Tradition and non change in the summer vacation. Slow to no evolution. That is fine.

 

Hi from summertime.  

There are two ways to operate your summer vacation. 1.  Always be on the move. Make a trip.  Going to a new place and exploring nearly every day.  Travel, see, tour, move.  2.  Go to your summer home or your traditional summer place and stay there and pretty much only there for an extended amount of time with one or two trips but very little movement, but just staying put and doing things there where you are. 

I have no qualms against either.  Obviously it is good to do both.  It is good to explore, see new places and travel, but it is also good to have tradition of place year after year.  I think our family is pretty lucky that we have both in the course of the summer.  

I grew up on going to the summer cottage and staying there for the whole of the summer.  That is what I know.  So naturally that is what I feel comfortable with and continue to do.  Every summer I take my two girls to Northern Michigan where I personally have been going since I was born.  And now my daughters too.  We have strong traditions there.  When my mother was still around my younger daughter was so clear about what we had to do every year that we had to sit in the exact same seats or booth when we went to the restaurants we went to every year.  

Sadly my mother is not there anymore as part of the summer tradition. But we did see her in her all year home.  So some of the traditions evolve slowly.  We dont eat inside that restaurant I just mentioned. We take it out and it seems a new tradition that we take it to a quiet area nature park along a river.  Eat it on a bench overlooking the river then take a walk.  We only got that food once though this year, in the past it was tradition to eat it two times in our vacation.  

We used to eat in a fast food restaurant but that was because the place had a playground and my daughters played there after the meal. Now they are too big for the playground, but its nicer because we take the meal to a park on the bay, eat it in the park then go swimming in the bay (pictured here to the left).  It was tradtion to do that three times, but we only got to it twice this summer.  

But my daughters demand that we get take out pizza from the absolute "bestest" pizza restaurant (no it is not in Norman Oklahoma) in the world  at least once a week.  In this our last week, we only had eaten it two times so we had to get the pizza twice in our last week to keep the tradition up.  Yes we had four weeks vacation this year in our traditional spot.   

What else is on our list of traditions?  At least one small roadtrip, though I was

hoping for a better one farther away this year, but didnt make it. And I was hoping to do two, but that didnt happen unfortunately.   Pretty much eating the same lunch every day if we are at home.  Corn for dinner nearly every other night when it comes into season, around August 6th.  Going to the nearby library and getting books out though not necessarily any day in particular.  But doing some of the arts and crafts events the library puts on like  tye dying, painting rocks, making pom poms etc..  Full reading days at home, just sitting somewhere, hopefully on the dock and reading all day.  For me, rowing or kayaking as many mornings as possible.  Not really a tradition just something I enjoy doing and am proud to do, to get some regular good exercise.  Since my friend and his daughter have been up the past couple years, we have had a grilled hot dogs and s mores night.  Did I forget anything?  Swimming at the island when we can in the late afternoon (Island picture at the beginning of this post at top).

Hartwick Pines park

Unfortunately Michael Moore canceled the Traverse City film fest this year. Otherwise we had been going to that for the last five or more years. 

This all might sound boring and low key to you.  Admittedly if I did it in my home winter town, it probably would be and I would feel bad that my girls didnt get out and we just do boring stuff and waste the summer, BUT since we make a long travel to get to our "summer home" and our getaway is in the woods on a lake maybe it makes all the difference.  We arent jumping out of planes, bungie jumping or white water rafting, but we look forward to our summer traditions each year and even my daughters demand that we do this and that in the tradition.  Its changed a little each year and some of the years we had big changes like losing our traditional summer home which had been in the family for 60 years and my mom retiring and moving away, and maybe next year will be different. I cant say each year is EXACTLY the same, but for my whole life and my daughters whole life we have found a comforting summer tradition which (I hope and suppose) everyone enjoys and looks forward to.  To lay down strong traditions with slow or no evolution, I think, is not only comforting, but very solidifying in a child's and person's life.  

I hope you too have had the chance to carry on some of your summer traditions which hopefully develops good memories for you and your kids.  

Oh, lots of readers (maybe???) from Singapore. Drop me a message, write me a comment. Tell me if you enjoy or why you are reading. Thanks 

I like to listen to music which I personally have on vinyl or CD or have in my store, but in fact this once I listened to some slowcore music which was recommended from a good music blog.  It seemed to fit my mood for this post too. So it was good and I hope I can find the album to buy.  VALIUM AGGELEIN "BLACK MOON"  NUME213LP.  Hopefully the first song will stop you in your tracks and keep you hooked and listening carefully till the very end.  And then again. 

