Small Town USA

To girls, the prom is probably the most exciting and looked forward to event of the school year. To my son and his cousin, however, the most exciting event is "Drive Your Tractor to School" Day. This was the first year Jeremiah and Ethan were able to participate in this unusual event, and it required quite a bit of preparation. First, the mowers had to come out of winter storage and be cleaned and serviced. Next, the decks had to be removed. Even more difficult was finding someone to loan us a trailer to haul the tractors to a point nearer the school. Finally, early on Friday morning (6:30), Jeremiah and Ethan were transported to the Cattaraugus Village line to begin their slow journey to school. They made it to school without incident, but I understand the police hassled a few of the kids about riding lawn mowers on the road! Some kids of course have larger farm tractors. The real adventure began when school was out. Duane was not back from work yet, so the boys decided to drive the mowers all the way to Ethan's house! Only a few blocks into the trip, sparks began coming from under Ethan's seat. Investigation revealed that the battery had slipped forward and the terminal was rubbing on something. The boys decided it wasn't safe to drive it any further, which afforded Jeremiah the great pleasure of towing Ethan's mower all the way home. Jeremiah has personalized his mower quite a bit, such as installing airhorns and various extra lights. He enjoyed waving and honking the airhorn at every passing vehicle. It took the boys about 1 1/2 hours to get home, and gave them a lifetime memory!

Memorial Day

On Monday morning we attended the Memorial Day parade in Jamestown. I have always loved parades, and fail to understand the many Americans I know who have no interest in attending parades. Perhaps because I grew up overseas and attending a parade was a once-every-four-years event, it means much more to me. I love sitting on the curb in the hot sun watching and listening. The patriotic Sousa band pieces are my favorite part, I think, but I also love clapping for all the veterans, and waving at the ambulance and fire truck crews. Our local parades are pretty small, so usually other than one or two school bands, and the fire trucks and ambulances, there are just kids on bikes, the Boy Scout troop, and quite frequently--the Civil Air Patrol!! With all of our family members being in the Civil Air Patrol, we have participated in quite a few parades in the last few years. This year I didn't march, but Duane and Erika and Jeremiah did. Regretfully, we weren't able to stay for the memorial service in the Soldier's Circle at the cemetery. The towns also schedule their parades on different days, so schools and groups can participate in more than one. On Sunday, Erika and Jeremiah participated with the school band in a small parade in Otto. While Erika usually plays her flute in the parades, this year she was selected to carry the American flag. Jeremiah, our tuba player, plays the sousaphone in the parades. I was unable to attend that parade and missed seeing my children perform.

Welcome!

I have decided to join the rest of my family in blogging. More to come as I learn how to do this!