Remember to check out Jason Boyett’s Dominican Republic journal. The last three days are posted here (look for “recent stories”). If you don’t know what I’m talking about, click here.
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This past Saturday, Matt, Francis and I were at the Oak Park Library when all of a sudden Miss Francis came unglued at the site of a fish tank. She ran over and started pointing, laughing and wiggling her little booty like Scout. It was hilarious. She loved it. She loves FISH! Who knew? So, the obvious thing to do was to head to the Aquarium the next day. And boy were we right. Francis wore herself out. She laughed and pointed and wiggled and laughed and pointed and wiggled. So much so… I think we’re going to have to consider seriously about become members at some point. We took a couple of little videos with our digital camera and I’ll do my best to get those uploaded asap. In the meantime, you’ll have to settle for the following stills. Enjoy!      
(See the full New York Times review). Vincent chronicles her year-and-a-half incognito in Self-Made Man. Check out the cover; as a man (and as a woman, for that matter), she looks just like Clive Owen. As immersion stories go, this one probably owes a lot to Black Like Me, John Howard Griffin’s account of masquerading as a black man in the 1959 American south. OK, I have to quit plugging books that I haven’t actually read. This got me in trouble at Christmas, when I bought Sally’s dad a copy of The Sign and the Seal, a book that I was only half-way through at the time. Shortly after, I realized the book descends into quackery about half-way through, and had to retract my endorsement of the book after I’d already given it to him. So, read at your own peril. If anyone has a first-hand review of any of these books I’ve been talking about, please share. They’re all on my list, and I’ll share my thoughts as I get to them.
Many of you know that my dad died when I was eight. Most of you don’t know that the Pinewood Derby is emblematic of the loss of his influence in my life. For the uninitiated: the Pinewood Derby is an annual cub scout event in which seven to ten-year-old scouts race little wooden cars that they’ve built with the help of their parents. Each scout is given a block of wood and some wheels and must build a car conforming to the following specifications:
On the day of the Derby, scouts line up their cars at the starting line, and gravity takes the shiny cars down a ramp and across a level stretch of track to the finish line. In 1983, the Pinewood Derby was a day away, and my car was a disaster. Looking back on it, I don’t remember exactly what the specific problems were, except that the car was not very close to being finished and the design was rather unenlightened. I remember perfectly, though, my brother’s car – completed a decade earlier with the help of my dad. That car sat on top of the trophy cabinet in our shared bedroom. It was a masterpiece: sleek, blue, fast. They had deftly mounted weights at the front axle – inside the profile of the car, hidden by wood putty – to come right up against the 5 oz. limit. I’m sure that car won the Derby for my brother, and it would have done so with style. Its lines were elegant. The blue finish was silk. My car, even if I had been able to execute the juvenile design, would have been so far below Jeff’s as to be a different species. I understood that, and was ashamed of my effort. I actually thought that my car should compare favorably to the blue ghost my father built with his older son. The eve of the Pinewood Derby ended in tears, and I gave up. I didn’t finish my car that night. I didn’t go to the race. I think I quit the scouts soon after. In the following weeks, I finished my car. It looked like something a nine year-old would make. It’s red, with black numbers and a gold arrowhead painted on the hood. Its lines are awkward, and show that the builder did not understand physics, beauty, or the rules of the Pinewood Derby. There are no weights at the front axle, and it’s clear that I did not sand the wood before painting the car with flat red house paint. A year or so ago, Sally and I came across my never-raced Pinewood Derby car. She loved it. In its boxy form and splotchy paint, she saw a little boy’s laudable effort to give shape to his imagination. She didn’t see the how far it fell short. She loved it even when I explained – in damning detail – how much better Jeff’s car was. In my mind, I know she’s right. I can give that fourth-grader credit for his solo effort. In my heart, though, I’m still ashamed of that red piece of crap. It should have been so much better, and more importantly, it should have raced. What is the measure of the loss of a parent?
January 26, 2006 - 3:50 pm
Matt, Your character and generosity and the family that you built for yourself are as sleek and fast as any Pinewood Derby car. I did not have the honor of knowing your father, but I do know that he would be proud of what you accomplished. And I think I can speak on behalf of so many of your friends when I say that we would all give you a blue ribbon for the way you have touched our lives.
January 26, 2006 - 5:21 pm
Hey Matt, forget fourth grade. Sure, you didn't get in the race then. But you're in the race for real now, in ways that Kristen and I admire and aspire to deeply. Don't look back, man. Look around, at what you have wrought. And then be proud, my friend, very proud.
January 27, 2006 - 4:35 pm
Matt, I'm not sure what the measure is, but I sure feel the sadness and the frustration in your story of your little car. I bet it is a great car and I bet your Dad is very proud of you. Sending you a warm embrace from the South, kbr & fam.
January 27, 2006 - 5:08 pm
well, Matt, I have been waiting two days and hoping some profound or appropriate words would spring up. they haven't. i leave you with this. i have known you as long as i have known anyone outside my own family, and i love you like you were my brother. and although i never knew your dad, i feel like have known him through you, your family and your collective influence on the nevads. thanks for sharing about the pinewood derby; it brought back memories for my familiy too. i can't pretend to know, or even imagine, the measure of your loss. but i do know the gain knowing you and your family, and i thank you for it. This was the day our life changed. It was a Thursday. We don’t have any new pictures right now, so in honor of the new baby, we offer this photo set from Francis’s first day ex utero. Click on the title above for a full set.
January 23, 2006 - 3:12 pm
it's so fun to look back at these. it's amazing how fast they grow. horray for francis! we're so glad she's in the world. we want to see her again soon. much, much love. the petillos
January 23, 2006 - 10:22 pm
so sweet, brings tears to my eyes to see little Francis as a newborn. I'm so excited for you guys to experience this again soon. love, amy
February 1, 2006 - 5:43 pm
dear sally and matt, i know you guys are a bag full of mixed emotions with the knowing a new nugget is in the oven. we know y'all are going to take it all in stride and be so nourishing to francis through her transition and that the new peanut will bring so much love & admiration to your corner of the world that it is sure to spill out onto the floor and out the door and into the street and out into the city which is just the gateway to the rest of the world. that love will make all things possible even in the most trying times at the grocery store with two screaming children who want candy and a bandaid. (i'm sure this scenario won't even happen to you good folks.) i will call you crazy if you don't find out the sex beforehand, but that's just me and my curious little soul's obnoxious need to plan out my best friend's life in my head from afar. i love y'all so so much and i'm ready to roll up my sleeves and help! |
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by Sally
Kristen - That's a great photo! It looks sooooo cold!!
The Olson Family - OK, now you HAVE to come visit Aunt Jen, Uncle Matt and David in Atlanta. We have THE LARGEST aquarium in the US, maybe the WORLD. You can't just say, "Francis loves fish", without considering Atlanta! Ok, we will use anything we can to get you guys to come see us 😉 You need to check out new pics on our blog http://www.mattandjennie.blogspot.com
Drew, Amber and Megan - No, Francis needs some fun in the sun. She needs to come to Miami and go to the Miami Seaquarium. They have a kids club she would be the center of attention.C'mon Francis you know you want to.