Sunday in the Park.
Aug. 17th, 2003 05:40 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
gridloreToday, my mom, El Niece Supremo ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
madelineusher and I went to Vasona Lake for a nice walk. A long walk as it turned out, about 4.5 miles, but we had a blast.
Vasona, and the adjacent Oak Meadow, are the parks of my youth. We spent many summer days there playing in Los Gatos Creek, on the F-86 that was hauled there and the old fire truck. The parks themselves had nice wooded areas, perfect for playing war. I hadn't been in years, so seeing the again was a mixed pleasure.
Getting out and walking was very nice. It was a beautiful day, and the park was amazingly empty for a summer day. Even the bike riders were polite! As we walked around, I began noticing changes, some good, some.. well...
All along the trail,madelineusher was chattering about Nethack. Nice to talk with someone who also is addicted to the game! We also talked about Traveller, and her upcoming school year. She gets to take Japanese! Lucky trid.
We came to the Billy Jones Wildcat Railroad, a Los Gatos institution. All of us had ridden the railroad since we were babies, so we had to go again. It's a lot of fun, and gives you a nice breeze on a summer day. Alas, the steam engine was not in use, but it is still a really neat non-profit. When I was kid, you got to ride in the engine on your birthday. In a working, miniature steam locomotive.
We continued walking, and saw the Wimpification of America's playgrounds continues. The F-86 had been lowered to the point that the wings sit on the sand (it used be high enough to sit under.) and the old real fire engine had been replaced by this fake red-painted thing that was also so low as to be more a tripping danger than anything else. I did see one piece of equipment that looked like a sure bone-breaker, so there is hope.
Minor rant: Kids get hurt. It is part of growing up. They fall, trip, scrape, scorch, bloody and break. It's how they learn limits! I really think the rise in so-called extreme sports is reaction to the padding of childhood. Nobody is allowed to get the adrenaline rush of danger as a kid, so it comes out when they grow up and have more money than sense.
We walked back, pretty much along the same route. Good day, and I took some pictures.
madelineusher and I went to Vasona Lake for a nice walk. A long walk as it turned out, about 4.5 miles, but we had a blast.Vasona, and the adjacent Oak Meadow, are the parks of my youth. We spent many summer days there playing in Los Gatos Creek, on the F-86 that was hauled there and the old fire truck. The parks themselves had nice wooded areas, perfect for playing war. I hadn't been in years, so seeing the again was a mixed pleasure.
Getting out and walking was very nice. It was a beautiful day, and the park was amazingly empty for a summer day. Even the bike riders were polite! As we walked around, I began noticing changes, some good, some.. well...
All along the trail,
madelineusher was chattering about Nethack. Nice to talk with someone who also is addicted to the game! We also talked about Traveller, and her upcoming school year. She gets to take Japanese! Lucky trid.We came to the Billy Jones Wildcat Railroad, a Los Gatos institution. All of us had ridden the railroad since we were babies, so we had to go again. It's a lot of fun, and gives you a nice breeze on a summer day. Alas, the steam engine was not in use, but it is still a really neat non-profit. When I was kid, you got to ride in the engine on your birthday. In a working, miniature steam locomotive.
We continued walking, and saw the Wimpification of America's playgrounds continues. The F-86 had been lowered to the point that the wings sit on the sand (it used be high enough to sit under.) and the old real fire engine had been replaced by this fake red-painted thing that was also so low as to be more a tripping danger than anything else. I did see one piece of equipment that looked like a sure bone-breaker, so there is hope.
Minor rant: Kids get hurt. It is part of growing up. They fall, trip, scrape, scorch, bloody and break. It's how they learn limits! I really think the rise in so-called extreme sports is reaction to the padding of childhood. Nobody is allowed to get the adrenaline rush of danger as a kid, so it comes out when they grow up and have more money than sense.
We walked back, pretty much along the same route. Good day, and I took some pictures.
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Date: 17 Aug 2003 18:50 (UTC)It is amazing how small those places really are.