For much of my childhood, my Grandma Jean lived in Claremore, Oklahoma, about a forty-five minute drive from our home in Tulsa. Probably once a month, my parents, my brother Jeremy, and I made the trip there to see her and my Grandpa Bernard. During the car ride, my brother and I would measure how near to Claremore we were by keeping watch out for the Big Blue Whale in a Catoosa pond just off of Route 66.

By the time I was a teenager my grandparents had moved out of Claremore, so whale-sightings became few and far-between. Still, even as an adult, I have had occasion to pass by the pond, and seeing the whale always makes me think of my Grandma and Grandpa, our midnight Uno games, crappie fishing, and jelly-roll baking lessons. For many years, I have wanted to take some pictures of the whale, since, for me,  it symbolizes so many happy memories. The other day, I made the trip to Catoosa to do just that.

The Big Blue Whale, now an official Route 66 Roadside Attraction, has an interesting back story. A love story. You can read about it here.

5. Netflix’s supersonic return shipping and receiving process.

Tuesday afternoon, at 4:55pm, I deposit the Grey’s Anatomy Season 2, Disc 3 DVD into a big blue box at my local post office here in Tulsa. The DVD is Kansas City bound. Wednesday morning, at 9:27am I get an e-mail from Netflix saying they have received said DVD and noted its return to my account. So again, the breakdown: DVD = My hand –> big blue box at Tulsa post office –> some post office in Kansas City –> Netflix receiving warehouse –> my account. Approximately 17 total hours. SUPERDUPERSONIC.

4. Sleep

The amazingness of the biophysical process whereby laying on my bed and closing my eyes allows for my brain and body to move into an altered state of consciousness wherein I am oblivious to the goings-on in my vicinity (for instance, my husband’s nocturnal flatulence) blows me away. Taken one step further, the fact that modern medicine allows for that state of consciousness to be so altered that surgeons can cut me open and remove random body parts while I snooze away, dreaming of tropical island vacations and Ryan Gosling shirtless, boggles my mind. And makes me sleepy just thinking about it.

3. Television

Yeah, I know, I know I SAW WILLY WONKA TOO. “You photograph something and then the photograph is split up into millions of tiny pieces and they go whizzing through the air, down to your TV set where they’re all put together again in the right order.” Just because Mike Teevee gets it DOESN’T MEAN I DO.

2. Fax machines

See above, 3. Television. Except, specifically, you photocopy something and then the photocopy is split up into millions of tiny pieces and they go whizzing over a telephone line, down to your fax machine where they’re all put together again in the right order. I still doubt that it could actually work. I mean, I realize it does actually work, but I believe it works by some form of white magic. Or else gnomes are involved.

1. Time travel

We’ve addressed this issue before, remember? Let’s not go there again, okay? Thanks.

Katelynn: “Mommy, when was Emma’s birthday?”
Me: “About two months ago.”
Katelynn: “Oh. How old is she?”
Me: “Seven.”
Katelynn: “Oh. When is my birthday?”
Me: “In about one month.”
Katelynn: “Oh. How old will I be?”
Me: “Five.”
Katelynn: “Five? I don’t want to be five. I want to be seven.”
Me: “Sorry. You’re two years younger than Emma so on your birthday you will be five.”
Katelynn: “SEVEN. SEVEN. I WANT TO BE SEVEN.”
Me: “In two years you can be seven. This year you have to be five.”
Katelynn: “You can’t tell me what to do.”