GORGEOUS OREGON

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These photos are so awesome...

the sky will steal your breath! I think you can enlarge them by double clicking on them.

They were taken on a hiking trail above the John Day River in Oregon.

Night in the country, far from the lights... aaaahhh. Doesn't it look relaxing? You can imagine maybe a guitar and songs around the camp fire. Marshmallows toasting on a stick you walked around to find and cleaned by picking off the bark. You have to raft to get here or hike a couple of miles. I do not raft. Nope. Water and I have an agreement. I do not pollute it with my person and it leaves me on the shore.

Last night Squeaky turned seventeen. My last baby. I guess I'll have to start letting go and teach him how to drive the clown car. Max has some understanding of the clutch and can roughly drive. But don't tell him I told you so... he needs an automatic! Squeaky will not have that problem. He has coordination by the pounds. The only reason that Max does not have a license by now is that I'm afraid for my car! Not fear of his having an accident, he's pretty cautious but my clutch would not last long at all. Yikes. I don't want to have to put in another new clutch anytime soon. I am not a mechanic and I can't afford to pay for one.

Have you guessed yet that mom is a bit over-protective? Sigh. I know... they are boys, let them become men! I'm trying. It's hard. I had no trouble teaching the Bear... their sister. She learned how to drive when she was 14 and was excellent at it. I had serious asthma problems at the time that resulted in trips to the hospital that ended with me singing Wizard of Oz songs from the medication. I had no business driving home that way. I had no one else... so the Bear learned to drive. You do what you have to do.

Well, Squeaky only wanted a hard drive for a lap top he's building from scrap and scratch. What he does not know is that I'm buying a car from the Bear and hubby... for him. I think it's great that he was happy with just a hard drive. I'm pretty proud of him... a junior in high school who already has 3 college classes under his belt and will have almost a full term by the time he even arrives there... and keeps his grades up. I think he deserves the free ride.

I hope your skies are filled with a billion stars tonight and that you sleep as soundly as one does in the fresh air of the wild country.

Spring Break is Over

Yesterday was a busy day dedicated to tying up loose ends for the vacation.
Bear and I went to get Squeaky and bring him home. This we did quickly and successfully... to the amazement of others involved in our delivery of the boy.
Then it was back home to leave him and head out for the town to the left. The baby needed a big boy hair cut. It was time. So we did that and he was so good we were not sure that he was not a foundling switched for our wiggly guy in the night by fairy folk. Now he's the little man!

After that it was Chinese food out and a quiet night at Bear's house. Watched the Nickelodeon Kids Choice Awards of all things... twice. YIKES. Doe it amaze anyone that Twilight won for best movie? Me neither.

Cousin J got me some CDs of more punk... Pogues, a rare Murphy I do not have and some Flogging Molly that I don't have. Yes, it's my Irish thing. Today I down load them into the MP3 for walking use. I am happy. It was a nice surprise. What a sweetie he is.

I got to do a little reading before bed, so my lizard saga continues to my great joy. It is my plan to devote hours to it today while I do my mountain of vacation laundry and prepare for going back to work like normal people. I'm missing my vacation already. I know, I know... what am I griping about? In a couple of short months I will be on a nearly 3 month vacation... complete with pay checks (because I have already worked for that pay by the time vacation comes, not because they pay me vacation pay). That is my prime reading time. I garden and read. Boy am I ready for that.

I am also starting to plan my trip to Germany next Tax-mas. Did I tell you about that? Well, a kid that grew up in my house as much as in his up the street... B-wreck's best friend... is stationed in Germany. He's a sergeant there with a wife and a couple of darling little girls. They have invited me to come and visit. He's going to take off two weeks while I am there and we will get in the van and see Germany and perhaps a few other close spots. I am so excited to be going somewhere outside of this continent. I know I have a ton of stuff to do... get a passport, shots, whatever. I have to find out exactly what and get on it.

I am ending my week exhausted in a good way. I hope that you are all feeling as content. Big smile.

