In the Autumn, male Tarantulas leave their burrows in search of mates. But in early March, they apparently leave their burrows in order to communicate with each other via walkie-talkie. What they discuss in unknown.

This week, like last week, started off with mostly blue skies. Once again, I'm remembering twenty plus names as a new week of camp gets underway. My field group contains the usual assortment of personality types - smart kids, quiet kids, excited kids, and everything else in between. There is one little girl who has arthritis in her hips and knees and has trouble walking. She doesn't complain though. It's interesting that the kids who have the biggest obstacles to overcome are almost always the most mature. Not too surprising though. True maturity is often gained at a price.

I worked the evening program tonight with a co-worker who is sick with the same bug that I had the week before last. I'm glad it's the same one because that means I won't catch it. That said, my throat feels a little scratchy today. This could be due to allergies though, because otherwise I feel fine.

Oh, I believe I forgot to mention Willow's birthday party. We had most of her nearby relatives over for a wonderful chocolate cake, blondies (like brownies, except blonde so they matched Willow's hair), and butterscotch cookie bars, all baked by Jen. Willow opened her presents with glee and then threw them at us. She seemed happiest about the rubber ducks, but has been playing with the other stuff too. Her loot included lots of nice clothes for her to wear as well.

I'm still reeling with wonder at the fact that she's two already. The next time I turn around she'll be a teenager. I want this stage to last longer. She's just too damn cute. She now says "you're welcome" when you thank her for something. How very polite.

A storm of uncertain duration is moving through the area at the moment. The forecast in the paper calls for rain for the next several days at least. It's sure to be a wet and muddy week at work.

At the moment I'm itching from the first case of Poison Oak I've had in 20 years or so. Hopefully I won't transfer it to Jen or the kids. I'm not even sure when I got it. Must have touched a plant without knowing it. Since they're deciduous, it's a little harder to spot them during the winter months.

I did one party this weekend, and managed to get rear ended on the way there. I was stopped at a light, as was the person behind me, when some dunderhead in an SUV (of course) failed to see that we were stopped and hit the person behind me with enough force to cause her car to hit mine. There was no damage to my car (well, the rearview mirror fell of, but it falls off if you look at it funny), but the other two vehicles were banged up a bit. We all exchanged information and then I rushed off to the party to find out that they already knew I'd be late because a party guest had passed the scene and witnessed me standing there in my official party labcoat. So no harm done (to me, anyway). I got a 25 dollar tip too.

Last night, M and I went up to Berkeley to see Enemy Combatant, the new Central Works play. This time the inspiration comes from John Walker Lindh and the atrocities at Abu Gharaib (sp?). Very nicely acted, with wonderful sound design by G. Playing at the Berkeley City Club through march 26 (thurs - sun).

Okay, time to go wrangle children.

It was grey and cool all day today. We went up to Lake Ranch reservoir to eat lunch and play some educational games. I took some pictures.




These young Bullfrogs were hiding under a log at the edge of the water. It's strange that a species originally introduced to California because people liked eating their legs is now so abundant. Let that be a warning.




Here's a Pacific Tree frog mistaking the sleeve of a sweatjacket for a burrow.




Beyond the reservoir is a shady, moist area populated by amphibians and slugs. Fungi were also present in glorious abundance. Not a good place to play games though, so we left to seek out firmer ground.

Willow turns two tomorrow! Hurrah!

The day passed uneventfully, with everything going according to plan. Being a four day camp week, I have to cram five days worth of instruction into a smaller amount of camp time, so I shortened some lessons and changed things around a bit. We still managed to visit with the little tarantula who lives down near the Nature Lab though. He obediently sat on my hand while the kids all whipped out their cameras. Inside the Nature Lab itself, I discovered that one of the boys was so scared of snakes that he wouldn't even look at the lab's resident Gopher Snake. I didn't force the issue. People don't easily give up their phobias.

I almost forgot about a funny little "kid blooper" that happened yesterday: One of the kids was defining a term, possibly "decomposer" or something like that, using the word "organism", except that he left out a syllable. Yep. That one. None of the other kids noticed, but a science teacher from one of the schools was along on the hike and she definitely got a chuckle out of it.

The night hike tonight was rain free, but very bright. The moon, even though it is near full, was nowhere to be seen due to the omnipresent cloud blanket, but reflected city light washed away much of the darkness. I always make sure to talk about the city lights, and about why people feel compelled to leave so many lights on all night. It ties right into one of the subjects we cover at the beginning of every night hike. Of course I'm talking about fear. People in the cities are afraid of burglers and other even more nefarious criminal types sneaking into darkened buildings, while kids up at camp are usually afraid of something they saw in a movie, and imagine this thing sneaking around in the darkened forest. Fear is an important survival tool, but it seems that we do indeed live in a fearful society. People are more afraid than they need to be. Maybe.

Or maybe they're not afraid enough. Or maybe they fear the wrong things.

Who knows?

I went back to work today. It was warmer and sunnier than it was supposed to be, which is okay. Kind of nice, actually. I love the rain, but I love the times in between rain as well. There's still a lot of fungus growth and amphibian activity inspired by recent rains. The ground has soaked up a lot of water this season. We're still not allowed to go down one trail due to it being in an active slide area, where a couple of decades ago a big chunk of mountainside came down, wiping out a section of trail and tons of trees. It wouldn't be good if something like that happened while we were hiking by.

One of the kids this week insists on being called Guano. Nothing I can really add to that.

In a few days, Willow turns two! There will be cake and presents and celebrating.

I'm pretty tired, probably the aftereffect of being ill. I'll sleep soon.

I've been hanging out in Italy for most of the week, with occasional side trips to England, France, and *gasp* Los Angeles. I've learned some interesting things about the art world, although more about people who sell and steal works of art than about people who create them. There have also been murders. Lots of them. Some of them quite nasty. In the end, things generally work out quite well though. "Well", in this case, meaning "satisfyingly."

Too bad I've only got one more book to read in this series (by Iain Pears, and called "art history mysteries", probably by the publishers, who I imagine feel the need to over-categorize things much more than authors do). Still, this has been the most amount of guilt-free reading time I've had since I was a teenager, I think. I've been too sick to do much else.

Today I feel pretty well, although there's still some sinus pressure, complete with headaches. Last night I managed to hack up some blood, which alarmed me a bit. It may be due to having a bit of fluid in my lungs from laying on my back for so long while post-nasal drip flowed freely down into the caverns of my body. It may be due to a throat raw from coughing. Who knows? The human body is a mysterious thing.

Finally rejoining the real world, I went out late this afternoon and performed at a birthday party for a nine year old girl. This time I was armed with a tesla coil and an ethanol burner so I could zap things and burn chemicals. A couple of times I managed to zap myself right through the glove I was wearing, producing a bit of a rush. Similar to adrenaline, really.

I had originally planned to bring along my last remaining scorpion so I could make it glow under a black light bulb powered by the tesla coil, but when I went and checked on the scorpion last night I discovered that the term "remaining" no longer applied. It had died. It is an ex-scorpion. Deceased. Kind of sad, but expected. Maybe I should try breeding them... hmmm...

Anyway, the party was a success even without any arachnids in attendance. Afterwards I got a bunch of Indian food (In general, Indian families are interested when they discover that not only do I love Indian food, but that I'm a vegetarian), some cake, and a $20 tip.

Back at home, Willow, little detective that she is, pointed to my water speckled boots and said, "rain, rain!" Indeed she is right! The rain has started up again. Not that it's been gone for long over the last week and a half. Lots of clouds and rainbows interspersed with downpours. There've been rumblings in the news about mudslides and power outages, but nothing has happened locally yet.

There's nothing like being sick to make one feel like not doing a whole lot. I went home from work about mid-day on Wednesday, and I've been mostly sleeping and reading in bed since then. I have this fever that waxes and wanes, and aches that mostly just wax, although those too are finally starting to wane. If this wasn't enough, I suspect that I'm now getting a sinus infection. Lovely. Is it the flu? Not sure, but it's less than fun. It looks like Jen is in the initial stages of getting this as well.

What to do? Well, I think I'll go lay in bed and read.

I'm sick but stubbornly going to work anyway, since my position doesn't come with any kind of sick pay. Today my voice slowly degenerated into a hoarse croak, which hopfully, with the proper application of warm tea, will heal quickly. If not, I'm set to play the Onceler in a live production of The Lorax tomorrow night, so I guess I can pass off my voice as a "cruffulous" croak.
Walking in the rain all day and a portion of the night hasn't helped matters, I'm sure... On the other hand, I've got a pretty good group of kids this week. They all behave, and there's a little boy with cerebal palsy who is really cool, doing everything the other kids do and barely complaining. He does get tired on the uphill hikes, so I may have to trade him over to one of the other groups on Thursday, since our group is going up, up, and up.

Okay, to bed, to bed...

I'm sick but stubbornly going to work anyway, since my position doesn't come with any kind of sick pay. Today my voice slowly degenerated into a hoarse croak, which hopfully, with the proper application of warm tea, will heal quickly. If not, I'm set to play the Onceler in a live production of The Lorax tomorrow night, so I guess I can pass off my voice as a "cruffulous" croak.
Walking in the rain all day and a portion of the night hasn't helped matters, I'm sure... On the other hand, I've got a pretty good group of kids this week. They all behave, and there's a little boy with cerebal palsy who is really cool, doing everything the other kids do and barely complaining. He does get tired on the uphill hikes, so I may have to trade him over to one of the other groups on Thursday, since our group is going up, up, and up.

