Olympus Odyssey: Not the Nolan version

Counting one's mercies. Well, a week further away from the 4th of July shenanigans has not been fully bereft of warzone explosives, but an improvement. Despite the rather dire situation in Eastern Washington and most of Canada, I can say that we are not on fire... so far... it's early in the summer... 

I mean, not literally. Artistically, oh baby, I'm on FIIIIIRE!

As my birthday tentatively looms, Andrew has undertaken to find me an even-more-betterer camera set. My current camera - a Nikon DSLR from the beforetimes - is heavy enough to do a number on my already twisted and miserable back. Which is weird, because the whole set up is a smidge less than 4 pounds, but then again, you try wearing a 4 pound weight around your neck (along with your usual several pound purse and your very light binoculars). It's more awkward than you think! And it's enough that I've stopped taking it on walks every day, opting instead for every few days or any novel excursions. 

This, of course, cannot stand. Also, when I got into photography (ok, bought a camera so I could go to a photo walk in the hopes of maybe having a sense of identity outside of  disabled mother-and-wife) and then he got super obsessed with photography shortly after, I might have sulkily accused him of "stealing my thing" a few times, so he may feel obligated to make sure I have a nice set up before he inevitably buys a few million cameras, some fancy lights, a subscription to Lightroom and whatever else gear is essential to go full photog hereabout. But, really, I think he just loves gear and loves matching it up just right with the right person! It is offensive for somebody to miss out on an activity due to their lack of appropriate equipment. 

And it would be seriously cool to have a camera, so I ain't complaining!

Rabbit hole unlocked.

Discernment begins. 

My personal process with any equipment is the following:

 1. Attempt to research what I should get. Get overwhelmed by all the specs and different features. Crash out. Buy something fairly at random with a sincere feeling of dread.

2. Feel panic when I receive said item. If I get it out of the box within the first week or so, we're all good. If I don't, then it sits in the box for several years until I forget it exists or give it away in a cleaning binge.

3. Assuming it made it out of the box, start using it a week or two later after several pep talks. 

4. Learn how to use it better by repeatedly getting frustrated when something doesn't do what I want and figuring out how to address the frustrating thing. Become attached as we reach a detente on frustrating things and gradual tweaks. 

5. Enjoy until I drop it enough to break it or possibly just lose it somewhere. If it's just a little broken, keep using it in its newer quirkier form. Keep dropping it until it's fully non-functional. 

6. Rinse. Repeat. 

7. Or start to do all that, get interrupted by a gearhead who knows in his soul that there is in fact a perfect tool for every user and by god it is his destiny to find it! Step back and try not to panic as the magic happens. We are working on #7. 

This camera process is a little more involved. Mostly in terms of Andrew telling me lots of things that sound like words when he says them but seem to go off fizzing off into the ether once I try to wrap them into any semblance of syntax. We get it down to like "big zoom good" "heavy bad" and then I can waltz with it, but there's always some processing involved (har har). What can I say? I go almost entirely by feel on pretty much all aspects of the camera, so it's a little hard to revert back to the technical underpinnings of the dials and buttons I pushed to get to whatever photo I wanted. 

 I think in the end he will probably propose the perfect camera with a pristine presentation mostly in Excel but I'm not ruling out PowerPoint and I'll be like "wow!"

That said, I am participating a decent bit more than average: the process so far has also involved fancy camera rental. 

First off: awesome you can rent cameras (though I'm terrified of breaking a rental). Second off. Yeah fancy camera!

Olympus Om cameras are super chic for birders. I think there was a lot more to the research experience beyond my "I saw a couple of targeted ads on Facebook" but I do know that much from my targeted Facebook ads. 

Turns out the fancy rental camera wasn't particularly lighter than my current (discovering this allowed Andrew to spend roughly the rest of the week obsessing over different camera builds in grams across a rainbow of different set-ups - expect his new guidebook SKINNY CAMERA! to be published in May), but it was definitely fancier.

 My Nikon is a DSLR that's 10 years young and comfortably used at this point. I bought this used because cameras are freaking expensive, I was literally buying this so I wouldn't look weird going on a "photo walk" I impulsively signed up for to get myself out of the house, and my hobbies have been known to (1) never actually take off, and (2) only last a few months if they do take off.

