I've got the kids today. I did a sleepover at their house last night. Now, Logan and I are walking Christina to school. We left just on time. I'm having to limit the amount of things we look at so we can make it to school on time. Stopping to maybe look at a bird's nest, yes, well, some things you just have to do. Stopping to look at the 10,000th pill bug... Not this trip!
We made it to school on time! The kids are playing with a girl who has built a castle out of blocks. Next comes circle time and then Logan and I walk slowly home.
The walk home is much more relaxed than the walk there. Logan keeps coming back to hold my hand. We walk that way for awhile and then he let's go to rescue a pill big or two. I was expecting today to be sunny. It's not. It's gray and cloudy. I think we could still do something outside if we wanted. Oh wait! There is the "great park" and it's hot air balloon rides. I wonder if they are operating today? It might be a perfect day to do that. The grayness might keep people away. I've been really wanting to do it too. I've never ridden on a hot air balloon and I've always wanted to.
We just picked up Christina and we're driving to the great park. I'm driving the Honda pilot, the car that stays with my grandkids. I'm not telling them where we are going, just that we are going someplace different to see if it is fun. I've learned that it's better not to get them hyped up for what we are doing unless I'm absolutely sure we will do it. The web site aaid they do the rides on Thursday's until 3. But, you have to get On. Waiting list for a ride (which could be totally booked up) and I don't know if they take kids. Heck, the web site said sometimes the balloon ride won't run because of weather. So it might not be running today.
We're almost to the park. The kids have seen the Hot air balloon and have been excited about seeing it. We are parking now. I finally tell them that I'm hoping we can take a balloon ride. At least I know the ride is running! We go Into the building. They stamp our hands for the carousel and give us a pager for the balloon ride. The guy who gave us the pager told us not to get on the carousel right away. They will be paging us for the balloon ride soon! I'm excited! The balloon just goes up in the air on a tether and then back down, but I'm still really happy to be doing it!
The area we are riding in is a circular walk, with a hole in the middle. We can watch in and watch the tether being reeled out, or watch out and see how small everything is from up here. You can see that a lot of the airstrip is still here, something I didn't know.
After the balloon ride the kids played at the play area and we ate the snacks I brought. Now, we are riding the carousel. I'm still amazed that all of this is free! How wonderful! They have a art gallery with prints of photos of textures... Photos of the park at various stages. The kids aren't interested in this at all, but the show is in a large empty room and there isn't anyone else here. I let the kids run around inside while I walk around looking at all the photos.
The garden area has a cage with chickens. The kids are very interested in them. I'm more interested in the garden area. They have some lovely plants here!
Both kids fell asleep on the way home. I love carrying them into bed and tucking them in. It's one of my fond memories from childhood. So I like to give them fond memories too.
After I woke the kids up we went for a walk, and then came back and bounced on the trampoline. I'm certainly getting my exercise today! It's time for me to leave. I have such a hard time leaving them. I kiss everyone goodbye and leave.
I haven't been watching the time at all. I figure I'll check the schedule when I get to the bus stop. I'm almost to the bus stop. I just have to cross the street and go down a block. Oops! That's the bus! It just passed me! There is no rush now. There Won't be another bus for at least 20 minutes. What do I want to do? I would normally just go ahead, cross the street and wait. I don't feel like waiting. Sometimes, if you change your position google maps will change the options it's giving you. The 54 is the bus I'm supposed to get on. It drives straight down chapman. I decide to go down chapman for a ways, maybe to downtown orange to see if google will give me different options. It would be fun to try a different way!
I'm passing a bus stop. I'm not quite to downtown yet. The marker at the bus stop says this one is only for the 54. So I know google would just give me the same options from here. I keep going At the downtown circle. I'm going to find a bus stop (there must be one somewhere here) and then check google maps. Hey! That's a bus! No time for me to find a bus stop, or catch it, but now I know some other bus comes downtown. I can look it up for future reference. I check google maps, it still wants me to get on the 54.
I'm at the road that goes to the train station I think a few different buses go here. Hey! That's the 54 coming out of that road. Were they parked at the train station this whole time?! There's no way for me to get to a bus stop to catch it! I should have gone to the bus stop before I started checking with google! Oops! How funny! The bus just turned the other way! I had so wanted to be on the bus... Going the wrong way! I'm glad I wasn't near the bus stop! I'll have to remember that both buses come down the road to the train station! I go on to the bus stop and check google maps again. It still wants me to get on the 54. This is getting monotonous! I've got 20 minutes before the bus comes. I decide to keep heading down the road. I'll have to be careful and watch the time. I can check the time every time I come to a bus stop so I won't miss the bus. I just don't feel like standing and waiting and it's fun to check and see if there are options.
I've passed a couple of bus stops. They only served the 54. I'm starting to think I should just stop at the next bus stop where ever that is. Well! That's what happens when you question the quest you are on! The universe reaches up and trips you and all of a sudden you're on the cement! How funny! The timing was perfect! The minute I started questioning going forward, I went down! Fortunately, I'm not hurt (well, other than a bruised ego). I get up and continue forward.
Hey! I'm at chapman and main! There's definitely at least one other bus that comes here! I check google maps, it says I should still get on the 54. How funny! Hey! There's a number 53 bus! I could catch it if I want.. Take it and see where it goes and what connections I could get to go home. I remind myself that I get up very early tomorrow. It might not be a good day to just get on a random bus. I decide to let it pass and cross the street to the bus stop for the 54. There is only 8 minutes till the bus is due. No time to go to another stop. I sit down to wait and pull out a protein bar to munch on
At the stop for the next bus, the 43. There's a black lady in her 50s looking at the bus schedule book. The 20 something white male asks her when the bus is due. It's due now. I tell them this one is always running a few minutes late, that it will be here any time. She and I start talking buses and she mentions the 460. I ask where she lives, she says la. Her car died. She had loaned money to a friend right before that. Now she is having to ride the bus while she try's to get the money back from her friend. I notice that she's holding an OC day pass. I tell her if she's going to ride the bus for longer she should get an OC monthly pass. I explain that it covers both the 460 and the 62. She says she isn't going to be Riding the bus much longer. And she's having trouble handling thee 3 hour commute. She asks about prices. When I tell her the 30 day octa pass is only $55 she says she could have saved a lot of money doing that. She's been riding the bus down to work for two month's now, buying a daily pass each day. The bus finally comes. We continue talking about buses and bus passes. She thinks even if the pass covered her going up to la it wouldn't cover her coming back down. I tell her that it does. You have to turn on the pass (use it for the first trip) in orange county. After that you're OK. She's asking me why I'm riding the bus. I explain, but she doesn't understand. She does understand that my car's broken. She starts asking questions, interested in maybe buying it. I tell her my plan is to keep it. It's not for sale.
We're almost to Katella and harbor. I normally get off there nowadays and go to my alternate Disneyland stop. That way I miss the frenetic mob crossing the street at Disneyland and if the schedule is tight it gives me an extra minute or two to make it. We've got plenty of time to catch the 460 today and she is riding it too. Without a scooter the alternate way doesn't make sense. So I don't tell her about that. I'm debating staying on till Disneyland so we can keep talking. In the end I opt to get off and head to the alternate stop. I don't have long to wait till the bus comes. When I get on, at first I don't see the lady I was talking with. Oh there she is, in the back. We smile at each other and I sit down. I'm thinking about taking the alternate bus stop for home. I'm still in the mood for exercise and it is a little farther to home from there. It's cold outside though and I have had quite a bit of exercise. I decide to take my "regular" stop. I haven't gone that way in ages. That way I can time how long it takes me to get home too. It's exactly 11 after when I get off the bus.
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