Drive Me Wild

I always liked this one... like this voice of The Cars best.
Benjamin Orr.

The driving practice continues to go well. Squeaky even dared to head out onto "the loop" which is exactly what it sounds like... a 3 mile loop. He made one lap and then decided that was daring enough for the day.

I am very proud of his progress and how well he has taken to this... for cautious Squeaky, that is a wonderful thing.

I muttered "Oh shoot... don't let me forget that I have to make a batch of oatmeal cookies."

"You're making oatmeal cookies?"

"Yes" I said. "To take to the beach... with walnuts, no raisins."

"Do you know how to make oatmeal cookies?" he demanded.

"Of course I know how to make oatmeal cookies!"

"No no no... you can't say that like that... you have never once made me oatmeal cookies!"

"I have too made cookies!"

"You have made peanut butter cookies. You have made sugar cookies. You make those sinckerdoodle things... but NO OATMEAL COOKIES WITH RAISINS IN THEM."

"Squeaky... I hate raisins, especially in oatmeal cookies. That is why I never make oatmeal cookies with raisins in them for you. Besides your favorite cookies are Snickerdoodles."

"No. No. My favorite cookies are NOT Snickerdoodles... my favorite cookies are OATMEAL WITH RAISINS IN THEM."

There was silence for a moment or two. I was feeling kind of bad. Geeze I was sure that snickerdoodles were his favorites. I mean, positive.

(The car pulls to a full stop and Squeaky puts it in park so he can stare at me.)

"Okay... okay... so you're going to make this guy... this strange guy... oatmeal cookies and you've never made me oatmeal cookies the way I like them... and you want me to go stay at the Bear's house on Friday and not come home until you're gone Saturday right?"

"Well, yes, actually."

"NO. I want a batch of oatmeal cookies with raisins in them or I'm not going to the Bear's."

Guess who is making two batches of oatmeal cookies... one with walnuts and one with raisins?

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.