KIDS ARE GOOFY

My nephew Brandon and his wife Mary took their kids to Disneyland last week over their Spring Break. Maddie, 5, thought the Pirates of the Caribbean ride was cool, (my favorite, too) and Boomer liked the train ride--he’s nutty for trains, typical 3-year-old boy--but, wouldn’t you know it, the trip highlight for the little ones didn’t even take place in Mickey Mouse-ville. Their favorite “special attraction” during the trip was getting to see the Pacific Ocean.

Maddie and Boomer were apparently fascinated with the tide rushing in and out, and they made a game out of playing tag with the water. And, of course, there’s nothing like romping around in an endless pile of sand. If Brandon and Mary would have known all it took was free water and sand to entertain them, they could have skipped the blasted long lines and the expense of Disneyland and just headed straight for the beach.

That’s the way it always is with little kids, though. Buy them an expensive toy, and they are more interested in playing with the wrapping. Right? And they can find a hundred fun uses for big, empty cardboard boxes. Heck, one of my favorite childhood toys was making stilts out of empty half-gallon Hi-C orange juice cans and a bunch of old rope laying around in the garage. Having races up and down South 9th Street with those crazy cans was a blast, and the noise it made was soooooo annoying!

The best things in life are, indeed, free--or mighty close to it. So, go out and have yourself a goofy Thursday