 Had I not spun myself up about birdies, this was a very likely trajectory. But here we are. It's been a good little steed, other than the scorching back pain and whatnot. It is also definitely a bit simple compared to more modern cameras. Probably a good thing in the great scheme of my learning process. 

 The Om is far more recent, mirrorless and much smarter than me. To a fault, at times, because I kept accidentally changing up settings (I'm not even sure how as it seemed to happen, while I was walking or possibly fidgeting with it) until it took full scale abstract art photography as the default.

 That said, it did have some very cool features. Including a very fast lens speed (8000) and the ability to take a crapton of photos very very quickly. Oh and a "bird mode" subject detection autofocus. Not entirely sure how important this was, but it did seem to correctly identify the general location of many birds and put little focus squares around some of their eyes. 

Whatever it did or didn't do, I'm really pleased with this picture of a female Anna's hummingbird it helped me get.

In a perfect world, I would like the lighting to be a bit different, but still... the camera caught the wings and I love it. 

I'm not sure I'll ever capture a picture quite like this again and I'm really grateful to have had the opportunity. 

Still, it was not a huge improvement in back-breakingosity, and it was - again - far too clever for me. The quest continues. Andrew needless to say, has several more pages of notes based on research following this experience. I will have the trimmest, fittest, zoomiest fastest damned camera in the world! Within reason!

Olympus did get one last hurrah before the return. On Sunday (Sunday having absolutely zero World Cup Games, because life is cruel like that and seriously we had to wait until Tuesday???) we went to Seahurst Park to check out low tide.

The environmental center does kind of an informal event most weekends of the summer, in which naturalists from the center hang around the beach and answer questions. It seemed like something we all would enjoy in our various ways. Allan by cavorting around investigating everything with her poking stick, Andrew by wandering about and taking pictures with his Sony camera, and me having a really nice hour and change of wandering around before starting to feel faint and achy and muttering about needing to go home soon for the next hour and a half without any particular conviction because it's nice to see Allan enjoying the world. This is how I party. 

We did not necessarily have many questions (I didn't anyways), but we did think it would be fun to go at low tide. At the very least, there were definitely going to be (sea)gulls. 

And of course, crows

Not a particularly awesome picture, photo-wise (I hit some random buttons on the fancy camera that rendered it partially unusable quickly enough to confound myself), but I just really love a good wingspread. I like bird wings, I dunno! Crows are so high-fash! Like who wouldn't want a cape that drapes like that?

There were also several geoducks, to Allan's delight. Miles of various seaweeds to slip and break one's neck on. Pebbles to help break your fall. Tons of little rivers and tide pools to slog through. And the general tide pool ambience. So. Many. Things. To. Poke!!!

Seahurst is a really cool park. I don't go there much, and largely just to meet people who are staying in Burien or thereabouts. But it has some fond memories and some cool landscapes. I heard a lot of birds in the woods as we walked into the park, and the trees were pretty cool. 

Wearing sneakers the entire time was a choice, since there is no way to go tidepooling without splashing through plenty of water. But I just don't have any actually waterproof boots, so wet socks it was! Best part about all that was changing into dry socks a little while later. Highly recommended. Super indulgent!

Anyways, it was a fun camera adventure until I fidgeted my way into a fairly inoperable camera and had to make do with my cellphone again. This was a bit of a repeated theme with the Om, and I do not blame it for being a little too clever for me. 

The Om has gone home, but the Odyssey continues. Next up: Sirens! Or Samsung. Or no, Sony I honestly get them all confused. No really, Sony! Something Sibilant.

The next rental came in the mail on Wednesday and it is 1.1 Kilos versus my current camera's 1.6 or 1.7 ( I can't totally remember because kilos are nonsense units to me). But it is markedly lighter. Stay tuned for my impressions on this... if I decide to share them... which I probably will, but you just never know!

While we wait... life!

Not to be daunted by a single beach, Allan and I returned to Puget Sound's edge for a playdate - hers, mostly, but I suppose I did participate in the frisbee toss and general wading. 

Yes, I had my cell phone camera hereabouts. It takes better pictures than most cameras I have owned, but now I'm spoiled enough to really notice all the deficits

The beach was exhausting, although not nearly as exhausting as yet another round of evening fireworks on the 13th and 14th. I guess some of our neighbors observe Bastille Day?? Be so for real. Serves France right that Spain beat their asses on their special day. 