Okay, to bed, to bed...

Not much time for loafing around here. I started Friday off by joining several of my coworkers at a school whose fifth grade class recently stayed up at science camp. We sang some of the camp songs (recognizable tunes with lyrics altered to reflect outdoor science themes) during a school assembly before hurriedly hopping into our vehicles to make it up to camp in time to instruct the kids currently staying there. In the afternoon, my second employer talked me into going to yet another school to teach an after school program to a classroom full of kindergarten through second graders who acted like they'd gotten into the caffiene and sugar supply while nobody was looking.
Yesterday I went to a run down high school on the east side to help with a science workshop in conjunction with an elementary school science fair. There was free pizza and soda, as well as a magician, which made it entertaining. The high school sure was a dump though. Another case of money ending up in the wrong pockets.
Later on, I drove 30 miles and performed at a birthday party for some 7 year old twins. The family was nice, the kids were attentive, and the Filipino noodles and mango ice cream cake were delicious.
The rest of the weekend was taken up with cleaning and financial juggling. Tax forms were mailed, bills were groaned over, groceries were purchased.

I took Nate for a walk around the block last night, which was nice. It's great to do one on one activities with the kids. I think a lot of the behavior issues around here stem from the simple fact that we can never really focus on one child without the other three trying to get in on the action.

The week ahead is supposed to be rainy. Bring it on.

More student journal entries, from opposite ends of the spectrum:

The stars gazed down on a shuffling line of students as they whispered in the night. Stories of pirates and night vision. They thought of stars, sparking sweets, and lonely candles. Holding shoulders in a massive caterpillar they weaved through the trees. The stoic redwoods gaze solemnly down on the asorted people milling through the duff.
All on a late, winter night.

and

Jason, and Daniel were kind of freaked out. I was joking around about the chainsaw masacar and I got in trouble.

I'd rather have students like the author of the first entry above, but I have a feeling that it's people like the second author who really need the experiences that our program offers. Both of these entries were reflections on the night hike we went on last night, which is not ever a time to joke about the chainsaw "masacar" because most of the kids are already extremely nervous about being in the woods at night without flashlights. It wouldn't have been so bad if I hadn't specifically told people not to try to freak each other out.

This little spider web, along with many others, is anchored by blades of meadow grass. This particular meadow is in the San Andreas fault zone. Fourteen miles underneath these webs is the main fault. Networks of smaller faults crisscross the zone.

At the moment all is peaceful. The spiders go about their business.

Every week at camp, the kids all get to pick "nature names". In other words, they get to rename themselves for the week. Predictably, there are lots of large carnivores represented. I've never had a week go by without somebody named Cheetah, or Tiger, or Mountain Lion. The raptors are always there too: Hawk, Eagle, etc. There are also lots of Butterflies, Ladybugs, and Fireflies. Not to mention Deer and Raccoons.

So why did one kid today want to be called The Potato? Sometime after picking this name, he wanted to change it to Giant Potato.

I always love it when people come up with the oddball names. The free spirits are out there, and they're naming themselves after edible roots.

Today is a four day week at science camp, so I didn't work today. In fact, I spent a good part of yesterday and today trying to lounge around. I was partly successful, or at least as successful as one is likely to get with four small children hanging off of him. In the end, not much was accomplished. We treaded rather than forged ahead, but I will always remember the words of one of my college professors: "sometimes you just have to do nothing." There really is a sort of wisdom in that. My nothing included finishing Sunset & Sawdust by Joe Lansdale, and starting The Raphael Affair by Ian Pears. This reminds me of my childhood, when I would often sit around all weekend (or indeed, all summer) reading novels. I can't do that now of course, so the occasional lazy hour or five is welcomed.

Other than that, I performed at a couple of science birthday parties, ran few minor errands, mowed the lawn, took Willow for a walk, talked with Jen without getting interrupted two hundred and fifty six times (while the older kids were at their dad's), and did this and that. One of the errands involved buying pet food at the usual place, where I noted that they must have recently hired somebody who can't spell worth beans. His (or her) handiwork was on display on the glass sides of many of the terrariums. Call me a snob, but when I visit a store where the displays are rife with misspellings, it makes me want to shop elsewhere.

Nate's not feeling well at the moment. He puked on Sunday at his dad's, and was running a fever earlier. He seems to be getting better though. Hopefully nobody else will catch it.

I checked out my first cd (Kronos Quartet "Caravan") from the library today too. I'm still fretting over not being able to go out and buy them like I used to, but I'm dealing with it. M handed me a stack of cdrs last weekend too, so I do have new things to listen to.

I managed to take both sets of car keys to work with me today, something I didn't find out until I got a message over the walkie-talkie in the middle of a hike. I've got to check my pockets before going to work. A little before this message came through, one of the girls in my group got a bloody nose and decided that she wanted to return to camp. One of my cabin leaders took her back down the trail, and through a series of wrong turns and a bit of miscommunication between me and one of the other field instructors, they got a bit lost. In the end they managed to get themselves found, so no harm done. The rest of us made it up to the same Redwood grove I visited with my group last week, which I noticed this week is a thousand feet higher up than our starting point. I told the kids this, and I heard at least one of them boasting about it after we got back down to camp. Of course, we got back late too. This group hikes a little slower than last week's did. We were almost late for milk and cookies, a regular thursday event at camp.

Lots of scat on the trail today too. At least one kid stepped in some. Darn coyotes.

Another day of hiking up creeks, composting, and wandering around under the trees. Now I'm guiltily typing away while I should be getting the boys to bed, so I'd better make this short. Here's a few photos from this week.




When millipedes feel threatened, they exude a smelly, yellow fluid that stains skin, leaving a mark that looks like a bruise or burn. Of course, I got the kids to smell my fingers, since it tied in nicely with the animal adaptations lesson I was teaching. Soon after this, I found one of the smaller, yellow spotted millipedes and discovered that they glow when subjected to ultraviolet light. Pretty neat. Below is a picture I took today, a millipede crossing the ranger road. This one was nicer and didn't stain me when I picked it up.




Our night hike last night was less eventful this week. One girl was too scared to make it through the hike and had to be taken back to the school by one of the cabin leaders. Another girl cried the whole time because she was feeling homesick. The rest of the kids did okay, and we got to spend some time at the telescopes looking at Saturn and a nebula (the one in the Orion constellation). Actually, only a couple of kids stayed out late enough to look at the nebula because it was getting late. I like it when people are interested enough in the things we show them that they stay up past bedtime to see more.




I'll leave you with an endearing little quote from The Dickens. "My poop wants to come out of my butt so it can play with you!"

This week is supposed to be sunny. It's kind of funny that a couple of days ago it was hailing, at least up in the hills. Today I met yet another group of kids, fifth graders excited to be up in the hills for science camp. The one exception seems to be a kid in my field group who I'm told has "severe behavior problems". He claims to not want to be at camp, although I caught him having fun on several occasions. One of the teachers from his school pointed out to me that his behavior problems are actually much less severe than they used to be. Still, it will make the week a little extra challenging. That's a good thing though. The best way to gain experience is to keep having new experiences.

Since I did the night program tonight (Monday night is always campfire night) I haven't seen my family much today. I see them briefly when I get up in the morning, but when I get home they're all in bed (or they're supposed to be at any rate).

Over the weekend I did a couple more birthday parties. Campfires and birthdays. I like my jobs.

Our end of the week meeting featured a local geologist who took us around the grounds on a mini geology tour, pointing out a stone culvert slightly offset due to its location atop the San Andreas fault zone, shutter ridges, dried stream beds and all manner of other interesting bits and pieces. Along the way we interrupted a small newt eating its lunch (in this case a worm) and got hailed on. In a way it was strange, with the people who normally lead field classes relegated to the role of student. It was interesting to be in the position of learner on trails where I am normally the teacher. Although there has yet to be a week where I didn't learn something myself while teaching... but you know what I mean. At any rate, I learned enough new facts to make future field class walks down these trails even slower, since I now have all sorts of new things to stop and point out to people. That means I'll be back from class even later than I am now. Oh well.

Lots of information to process. In the meantime, I've been looking at this site with my new 3d glasses. You've got to love meetings where 3d glasses are handed out. I guess this would be a good site for all you cubicle dwellers out there. It's very easy to imagine being in the pictures, away from the boring job and the yelling boss. In fact, why not just quit and go hiking...

At home, feeling masochistic, we took all four kids out to dinner.




Of course, every week I take about five times that number of kids out to lunch in the woods.

I almost forgot that I wanted to share some student journal entries about the night hike. sic sic sic.

There was just 5 or 6 people that haden did the solar hike. One of the people that was there was me. Suddenly something happen 3 coyotes past running, we gat really scared. Then we started to called Crow, our field instructor. Then he came and we told him what happen.
When that happen I was scard. When of the scares thing I have ever past. But I was like glade that happen to me.

