Boxing Day in July

On the last day of school I still had kids writing to make the 100 Day Challenge, and I think that's awesome. I'm only sorry I have to draw the line somewhere and disappoint those writers with 96 days. Oh, one could argue that they had plenty of time and notice, but sometimes it takes a while to get going, and they definitely got going. (Plus, they are only 11 or 12 years old and that planning thing is definitely an emerging skill.)

When all was said and done, I had 12 kids who got the prize of ordering the whimsical t-shirt of their choice from a popular website. Since I waited to the end to see who made it, I also had to wait to the end to put my order in. Most of the shirts are custom-printed, and they finally arrived last week right before I returned from vacation.

I've developed a system over the years where I give kids an order form to fill out with their selection, size, and address, and then when I mail the shirts in the summer I write a personal note on the back of their form and include it in the package. Yesterday I went to the post office to pick up the boxes and labels, and today was the day when I sorted the order, composed the notes, addressed the labels, and boxed everything up.

Tomorrow, in literally my last official duty of the 2015-16 school year, they will be sent on their way. But for an hour or so on this hot, hot summer day, I considered each of those twelve writers fondly, admired their clever t-shirt choices, and strived to compose the perfect note to capture how proud I was of their accomplishments.

GoPro or Go Home

I got a GoPro for Christmas a couple years ago, but until a week or so ago I had not used it. I think it's because on the one hand while I'm flattered that anyone thinks I do exciting enough things to warrant recording them, I don't always see it that way, and on the other hand, it seemed kind of complicated to figure out how to use it.

I did see a movie not too long ago where one of the characters was an aspiring moviemaker, and he definitely used his GoPro to film anything he thought was good, which gave me another perspective on my little video camera. I also happen to store it in the gear bag for my other camera, and so it was that the GoPro made it to Maine with us in early July. Not just there, but actually strapped to Kyle's pack as we climbed the infamous Beehive of Acadia National Park and recording our great adventure for posterity!

It turns out the GoPro I have is kind of complicated (at least to me!) and I did not have the proper equipment to view the footage of our conquest until I got home. To be honest, it wasn't at the top of my list then either, but this morning serendipity struck when I came across both the cable and the camera in a free moment and plugged them into my desktop. The on-screen message alerted me that it would take an hour to download, but that was okay, too, because I was on my way out to run some errands. (Don't worry, the 8 second recording of me squinting cluelessly into the lens downloaded immediately, and so I was able to confirm that I'm an idiot right away.)

Anyhoo, when I returned home a few hours later in a horrific thunderstorm, once my soggy groceries were put away, I sat down to watch Kyle's perspective of our climb ten days ago. WOW! First, it was a lot scarier on video than in person-- my palms were sweating just watching it. Second, do I really look like that when I'm hiking? It wasn't bad, but I didn't cut quite the mountain woman image I imagined, either. (Emily and Heidi looked fantastic, though!)

And last, I really wish I was back in Maine.

Lucky Thirteen

We took our dog swimming for her 13th birthday today. Truth be told, she has been rather slow and lethargic over the last few weeks and we were hoping that one of her favorite activities would perk the old girl up.

It's hard to find clean swimming spots in our urban area, and so we were more than willing to give a new place about 30 minutes from our home a try. It was primarily a new-agey kind of rehab facility for older and injured dogs, but they had open swim time in their chlorine-free pools, too. The place was empty when we got there, but the set-up was not what we expected.

An employee in a wet suit led Isabel away to suit her up in a canine life jacket while the owner of the establishment made small talk with us. Once she was in the pool, we were allowed to go back and watch, but the attendant would not allow her to get in and out of the water at will. She paddled around a little while, fetching a floaty and a tennis ball, but she never really got into it.

Towards the beginning of her swim, the owner came over to watch as Isabel made her way serenely around the perimeter of the small lap pool. "Her energy!" the woman said. "It's so, so? So... wonderful!" she finished.

That it is, I agreed silently. Happy Birthday, Isabel.

LAzy Dayz

There's something about having a bunch of time off that makes doing the little jobs a little easier. Since we have been back home from our trip I have diligently watered my hanging baskets, sorted through all the magazines, made a bunch of phone calls, and cleaned out several drawers. To Heidi's amusement, I also organized the sea glass.

Even though when I look it at in terms of what's on the calendar it seems like summer will be over in a hop, skip, and a jump, when I take things day-by-day?

The days have it.

Home Movie

I was looking forward to seeing Free State of Jones for several reasons: I like a good historical drama; I have long been fascinated by the American Civil War, and the main character happens to be a distant relation (my great great grandfather's first cousin). Unfortunately, I was disappointed when I saw the film today.

To begin with, it was very graphic in terms of violence, which is not always a bad thing, especially when trying to convey the horrors of history. Still, the carnage in this movie did not add anything to my understanding of the events of that time period, and since the story was merely based on true events, the imagined atrocities seemed a bit gratuitous.

Secondly, there was no moral center to the movie-- everyone was either entirely virtuous or completely reprehensible, which made the plot flat. I happen to know from my own research of our family, that Newt Knight had many relatives living in the area at the time, many of them who held enslaved people.

Exploring such moral ambiguity may have made for a more dynamic story. For example it was not just some evil planter, but rather Knight's own grandfather, Jackie Knight, one of the largest slaveholders in the county, who enslaved Rachel, the African American woman who became Newt Knight's common-law wife.

To me, that fact alone introduces the complexity of race relations in the antebellum south, and makes for a much more interesting exploration of the time that could ultimately lead to a deeper understanding. A better movie might have addressed such concerns rather than glossing over them with stereotypes.

Good Soil

After two weeks away from my garden I was eager to see how it was doing, and so I headed up there first thing this morning. The good news: everything is growing well!

The not-as-good-news: including the weeds.

2x2 Sight

Homemade ratatouille in the freezer and cold beer in the fridge? That's what I call advance planning!

So happy to be home after two awesome weeks away!