Minor humor
Tuesday, 16 January, 2007 
This may be appearing for the second time — it should have been here a week or two ago and was marked as a draft — so I changed it, and it’s appeared above the posts from yesterday and today. If it’s old news, just skip down to the next one which actually is from today!
Occasionally the dogs do things that wear themselves out enough that they forget they might want to eat at night. Exhausted sleeping dogs at the time we might normally feed them means we opt out of feeding them on the Let Sleeping Dogs Lie principle. So the routine is disrupted and they don’t eat, they don’t go out after eating, and the house is quiet. Yesterday two of them went running in the pasture when they were supposed to be staying home quietly in the yard, so yesterday was one of those days.
Last night Logan and I went to bed before John. So I was falling asleep, and had her finally to the point where she’d stopped talking every five seconds, and I heard a dog pacing.
And I thought he’d stop and flop down somewhere. But the pacing continued. And I thought I’d fall asleep. More pacing. Still more pacing.
Suddenly I realized Andy was a dog who wasn’t about to lie down, but a dog who really, really needed to go outside.
So I got up, told Logan to stay settled down, flipped on one light. Tromped to the stairs, flipped on another light, and started down the stairs. Which brought John out from the library and his video to see what was the matter. (Out on the rooftop there arose such a clatter I flew from my bed… no that’s a different story, right.)
John let Andy-Dog out. I went back to bed. John announced Andy was peeing on a bush right outside the door. Logan now wide awake again started telling me about the scary thought of dinosaur-giraffes that she’d come up with that could give her bad dreams.
Bulletin from John: dog is still peeing.
I encouraged Logan to think about other things, stop bouncing around like an orangutan and settle down.
Logan tells me she’d been almost asleep before I got up to deal with the dog, and I agree and explain that Papa couldn’t hear that the dog needed to go out over his video.
John tells us the dog is still peeing.
Logan negotiates to have a dim light left on to keep the dinosaur-giraffes at bay and I agree on the condition that she then STOP TALKING to me and lie still to go to sleep.
We listen to John begin to coax the dog back inside with a treat.
Andy is the least dog like and most likely-to-have-been-mistreated-before-we-owned-him of our three dogs. He likes corners. He likes to be outside out of the way, so long as he doesn’t have to move to much. He gets excited about dog food type things, and cavorts stiff leggedly once every day or two if the other dogs are excited, although he never seems to quite know why. He doesn’t seem to understand asking to go out, but he will go stand silently by the door occasionally, before peeing on the floor. So we let him out whenever he is active and seems to be interested in the door.
He’s John’s favorite dog.
No school — again!
Tuesday, 16 January, 2007 
At 7:30 when we would have been leaving, except I was trying to eat my oatmeal, I saw emergency notice email saying cars were sliding on ice on the freeway in Eugene. And Cottage Grove schools were on a two hour delay due to road conditions. Then the 4J web page slowly, over 15 minutes changed to say first snow routes, then snow routes with a two hour delay, then no kindergarten — at which point I left Eugene Waldorf a message saying whether they canceled kindergarten or not, we wouldn’t be there. And canceled my dentist appointment. At ten after eight I got the call to let the five folks on my part of the phone tree know kindergarten was canceled for the day. Kindergarten doors normally open at 8:15, but the weather was changing pretty quickly, so school probably didn’t know much before that. I caught one dad on his way out the door! Most folks were gone already.
This is the weather camera for cottage grove — with freezing rain making it a bit blurry. Just for all you folks in the warm areas.
John’s on a delay for work too. At least. This is the freeway camera just south of roseburg going southbound:
And northbound
If the weather continues as it is, john may have a full snow day too.
UPDATE 12:09
Chains are now required to drive on I-5 over Roberts Mountain Hill, the last big hill before john’s work. John stayed home, work told him not to come. Someone leaving work couldn’t get up a hill going in one direction, and there’s a bad wreck in the other, so the people there are considering themselves stranded. I’m glad we didn’t leave today!
