The varsity wrestling season opened today with a quad meet between Concord-Carlise, Lexington, Tyngsboro, and host Waltham. Nicolai weighed in at 112 pounds but was asked by the coach to wrestle up one weight class at 119 pounds. This is often done to improve the team line up relative to the opponents. Despite the weight disadvantage he was extremely competitive securing one win and coming very close to beating a very talented standout from Tyngsboro.
Kyle was feeling a little under the weather today. Nothing like a little dose of Hannah to cheer him up. She is good medicine for Kyle.
This morning I enjoyed a pastel sunrise. Morning light like this is common here but it only lasts for a few minutes.
Maya is now playing indoor soccer at a sports center which I pass each day on the way to and from work. Her game this evening ended at 7PM which coincided perfectly with my return commute. Her team won 6-3 due in no small part to her two friends Emma and Lucy who were part of our car pool. Maya had a terrific game demonstrating some fine ball control and strong shots.
Airing today is the Oprah Winfrey show to which Jeanine’s book group was invited. I had hoped to post some photos from the viewing party that Jeanine organized for her friends this afternoon. Alas, none were taken nor was the show recorded. Instead, I had to settle for close ups of a new floral arrangement that I found in the kitchen this evening.
The lighting of the Concord Christmas Tree brings out the entire town. Downtown traffic is suspended while a small parade ushers in Santa Claus who throws the switch to illuminate the live tree while residents enjoy each other’s company.
This evening Jeanine and I attended two parties. The first, a surprise birthday celebration for a dear friend, and the second a grand holiday gathering.
An unusually long day at work today with no time for photography so I decided to look back one decade to see what was happening then. Jeanine and I were on a weekend getaway to Columbus, Ohio with baby Maya.
Jeanine and members of her book group were featured in the Concord Journal which came out today. Although I was very happy for her, I was equally disappointed that we did not make the Police Log for our weekend call which resulted in the arrest of a drunk driver.
When our kids have friends over to the house they can rest assured that their mother will whip something up for them to eat. In this case, Jeanine prepares brownies for Kyle and his buddies and their girlfriends. I love this about her and hope the children appreciate how lucky they are to have a mom who makes their home so welcoming.
Before his friends arrived, I had an engaging hour long discussion with Kyle on a broad range of subjects. Not so much a father-son chat but rather a great conversation between two adults. We discussed everything from current events (WikiLeaks, nuclear proliferation) to running a business (his experience with Yard Dogs, his new business concepts, my education and which parts apply to my job today) to attributes of a life well lived (remaining healthy, making the world a better place, the relative importance of money) to his emerging interests (computer programming, psychology, game theory). I will long remember this chat and hope he will as well. I look forward to our next one.
Wrestling practice for Nicolai started this week and I thought I would humor him with this photo of one of my first matches. The head and arm throw was my signature move and you can see that I began practicing it at a very early age on my marginally cooperative brother.
A buff is a stretchy lightweight fabric in the shape of a cylinder that can be converted into a hat, neck warmer, bandanna, sun shade, balaclava, or Bennie cap. It is part of my adventure travel kit and has been to the tops of mountains, the bottom of caves, inside slot canyons, free falling through the atmosphere, white water rafting, sea kayaking, rappelling down waterfalls, and chasing wildlife through the backcountry. Of all the places this buff has been, however, it has never looked as good as it does on Miss Maya’s noggin where she placed it this morning after fashioning a cap out of it.
Kyle’s friend Adam spent part of the afternoon here. He is an exceptionally talented pianist and treated us to a brief recital. Nicolai in recent months has been spending close to an hour a day on the piano working on a few songs and compositions. It has been nice to have the house full of music at this time of the year.
Before leaving for home we made a brief visit to the waterfront and the Salem Maritime National Historical Site just in time to catch golden light at the Derby Wharf. Docked here is the Friendship of Salem, a replica of a 1797 East Indiaman that made 15 voyages during her career to Batvia, India, China, South America, the Caribbean, England, Germany, the Mediterranian, and Russia before she was captured as a prize of war by the British in September 1812.