Tag: YMCA

Lydster: driver’s permit

wisdom teeth

It was an interesting summer for our daughter. For one thing, she got her driver’s permit and decided to learn how to operate a car. She enlisted her mother in the teaching experience. I don’t think this was something that my wife was particularly looking forward to doing, but our daughter has skills in this area.

She won’t have time to get her license over the summer, as she still has to take a five-hour course, but she’s a quick learner. I’m getting this from my wife and daughter because, to date, I have not ridden in the car with my daughter operating the vehicle.

The daughter has a great deal of spatial recognition. This became obvious when we went to Alexandria, VA, in July. She instantly recognized that there couldn’t be a second bathroom in our place because there would not have been sufficient space. This was her third trip to the National Museum of African American History and Culture, though her parents’ first. We also went to the Jefferson Memorial and passed the Capitol. More about that trip soon. 

She’s been going through a lot of her stuff as part of the family purging, whittling through stuff we may not need anymore.

Jock

She’s also been exercising a lot at the local Albany YMCA and is very good at learning how to use some of the equipment, so much so that she’s been teaching her mother how to do so.

This has been interrupted by the need to get her four wisdom teeth removed on August 14. They weren’t hurting yet, but removal was highly recommended based on the dentist and the specialist’s assessment. Annoyingly, because of a scheduling snafu, my wife had to drive her to Queensbury, about an hour away, rather than the closer Latham office. The day after, she had a lot of mango juice, mac and cheese, and chocolate pudding.

She goes back to college soon. It was nice having her around.

That “lender or borrow be” thing

I ALWAYS remember that I have other people’s stuff. Other people aren’t nearly as locked in about these things as I am.

I was sitting in our home office the other day, trying to figure out what I might write about, when I saw it: a paperback copy of the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay by Michael Chabon. Someone – I remember who – lent it to me three or four or five years ago. She figured since I used to work at a comic book store, and used to read comic books, I would enjoy it. She gave me the book to read, and I got to about page 59, but never got any further, and never got back to it.

Now I have this book that I haven’t read and have had in my possession way too long. I feel that I OUGHT to read it before I return it.

There is this coffee table version of a book called Baseball by Ken Burns that came with 10 VCR tapes. A guy I knew at the YMCA, Lou, offered to lend them all to me, and I had them for a couple of years. The big problems here were these: 1) My VCR player ceased working, and in fact started eating tapes, so I didn’t want to ruin HIS tapes. I got a NEW VCR/DVD combo player, but for some reason, I couldn’t get the VCR part to work correctly. 2) My local Y closed, and I didn’t know how to get hold of Lou. Fortunately, he joined another Y, in north Albany, I tracked him down and returned the videos, unwatched. But he told me I could KEEP the book, so I did. Haven’t read it, but have picked out sections to peruse, now and then.

My friend Norman lent me tools to knock down the old shed. Hey, buddy, you can get them anytime you want! I’m done with them.

I ALWAYS remember that I have other people’s stuff. Other people aren’t nearly as locked in about these things as I am.

My position about lending things, whether it be money or objects, is this: I don’t expect to EVER get it back. I’m quite OK with this. I’d much rather lend cash than something with emotional value. That way, I’m not so bummed out if it’s lost to me forever.

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