On the night hike it was very scary. When we were in a line 3 coyote's passed by really fast it also touched me. After Crow came for us we went back to were everybody was sitting. Crow talked to us about planets. We also ate moon rock's. We had to have partners to see our mouth becuase the rocks shines in our mouths.

Last night I was scard. After I am not. We saw 3 cowotes then we were scared. Then we were walking together. We came as one big one of all. We saw Rachoroon, netes. We hear frogs. We whent to bed. Put our PJ's one.

... I was behind S wen we heard the nosey. Suddenly 3 coyotes came runing out of noware. Earlyer we saw 3 raccons in the trash can. The worse part about the coyotes was that Crow was not with us. We were scriming for help. He came and took us with him. Now I am more strong. Next we saw 2 newts. Finaly we heart some tree frogs. Then we went to the cabings and prepare for bed.

On my night hike we were just waiting to go on to the place we were supposed to go then we heard something running really, really fast. Then we heard a low howl, then we saw 3 coyotes running and it touched somebodys leg.

Crow gave everyone freze dryed fire Flys. I didn't want one because I don't eat bugs

We spent a good six hours on the trail today. The skies threatened rain but didn't deliver. The presence of the clouds made temperatures a bit chillier than they were this time last week, making the kids shiver and gripe. We did at one point pass a couple coming down the trail with their cute little four month old baby, all wide-eyed and bundled up against the cold. I love it when I see parents exposing their babies to the world beyond the suburbs.

I finally managed to get to this Redwood grove that I'd been meaning to visit for a couple of months now. It's a mere five minute walk beyond my usual turn around place, but well worth a visit. We ran into one of the other groups there, just as they were leaving. The other field instructor managed to twist his ankle just after his group passed us, and had to walk all the way back down the mountain afterwards. I guess I'm not the only one to have bad luck on thursdays. I hope it heals quickly.

There seemed to be newts every ten steps or so, and Banana slugs every fifteen. The rain brings them out of their holes by the hundreds. There were a couple of close calls between campers' feet and crawling newts. This is where camouflage works against them. I'm not sure why they're camouflaged anyway. They're too poisonous to eat, unless you're a Garter snake.

At home, The Dickens peed in the heater vent. What next?

Today it rained, so the newts were out in force, peeking out from holes along the sides of trails, crawling along in the damp, and peering out from under glistening tree roots. We hiked up one of the creeks, along with one of the other groups. That means roughly 40 fifth graders, two teenaged cabin leaders, and two field staff scrambling over slippery rocks, sloshing through rushing water, slipping in the spongy duff, and having the time of their lives doing it. Injury and water saturated pants and shoes don't make people enjoy this any less. One kid kept getting me to take his picture so he'd have all sorts of photos to show his mom when he got home.

It's always a bit of a trade off whenever you take that many kids into a riparian corridor. there is always an impact. We contribute a bit to erosion just by walking along the creek. Sometimes kids drop things - I know because I always find items left by other groups. And who knows how many animals are disturbed or even stepped on by careless feet? This is the price we must pay when we take kids into the wilderness. The hope is that what we do today, even though it has a short term impact on some trails and creek beds, will inspire these kids to make good choices in the long term.

Embrace the wilderness. Keep it wild.

Currently listening to Popol Vuh "In the Gardens of Pharao/Aguirre" and being calmed and carried away beyond the fields we know.

We had a pretty eventful night hike earlier. Before we even left our meeting place, which this week is at a log circle over near the trash cans, we saw some raccoons busy inspecting the dumpsters. Most of the kids had never seen raccoons before, so we all stood still and watched them. They watched us back for a bit and then made themselves scarce.
Later, after we had walked through the lower field and down into the woods, I had each kid follow the trail alone, with only a few candles to light the way. This is something we do every week, but tonight it was windy and rainy, causing the candles to flicker and go out. Most of the kids made it down the trail anyway. The last few people called out through the darkness, so I walked back up to light the candles for them. It turned out that this wasn't the problem. They had been calling because a group of coyotes had brushed past them in the dark, close enough to touch. This was confirmed by the cabin leader who was still with them. Not that I don't trust the kids, but I've had campers claim to see all manner of things out in the woods at night - dead people, guardian spirits, and who knows what else...
I wish I'd been there to see the coyotes. I did, later on, come across a couple of newts on the trail. The low clouds were reflecting enough light from the nearby cities to make the darkness somewhat less dark. There was even a newt perched on the edge of the cement wall bordering one side of the pond, as if contemplating a plunge.
As we returned to the school, the voices of frogs reached us from somewhere deep in the meadow.

Earlier, a Pacific Tree Frog posed for me.




So did a mushroom - possibly a Parrot Waxycap. Possibly not.

In the interest of documenting our culture's last bastion of folk tradition, I must report that I heard a new variation of "Jingle Bells, Batman Smells" today in which the line I remember from childhood, "And Joker got away" was replaced with "And Joker played ballet."

Sure, it's a silly children's rhyme, but one must remember that it is part of a living oral tradition, much like other folk music was back before people had the means to record it. Even today, when people are doing their best to capture every obscure little snatch of song ever uttered, I fear that children's rhymes go largely unnoticed by music scholars. It is this fact, and this fact alone that allows these rhymes to be part of an evolving oral tradition. They're not set in the stone of an official recording. They're free and wild, passed down through the generations by bored elementary school children. Whoopeee!

I did my mad scientist routine today at the party where I heard this. I got tipped well, both in money and in cake. Chocolate, cash, and the opportunity to witness an evolving oral tradition. A good way to spend the afternoon if I do say so myself.

I wonder if anybody who wasn't a sociology major ever thinks about stuff like this

Here's some photos from yesterday's hike.










The sky has been blue and filled with that indefinable sense of spring, even though spring is still months away. Next week the rain may make another appearance, causing all of the hopeful little lizards to hole up once again under rocks and dirt.

The campers won't have that option though. If it rains, they still have to go hiking in it. So do I, of course, but that's okay. I don't mind. It's much better than working in a cubicle somewhere.

Somehow every time I turn around it's garbage day.

I'm pretty tired. Jen's got a sinus/ear infection and is feeling pretty miserable. The kids, of course, are their usual selves, bouncing and screaming and spilling things faster than we can keep up with them. Willow now kisses her dolls on the head and puts them to bed, saying, "Baby! Night night!" I'm going to really miss this toddler phase when she grows beyond it.

I went to see Lhasa at the Great American Music Hall in San Francisco last night. G got me in on the KALX guest list, which was nice. Lhasa sings like somebody you'd expect to hear in a smoky bar at 2 am somewhere in southern Europe, perhaps France or Spain. Or maybe Portugal, since she did sing an Amalia Rodriques song. Quite nicely too, I might add.

At work this week I managed to give an olfactory lesson on animal adaptations, with an emphasis on defensive behavior. Within the space of half an hour I picked up a large millipede and a stinkbug, so my left hand smelled like upset millipede and my right hand reeked of angered stinkbug. Most of the kids smelled my hands too. The consensus was that the stinkbug was stinkier. The millipede's defensive liquid, which is yellow when emitted, stains skin a bruise-like color that fades after a day or so.

Today we hiked up to a nearby reservoir that I had never previously visited. I took a wrong turn and led everybody up a creek which we had to cross and recross, scrambling over rocks and under low lying branches. Several kids got quite wet, but all had a great time anyway. There were hundreds of spider webs shimmering in the sunlight (warm sun in January, what next?) and the ground was covered with Banana Slugs. When we finally did reach the reservoir, the frogs were croaking, the Fence Lizards were out sunning themselves, and the kids were tired.

Me too, mostly because I got home late from the concert last night. At least I no longer have to go directly to work upon leaving a venue.

Today, Martin Luther King Day, affords us the opportunity to reflect on, amongst other things, pacifism. In all honesty, I squandered this opportunity because we were too busy combatting the rising tide of junk that threatens to overwhelm us if we relax our vigilance for more than a moment. It's not that I don't place importance in the reasons behind this holiday - it's just that, like with many people, the everyday stuff gets in the way. Actually, as far as holidays go, this is one of the more important ones. I just wish that there were more people in the world like Dr. King - people willing to rise above the everyday stuff and go down in history as having made a difference. Of course, we all make a difference in some way. I feel I make a difference at my job, for instance. . .

Okay, this is starting to be a ramble. I just wish more people would get the message, especially those running this country. Stop the fucking violence. Break down barriers wherever they exist. Relax a bit. Smile. Embrace differences. Try something new.

The weekend rushed by without even saying "excuse me" as it brushed past. We were too busy to notice anyway, stooped over picking things up and brushing things off. The garage has a couple of clean patches in it now. The clover out front is now in the yard waste bin. Some of the junk in the backyard is gone. Some shelves inside are neater. Lots of dishes were done. Lizard cages were cleaned. Butts and noses were wiped more times than one would think possible. Floors were picked up and vacuumed. Knitting was done. Books and newspapers were read.

I recycled some Christmas wrapping paper I found in the garage, noting as I separated paper from ribbon and bow that It was all from a year ago. We've got to get out there more often.

I wish I had more time to draw and write. Most of what I write here is rushed - first draft quality only. Not that it's meant to be polished. After all, it's just a journal.

