Going Places

I recently met someone whose claim to fame was they do not go anywhere or do anything.  Instead of going places and learning things they stay home and have "family time."  I cannot possibly fathom this reasoning.  It would be just as easy to spend "family time" with your family at a better location then your home.  I am not saying that hanging out with family is a bad thing to do at home, I simply mean that hanging out with your family and spending every weekend with them at home is not something that can possibly help a young person's social behavior.  This person's children are not allowed to go to sleepovers or hang out with other kids on the weekend because they must be home for family time.  Other children are not allowed over at their house on the weekends because they would intrude on family time. 
I wonder what I would have thought of my parents when I finally reached high school if they had never allowed me to do things on the weekends or hang out with my friends.  I surely would not be a socially acceptable person, I certainly would be more socially awkward then I already am.  But, who am I to judge? Perhaps these children who do not get to have friends outside of school will turn into fantastic human beings and will not rebel when they reach their teenage angst years.  Maybe these kids will turn into doctors, lawyers, or find the cure for cancer or aids?  Who knows!  I don't care to judge people on their choices if it does not hurt me or someone else, but I still wonder will not being allowed people their own age from outside of their family in a non-school setting damage these kids' social behavior forever?  Probably not; but, will they ever know the fun of camping in a friend's backyard or going to a school dance on a Saturday night?  Most likely not, and here is yet another reason I think my parents were great parents! 
We had lots of time to spend with our family, we are still a close knit family ( talk to my mom and my twin sister everyday), but we were also allowed to have friends over and go to friends' houses and do things other than hang out at home all the time.  My parents made sure to take us to as many places as they could.  Although we were not wealthy, at all, my parents tried to take us as many places as they could and for that I am forever grateful because I still want to travel the world and learn as much as I can!

Summer Time

The weather lately has made me crave summer; I have gone to the beach a couple of times since the weather has warmed up and I even got in the water, something I have never attempted before May.  It is not only the not having to work in the summer that makes me enjoy summer though.  The warm weather, sunny days, barbque, and sitting outside in the evenings are what I enjoy so much during the summer.  The thing I enjoy about south Texas is that the weather gets warm early and it is so easy to think it is summer, when in reality we have thirty six school days until summer vacation.  We shall call this the pre-summer bonus.
But, there are also things I enjoy about this pre-summer bonus of south Texas.  Camping in the summer is great, except here when the weather is ninety degrees at night.  So, camping in the pre-summer bonus is wonderful because the nights are cool and the days are warm, but not miserable.   I have inquired of people lately if they try to get out in the lovely weather we get to enjoy so early and the thing I have noticed most is that few people here take advatage of the nice days they get in the spring.   I suppose that since the weather is warm for most of the year here it is easy to forget that some places in the country are still getting snow and cold weather.