The Hazard Chronicles

I finished last week's blog with Donny's visit to our house. It was fun having him here. One of the highlights of the visit for me was going down to the RV dump and watching him clean out the toilets from a big trip he had just finished. Man- you could not pay me enough to do that on a regular basis! I won't get too into it here, because it wouldn't be appropriate, but whatever sentence I would write about it would require the use of the words squirt, splatter, and revolting. I guess I can technically say that I helped since I turned the water on and off for him, but for the most part I just tried to stay out of the way (literally). 

Anyway, here's a call out to all the engineers who might be reading this- if you can invent a better toilet system for the river, then you WILL have buyers. There's not a huge niche for it I suppose, which is probably why it hasn't been done yet- but someone has got to do something. Seriously. Here are the qualifications:

• The system must be portable enough that it can be taken on and off a raft on a regular basis.
• The system must seal itself well enough that it can be shaken vigorously (or go off a waterfall) without causing major problems people sitting around it.
• It must be able to be thoroughly emptied/cleaned without the requirement of a HAZMAT uniform.
• It can not use disposable bags/boxes- I guess enough people have left these bags behind that many rivers do not allow them any more.

Okay. I hope I haven't ruined your day by making you read that. And despite that escapade, we did do some fun stuff with Donny. We had a family trip to Cabella's where Jackson got lost. That was exciting. We also went rock climbing in the rain (reminiscent of a few "classic" trips I can think of), and had a lot of fun at the house with the kids. One night we had a camp fire and told stories about past trips. The kids all had a good time with him, and they are hoping to see him again sometime soon.

But that's not all that happened this week. Not by a long shot. Besides the great weekend we had, Evelyn has now been through her first week of kindergarten! She is so big and was very excited to get on the bus and go to school. She has already made lots of friends, and she likes her teacher, Mrs. Juliano. She says she hasn't started homework yet, but she really wants to. She is most excited to learn about reading, and she is already anticipating a party her class will have in a couple of months. The part she likes the least is the half-hour nap that her teacher makes the class take every day. (I have to say I would agree. With all the griping teachers do about having too much stuff to teach, it seems they would take advantage of the time a little better than forced boredom. Seriously, Evelyn grew out of nap time years ago).

One other thing about Evelyn. She is smart! Yesterday Rachel decided to do an activity in our driveway where the kids traced their outlines onto paper and then colored them. Well, Evelyn traced her outline, and then proceeded to draw diagrams of the circulatory and digestive systems. As far as I could tell, they were anatomically accurate (for a 5 year old), and included parts such as the aortic arch, small intestines, large intestines, arteries, and veins. I have no idea where she learned this, but when I asked her to talk me through it she made it clear that she knew what she was talking about. I am impressed, proud, and a little worried. I hope her teacher is ready for her.

As for Addy and Jack- they turn the big oh-four tomorrow. It is fun to watch them grow more and more, but sort of crazy as well. Four years!? How? When? Time goes so fast. Some relatives have been asking what they want for presents. Well, I asked them and Jackson said he wants a motorcycle and Addy finally decided on a pet mermaid. Since Rachel and I aren't planning on getting them any of these things, you are welcome to send them in the mail if you want. Good luck.

Maren- the poor girl is teething. At least that's what I would like to blame. She has recently taken up screaming like a banshee and throwing anything she can reach. Today in church her nursery teacher brought her to me during class. The teacher looked like she had just been in a fight. Maren looked like a demon possessed child from a well-done horror film. It was a bit unnerving. Currently she is literally writing on the floor, rolling around in circles and whimpering like an injured animal. I hope this passes soon.

So, that covers Evelyn, Addy, Jack, and Maren. Now it's time for Rachel.

Rachel got some very exciting news this week. She applied for a job with Sorenson a while back and she found out that she got it! For those who don't know, this is a telephone interpreting service. Since they never know what kind of calls will be coming in they require very highly qualified interpreters, and it is a tribute to Rachel's skill that she got the job at all. Oh- I should also mention that they pay very well. Like- Rachel could make more than me if she wanted to- and I'm a dentist. But that's not even the best part. The best part is that Rachel totally gets to set her own schedule. She can work as much or as little as she wants, and whenever she wants. According to Rachel, it is like a very intimidating dream job that she is excited to jump into. In a couple of weeks they are flying  her our to Portland for an all-expenses-paid training trip. The next weekend is the same. I know that Rachel loves interpreting and I am so proud of her for doing this.

Other than that, life goes on as normal. Business is good. Family is good. As for me-I've been playing the guitar a lot lately.

I. Love. The. Guitar.

Alright. Have a great week!

Two people, dressed and ready for the day. This is Evelyn's first day of school.

We start them young. Jack has the tongue thing going- he may have a future in a rock band.