The Pipes of our Founding Fathers

For those who don't know, for the past few months Sean has had a serious fascination with pipes. He is always under the sink checking out the pipes, talking about pipes while he flushes the toilet, talks about food going down his pipe when he swallows, and hanging out in the basement to check out all the pipes overhead. This story makes a lot more sense if you know that ahead of time.

Last week I had to go to Washington, D.C. to give a presentation for work. The night before I left I was tucking Sean in and talking to him about the trip I had to take, and how I wouldn't see him the next day, but that he would see me the day after. Here's a summary how that conversation went down:

Me: "Sean, I have to go to Washington, D.C. tomorrow, for work. I won't see you, but I will see you the next day, okay?"
Sean: "Okay. Will you see the pipes?"
Me: "Sure, buddy!"

Flash-forward to two days later, first thing in the morning. This will be the first time he has seen me in a day-and-a-half. I have the day off, but we need to wake Sean up to get him ready for school. So I go in, kneel down by his bed, and gently wake him:

Me (softly): "Sean...time to get up, buddy."
Sean (extrememly groggily): "Hi Daddy...did you see the pipes...?"
Me (softly): "Sure did! They were great!"