I don't think I mentioned that I got a raise. A smallish one to be sure, but I'm not complaining. We're still in quite a hole financially, so anything that helps us climb out a little more quickly is welcome. We're even talking about selling things on Ebay to bring in extra cash. We'll see...

Here's some photos from yesterday's hike. The deer skeleton was found by a kid who made a wrong turn and wandered off the trail. The local F.B.I. (that's Fungus, Bacteria, and Invertebrates) had already eaten all of the good bits.










This evening, I took Jen and all of the kids up to see one of the night programs at work. On our current budget, free entertainment is always appreciated. It was kind of nice to sit back and watch my co-workers do all of the work while we drank tea (the grownups) and hot cocoa (the three older kids - poor Willow fell asleep and missed it). Thursday's program is always the science camp version of Jeopardy, followed by a dance. The Dickens was in the thick of things the whole time we were there, while the boys, perhaps a bit intimidated by all of the big kids, hung back a bit. They still had a good time though. When Willow woke up and found out that she was at a loud dance, she wasn't too happy, so we left.

No clouds at all today, but still cold in the shade. There was a thin coating of ice on my car windows this morning.

It looks like the computer is going to act poopy so I can't upload any photos. Perhaps another time.

More kids were added to my field group today due to the new guy being ill. More rain was added to the ground due to the clouds being full. While hiking out in the rain with our increased numbers, we found four different types of salamanders and newts, and one forlorn Fence Lizard clinging to a rock. The poor thing must have been hiding under something that got flooded, and forced to crawl up the rock to avoid being drowned. It was so cold that it barely moved at all when I picked it up. A little later, we found a dying newt. The poor thing was emaciated, but with no other external indication of what the problem could be. Perhaps parasites, or perhaps old age?

The kids' teeth were chattering by the time we got back to camp for lunch.

The clouds disappeared during our night hike, and when we walked out from under the trees, diamond bright stars were scattered above us. There's nothing like stars after the rain

It started raining midafternoon today, and has been doing so of and on ever since. The woods were still wet from previous rains, and the new batch of campers endured mud and trails transformed into streams. The medical/behavioral notes we get every Monday came up mostly blank for my group. No selective mutes or ADHD kids or seizures or strange allergies this week. The new guy, for his first week of teaching, got a kid with a bad limp who would lose a race with a slug and a kid prone to seizures (or was that one in somebody else's group...?).

I talked with the limping kid and he said he'd broken his ankle a while ago. He has no cast or brace, and isn't using crutches. It reminds me of when I messed up my foot last year and limped for three months or so. I'm an adult though. Somebody should be taking better care of this kid. Maybe it's a health coverage thing... we have an interesting mix of schools this week - 0ne from affluent Cupertino, and one from East San Jose, which is more of a low-income area. I wonder if this kid has parents who just can't afford to take him to a doctor.

At home, we're still cleaning and organizing, especially since the landlord is dropping by again tomorrow to inspect the squishy floor in the bathroom. Jen actually called him this time. We don't want anybody to fall through the floor, which has probably been softened by water (leaky toilet seal?) enough to pose a danger.

I got a new nightlight for the King Snake too. It'll help keep him warm.




What? You looking at Me? YOU LOOKING AT ME?

My work week ended in a torrential downpour, with the students hurrying to their buses with whatever rain gear they possessed clutched tightly about them. We always line up to say goodbye to them as they file past. Some of them hug us. Sometimes they cry as they leave. Some give us high-fives. I noticed that my selective mute student pretended that none of us existed as she walked past. Strange. It makes me wonder why she is the way she is.

Anyway, after work I went home for awhile before setting out again to get M and the equipment needed for the show up in the city. I wasn't really looking forward to driving all that way in the rain, but we got to the venue without any problems, traffic or otherwise. The fact that an auto dealership exploded (gas release caused by plumbers, or so the media reports) just a block from the freeway along the route didn't even add any travel time.
G met us at the venue, with R arriving later. We were second on a bill of three bands, playing upstairs above a bar that is apparently a weekend yuppie meat market sort of place. The start time was late, after 10 pm, and by that time lots of familiar faces were in evidence. Our set went pretty well, with nothing too unexpected happening. R introduced us in his William Burroughs voice, and things flowed along nicely through our half hour set. G and I wore lichen masks that M had put together over the previous week, and choir robes that G had borrowed. M wore a Lone Ranger type mask and horns that he'd super glued to his head. We played lots of non- instruments and mishandled some real ones. Afterwards, we got lots of compliments, which is always nice. The last band, and I Am Spoonbender side project simply known as Spoonbender 1.1.1, projected an early Cronenberg film, Crimes of the Future, while playing the voice track from Cronenberg's Stereo. They layered their own sounds over this, complementing the film(s) nicely.
At the end of it all, while I was driving the van from its parking place on Mission St. over to the club, I noticed that the power steering was out. I had a moment of hoping that it was just a flat tire, which would have been more easily remedied, but no such luck. We loaded everything into the van anyway, and G got a cab because I figured I wouldn't be able to get him back home. M came with me, such he had no other option. I found I could turn well enough if I wasn't attempting to do it from a standstill. This made intersections tricky though. Then, to add to our troubles, the battery light came on, the temperature gauge started rising, and the defroster stopped working. And of course it was still raining as well. Despite my better judgement, I made it onto the freeway, but soon gave up the hope of making it home and pulled over. Upon getting out and looking under the hood (during a particularly nasty downpour) we discovered that the timing belt was hanging limply down like a sneezed up tapeworm.

I called Jen, since I realized I had no idea what her insurance covered as far as towing went. My own roadside assistance insurance expired last August. Jen, despite being wakened by my call, made numerous calls, most of which ended up being routed to small offices in Kansas or Ohio or East Nowhere. She finally found a small towing company covered by her insurance. The guy who eventually came was this stand-up, consistently hilarious teamster type who genuinely liked helping people in need (for a fee, of course). He said the only reason he agreed to come out in the rain and drive the nearly 100 mile round trip was because Jen had been so nice on the phone (apparently most people in need of his services are not). Jen should be a diplomat. Of course, being a parent involves lots of diplomatic work.

Anyway, the driver regaled us with stories of his family, his work, and his encounters with petty criminals on the hour plus drive home. He'd even once been thrown out of the club that we'd just played at. Really nice guy though.

By the time I got to sleep, it was 6 am. Yay. I woke up several hours later to watch the kids while Jen and Uncle Jay wrestled with a newly purchased timing belt outside in the rain. Eventually they won the match and now the van works again. For once, watching the kids was the easier job. I felt guilty.

The gravity at Lexy's school must be stronger than average, because it pulled Lexy to the ground and broke his arm again - in the same place he broke it a few months ago. Shit.

I found this out at the end of a very nice five hour hike, during which the kids behaved quite well for fifth graders. I was actually worrying about people falling too, if only because I forgot my walkie-talkie. Little did I know that when they did try to reach me that it would be to tell me about Lexy falling.

Ah, well...







These spiders caught some fog this morning, allowing me to finally get a couple of decent web photos. Webs on the web. What next?

And here's a quote from one of my student's journals that I can refer to if I ever start questioning my career choice: "The solo-hike is an unforgettable experience. To express my appreciation to the instructor, I think "thank you" might not be enough."

If indeed people are having unforgettable experiences up in the woods, then they will grow up to be defenders of the woods. The wild places enrich our lives, even if we don't often set foot in them.

I should be in bed, but...

The rain held off today, but evidence of recent rains was everywhere. We hiked up the creek and several people got wet feet. Later, we hiked in the dark and got ambushed by puddles. Tomorrow it is supposed to rain and rain. Friday it is supposed to rain and rain and rain.







Here's some witch's butter. Good on toast? I'll never know...

It feels great to be back teaching kids. As usual, they're excited to be up at camp. One kid was evidently so excited that he puked just as he got off the bus. I'm glad I'm not the janitor this week.
I have one girl in my field class who is a selective mute. Apparently she won't talk to adults. I guess I won't call on her to answer questions then. Despite this interesting inhibition, she seemed to be having a good time. All of the other kids were great too. So far, at least.
The clouds lowered themselves into the valleys, but did no more than coat everything with mist. Rain is promised for later in the week.

Once again I am enslaved by my alarm clock. Its piercing cry jolted me from my dreams and forced me to my feet in the predawn light this morning, much like it will do for most of the rest of the year. I imagine that our distant ancestors were healthier, being allowed to sleep in until their body clocks awakened them. Of course, sometimes they were attacked in the night by predators, so maybe I shouldn't complain.

Work today wasn't really work anyway. It was a long meeting, during which we discussed such fascinating subjects as the 5th and 6th grade science curriculum. Not so bad, really. I'm glad to be back at work, reinvigorated after some time away and ready to add to my repertoire of teaching skills.

There's part of me that wishes I could stay home and finish de-cluttering the house. We've made headway with this project, but have a long way to go. Our efforts are hampered by four little clutterers, who delight in undermining us.

One of them is now standing next to me demanding milk and threatening to kick me if I don't comply. When is she going to learn that threats of violence are a bad tactic to use when asking for stuff? Of course, this never stops our lovely government...