Yes, yes they did! Oh my gawd, the World Cup is shaping up nicely. First Spain just trounced France and then Argentina did its heart stopping "rally from behind" to take England. I honestly don't care how the places go over the weekend, I'm just pumped to watch the games!

I've been watching with my mom and sister this year (via text - we're all pretty far apart), which has been quite nice. Usually it's a hard sell to get anyone to watch with me. Although Allan is moderately interested, as long as she can use her phone or kindle to fill in the gaps between excited announcer screaming! She also maxes out at a game per day, so I've been selecting one a day and watching the rest on the laptop. 

And, so, with that, I bid you all adieu. There may be a hike this morning. There definitely will be foot-soccer-ball. And - if I'm lucky - I will not break the hot new Sony and its fancy new lens. 

Going Forth From the Fourth!

Survived!

 Thank goodness, we're through the inferno and into the regular smoke season (currently clear, but the wildfires on the other side of the Cascades are piling up so... we'll see)!

We celebrated the 4th by heavily watering our lawn (or really, by me asking Andrew to after I forgot about it and had gone to bed) and removing ourselves to our individual bunkers for a night full of room shattering BOOOOOOOMS that stretched well into the early morning. I'm glad we did water the lawn, because not everywhere on our street fared as well... 

Andrew and several other neighbors ran out to put out this curbside fire, one that luckily happened while people were still relatively awake. 

Oh yes, this happened on almost the same street corner where somebody got shot two weeks ago at 2 a.m.. So, yeah, feeling like city living is really working out awesome!

Oh we're not done, though: the next night, the same wild barrage of BOOOOMS went off all night and Allan and I got to watch another neighbor put out another fire in the median just a half block down from the previous one. This was large bonfire level. The neighbor from the corner made several runs with a bucket until the fire was put out. The fire trucks eventualy showed up to see the rubble, checked some stuff and then left. Luckily it did not spread to the rest of the median, which has foliage that plenty of birds and wildlife use as home. Though it definitely would've looked pretty badass to have that entire corridor in flames... missed opportunities #nextyear

I am so fucking over it. In addition to all the casual arson, the neighborhood was basically just a war zone for about three days afterwards. Apparently, this anarchy was in full force all about, as fires about tripled that evening and hospital admissions were (naturally) up by at least as much. 

It's been bad before, but this year was exceptional (all around West Seattle and White Center from what I'm hearing). I'm so tired of fireworks. It is absurd to me that they are legal and so popular. They are dangerous, loud, and fuck up the environment, and yet every year assholes go out and start fires because it's their god given right as Americans (to ignore local ordinances because the police never bother to enforce the ban).

I propose a new fire brigade be formed for the first two weeks of July. It will consist of concerned citizens carrying fire hoses and if they see somebody setting off fireworks, they and all their fireworks get shot with a fucking fire hose. Because this be bullshit, my brothers and sister in Christmas. 

Not super thrilled with people right now. 

 But luckily our yard still looks lovely. 

Andrew likes to talk about the dream he had when we moved into this house. One in which we would sit idly in our beautiful yard and eat BBQ on our little patio. 

This never came to fruition. I don't really eat much BBQ, being outdoors to eat usually means an allergy attack, and the front of the house usually gets pretty warm for sitting. The outdoor patio table has been mostly repurposed as a "squirrel and bird overflow feeding" platform, and the chairs kind of hang out by the door in the shade. 

The backyard is an even less palatable candidate for lolling shenanigans, largely because it directly faces an alley that often is piled with trash. But also because the afternoon sun is exceptionally scorching during the summer months. Oh, add to this that Allan - until late - has considered herself an "indoor child" and my strong aversion to grass for multiple reasons. 

But recently, the dream has come true a bit more. In a bit of a different way. 

Last year, I decided that pigeons were cool and I wanted to read some things about them. This evolved into learning about CORVIDS and we never turned back from there. 

 After a few months of befriending the local crows, Allan and I attempted to bring some to our yard, by leaving out peanuts. This did not really appeal to the crows immediately enough. Eventually the squirrels figured it out and the crows did not want to fight with them. 

But feeding one kind of bird is - of course - a gateway drug. 

Shortly after that, we got out first feeder! And that has changed a bit of everything. 

Allan and I went full scale on the ornithology spin, and our yard became a sanctuary for local flora and fauna. 

And suddenly, it's become a whole lot more interesting all around. Albeit in a little bit different way. 

Much of the appreciation comes from looking out various windows at the bird shenanigans. 

