Not As Bad

Sometimes you don't know what to expect.  You have preconceived notions about a certain thing, but until you actually do it you have no idea.

Brace yourselves, I'm not talking about bikes.

For Father's Day, Lunchbox wanted to hang out with his old man.  He also had something else to do, so he asked if that could be my present.  I said sure, not knowing what I was getting myself into.  You know, other than hanging out with my kid which is good no matter what we do.  So off we went to the Heroes Convention here in Charlotte. 

Anyway, he goes to comic conventions all the time.  He's a regular on the circuit these days.  I think that's neat, but it just wasn't my thing.  I went in with an open mind though.  Our first stop was something that made my day, no doubt Lunchbox's grand plan to get me to enjoy my day.

Star Wars stuff.  I dig it.

That was pretty cool, and I was definitely having fun.  After that, we walked around a bunch and looked at all the neat stuff.  I took a few photos.

So, nerd stuff.  I guess it's cool these day for most people.  Hell, I'm a Star Wars nerd.  But, people like to have fun, and everyone goes about it in a different way.  I'm really into bikes (and guitars, beer, etc.) and the people I saw at the convention are just as passionate with their hobbies too.  Just like Lunchbox.

That happened all day.  People stopped him to ask for a picture.  It was cool to see how popular he was with the people there, and from what I understand it happens at every one he goes to.  He appreciates the old school stuff like Mortal Kombat, as well as newer comics and movies.  Oh yeah, he's a cool nerd that happens to work in the bike industry too.

And he's one helluva a kid (man.)  I had a good day with my son, and I learned that maybe new things can be fun.  I'm glad that he decided to drag his old man along during his adventure.  I mean, I spent enough time dragging him along to my crap and nonsense.

So I'm not just some selfish bike and beer snob asshole.  I guess I'm a nerd too.

I Thought About Riding My Bike

But then I realized that I should take a little break.

After staying up half the night Friday, I finally got to sleep in.  I can’t remember the last time I didn’t have to get up early on a weekend for a race, trail work, or because the critters in the house needed attention.  I slept until about 10 a.m., and I woke up Lunchbox to plan our day.  It was his turn to decide what we should do, and he had been plotting this all along:

Yeah, it was Free Comic Book Day and Lunchbox likes to go every year.  It’s like trick or treating, where you walk around comic book stores and they give you select comics for free.  It’s always the first Saturday in May, and since it was also Star Wars Day (May the 4^th, keep up) I decided to wear one of my favorite shirts.

I’m not into comics really, and I’m definitely not a people person.  I went because my kid wanted to go, and I did my best to have fun. 

It was kinda neat I guess.

I mean, I did get to see Chewbacca hanging out with the ladies.

And some weird chick dressed up as Squirrel Girl.

She was definitely nuttier than a squirrel turd.

Then I saw one of the strangest things of all, a Wonder Woman that was taller than me.

I mean, I’m 6’4” and she towered over me.  There was something really odd about that.  Little Miss Sunshine said that she probably wasn’t a “she.”

You never can tell these days.  Anyway, it was actually pretty fun; especially since my kid was having a good time (he brought his girlfriend along to creep her out too.)  Although I didn’t get to ride my bike, I at least got to see someone else riding a bike.

Boys Weekend was going strong, until we got home.  Lunchbox decided to head to the mall with some of his friends, so I was left at home all by myself.  I hung out in the garage for hours, tinkering with bikes and doing other random shit.  I learned that when I’m left to fend for myself, I tend to make poor choices.

Like my idea of dinner.

Luckily I’m not left alone too often.