The weather last night didn't look too promising for this morning, so I kind of thought I'd have the morning off. I was wrong. My alarm went off at 6:15 a.m., and it was just fine outside. So, I got up, got ready, and drove out to Kokomo. The airplane was out of gas, so we call the gas truck, which came out and spent 15 minutes trying to pump, unsuccessfully. He took it back, got the other truck that doesn't stay running very well, and finally got us topped off. We get in the plane, fire up, and as we are taxiing out to the runway, I look up, and there is a low layer of scud moving in. AWOS says "900 overcast". Gah. Looking at it, it's not a broken layer of stuff going through quickly, it's a whole thick area, and now we can't launch as it's legally IFR. So we taxi back and put the plane away and I bring home breakfast for the family. My next flight had a doctor's appointment and canceled. Shortly after that my after-lunch appointment canceled due to a headache. Okay, I'm down to one flight now, at 5 p.m. Then right before lunch, the student who had gotten weathered out saw the opening and rescheduled for 1:30. The weather cleared up and I got those two flights in. The second flight of the day, that plane was also out of gas. That's just one of those days, but at least we got two flights in. I've got several young folks who are all climbing up on soloing fast, at the same time. Pretty cool!
Kaylee is learning a new "Form" in Tae Kwon Do, moving forward and doing well. She texted both Steve and I today saying "You DO remember I have TKD tonight, right? Who is taking me?" When I told her that it was her dad, she later texted him to remind him again not to be late. She also did the dishes without being asked, which I don't expect to happen again, and only happened this time because she was out of clean spoons, but she is doing a good job being a responsible young lady. :)
This article is long, but the title is "A Nation of Wimps", and this is the short version, with the full article at the link. I thought it was pretty good, even if it was a bit long to read.
No one doubts that there are significant economic forces pushing parents to invest so heavily in their children's outcome from an early age. But taking all the discomfort, disappointment and even the play out of development, especially while increasing pressure for success, turns out to be misguided by just about 180 degrees. With few challenges all their own, kids are unable to forge their creative adaptations to the normal vicissitudes of life. That not only makes them risk-averse, it makes them psychologically fragile, riddled with anxiety. In the process they're robbed of identity, meaning and a sense of accomplishment, to say nothing of a shot at real happiness. Forget, too, about perseverance, not simply a moral virtue but a necessary life skill. These turn out to be the spreading psychic fault lines of 21st-century youth. Whether we want to or not, we're on our way to creating a nation of wimps.
Guess I'd better get back to laundry and other productive things. Tomorrow morning I get to sleep in a bit, as long as nobody schedules me at the last minute for 7:30 a.m. again. ;)
Today's quote of the day, something I've said for a long time, but a refresher is always good:
The greatest weapon against stress is our ability to choose one thought over another.
~William James, American psychologist
No comments:
Post a Comment