Friday Hodgepodge

Four Things

1. A month or so ago, my daughter was in tears after we got off the "mine train" roller-coaster ride at Disney World. She had left her Minnie Mouse ears behind.

Figuring that this happens all the time -- and remembering that we didn't even have to ask for a second turn when a rotating car on a different ride had gotten stuck -- I figured this would be an easy problem to fix.

I told the gate attendant what had happened and she sent us with her assistant back to the debarkation point. We got the ears back almost instantly.

I am grateful, and happy to pass word of this as an example of a company that understands from the top down that goodwill is worth far more all around than a few extra bucks from selling a second set of ears.

Thanks for a great trip, Disney! Here's hoping for a quick return to better times.

2. Two or three years ago, I told my daughter about her first kiss.

I was there in the operating room, and she had just been swaddled and set down. She was asleep and so tiny that the only place I could kiss her was on her forehead.

Ever since then, she has insisted on kissing me on the forehead before bed, and letting me kiss her forehead in return.

3. Fast forward a few years and remember that little pitchers have big ears.

A fault of mine is that I have trouble mixing people and mornings. I tend towards impatience, particularly with being told anything I think it should be obvious that I know. A once-favorite phrase of mine in such times was, "I gather."

One day, I heard my daughter use this on Mrs. Van Horn. It was funny out of context and in the sense that she is temperamentally like me in many ways. But I also didn't like the way that sounded and decided to watch myself better after that.

After quarreling with his sister, my son crafted a nastygram to her. We scolded him, of course. But I do have to say there was quality in the artwork. Are these nasty faces not well-done?

4. My son, now six, is inquisitive and not shy about taking the initiative -- with all the blessings and curses that implies.

In other words, there's no telling what I might find him doing if I leave a room with him in it for long.

One day after Halloween, I heard the beeps of buttons being pushed on the microwave. I was the only adult around, and it was too soon for comfort after Mrs. Van Horn had taught the kids how to use the microwave.

Further investigation revealed that my son was conducting an "experiment" on a Starburst candy.

-- CAV