My nephew Rory is a rising tennis star in Minnesota. With his long and powerful body he is an intimidating presence on the court. He plays with a great deal of intensity and hustle which only adds to the threat. Maya, Nico and I attended the last portion of a three hour training session and got to see him play in person for the first time. The mid ninety temperatures did not seem to diminish the level of play. Click on the photos for a higher resolution image.

In addition to visiting with family and working in a couple of college visits, Nico is here to represent the USA National Amputee Soccer team at the Schwan’s USA Cup. Billed as the greatest international youth soccer tournament in the Western Hemisphere, the week long event attracts more than 900 teams and 14,000 athletes from 22 countries to the National Sports Center, certified by the Guinness Book of Records as the largest soccer complex on earth. The team conducted demonstrations throughout the afternoon playing against able bodied players many of whom attempted to play using forearm crutches. There is no better way to introduce and build support for the sport of amputee soccer than inclusive events such as this. The evening featured an Olympic style opening ceremony with athletes entering the stadium by team and being treated to a fireworks display and live concert. The USA National Amputee Soccer team (only half the team was able to afford the travel and time off to attend) and coach were the last to enter before the Minnesota Stars (the state’s North American Soccer League team). They received a standing ovation from the estimated crowd of 30,000.

While in Minnesota, Nicolai is scheduled to make two college tours. Today we made the one hour drive to Northfield where Carleton College is located. After the info session and tour, Nico had his first college interview which he felt went extremely well. Carleton is a small undergraduate only school of 2000 students with a 9:1 ratio to teachers located on a 1000 acre campus surrounded by farmland. I would describe the defining characteristics as diversity, true liberal arts orientation, and intimacy (despite the size of the campus compared to the student body). The focus is centered on languages, the media arts, chemistry, and mathematics. We returned to the Calabria clan by 6pm and enjoyed a diner out where I captured my nieces being themselves.

Nicolai, Maya and I started our day at 4:15am as we departed for the airport and our flight to Minneapolis. Upon arrival, shortly before noon, we made our way the Minnehaha Park which drew my interest because of the 53 foot high water falls. The 193 acre park is just 5 minutes from the airport and well worth the visit if not for the falls then for the ambiance which on this day included native American dancers. (I recently made some technical changes to the blog which again allow visitors to click on photos to see a larger version)

We reached the home of my brother Mark, his wife Marie and four children Mario, Rory, Sophia, and Rose by 1:30pm where we were greeted with hugs and food. It took little time for the group to agree on an outing to nearby Long Lake as an antidote to the heat wave gripping the area. A rope swing over the lake was a major source of acrobatic amusement as each cousin in turn attempted to out do the other without sustaining injury in the shallow water below.

Although the girls all tried the Tarzan rope they were more comfortable using the dock as a platform for their antics.

Maya performed as a fairy in the Concord Player’s presentation of A Midsummer Night’s Dream on the steps of the Concord Library this afternoon. She was pleased that both Kyle and Johnie stopped in to see her dance. Later we indulged in ice cream to counteract the affects of the intense midday heat and reward our earlier family work day project of cleaning out the garage.

A prettier fairy and group of fairies I have never seen.

Nicolai, Maya and I packed for our trip to Minnesota. We depart tomorrow morning at 6am and will spend the week in Minneapolis with my brother and his family. Nico will be representing the US National Amputee Soccer team at clinics and exhibitions being held throughout the week. We will also work in a couple of college visits while we are in the area.

For his birthday, Nicolai received a GoPro Hero2 video camera which just arrived today. This tiny ruggedized HD camcorder can be mounted to just about anything and is typically used to record extreme sports. He has been very interested in this bit of technology for quite some time and has been planning a number of shots he would like to create with it. Despite its diminutive size the unit is capable of producing very high quality video and I am looking forward to the results he is able to achieve.