Reading
Monday, 15 January, 2007 
Since our snow day on Thursday Logan and I have been reading. We started Walter Farley’s The Black Stallion then and read three or four chapters a day. We finished it today. She’s not sure she wants to start the second book about The Black, except that now that it’s out she’s got a hundred and one questions about the cover, and since it’s still early in the day, I expect we’ll be starting it well before John gets home.
She and John are continuing to work their way through “Little House” books. Now they are on the Rose books. And if they finish those there are books written about Laura Ingalls Wilder’s mother and grandmother at least, although I don’t know how much fact is in them. Finding chapter books that are interesting and not “scary” is a little tricky at times, but those written in the 1940’s or before seem to work well. I’ve still got to read a bit about Martin Luther King Jr to her, so she knows why there’s no school today. I tracked down something aimed at kindergarten age children on line, but haven’t printed it to read in the warmer room yet.
Today is warmer finally, the thermometer read 46 degrees at one point, but it may have been in the sun then. We’re going to bundle up and go see the geese and toss some old ice cream cones to the chickens. Tomorrow we go back to school, which will cut in to our reading time, but provide more playing time I’m sure.
Snow in January
We have snow on the ground, and so no school today. Eugene’s district 4J schools closed due to snow, as did many of the Roseburg area schools, and when the 4J schools close, so does Eugene Waldorf School.
We had falling snow off and on yesterday while we went to our tooth cleaning appointments. (John no cavities, slightly bleeding gums — he told the hygienist any part of his body would bleed after being poked and scraped at for an hour! Go John! Me, minor cavities in three teeth, one or two (surfaces against each other) that have been watched for a year and a half now though, so no surprise there. I get fillings at ever visit. Logan no cavities, no x-rays due to the size of the films, and the dentist has no concerns about anything. Her teeth will get sealed at our convenience, per the dentist. He wasn’t in a rush, but I’ll feel better, just in case she’s inherited my teeth and it just doesn’t show yet.) It even snowed during outside time at school to the Rose Kindergarten’s delight. We got to hear the office people at Logan’s dentist declare falling snow “a blizzard”. The snow wasn’t sticking to anything at that point, and we were all very entertained by that idea.
Over night the snow stuck. We have something along the lines of an inch, if it’s not under a tree. Logan slept late (7:30!) and appeared down stairs naked leaping around chanting “snowie snowie snowie”. She was not prepared to play in the snow naked at least. She did want to get dressed and go jump in to the snow as soon as possible. Two shirts, a dress, tights, snow pants, boots and a jacket later, off she went. I’ve got to knit her mittens since last years have never resurfaced. Or gloves, which I dread, since I imagine fingers made up of four stitch rounds. Maybe I could make them of I-cord.
On Tuesday this week I got to make two trips to Eugene for the pleasure of going to the preliminary “First Grade Readiness” meeting at school. Parents were all asked not to mention the prospect of first grade to children just in case those that were potentially going didn’t for some reason. This doesn’t take in to account that Logan comes home more than one day a week telling me her plans for first grade, what she’s doing in Rose Kindergarten that will be a project for first grade, who in her class will be going, and so on. It may not be talked about officially, but there must be an underground grader information railroad there somewhere.
The meeting was interesting, although the scheduling was at an unfortunate time. We had a letter from Rose Kindergarten telling us about the meeting the day we returned to school, and then received a letter from the school itself in the US Mail the day before the meeting. I had misunderstood the time from the first letter and called to find out the correct one (7 to 8:30 at night!) and was told it was set at that it was set because “most parents work”. John left work significantly early in order to attend the meeting, and be the person who drove, since I don’t drive after dark unless there’s an emergency. Aside from general information on physical, social and intellectual development of six and seven year olds, we got a little information on the search for a first grade teacher. Parents evidently have little to no input on this, which concerns me. A teacher may be selected approximately as soon as the spring break, or not until after school ends for the year. And there was a mention of a chance of children not meeting the teacher until the first day of school, which would seriously effect my willingness to have Logan continue there. There was also a reference to the chance of the teacher making home visits to meet children. My reaction is that if that is suggested it would only happen if a reciprocal home visit did. I dislike the idea of my home being inspected implicitly. Some aspects of school I agree with, some I’m willing to play along with, some I’m willing to challenge. We had the pleasure of eating grocery store sandwiches for our supper, and collected Logan from Nonny Susan’s shortly before 10:00 on our way home.
