The Dynamic Duo

I’m back! Sorry I’ve stayed away for so long. I have been the “mouse in the corner of the room”. Enjoying the guest posts. Trying to think of something to write. AND vying for internet time with Johnny, whose laptop is hooked up to my modem line when he is home.
I have been wracking my brain for more cute, poignent stories about UltraBob’s ultrachildhood. And I have come to the conclusion that he is kind of boring:) Either that, or ( and this is much more likely, and has, in fact, been proven to be true) I have a bad memory.
But my musings have produced a couple of nuggets…..................

When UBob was small, his Dad was a hay farmer. Part of that job involves driving into the town of Howe (consisting of 2 churches, an elementary school, post office, a gas station/store, a cafe, and a cafe/store/gas station) to drink coffee with the other farmers and discuss the weighty matters of weather, fertilizer and crop sales whenever possible. Sometimes little Bobby would get to go along. I was also invited, but I can think of only a handful of times in our whole married life that I accepted. It was BORING. But probably there was some psycho-sociio-father/son bonding thing going on. Or maybe he just liked the soda pop he got in lieu of the adult brew. But little Bobby, was squirmy, impatient and active, qualities that his father could tolerate in small, infrequent doses, so, sadly for me, he only got the “Want to go to Howe?” invite occasionally.
Our land was full of farm machinery that, though quite impressive “in the day”, was now rusty, obsolete and “broke”. Such was the case with “The Old Tractor”. There it sat, in all its glory about 100 yards from the house next to the old barn. (Our place is full of “old” stuff) Wheels, long ago flattened or, more probably, missing. Rust, obscuring the original color…........was it green? But it still possessed the most salient features: a seat and a steering wheel. And so was devised the most clever, creative game ever imagined in the mind of a 2,3,4,5,6 year old boy: “Going to Howe to drink Coffee”. He was always the driver, and lacking a passenger seat, I would have to sit on the giant wheel hub. I KNOW that tractor didn’t sit levelly on the ground; I can remember having to hold my body at an awkward angle to keep from falling off. UBobby was an excellent driver. We never hit a deer, ran into another car, or veered off into the ditch, though we had a few close calls. The Old Tractor possessed a tool box with hinged lid containing a few rusty wrenches, and these were used to “fix stuff”. There were also a few levers and knobs, which my chauffeur made liberal use of. The only thing I can’t remember us doing is ever actually getting to Howe and drinking the coffee, though perhaps we did. And in all probablility, little sister Heather was treated to some of these excursions as well.
Well, that’s it. That’s the best I’ve got. No clever computer stories or numbers on rooms. Just a little boy imitating his father. Come to think of it, that’s not too bad.

UltraMom