Nothing But Words

Crummy Cell Phone Pictures, Part II: Fun on the Oreo

Topic: Kai and Eidan
Tags: Eidan, Kai

Eidan on the Awakening statue at Villanova	Eidan and Kai on the Awakening statue at Villanova
Eidan on the Awakening statue at Villanova	Kai on the Awakening statue at Villanova
Kai on the Awakening statue at Villanova	Eidan plays dead on the Awakening statue at Villanova

Last month I killed some time with the boys at Villanova for about an hour, while we waited for Maria to finish a meeting. They gravitated to the “Awakening” sculpture, known more commonly as the Oreo. We ran around on it for about 30 minutes. Then it was on to the pine trees nearby, where we tried to knock down pine cones by throwing already fallen pine cones at them.

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Memorial Day Weekend

Topic: Kai and Eidan
Tags: Eidan, Kai, Philadelphia

Eidan sprays Kai with water on the first hot day of Spring

Eidan sprays Kai with water on the first hot day of Spring

Today was the first hot day of the year, so the boys went at each other with spray bottles in the back yard. And it wasn’t long before they turned their sights on the cameraman (me).

On Sunday we took a trip to Franklin Square so the boys could enjoy some miniature golf. An unexpected sight while we were there was a freshly completed sand sculpture, celebrating Philadelphia. It was no Fukiage Beach Sand Festival, but it was fun to see, and reminded me of our time in Japan last year. Then we ended the day with dinner at Pho 75 in Chinatown. It all made for a very pleasant day.

Kai on the mini-golf course at Franklin Square Park	A sand sculpture at Franklin Square Park
Kai and Eidan getting the cameraman (me) wet

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Kai Rocks Out

Topic: Kai and Eidan
Tags: Kai

Kai rocks out

Kai refused to let me make a video of him dancing. I tried my best paparazzi camera-hiding technique, but as you can see, it got me only about 10 seconds of video.

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Kai’s Birthday Party - 2 Hours of Total Terror

Topic: Kai and Eidan
Tags: Kai

Kai and his friends, waiting for cake at his birthday party

Kai and his friends, waiting for cake at his birthday party

We had a party at the house today for Kai’s 7th birthday. Maria and I barely survived the non-stop barrage of fart and burp jokes from 9 boys, not to mention the almost constant screams of glee as they battered each other with long balloons for 2 hours. Watch the video below to get a sense of it. Maria did a great job doing all the party planning - with a ring-pop scavenger hunt, bashing a piñata with a toy lightsaber, small Lego Bionicle toys for everybody, pizza, and ice cream cake - she knows the way to the hearts of 7 year old boys. They all had a blast - especially Kai - and no one was hurt, so I’d call it a success.

Preparing for the party really came down to the wire. Back in November we covered the living room in tarps, so I could paint it, and so I could do some remodeling around the fire place. Then I broke my hand, and then I re-injured my back, so the room ended up covered in tarps for months. Now my hand is fully healed, and my back is better enough that I can do things like stand and paint for about an hour per day, so last week I got back to work on it. I had budgeted enough time to finish in time for the party, but then Eidan came down with the flu and was home from preschool for two days, which threw a major wrench in the works. I still finished in time, but I was painting under a lamp on Friday evening to have the room ready in time for the party today. You can catch a glimpse of the fireplace in the video - that work is not done yet.

Kai enjoying a ring pop at his 7th birthday party Kai enjoying a ring pop at his 7th birthday party

Video - Total insanity at Kai’s 7th birthday party Video - Total insanity at Kai’s 7th birthday party

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Summer Beach Pics From Newport

Topic: Kai and Eidan
Tags: Eidan, Kai, Newport, Relatives

My sister’s boyfriend Paul with Eidan

My sister’s boyfriend Paul with Eidan

In honor of yesterday’s unexpected early winter snowfall here in Philly, I decided it’s finally time to post pictures from our trip to Newport this summer. The first couple of pictures below are from a performance of the Navy Show Band at the Newport Art Museum. The Museum hosts a summer evening picnic series of musical performances. The tourists come for the Jazz and Folk Festivals, and the locals go to the Art Museum shows. The rest of the pictures are from Hazard’s Beach, where the boys spent most of their days during our week and half stay in August. My sister was visiting at the same time, so her kids - Matthew and Alex - are in some of the pictures. They live in Texas, so it’s nice for the kids to have a chance to get together in Newport. I spent my childhood summers at Hazard’s, so I think it’s great the boys get to spend some time there too.