UPDATE: The nose of the small snowman, since 9:30 or 10, when we made it, (it’s now quarter past eleven), has been eaten by a doe. Logan went out to get snow for molasses candy (like in the original Little House On The Prairie book), and found a deer eating the snowman’s nose. She tried to shoo it away, and the deer stomped it’s foot at her!
Logan says she’s taking Cosmo the dog out with her the next time, and maybe Papa, so he can get the deer and she’ll have it for supper. I’m not sure what exactly he’s getting the deer with, although it sounds as if he might just be able to tackle it. And, since I’m not one who eats venison, I’ll just stay out of it. Unless I can get a picture of the deer and Logan facing off. I did whittle the snowman a new carrot nose.
1 January 2007
Before Wilma asks, we’re about to eat black-eyed peas. And we’ve spent the day doing things we’d like to do the rest of the year. We planted two trees. I cut out a dress for Logan, and hope to actually start sewing it tonight. John and I both read to Logan (that’s a daily occurrence anyway). John and Logan built a “house” with some PVC and a blanket in the yard, and we ate lunch there. John and Logan worked in the yard organizing, neatening and throwing away things. I removed yet another item peed on by the cat from inside the house. The cat is going to get to spend his nights outside for a while. And the dogs, in good form, have protected us from several invisible threats and some boxes stacked on top of John’s car.
Oh, and I’m making a point of posting here, in hopes that I’ll remember to continue to do so regularly.
I hope 2007 finds you all healthy happy and content and that you see it through that way too!
Second Installment for 25 Decemeber 2006
This dates from things handed down to Alan by Grandma Dot and Grandpa Bill. It is now loved by Logan, who arranged it just so on the (refinished since the fire) China Cabinate that I bought from Dot and Bill’s estate.
Caught in the act.
Logan’s wearing her christmas dress from Grandma Wilma.
Santa brought John nuts this year. John was happy.
Aunty Cheryl sent Logan this robe, which says, if it’s too small to be read: “It’s all about ME”.
This box has begged to be opened since it arrived, but Logan has been very patient!
Part of the contents of hat box — a Grandma Cam blanket!
John is entranced by a Gingerbread House making book that cheryl sent.
Grandma Cam sent this dress labeled “extra small”. We’re still trying to figure out the height and weight perportion for the person it was designed for. But we’ll hem it for Logan.
Both Grandma’s sent several shirts, which we started speculating could be “A Puppy” before unwrapping. Then Logan unwrapped a package from Grandma Wilma with a pink toy poodle purse in it. Wa la. One puppy. I seem to have missed pictures of gifts from Wilma — I’ll try to catch up as Logan tries things on.
First Installment for 25 Decemeber 2006
Next comes breakfast, and then some gift opening. More updates later in the day.
24 December 2006
This evening, a little bit late for the Winter Solstice, we did a house blessing, because Logan remembered the one we did two years ago just before moving in to the house and insisted it was something to do at this time of year every year. It didn’t sound like a bad idea over all, so we dug out our basic ritual gear and cast a circle.
The house blessing idea is to shoo out, in effect, or release bad energy, in whatever form you want to describe it, and encourage it to stay out. At the same time you encourage good energy to stay in, and invite whatever good energy is outside that might fit in or want to be in one’s house, to come in. We did this in part by opening windows and doors and going around banging spoons land sticks and telling scary thoughts and bad memories to leave. Then we went around again and anointed each door and window with salt and water, air and fire (incense) and milk and honey (from our goats and bees). And went around a third time with scented oil sealing the doors and windows, effectively blessing them and also closing them.
