Geothermal Energy Homework Video

The kid asked for some help with his homework last night. This meant being the camera operator for his homework video about geothermal energy.

The kid had already written the script so filming took about 40 minutes. Other than offering a few editing tips, the kid did the rest -- going into a mini-panic when 9:00 pm bedtime approached. Like many people caught up in creativity, the night is young at 9:00 pm.

The video has humor, education, and lots of graphics. The kid wanted a news promo, complete with dramatic journalistic music, but good enough won out over perfect.

Science Project Yields Tangible Results: Nachos!

The kid used the above solar cooker to produce an amazing plate of nachos. The cheese was fully melted, the kid reported.

If there is anything that might impress upon a 10-year-old the importance of renewable energy this is definitely it


<

The Perfect Post-camping Meal

After we got home, cleaned up a bit, we then went to Wong's King and had an excellent meal.


<

LL Stub Stewart State Park Great All-round Experience

The Banks-Vernonia State Trail, Oregon's first rail-to-trail, runs through Stub Stewart State Park.

We returned from an excellent adventure camping over the long weekend. Banana boats and S'mores were eaten, bugs identified, campfire smoke inhaled, life lived well.

We ate hot food, stood around looking at nothing in particular, felt good about being unwashed and messy -- this is the point of camping.

The first day we rode bikes to Vernonia and back, enjoying the thin ribbon of blacktop as it wended its way through the lush forest. The second day we hiked in the hills, sniggering when we went to the  Unfit Settlement Viewpoint, our imaginations running wild as to what exactly was so unfit about it.

When we were all packed up we discovered the car battery was dead. Lucky for us a neighbor had the gear to start the engine.

Showered and back in civilization I can't wait to do it all again.


<

Hot New Video Game Depicts Rampaging Goat

The above shot is from the game Goat Simulator.

The player control a goat that kills, maims, destroys everything in its path. The kids love it!

Kid Always Leaves Shoes On Stairs -- But They're Cool Shoes

This is something I could easily complain about. I suspect when the shoes are gone I will miss them.

I Will Photobomb Anything

When one is friends with an owner of a recumbent bike shop preparedness for impromptu modeling is a must.

Both myself and Mel rode 2000 vertical for this photo. My ride is not pictured. I got to pose with the interesting bike because I was wearing the shop's T-shirt.

On to the Tour!

Piles of Gear Start To Be Assembled As Memorial Day Looms

A small taste of the mega collection of gear our camping trip requires.

The garage is getting mussed up as I start assembling the camping kit.

I love camping, even the bad parts, like having to sit out bad weather and dead cell phones. I enjoy the challenge of trying to bring the crucial items that will make everyone comfortable, but that will not cross any philosophical red lines -- I will not travel in an RV (unless, of course, it is someone else's RV then it's party on!). I suspect I am the only one in the family with philosophical red lines concerning camping.

Now I enjoy sleeping in a tent for a few nights perhaps because it makes me appreciate my bed at home more. There have been times when my tent was the place of ultimate rest and refuge. I once took a bike trip in New Zealand and logged over 90 days sleeping in a tent. I still yearn to return to such a relaxed state of mind.

The kids like the flashlights and campfires, s'more action, and green spaces.

Here's hoping for some good weather.

<

Kid Receives New Desk: Practices Being An Executive

The clean, expansive desk indeed does look commanding, but the video games on the screen suggests the company the kid is administering is in the entertainment industry.

Our own Chief Executive Officer!

After a rigorous room-clean, the tiny desk and chair previously in that spot made way for more appropriate furnishings.

Sixth Grade Poetry: Alphabiography

Last year the daughter wrote a series of poems, thoughts, memories to create her Alphabiography, the name coming from the packet's alphabetical organization.

The assignment had been handed in late, or some other circumstance, and so the teacher had not returned the work at the conclusion of last year. She found it this year and returned it.

I am certainly happy she did for this is seriously cool stuff, a kid reflecting on early childhood, her likes and dislikes, life, moods.

Too often in art there is a self-consciousness that can obscure and reduce the beauty of the main idea. There is none of that here. The kid has the words to describe it, but no cynicism to temper her vision.

And of course she is our perfect daughter and we love her!