January 27th, 2025
During math class, Puck walks out with his old ASVAB test prep book, a piece of writing that once so frustrated him, he felt the need to microwave it, drown it, and throw it in the freezer, out of symbolic spite... as he begins reading the random math/science questions aloud to me, his irritation once again begins to blossom... “Which of the below showed concept is the main source of energy for all the living organisms? A. Moonlight... Who wrote this?”... just a little too much “dumb” for his range of tolerance...
Meanwhile Yali and Patience watch a brief documentary exploring WWII Japanese soldier Shoichi Yokoi who lived in hiding in a cave on the island of Guam eating frogs and snails for 27/28 years after the war ended... followed by spelling sheets...
After Puck completes his morning run on the treadmill, he joins the kids at the table again with some algebra review books (it's been awhile), also in preparation for the ASVAB... “What? Who wrinkled all these pages?” // “You, when you were mad at that book years ago too, remember?” // “I did not.” // “You did.” // “You are slandering me, Mother...” **he grins** “I did no such thing...”
Yali and I bring Patience to her afternoon appointment in South County with a load of Yali's freshly 3D-printed “Dummy 13's” to play with at the table in the waiting room for fifty minutes... never bored...
Riding home, Yali determines that he wants to grow stronger and taller so he decides to make lists of things to help him do that, such as eating lots of protein... “And I want to make all the right decisions!” he adds with a big smile on his face... the unfettered hope of youth!
Yali and Patience plunge back into the – somewhat warmer – outdoors when we return after two o'clock... as Puck walks out for a bowl of ramen, holding his cat wrapped up in a large blanket...
Leftover grass-fed cheeseburgers and smoked chicken wraps for the kids' dinner as the sun sets gradients of pastel glass in the West...
As the evening progresses, Puck borrows my laptop to carefully browse and purchase a pair of ski goggles with some of his Chinese New Year's red envelope cash (a little early)...
Yali walks around the house wearing a laundry basket over his head, pushing his lips through one of the holes like some kind of plastic alien, giggling at himself...
After the kids are in bed, a little left-hand writing practice in my notebook while watching television with Puck and Oxbear...
Though Yali emerges around nine o'clock with a tooth ready to leave the top deck... he spends awhile spitting blood into the sink but can't make himself take it out...
The gray cat begins meowing in the kitchen for ham... she's spoiled now...