You know you're living in southern California when...

This morning I turned on the radio and the first thing I heard was "...the following schools will be closed..." Now on the east coast, this means it snow or ice has caused dangerous driving condtions (or if you're in North Carolina there might be the threat of snow). But in southern California, they close schools because of fire. Wildfire season is upon us again.

The Santa Anna winds have kicked up. This weekend, boats in the cove were rocking and eucalyptus bark (thankfully no limbs) was flying. Sweetie was supposed to take a boat to LA this morning, but because of the wind, the channel was too rough, and her boat was delayed until it was too late for her to make her appointment, so she will try again tomorrow. WMSC has the only dock that is protected from the swell when the winds are from the east, so this morning we had ferries that were supposed to land at Howland's landing, Emerald Bay and Cherry Cove all disembark here. They also all arrived at about the same time, so we had about two hours of various groups meandering up the hill, gathering at the amphitheater and then departing on buses or on foot. Quite a production.

I think the winds are supposed to calm down a bit for the rest of the week. If you'd like to play along at home, you can check out wind vectors for our area, or the sea and swell map.

Figaro

In August, when we were on our way to Illinois, we stopped at the barber to get haircuts for the Things and I. At the time, the lady asked me what guard I wanted on the clippers and I said "four". 

"Four!" she replied, "That's too short. I think you should use a seven." Now having been present at all my previous haircuts, I knew for certain that I usually had a four or a three guard used, but for some reason I relented, thinking that perhaps she had a different clipper set and knew that a four would indeed be too short.

Alas. Turns out I was right, that a seven was too long, and now I am suffering bad hair (let's bold caps that) BAD HAIR because it is too long and it's been too long since I've had a hair cut. I should have an opportunity next week, however, to get to a barber.

Ahh the odd trials of island life.

Buffaloes before breakfast

With the approach of the rainy season, things are getting maximally dry on the island. What this mostly means is that the bison and deer are starting to wander into town again. For instance, this morning...



We have also had to deal with bison taking over the volleyball court at the lab (they like to roll in the sand - it helps get rid of parasites), and causing traffic jams on the road to the lab.

As long as I'm at it, I'll talk about the new school year. Everyone was very excited the night before. The Things tried on all their clothes (after a bit of prodding) to see what fit. We managed to convince Thing2 to wear a button-up shirt for his first day. The next morning, after a good breakfast, we all walked down to the schoolhouse together. Every year they have a little ceremony on the front steps. The kids run the flag up the flag pole and everyone says the Pledge of Allegiance. Then Ms Frizzle took them all inside the schoolhouse and we parents drifted off, kid-free for the first time in several months.

Thing 2's first day went very well. He is working on his reading and writing. I think it will be good for him socially, too, to be in school. The older kids won't see him as a 'baby' anymore, and will probably be more willing to play with him. Thing 1 is also doing very well. He's always been a good reader, and now his writing skills (and his willingness to write) are improving. He also is getting better at staying on task and finishing assignments, although we still have some work to do there.

A late surprise was the addition of another kindergartner to the school. The daughter of the woman who manages the general store moved to Two Harbors with her daughter, so now Thing2 has a classmate (let's call her Fern). Thing 2 has so far had trouble playing with Fern because, well, she's a girl. We've tried to explain that he needs to play with Fern because there aren't a lot of other options, and it seems to be slowly sinking in. Slowly.

The teacher handles having four different grades (there are no first or fourth graders this year) by having stations. Each grade level goes to a different station for 40 minutes at a time. Ms Frizzle bounces from station to station, explaining, teaching, assisting, and then moves on to the next. The kids get occasional music instruction from a very nice couple who don't live on the island, but try to visit frequently. They sing songs with the kids and teach ukulele. They also get art instruction from the teacher's aide. Last year they made these cool reindeer heads out of palm fronds.

The title of this post, by the way is the title of the Magic Treehouse book on which Thing 1 did his first book report. He had to design a cereal based on the book and make a cereal box with information about the characters, plot, etc. It was also a lesson in how advertisers try to entice you to buy their product. Clever!

Anyhoo, I hope everyone watched the VP debate tonight. I think Biden clearly won on points, but Palin exceeded expectations (by not botching it completely), so both sides could claim victory here. The Presidential debate last week (or whenever it was) I thought was pretty much a tie in terms of performance, but it was Obama there that exceeded expectations. That being said, I don't agree with any of McCain/Palin's policy statements, and I do agree with Obama/Biden's. And another thing I like about the Dem ticket is that they're not afraid to agree with their opponents, or say that they have admirable qualities. Who do you think has a chance of breaking partisan gridlock in Congress: the guy who refuses to admit to any common ground with his opponent or the guy who is happy to point out that there are places where they agree? Vote your conscience, but hey, I'm just saying.

