Some of you may recognize this view from when you last stood in line for the State's answer to the Mexican hot dog stand. The $1.50 "Dogo Polako" as the signs sometimes say in Mexico AKA, the Costco warehouse Polish Dog and drink special.

At first we were going to hold out and not get the Costco Card. Why do we need 10lbs of anything or the double economy size of this or that? But all it took was a $1.50 polish dog and soda and I was sucked in. I wish I had a little more will power, but in reality you can't expect a guy who loved cheap street cart eats in Mexico to pass on a $1.50 meal! So as a sign of being plugged back into the Collective, we now wait in the Costco line just like everyone else all wondering the same thing, "will I get out of here for under $100?"

There were several times in the last few days when I felt like a escapee from the Island of misfit toys. The weird feeling of being out of place at Jason's 8th grade back to school night almost made me need to breath into a paper bag. It was hard to just blend in with all the responsible "normal" parents packed into the Jr. high school gym all decked out in their work bests with me in my cruiser-work-from-the-boat clothes. But luckily I did have a sweatshirt over my BIMBO football jersey because I'm now convinced that it wouldn't have played well as Lori and I went from class to class meeting Jason's teachers. (score a "I told you so" point for Lori.)

How are the kids adjusting? Better than their parents!

Amy is loving high school and Jason likes 8th grade, even if he is now too cool to admit it. All the worry of the kids being out of touch socially was like most worries in life, needless. Now, they are the only kids without a Iphone or some other $500 electronic device in their pocket but they are still too new to the system to notice or care.....YET.