I've paid for a rock concert just once in my life. It was a Styx concert. There have been many bands I've wanted to see, but the timing, place, and life circumstances made a Styx concert possible. However, I was so disappointed that Dennis DeYoung was not part of that concert. It was part of their Brave New World tour (sometime around 1999). Dennis DeYoung is my main reason for liking Styx. I have not cared for any of their post-Dennis DeYoung music.

A Tribute

I recently had the opportunity to take my family back to Paradox. It had been too long since our last visit. My two youngest had never been there. While we were there, a very memorable event happened.

This year my dad will turn 77. You make ask what is so significant about that? A lot of people live to be 77 in this day and age. But not every one lives that long before they finally lose the crown they have been wearing for over 50 years. What crown am I referring to? The crown that belongs to the King of Hayes Horseshoes. My father had never lost a game of horseshoes to any of his posterity until last week. That my friends is a long time to reign.

I once recall hearing a story of a latter-day prophet who was well into his 70's before any of his children (or grand-children) could outdo him when it came to working in the fields.

So my reason for sharing this story is not to brag about beating my father, but to commend him for ruling the roost for so long.

Thank you for helping teach me perseverance. And thank you for being a good enough sport to not ban me from Paradox.

  

Venturing into the Absurd

And so we enter another chapter where the minds of my children are being subjected to the absurd… in Cub Scout Day Camp of all places. This isn’t the first time and it’s sure to not be the last either. This week has been the week-long annual Cub Scout Day Camp and I had the opportunity to attend the first two days with my third oldest boy. On Monday, one of the instructors as giving her spiel about flag ceremonies and asked the question, what do you do if you are having a flag ceremony and you don’t have a flag to salute or even the flag patch on a uniform to salute. . She responded, “You can salute the moon because there was a flag planted on the moon”. I’m sorry, but I’m not about to salute the moon. Guess what? If ever I am in the situation where someone is expecting a flag ceremony and we don’t have a flag… or a flag patch on a uniform to salute, I’m not saluting the moon.


Then on Tuesday, the boys were learning about the solar system when the instructor asked what the name was for the third planet from the sun. Earth! was the unanimous response by the boys. Whereupon we learned that “Earth” is incorrect. The name “Earth” just means dirt and can apply to any planet in the universe that has dirt. The real name is “Tera” and we aren’t Earthlings. We are Terans.


And because it was 2-for-Tuesday, she asked what do we call the “moon” that orbits our planet? Luna! she replied.

 
In departing from the reality tour, I will continue the apology tour by once again saying “I’m sorry”. I refuse to refer to the Earth as Tera. I will continue to use the word Earthlings and I will not call the moon Luna.