River Daze

Hi Internet.

Inside the massive Beer Tent, sponsored by Midland's Rotary Club.

So I've mentioned River Days before a time or two. It's Midland's annual, weekend-long summertime bash, centered around the Tridge downtown, where they light off dozens and dozens of hot air balloons into the sky. Tons of food trucks, lots of live music, vendors, arts and crafts, merch galore, and thousands upon thousands of people.

Kinda like summer's weekly Tunes By the Tridge, only on steroids.

(And featuring hot air balloons.)

We've made an appearance here for years - sometimes for only one night, sometimes all the nights - and it's always a good time. Following the initial lighting of the balloons, for the next couple days you can spot balloons drifting around Midland, often times flying right over folks' houses and scaring the crap out of people (one year one actually crashed onto our street , back in 2018 if you'll remember.) We went for a walk with the Johnsons the day after the initial lighting, and they were everywhere (as you'll soon see in the pics below.)

So yeah, another entertaining 48-hour period around these parts. Check it out. . . 

Us and the Johnsons had to park way down at First United Methodist, which was a bit of a hike but all the lots and side streets closer than that were already taken (the whole city had more or less come out for this.) When we reached the park by the Tridge, we purchased our drink/meal tickets and set up shop in the Rotary tent. Kris' friend, Kim, and her daughter, Makayla, ended up meeting us down there, and after everyone had finished their burgers all the womenfolk wandered off to check out some of the local vendors and crap.

Erik, Mitch and I hung back in the beer tent and watched as balloons slowly took off into the sky.

Mitch attempts to crouch like a Slav (heels down, unlike how we Westerners crouch, with our heels up.)

After a few beers, the three of us walked around a bit to check out what else was set up down there.

Not much cool stuff to check out unless you were a little kid (they had henna tattoos and face painting and crap), or else were jonesing for a food truck.

They usually have a lot of carnival-ish attractions set up for River Days, which our kids used to get into but not so much anymore.

We then made the mistake of walking over the Tridge to see the balloons up close, over by the dog parks. None of them were firing up at the time, and there wasn't much to do over there, so we decided to head back the way we came. Unfortunately there was a frickin' line of folks trying to get back over as well, and the crowd was backed up for hundreds of yards - I've never seen anything like that before. It was all thanks to a bunch of dumbasses stopping to take pictures in the middle of the throngs, holding everyone up.

Seriously took us like twenty minutes to cross back over that damn bridge. . . 

Alayna, Abby, Ella, and a few other kids were walking around downtown as well. They didn't want to acknowledge our presence, 'cause teenagers.

Kim and Makayla, showing off their new ink.

Back by the beer tent, Erik and I hit up the line of porta-potties, which was in front of some nearby live music.

Forget who this band was, but they were not one of the coolest bands I've seen this summer.

Kris, Courtney, Kim and Makayla ended up crossing back over the Tridge at the correct time, and were able to catch some balloons firing up.

Crowds watching the balloons, um, inflating. . .

I assume they're glowing 'cause of the fire. . . ?

Around 9pm we headed up to Main Street for the evening's main band - Stone Street Revival.

This was by far the best cover band I've heard this summer - definitely a few clicks above the usual Tunes by the Tridge acts. Thousands of people crowded throughout the Commons to check them out, I've never seen the downtown area so packed.

Lots of 70s funk, rock, and even Yacht Rock (which, as you know, I'm a huge fan of.)

The next day, in the evening, us and the Johnsons went out for our usual hours-long walk around the Chestnut Hill neighborhood, and there were balloons floating around EVERYWHERE.

It was almost like some of them were trying to find a spot to land, 'cause they kept hovering right over the tree tops. As we were walking back in front of Chestnut Hill Elementary (the girls' alma mater), there were a bunch of trucks and cars passing us trying to follow the balloons.

Vehicles in hot pursuit. Including the Batmobile.

Courtney and Kris, straining to keep an eye on one of the balloons.

I think this one was attempting to land in Plymouth Park - that's the only open space around there that accommodate a balloon I think.

Doesn't take much to excite these ladies. . . 

- Brian

Everything February-ish

Hey Internet.

Our February this year was, well, really f***ing busy.

Generally the winter months - namely January - tend to be slow, dull, and uneventful, but apparently this month didn't get the memo and we were consequently barraged with social and kid obligations every day of every weekend. Pom and basketball practices, pom competitions, orchestra concerts, parties, dinners out, outings across town with the kids, camping trips. . . the list goes on and on.

As such, today's post is ridiculously long and filled to the brim with pictures and video, all for your viewing pleasure. From the sheer weight of this blog post, you'd think it was May or June, but no, dear friends, we're still only in February - traditionally the snowiest and coldest month of the year (and this year was no exception.)

So here you go, America - a breakdown of All Things Hough for February '22.  Enjoy. . .

Chilling out after school over at the Johnson residence, gettin' down with some Animal Crossing on their Nintendo handhelds. . .

All smiles at Pom practice.

