Hopscotch

I failed to mention going to Haight Ashbury when we visited San Francisco.  The center of the cultural revolution in the 60's is still a vibrant community today with the best tee shirt store on the planet located on the corner of Haight and Ashbury.  I know it doesn't compare to the past but it sure leaves an impression on you and has some terrific shops that both Zachary and Emily enjoyed. We also visited a great park that oversees the six sisters (six identical Victorian house's constructed by the same builder at the same time for the same family members, better known as the background for the legendary sitcom Full House, yes, Uncle Jesse, Joey and the Olsen twins.)   Talk about worlds colliding, Haight Ashbury and Full House just a mile or two apart.
     We are finally in LA for the last leg of the trip and have managed to work out most of the disagreements that are bound to occur during the course of a day when spending literally twenty four hours a day,  seven days a week for over two weeks with your brother and two children.  Actually, the lack of blow ups and knock down drag out battles over any little thing has really been remarkable.  We have all learned to pick our battles and realize in the big picture most of the fight have been minor with someone always being able to jump in and defuse any situation.  The maturity that Zach and Emily show each and everyday is impressive (I on the other hand have a difficult time remaining an adult all the time, for example today in Santa Monica I decided to not step on any sidewalk crack or roadway crack from the restaurant, shopping, crossing intersections and walking back to the car for the better part of thirty minutes.)  I called this activity hopscotch for morons (actually it has a more politically incorrect name) but Zach and Emily were embarrassed as to the amount of people watching me cross intersections and or doing the standard broad jump over the brick portions of the roadway for minutes at a time. In the end they accepted my bizarre behavior and decided to record it for posterity.
  They have enjoyed the peace and quiet of the last two days as a result of me coming down with a cold and a cough that resulted in me losing my voice, which I currently still am trying to regain.
     We are at a hotel with a spiral staircase with a second bedroom on the second floor where Zach and Emily are staying,  watching MTV's  Teen Moms (original teen moms only, thank you, I do have standards)  always gives us something to talk about, especially back to back to back episodes.  I know Carly will appreciate our viewing habits while on vacation.  Good night now.