On a final note, I've discovered John Fahey in the last couple days. Wow.

Farmward bound

For one last bit of summer fun, we loaded up the family and traveled to Sweetie's mother's farm in Illinois. Our flights there were on Frontier Air, which I'd never flown before, but I certainly would again. Plenty of legroom, no delays, no baggage charge, and there were mini-TVs built into the seats in case our cheapness was overwhelmed by whiny children. (Thing1 did get to watch Kung-fu Panda on the second leg; Thing2 fell asleep before takeoff.)

Arriving in St. Louis was interesting. We got off the plane, got our luggage and headed out to the pick-up zone. When we got outside, I thought to myself, "What is that? It's some sort of unpleasant heat." And then it struck me. Humidity! What I was feeling was humidity. It had been quite a while since I felt that. Sweetie had the same experience and we shared a chuckle over this. Dinner at Aunt T's house afforded me the opportunity to watch some of the USA vs. Guatemala CONCACAF World Cup qualifier. (I'll provide a link because I'm guessing most of you have no idea what CONCACAF is.) The Things got to jump on the trampoline. Apparently, Aunt T has a squirrel that also enjoys the trampoline. We didn't see it, but she told a very funny story about watching it jump out of the tree and run around on the trampoline.

We had a very nice time a Grandma W's. She has recently purchase a John Deere Gator, and the kids (the Things and their cousins) had a good time riding around in it. I gave Thing1 some driving lessons (terrifying - Dad, I now fully appreciate your efforts in the Caprice Classic). We went to check the mail. We drove to the pond. We even took the Gator to Cousin L's farm to see farm animals. I drove. It was a long drive in the gator, what with the bugs hitting my face, and the rain that started. But we made it, only to realize that Thing 2 hadn't brought shoes with him. Ah well. We saw the goats and the sheep and the chickens and the horse. Thing2 was thrilled.

One day we went up to Springfield to see the new Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum and the Lincoln Home National Historic Site. First we visited the home and the Things earned another Jr. Ranger Badge. It was awesome (not in the seventh grade meaning) to visit the house and think of the conversations that must have taken place there. Some of the Lincoln's original furniture was there, including Abe's writing desk. After a quick lunch, we strolled over to the Museum, which is quite new and very well done. They have excellent multimedia presentations (one with cannon fire!), and a walk-through history of his life. I highly recommend it if you're ever in Springfield.

Besides that it was pretty much just playing with cousins, going fishing (I caught a tree!), a few visits to the hayloft (which is ever emptier of hay and fuller of racoon poop), and playing with the farm kittens, and even shucking some corn. A good time all around. Thing 2 even got so tired one day that he fell asleep sitting up in his chair!

Then it was home again to prepare for the first day of school. A big day in Thing 2's life. But more on that later...

Camp

Thing 1 went off to camp in August, his first real sleep-away experience (he did attend a day camp last summer that had one overnight). The camp he went to (Catalina Island Camps)is on the island. It's a very nice place and we know the people who run the place because they have a son Thing 1's age. Drop-off for most kids attending is at the San Pedro ferry terminal. I talked to Holly about whether we should just drop Daniel off at camp, or if we should take him over to San Pedro, and she said that meeting your cabin mates and counselor at the terminal and the ferry ride over was part of the experience. So on Monday, Thing 1 and I boarded the 8am ferry for San Pedro. Once on the mainland, we went shopping for camp supplies - assorted clothing, toiletries, etc. Then it was over to McDonald's (of course) for lunch, and then back to the ferry terminal for drop-off.

We met his counselor, and found out he would be in the Tugboat cabin. We met some other boys and their parents. At last the time to board came, and off they all went to their boat. I killed another hour and a half, and then caught another ferry back to the island. A long day of travel for all of us.

During his week at camp, we sent emails to Thing 1 through a web service, but, alas, we never heard back from him (despite sending him off with 5 postcards). The camp did post photos every day, and a few even showed Thing 1 having a good time. Some of the activities Thing 1 did were swimming (every day), archery, riflery (BB guns), climbing wall, hiking, sailing, slicing (that's being dragged behind a motorboat on a floaty thing), campfires with skits, kayaking, snorkeling, and bouncing on the giant floating trampoline.

Thing 2 felt very special all week, being the only boy in the house. He got to watch the movies he wanted, didn't have to share toys, and had Mom and Dad all to himself. But he did say several times that he missed his brother, especially at bedtime.