Occasionally our resident cleaning robot - whom we've nicknamed Gina, from the old Martin sitcom from the early '90s - will have a stroke and stop working.  This is always due to instances where it's about to throw itself into certain doom, such as when reaching the top of the stairs when one of our kids forgets to shut the door to the basement before leaving for school.  We then come home from work and find it frozen in fear, and have to reset it on Kris' phone.

Buying your favorite classics on colored vinyl to replace your existing ones is a necessity for any true vinyl collector.

Winter months means more car washes than one would usually get.  The salt and grime accumulated from my daily commutes to Saginaw require I get my ass to the car wash far more often than I'd like.

Abby's 2021-2022 Pom picture.

This is a weird brag but I'm gonna do it anyway.  I usually don't play games on my phone, but I have a couple I swear by.  This one - Snood - is an early 2000s classic, and I played the hell out of it on my computers in my later years at college, and then again once I returned from Africa.  Over the years, I've just so happened to get really, really good at it - so good, in fact, that I am now the 14th BEST SNOOD PLAYER IN THE WORLD.  So that may or may not be something I have engraved on my tombstone, we'll see.

One of my students recently got to go to Europe for a vacation with his obscenely wealthy (I assume) grandparents.  While over there, he couldn't access his Google Classroom in order to stay on top of his work, and he'd email me asking what I wanted him to do for work while he was out of the country.  When I found out he was staying in Florence, I gave him 'homework' assignments of taking pictures of certain things I remembered from when I was there.  Such as this bad-ass statue of Perseus holding up Medusa's head.  I wish all my students were this good at turning in homework assignments, it'd make my job a hell of a lot easier.

One of the coolest records I've bought in a long time, this collection of unreleased songs from my favorite band's golden years ('93-'00) was packaged as a set of six 7" records, all with three or four songs on it.  I pounced on it when it dropped to $25 on Amazon.

It came with a custom outer sleeve, as well as a faux-leather band that keeps all the records neatly together.

I thought it'd be tedious to have to switch 7" records after every couple songs, but the cool album artwork and the novelty of the packaging more than makes up for the minor inconvenience.

I wasn't aware that the records were colored when I bought them, so that was a nice lil' bonus on top of everything else previously mentioned.  Colored vinyl, as you all know, sounds way better.

Playing some Trivia Pursuit and snacking on frozen fruit one weeknight before bed.  These two dogs are absolutely shameless these days.

After months of finding the time to squeeze it in, Kris and I finally got around to having the ceiling in The Study secured.  It's been sagging a little - not dramatically, but definitely noticeable - because it was only glued up to the tresses - something I guess they used to do back in the '70s (our house was built in '76.)  We were going to have them scrape off the popcorn ceiling as well once they were done, and replace it with some of that knock-down, since it was going to be difficult to get the ceiling 100% flat.  I can assure you that it was a pain in the ass clearing everything out (except for the vinyl and the piano, that is.) 

Super Bowl Sunday with the friend group, this time hosted by the Griffin family.  Erik and I were in charge of putting together the Squares board (each square costs $5, and if the last digits of the corresponding scores at the end of a quarter match up in your designated square, you get 1/4 of the total pot (this year that meant four pay-outs of $125.)

A ridiculous amount of food on hand, as usual.  Lotta fat people in this group.

Kris made a Reese's dessert 'lasagna,' which was really frickin' good but I couldn't bring myself to eat more than a spoonful because the caloric count was through the roof. 

Pre-game gorging.

The board configuration.  I dropped about $20 and didn't win jack-shit.  Oh well, maybe next year.

Dads watching football (and me, acting like I'm watching football but not really giving two shits about the game.)

More grazing about the food table.  If you're trying to lose weight, this is definitely not the group of people to hang around with.

Kris came home at lunch to check out on the progress the guys were making on The Study ceiling.  They had to raise the ceiling with a series of jacks so that they could secure it back in place.  Definitely above our pay grade.

Coming home after work, I failed to appreciate the amount of icing that had happened throughout the day (it had rained earlier, then the temperature plummeted.)  Got some pretty funny video of the contractors nearly wiping out as well, but figured I'd be nice and not subject them to public ridicule.

The ceiling, now raised and good as new.  Unfortunately, the guys we hired had neglected to scrape off the popcorn ceiling to our liking - they knocked it down a bit, but it was still noticeable.  After some back and forth with them for a week or so - during which time the roof remained like this, much to our chagrin - we terminated the contract and kept half of the money (so, in the long run, we lucked out and they got screwed for not living up to their part of the bargain - to the victor go the spoils.)

On our way to take Abby to an appointment, she absent-mindedly bolted out of the front door without thinking about the ice that I had previously almost wiped out on.  Fortunately there was no damage, but still. . . not the most pleasant thing to watch.  (And yes, I salted the walkway right after this.)

Kris and I went thrift store shopping for some '70s outfits that weekend, since our friends the Larsons were hosting a '70s-themed Murder Mystery party for Danielle's 40th Birthday party in March (we'll definitely be sharing pics of that later next month.)  I managed to find a pretty bad-ass suit/waistcoat combo that matches perfectly with a pair of bell bottoms I already own from my college days.  Kris picked up a few items as well, so we're just about there as far as costumes go. . .

