I took my bike to the repair shop (the cranks and pedals were making noise and not moving smoothly). When I got it back, with new cranks and pedals and the thingamajig they attach to, it also had freshly pumped tires. Now the tires were far from soft before and I hadn’t even noticed that they could be pumped harder, but gosh what a difference it made.

I like Bromma cykelservice. At first I only chose this place because it is conveniently located halfway on my commute, where I can take the bus the rest of the way home. But they’re also fast and friendly and they know what they’re doing, and they don’t cost an arm and a leg.

Adrian had a sudden burst of interest in paper planes and made four or five of them.

There must have been moments when he did not have his tongue sticking out from concentrating, but I don’t seem to have caught any.

Adrian reading Kalle Anka pocket. He is going through them like a machine. He starts his day with Kalle Anka, picking one up before he goes to the breakfast table. He often ends his day with one, when it’s too late for most other activities. And he usually reads some more in between.

It’s Friday night, and it’s Ingrid’s turn to choose a movie for us all.

September is great for cycling. It’s still light in the morning when I’m on my way to work. The mornings are cool without actually being cold, and the afternoons no longer carry the heat of summer. The weather is mostly dry. Plus I sometimes get to see beautiful morning mists.

Actually the best days have been the ones with a hint of rain, maybe the tail end of a rainy night. The bike paths are emptier then. And while it is of course a good thing that people cycle, it also feels good when they aren’t too many.

I had a free evening today; Eric picked up the kids and took care of dinner etc.

My afternoons and evenings are always stressful. From around 15:00 until after dinner, I’m always watching the clock, calculating and scheduling to make sure I get everything done on time. I need to get my job done, so I cannot leave too early – but I also need to pick up Adrian in time, and buy and prepare dinner, and make sure everyone gets to their activities in time. Dinner sometimes needs to be early, and sometimes it cannot be early, because the activities are at different times every day. I feel like a slave to the clock.

So it is extra nice to be able to let go of all that occasionally. To cycle fast only because I enjoy it and not because I am in a hurry. To cycle slowly when I feel like it. To go out for a leisurely restaurant dinner.

Today’s dinner was at Lao Wai, a vegan Chinese restaurant that’s been a favourite of mine for twenty years already. I used to eat there regularly when I was a student because it’s very close to the university. The one and only waiter looks just the same as he did twenty years ago, maybe a tiny bit rounder in the face. Out of curiosity I asked him how long the restaurant has been there. Twenty-five years this month, he told me. I hope they keep going for another twenty-five.

There was a parent/teacher meeting at school this evening, for all parents in Adrian’s class. There was another one at the same time for Ingrid’s class, so we had to divide and conquer. I got Adrian’s class.

The meeting contained very little information, it was all obvious stuff. The only real point of the meeting was to meet the new teacher. Adrian’s class has gone through three teachers in two years, it’s almost become a joke. I really hope this one stays longer so that there can be some continuity and permanence.

In addition to the meeting, I got to see Adrian’s drawer were he stores his stuff, and the handmade sign on it. He’s apparently laid claim to the Moon.

Plenty of apples this year.

There’s no way we can eat them all. We can eat some as they are, and bake a cake or two,] or even three, but that’s it. We’ve made apple jam in the past, and apple wine, and apple chutney. They’ve all been delicious, but we don’t actually eat/drink much of any of those. One batch of apple wine lasts us years. But maybe we could juice them?