Priceless!

If you have a 14-year-old, figure on some unplanned weekly expenses. So far this year, it seems like every weekend has brought a new expense. Our son is playing junior little league baseball, therefore none of last year’s baseball clothing and equipment fits. So, a trip to Sports Authority using a $25-coupon towards pants, slider underwear, cleats, and a glove cost us approximately $200. But when he catches that grounder at second base—it will be priceless!
This past week, he informed me he needed a second pair or change of shoes for his field trip to Washington, DC. He was going to buy some canvas slip-ons and pay $30 of his own money for them. I took him to the mall and he decided to get some lace-up brand-name skateboard shoes at twice the price. They are sharp shoes and should last longer than canvas slip-ons. His decision—priceless!
While at the mall, I decided it was a good time to buy him some dress pants, a white shirt and tie to be worn at confirmation and graduation this spring. I picked out some black pin-striped slacks and a crisp white shirt on sale. We couldn’t agree on a tie so that will have to be purchased later. He tried on three sizes of slacks before he found one that fit and modeled them for me outside the dressing room. What a handsome young man and his dressed-up look—priceless!
Today, he wanted to go to the beach. He said he couldn’t go because none of his four swimsuits from last year fit. They are all size 28-inch waist and now he has a 30-inch waist. We’ll have to buy a new pair for our spring break vacation next month. If we can go one month without buying something for him, that would be priceless!

Geocaching

I have a hobby that I don’t get to do much. Some people think of it as a scavenger hunt. Some people think of it as hide-and-go-seek. It’s called geocaching. The idea is someone hides a container of stuff out in the woods and posts the GPS coordinates on the Internet for others to find. GPS is the global positioning satellite technology used with longitude and latitude coordinates. A hand-held GPS appliance determines the coordinates usually within seven feet of accuracy. With a little help from Mapquest, the finder gets within parking distance of the coordinates. Then, once their GPS gets within a mile or a few feet, they will need to use their eyes and imagination to find the hidden container. Sometimes hints are provided in the description online.
On Sunday afternoon, my husband and I went geocaching in the woods about three miles from where we live. We hiked through palmettos and pine trees, found trails and bridges, and found clues to two geocaches. He said, “This is a lot like hunting.” His keen eyesight helped spot the first clue of the cache named “Froggy Girl”, but I deciphered the clue and spotted the camouflaged container. Teamwork was the name of the game since it took both of us to get this cache. We signed the log to prove we’d been there.
While walking back to our vehicle, I noticed another cache called “Sunday Stroll” was on my GPS and within a half mile of where we were. We decided to test our teamwork once again. My husband showed me where previously he had hiked throughout these woods and knew where streams and ponds used to be, but were dried up. We followed a trail with the GPS as our guide and found a clearing of dirt under an umbrella of trees. My GPS said 12 feet away, but the tree branches were blocking a good signal. I knew it had to be in that clearing. My husband lifted some dry palm fronds and found it. We looked in the box and signed our name. We had found another one!
We enjoyed hiking in the woods and each other’s company. I wish we had more time for this hobby.

Mate for Life

He looked helplessly at his mate’s fallen body on the side of the road, then glanced quickly at the passing cars. He seemed to be asking for help, but no one would stop. No movement was made by the feathery grey body. Sadness and tears came over me when I saw this. I knew it was a hit and run. Nothing could be done to save the sandhill crane. They mate for life. At this point, that crane didn’t know what to do. His life mate was dead and he couldn’t go on. Maybe he was in denial and was waiting for her to get up. Maybe he just didn’t know what to do without her by his side. I wonder if he didn’t step in front of a car soon after that. I can’t stop thinking about them.