The new year was ushered in to the tune of wind and rain. In time honored tradition, M, G and I were out in it at midnight making improvised "music". We always choose an area somewhat of a distance from any main thoroughfare. Last year we were close enough to a traveled area to scare some people off with our racket, so this year we went out into the woods in the rain and secreted ourselves inside a large Redwood stump. We almost made it all the way there without flashlights, but the presence of swiftly flowing water in some of the gullies combined with the near total blackness of the stormy night confused me somewhat.

The stump itself is open to the sky, but sheltered under a faerie ring of Redwoods which kept out most of the rain. Through the trees, a foggy smudge of moon provided the only light.

We made the confines of the stump our own for a small time, rejoicing in the glistening wood and the freedom to make as much racket as possible. When things got too silly, as they must always eventually do, we packed up and sloshed back to the car.

G and M slept over. Jen made a huge breakfast, including a lovely coffee cake that she stayed up late making the night before (of course, we all stayed up late talking and just generally hanging out - for a fleeting time getting to act like we had no responsibilities). The kids got overexcited, as they always do in the presence of guests.

So the year starts, in the company of family and friends. I wish this could be so for everybody.

Jen and I took the Christmas tree down today. Tomorrow I go back to work and the boys go back to school. The holiday season is over for another year. Time to forge ahead.

We begin the forging by playing a show at the Elbo Room in San Francisco on Friday.

It is dark and windy outside, with rain occasionally making itself heard over the Tarantula Hawk cd I'm listening to.

The old year is not long for this world, but like all years it will live on in our imperfect memories. I'll remember this year as a difficult one, but it may also prove to be a year where the seeds of future prosperity first took root. It's too early to tell. We started the year off with Willow being diagnosed with anemia. She had a feeding tube in her nose for her first birthday. That was hard, but she got better and is now a laughing, happy almost-two-year-old. Losing the paper route was a mixed blessing. It was a struggle for several months, one that we're still not completely recovered from. It was during this time that we realized that the clawed fingers of debt really do have a firm hold on us. Unlike this nation we reside in, we plan to do something about this.
I left behind not only the paper route, which I had for sixteen years, but also my job at the museum, which I had for six and a half years. I still have two jobs, but they're two different jobs than the ones I started the year with. Both of the new ones are more interesting than the two I left behind, and one of them is a something that I would consider a "career" job - or at least a good stepping stone towards a career. For now I'm content with what I'm doing. We still don't have health coverage though. That gives us something to work on over the course of the new year.
We're also both on an organizing kick. I've been going through drawers and shelves in an attempt to neaten things up and make it less of a struggle to find things. I've found all sorts of things that I'd quite forgotten about. My favorite so far are these little stickers that can be affixed to the bottom of a drinking glass so that when the drinker looks down into it the words "you have just been poisoned" are visible. I'm also finding all sorts of anti bush/anti war material from the reign of Bush the first. It's a shame that after all this time it's still relevant.
At any rate, our lives will go much more smoothly if we get rid of lots of crap. Clutter really sneaks up on a person, squatting on shelves and lurking under beds. Tripping us in darkened hallways.

I just bought the extended version of Return of the King. We're still waiting for the boys to go to sleep so we can watch it.

I paid cash too. No more credit cards for us.

Christmas went well. I won't bore you with too much detail. Gifts were exchanged. Good food was eaten. Nobody got sick or injured. Large groups of people converged on each other. Our house has mostly recovered from the chaos, but boy is there a lot of stuff to recycle and throw out now.

It's raining outside, with more on the way. The streets are slick. That makes me think of all the poor people in Asia who just got hammered by tsunamis spawned by a 9.0 earthquake. 22,500 dead at last count. We should all be thankful for each day we spend on this Earth. There's no telling when it will end.

Here at home we've just started the last week of the year, a week during which very little seems to happen. It has always been a time to step away from the routine and reflect. It's a time to take a deep breath before plunging into the new year.

Don't forget to occasionally come up for air.

I spent a few hours at the museum today, doing the last bit of paid work for the year. Now that I'm an ex-employee, as I mentioned in an earlier post, I'm getting paid a lot more for my services. It's rewarding in and of itself of course. The kids just love getting up close to the reptiles and arachnids. I even saw a couple of co-workers from my newest job there.
The only down side to the afternoon was when the python bit me. He's getting less predictable these days. Since I was in front of an audience when it happened, I turned the whole experience into a demonstration of how snakes constrict their prey, using my hand and arm as a stand-in for the python's accustomed meal.

This is the first year that I've had any substantial time off around the holidays since I started working. I kind of like it.

Today was my last day as an employee at the museum. I took all of the snakes with me to tie in with a "things that wriggle" themed event for a group of girl scouts (although there was a boy with them, so maybe I'm mistaken about the whole girl scout thing...) who have been doing different themed activities all week. They started out in the garden looking for worms and ended their day with the snakes. Cute kids. One kid even knew about Mangrove Snakes, which are a personal favorite (for their beauty, not their dispositions).

I'll miss my coworkers and the relaxed work atmosphere. I'll miss all of the regular visitors. Some great things happened while I was employed there. It's also a shame that I won't be there when the new early childhood exhibit space opens. On the other hand, I won't miss the pay, which was quite poor.

Onward.

Of course, I'll be back there the Monday after Christmas, but not as an employee. Now when I take reptiles and other critters to the museum, I do it as a contractor. That means I get paid a lot more. I like that.

Willow has been pretty thrilled about the reptiles lately too. When I brought the snakes home she followed me around saying, "snake! snake!".

Okay, The Dickens is in here shouting at me now. "I wanna eat the pamaytos that my mommy got at the store!" Time to go. The kids have been staying up way too late lately.

It was unexpectedly windy today, no doubt because I swept the garden patio at work this morning. The wind spent several hours eliminating all traces of my labors, kicking up leaves in a series of dust devils and spitting all manner of debris onto the pavement.
It was all right by me actually. I like windy days.
At one point, a visitor came out and attempted to light up a cigarette. I informed him that this wasn't allowed. He groused and grumbled, but complied. As he left, I could hear him muttering, "damn environmentalists!"
I almost laughed out loud. I contemplated toying with him a bit, but decided it wasn't worth it. It sure was tempting though. Tomorrow is my last day on the job, so I could argue with impunity if I wanted to. There's just something about people who mutter half-understood slogans under their breaths that amuses me to no end. An environmentalist is, after all, a person takes action to prevent our environment from being compromised. In this case, I guess, an environmentalist is somebody who prevents children from being exposed to second hand smoke from the cigarettes of people who can't master their addictions long enough to enjoy time at a children's museum with their families without sneaking out to the garden to light up.

I guess I should go easy on the guy. A lot of people are visiting from out of town for the holidays. He's probably from a red state.

I worked at the museum today and it was actually pretty busy. This must mean that some people have finished their Christmas shopping. The line of cars approaching the off ramp leading to the nearest mall was still there though. It's kind of sickening really, this strange herd mentality, this lemming-like rush to consume. Sure, the purchases are gifts, but something is missing... And yes, we've purchased gifts for people this season too, but mostly for the kids, and definitely not at the mall. Malls are sort of like baited leg-hold traps to snare the working class so that their wallets can be safely removed. I could get into a rant about the true meaning of Christmas here, but I'm not a christian, so I won't. Oh wait, I forgot, in this country all of the holidays have the same meaning - $$$$$$$.

I think the pagan observation of the solstice is much more important and meaningful, much more connected to natural cycles. Happy Solstice!

It wasn't too happy a Solstice for Willow, who fell off a chair while attempting to clamber onto the table. She's okay now, but Jen was worried enough to call me at work after it happened. She fell hard enough to bloody the inside of her lip pretty severely, so I came home early so Jen could take her to urgent care to get it looked at. Fortunately, she checked out okay. Her lip is still puffy and red though.

I tattled to the landlord about the tree trimmers today too. That felt good.

Trees were purchased and erected. Our decorations have already suffered the indignity of being pulled off the tree and thrown to the floor by Willow. She's really excited about this big, green plaything with all of the small, removable parts. We're going to have our hands fuller than usual this week trying to fend her off.

This morning, the tree trimmers showed up and began chainsawing things. The dead trees in our front yard and outside our bedroom window were taken out. This probably means that the poor mushrooms that were feeding off of them will die.
Not content with this, the trimmers invaded our backyard and started lopping off everything in reach, including some branches big enough to shake the house when they hit the roof. Our hummingbird feeder and our outdoor fireplace proved to be less sturdy than the roof. The guy in charge promised to replace them after I yelled at him. I'll bet it won't be that easy though. No replacements have shown up yet.




Willow in Treeland.

I survived my week as a janitor, but don't think I'd like to repeat the experience. I did get a little break on Thursday due to one of the other instructors being sick. I took her field class hiking for the day instead of cleaning toilets. Much more fun.
Over all though, it's pretty depressing to be a janitor. I don't think I could do it for much longer than a week. Imagine getting up in the morning and knowing that your day will be filled with dirty toilets and nasty trash cans full of all sorts of stinky things.
It's also interesting to note that many students, even after a week of instruction on global responsibility and conservation, including such concepts as reusing and recycling, still throw their damn plastic water bottles in the garbage instead of the recycling bin. I must have pulled thirty recyclable containers out of the trash on Friday.

Today I worked at the museum and did a science birthday party for which I got tipped ten bucks and some really good Indian food. Every little bit counts.

