It's a Dog's Life, It's a Sailor's Life, All the World's a Stage

I thought about making this into several posts, and back-dating them, but instead I'm just going to throw the calendar to the wolves and post randomly. Good luck, historians of the far future! (Hah!!)

In no particular order:

-- We have a new dog! It's now a two-dog house, which I thought might be completely nuts (but it didn't stop me) but is actually working out beautifully. Our new addition is Cleo, 6 months old now, border collie, daughter of the ranch dog out at Skywalker. She's such a great pup, and who could resist this face? She's already found her calling in life, and it involves a fast-moving tennis ball. (She wasn't cut out to be a ranch dog, though many of her siblings are. She was fostered on a ranch for about two weeks, in which time she managed to be chased by a cow, stepped on by a horse, and run into by an ATV. She's a family pup, for sure!) We weren't planning on another dog, but the folks in her first home didn't realize that border collie puppies need exercise, and never left the house with her. She was going crazy there, and needed a better home. So we got lucky!


-- A few weeks ago Carson's class went on The Age of Sail field trip, and I was able to go along as a "tall sailor". It's a fantastic program - it's 1906 and the kids are new recruits to a tall ship that needs to sail up the coast for lumber. They have to prove to the captain of the ship that they're capable, and they cook on the wood stove, haul lines, swab the decks, do the dishes, rig a bosun's chair, raise, lower & row the lifeboat, coil ropes, stand watch in shifts all night (even in the pouring rain), carry firewood, etc. etc. And the parents and teacher aren't allowed to help at all, or even talk to them except to say "avast" if there's imminent danger.

It's a truly wonderful experience, even if short on sleep. And spending the night on the Balclutha, with the view back at San Francisco, and ships coming in through the rain & mist, was so beautiful. (I was lucky - the crew I was a tall sailor for had the 4 to 6 am watch, so we only had to get up at 3:30 to be ready. But while the kids stood watch in the rain, the parents were coddled by being allowed to sit in the door of the galley and drink hot tea.) I loved it and can't wait 'til Reed's in 5th grade so I can go again!

-- This winter Carson was in the school play, which was Into the Woods, Jr. He had a great time, and shone in his (tiny but it had lines) role as one of the Prince's Stewards. His best line was "Don't play the fool, woman!". I have a dvd of the show, and I really want that line as a ring tone!

In news of the older boys, Will has only 8 more days that he has to be at high school, and he'll be DONE! Hooray! He's already signed up for his fall schedule at Evergreen, and he's SO ready. Satchel is still working full time, getting outdoors as much as he can (he just did a river trip on the East Carson), and planning a trip to Europe in a few weeks.