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Behold then Septimus Dodge returning to Dodge-town victorious. Not crowned with laurel, it is true, but wreathed in lists of things he has seen and sucked dry. Seen and sucked dry, you know: Venus de Milo, the Rhine or the Colosseum: swallowed like so many clams, and left the shells.
-- D. H. Lawrence
Friday, July 11, 1997
Wednesday, after a canoeing and paddleboat session on Killen's Pond, we packed up and drove back to Wilmington. We finished up with Happy Meals from McDonalds.
One of the few times we ever ate fast food as children was when we returned from camping trips. We'd stop at the McDonalds on Route 50 west of Seven Corners in Northern Virginia. This was back when only men were working there, wearing short-sleeved white dress shirts and ties and paper hats. One of the great features was the glass windows on the side where you could see them assembling the hamburgers. The walls were red and white striped tile, and the traditional golden arches were present. There was no inside seating, so we'd take the food home. This was an incredible treat to us, combining the burgers (and Cokes!) with the pleasure of returning to our familiar beds, showers, and clean clothes.
I felt the same coming back to B---'s house, being able to do laundry, recover from minor sunburn, and rest.
* * * * * * * *
During the last few days I helped my two older nephews find a few things on the internet that interested them. My nephew T---- is a big Boba Fett fan, so we found the web site that has all the images and info about this character that I thought was a minor Star Wars person. I was quite wrong, of course!
My nephew E--- poked around with me on yahoo, looking at a page about a man who has built his own hovercraft for his son to drive (pilot?). He's older, so I got him to do most of the typing. I know from experience that that is the only way to learn any computer stuff. Watching over someone's shoulder never works; they type too fast, you can't remember what to do.
* * * * * * * *
My youngest nephew B----- had somehow learned to recognize Chuck E. Cheese. We don't know exactly where he came by this knowledge, because my sister has never taken him there and she isn't aware of any birthday parties or expeditions that have taken him there. He is only four, so he couldn't have gotten there on his own; there isn't one nearby in Seattle.
There is a Chuck E. Cheese in the neighborhood of my sister's house in Wilmington, though, and B----- noticed it everytime we drove by. A plaintive wish would be expressed from the back of the van: "I'd like to go to Chuck E. Cheese." Not in a nagging or whining way, just a statement.
So on our last afternoon in Wilmington, with most everything packed, we piled into the van and drove to an unstated location. My nephew and the other boys were thrilled when we pulled into the Chuck E. Cheese parking lot. "Can we go inside?" he asked.
The pizza is not the main point of course, it's the whole multimedia experience. Creepy animatronic figures, a large climbing structure, lots of boardwalk and arcade style games. I played on of the racing video games for the first time. I'd been reluctant in the past to play such games. I prefer pinball to video games because I like the self-paced, skill aspect. But this time I wasn't paying, I was using some of the tokens that came with our meal, so I gave it a whirl. I felt a ridiculous sense of pride when I won a free game by coming in first.
* * * * * * * *
Our flight home wasn't quite as smooth as the flight to Delaware, because the non-stop flight we had been so glad to be on was canceled, along with some other USAir flights. This meant we had to fly to Pittsburgh and change planes there. The total travel time was longer, we had to lug the car seat from one plane to another, and our careful seating arrangements and kids meals ordering were all for naught. Because many other people were in similar situations we had to wait in a check-in line that rivaled a theme park line, snaking back and forth between ropes so you can't estimate how long the line really is. When we got to the ticket counter my sister got my youngest nephew strapped into the car seat to restrain him, which he luckily didn't mind. He is a boy of strong will and can be a handful when he decides to be.
The short hop to Pittsburgh had my six-year-old nephew sitting by himself, in a row behind me and in front of M---- and the older child. He did just fine, except he was reluctant to say yes to the beverage offered by the cabin attendant, because he was afraid it would cost money. On our second, longer flight back to Seattle, we were in two pairs of seats, one behind the other, so my sister and I could switch seats depending on the needs of the children.
* * * * * * * *
I really enjoyed the trip. I really wish they'd perfect that transporter machine, so that a trip across the continent would take no more time than a trip across the street. My sisters and I get along great. People with a shared history, shared jokes. I hope the cousins in the next generation can keep up the family feelings as we have, as my mother and her sisters did. That's why it was so great that a cousin and her family were able to come up and join us for a few days.
But I am glad to be back, and eager to get back to work. This should be an exciting time (like the old Chinese curse: "May you live in interesting times.") and I'll enjoy getting back to the Seattle environment and routine.
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