Adrift, Lazily, On Calmer Waters.

WOOF!!  Grizzly Adams never had to wrestle a bear like THIS!!
Yesterday was all about the Truck.  Oh sure, had a smattering of repairs come in, no worries, they were done likety split (except one awaiting parts) then it was right back at it.  Of course, I'm going to do a special spread with pics and a walk through as soon as she's done, so I'll save all the whining until then.  Let's just say, during the assembly yesterday, almost every aspect of the bike needed to be modified, in some way, shape or form to make it work!  Getting the chain to run the length and NOT hit the chain stay took three hours!  The tensioner had to be replaced as the original was a small cog from a rear derailleur set on a tiny screw!  No WAY that was holding the tension!  Just keep an eye on the special entry for the solution we came up with for THAT little pecadello!  I must say, it was a truly inspired and BRILLIANT solution!  I can say that...because I didn't come up with it!  All in all, the only thing that DID NOT give us trouble was the neck and handle bars! 
We ended up staying until almost ten pm banging her out.  I wanted to get to the point that the box was ready to be set, with all supports in place, before I walked away from it.  I would have stayed and finished, but...Mommy and Daddy need their down time!
Other then making a big mess of the place working on this sucker, it was, sadly, quiet yesterday!  Quiet is SOOOOO not what we need!  Several Looky Loo's passing through, which is good, but nothing sent home  (*Sad Face*) .  The upside here, though, is we got a lot of goodies for folks to snatch today, if they are so inclined!
On The Homefront!
Well...either it's due to the fact he is genuinely sorry for his behavior of late OR he realizes he's being denied a life and he is trying real hard to put on an alligator grin, and glaze over it all, but there has been a slight shift in Kaleb's attitude over the last 48 hours.  The dynamic is as such; I can only assume that in most modern families, with children, it is sadly the primary caregiver who gets the
$#!+ end of the stick.  They're the one's who clean the messes, break up the fights, do the dirty work and dole out the punishment.  Therefore, in a childs mind, they are the ones to pummel with disdain and disrespect, or out and out disregard.  Hence is the lamentable position for Angela.  It is represented in all the children, to some degree, but when it comes to Kaleb?  Regrettably, there are times where I have to "take him to the woodshed" to reaffirm the position of "Alpha Male" as it were, as was the case of his older brother (who, not unlike the Ant's in a "Bug's Life", should he ever figure out how much bigger he is, I may not survive THAT battle) The odd paradox here is, sometimes, you have to revert to a more primal state in order to obtain a more civil living environment.  Sure, we'd all like to think that, as a society, we have evolved past the more instinctual "grunting and rooting" of our primate brethren, but no, we are all animals by nature and not unlike training a dog to toe the line and conform to "pack mentality", every now and then, you have to grab an unruly pup by the scruff, push them down into a submissive position, reasserting your dominance, I'm speaking metaphorically, of course! Yes, it's a base perspective, but just look at the state of a lot of the later teen, twentysomethings out there who have not been put in there place by parents too afraid or too busy to do so.  I hear it every day, one or more times, by bewildered parents from my generation, dealing with unruly, lazy, disrespectful kids who think the world owes them everything.  We, unfortunately, have been parents in a time where, so much as raising your voice to a child was tantamount to "child abuse", and woe to any poor soul having to endure the crushing heel of the American Nazi Regime hiding behind the "fluffy" moniker of "Child Welfare Services"!  An organization who, by their actions, inform every child "YOU have the power!  You don't like not having to eat your vegetables, or take a bath, or do your homework...just report your parents and we'll shove spikes under their fingernails and put them through the ringer!
Oh...WOW!  Some latent hostility there, sorry! 
But the truth of the matter is, for the last couple of decades, we as a society, allowed a small group of dysfunctional thinkers to tell US what it means to be a parent!  All the guidelines of common sense were abandoned in the art of raising good children in lieu of a "kinder, gentler nation!"  and now...we are dealing with the aftermath of negating the basic, WISE principle "spare the rod, spoil the child". 
Nope.  Angi and I figured out, some time ago, we would rather endure the rigors of a microscope, then allow our kids to rule the roost. We actually DO give a damn of what will happen to them when they eventually leave the nest and have to cope in the "Real World" of life's trials and tribulations in a reality that does NOT cater to the whims of whiny, spoiled children who have no concept of what it REALLY means to be a functioning member of society!
OK, OK...Yes I apparently have "issues".  Every time we go down this road, with each child, there is a moments hesitation in reaction time, giving ourselves the time to contemplate the severity of any reaction, and the resultant consequences it may harvest.  BUT, we hold true to our convictions that saving ourselves the headache now, will result in  having to deal with the backlash of NOT toeing the line, in the near future.
Prudence wins out, every time.
So now with Kaleb, he is actually calmer, knowing NOT to push Dad and has been, relatively, on his best behavior.  Last night actually, when we got home, the other kids were sitting at the table playing cards and instead of his normal routine of disappearing into his room to avoid interaction, he sat down at the table and all in good spirits, joined in!  And with Owen no less!  Those two are usually like Israel and Iran!  But here, they were actually getting along!  Will wonders never cease! 
Yes folks, I look at every small victory for what it is, and just enjoy the moment of peace.  I live under no false pretenses that this is a permanent "cease fire"  but more like Christmas Day in "no-man' land"! 
I joined in the fun, after the game was played, and Owen, Izzy, Rozy and I engaged in a raucous round of wrestling for a while.  A frenetic Miranda tried to take part, BUT she may be a stocky baby, but baby none the less, and these wrestling matches are prone to turn physical.  I made it up to her, though, with some more belly bumps.
All in all a fun evening that, once the kiddo's went to bed (at 12.30!?!),  I plopped down on the couch and actually passed out, controller in hand, driving around in "need for speed".  Funny thing is, when I woke up in bed this morning (how the heck did I get there?) I went out to shut off the game, and discovered, that while I was engaged in a police pursuit, I apparently "fell asleep at the wheel" and my brand new 280ZX was impounded! And I JUST repainted it!  ARRGH!!!
OK, now the weekend repairs are flooding in, so I best hop to it!
See y'all soon!!