Doesn't drive me crazy.

Red-Headed Alec doesn't, that is.

Yes, we now not only have all four of our kids living here, but Festus was told to move out by his parents, so he and #2 Son share a room, and Red-Headed Alec's mom and stepdad have been full of promises that never materialized, so he's here.  It's that, or the homeless shelter, and he actually asks to help around the house.  No use putting a young man who does that in a homeless shelter.

And giving him driving lessons doesn't drive me crazy.

Red-Headed Alec is 23, and between his biological dad who tried to kill him, his biological mom who abandoned him and then took him back in a year ago and has, as noted, promised but not delivered, and his Grandmother who legally adopted him and wouldn't teach him to drive and now won't let him live with her, he's really not had much of a chance to do something with his life.

There were promises, but no one taught him to drive until recently, when his girlfriend took him to lessons.  So now he has a permit and needs practice.  The Jalopy is a great practice vehicle.  It's big enough that you will be comfortable driving a smaller vehicle later, but not so big as to be scary.  The anti-lock brake system might or might not work at any given time, but we aren't doing any driving that will make it a problem.

Every evening, for about a half an hour, we get out in the Jalopy and he drives around the neighborhood.  He knows what he's doing, he is a very careful, defensive driver, and all he needs is practice for confidence so when his girlfriend has her day off in a couple of weeks and takes him in for the test he won't be so nervous.

This what what i did with the other kids, but except for Little Girl, they made me a bit nervous.  #1 Son has had several tickets and an accident since he got his license, and most of his friends are afraid to get into the vehicle with him.  As much as i tried, i just couldn't get him to see that the way he takes chances could get him hurt.  He mostly behaved behind the wheel with me, but i could see those tendencies.

Poor Bigger Girl took a while to learn because of the unique way her brain works.  She's fine now, but it took a long time.

#2 Son was okay except for his propensity to want to just get on with it and gogogogogo.

Red-Headed Alec, though, won't go above 20mph if he even thinks children or pets might be around, and he counts the number of seconds he is stopped at a stop sign, counts out loud.  This one i'm not going to have to worry about much.

Especially if he gets that job with #2 Son's store, and his mom actually does give him the car she promised, he will drive with extreme caution to keep his insurance rates down.

That is a good thing in a 23-year-old unmarried male.



Today is:

Candies Day -- they have to be kidding -- this close to Halloween we need another candy day?!

Chhat Parwa/Chhath Puja -- Nepal (Hindu/Vedic Festival of the sun god Surya)

Coronation Day -- Cambodia (anniversary of King Norodom Sihamony, in 2004)

Cumhuriyet Bayrami -- North Cyprus; Turkey (Republic Day)(1923)

Fiestas Patrias -- Honduras (through Friday)

Hermit Day / Hide From Everyone Day -- internet generated, for those who would rather have a peaceful day today than celebrate the other holidays listed; look up how to be a hermit on wikihow

Internet Day -- it's predecessor went live today, see Today in History for detail

Laugh Suddenly For No Reason A Lot Today Day (And end up either getting yourself and everyone around you in a good mood, or yourself being observed at the hospital in a padded room.)

Naming Day -- Tanzania

National Cat Day -- US (with the goal of getting 10,000 cats adopted from shelters today)

National Disgusting Little Pumpkin-Shaped Candies Day

National Oatmeal Day

Second Fiddle of the Month -- Fairy Calendar (a very poorly attended event -- who wants to play second fiddle?)

St. Mary of Edessa's Day (Patron against sexual temptation)

World Psoriasis Day -- www.worldpsoriasisday.com


Birthdays Today:

Gabrielle Union, 1972
Winona Ryder, 1971
Joely Fisher, 1965
Randy Jackson, 1961
Finona Hughes, 1960
Kate Jackson, 1948
Richard Dreyfuss, 1947
Melba Moore, 1945
Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, 1938
Dominick Dunne, 1925
Bill Mauldin, 1921
Fanny Brice, 1891
Charles Hercules Ebbets, 1858
Daniel Decatur Emmet, 1815
James Boswell, 1740 (wrote the biography of Samuel Johnson)
Edmund Halley, 1656 (O.S. Date) (yes, that Halley, found the comet)


Debuting/Premiering Today:

The Internet, 1969 (the first connection between computers that would become the Internet someday was made on this date when bits of data flowed between computers at UCLA and Stanford Research Institute; this grew into ARPANET, and is now the Internet we know and yell at.)
"Let's Face It"(Musical), 1941
"Don Giovanni"(Mozart K. 527), 1787


Today in History:

Cyrus the Great entered the city of Babylon, BC539
First trial for witchcraft in Paris, 1390
Sir Walter Raleigh, adventurer, writer, and courtier, is beheaded, 1618
A severe earthquake shakes New England, 1727
Mozart's opera Don Giovanni receives its first performance in Prague, 1787
The first Ohio River steamboat leaves Pittsburgh for New Orleans, 1811
Queen Victoria grants Cecil Rhodes rights to Zambezia, 1889
The first intercity trucking service, from Colorado City to Snyder, Texas, begins running, 1904
Turkey declares its independence as the successor state to the Ottoman Empire, 1923
Israeli forces invade the Sinai Peninsula and push Egyptian forces back toward the Suez Canal, 1956
Cassius Clay wins his first professional fight, 1960
Syria exits from the United Arab Republic, 1961
Montreal's World Fair, Expo 67, closes with over 50 million visitors, 1967
The American Galileo spacecraft makes its closest approach to 951 Gaspra, becoming the first probe to visit an asteroid, 1991
In South Africa, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission presents its report, which condemns both sides for committing atrocities, 1998
Space Shuttle Discovery blasts off on STS-95 with 77-year old John Glenn on board, making him the oldest person to go into space, 1998
In Rome, European heads of state sign the Treaty and Final Act establishing the first European Constitution, 2004
The 3G wireless transmitters at Mt. Everest make coverage available to the summit, 2010
Random House and Penguin merge to become Penguin Random House, the largest publisher in the world, 2012
Turkey opens the first underwater rail tunnel linking Europe to Asia, 2013