But multiple days of heavy yardwork has manifested an expected excitement about the yard itself and all the plants and pollinators we've yielded. 

The indoor child not only wants to go on regular "bae walks" (to visit the crows and every other bird out and about), but she also enjoys hanging out in the backyard. While we don't have adequate seating exactly, the retaining wall between our property and the neighbor's yard is comfortably in a bit of shade and relatively decent to sit on. 

Not gonna lie, my allergies are going bonkers from all the time outside, but at least it's pretty. 

We've had opportunity to share, even. 

Not so funny story. Last year my mom was diagnosed with Stage One oral cancer. They rushed her into surgery and followed it up with a grueling round of radiation therapy (does not sound fun, would not recommend for kicks). She survived with some lingering side effects like dry mouth and some awkwardness with eating. Worth it, but a bit of an ordeal. 

This year, her partner David was diagnosed the same cancer. Or sort of. It's a bit more mysterious. They found a single cell carcinoma on his lymph node. Apparently, the cancer can't just start there, so the primary is somewhere else. But just like Waldo, it's been tricky to locate. After two CTs and a PET scan, plus a variety of other physical exams, nobody could figure out where the original cancer is! There is a small chance that the body actually just dealt with it. I guess that happens, but obviously everyone wants to be sure. 

They were both HPV negative on initial testing, so it was a real mystery how they would both end up with the same cancer, especially given my mom has none of the other risk factors. It sounds like there are HPV viruses that don't get tested for, because they're rare and this apparently was the factor. Maybe

So this week he went in for some kind of robotic surgery to find the damned thing.

My mom waited in a waiting room for about six or seven hours, getting the occasional "yep still in surgery" updates over a few hours. He survived. The doctor had moved on to the next patient. And all she knew as of last night was that they'd removed both of his tonsils and things looked fine. 

He was not in a particularly sociable mood after waking up, so she was given the all clear to come out our way and spend the first Gramma Pam afternoon with us at our house since before her surgery! 

Which is of course mixed because the reason she's down here kind of sucks, but it was nice to spend some time together under any circumstances. 

We spent a lot of time out in the yard, with Allan proudly showing off every last leaf and bug. Then we watched the world cup. 

Today, hopefully, there will be a more substantive update, but no promises in the medical field. 

And, for me? 

More world cup! But also, just reveling in the heightened expectation that i might actually be able to go to bed without the room being bombed (instead Allan will just come in with an armful of books and tell me about the bunnies she's reading about until 2 a.m. but at least that's more peaceful overall!)

Sally 4th!

Oh boy! It's "a bunch of dumbshits set off flammable bombs in the alley and possibly light the yard on fire again" weekend! Happy patriotism day/time for several catnaps a day weekend!

The festivities apparently began last night, when fireworks (which felt like they were in the room with us) went until about 3 a.m. Tonight, I am expecting them to keep going until about 6 a.m. based on previous experience. I might just go ahead and water the lawn before bed. Just in case... 

We had grand plans to go see a drone show this evening. Had.

Drones! I hate fireworks for a variety of reasons. They are awful for the air quality, awful for native wildlife, awful for pets, awful for people with sensory sensitivities and PTSD, and they run off nasty chemicals into the water (yes, it's been tested). I know I know, be more "fun" and traumatize some birds and blow off a finger or two! Bite me. I didn't get any sleep last night and I'm not in a mood to be pleasant. 

I'm not against the artful use of pyrotechnics - I just prefer it on a more personal professional level

 But drones are cool. And somehow just not nearly as popular. Case in point: the drone show was cancelled. Ah well. 

We're now debating whether it's worth trying to see some of the accursed fireworks or just hide in a room with blackout curtains and several layers of ear protection. Debates are ongoing. 

Not on fire... yet?

Definitely we'll watch some World Cup games though. 

 My July has so far been dominated by The World Cup and I'd like to keep this going. It's fun, because it's usually the only time I can get anyone else interested in watching soccer with me. I used to follow the European Leagues. Went through a phase with the British Leagues. Watched some MLS. But it's always kind of lonely and usually requires an extra streaming subscription. So, yay, shared fandom experience!

 Fun fact about "soccer"/Football. Actually, the British coined the term soccer, not us yanks after all. 

 "Football" - in some form or other - had been around for quite some time, but there wasn't a lot of consistency around what exactly it was other than some key ingredients: a ball of some sort, kicking shit, and attacking each other in some way or other. 

