Capt. Mondo's World o' Mondo-ness

41

Today I took a step past nominal middle age. 41.

Both girls whipped up breakfast in bed for me, along with a hand-made birthday card that had spent time on the day before. Vanessa made me a small illustrated book on the misadventures of a family of tickle-monsters, and I got a toy car from Annie that she thought I would like. Love my girls.

For my present Erika offered to by me a new chair for my home office, to replace the broken one with zero back support. (Glenn k.o.-ed it while he was a tenant with us and though he promised to fix/replace but somehow never got around to actually doing so). So we went to to he local office depot and ended up making it a real shopping excursion: I also came away with a new ergonomic keyboard (to replace the one I spilled some tea on earlier in the week), and Erika picked up a new PalmPilot to replace her old one which had long ago turned wonky (she had to squeeze her old one in a certain way so that it would work).

Erika treated us all out to dinner at Sauvignon, our favourite very local (on the same block we live on) restaurant. Erika's mother came along too, as it had been her birthday recently as well. Couldn't help but think she was horning in on my birthday, but then it's not all about me. Had my usual spicy orecchiette (yum!) and everyone was happy with what they received.

Not a bad way to start into my 40s in earnest.

Labels: birthday, chair, orecchiette, PalmPilot, Sauvignon

To the R.O.M. with Vanessa Again, Announcing the Trip to Britain!
Today, Erika wanted to spend some "quality time" with her mother, so I whisked Vanessa away to "see dinosaurs" at the ROM again. This time Vanessa was thoroughly familiar with all of the places she wanted to go and see, and so we charged from exhibit to exhibit, first the Maiasaur, then to the Bat Cave, the Ontario wildlife area, the Franklin area, and so on. One of the new areas she went to today was the "Discovery area", where she had the most fun clearing the sand away from a dinosaur cast. Essentially, I think she just liked being in a sandbox! ;-) We also decided to become members, so now we can head back anytime -- and in addition to getting a discount from any purchase in the shops -- something I took advantage immediately, buying a magnetic dinosaur panorama for Vanessa, and a small plastic pre-Cambrian Anomolocarus which is now perched on top of my computer screen. Vanessa was a bit difficult to deal with today, and I had to calm her down several times over the day. I was also aware that I hadn't gotten enough sleep the previous night, and was subsequently easier to irritate, and so I did my best to take that into consideration as well. Notably though, that evening, she needed a "time out" during the dinner we had that night a Sauvignon down the street, and so I feel like it wasn't "just me". Being a Dad is not always easy. I told Erika about the money I got in royalties from my last book over dinner, and my plan to head to Britain for a week in May. It's primarily to see my relatives, so she is a bit wary of the trip, but will ensure that it is not just a trip for meeting relative, but for having fun as a family as well. A hunt on the Web after Vanessa was put to bed revealed some good Web sites out there about London, plus plenty to take Vanessa to, like the London Zoo, the London Aquarium, maybe be the Royal Botanical Gardens, possibly the V&A Museum, in addition to some local sites in Kent we are likely to go to. Got lots of works to do between now and then!

Labels: Anomolocarus, England, London, Maiasaur, Royal Ontario Museum, Sauvignon