We got more free furniture today as well, thanks to K. Our garage is full to bursting with old stuff now (like it wasn't before...) and we're still in the process of getting all of the new stuff arranged and sorted out. Jen is busily working away at various knitting projects. The kids are busily working away at preventing her from getting them done.

The whole week is supposed to be sunny, which is a shame. A cold, windy holiday season would be fun.

I'm in the middle of a week working as a substitute janitor while the real janitor is living it up down in Mexico somewhere. It's a sort of humbling experience because it's one of those jobs that most people look down on. Of course, things would fall apart pretty quickly without the janitor. I have a big, jangly ring of keys that allows me access to everything, including all of the toilet paper and paper towel dispensers, the pool, and the soda machines. I now know where all of the supplies are kept. I get to enjoy the school when all of the kids are out on the trails. Much more quiet, except for the singing of the Pacific Tree Frogs who live in the hedge.
I spend most of my work day cleaning the dining hall and the bathrooms. The dining hall needs to be swept and mopped after every meal, but that's not too big a deal. The bathrooms, especially in the morning, are pretty trashed. Apparently there's some confusion among the students about where to put used toilet paper. It's also very apparent that boys don't often wash their hands after using the facilities. I have to replace the paper towels in the girls bathroom about twice as often, if not more so.

I appreciate our janitor even more now that I've walked around in his shoes for a few days. Especially after cleaning the bathrooms. Apparently once somebody even pooped in the sink. I'm glad that hasn't happened this week. I'm also glad that nobody has puked. I'm even more glad that this isn't my usual job. That would be pretty depressing. Not a whole lot of mental stimulation involved here. Just lots of cleaning, the majority of which necessitates the donning of disposable gloves.

Today, while mopping the dining hall and talking to one of this week's classroom teachers, I discovered that the teacher I had in fourth grade is her father's cousin. He must be ancient by now. I remember that he had a grey crewcut and read us The Hobbit. Not much else though.

That's it for now. Much to do, as always.

Two more days of this and then I'm done. Next week I'll be working at the museum for a few days, and then quitting that as well.

More notes from a trip north:

12/12 10:12 am, Portland airport

Finally, some down time, but only because the flight that I got up so early this morning to catch was cancelled due to some sort of mechanical problem. Oh well, it's better than having a problem manifest itself in mid-flight.
Besides this, everything went pretty well this weekend, at least on our end. There was a little bit of difficulty in gathering up people at train stations in Seattle on Friday. Sound manipulator Colin Potter arrived by train at about the same time his daughter was supposed to show up, but one of the train station addresses given was in fact a pier. This caused some confusion, but was resolved after some transatlantic phone calls. Later, at Electric Heavyland, where he was also supposed to perform, he didn't have time for a proper soundcheck, but his set, mainly utilizing a laptop and effects, sounded great to everybody anyway. People were still filtering in as he finished due to the fact that even though Seattle residents are very used to rain, many of them have no idea how to drive in it. For example, Brad from Flesh Eating Ants records arrived four hours later than he planned because the bus he had taken down from Vancouver got into an accident.
By the time we started, the store was pretty packed and all the windows were steamed up. things went pretty well, with the expected minor glitches that we probably noticed more than the audience did. We met some cool people and got a lot of compliments before heading out to eat at Elysium Brewery, which featured a range of comforting vegetarian food and bottomless glasses of brewed-on-site ginger beer.
Then we went back to William and Leslie's and stayed up too late making lots of little Nurse With Wound buttons to bring down to Portland. The next morning we headed over to Anomalous Eric's for a home cooked breakfast spread of tofu vegetables, tempeh, and toast. Afterwards, we crammed into Eric's and William's vehicles, gathered our stuff and headed south for Portland.
As we left, the sun was shining for the first time during our stay.
In Portland, there was a bit of tension due to the fact that Steve's flight was due to touch down about an hour or so before the event at the Doug Fir Lounge. One missed connection or delayed flight (such as I am experiencing right now) would mean he wouldn't arrive on time. Since he was the main attraction, his absence would cause trouble. In addition to this, the art for Sunday's (today's) art show was still in transit somewhere between Ireland and Portland.
Chris and Heather from Beta Lactam Ring, despite the stress level, were great hosts. We gathered for a little while at their house, had coffee and bagels, and then headed over to the Doug Fir Lounge - a newish venue that has the appearance of a rather posh yet rustic restaurant and bar complete with interior decor that outdoes the wood-paneled look by using whole logs instead. Log paneled, I guess. More than one person compared it to something one might see on Twin Peaks. Nicely lit too, with a good sized stage and attendant sound man. Oh, and a grubby little "dressing room" with nachos, fresh fruit, water, and beer.
As we set up our equipment, the sound guy commented that it looked like we were having a garage sale. Fair enough, I guess. Instruments included things like a mini-vac (which we forgot to use), rulers, pepper grinders, and other odds and ends.
We got everything ready, hung around for a bit and socialized, nervously rechecked things (with one moment of panic - later resolved - when a backing cd refused to work).
Chris drove off to pick up Steve at the airport and arrived back with him while we were eating in the upstairs restaurant. Steve had basically come straight from a vacation in the Canary Islands, with very little sleep in between, but was ready for the evening anyway.
The place was really crowded at this point and we started seeing familiar faces from past shows. People had come from various far flung places - Dallas, Minnesota, London, Japan, and probably others I'm forgetting or never knew about. Lots of people came from Seattle and Eugene. And Moe! came up from San Francisco. Way to go Moe!
Colin played first - a completely different set from the previous night. He utilized a lot of Nurse With Wound sound sources, manipulated via laptop, mixing board, and some theremin-like device. Very nice, despite the loquacious hipsters and barflies in the audience.
Our set went well too, with a few minor feedback problems (William later said that they didn't detract from the show, which is good). The people near the stage looked attentive, but there was a lot of bar noise filtering through. We ignored it.
At the end of the set, we got Steve and Colin onstage for a virtually unrecognizable version of Nurse With Wound's Coloorta Moon - Steve on slide whistle and Colin on Dr. Suess drum. This was the segue leading into Steve's DJ set, which succeeded very well in holding the audience's attention for the next hour or so. There were even a bunch of people dancing.




Afterwards, lots of people claimed to enjoy the proceedings. We wandered around and talked for a good while before finally being driven out by the thumping dance party that took over the lounge into the wee hours. We got back to Chris and Heather's place well after midnight and stayed up talking until 3 am or so - At least that's when G and I went to bed. A few of the others stayed up even later. I would have too, but I thought I had a 9:45 am flight to catch.
So here I sit, writing this all down while waiting for my 1:15 pm flight.




Later, in the air, more photos were taken...







Jen and all of the kids met me at the airport. Slightly before this, The Dickens had managed to slide down a slide and splash down into a puddle of some other kid's puke. Home sweet home.
They were glad to see me. I was glad to see them. This is the longest I've ever been away from Willow.

Tomorrow: my week as a janitor.

Some notes from a trip north:

12/9/04

We're sitting inside a stationary train in Klamath Falls, OR, awaiting our appointed time of departure from the station. Breakfast this morning consisted of leathery scrambled eggs, potatos, a croissant, orange juice (bottomless), and coffee (also bottomless). I'm still thankful that I didn't order grits like M and G did - they resembled (the grits, that is) congealed cream of wheat, which G maintained tasted like rubber.
Breakfast was on the train, of course, because the journey started last night, with the train arriving an hour late to the station in San Jose where M and I and a number of other hapless travelers waited. When the Amtrak Coast Starlight finally showed up, we found seats upstairs and headed north. G joined M and I in Berkeley, but unfortunately left the train door open long enough for some deranged folk singer to get in. Thankfully, once inside the train she refrained from singing, opting instead to steal G's seat while he stood talking to us.
Again the train continued northwards. We all tried to sleep, except for the folk singer, who compulsively walked back and forth between cars for several hours.
The cough I had at the beginning of the week is mostly gone, but has been replaced by a snot faucet of such proportions that I have already used up a whole packet of tissues. Despite this, I did get some sleep, waking up every so often to peer into the darkness and rearrange my arms and legs. Trains, if this one is indeed typical, allow much more leg room than planes, which is nice because I've never been able to sleep while flying due to inadequate space and the fact that some flight attendant always manages to whack me in the elbow or foot with the service cart.
Morning found us towards the top of CA. The ground was blanketed in white and the trees marched greyly southward. Mt. Shasta loomed on the right for a time, striped with snow and snuffed with morning mist. The cold barrenness of our surroundings was and is a beauty to behold. It makes me wonder what it would be like to live way out here amongst these leaning shacks and slushy farmyards.
Hell, we even saw some Llamas.




10:21 am

We were delayed for around an hour in Klamath Falls due to bureaucratic miscommunication (track report sent to the wrong place... or was it wrong track report sent to right place... or was somebody just inspecting belly button lint instead of the tracks...?) and inclement weather. We have since passed Upper Klamath Lake, where I saw a Bald Eagle perched in a tree (first time I've seen one in the wild), and are currently squeaking and clacking our way through silent, snow covered evergreen forest. The sky is close and uniformly grey.
We've just stopped for some reason. Hmm... G and M appear to be sleeping.