All too soon, camp was over. Sweetie drove over to pick him up (rather than go through the ferry rigmarole again). The first words out of his mouth were "Can I go back next year?" He came home without his water bottle, his bath towel, his swim shirt, any of his toiletries (including the bag), his sleeping bag stuff sack, the post cards, or the disposable camera. Sigh. Fortunately, we live close by and can probably rummage around the lost & found.

So all in all a good experience for everyone - no separation anxiety on either end (parents or kid), lots of fun for the camper, and a little peace and quiet for the kid who stayed home.

During this time, Sweetie was teaching a class over at the Wrigley. It was a college-level class for high school students. They had ten days at WMSC, and then ten days on a tall ship sailing around the Southern California bight. Sweetie just covered the land part, but it did keep her busy. Long days of teaching and then preparing for the next day's lectures. The other teacher and the TA's were very nice. The kids for the most part were smart and engaged. Many were from private and/or boarding schools back East; some had been chosen for their academic merit from more modest backgrounds. This led to some interesting and world-view broadening conversations, no doubt. They studied oceanography and marine biology and did a lot of snorkeling and even a small research project in those ten days. It was exhausting, but Sweetie enjoyed it enough that she's interested in doing it again next summer.

More soon about our trip to Illinois and the start of another school year...

Rumblings and birthdays

So we have now experienced our first California earthquake. It really wasn't much here, even though we were only ~60 miles from the epicenter. I was sitting at my desk and there was a back-and-forth, back-and-forth motion. It couldn't have lasted more than a few seconds - just enough to get that 'what is that?' feeling. I immediately tried to call Sweetie, but, of course the phone lines were jammed. I didn't realize that it had been a much bigger quake on the mainland. The Things were a little freaked out by it, but like I said, it wasnt' much.

Both Things have had birthdays recently, Thing1 turning 8 and Thing2 turning 5. Thing1 got a boogie board which we took to Shark Harbor last weekend to try out. It took a little while for him to get hang of catching waves, but by the end of the afternoon, he was getting some pretty good rides. I had to try it out, too. It was fun, although I did get a lot of sand in my suit. Today we are having a combined, belated birthday party for the Things. Since there are a limited number of kids in town, everyone's invited. It'll be a simple fun-on-the-beach, grill-some-food party.

Tourist season is really in full swing here. The harbor fills up every weekend, and there are many people visiting the lab and wandering around town. Despite this, it still seems quiet here (except Friday and Saturday nights, when we can quite clearly hear the DJ at the bar until about 12:30am).

Visitors and vacation

We had our first visitors to the island. My Mom and Dad and Auntie N came for an exhausting time. For the visitors, the visit started with a flight to LAX and a stay overnight in a local hotel. The next day they caught the noon ferry to the island and we met them at the dock. That afternoon, we took a hike to the end of Catalina Harbor and looked at the ocean. Thing2 got tired on the way back and had to be carried partway.

The next morning we went kayaking over at WMSC. Thing2 was quite firm about being scared of going, so he and Sweetie stayed behind. Grammy and Grandpa took up one boat, Auntie N paired with Thing1, and I had a boat to myself. We paddled around the point, looking at the kelp beds and fishes below, to a place called Blue Caverns. This is a cave that runs through an outcropping such that, when the tide is right, you can kayak right through from one side to the other. There was a tall ship there as well letting kids (probably some sort of camp experience) paddle through in pairs. We had hit the tide just right, and paddled through both ways. Then we headed out to Bird Rock. Thing1 was gold-bricking pretty badly at this point and was told there was no lunch for those who didn't paddle. On our way out, we saw a sea lion sticking its head out of the water. Bird Rock was not as stinky as it sometimes is, which was nice. We went all the way around and then headed for the little cove next to Big Fisherman (I'm not sure what its name is) because sea lions often sun there on the rocks when it's low tide. But it was high tide, so we headed back to the boat ramp.

That afternoon we toured around the lab a little bit and then drove out to Middle Ranch. We did some sightseeing at the Shark Harbor overlook, and then stopped to see Tachi, the captive Catalina Island Fox. These foxes are thought to have been brought over by the Native Americans who lived on the island and have evolved to be very small. She was sleeping in one of her little hidey-holes when we got there, but very obligingly aroused herself and wandered around her enclosure checking us out. Grammy and Auntie N really liked the fox. We also stopped by the eagle cage. Both of these were good stops, because we didn't see any other foxes or eagles on our trip.