Taking Squeaky Away

It's now Monday here. The Bear is coming today to help me take Squeaky away. He and his geek freak friend, L spend all holidays and vacation time bouncing back and forth between our homes. This year I get Spring Break to myself and he goes to L's house.

L's family moves a lot. Every time I take him there they have just moved or move while he is there. So it's always a map quest adventure. I've mentioned before that I can get lost anywhere on my way to a new location... but once I have been there, it is etched in stone in my head and I can find my way home and back again with ease.

You might think that because of this the Bear has taken pity on me and come to the rescue of poor old get lost mom. Nope. She worked her last day on Friday. She is going back to college to become a nurse and has some time off before her classes begin. (I am so proud of her!) She's bored. She has a nice new car to drive and I am glad to ride in it. It will also help sedate Squeaky who firmly believes that we will never be un-lost once I get lost. I will be glad too to see my precious baby Mikey, who has not yet figured out that there might be something better on earth than grandma.

I know that I talk about my boys all the time, because they are so often with me. I don't mention the Bear that often. She lives in the town to the left. We will hang out there tonight while her dad does his meeting thing. It's not always parking lots, though I love the reading time... especially now that the lizards have attacked and the Tosevites are just getting it together. She is a big part of my life too and sometimes when I use the term "boys" she is lumped in there too. Like the boys say... she is the toughest and the meanest among us. I know, girls are not supposed to be that way, but she is also the funniest and most energetic.

This is the girl who, after clothing shopping, sat in the back seat with her new panties on her head and waved to the cars that passed us by( in middle school). She was the homerun queen in softball. Also the girl that mom had to leave work to go to a local bad place where mom had to storm the house to physically drag her out. For a time in high school she was deeply depressed. We have gone rounds. There was a time when I was scared silly that I would lose her to alcohol abuse. My boys have been saints in comparison. She was not an easy child. My hair shines with silver from this girl! As difficult as she was, I love her a bazillion times more.

Here is the wonderful part. She got through it, even the humilation of biserker mom. I could not be happier with who she has become. Life is an evolution for each of us. As long as the evolution moves in a positive direction, we are doing well. Today will be a fun day that I am sure will involve Chinese food from Fortuna... the best place ever. We will laugh ourselves silly and baby will entertain us. A good segue to our coast trip tomorrow.

It is a good day for being thankful for family and friends. Hard work sometimes but pure joy!

SUNDAY MORNING

Yesterday was a nice day. The Bear and baby Mickey came to town for breakfast. Squeaky and their dad accompanied us and it made for a noisy and somewhat messy meal, but happy. After we dumped the guys off, Bear and I took baby for a ride. The day was lovely, skys blue and the sun fell in rays through the forest trees. It's a great time of year here with the green buds starting to show on the sleeper trees. I'm watching for Trillium to spring up but have not found one yet. Took baby to the park. Can't wait to hunt for shells with him at the beach.

I got up and walked this morning for the first time in several days. Took my red nose, box of tissues and beat feet to the sounds of Gutter Mouth. Did great until it was over and I was back in my car where I attempted to hurl a lung. I survived and it wasn't as bad as it has been. I am on the mend. Walking makes me feel good. Nice to be back at it.

I am still mulling over the last Battlestar Galactica. Maybe it's the mom in me that screams... Noooo you can't get rid of the technology! What if a baby is born with type one diabetes? What happens if measles make a come back? Who knows what germs lay dormant there? It's not the technology that created wars and the need to dominate. That is human nature and all this means is that you'll have to start creating weapons from scratch again. Back to hacking up folk with broadswords... though much more entertaining to watch, if you ask me... not a good choice.
And really, I do not want to live in a world without running water, toilets and proper showers. Those things will take time to develope. But perhaps I misunderstood.... what do you get out of the end? Did you agree with it? What did I miss that was important?

Hey, have a wonderful Sunday. I hope that yours is restful and fulfilling in some way that delights you.