5:50 pm

In Portland it's drizzling and dark. Many miles still to go. G and I had a spirited discussion with a fellow passenger in the dining car about revolution and what idiots Bush and his cronies are. Whether or not they're idiotic enough to be the catalyst for a revolt was the point of debate. I maintained that people are too comfortable in this country and have too much to lose (in most cases, anyway). Our fellow traveller wasn't so sure.
I've finished one book, The Troublesome Offspring of Cardinal Guzman by Louis De Berneires (hilarious and tragic at the same time), read another, I Wake from a Dream of a Drowned Star City by S.P. Somtow (Oedipal!) cover to cover, and started a third - The Human Chord by Algernon Blackwood (musical!).
I've also spent a lot of time watching the scenery whip past. The Cascade Range, all mist wreathed and snow clad, was beautiful despite occasional evidence of logging activity.
We're hoping the train gets going soon. M and G are both reading. I think I'll follow suit.

12/10 11:30 am

We're staying at the house of William and Leslie, owners of The Electric Heavyland record store and of the Enterruption record label. William picked us up in the rain last night and we took most of our musical stuff over to Electric Heavyland where we're scheduled to play at 6 pm today. They've both proven to be excellent hosts and have the good taste to share their home with a couple of cats, one named after a cool japanese punk band.
Really nice store too. I wish I had more money.

Continued later...

We've done our last rehearsal before heading off to the Pacific Northwest for a couple of shows. It apparently takes 23 hours to get to Seattle by train. Once there, we're playing at a record store called Electric Heavyland. Then we're popping down to Portland to play the Beta Lactam Ring Records event at the Douglas Fir Lounge. That's the plan anyway. Afterwards, I'm taking a quick plane flight back home so I can fulfill my lifelong ambition to be a janitor for a week.

Last night the wind howled and spat bits of tree and shrub all over our yard. It spat bigger bits of tree into the neighbors' yard. I drove G. back up to Berkeley in the rain and wind, stopping by to drop off stuff and pick up a paycheck on the way. In Berkeley, we discovered that the new issue of the UK music magazine, The Wire, has our pictures in it. This is because it has an article on irr.app.(ext.), which we knew about in advance. It's always cool to see yourself in a magazine though. I think the last time that happened to me was close to twenty years ago in Maximum RocknRoll - as an audience member.

In addition to this, I sold a bunch of cds and for the first time refrained from taking the profit in trade.

We're slowly but surely figuring out our finances for the holiday season. I managed to pay some bills today, which made me feel a bit better. Jen bought some stuff online for the kids, which will make them happy later this month. Still lots of stress though. It makes me wistful for those childhood Decembers when the blissful anticipation of loot eclipsed all else. Oh to be young and greedy again. With that in mind, we'll make sure the young ones have a good holiday season so that when they grow up they in turn can be wistful.

I now have tickets for the upcoming trip to the northwest. We've rehearsed some more for the shows. I got my driver's licence renewed. I did another reptile/bug party. The art exhibit at 21 Grand opened. I'm a year older... The list goes on.

The woman who helped my renew my licence talked in a whispery squeak, making it very hard to understand her. She was also the most observant DMV employee and was the only one to notice when people taking written driving tests were talking on their cell phones. She had to gesture to other nearby employees to go out and bust them. It was kind of fun to watch, actually. If you're caught talking on the phone while taking a test you have to start the test over again. People sputtered in disbelief when confronted with this fact. One woman loudly compared the DMV to nazi Germany - all because she wasn't allowed to cheat on her test. People are funny.

The reception for the art show went pretty well. People were complimentary and there was pizza.

The kids this week continue to be a pleasure to teach due to their pre-existing knowledge. Because of this we can get more in depth with the subject matter. They also held up really well on the long hike today, which ended up being the longest hike (in terms of miles) that I've ever taken a group on. Finally, a Thursday during which nothing out of the ordinary happened.

One of the other groups found a pot pipe along the creek though. None of the kids recognized it for what it was. There is hope for the youth of today after all.

At home, we're all coping with colds, lack of sleep, and/or general stress over the fact that we don't have enough money. I get paid once a month, so by the time each check comes its already spent. This pay schedule wouldn't be a problem if we had had any money saved to begin with, but we've been struggling for months now, trying to catch up. Maybe next year we'll manage.

As I mentioned earlier, I'm part of an art show that opens on friday at 21 Grand in Oakland. It's entitled A Breach in the Ghostly Skin and also features artwork by M., G. and another guy who I just met on Monday. It was all set up by G's girlfriend D., and will feature a dance performance by her and music by the wonderful Blackbird Stitches. The reception is at 8:00 or 8:30 or some such time.

Saturday Jen goes to the craft fair and both M. and I have birthdays. Sunday I take reptiles to another birthday and get paid for it. Next week G., M. and I go to Seattle and Portland to do a couple of shows. This is all pretty stressful too. It should be fun once all of the details (rehearsals, tickets, etc.) get ironed out.

Life is busy and frantic but full of excitement.

I was expecting to observe other teachers this week to get an idea about teaching stategies and games I might not know, but due to the absence of one of my fellow field instructors I'm teaching instead, which is fine by me because it pays more and we need the money. As an added bonus, the kids this week already seem to know everything, so they're very easy to teach. On the first day, as I stopped to talk about a Douglas Fir tree, I noticed a large salamander wedged under an exposed root. When I dug it out I discovered that it was that holy grail of local salamanders - an adult Pacific Giant Salamander. This is the first adult I've seen - it was a beautiful reddish color mottled with black. An impressive find, but unfortunately I didn't have my camera.

That evening, M. and I went up to 21 Grand in Oakland to hang some art for a show that opens next weekend.




Around midnight, while driving home after dropping M. off, I collided with a deer. The poor thing didn't have a chance. It was standing between lanes in the freeway around a blind curve. I had time to slam on the brakes and start to swerve, with tire smoke filling the air behind me. It had time to turn around to meet the front left side of my car. The impact tossed it into the air and shattered the plastic and glass housing for my left turn signal. Nothing I could do. I try not to think about it too much.

Today I remembered to bring my camera to work. The ground was covered with frost, so the scorpion I found was pretty cold, huddled under a log and barely moving. It warmed up and walked around after being held for a bit.




I've also been becoming more interested in fungi. I'm still not too good about identifying specific types, but being out in the woods during the rainy season is a real eye opener for me. There are interesting mushrooms everywhere. Here's a photo. More to follow, I'm sure.

I've worked at the museum for the past couple of mornings, just for old times sake, oh... and for the money. This morning, a woman asked me if I was the guy who sometimes brought bugs and reptiles to the museum. I replied that I was, and she told me that her son has a picture of me with a tarantula, taken a couple of years ago, on his wall. She went on to say that ever since that particular visit he's been collecting "weird things." She wasn't sure whether to thank me for this or not.

Ha. My plan is working!

Speaking of weird things, I think I've finally interpreted a recurring dream I used to have as a child. The dream went something like this: It always started with a feeling of absolute serenity, illustrated for my oneiric eyes by a slate of uniform, foggy grayness.
This didn't last though. At some point there was an enormous gasp, like a sharp, collective intake of breath. As this was happening, the serene gray fractured and became a writhing, convoluted tangle of edges and lines. It was like the worst thing in the world had happened.
I've talked to other people who have had similar dreams. At first I was thinking about how it's a great metaphor for how needlessly complex our society has become - a society where time-saving devices ensure that we have time to do all sorts of stuff that really doesn't need doing, and where we depend on things that we don't understand - but after more thought it seems to me that it's probably a memory of being born. The transition from the peacefulness of the womb to the sudden assault on our senses is supposed to be the most difficult thing that ever happens to a person. That means, like other bad things that happen, it will leave a lasting impression on the memory, even if it is only on a subconscious level. When we're born, the clean slates of our minds don't have the wealth of symbols that we rely on later in life to help us put things in order. When we're born, we are inundated with raw, alien data. It must be absolutely overwhelming. So overwhelming, in fact, that we can only remember it in dreams.

Something to think about, anyway. Anybody else out there have dreams like that?







Etch-a-Sketch artwork by Lexy.

Since this week camp ends on Wednesday, today was our last full day with this batch of kids. I hiked my group up creeks and down trails and up trails and down trails again for nearly six hours. They held up pretty well. We had to keep moving because it was pretty cold in the shade. It was even colder later on when we went on the night hike. The moon was up, so it was relatively easy to see (except for one of the cabin leaders assigned to my group, who had no night vision at all). Afterwards, we all looked at the moon through a telescope, which is pretty cool because the craters and various other pockmarks stand out very clearly. Too bad none of the planets were visible. We then ended the evening by putting on a dance for the kids. Tomorrow they all have to leave, which is a shame because they are really getting a lot out of this experience and they're all really good kids. Perhaps some of the seeds we've planted this week will take root.

Here's some photos from today.




The afternoon session of the aphid eaters anonymous meeting. Todays speaker dealt with the issue of insect gender confusion.




Ensatinas like having their pictures taken. California Newts apparently don't.