Logan represented the element of air very well, constantly in motion, swaying and dancing and waving her hands. She was delighted to be the one who carried smoking incense most of the time and to light the candle for that element.
Now that the house has been reblessed, in theory no one with bad intentions toward us will want to come in to it. I’ll wait to see as friends visit us whether any suddenly balk and decide not to come in. 
That would be a surprise.
Holiday pictures tomorrow, pacific time.
Minor humor
Occasionally the dogs do things that wear themselves out enough that they forget they might want to eat at night. Exhausted sleeping dogs at the time we might normally feed them means we opt out of feeding them on the Let Sleeping Dogs Lie principle. So the routine is disrupted and they don’t eat, they don’t go out after eating, and the house is quiet. Yesterday two of them went running in the pasture when they were supposed to be staying home quietly in the yard, so yesterday was one of those days.
Last night Logan and I went to bed before John. So I was falling asleep, and had her finally to the point where she’d stopped talking every five seconds, and I heard a dog pacing.
And I thought he’d stop and flop down somewhere. But the pacing continued. And I thought I’d fall asleep. More pacing. Still more pacing.
Suddenly I realized Andy was a dog who wasn’t about to lie down, but a dog who really, really needed to go outside.
So I got up, told Logan to stay settled down, flipped on one light. Tromped to the stairs, flipped on another light, and started down the stairs. Which brought John out from the library and his video to see what was the matter. (Out on the rooftop there arose such a clatter I flew from my bed… no that’s a different story, right.)
John let Andy-Dog out. I went back to bed. John announced Andy was peeing on a bush right outside the door. Logan now wide awake again started telling me about the scary thought of dinosaur-giraffes that she’d come up with that could give her bad dreams.
Bulletin from John: dog is still peeing.
I encouraged Logan to think about other things, stop bouncing around like an orangutan and settle down.
Logan tells me she’d been almost asleep before I got up to deal with the dog, and I agree and explain that Papa couldn’t hear that the dog needed to go out over his video.
John tells us the dog is still peeing.
Logan negotiates to have a dim light left on to keep the dinosaur-giraffes at bay and I agree on the condition that she then STOP TALKING to me and lie still to go to sleep.
We listen to John begin to coax the dog back inside with a treat.
Andy is the least dog like and most likely-to-have-been-mistreated-before-we-owned-him of our three dogs. He likes corners. He likes to be outside out of the way, so long as he doesn’t have to move to much. He gets excited about dog food type things, and cavorts stiff leggedly once every day or two if the other dogs are excited, although he never seems to quite know why. He doesn’t seem to understand asking to go out, but he will go stand silently by the door occasionally, before peeing on the floor. So we let him out whenever he is active and seems to be interested in the door.
He’s John’s favorite dog.
If you click the picture it will reload somewhat bigger.
And we are now sporting a satellite internet connection, replacing our 12kbs speed with something like 300 kbs, so I’m going to go load other layouts and see what I can find that’s less pink.
If I forget and end up with big pictures that are hard on dialup, let me know.
Logan loves the template,
And I can’t customize it for anything. I found where I can set the date and time to appear as I want them — too bad, it doesn’t have a place where the date and time show except where it puts them, in it’s own style by the comments. I put in the whole Dreams and Bones song quote — and it overflowed into the entry text. No way to adjust it. So much for that idea. Ah well. It’s a short term set up.
We have finished the first half of the school year. Logan regales in being one of the “big kids” in kindergarten. She is actively planning her career as a “grader” (as in first grader, second grader etc), which should begin next year. She knows who will move up to first grade next year from her class, unless they go to another school, but is foggy about who from other classes. And understands that it does depend on the teacher being a good match for her.
Well, two days and two random computer crashes later I’m going to post this and come back to writing about Logan and school when I have more time to sit at the computer between crashes. But I got two comments so far!
