So strong like Sodom and Gomorrah*

All's quiet in blog land. At least that's what my blogroll is telling me...though sometimes it lies.

Yesterday I mowed the lawn. In between mowing the back and the front yard the neighbor boys came over to play with Chubbs. Jacob (the oldest) informed me that tomorrow (today) is his 10th birthday. When I met the kid he was 8 about to turn 9...strangely feel old now. They told me about their fun day with their grandpa, crashing bumper cars and getting laughed at (because they crashed) by African Americans. No joke, Jonathan said, "And then this African American kid". I guess it just caught me off guard. Anyway, so then they run off because some other neighbors have come out of their house and they have a little grandson, so they all go to play in the cul-de-sac. When they did I decided to mow the front lawn. Then they came back over after I was done and asked if we could take Chubbs for a walk. I almost said 'no' because I was tired and it was already 7:30 and I hadn't eaten dinner, but I decided what the hey?

I let Jacob hold the leash but reminded him that it was important not to let go of it. No matter how funny it is to watch Chubbs run off it wasn't actually funny because he (Chubbs) gets in a lot of trouble when he runs loose (i.e. the cops getting called on him). We walk all the way to the middle school and back which is a mile so I'm impressed with the boys. On the way back Jacob starts talking about how he wants to get home so he can get plenty of sleep and not sleep in tomorrow because he was getting chocolate chip pancakes. He's had chocolate chip pancakes once in his life at the 3rd street diner which serves breakfast all day long. But this is the first time that his mom will be making them for him. (Yeah I learn a lot from them). Then a jeep passes by and it's my neighbor's son who is in college (so I guess he's my neighbor too but only in the summers and during holidays). So then they start to say how cool this neighbor is, but do I know Anna? Her grandson lives with her and he tries to be cool with tattoos and piercings and a chain around his waist and spikes on his bracelet (Like Chubbs' collar). This is the point where I realize that I should never talk too much in front of these kids, they remember everything and they tell all to anyone who will listen.

So we turn on to our street and Jonathan says to Jacob, "Mom bought me a present to give to you." And the following conversation ensued.
Jacob: Tell me
Jonathan: I can't
Jacob: whisper it in my ear
Jonathan: No, I'm not supposed to tell you
Jacob: You suck. (Jacob to me) Do you want to know what I am getting?
Me: Do your parents know you know because they are right there. (pointing ahead a couple of yards). But are you getting a Wii? (he told me he asked for one).
Jacob: I haven't opened my gifts yet.

End of that portion of the conversation. So I don't know if he really doesn't know or what he would have said if I had just said I wanted to know what he got, or if he was playing dumb because the folks might hear.

Anyway, that's my evening. Sorry if it was boring to you, but I felt like it had been a while since I blogged.