Rain

Celeste wrote a poem the last night, here it is:

Rain
drizzling down
thunder in the distance
a cool breeze
but safe inside

grasses dripping
gentle splashes as water hits water
a silver-tinged sky
a cozy bluish room

pours harder
lightning strikes
followed by a loud
BOOM
and the rain returns to a normal pace

eventually,
eyes grow heavy
brain slows down
and soon,
sleep.
a peaceful rest

eyes open
body awakes

outside muddy puddles cover the ground
and the world has been sprinkled with clear, wet pearls

flowers hold miniature pools of water fit for an ant
droplets of water slide down heavy leaves
and drop into puddles below

splish

the air has a fresh scent
and a refreshing chill
the sky is a calm grey
soon to be replaced
with a happy spring sun

the grass is damp now
but will dry soon
the puddles that litter the ground
will soon evaporate

soon the birds will be calling
to one another
from the trees and the sky

soon the bees will be buzzing,
humming through the flowers

and the fox kits will be playing
in the meadow

every creature is at ease,
for spring is here.

life will be about
soon
but, yet
soon the owl will hoot
and the day will be over
the sun will go down
sleep will happen
and soon,
soon the sun will be up,
and the birds will be calling,
and the bees will be humming
the fox kits will be playing,
and the day will restart.

Spring.

Who's Your Daddy?

Pretty sure that Celeste's real daddy is Richard D. James (aka Aphex Twin). I submit these photos as evidence:

(reading Chaos Walking: The Knife Of Never Letting Go)

And the less crossed-eyed Richard (the cover of his 1996 record):

Celeste At Cardiff

A few quick pix taken of the grrrl during a quick stop at Cardiff State Beach during an exceptionally-low tide.

leggy blonde

 long tail

 shaped sand

lobster tail

Enderman Invades

As spotted on our lawn, carrying a block of earth. For more information on these dangerous creatures, click here. UPDATE - her pic is now up on Endgadget, an image in the gallery, part of their Geekeist Halloween Costumes post.

Autumn Getaway pt 3: Glass Beach & Point Cabrillo Lighthouse

One of the most interesting spots visited during this trip was Glass Beach just outside of Fort Bragg.
Like many ocean-side municipalities, the city of Fort Bragg routinely dumped their trash right into the ocean. However, unlike most areas, the local tides didn't take all of the trash out to sea. After decades of pounding surf, the tons of deposited glass have been mostly polished smooth, making the beach a truly unique spot.
Consisting mostly of clear, brown and green glass pieces, but with a smattering of cobalt, opaque white, ice blue as well as polished pottery shards.
The grrrls bought a reference guide to the different colors. Many of the opaque white glass was from milk jugs, while flat ice blue pieces may have been windows or glass from framed prints.
Mixed in were small, twisted metal pieces and wire - mostly aluminum. I did manage to find part of a Trico windshield wiper blade and a bullet casing.
Certain areas of the beach provided different-sized glass. This particular cove was virtually all glass with very few natural rocks or sand mixed in.
Two freezer storage bags worth of interesting glass was collected.
Celeste naturally found other things to entertain herself with. Like this piece of kelp...
...and small spring.
Also visited was the Point Cabrillo Lighthouse...
...which was recently restored to its 1909 condition.that's all

Sixth Grrrader

Autumn Getaway pt 2: Soggy Camping & Skunk Train

Van Damme State Park. Out of season + crummy weather meant we had run of the place:
Far from ideal conditions.

Staying dry in the van:
Lots of rain = green everywhere:
Riding the Skunk Train from Fort Bragg to Northspur and back:






next up: Glass Beach...

Star Of India Sleepover

Celeste's class was fortunate to be able to participate in a sleepover on the San Diego Maritime Museum's Star Of India a few weeks back. This ship, launched in 1863 as the Euterpe, is the second oldest still-sailing ship in the world and is the centerpiece of the Maritime Museum of San Diego's collection.
We've been to the museum and ship twice before (previously covered here and here), but never had the "living history" experience that Celeste's class did. It was definitely tough on the kids. The staff, costumed and acting as if they were 1870s sailors, taught them history of the ship and era and had them working together to handle some difficult tasks such as moving barrels using tackle and blocks, cooking for each other, hoisting one another up in the botswain's chair, going on overnight "watches" on deck (Celeste's was from 1-2:30 AM) and, of course, swabbing the deck.
No comforts were afforded them when sleeping either. Just a sleeping bag on a hard wood floor. Pillows and pajamas were forbidden. As a "safety officer", I was able to roll out a small sleeping pad. Still I slept no more than a couple of hours.
Definitely a tough yet rewarding experience for both the grrrl and myself.

Celeste is in the blue bag


bon voyage