The kids we're teaching this week only get to stay at the site for two nights and are leaving on Wednesday. They're from a school in a low income part of town, so for the most part being to go to science camp in the hills is a really big deal for them. They're all really excited and appreciative. I took my group exploring, with less than the usual amount of games. We all felt that it would be best just to get them out in the woods for some real hands-on investigation of the local natural communities.
These are the types of kids that make this job so appealing. This is a great chance for them to see beyond their own neighborhoods and glimpse the natural wonders that surround us. I wish everybody everywhere could get a chance to do this kind of thing.

It's cold tonight, with the moon shining bright.

This weekend brought us crystal blue skies filled with leaves flipping down from the trees and skittering across the ground. It's been pretty cool in the evenings, which is just the way I like it. The cold that we had during the week left the door open on its way out, and another cold pushed its way in before we could close it. Round two is much like round one. More snot. More headaches.

Speaking of snot and headaches, I don't like the fact that the U.S. government is making rumbling noises about "Weapons of Mass Destruction" in Iran. This, of course, will be the next target if the ever manage to "secure" Iraq. It's pretty transparent really. Take over Iraq, and then use it as a base from which to strike out at everybody else in the region. It's going to be a long four years, and I'm sure the mess will haunt us for the forseeable future.

Meanwhile, glaciers all over the world are starting to melt. Welcome to the 21st century. Now go home.

What's a person to do? I went and sold some books to get money to buy gifts for the holidays. Actually, I traded books for store merchandise because they only pay cash for hot ticket items ("Da Vinci Code," the lady told me). I also went and played scientist at a birthday party. The birthday boy, who was only nine, recited the whole periodic table for me. I can't even do that. And finally, G. and M. and I got together to rehearse for the irr.app.(ext.) shows now looming on the horizon. I even bought a couple of new nose flutes to replace the dozen or so I've lost, given away, or inadvertently destroyed.

Meanwhile, Jen made lots more stuff for the craft faire, Willow said more new words and ate some paint, The Dickens pooped in her pants and called people names, and the boys made messes and revised their dietary requirements for the umpteenth time. Chaos reigns. Poverty threatens. Christmas displays mysteriously appear, beckoning to the unwary. Most of the time we're too busy to notice.

Thursday is always long hike day. It also always seems to be the day where unexpected things happen, like the wasp attack of several weeks ago, or a kid having to go home in the middle of the hike because grandma had taken a turn for the worse. Today somebody managed to soil himself during the solo hike. Another kid managed to soil his shoes and the little shovel we use for digging latrines. Another field group experienced similar problems.

Shitty day, I guess. Actually, it reminds me of a story I once read. Our local trolley system is referred to as the Light Rail, but during the planning stages one of the names being considered was Santa Clara Area Transit. SCAT for short. Some of you may see the problem with this... Scat, as any science camper knows, is another word for, well, shit. "Hey mom! Let's go ride the poop train!" Eventually, somebody pointed this out, so now it is blandly known as the Light Rail. Of course I always tell this story to my students, who delight in spotting "Santa Clara Area Transit" on the trail.

I let the Rattlesnake go today. I took some photos first though.







I wasn't able to find that immense Pacific Giant Salamander again, so I had to settle for an Ensatina instead. They're pretty cool too, of course.

I'm still feeling a bit under the weather, but less so than the guy I'm subbing for this week. The latest word is that he's not going to be in at all for the remainder of the week, which I guess is just as well because: (a) I need the money, and (b) I left a small Rattlesnake on his desk. It wouldn't do for him to get to work before me and reach into the wrong bag. Actually, it's in a cage, so in reality he probably wouldn't have any trouble. This all came about because the snake had been spotted by some kids outside one of the cabins, and I was the only person in the immediate vicinity who was willing to move it. I decided to hang on to it for a day or so in order to show more kids. Tomorrow I'm letting it go.

I also saw the biggest Pacific Giant Salamander that I've ever seen. It still had gills, so it wasn't even an adult yet, but it must have been nearly a foot long. I'd like to try to get a picture of it if it's still lurking around in the creek tomorrow.

Later, before the night hike, a bunch of us went down to an Ethiopian restaurant that I hadn't been to before. Very nice. I love Ethiopian food.

The night hike itself went okay, but most of the kids were too scared to hike far. Timid bunch. Oh well.

I was going to spend the week observing the other instructors at work because I didn't get a lot of time to do that back before I started, but due to another instructor being ill, they needed me to teach instead, which is just fine because I get paid more that way. I'll have to observe when he's feeling better.

Willow has an ear infection, we think. Jen took her to have it looked at. Poor girl. She's been cranky and fussy today. I've got a bit of a cold myself, complete with runny nose and general achiness. These things are always worst in the evenings and early morning. During the day the symptoms recede. I did start to lose my voice after a couple hours of teaching this afternoon though.

M. and I had our first rehearsal in preparation for a couple of shows slated for next month. More to follow.

And finally, R.I.P. Jhonn Balance (1962-2004). I've pulled out some of my Coil cds and I'm again struck by how moribund most of their music is. Prescient maybe. His creative input into my life and the lives of many others will be missed. He did indeed leave his mark on the world before moving on, which is more than many people do. Very unfortunate.

Uh... you want fries with that?

I forgot to mention yesterday that the electrician came and fixed lots of lights, including some that haven't worked since before we moved in here. It's strange to see them working. The one over the mailbox mysteriously comes on all by itself at night so people can see the large, paintless rust patches on it. Time to paint the mailbox I guess. Or maybe we should just take it down. It's always full of catalogs and bills.

I worked at the museum today, forgetting that Veteran's Day is always horrendously busy. I'm going to work a few more shifts over the next month and a half and then quit, since I'm hardly ever there anyway. It's good to have it at the moment though, since we're still playing catch-up with bills and whatnot. The paychecks from the new job have an annoying habit of arriving on the tenth of the month, after all of the bills are long past due. Still much better than not having one at all. I shudder to think what would have happened if I hadn't gotten the job.

I'm not working anywhere tomorrow, but I'm poking my head in at both of the part time ones to sign up for a double time shift at one and return supplies and fix a possible paycheck snafu at the other. Life is busy. Not enough time lately to engage myself in creative endeavors.

I went hiking in the rain for a couple of hours today...




Sometimes it seemed as if I was in the clouds.




Here's the farthest point that we ever take groups of science campers to.




In dark corners, slugs lurked.




And in the misty light of day, there were stranger creatures still.

We finished up day two of the ropes course without any rain falling on us. There were a good number of yellow Maple leaves drifting down from above, painting the ground with random patterns. It's supposed to rain tonight and tomorrow.

While marching around near the ropes course, I gathered some Madrone bark and a little bit of Yerba Buena to make tea with. At home, I stuck it all in a tea ball and inundated it with hot water. It tasted more like bark than Yerba Buena, due no doubt to the disproportionate amounts of my ingredients. Jen said it tasted like the woods smell. That's a good description - very "woody" in flavor. Very good, in an odd sort of way. Next time I'm going to add Douglas Fir needles and Bay Laurel leaves to round out the flavor. I kind of like the idea of gathering things from the woods and using them. I'm staying away from mushrooms for the time being though.

The landlord came by today and witnessed for himself that six of our lights don't work. A visit from an electrician has been promised. Lights at the end of the tunnel!

I'm not teaching science camp this week, unless one of the salaried teachers gets jury duty. Won't know for sure until the last minute. In the meantime, I'm keeping busy by helping out on the ropes course for a couple of days. Same pay. This time it's fifth graders. Pretty agile ones at that. Some of them could climb like spiders. We got half the class today, with the remainder coming tomorrow.

It's strange being up there at the school and not teaching the science campers. I'll be back doing it next week though.

At home, the cheap portable cd player in our room is on its way out. It usually takes many tries to get it to play a cd. Tonight I gave up and am actually playing a cd on the computer. I'm being dragged inexorably into the 21st century here. Next thing I know I'll be listening exclusively to Em Pee Threes or something. At least I still have a linen closet full of vinyl to save me from the soul sucking emptiness of the computer age. In the meantime I'm enjoying a cdr of the Ex-Girl show in San Francisco last May. Three loud Japanese women with an unusual fondness for frogs. Thanks to M., as usual, for recording it and making copies.

The electrical system in our home is getting quirkier. The landlord is coming to see for himself tomorrow, so we've been doing some cleaning so it doesn't look like four messy kids live here. Jen's been at it most of the day, and I've been at it most of the time since I came home. I'm playing hooky right now.

Okay, that's it for now. Willow just wandered in.

My work schedule for the rest of the year is quickly filling up. People in this profession seem to be somewhat nomadic, so that means plenty of extra work opportunities to those of us who lead more sedentary existences. We've still got a long way to go before our finances look good, but I'm grateful to have the opportunity to do something about it.

It's hard to believe that it's already November. It's only been four months since I stopped delivering newspapers, but it seems like much longer. I think I'll quit the museum too. I'm hardly ever there, and I keep getting extra work at my new job, not to mention my other part time job. Not much time left over for the museum. Not much time for reading, watching movies, or listening to music either. I do miss that. As fun as my new job is, I'm looking forward to the holidays.

At least Jen and I get time to ourselves after the kids are in bed, but often one or the other of us is so tired that all we do is fall asleep. Tonight, the girls are asleep, but the boys are out with Granny seeing a stage version of Peter Pan. They'll probably go to sleep pretty quickly when they return though.

One of Willow's more recent words is "cheese." She definitely has her priorities straight.