Around the 1860's, two major camps developed: the rugby style that allowed players to carry the ball, and a form closer to what we recognize now as soccer/football. Two associations formed around that time to set official association rules for rugby and association soccer.

 Oxford college students in the 1880s differentiated between the two by calling them rugger and asoccer (which was apparently short for association and don't ask me how that scans - I'm not British enough to follow). Over time, it was shortened to soccer and became a nickname for what's more solidly known as football most places. Rugger eventually became rugby and soccer was still football.

 Meanwhile, while soccer and rugby were developing in England, Americans developed a variation on rugby and soccer that developed into gridiron football. (AKA NFL type football). Over time, this was shortened to just football and so association football distinguished itself as soccer when it made its way to the United States. 

Other countries also have their own regional versions of football, and soccer is more commonly the term in these locations for the international football version. Canada has its own gridiron football. Ireland has gaelic football. Australia has Australian rules football. 

Japan refers to the game as both sakkā_ (サッカー) and futtobōru (フットボール). 

In Italy, the game is called Calcio (derived from the word for "kick"). In Samoa, it's called soka. 

And so on. 

Anyways, what I mean to say is that - as is often the case when a British person wonders why American accents or vocabulary does something different than modern British - it's because the British used to and then they decided to stop but nobody sent us the memo. We are so retro!

You're welcome. Also, it's been a really good Cup. Seattle has hosted admirably without a ton of local impact or bad traffic (knock on wood). And there's some just bonkers upsets or valiant battles. I'm thoroughly hooked at this point. Croatia's loss broke me, and Cabo Verde's stand against Argentina made my whole again! Damn, it's a good year. 

Anyways, other than soccerballerrugfoot, Allan and I celebrated another girl's (long) weekend with a variety of outings, including a multi-hour playdate that culminated in Allan's first ever visit to an ice cream truck, well, van I guess.

 I didn't have cash, so another parent spotted her. Apparently, I should carry cash again? I haven't done this in years. I have a twenty dollar bill on the fridge that somebody gave me to pay me back for somethingorother maybe 4 years ago. I am keeping it like a card to rememebr them by far more than actual legal tinder. 

Oh, Andrew eventually came back on "staycation" so I could actually go to an appointment in person. So I went in for what I would like to nominate as a contender most pointless appointment to have in person. This is an accomplishment, since I've been to many pointless in person visits that involve shaking hands, the doctor saying "everything good?" and then us shaking hands again.

 Every time I do telehealth, I wonder if I'm cheating myself of care, but every time I go ahead and drive down into Seattle and find parking etc., I can honestly say... no. Obvious exceptions include things that are urgent or require "swabs". But otherwise... well.. I went in for an issue I'm already seeing a PT for since I'm apparently supposed to do this. She basically said "ok, keep seeing the PT". Which is fine, but since it had been suggested this should be an in-person visit by the staff, I'm a little miffed about the whole thing.

I also have a rash on my hip. This is very in the realm of normal shit that happens to me, but it felt timely that it would happen just before I could actually go in and have somebody look at it instead of my usual strategy of self-treating and waiting to see if it goes away. The doctor literally shrugged and said if it's still there in two weeks, we can consult a dermatologist online. So I just made a dermatologist appointment for two weeks. Not my dermatologist  - the one with whom I had previously scheduled an annual appointment next week which was then subsequently cancelled because the doctor had to be somewhere and I can't reschedule because they have no online portal and nobody answers the phones ever - but somebody in Burien who wasn't booked out until September. 

So I guess if the rash clears up I can just get my regular appointment with some rando. I swear every year, it's a new dermatologist and other cast of specialists!

Aaaaaaanyways...

Because June blessedly complied with our Juneuary expectations, everything is still fecund and verdant out and about. The yard is lovely, the walkways in our neighborhood are heaving with life and bird song and butterflies. As much as I hate summer, it's pretty sweet. 

I know, I know, our time will come. It's already heating back up again. But it's been a nice respite from an abnormally warm year so far in Washington weather. 

Wishing everyone a happy 4th for all who enjoy exploding shit in the sky. And for those who like to sleep at night, solidarity. I hope your earplugs are strong!

Well this is nice...

