YELLO

This far into the month of juneathon and with my unplanned song-a-day-sort-of-theme coming along quite nicely (One Direction notwithstanding) I was running my usual run wondering what to use for another day of JACs (Just Another Commute.)

Inspiration came on the bridge as I eased past another runner and thought he decided to stick with me...for a while. I'm pretty sure he did speed up and maintain his10ft gap for a while before I dropped him (in my mind) or he just slowed down because, really, why bother (more likely)?

The answer to that question is "The Commuter Olympics", a phrase I heard from a semi-pro triathlete who once worked in a building I once worked in and I'd chat with every so often. I hate getting beaten over the bridge, so will invoke The Commuter Olympics if someone tries to stay with me, or I'll pick a target ahead and try to beat them. I usually do pretty well.

So today I thought of Yello.

Good facial hair. I look like a hobo at the moment with an unkempt red beard, flecked with grey. Doesn't help that I like wooly hats and wandering around unshod. A colleague I have worked with for maybe 5years genuinely mistook me for a homeless person last week. My beard is, to coin phrases my brother uses to describe his, a "beard to be feared" and "full hobo."

It was a short day at work. AJ was being presented with a Principal's Gold Award for something or other this afternoon at a special school assembly to be held at 2pm. A more engaged parent would likely know more than I did. So I did 4hours in the office, mainly so I could run in and back (I could have worked from home) before leaving at noon. The run home was a slow, lead-legged plod in some wonderfully un-wintery weather. I've been Sydney based since 1999 and I may be getting soft, but it can get cold here. A proper bone-chilling cold. Not today though. Maybe 20 degrees, wispy clouds in a mostly blue sky. Lovely.

But it was just another commute, albeit in daylight hours.

The assembly was cute. I'd been to one last year when AJ was in kindergarden and it seemed to go on forever and it seemed like everyone got some award or other. Maybe because I was (and still am) getting used to this having-a-kid-at-school malarky, maybe because I have no recollection of anything like this from my school days. Of course I may have been a dunce...

The letter we'd got from school said she was getting a "gold award" which turns out to be pretty special. Only 8 kids in each year get it, for excellence in maths and English. Seems my laissez-faire approach to schooling is paying off - go me!

But really, go AJ! The especially touching bit came yesterday though; she knew she was getting an award but seemed just as (if not a little bit more) pleased that I'd be there to see her collect it.  bought her an ice ream after the assembly and gave her her first pair of Dunlop Volleys, dad's favourite shoe. She seemed happy.

I guess I'm doing something right.