Folks settling in for a performance at the Newport Art Muesum	The Navy Show Band performing at the Newport Art Museum	Hazard’s Beach in Newport, RI
Kai and his cousin Alexandra	Kai, with his cousins Matthew and Alex	Alex, Matthew, and Kai
Kai on the beach with charcoal on his nose	Alex and Kai	Eidan at Hazard’s Beach
Paul pulling Kai and Eidan across the sand	Kai (with charcoal on his face) and Alex enjoying s’mores

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The Mayflower Story, As Told By Kai

Topic: Kai and Eidan
Tags: Kai

Just before Thanksgiving Kai wrote a short “fill in the blank” style story at school. The topic was the journey of the Mayflower to the New World. When I was a kid we got the sugar-coated fairy tale version of happy pilgrims. I think Kai is getting a somewhat more realistic version of the story, and then is layering on his own matter-of-fact sensibility. Maria and I were cracking up when he showed this to us. There are several pages after these, about the pilgrims building houses, etc., but these first 3 pages are a good sample of his narrative. The guy in the first picture is vomiting.

August, 1620: I am sailing to the new world. I feel home sick because I miss my home. I will take my one toy. August, 1620: I am sailing to the new world. I feel home sick because I miss my home. I will take my one toy.

October, 1620: I am on board the Mayflower. I feel even more sick. I feel like getting off the Mayflower. October, 1620: I am on board the Mayflower. I feel even more sick. I feel like getting off the Mayflower.

November 9, 1620: We saw land today. I felt happy because we reached land. I wanted to run in the sand. November 9, 1620: We saw land today. I felt happy because we reached land. I wanted to run in the sand.

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Cheap Thrills

Topic: Kai and Eidan
Tags: Eidan, Kai

Just like the foolishness that’s on the cable news channels’ political talk shows every night (people in suits yelling at each other about the days events), these videos of the boys are cheap to produce and always get good ratings. And hopefully they’re more fulfilling.

This particular performance was actually going on for quite a while before I got the camera. What really got me was the boys disappearing between each vignette - if you listen closely you can hear Kai whispering to Eidan about what to do next. Click the image to start the video.

The Kai and Eidan Show

The Kai and Eidan Show

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Halloween with Spidey and Soldier Boy

Topic: Kai and Eidan
Tags: Eidan, Kai

You knew these were coming: Halloween pictures of the boys (along with a cute but random picture of them in a laundry basket). Halloween is my favorite holiday, as it’s the only one that makes us go out and see our neighbors (but I suppose this is only true if you have kids and live in a kid friendly neighborhood). So much of modern life keeps our focus on just work and home, so I think it’s a good thing that we have occasions that focus our attention on our community once and while, even if it’s just the few blocks around our home.

For Kai’s solider costume, we had trouble finding a toy gun - the big retailers don’t seem to carry them anymore. But the huge inflatable gun we found in a costume shop turned out to be much better than a regular toy - it’s ridiculously over the top. Eidan’s spidey costume is a hand-me-down from Kai. Eidan loves it, and has worn it at least once a month since he discovered it in a closet after we returned from Japan, so it was an easy choice for Halloween. Kai painted and carved the Frankenstein pumpkin you can see in the background of the first picture - it won 2nd place in his grade’s pumpkin carving contest. The weird thing was he predicted he’d get 2nd place when we were on the way to school.

Our time spent hitting up people for candy was surprisingly brief. Both boys decided they’d had enough after about half an hour. But they had a lot of fun, and that’s what matters.

Spider man in a precarious situation, yet he seems unconcerned	Kai mugging for the camera with his ridiculously large gun	Eidan in goofball mode
Spidey comes in for his close up	Kai in his soldier costume for Halloween	Eidan and Kai enjoying some juice in the laundry basket

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Signing Off For A While… But With One More Look at the Ruffian and the Dilettante

Topic: Kai and Eidan
Tags: Eidan, Kai

Maria and I came back from Japan several months ago with a fresh perspective, and a few new ideas. We’ve been kicking those ideas around, and we’ve decided to pursue one of them. I hate to be mysterious about what it is, but it’s not something I should discuss publicly just yet. I will say it involves building a web site, so I need to devote what spare time I have to working on it. Which means I need to give up blogging for a little while . I will provide an update in about a month.

