char to practice. 

After struggling with the scooter for 15 minutes, Char wanted to check out my classroom. It didn't take long for her to start drawing on the white board. She giggled, "I'm so lucky my parents are teachers."

This greeted me on Monday morning.

I think I'm the lucky one.

On a Roll

When Charlotte was two she wanted to sit on my skateboard and to be pushed around the house. The problem was that she would sit too far back on the rear kicktail, and she would fall off onto her back.

Then the waterworks would come. That's not fun for anyone.

This gave me an excuse to look at longboards. I had always thought they were cool, and most decks have no kicktail.

I was reading a longboard forum when I came across a project called a "short-longboard."

Some skaters were taking a short street deck and moving the trucks out onto the kicktails. The idea was to give the deck a "longboard" feel. Some skaters installed wider longboard trucks and bigger wheels to enhance this effect.

The truck on the left is in the original position. The truck on the right is in the new spot.

One complaint about this modification was that the ability to "kick up" the nose or the tail was eliminated. That caught my attention. So, the board will have a lower center of gravity, and it can't tip forwards or backwards?  I already had a beater board in the garage. Why not grab the drill and see what happens?

The small skate wheels were fine in the hallway, but the driveway at our first house was a bit rough, and the cracks were wide enough to stop the board. I added rubber wedges for comfort and used larger Sector Nine wheels to roll over the tough spots.

Original sized wheel on the left.

I think the "short-longboards" were a fad that died out quickly, but this board has been popular at our house for years. When Charlotte grew older, she'd ride the board down to the bottom of the driveway where I was waiting to catch her. Now she rides the sidewalks solo.

Here's her newest short-longboard - the used Sector Nine wheels are even bigger on this one.

I offered to put wider trucks on the board to help with speed wobble, but she wants to keep the Monster trucks because she likes the evil eyes.

Full disclosure: She does not know her multiplication tables.

I'm looking forward to the time when she'll dare to stand on the board, and we can ride together, but for now she's being safe and having fun.

That's all that matters, really.

Fall is Here!

I enjoy not being at school, but I'm not really a summer guy. I'd rather wear a light jacket than a swimsuit, and I'd rather walk through a pile of leaves than beach full of sand. 

Last Saturday was the first day of fall, and boy did the weather cooperate. At noon it was 60 degrees and sunny - a perfect combination.

We started the day at the Art on the Lake Festival. This was our first time at this event, and it was cool, "The festival is a family-friendly event that is free to attend & features music, food, kids’ crafts & over 50 local artists." Copper Creek Lake Part is also a beautiful area. We didn't buy any art, but Char liked the sno cones and popcorn.

Next was the Living History Farm's Fall Applefest. Air bobbing for apples is not as easy as it looks.

Home made apple fritter on a cool, autum day? Yes, please.

Char, can I have a bite of your fritter? 

I guess not.

Char went fishing for toothbrushes after lunch. I'm not sure why, though.

When you tour the history farms, the tractor ride drops you off at the 1700 Native American Farm. You then walk to the 1850 Pioneer Farm and finish at the 1900 Farm.

Char got to pick some corn at the 1850 farm.

This is called Bloody Butcher corn because of its red color. That has to be the coolest name ever given to a vegetable.

Thirteen and a half hands. That girl is growing like a weed.

Here Charlotte tries her hand at shelling corn. I wouldn't want to use if to shell a crop of corn, but the sheller is an ingenious devise.

Despite the great weather, we couldn't stay outdoors all day. Char has swimming lessons in the afternoon. Eventually we'll get back to pool weather, so we have to get Char ready for that. 

I grilled on Saturday night, but I think it's about time to dust off the crock pot. 

Chili, soups, pot roasts, stews, mashed potatoes, pumpkin-everything, fresh baked bread... there's a reason autumn ends with mmmmm.

Not Homecoming '18

The excitement of Homecoming '18 is over. Our team won the game, the parade candy has been swept from the city streets, and the days no long have themes.

That doesn't mean I can't take a picture of our kid, though. Every day is a good day for that.

Happy (normal) Monday.

Homecoming '18: Color Day! (3rd Grade Wears Yellow)

Proving her yellow is multi-layered...

Yea, Homecoming!

Homecoming '18: K.A. Spirit Day!

In the  afternoon we walked in the homecoming parade. Here'sthe K.A. crew ready to give out candy.

