July 18, 2008  

     On July 6th we went to the Hancock ice cream social and fireworks with Alice and Don Alusic.  We took a picnic supper and sat on a hillside by the pond in the center of town.  They set off the fireworks over the pond.
     We picked up Alex and Addison on July 7th and brought them back with us.  The next day we visited the Peterborough library, where the kids played.  Alex liked the building boards, and both Alex and Addy played checkers. We gave both kids bikes to ride when they're visiting here.  Here's Alex finishing a ride with a dramatic skid.  Here's Addy swinging without the help of an adult pushing. On July 9th Sarah came to pick the kids up.
     The frequent thunder showers brought up some 4-inch-diameter mushrooms in our yard.
     While Lynn and I were sitting on the front porch, a small bird flew into the picture window and was stunned.  He rested for about ten minutes on the porch floor, giving us a good look at him.  He's a chestnut-sided warbler (only 4 inches long).  Then he flew off.
     On July 15th we went to Matt & Crystal's to help Matt refinish his kitchen cabinet doors.  Here's a picture of River at 20 months.  She directed her dad and grandpa in foot splashing.
     Some more wildflowers: bladder campion, thistle (note bee), and Queen Anne's lace with a "drop of blood" from when she pricked her finger.  Here's the complete collection.
     We bought seven cords of green firewood from a Greenfield resident—Louis J Cadorette Jr.  Here's a delivery, and here's the whole pile for me to stack.
     Graham crackers and milk just doesn't cut it unless it's Nabisco Honey Maid Grahams.  There have been imitators, but nobody else has quite found the secret recipe.  The Stop & Shop box comes close to copyright infringement.  (My dad was once asked by a razor manufacturer to design them a logo that came as close as possible to the Gillette logo without getting them into legal trouble.  He told them to get lost.)

Feature: Why is a Bronx cheer called a "raspberry"?

Quote: “If a man were so placed or could so place himself as to be absolutely above all dependence on his fellow-beings he would become so proud and arrogant as to be a veritable burden and nuisance to the world.” Mahatma Gandhi

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