Mini Healy on summer camp trade-offs....

So my lady and I have been talking with Mini Healy about camps this summer. (V has cut the work week to 32 hours, as a result of the current economic fun, and the resulting 20% pay cut means that money will be a little tight for the time being.) I missed one conversation, which I really wish I'd been there for:

• My lady: "Ray, I think we're probably just going to send you to karate camp this summer, and not to the robotics camp at the RMSC. Is that OK?"
• Mini Healy: "Sure. I can program Mindstorms with Dad at home, instead, and that'll be better than going to camp."

He also recently announced that he wants to be a computer programmer when he grows up, because "computers are a lot of fun, and I really enjoy writing computer programs.... Maybe we'll work together someday, Dad."

Mini Healy on teaching....

Discussion between the family tonight:

• Me: "I told Ray he should get a good start on his homework tonight. We've got a busy weekend, and with everything going on, tomorrow's basically a write-off."
• My lady: "Not if he skips karate in the morning."
• Me: "Yeah, but he already missed it last weekend."
• Mini Healy (in all seriousness): "And besides, Mom, the Little Dragons will be devastated if I'm not there to help teach...."

Have I mentioned how much I love my sons? (And he's right, too. They do get upset when the cool Mr. Healy -- as opposed to his dad -- can't make it to class.)

Breaking boards is cool....

With the new quarter starting at RIT, my teaching schedule has changed to Mon/Wed, which means that I'm heading out to Victor for karate classes on the opposing evenings. I was pleasantly surprised on Tuesday to find out that we were going to be doing "board breaking" for the photos that were being taken. (This is something that I'd been asking Sensei Ingallina about for, oh, about 3 years or so.... ;-)

Since my lady had plans for Thursday evening, this meant that I was going to have the kids with me, but Sensei Kalish said, "Bring 'em along: we'll be doing the breaking first, and they should love it!"

They did.

We broke boards supported by concrete blocks (not too bad), then braced at their top & bottom by Sensei Oertel (a little harder), and then "free breaks", which is where someone just pinches the top, and you have to go really fast to get the break in before they go flying. As the senior student in the group, I was up first for each round: the first two went great, but I didn't move quite fast enough on my first try at the free break. 20 push-ups -- on my knuckles, on two boards -- ensued, with Ray giggling as he took pictures with my camera phone. With that as an incentive, it's no wonder that I was able to find the speed on my second try. (*laugh*)

The photographer said that she'll put the proofs up on the web and let us know when they're there. Sensei suggested that we save the boards and put 'em up on a wall someplace (possibly after getting them signed), which I just might do.

(*pause*)

Yeah, it's a little silly. But I'm very proud that I'm able to do this.

Portrait of a future political activist...

So picture this: it's roughly 5:45 AM.  It's November 4th, 2008.  It's way too early in the morning to be up and about.  MLE, however, has set the alarm to wake us up and go vote first thing.  (Something about beating the crowds.)  When it does, she goes upstairs, and Mini Healy is delighted to be woken up with the plan to go out to the polling place and help her vote.

Me?  I'm still in bed, trying to sleep.

Far too little time passes, and MLE and Mini Healy come home.  Mini Healy is extremely excited, and comes bouncing into the room (and onto my bed): "Dad, wake up!  It's time to go vote!"

How could I say no to that?

What amused me the most was how serious he was when he talked to the election officials when we got there.  One of them said, "Didn't you vote already?" and he replied, "No, I was helping my Mom out.  Now I'm helping out my Dad.  I won't vote until later on, when I go to school.  I'm going to be helping run my school's voting booth, just like you are here."

Of course, he voted for the wrong candidate when he went to school -- well, at least I think so, though MLE would disagree -- but still, it's pretty cool that he's big enough to "get it" and to be excited about it.