disaster!

Yesterday I read an article in the paper about how kids are not getting enough physical activity. Especially as they get older, which in turn leads to the inevitable obesity threat on our fabulous healthcare system.... Also, yesterday, Jason was incredibly cranky, I think because of boredom, or lack of activity. I tried my best to keep him busy with time in the pool and a little bit of a science lesson, but nothing would satisfy the beast once unleashed. Also yesterday it was almost 100 degrees out and we have a pesky bee problem in our backyard. I know that it's a good thing for mankind that we have such lovely roses lining our yard and attracting bees, but it is not a good thing for the kiddos. They go outside to play and last maybe three minutes before a bee sighting sends them into a frenzy and they scramble back into the house. The bees particularly love Darren's grill where culinary greatness is born and meat is tamed to melt in your mouth. (I know right, I'm totally scoring points here...).
So this morning I thought we would take a hike along the river trail before it got too hot. The kids would get in a little physical activity and they would be glad to settle in to a quiet morning of playing inside. We set out at 8:30, it was still cool. The kids had field bags and were ready to collect rocks and leaves and sticks. The sun was shining, birds were singing, lizards were scattering across the sidewalk.... a beautiful start! We checked out the geocache that we had hidden on the trail, still there. We checked out the first sign along the trail, and matched the animal tracks to the animals pictured on the sign. My plan was to walk to the next sign and then head back, it would be enough of a hike for Cameron. The next sign was about the Chumash Indians and how they used native plants to build shelter and create medicine and food. I had seen these signs many times on my walks and knew Jason would be interested. We approached the sign and began to read but I heard a voice faintly singing through the trees. I knew that most walkers and joggers didn't sing, and I started to get worried. As the voice got closer I could tell that it was shaky, off-key and slurring. I told Jason that we needed to go quickly because a drunk man was coming up the trail. He didn't believe at first, was a little confused but I quickly told him to just obey and I'd talk about it later. Thankfully for our nightly Bible readings, Jason's already had discussions with us about all sorts of lovely things like drunkenness, murder, etc. Cameron, of course was not about to cooperate so I grabbed her and held her like a football while she kicked me and yelled. We ran up to a short spot in the fence and hopped over to the sidewalk of a busy street. I looked back and saw the gentleman leaning on the sign as he continued his song. No danger, just a little scare for me. I had my cell phone with me, but what kind of weapon is that? I suppose I could defend my family with a rockin' ringtone...
We walked back home safely on the sidewalk, enjoying the lack of nature. Although we did see a dead cat that someone had wrapped up in a beach towel.... As we walked back home I leaned down to Jason and apologized for the disasterous ending to our hike. He looked up at me and said, "yeah, I knew it was a bad idea...." What?! We got back home and the kids watched an episode of Dora the Explorer. From now on I think we'll leave the exploring up to the professionals...