The boys were disappointed again this week when Carl Kasell announced that Peter Sagal was again on vacation. They live for the weekends and Car Talk, Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me and Prarie Home Companion. If we were living in a stick house, I’m sure they’d know so much more of typical American kid pop culture, but instead of Pokemon or some TV show that I’m so removed from American pop culture that *I* don’t even know what is current, the boys love to listen to NPR’s finest. They recite the intro to each and every segment, the intro to each show, they “do” Carl Kasell and Peter Sagal and LOVE Guy Noir and The Life of the Cowboys and the Katsup advisory board. Jesse’s favorite part of “Wait Wait” is the lightning fill in the blank. I have no idea why; he rarely gets a question right and furthermore, I’d be astonished if he knew any of the answers. They both adore Guy Noir (and that man is ALWAYS finding some woman with pants so tight he can read the writing on the laundry instructions or something similar, but I doubt they “get” that part either) and have begun to love “The Life of the Cowboys”, both on PHC.
So, thanks to Jamie, who insisted on Sirius, each weekend the boys creep out of bed, switch the Sirius from Howard Stern to NPR and turn the radio on in their room to enjoy a day of their favorite programs. On Sunday they listen to them all again and somehow manage to enjoy them even more the second time around. Tonight they’re enjoying a lovely fire while I try to encourage Ellen to go to sleep. *I* need to get up early, so I’m so hoping she’ll go down before 11.
Ft. Davis continues to draw us in, Jamie is hoping to look at a piece of property tomorrow and Michael is going to visit the Alpine UU Church. It is quiet, it is peaceful and it is heavenly. I’m trying very hard to drop my negative stereotype of Texas.
They say that Montana is “Big Sky Country” and as I’ve never been, I can’t disagree. I would be hard pressed, however, to find bigger sky than that which we’ve seen in Texas. This must be cloud season and throughout each day, they seem to try to outdo each other. The depth and range of color in the clouds alone is astounding. The rainbows, the enormous black thunderheads and deep blue sky are indescribable. I can’t think of a more beautiful sky anwhere we’ve been.
Perhaps you’ll take the boys to the Prairie Home Companion movie. It’s not exactly like the radio show, but they’ll see some of those on the radio, plus terrific funny performances by Meryl Streep and Woody Harrilson (sp?), and others.
love, dad
We could try and get tickets to go to a taping of The Prairie Home Companion when you all are here in Minneapolis in November? I wonder though if you will still be coming thru this way at that time?
Funny, we’re 1,000 miles due north (to a T) of you at this moment, and the sky here is the same. We’re currently in a big bowl of thunderheads, with the wind whipping off the prairie (hard to believe there’s prairie at 5000 feet) at about 30 knots.
My kids too have come to love things vastly different from their non-nomadic counterparts, NPR being one. Their imaginations, too, have become so nimble – yesterday, they made Nimbus 2000 brooms from tall grass, twine (from firewood bundles) and sticks – and they looked almost perfect, though a little small. I can’t remember them doing that back in Maine.
It’s funny you’re looking at land in Texas while we think of finding a plot as far north as we can (avoiding grizzlies, however.) Guess I’ve got global warming on the brain.
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OH my…….if you haven’t been to Montana…..get yourself there!!!! Particularly the west/northwest parts of the state!!! You don’t know what you are missing, guys.
John
i love it that you’re enjoying texas so much. though there are places in the state that i equate with hell, it isn’t hard at all to find a wealth of redeeming qualities all over its enormous spread of square miles. i’m also particularly fond of that corner of the state where ft. davis sits, and know what you mean about the big skies. actually, i think every state in that western corridor that stays within range of the rockies has every right to claim the name “big sky country.” it’s all a visual paradise. your previous post did a gorgeous job of describing it all, and it sounds like your kids are well on their way to being able to do it, too.
thanks again for your super kind words. i’m not sure what form a book would take, but the encouragement to think about it is worth a lot to me. thanks again, and cheers to your family in the west!
Before purchasing land in Ft Davis (and we loved the area too) – look at Montanna AND Oregon. This is one beautiful state, with lots of wide open spaces, wild beries everywhere and good land on which to farm. This is a “bicycle friendly” state and Jamie might do well here, too in the bike business.
Whatever you all decide, we know you’ll find wonder-filled places to explore and enjoy.
love,
TaTa