But before I go, I should provide an update on the boys. Kai is the dilettante I’m referring to in the title of this post, and Eidan the ruffian. Kai is turning out to be a very bright but lazy boy. The other day when we got home from school, he rejoiced - “it’s sitting time!” I always thought of six year olds as inherently active, but Kai usually acts more like a bored teenager. If I can get him going on something - whether it’s playing legos, baseball in the yard, or something else - he usually has fun, but it’s like pulling teeth to get him in motion. Someone who’s better at getting him in motion is Eidan, who won’t hesitate to grab something like a toy plastic sword and chase Kai around the house with it, with Kai screaming in semi-mock terror.

Here’s a moment that captures both of their personalities: a few weeks ago when it was really hot out, Eidan stripped himself down to his diaper. Kai climbed in their red wagon, and Eidan grabbed the handle, straining with every ounce of his strength to pull Kai down the sidewalk. Kai laid back in the wagon with a juice box in one hand, pretending to crack a whip with the other, shouting “faster, faster!” They both couldn’t have been happier.

Eidan’s vocabulary has exploded in the past few weeks. It’s still hard to understand him, but that’s ok, because it’s very cute. For example, “big truck!” (his favorite expression) comes out as “zhig tuck!,” and “Kai” is “die.” When he’s feeling a sense of urgency he puts “aw” in front, so when he really wants Maria, it’s “aw mommy!” What I found really funny was hearing him repeat phrases that I don’t even realize I’ve been saying: one time when I put him in his chair and pushed him close to the table he said “there ya go!” I asked Maria where that came from, and she pointed out that I say it all the time.

Anyway - enough talk! Here’s a picture and a video of the boys to get you through the next month:

Eidan and Kai sharing my desk chair Eidan and Kai sharing my desk chair

Kai reading to Eidan, with Eidan providing sound effects Kai reading to Eidan, with Eidan providing sound effects

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Avatar: The Last Airbender, and the Joys of #6 Plastic

Topic: Kai and Eidan, TV, Movies, and Music
Tags: Anime, Kai

Kai and Maria made shrinky dinks of Kai’s favorite Avatar characters, Aang and Zuko

I’m writing this post at Kai’s request. Tonight he and Maria made Shrinky Dink versions of Kai’s favorite characters from the Nickelodeon show Avatar: The Last Airbender. Maria sketched them and Kai colored them in. Kai is very proud of their work. (They’re not actually Shrinky Dinks though. We made them from the lids of take out sushi containers. You can use #6 plastic just like Shrinky Dinks).

I have to admit Avatar has become a guilty pleasure of mine. The target demographic is 6-11 year olds, but I think it’s actually more sophisticated than a lot of shows intended for adults. The world created for the show is rich in detail, and draws on a wide range of Eastern religions and history to shape its many cultural and supernatural aspects. As an example, the final episode of the second season revolves around Aang (a young boy, who is the main character) having to clear his seven chakras as a step in achieving his potential as the Avatar. I didn’t know much of anything about chakras going into it, but I looked it up afterwards, and it seemed like they actually made a reasonably faithful adaptation of the concept for the show.

What impresses me the most though is the quality of the show’s martial arts animation. Most animation I’ve seen comes up short when it comes to intricate physical movement, but Avatar doesn’t. What’s particularly impressive is that the animators bring to life the distinct styles used by characters from each of the show’s four nations: “The creators use Tai Chi for waterbending, Hung Gar for earthbending (although Toph employs a Chu Gar Southern Praying Mantis style), Northern Shaolin for firebending, and Ba Gua for airbending.”

Also, I’m a sucker for serialized epics with intricate plots. Each season of the show is presented as a book, with each episode being a chapter. The third season trailer below shows some of the maturing of the characters. Like a lot of shows these days, the main characters are kids, but unlike most others, they don’t behave unrealistically (setting aside their magical powers, of course). I also credit the writers for not shying away from how fast the characters are forced to grow up, given their situation. The Aang we see in the third season trailer seems a long way from the goofy kid he was in the first season.

Given the intensity of the trailer, I’m curious to see if the show loses any of the humor that nicely balanced the action and dramatic elements of the previous seasons. I imagine that writing humor gets harder as a story like this moves forward and the stakes just keep getting higher. But maybe that’s why I’m not a fiction writer . My bet is that they’ll pull it off.

Check out the trailer. The new episodes start airing next week.

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