School took a pause, but it didn't take long
for learning from home to begin going strong.
The teachers were awesome; the kids learned a ton.
The parents (well, this one) were glad when 'twas done.
Since air travel seemed like a terrible choice
(think masks, and think one-year-olds raising their voice),
we opted to do some more camping instead.
So Carrie booked several trips far ahead.
She booked us three summer trips, back in the spring
before legit camping was even a thing.
So once they allowed it, there was a mad race,
but we had all our camp bookings in place.
(This rhyming attempt, started eons ago,
is why this whole blog thing is going so slow.
But what fun exactly would life really be
without such a task to demoralize me?)
Spring brought warm weather and pushed us outdoors.
We worked on the yard and the garden some more.
Some aerating, dirt and more seed for the lawn,
and tilling grass under for beds to go on.
Another task was to get laundry machines.
My efforts to keep the old pair fit to clean
eventually failed so I bought something nice:
A fancy used set for a fifth of new price.
My parents came up for a visit in May.
We visited Brockville one very warm day.
On the St. Lawrence we found a nice beach.
The kids had a riot (a figure of speech).
Much of our work and our social events
took place via video, and it made sense
when lockdown rules made it much harder to meet.
With screen time (which I dislike) life was replete:
Family, school board, committees, and school,
church, graduation, piano class too.
I've done more on screen than I'd ever before.
(I'd still rather poke out an eye than do more.)
So yeah, with piano it's going quite well
for Lily; I do think our girl will excel.
She'd still rather craft or do cross-stitch, for sure
but I think her fondness for it will mature.
She's so good with Nora, the two are great friends,
and Nora loves anything Lily commends.
So whether they're singing or dancing or what,
you'll rarely spot only one sis doing that.
Li'l Nora says plenty, but no "s" or "r".
That makes it real hard to say "princess" or "star".
But this doesn't stop her from speaking her mind;
in that way these sisters are two of a kind!
Nora's achievements are worthy to cheer:
I've changed like three poopies in over a year!
She chills on the toilet so regularly
I simply don't care she needs diapers to pee.
Shopping's been different this year, in a way.
I mean, I shopped lots online back in the day.
But this year the shipping takes months or whatnot;
by that time I no longer need what I bought.
My office upstairs isn't mine anymore
(I'm now holed up down on the subterrain floor).
The government had to appropriate it:
It's Carrie's spot now; she'll be there for a bit.
In summer we ventured out and went camping thrice.
Once for July long with friends; that was nice.
The next one to Arrowhead Park, but our car
had issues before we could get very far.
So onto the side of the highway we rolled.
I cast a keen eye 'neath the trailer we pulled.
I saw there were tires, but that, my dear friends,
is where my vast knowledge of vehicles ends.
And that was the start of the saga this year
of one Subaru I no longer hold dear.
Only now, four months later, the car's running well...
well, sort of, but that tale can wait for a spell.
Back to our camping! We made it at last
to Arrowhead Park, by not driving too fast,
pulling a trailer with goodies galore
to camp for a week, just a family of four.
The third trip now. Planned for Niagara way
where we hoped to start with a Labour Day stay,
then carry on west to Point Farms (camping here)
before heading home for another school year.
Sadly, the car saga kept us in line.
I tried hard to have it all ready in time.
But one day before the Niagara trip
it still wasn't fixed. I was ready to flip!
So I got on the phone, call each car rental place,
asking if they had a car with some space.
I struck out, except for one silly suggestion:
A minivan! Ha! That's just out of the question.
But finally one place had something for me.
They'd have something shortly, a big SUV.
All out of options, this had to suffice.
I took it. And boy, did it work out quite nice.
I'd filled up the trailer with camping supplies,
but rentals can't tow, so I needed the size
of a big SUV just to take all our stuff.
I managed to fit it, but boy it was tough!
We finally made it to Mom & Dad's place,
and spent some time chilling, all up in their space.
In honour of Dad's much-awaited seven-oh,
We kids took them out for a dinner (no show).
Point Farms! What a glorious lakeside resort
with all the pizzazz of an earning report.
Yeah, just a meh campground, too windy by far.
Erosion has chewed up the bulk of the shore.
The beach is no longer, and access stairs broke.
The kids wore their coats to the beach (not a joke).
It really poured buckets, and I felt down deep
a tree would fall over, kill us in our sleep.
But hey, we survived! So back home we went.
The summer was over, and that surely meant
That life would go back to the same ol' mundane.
And, well, that's what happened. All's fairly the same.
Some time in the summer we got Lily in
to city-run swimming class. Numbers were thin,
with limited people allowed in the pool
but not the instructors, which wasn't so cool
cuz that meant that I had to jump in and help.
(And I don't like water, cuz I'm no Mike Phelps.)
The swimming instructor hung out on the deck
and gave us directions from there. What the heck!
The good part? The class was just Lily and me.
Guess I got my swimming lessons for free!
The fall found us hiking, enjoying outdoors
It seems that this sort of thing happens now more,
since everyone feels like they're cooped up at home
and city folks head to the outdoors to roam.
We're gearing up for the same when it snows.
We bought us cross-country skis, and maybe... who knows...
Maybe it will actually snow in these parts.
Green Christmas right now, but soon winter should start.
This year's been a crazy one, one for the books,
Things seem to get better, then worse, and it looks
as though things will change only once a vaccine
is brought to all, but that remains to be seen.
Meantime I'll treasure my mask, this blue thing
that I found at Costco quite early last spring.
They say it's disposable; maybe that's true
but why not recycle, reuse and renew?
I'll clean out the booger smears now and again
And toss it in 5 years when COVID might end.
This final verse is for my dad (and Di)
for whom all parts of a poem must try
to rhyme perfectly, with so strict a meter
so as to fly off the tongue like St Peter.
See what I did there? Yeah, what am I smokin'?
Just so your dumb rhyming rules won't be broken.
So just for your orneriness I will end
with some non-rhyming nonsense. Ha, take that!
(It really hurt to purposely make it not rhyme, but hey, the cause is worthy!)
