The Luxury of Giving

People start parades -- politicians just get out in front and act like they're leading.
-- Dana Gillman Rinehart

Saturday, May 17, 1997

Today was my nephew B---'s fourth birthday! I went to my sister's house in the morning and walked a few blocks with her and my two nephews to Al Edwards Park, which was the staging area for the Madrona Mayfair Bike Parade. It may be stretching things to call this a parade, since it covers about three blocks and lasts ten minutes, but it's great fun for the kids involved. They decorate their bikes and trikes with crepe paper streamers and balloons, and follow a fire truck down the main drag in Madrona to the playfield, where the fair is. B--- got to ride a bike with training wheels, which is a great step up in status over a trike! The down side is more worry for my sister, since you can go much faster on a bike than on a trike, and B--- still has a tendency to look down at his feet pedaling and not look where he is going.

So on the way over to the park, she would suggest braking practice (trikes don't have brakes) and call out "Brake now!" and he would.

After the parade we stopped back at the house to drop off the bikes and I gave B--- his birthday presents. Normally I would be helping at the bithday party, but today I'd be at the festival, thus this plan. B--- was very pleased with a large floor-size jigsaw puzzle, a set of finger puppets, and a Playmobil robot. Then I left for the festival.

Today, the Egyptian theater! Films seen:

Then off to bed. Maybe next weekend I'll be able to stay up for the midnight shows. I really like the Hong Kong films, but some of them are shown at regular times as well. Sunday: the Secret Festival.

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