49 ... and holding

Yes, it's my birthday. They say Jack Benny claimed to be 49 until he died -- I'm not sure how long I will be 49, but for at least a year anyway.
I used to think it was being a grandparent that placed one into the "old" category, but since my mother was only 40 when this happened, that can't be true. Maybe I was 9 or 10 when I had that thought, so perhaps it is 50 that I thought was the beginning of 'old.' And now that I am almost there, maybe it's 60 ... or 70. But I don't yet think of my parents as old. Of course, some days I feel pretty old now when I wake up and my back or feet hurt; I can't imagine being around for another 35 years or so -- what will it feel like then?
At any rate, this might or might not be my last year to be considered 'young,' but I'll take it. Given the alternative, 49 is good.

It is also Memorial Day weekend. In Moses Lake this usually means lots of extra people (usually from the west side of the mountains) in town. The weather has been pretty nasty this spring, cold and windy all this past week. Last weekend we had record high temperatures and it went away as quickly as it came on. The farmers, Ben included, have had to wait for the winds to calm in order to do any spraying in the fields. Looks like today is the day. I woke up to the sound of a spray plane and I assume that when Ben checked conditions at 5 AM or so, he realized he wasn't going to be sleeping in today. The sprayer was ready and I am sure he is on it now. So the people who come here from the west side will have pleasant memories of Moses Lake again -- calm skies, mild temperatures (in the mid-70s), and good water and sand sports. The aquatic center opens the brand new wave feature today -- it simulates surfing and there are not very many of those around. They hope to be a big draw around the NW. Moses Lake as a destination town? We'll see.

Today I will watch Nicholas so Kelli can mow the grass. He hates it when she does it, so watching from the window can be traumatic. Doesn't like the vaccuum cleaner either... He has now decided that he CAN walk and is now opting for that much more often than crawling, both of which he learned to do about 6 weeks ago, virtually at the same time. We'll celebrate his first birthday next month.