We were out of the house at 5 am this morning taking Carrie to the airport. When we drove by Wal-M* the parking lot was packed with bargain hunters. Ditto the strip malls. It was weird to have the streets full of traffic at that hour.
We decided to get breakfast out of the way on the way home — anything to delay tackling Laundry Mountain. At 6 am the restaurant was full with shoppers taking a breather before going back out again. The couple next to us were playing with their new camera and cell phone. Other diners were armed with yesterday’s ads and planning their first line of attack. What slackers! 6 am and they hadn’t hit the stores yet.
There is nothing I want so desperately that I would shop on Black Friday. I did tell Jack that I thought it would have been fun to do it just once with my two sisters when we were younger and still buying gifts for tons of people. Now, I’m happy to take a pass.
It was a busy week here with Christine, Nick and Carrie visiting. Having a 10-year-old boy around who goes nonstop is quite a change for us and we enjoyed every minute. The first thing we did when we got back from depositing him at the airport was to take a nap!
The week started on Sunday with tickets to the musical Wicked. It’s the first musical where I enjoyed the dialog — some very clever — better than the music. A fun show but no memorable songs that you come away humming.
Monday we took a picnic to the park even though it was barely 60 degrees out, before swinging back down to Kansas City and going to dinner and a college tournament basketball game at the Sprint Center. Our $10 seats were excellent and if it hadn’t been for the idiot sitting two rows back who yelled the whole time, the game would have been a blast. Perfect way to entertain a a sports-crazed 10-year-old.
Tuesday, back to KC and the College Basketball Experience.
We’d been holding off going there until Nick visited so we were glad they had extended hours because of the tournament. There’s plenty to see and do if you’re a fan or a player.
If you want to see how many free throws you can make in a minute (for instance) it’s worth the price of admission.
Ditto for three-point shots.
Or compare your wingspan or shoe size to some of the college greats.
See how high you can leap to catch a ball.
Get out on the court for a pick-up game. Lots of guys were reliving their glory days in high school or college.
There’s a College Basketball Hall of Fame that’s worth some time as well.
And for the record, I suck at free throws.
A quick side trip to check out the Cosentino’s downtown market (mmmm, lemon bars) and home for a dinner of Father’s Specials (bratwurst, dill pickle spear, swiss cheese, mustard on toasted rye) and to watch more basketball on TV. I passed on the basketball and watched something inane while knitting.
Wednesday was a long walk around the neighborhood before taking Christine and Nick to the airport and hitting the couch for a nap (see above).
I already blogged Thanksgiving and that brings us back to Laundry Mountain.
Oh and the cats? Not so much lovers of children. Even though Nick wanted to be friends they spent the week under the couch, hiding in the bedroom and otherwise generally making themselves invisible. They’re still skulking around corners today making sure the coast is clear.
Kittehs: masters of self-preservation.
For the record, I suck at free throws, too. And I’m usually the first one out in a game of “Horse”…
Glad you had such a blast. Such a wonderful memory to give Nick.