Today I began my new exercise routine with my exciting new bike!
I may have overdone it a bit; I went all the way to the end of the driveway and back – ha!
Tomorrow I will get beyond the driveway – definitely.
It is a bit of an unusual kind of bike and I’m not sure if Tootlepedal will approve. We’ll see!
When Ming finished school just over a year ago, his cohort was issued with school windcheaters which each kid was allowed to have labelled with their name or a nickname. Ming chose “Ming the Merciless.”
I was reminded of this when we drove into town yesterday morning for him to have his driving test. All the way in (20 minutes), he yelled different versions of a victory cry at the top of his lungs – for example:
ROOOAAARRRRGH – I AM GOING TO WIN THIS TIME!
ROOOAAARRRRGH – I AM MING THE MERCILESS!
ROOOAAARRRRGH – THIS IS MY DAY!
ROOOAAARRRRGH – DEATH TO THIS TEST!
ETC.
Eventually, I managed to quieten him a little by saying, “Now I want you to keep roaring, and I am sure you will pass this time, but just in case you don’t, it’s okay.”
He resumed his roar of absolute confidence even more loudly!
When we arrived, we waited outside, with another kid and his driving instructor, for the driving assessors to come out of the licencing centre. Ming had ceased roaring, but even his ordinary voice is LOUD, so he rather overwhelmed the other kid (who was very shy) with:
IS THIS YOUR FIRST TEST? DON’T WORRY, MATE, YOU’LL BE RIGHT! THIS IS MY FOURTH! WE ARE GOING TO NAIL IT! YES, YES, YES!
In the meantime I had a much quieter conversation with shy kid’s driving instructor.
“He’s just excited,” I said.
Öh,”he said.
Then (at exactly 7.50am) the driving assessors whooshed out of the building and called out the names of the victims ha! The shy kid simply nodded when his name was called but Ming yelled, “MING YES, THAT’S ME!”
A few minutes later, it was just the shy kid’s driving instructor and me sitting on a bench outside the centre, making pleasant smalltalk. I was trying very hard not to bite my fingernails!
About 25 minutes later, both assessors and boys arrived back. Unfortunately, the shy kid had failed outright so, as I watched his driving instructor and his mother commiserate with him, I also watched Ming’s body language as he sat inside the car listening to his assessor. I was still sitting on the bench at a distance from the car so I couldn’t hear what was being said but, at one point Ming put his head in his hands, then he threw his arms up in the air, then repeated both gestures before getting out of the car. I didn’t know if this meant he’d passed or failed.
As his assessor slipped back into the licencing centre, Ming approached the shy kid, and the shy kid’s mother and driving instructor with a loud ROAR, punching the air. They were standing just outside the centre whereas I was at a slight distance still glued to my bench. I yelled out, “Ming, yes or no?” as I ran towards him, but he didn’t hear me above his huge voice.
But, just as I reached him, he threw his arms around the shy kid’s driving instructor (someone we have never met before, by the way), and I knew he’d passed the test! He then shook the shy kid’s hand nearly off, saw me (finally!) and kissed me soundly on both cheeks and we entered the licencing centre, with Ming yelling:
WHO CAN I KISS OR HUG?
CHAMPAGNE AND CAVIAR!
JOY, BLISS, FREEDOM, I LOVE THE WORLD!
Ming, the Merciless!
1. Ming finally passed his driving test!
2. Someone wants to buy our old car for more than the price we wanted!
3. I got my new bike!
4. A blog friend is sending me a gift!
5. Ming and I saw Anthony this morning (after two days of not seeing him) and he didn’t get all down in the dumps when we had to go!
Details to be blogged soon – I am too busy grinning!
Oh yes, and Gutsy9 (baby peacock, for those who don’t know) is thriving!
I have had a few yeeha! experiences lately.
Yeeha 1: Some of my university friends came over the other night with beer, pizza, hugs and laughter. One had her gorgeous fiance with her, plus another friend, then another of my beautiful friends and her daughter arrived, then Ming’s two best friends. It was a fantastic evening, full of wine-induced wisdom, frivolous guffaws, and crowded conversation. Best fun I’ve had for ages! It reminded me of the hundreds of similarly hilarious evenings here when Anthony was well and the life-of-the-party host. He would never sit down.
Yeeha 2: This afternoon I’ve arranged for the wheelchair taxi to pick Ants up from the nursing lodge and bring him home for a few hours. I’ve also invited his nephew’s family and his best mate’s family – a little party!
Yeeha 3: Tomorrow I go away for the 3-night resort holiday Ming has paid for and I cannot wait – am so excited. The only stipulation is that I de-clutter my office first. Wish me luck!