Here's a pro tip for next year's spectators: If you want a lot of candy, then sit at the bottom of the hill by UMS. Elementary kids are so excited to throw out candy, they toss handfulls of the stuff at bare grass!

Book Return

It was a big morning at church last Sunday.

I  also received my first Bible when I was in third grade. The Bethlehem Lutheran Church in Inwood had run out of childen's Bibles, so we were given the same Bibles as the confirmation students. I thought I was pretty cool with my grown up book.

I took that Bible with me when I attended Bible Camp at Lake Okoboji. I was going to be in 6th grade, and I wasn't responsible enough to pack it when I left. My folks were pretty upset that it was lost. As a parent, I get that.

Bill Moeller, older brother to my buddy Rob Moeller, knocked on our door a few years later. He had also been to Camp Okoboji, and during a church service there he had discovered my name in a beat up pew Bible. 

Bill was kind enough to bring my book back to me. Thanks again, Bill.

I'm sure that God had a hand in that, so I took it as a sign that I should keep better care of my Bible. I did, and it is comforting to know that I still have it.

Charlotte, I hope you take care of your new Bible. I don't think Bill will be able to help us if you misplace it.

Homecoming '18: PJ Day!

Homecoming '18: Crazy Socks and Shoes

Luckily, all of yesterday's hair spray washed out for picture day. 

Homecoming '18: Crazy Hair Monday

I asked Charlotte when we were walking into school this morning, "Do you like my crazy hair? I sprayed a whole bunch of grey all over it."

The Right Tool

This is my mother-in-law's bicycle.

This trusty steed carried Deb through seven complete RAGBRAIs. I think that is impressive.

Deb had a bike shop install "clipless" pedals on her bike.

These pedals connect to special cycling shoes that have cleats embedded in their soles.

Because you are pulling one pedal up while pushing the other pedal down, these are the most efficient pedals for speed and biking long distances.

You have to turn your foot to get your shoe out of the "clip", and that takes practice. Emergency stops for an inexperienced "clipped in" rider can be dangerous. Also, for casual riders like us, it would be a pain to brig a separate pair of shoes to wear when you stopped to play at a park or eat at a restaurant.

Daphne inherited this bicycle when her mom passed away five years ago. Daph wanted to keep the bike, but she wasn't interested in using these pedals. I told her I'd replace them for her, but I... errr... couldn't.

I remember a frustrating night in our old garage trying in vain to get either pedal bolt to turn. I skinned my knuckles and broke a wrench before I gave up. A couple of months later the Felt was hanging upside in our new garage, and we were so busy unpacking I forgot about my failure. Kinda.

This summer I restored this '79 Schwinn, and I sold it on Craiglist for a small profit.

That success had be looking for another bike project to work on. As I was scouring Craigslist, Letgo, and eBay, it dawned on me. You dummy, you've got a bike project hanging in the garage.

I got the Felt down from the hooks and tried to remove its pedals again. That was last Saturday night. On Sunday morning the Felt was still wearing the right side pedal, I was limping with a bruised right foot, my back and shoulders hurt, and my Craftsman 15mm wrench was ruined.

I went shopping after church, and I came home with this Park Tool P-5 pedal wrench from Kyle's Bike Shop.

The PW-5 wrench was broken five minutes later. I could not believe it. The guys at Kyle's were kind enough to let me return the wrench, and they suggested that I bring my bike in to let their shop remove the pedal. Tempting, but I wasn't ready to quit, yet.

Before I left, the guy behind the counter pulled up a picture on his computer to show me what their bike mechanic uses for stuck pedals. He called it "The Hatchet".

As you can see, I bought the PW-4. Yes, $33.20 is a lot to spend for a tool I might not ever use again, but it is cheaper than paying a shop to do the job for me. Plus, I get a tool, and I didn't have to transport the bike. And, as one Amazon reviewer wrote, "You can always use it to fight zombies!"

But did the wrench work? After five seconds of pressure, the pedal bolt groaned in protest and began to turn. The pedal was off in no time. Here's the new pedal installed

If Daphne wants to try the clipless pedals, we still have them. Deb kept the original box.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again, "If you do the work yourself, then you can buy the best tools you can afford." Plus, I enjoy helping others. If you have a stuck pedal and you are in the area, the Hatchet and I have your back. 

Oh yeah, thanks go out to eBay for providing a vintage 15mm Craftsman wrench replacement. Yes, new tools made in China are cheaper, but... enough said.