been a while

I realized that it has been too long. Since we are close to hitting the summer I will have more time. First off not to make any excuses, I will just say that April was a month of exercise with little or no extra time for stuff like this. In May the weather got better and I had better things to do then sit at the monitor. I don't like to do big catch up entries, I think they defeat the purpose of the blog. I have some major opinions on stuff and will get to it this week. I plan on reviewing a few films, shows, books, and ideas. But first I will give an actual entry. The other stuff can wait another day.

Porter finally learned how to ride as he would say 'a two wheeler'. Each kid is different. Each one has their own personality and unique qualities that make them who they are. I guess this is really the same for each person, but with kids it has always fascinated me that you can have such variety in the same family. Porter has an incredible amount of determination. None of the other kids have the laser like focus he does. Kelsey is closest, but Porter is really without peer in this category. Last year we tried the two wheeler thing to no avail. He wanted to do it, well sort of, but didn't want to put in the effort to do it. Like most of it he wanted to gain the skill without earning the skill. But since we reap what we sow, his two minutes of 'trying' never amounted to his being able to ride the bike.

This year a lot of his buddies are riding bikes. He decided it was time. We spent about ten minutes riding, me holding him up, him relying on me, and not really improving. It was too easy for him to rely on me to hold him up. We weren't getting anywhere. But this is where Porter's determination exhibits itself. He knew he wasn't getting any better, so he said, "Dad, I want to do it on my own." For the next half hour he didn't get very far, a few pedals and then he was tipping too much so he had to put his feet down to catch his balance. Then he started getting better. Then next half hour he went from a few pedals to about ten or so. He could go from our driveway to almost our neighbors. Then it clicked. The final half hour he got it. He was able to turn and could go as far as he wanted.

He spent from 7 to 8:30 practicing. He never got too discouraged. It was impressive to see a kid that has a short attention span to say the least(at tee ball its about 2 seconds) fail repeatedly, get a little better, not be satisfied, know where he wanted to get to, and then after over an hour be able to do it. Laser like focus. Of course he has to want it to be this focused. But when that focus kicks in, it is remarkable.

Final note: I went to work about 7 am the next morning, opened the garage and he was out riding his bike. If only I was half that persistent.