Later that week, it was time once again for another Northeast Orchestra concert at Central Elementary School.  Abby (shown here, second from left in the front) and the 6th Grade Orchestra went on first. . .

The 6th Grade Orchestra performance.

Abby and Ella, the dynamic duo, post-concert.

About a half-hour later, the larger 7th/8th Grade Orchestra took the stage (Alayna is at the end of the second row.)

The 7th/8th Grade Orchestra performance.

After the concert, we were even able to get the girls to stand next to one another long enough for a picture.  Never tell us the odds. . .

The next morning, Kris and the girls all had the day off of work/school (not me, though - I still got to go to work, like a sucker.)  Kris took the girls, along with their friends Ella and Lexi, downtown to check out the annual ice sculptures that were being showcased.

Alayna and Lexi

Selfies.

Playing some shuffleboard.

. . . but forward where. exactly?

(Not sure what this is. . . )

Ice. . . cornhole?  How is this even a thing?

She needs to work on her form if she's gonna roll with the big leagues up at Eight Point. . .

Da Mystery of Chessboxin'

And Checkers, too.  Why not.

Seriously, how do people even make this?

Abby and Ella

How we enjoy Snow Days up here.  We've only gotten three so far this year.  Thanks a lot, Global Warming.

Mitch and Morgan.  The third weekend of the month, the inner five families of our friend group decided to go out for a dinner date at a local high-end restaurant downtown called The One Eighteen.  Our reservations were at 7pm, and because we were a party of 10 - and ultimately would be dropping a small fortune there - they gave us our own private room, adjacent to their wine closet (whatever that's called, I don't know.)  We kicked things off with a few bottles of cabernet sauvignon and a brace of fancy appetizers. . .

We killed a few of these bottles, rest assured.

The Fab Five.  Kelli, Courtney, Mees, Danielle, and Nagatha Christie.

Bizarre chandelier.

And one featuring husbands.

After settling our bill, we decided to go out for some post-dinner drinks across the street at a local craft spot, Whichcraft.  On the walk over, some of the wives decided to cool their asses down upon this icy throne.  Fun fact: the next mornin, a ton of these ice sculptures would be destroyed by bad winds, so thank God Kris and the girls were able to nab a bunch of pictures the day before.

Mees, Danielle, Courtney, and Erik at Whichcraft.

I was too stuffed after dinner for beers, so I drank some craft cider the rest of the evening.  Smart move on my part, folks.

Morgan's lackluster attempt at a group picture.  Lighting leaves much to be desired.

After Whichcraft, we retired to the Colliers for a nightcap. . . and a few rounds of darts.

They have a train set in their kids' playroom in their basement.  I couldn't help myself.

The Colliers' new family kitten was really invested in our game of darts. . .

Saying goodbyes at the end of the night (Kelli didn't make it.)

Abby's Winter '22 Pom portrait/team picture.

Towards the end of the month, us and the Johnsons took Abby and Ella to their very first basketball practice at Calvary Baptist on Wackerly.  Both girls - along with a few other girls from our friend group - registered for the church's big Upward basketball program, which caters to K-6th grade kids interested in playing basketball.  They sort girls into teams, teach fundamentals, hold weekly games, and offer a more positive atmosphere opposed to, say, a traditional school setting.  Perfect for kids just starting out in the sport and not sure if they want to play ball for their school when they're old enough (here in Midland, that's 7th grade, so Ella and Abby are still too young.)

Learning techniques during the first practice.  What's cool about this program is that they're super patient with beginners, explaining to kids what they did wrong and how to improve without drilling them like a typical coach.  There's also an absence of volatile parents in the stands screaming at referees, which is nice.  Hopefully Abby enjoys it and improves enough so that she can try out for the 7th grade team at Northeast (she's never played basketball before, but seems to like it so far.)

Later that week, Kris dropped Watson off at the vet in order to have his teeth professionally cleaned (at the tune of $500.)  The astronomical price was because they had to put him to sleep in order to clean his teeth and gums thoroughly.  They ended up pulling several of his smaller teeth in the front because they were so bad, but at least now his mouth is healthy and his breath doesn't stink like a hobo's asshole.

While Yours Truly was off camping in the woods with my High School crew, several of the other dads in our group decided to once again serve in the kitchen for the Chestnut Hill Carnival (they definitely busted my balls for skipping out this year.)  Erik sent me this pic of Alayna (with Lexi) ordering up a ridiculous amount of food.  No idea where she puts it.

Ella, Sophie and Abby (wearing my chef's hat from 2020.)

Chowin' down at the alma mater.

After hours or games and food, Abby (in the background) and some of the other girls (including the Barden girl, in the foreground), worked on face-painting other kids. 

Later that night (I think, not sure - I was still camping out in Rosebush), Kris and the girls met up with a few other families over at the Larson residence.  Danielle's sister recently gave birth to twins, so the kids enjoyed holding babies. . . I guess.

I don't miss bottles.  At.  All.

Later that weekend, the girls had some friends over and one of Alayna's friends (Ava?) decided to give Alayna a makeover.  Not sure how I feel about this. . .

Frickin' teenagers. . .

- Brian