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Apologies to Vaun Earl Norman, my biggest celebrity fan, who I inexplicably called Vaun Earl Thomas in my blog a couple of days ago. I don't know if that was some kind of autocorrect or if I just lost my mind as I very much know his name (I was very tired and rushing to catch up on blogs). It is an unforgivable mistake and I accept the cancellation that comes with this error and will stop doing all blogging immediately.
After this one.
Ernie was at a birthday party this lunchtime which meant I got to look after Phoebe solo. As much as I enjoy having the whole family together, especially when they are cracking wise and being nice to each other, there's lots of scraps (mainly verbal) and tantrums to deal with, so it's lovely to get some one on one time. Plus Phoebe is a very cool child, the kind of kid that would never have hung around with a dweeb like me when I was at school, but she HAS to hang out with me (for now), so I get to pretend I am as cool as her.
We walked the dog and were a bit perturbed and confused to see an Air Ambulance hovering over Hitchin and going round in circles, neither seeming keen to land or get anyone to hospital. Was it lost or just expecting trouble at some unknown location and getting ahead of the curve?
That'd make a good TV show, right? A partially psychic air ambulance pilot who knows vaguely what's going to happen in a general location and so gets airborne early so they can deal with the emergency. It could be called Partially Psychic (though it'd be good to have some reference to medicine or helicopters in there - Helicopter Patienting? Third Eye in the Sky? There's no wrong answers in blue sky. Actually that might be quite a good title).
I don't know how exciting it would be as a drama. People just getting slightly earlier treatment than they might have if not for Ian Eye (he's an eye in the sky and he's called Eye). But maybe the hospital administrator doesn't believe he's psychic and tries to stop him going up in the helicopter early.
The mystery of the Hitchin helicopter was possibly solved later when we went into town for lunch and there were loads of emergency vehicles parked up for viewing by the public. The helicopter must have been part of that. Phoebe was too cool to queue to look inside a police car. I pretended I was too cool too. She mustn't find out that I am not cool. As sad as it was not to go into a police car, for the first time since
I searched for the man who had stolen my mobile phone, when I had a Hitler moustache. We had Mexican food. It was fun. Though I joked with Phoebe that I looked like a divorced dad who was having his day with the kid. She pointed out that I looked like a grandad out with his grandkid.
It's hard to explain what a pleasure it is to be out for a meal with your kid and be just chatting and joking. Why is this so amazing? I guess after all the years of every moment with your kids being about putting out fires or listening to their insane babble, just being able to eat and chat and joke with them, like they're some kind of a person, is really special.
I remember when Catie was first pregnant, eating in a pizza restaurant and seeing other parents with babies and thinking that would be us before too long. In some ways that feels like just a few months ago. So now to be here with my tween who is already a teenager in her mind, and who can run rings round me is a bit of a jolt. But a welcome one.
My only ambition now is to deserve the kids I've got (and to make sure I don't have any more).
If you missed this week's Newsrounds or just prefer to gobble them up through your ears only, the compilation ep
went out today as a podcast. 
