May 2022

We continue to practice driving on Sunday mornings, which all he looks forward to is breakfast, and prefers the Waffle House.  We've driven thru the Point, into the country, morning errands like recycling and down past his school for practice, but generally places where he can run the stop signs and not be a danger to anyone.  We did a drive downtown, where he got a little nervous in the park when we hopped out (which was a good lesson, there was never any threat), and then down by the university where he almost rear-ended a truck.  Slow progress, but still best to get up early while we're alone on the road.

Nick and Brandi took a day trip to the Cuyahoga Railroad to see the Steam in the Valley celebration, there was a history train there, the Nickel Plate Steam Locomotive 765 visiting from St. Louis. While there, he ran into a couple friends from online, two guys he'd never met before in person, and didn't know what they looked like, until he saw a hat he recognized.  They don't even know his real name, they called him 'Raz' which apparently is his online handle. I assume these are the guys he's helping build stuff online on the graveyard shift.

Spring piano recital was this month, he played Chattanooga Choo-Choo (video at right), of course, a piece of his selecting. Still not quite enough practice to nail it the way he should, but he did OK.  He's probably an excellent pianist, and just won't let me listen, still practices when the house is empty. I love to hear him play but have to force him to let me listen. Our music tastes have also begun to diverge, I want to listen to Dua Lipa, and he's playing Billy Joel.  You can see from the way he dresses, Nick is an old soul.

We drove downtown into Toledo for a pizza at Papalis after the last day of school, walked around the stadium and soaked in the sun, I got a new hat, before our place opened for dinner.  For a brief period, he was engaging... remembered we needed to visit the cemetery for our annual Memorial Day beer with my grandfather, and remembered our parking meter was running out of time.  Oddly the memorable part was this bug that was on his shoulder, which he brushed aside outdoors and it returned to him in the car, then he brushed it off again and it went back to his shoulder.

But he's still Nick... my former boss and colleague came to the house for dinner, and all Nick could say was, 'Hi, your fly is down'.  Sigh. 

Photos from May.

Jason