I fail to understand what would motivate an otherwise extremely intelligent child to place paper clips through the holes in both her ears. Frequent visitors may recall that I also wondered about the wisdom of perforating perfectly good earlobes in the first place. All said, the fashion experiment did yield a request from said child to be photographed and this is always music to my unadorned ears. It goes without saying that any future notions of adding more unnecessary holes to the body of this child for the purpose of storing office supplies will be highly discouraged.

On occasions when there is a lot on my mind, I set out with my camera to do something creative. This shot started off as a simple landscape of the field

in our backyard. The sun had almost set and my shadow was appearing in frame. Instead of using the built-in timer to allow me to exit the shot, I chose to incorporate myself into the image and was pleased with the outcome.

This pair of Japanese beetles could not have been more oblivious to my presence if they were unconscious. To make this image I had to place my lens less than half an inch away from them. Would you call this photograph pornographic? I am humored that the term seems to be species specific. I also located a very nice sweat bee that was kind enough to hold still for me.

We enjoyed a rare visit from a family of four skunks who casually strolled through our back yard pausing to dig small holes in search of grubs. There was some debate as to whether it was a mother and three kits or mom and dad with two kits. A little research reveals that the babies are about 8 weeks old. I must say they are quite adorable and easily my second favorite crepuscular animal behind the red panda.

Looking rather pensive as final preparations were completed for a dinner to celebrate his 18th birthday, one can only wonder what Nicolai was thinking about. I would like to imagine that he was contemplating the significance of this milestone in his life. From this day forward he will enjoy all the rights of an adult (except alcohol consumption related) as well as the responsibilities. He becomes a man already having proven his manhood many times over and crosses this threshold with great self confidence and only a tiny hint of the small boy I once knew. It remains to be seen what kind of man he will chose to be, what kind of mark he will leave behind. Where the world around him sees limitations, it is my hope that Nicolai will continue to defy expectations and redefine what can be achieved through determination, courage, imagination and an indomitable spirit. Advice from father to adult children; care for your one and only precious bodies, blaze your own path, dare to be great, love deeply, contribute to making a better world, live in harmony and balance.

My sister Alissa, her daughter Rachel, and Rachel’s friends Sara and Nicole drove out from Albany, NY this afternoon to visit. The group ventured into Boston for a visit to Faneuil Hall and the North End. Despite being a little car weary it took little pressure to interest everyone in a quick jaunt to Kimball Farm for ice cream to finish the day.

Nico and I found an hour to capture some new video footage for a project he is working on and we paused at the end for a few fun stills.

For the last few weeks, Maya has been attending the Summer Stage Dance Workshop where she studied ballet, modern, and jazz dance. This evening Jeanine and I attended the camp end-of-session recital. Maya performed in four different routines including a solo to start the final student choreographed piece.

Kyle and cousin John worked out a work-sharing arrangement today. Johnny helped out on a job with Kyle for Yard Dogs and Kyle reciprocated with an equal amount of time spent helping John with work for his summer internship. John has moved into our guest bedroom and will be spending the summer with us. We are delighted to have him and the kids are even more thrilled. Kyle is pictured here talking with Johnny about the internet research he was conducting for him.

Each Fourth of July, the town of Concord holds Picnic in the Park to celebrate Independence Day. The gathering features tethered balloon rides, a children’s decorated bicycle parade, balloon twisting, face painting, the Fire Department 911 House, the Police Department radar baseball toss, henna tattoos, Hula Hoop demonstrations, a community fair and a variety of bands performing throughout the day. At his mother’s suggestion, Kyle set up a little marketing table for Yard Dogs. He offered free candy to prospective customers (or rather to their kids who dragged the parents over) and passed out business cards to make local folks aware of the services his company offers.

Later in the day, we (Jeanine, Maya, her friend Lydia, Nico, and cousin Johnny) attended a party held each year by my lifelong friend and high school wrestling partner, Tom Metzold, and his wife Karen. Tom enjoys pyrotechnics and never disappoints his guests with a fireworks display that rivals many small towns.