Back in the band

 "July, July, July, you never seemed so strange..." ~ The Decemberists

The kids are back in school.  Luke was invited to join the gifted program.  We accepted for him.  July flew by in a blaze of 95+ degree days that left even the most skeptical global warming deniers rethinking their views.

Fourth of July weekend found the Bone family making the familiar, if arduous, trek to Mrs. B's homeland.  The land of cheese and roundabouts.  Unfortunately, over half this drive is spent in the catatonia-inducing state of Illinois, which I believe is derived from a French word meaning "flat and filled with corn, windmills, and state troopers."  Don't quote me on that.

Mrs. B's mom decided that would be a good weekend to be transported to the hospital with a heart rate of 220.  After a four-day, three-night staycation in the cardiac care unit, she was sent home with a shiny new heart monitor.

The whole holiday seemed a bit off this year.  Even thought we rode in the 4th of July parade, I didn't get the patriotic warm fuzzies at all.  America right now feels surreal.  Military troops in the streets.  Things I saw on the news growing up that only happened in other countries are now happening here.  

Maybe that was always inevitable.  Or maybe they've always happened and I just ignored them.  This line of thinking is probably best left mired in the eight-lane roundabout of my brain.

We also slipped away last month to Cincinnati for an overnight trip to take in a Reds game.  It's been heart-warming to see Luke inherit the Reds as his favorite team, though I know the many heartaches that rooting for a small-market baseball team will bring him over the next 60-80 years.

Speaking of Luke, he has rediscovered his love of music/Imagine Dragons recently.  He's dug out his mic stand, amplifier, and electric drum set, which means I have had to dust off my self-taught drum skills.  So now we're apparently in the market for a used drum kit.

Harper is seven going on seventeen.  She loves her second grade teacher, has more confidence than twenty supermodels, and I hope she keeps it for always.  Her fashion sense is impeccable and must have skipped several generations before her.

I was asked at my last job interview what I would consider to be my biggest accomplishment.  I replied, being a dad.

Their kindness and innocence gives me hope for the future. God knows I need it.

So what have we learned today?  Avoid roundabouts at all costs -- the real ones and those in your brain.

But especially the real ones.