When I first began blogging, I had no idea that I would begin to care about people who I may never meet face to face.
As a newbie to the world of birds, I was drawn to blogs about birds, then drawn to blogs about photography.
As a carer for a husband with Parkinson’s Disease, I was drawn to blogs about PD, nursing homes, other people’s experiences of other illnesses.
As the mother of a teenage son, I was drawn to blogs about parenting, children and Erma Bombecky humour.
As a writer, I was drawn to blogs written by an array of different people – all ages, all styles, all genres, all fantastic.
As a woman battling grief, I was drawn to blogs about grief and blogs about inspiration – a good mix.
Tonight, I am drawn into the blog of a woman who has become my friend. Her daughter died today after a gruelling battle with disease.
I care about you.
Gutsy 9 (baby peacock who is now 6 weeks old) has become disenchanted with my shoulder because he is too big to get comfortable. He prefers to sit on the floor next to my feet now, almost like a dog! I have to admit that I, too, prefer this arrangement because I am a little tired of him throwing his wings in my face and biting my ear when he loses his grip on my shoulder. And when he can’t get his little mohawk head tucked into my neck (his favourite way to nap), he squawks! Luckily he is now getting used to the outside so, as soon as he is big enough to fly into the trees at night, I will stop babying him.
Anthony continues to ask if he can come home for the night and I continue to break my heart explaining that he is too heavy for me to lift. Ming and I went into the nursing lodge so Ming could take Ants for a ride in the new ute but Ants wasn’t well enough. We will try again tomorrow.
Ming has had his hair cut! He has had mixed reactions to this weight off his shoulders – ha!
I have always had a bit of a problem with “happiness guilt”. As a child, I had a keen awareness that while I had a loving family, enough food, and a house to live in, other children in other places didn’t. So I developed a kind of resistance to happiness because it made me feel so guilty when I knew other people – particularly children – might be unhappy.
When I posted about Ming’s new ute, I didn’t mention the episode of happiness guilt he experienced for nearly an hour after Anthony and I shocked him with his birthday present.
I took Ants back into the lodge for lunch and wondered why Ming was taking so long to come in and join us. Finally I went outside to find Ming in a severe state of happiness guilt.
Ming: But I don’t deserve it – I can’t believe this!
Me: It was Dad’s idea and I made it happen.
Ming: But how? We don’t have any money! I’m so worried!
Me: Dad had some savings – Ming, please stop worrying, it’s okay. This is giving Ants so much joy – it’s sort of vicarious.
Ming: But it’s 4WD!
Me: Dad’s idea.
Ming: And turbo! And diesel! With a steel tray! And it’s automatic!
Me: Dad wanted to get you the best.
Ming: No, I don’t deserve it!
Me: You do! Now get over it and come in and say all this to Ants!
In the end I had to get a couple of nurses to go out and convince Ming to be happy and not guilty! He finally came in, hugged and thanked Ants and things lightened up but it was only when Ming (still on L-plates) was driving us home that the happiness finally got the better of the guilt.
Phew!
I will never forget this fantastic day.
Several weeks ago Ants decided that we should get Ming a ute for his 19th birthday. In order to do so he had to cash in some very precious shares (both monetarily and sentimentally) to afford it.
It took a fair bit of negotiating, research, and secret phone conversations with Anthony and the dealer and there was a long delay in getting the ute fitted with a steel tray which Ants insisted on.
As a result of the delay, Ming’s birthday (10 days ago) came and went and I had to tell him his present hadn’t arrived yet.
Yesterday I got the call to say it was ready so I asked if it could be delivered to the nursing lodge so that Ants could give it to Ming personally. No problem.
So I told Ming we had to be in town by 11.30am to get his present. The only hint I had given him was that it was musical, so he assumed it was some sort of guitar. He didn’t have a clue!
So we got to the nursing lodge and I told Ming to wait in the outside parking lot while I checked if the present had arrived, then I went to get Ants to come outside.
I ran down to the entrance to see the dealer standing next Ming’s ute, waiting, and I almost yelped with excitement as I raced in to get Ants.
Once Ants was seated outside in front of the ute and chatting to the dealer, I raced back up to the outside parking lot and fetched Ming who drove us in and parked our old ute right next to the new one. He still didn’t twig!
Then, standing right in front of the new ute, he said hi to Ants and then, “Dad, what is my present? Mum is ridiculously excited!”
Anthony said, Ït’s right behind you.”
Ming turned around, looked at the dealer who he had assumed was a friend visiting Ants, then looked at the ute of his dreams – a Toyota Hilux Workmate – and his jaw dropped.
More in next post – I can’t continue because I am too happy about the expression on Anthony’s face – and Ming’s – so my words are now caught in my throat!
jmgoyder 