Summer Travel 2023 : Revisiting O Hare

In 2021 I wrote

this post in part on going through O Hare airport in Chicago. 

It was a disaster. A nightmare which I still have dreadful memories from.  Just terrible.  I promised myself never to go through O Hare Chicago airport again. I lost a huge amount of money on it that I never got reimbursed for, though I spent time trying.  

So why was it that I booked our flight AGAIN this year through O Hare International airport, even with a layover of 6 hours?  

Well.  It came down to two factors.  

It was the cheapest route at the overall fastest time.  

I told my daugthers after I had booked it and one said, "Aw dad, why did you do that?  You said we would never go through there again. It was so awful".  Or something to that affect.  Yes, I said, but.... money.  

The reason I accepted the 6 hour layover is exactly because last time it took about 3 hours to get through customs so I was cushioning our transfer.  We still had to catch a transfer and go on the last leg of our trip. 

The big day came and I thought IF we got through quickly maybe we could get an earlier flight and get in sooner.  

We landed in Chicago roughy on time.  What would happen next?  We speculated the possibilities.  If... IF .... If ... If?  IF!!!   

Then we got off and walked to customs. And we walked.  "Hey isnt that where you had to sit down and rest last time?  Yeah and where was it that you threw up the first time and left the bag there?"   And we walked more.  And we got to the customs room  The last time just getting to that point had taken way over an hour if not two.  

And there we were now stopped.  About five rows to the customs booth.  At this point last time my daughters had to take turns sitting down outside the line.  My youngest threw up there for the third time.  We were so angry and bushed.  I was resigning myself to us missing our next connecting flight.  So what would I have to organize?  Could we get another flight, did it exist or would we have to stay over?  

This time they had directed other people to a different room even.  We looked at the time.  2.06 pm.   Ok the line is moving.  Lets see today is Sunday so that might have something to do with it. But that could work either way.  There are no Afghanis in the line like there was last time.   But according to my calculations that only added about 10 per cent. Was I wrong? Had it been more?   

They have a separate line for the airplane crew BUT NOT for parents with babies or young children.  That is still a big minus.  But the line is moving.  In fact it was moving steadily.  

I couldnt tell if they had more customs officers this time or not. It looked like more. At one point one just left with the line standing there and they had to break into other lines. That was weird.  But I think there were more officers this time. 

We got close to the front of the line and I asked what time it was.  2.24.   So by the time we get there it will be 2.26..... 20 minutes in the line.  

Whoaaaaaa  Frank.  That is pretty good.  Pritty good.   In fact very good.  

The customs guy was terse and polite.  We stuck our faces up to the camera and he looked at our US passports.  Each one of us.  "And you are...?  Ok great, welcome back".  That was it.  Yeap, from the beginning of the line till end of customs a little more than 20 minutes. 

We got our bags on the belt and had to check them through again.  That was a bit confusing this time but mostly straightforward.  If I had been 20 years older and with alzheimers it might have been prohibitive.   

Then we just had to wait.  Well I guess "only" 4 hours to boarding.   There was not an earlier flight to our destination.  I thought there was, but I was mistaken. Maybe from another airport.  So we had to wait for a long time.  But that was not the airports fault.  

On revisiting O Hare international airport and getting through customs I give it an A- this time.  Just the customs, baggage claim, recheck mind you.  I cant speak on other issues of hospitality or shops or whatever.  Just the going through customs.  

Maybe last time in 2021 it had been a special case.  Yes covid and the end of the afghani war and soldiers and Afghanis coming into Chicago played a role, but you would think that an airport in existence for so long would know how to compensate and handle it.  But they hadnt.  BUT that had been a very special case, perhaps they hadnt any idea how to deal with it.  A bit strange, but ok.  In "normal" times, it seems they are not so bad and doable.  While stemming from my first bad experience I would still be worried about booking through Chicago, I would temper this with a good experience and look at the circumstance surrounding any new booking.  ¨

In other words, still cautious, but if the shoe will fit then I will take it.  

Congratulations O Hare.  

I am on vacation, my daughters are sleeping nearby and it is morning, so I didnt listen to any music while writing this, just the wind and an occasional motor boat on the lake.   

