02/02/2025

       Well, I unexpectedly had a good week. I really want to express my gratitude to music. It is something that I have fallen out of until recently. I filled my time with podcasts, TV shows, and doom scrolling social media. Now, I didn't cut those out entirely, but I have scaled back heavily to replace it with listening to music. I believe that podcasts, and TV still play an important part for me, not doom scrolling though, but I needed to start incorporating music into the mix more. Now music is about 70% of my daily entertainment. There is a lot of "Dad" dancing that goes on around the house.

       I also started a new book this week! I am reading "Ready Player One" by Ernest Cline. I am a fan of the movie directed by Steven Spielberg, and saw that Cline had written "Ready Player Two," so I figured I should read the first one. It's a really good book so far. I like the writing style and it keeps me engaged. Plus, I relate a lot more to the main character in the book, more so than the one in the movie. There are slight differences as there usually are when a book gets made into a movie. If you like sci-fi dystopian books, I recommend this one if you have not read it yet.

   The one thing this week that I struggled with was feeling like a terrible parent. I faced a lot of embarrassment, feelings of judgement, and an unbelievable amount of guilt. To make a long story short, my kid had a Cub Scout event called the Freeze Out. Like it's name implies, it was freezing out. Not a surprise given that it's February in Ohio. I let my kid underdress, he wore terrible shoes, and his gloved were even worse. Less than an hour into this 5 hour, outdoor event, my kid looked miserable. He couldn't feel his toes. I was in the same boat, but my worry was on him. Thankfully, another parent was over prepared and shared snow boots, thick gloves, and a proper winter jacket. After he got all that gear on he was comfortable and having a good time. I owe that parent a lot, and will be better prepared for the FREEZE OUT next year. After that event, I made it up to him by treating him to Chipotle, his favorite, then we went to his schools Valentine's Day dance. Overall, it was a great day, but I still feel terrible for how under-prepared I was for the Freeze Out.