Renaissance Festival

As kids, Lea and Erik regularly attended the Michigan Renaissance Festival. Lea's father took her every year, as it was located where he studied to be a priest (thankfully he did not go through with that vocation!). Erik was also an annual visitor - he even donned a costume to participate in the Leonardo da Vinci Model Making Contest at age 13.

This year was Carter's turn to experience a critical milestone for every nerdy thespian/D&D aficionado (Erik was more of the latter way back when). The Kansas City Renaissance Festival dwarfed the Michigan festival (at least as Erik and Lea remember it from years ago). Carter really loved fencing, and hopes to take after his cousin Amelia who is an avid fencer. A few photos follow.

Caterpillar or Butterfly?

Carter has adopted a new personal philosophy. Working in the garden with Lea, he discovered cabbage caterpillars chowing down on our leafy greens. He decided to raise them in a container and learned about different kinds of caterpillars as the population changed over the course of the summer. Some of his caterpillars turned into tiny butterflies, others into moths. Some created their cocoons/chrysalises on the wall of the plastic cup, others under some soil. He raised and released many winged "babies." He decided that one can live life as a caterpillar - not doing much but sitting around and eating - or a butterfly - exploring the world. He prefers the latter.

In addition to raising creatures from our garden, Carter participated in the local Monarch Watch, and released his monarch after it hatched in September. In the photo immediately below, Carter appears to have a horrified expression. In fact, he is trying to stop himself from laughing as the monarch tickles his shoulder.

Last Gasp of Summer

Fall has flown by as work, school, and various activities have kept us really busy. On a beautiful, summer-like day, Carter worked on his bike riding skills. We initially attempted to skip the training wheel stage (after consulting various sources for their recommendations), but changed our approach after Carter couldn't quite maintain balance. He loves riding his bike with the training wheels, and we plan to explore the new Burroughs Creek Trail (a rail-to-trail park less than half a mile from our home). The trail is named for William S. Burroughs, the famous (and controversial) author whose final home is one block away from ours.

A couple of additional posts follow with late summer/early fall updates.

Another Lithuania Adventure, Part 3: A Successful Trip

Erik's short trip was quite productive. He and his colleague made significant progress on their project and he carved out a few opportunities to relax and enjoy the beautiful city.

Erik ran around 2-3 miles almost every morning, making different circuits around downtown. He ran along the Neris River, down Gedimino Street, by the National Cathedral (pictured above in a slightly distorted panoramic to give a full view of the cathedral and bell tower), and around the hill that houses the old castle of Gediminas. He planned to run the circuitous route up to the castle, but it was closed (apparently the path is closed overnight, and he ran early in the morning before it was open). With the temperature around 45 degrees in the morning, Erik provoked the babushki of Vilnius to cast nasty glances due to his short sleeves and shorts (one even said something to him in Lithuanian which he assumes was unflattering). It reminded him (fondly?) of the family visit to L'viv when the elderly women of Ukraine decided to "teach" Lea and Erik how to properly raise Carter by regularly scolding them on the street and in public transportation. One of their major transgressions was to not bundle up Carter adequately by local standards (i.e., full snowsuit, winter hat, and gloves in 60 degree weather).

On his final evening in Vilnius, Erik watched US beat Russia in the FIBA World Championship. The big game for all Lithuanians is the second one of the night - Lithuania vs. Argentina. Alaus Namai was filling up when he left (in fact, he couldn't stay because all tables were reserved for the Lithuania game). After rooting for Lithuania, it will be time for a few hours of sleep before the early departure back home!

Another Lithuania Adventure, Part 2: To the Hoop, Y'all

Basketball fever has gripped Lithuania, the Butler of international competition. A small country with a strong hoops tradition, Lithuania's team has performed well in tournaments, but has not won a major championship (it has received the bronze in Olympic competition three times, but no medals in the FIBA World Championships). Unlike its NCAA counterpart, Lithuania hopes not only to make it to the big game this year, but to knock off the international equivalent of Duke along the way.

Erik spent the last couple of evenings taking in the competition. He watched the US thrash Angola on the big screen TV at Alaus Namai on Monday. On Tuesday, he joined the crowd in front of the Ratusha in Vilnius' Old Town to watch Lithuania edge out China.

Erik arrived on the square around 45 minutes ahead of time, and found a great seat in an outdoor beer garden. He watched the pre-game warmup, featuring a clown, a Mickey Mouse clone, Superman, and a gyrating woman in a skin-tight purple dress. The clown and Mickey cruised the crowd for volunteers while Superman served as the emcee, with the purple woman playing the role of Superman's Vanna White. They were accompanied by a "Dixieland" band, which Erik believes was called Chicago. [Note to Lithuanian musicians - this name was already taken by a mawkish American soft rock group in the 1970s - avoid it at all costs.] Inexplicably, the Dixieland band played the Village People's YMCA repeatedly during one of the contests. In any case, contests were held and prizes won. One more thing - the guy who won was sporting a mullet. Of course, a photo is below as proof.

The square filled with people as the game progressed. Erik gave his table to eager Lithuanians after the first half and cruised around to observe the crowd. Lithuania is a strong team that played poorly in the opening quarter, but pulled it out by a comfortable margin at the end. If the US and Lithuania survive the next elimination round, they will meet in a semi-final on Saturday.