New Traditions

I would be remiss if I didn’t correct an error I stated last night.  While it is true I will not have custody for much of May, the Mother’s Day weekend I do get her Sunday night by 6:00 p.m., and Memorial Day weekend by 7:00 p.m., not exactly ideal for any party time with school the next day, but if I’m going to go that much without seeing her any little bit helps.  By the way anyone reading this with kids and contemplating a divorce, it better be for damn good reason.  No matter how amicable or hostile the kid(s) are the one that get screwed in the end.

After a trying day at work and has me contemplating calling in tomorrow with the shark flu, I arrived today to find Hammy reading books on Hinduism.  He immediately looked up at me and said “Don’t judge”, his little hamster claws were thumbing through this book like a 14 year old who just saw his first Playboy.  Finally he looked up and asked me if I knew anything about reincarnation.  I’ve heard of it is about all I could muster, well let me tell you I’m converting to Hinduism and when I get reincarnated I’m coming back as Pete Mitchell, he flipped off Russian MIG pilots and I’m coming back as him and crashing the damn plane in the ocean.  I will go down as the first Russian KGB Hindu hamster and will have my own shrine in Moscow!  I did catch the feint smell of vodka on him today, so who knows, I really need to get him a conjugal.  His HotHamsters.com profile has cooled off evidently.

Editor’s note:  If I have offended anyone who practices Hinduism I’m deeply sorry, you deal with this belligerent little hamster.  I’ll even pay the shipping, and tell Sloane he ran away!

Back here in the real world, I get the blonde bomber, and we have a jam packed schedule.  As I’ve mentioned in the past Derby time in this area is pretty special.  This weekend is the hot air balloon race that generally gets rained out and rescheduled or it’s too windy and they push it back one or two days.  After those two days pass Ohio Valley spring weather still sucks and they cancel it but about 50% of the time they manage to get it off and Saturday morning the skies of Kentuckiana will be filled with hot air balloons and look like one gigantic sponsorship billboard.  If you’ve never seen a hot air balloon race, it’s not exactly a Formula One spectacle.  I’m pretty sure mimosa is the drink of choice for some of the “pilots” and there is no “course” per se they just fly all over the area advertising Early Times, Kroger, and whoever else was silly enough to fork over funds from the corporate advertising fund.  The winner has to drop a bean bag on a giant X marks the spot at some predetermined location.  It is neat to see on Saturday mornings during Derby time all the colorful balloons in the sky.

(Ahem Remax and Early Times “a little something to wet the beak”)

Why did I just bore you to death with that previous paragraph?  Because Friday night is the balloon glow, after night fall all the entrants entertain the area residents by lighting up their helium fueled rocket ships, and it is quite the show indeed.  Kids Sloane’s age have been getting oohed and awed for years, and tomorrow night she will get her first taste of it.  Since odd numbered years are going to suck for dear old dad now this is going to be our new tradition until she is a smart ass teenager who knows it all and she’ll be too cool for dad.  Depending on the weather Wednesday I might just take her to see the Great Steamboat Race, but that could be a little dicier because of that thing called work and with all the construction traffic in that part of the world is “congested” at best.  At that time of day you can get around better on a bicycle.  Plus its not the same as before the Belle of Louisville doesn’t get to race the Delta Queen anymore because the government is stupid.  Hopefully though we can make it, before anyone suggests I live a tad too far to bike it down there with a seven year old.

Special time of year in my sector of the world though, I think tomorrow Sloane and I are going to make it our new tradition, enjoy the hell out of the two weeks of the Kentucky Derby Festival.  I get her for Thunder over Louisville and Derby day on even years, and balloon glow and Great Steamboat race on odd years.  This is going to work out just fine.  About it for tonight I’ve got a hamster asking about air fare to India and I’ve got a long day ahead of me tomorrow.