LET’S GO FLY A KITE

Recently I’ve had to come to grips with something…

I don’t fancy kite flying and I can’t throw a frisbee. Two classic pastimes, favored by many – except myself. Today though, let’s focus on me and kites.

Most adults wouldn’t concern themselves about kites, but I’m married to a kite flying enthusiast. On a number of occasions over the years, I have intently observed, yet failed miserably at unraveling the mystery of his fascination involving this wind driven activity.

Every spring when he says, “let’s go fly a kite” I think “this is it!” this is the year when I grab hold of that string-thing, the kite will soar and I’ll start singing that song from the movie Mary Poppins.

Yet every Spring I’m still clueless.

I desperately want this moment, this experience, because my husband loves to fly kites. Whenever the opportunity avails itself, he’s ready to fly – sitting down or standing up…

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We even journeyed to Washington DC one year for National Kite Day. We had a terrific afternoon – just not as we’d planned. We took the Boys (of course) and they attracted so much attention, the kite never came out of the bag…

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This year I thought maybe if I understood the origin of the kite, I would gain more interest. So I “goggled” kites. Here’s what I learned:

– Kites were invented in China as early as 5th century BC, and was later introduced into India. There are stories of kites arriving in Europe by Marco Polo towards the end of the 13th century.

– It wasn’t until the 18th and 19th centuries where kites were used as vehicles for scientific research:

  • In 1750 Benjamin Franklin flew a kite into a storm to prove that lightening was caused by electricity.
  • In the 1800’s kites were instrumental in the research of the Wright brothers.

I also learned there are many different types of kites. Who knew? Not I…

  • Indoor kites – designed to fly with simple movement indoors, w/o any wind
  • Single line kites – traditional kites of many shapes flown with just one string
  • Dual line kites – commonly known as sport or stunt kites with two strings sometimes flown in team formation
  • Quad line kites – fully controlled with four strings, they hover in mid air and are popular for large groups of team flying
  • Fighter kites – one of the oldest styles in history, controlled with one string and most popular through Asia and the Middle East
  • Inflatable kites – known as show kites and the most visible at festivals often shaped like animals or large objects
  • Power kites – often used for traction engines to pull fliers on surf and land boards, buggies and more.

As exciting as all that sounds, it still doesn’t woo me into wanting to “hang” with it for long periods of time. I do however, get a thrill watching him fly his kite. He seems so relaxed and at the same time amused by this battle between him and the wind.

So when I go, I’ll toss “Wilson” around while Lee assembles his kite…

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I love that Leo has exceptional “recall” – I never worry about him off leash …

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The Houdini trait in Harley is always entertaining. Tied to my chair, the great escape artist will attempt to disappear as soon as I get up even with the chair dragging behind him…

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Eventually they’ll decide to take a break, and for a few minutes we all stare at the kite in the air…

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So what’s a Doodle Mom to do? He loves to fly kites – I love him – and the Boys love running in the open field. For now I guess I’ll continue to watch, and one day – who knows…

Have a great day, “oh what the doodle” – make it a spectacular week…

PS: Still humming that song aren’t you?

9 Comments
  • Emma
    May 19, 2014

    Kites were big on the beach on the North Sea. There you could see kites like to others. Huge ones, super cool ones, all kinds and with the powerful wind, only adults were flying them. I didn’t care about them at all, but my sister Katie had a big fear of them. We saw them almost on a daily basis when the weather was nice, so they lost their “specialness”. When we see someone flying one around here, it is silly, like a baby kite or something. BTW, Katie would take the chair she was tied to along with her as she bolted too.

    • Cathy Bennett
      May 19, 2014

      Emma, I was surprised that Leo wasn’t afraid of the kites, he ignores it, and runs around totally unaware. While Doodle Dad flies his kite, the rest of us enjoy the warm weather and fun meeting new friends.

  • Anu
    May 19, 2014

    These dogs are so fluffy and simply adorable. Very unique post! – Petnetio Anu

    • Cathy Bennett
      May 19, 2014

      Thank you so very much Anu, so glad you enjoyed it. Please stop by and visit us again soon!

  • Ophelia
    May 20, 2014

    Although I share Lee’s enthusiasm for watching a sky full of kites soaring into the wild blue yonder, and have enjoyed flying them on occasion with my students, I have had limited success with keeping my kites. I seem to have problems with holding on to my string. I can’t tell you how many day my students and I watched our kites go sailing over the tree line, never to be seen again. I now buy my kites from Dollar Tree.

    • Cathy Bennett
      May 20, 2014

      Lee once lost a kite in the neighborhood. He sat on the deck the rest of the afternoon waiting to see it in the air. When he did, he got in his car and drove to the location. That was about 8 years ago, he flies that kite still.

  • Ann Staub
    May 21, 2014

    It seems like it would be so easy to do, but I also don’t have great luck with it. My parents found a really big shark kite at a garage sale and I put it alltogether but it still wouldn’t really fly. I think it was too windy, but who knows!

    • Cathy Bennett
      May 22, 2014

      I can’t even get mine up beyond my head Ann, it’s so sad… Perhaps that’s why I don’t care for them much. I do want someone to please come and show me how to throw a frisbee properly though…

  • Tiffany
    May 22, 2014

    Looks like everyone had a great day. Laughed so hard at Harley’s great escape attempt. Priceless!