Sleepy time time. A question of the dozes.

Summertime sleep

 I am not a good sleeper.  I always wonder if this dates from my high school years when I went to bed around 11 pm.  I must have been 14-17.  I didnt think that was too late.  But actually now in retrospect I think it was.  I am not sure if I got 8 hours of sleep although maybe I did from 11 till 7am.   I was always very sad in the morning, but I see that now as part of a problem.  Sort of "morning sickness" or popularly known as a night owl opposed to an early bird.  I have always been a night owl.  I have said and still say that the hours between 6am and 8 or 9am should be banned.  They should be for sleeping.  I think I am in a minority on that issue.  My best time for sleeping would be from midnight to 1am to between 8 and 9am or 10am to get up.  

I am not sure if any of that has contributed to my bad sleeping. I have been reading about sleep and trying to do research on my own about sleep for years.  

So.  The question is, with my background, what time should I let my teenage daughter go to sleep in the night during summer?  

Yes yes, I know, strictly a first world problem.  I admit it.  But now let me get to the points.  

1.  She is a teenager and teenagers, as has been written by major sleep specialists 1) and becoming general knowledge, have a mess in their front brain cortex (I hope I have that part correct) and their sleep patterns will vary wildly.  Not being sleepy till midnight can be common.  Letting them sleep till 8am is a good thing.  Naps in the afternoon are once again good.  

2. She is a teenager and wants to stay up later and see what all the fuss is about staying up late at night.  Granted this can start at age 10,  but teenagers act like top sh.. and beat their chests that they stayed up until  xam last night.  

3. As my daughter said, "Dad, its summer.  I CAN stay up after midnight".   Shes got a point there. If she isnt tired, she can go to bed when she is and get up when she is not in the morning.  

The problem(s).  

1. Allowing bad behavior begets more bad behavior.  Going to bed late

accustoms the body to get used to going to bed later..... and later.  

How late should she be allowed to stay out?  She called my wife one night in July at 10.15pm and asked her to pick her up from the basketball court as she had fallen and the park had closed (or something) and she couldnt get home.  My wife answered me with  toxicity: "This is what happens when you let your daughter stay out past 10 pm."   (hisss hisss )

For the first week in July my daugther was going to bed around 2am and sleeping till as late as noon.  This is even past my comfort level and 2am can quickly turn into 4am and getting up in the afternoon.   Bad sleep patterns turn into worse sleep patterns.  

So anecdotally I have to answer this first world problem.  

How? 

Well, thankfully the problem was taken from my hands for the next two weeks as she attended a summer camp and in their usual military style they probably made the campers go to bed at a "not bad time" say between 10 and 11 pm.   But as my daughter said to me, that is when they went to bed, but it didnt mean they went to sleep.  Oh. 

After that, I tried to impose a midnight lights out policy on our vacation.  Maybe 1am for me, just to be fair.  I think midnight is a fair policy for a teenager during summer.  You know, in July and even into August it stays twilight till 10pm so you can be outside till then. Then you go in and have a snack, play a game for an hour, watch some TV (no not on the gadgets) till 11ish and then get ready for bed and read some in bed for at least half an hour.  My girls seem to naturally sleep for around 9-10 hours when they can, so they can sleep till 9.30 ish 10 am ish and still have morning to get up into.  Thats all good isnt it?  

Unfortunately it hasnt been working like that.  We have been watching TV till 11, 11.30. (We have to see the news and weather on TV at 11). THEN we have to clean up some, and get ready for bed and it is midnight.  Maybe after.  Then if I am still up, they are still up.  So it has turned into go to bed between 12.30 and 1 and they sleep till......  11 or noon.  AGHHH.  I dont know why they are sleeping so much, often for 12 hours.  So I guess I havent solved "the problem" if indeed it was a problem.  Maybe now 12 hours is natural and I am doing them good and their brains are developing.  It hasnt gotten out of hand that they stay up till 2am, though one daughter has said she couldnt fall asleep till 2am.  So... I am not sure if I have solved the problem, but maybe the problem did not exist and there was nothing to solve.  Maybe the problem is DURING school year they can only get 9 hours at the most unless we put them to bed at gunpoint earlier in the evening.  

Problem solved once again by not doing anything (?).  Hmmmmmm   

How are you doing in your summer?  Kids at home?  Doing things?  Summer camp?  Your own activities?   Make the most of summer..... whatever that means.