 

I have enjoyed just an extra taste of Juneuary we got the last few days (after the latest "heat wave" which is largely just "ugh, August weather")

For one, I can breathe outdoors. For another, the plants are happy. We are in fact watering part of our yard this year. Which is a first. But this year is special. This year, we have a fairy garden

Our fairy garden is largely a collaborative effort with the crows. They like to dig up grubs in unhealthy lawns (yes, if the crows are attacking your lawn, your lawn was already unhealthy, sorry). This essentially tills the soil, leaving an opportunity for sowing. I started last year with some packets of clover seeds. They are not native species (gasp), but they are lovely and they are a fuckton nicer than grass. You don't have to mow it if you don't want to and it stay green without much fuss. I really like our clover. 

While filling crow mounds, I threw some extra seeds in the fairly barren area in the front of the house. The clover popped up within weeks and stayed green long after the surviving grass went "apocalypse: last week!" on our asses. 

This last spring, I decided to take it up a level and scattered a mix of wildflower seeds in our next mound. Figured the birds would just eat them all and everyone would still be happy. But, they took!

 

I'm afraid to report to the pollinator garden advocates that many of the wildflowers are not specifically native to Seattle. However, 90% of Seattleites came from California, so why not their pretty flowers too? 

Never fear, we do embrace our weediest locals. In the front yard, we're encouraging the wild beach strawberry to take over. It's been around since we moved in, but seems to have had a resurgence in the last couple of years. Allan and I have been trying to train the vines to find desirable growing spots. I would say it's working. And, hey, they are starting to form teeny tiny strawberries!

Beach strawberry is forming the teenies little strawberry right now!

In the backyard, we've allowed an expansion of the fireweed that volunteered itself in our yard last year. I quite love them. They're gigantic and very flamboyant. I'm told they are pretty aggressive, which is what I like in a "native weed". We do also have the King Edward flowering currant and Oregon creeping grape. They seem to need a little more love than the strawberries and the fireweed. But so far so good (fingers crossed)

Of our wildflowers, several are indeed California natives - clarkia, baby blue eyes, one spot are all a bit southern coast type flowers that do well here. 

Cornflower was introduced from Europe but has long been naturalized across the US. 

California poppy (that cute orange job) actually is native to Washington. Why not, right? 

I've heard this and that about how you need the absolutely nativest of native plants to sustain your native bees and pollinators, but I actually don't feel the research is that clear, having obsessed over it for a while. Sometimes a quick meal is awesome and dandelions are fantastic fast food for all sorts of bees.

 I also have read a ton of accounts of relatively rapid evolution in species with shorter life spans. And I do wonder if that may occur when the predominate flora shifts in an environment. We can hope. But while it's true that some specific non-native plants are not as nutritive for specific species of local bees, they do seem to attract honeybees and other generalist competitors, theoretically at least freeing up the local stuff for the local dudes. So I'll call it a draw at least. 

 All I can say is that we've counted at least 7 or 8 different bee species (Allan has a Washington State bees poster because this is very important) happily pollinating in our yard as well as several butterflies. And we do make sure that there's a little bit of a buffet for everyone. 

What I do know is that a lot of these plants are bug friendly, which in turn is very bird friendly. 

The outer perimeter of our house is buzzing and chirping with life and I'm here for it!

In general the birds are back in force. For a while, they were hidden away nesting, but the babies are all fledged now and squawking along in the trees. It's a very noisy and very cool time to be out and about. 

Not that anything is quite as delightful as a feeder full o' birds.

A pond with splish-splashing ducks is up there. Especially with all the swallows (not picture and never pictured because they are way too fast to ever catch) flitting about. 

We haven't seen many ducklings this week. 

I'm strongly hoping that's because they all grew up and not because they've been offered to the cruel fortune of nature. There are plenty of young ducks in the pond with female plumage slowly melting into male (they all start with female looking plumage and then the males develop their showier plumage later). 

Anyways, it's been a pleasant low-key girls weekend (the Y chromosome is back in California again!) Allan and I have taken many walks, saw birds in expected and unexpected places...

... went to a gallery show... 

And ended up buying an absolutely gigantic book about bees at the nursery downtown. Allan gave me a deep play by play of the first thirty or so pages and has now decided to devote the rest of her evening to Youtube. I'm assuming the book will be ignored for several months until the next evening she can't sleep (at which point she will give a loud dramatic reading of every page until 4 in the morning or so while I feebly attempt some sleep!)

Good times, good times. 

Happy almost-July!