a peek inside the fishbowl

In the name of journalism, the girls and I (and hopefully, Mark) are going to the giant buffet at Emerald Plaza on Merivale Rd. The girls have never been to a buffet. In fact, I’m not even sure if they’re aware of the concept. I am approaching this experience as a sociological study. If you release a kid into an All-You-Can-Eat environment, where they can help themselves to anything they want, what will they choose to eat?

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Last night, the four of us went for a walk around the neighborhood. We ended up at the Maplelawn garden. The girls and I have been going there since they were very small. If you live nearby you must check it out for yourself. It’s very pretty this time of year.

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So much for a peaceful First-Day-Of-Summer-Vacation. I awoke to the smoke alarm chirping. And then it got worse, it would actually sound off in regular 45-second intervals. At first I couldn’t unscrew it from the wall. I tried, but it wouldn’t budge. It wasn’t until 30 minutes of constant alarming had passed that I stormed up the stairs, lept on the chair, and gave it a big angry yank that it finally disconnected from the ceiling.

The children’s complacency in this all is worrisome.

We were at a street fair a couple weeks ago that was attended by firefighters who had arrived in their giant firetruck. One of the firefighters looked down at little Sarah, and in an effort to educate he gravely asked her if she knew what to do when the smoke alarm goes off.

She looked up at him sweetly. “Yes,” she said. “Wave the towel at it.”