The next day, we drove to Avalon. We stopped at the Airport in the Sky for lunch (bison burgers - yum!) and then drove down into town and wandered over to the Casino (not a gambling casino - it used to be a large dancehall, back in the days of dancehalls). There is a little museum in the lower level. We met one of the docents, Jeannie, who was very enthusiastic about Catalina history. Next it was off to the botanical gardens. It's been around for about 80 years and has a great collection of Channel Island species and succulents (think big cactuses). We also climbed the William Wrigley Memorial, where his body was at one time interred. Then it was back across the island. We made one stop to hike out to an overlook above WMSC, and then it was back home.

We weren't exhausted enough, so the next day we went snorkeling. Again, Thing2 raised objections, so I stayed with him (looking around a little close to shore) while the others splashed around. I've always thought that in a wetsuit, everyone looks like a superhero. Unfortunately, everyone looks like a dork in a snorkel mask. But we saw lots of cool fish, some of which we were even able to identify! (Garribaldi.) For lunch we picnicked at Ben Westin beach. To get there, you have to drive to the trailhead and then hike 1.7 miles to the beach, but when you get there... We had the beach to ourselves. The surf was pounding, the kids were running around getting rolled by the waves. It was great. And to top it off, we only had minimal whining on the hike back to the truck.

Friday was our day of 'rest'. We packed up some camping gear and boarded the ferry for the mainland. We stayed overnight in a hotel so the boys could swim in a pool and took off the next morning for Joshua Tree National Park. On the way there we drove through a massive wind farm. And then the temperature began to climb. It turns out we once again planned our vacation during a heat wave. By the time we got to the southern entrance to the park it was 114°F. Not much chance of seeing any wildlife at that temperature. We drove north through the park, hopping out to read signs, walk through the cholla garden and climb on rocks. Thing2 turned out to be a great lizard spotter, finding a big collared lizard sitting in a crevice. That evening Grammy and Grandpa were smart enough to stay in a motel; the rest of us camped. We were, in fact, the only people, uh, brave enough to camp that night. The rest of the campground was empty. I think the temperature had dropped to about 100° by 9pm. We worked on the Things' Jr. Ranger badges. We made a small campfire and had s'mores. This was interesting because the chocolate bars had completely melted, so we cut off a corner of the wrapper and squeezed it out like toothpaste. It was hard to sleep in the heat. And then the full moon came up. About 4am it actually started to cool off, but I wouldn't say it was a restful night of sleep.

The next day, Grammy and Grandpa's rental car wouldn't start. They spent the morning dealing with that (they did get to go to Palm Springs...) while we did some more visiting in the park. We foolishly decided to take a short hike. I mean, hey, it was only 95°! Once we convinced the Things that climbing every rock in site was not a great idea in this heat, the whining from Thing2 began. We still had another 3 1/2 miles to go. It was a hot hike, made extremely tedious by intermittent tantrums. But the rock formations were quite striking. We decided that we had proven our toughness and left Joshua tree to meet Grammy and Grandpa for lunch.

But vacation wasn't over. Not yet. There was one final stop: Channel Islands National Park. We drove to Ventura and stayed overnight. The next morning we took a ferry over to Santa Cruz. Oh they tried to scare us off with talk of four foot swells at 7-8 seconds and unusually strong morning winds, but we were on a mission. The boat had a school group on it that was having a grand old time - for the first twenty minutes. Then it got quiet, and then the barfing began. Sweetie, Auntie N and I had all taken dramamine, Grammy and Grandpa have strong stomachs (or wills), and the Things have never shown any ill effects from the sea, so we were all alright. But we were all glad to get off the boat. We hiked one trail that took us up for a look over the channel. The water was rife with whitecaps. This is where I took a picture that must include whales. Then we hiked back down to the campground and had a picnic lunch. A passing ranger told us where we might see the elusive Island Scrub Jay, so after lunch we started another hike, but we misinterpreted the rangers directions. Sweetie and Thing2 turned back at this point (a wise choice). The rest of us continued the Death March. The trail started to go up. Then it went up some more. Then it really started to climb. I wasn't sure Grammy was going to make it. Thing1 was a real trooper, not whining one little bit the whole time. Finally we made it to the top. I took a picture of some distant valleys that I'm sure includes an Island Scrub Jay or two. From there it was all down hill. We got back to the beach to find Thing2 filling the ocean up with rocks. The ferry was back (a little late and noticeably empty). The winds had kicked up even more, but now we were traveling with them, so the ride back was much smoother.

We were barely able to stand up at this point, but we had a farewell dinner, and Grammy and Grandpa and Auntie N headed off. We headed back to San Pedro. Vacation was over. We all had a great time, but I'm not sure I could've taken another day of it.