Happy Birthday River!

Wow...hard to believe. Our sweet, beautiful, funny, smart boy turns 5 today! On Sunday he is going to have a birthday party and we have invited a few of his classmates. The first time he will party with is peers...a milestone for a kid with autism!

Urban Fair?

No go for Bronwyn at the dentist today. Her cold prevented her from having the treatment, so it was postponed. In preparation for the sedative she was not allowed to eat or drink past midnight. Seeing she goes to bed around 8:00pm that meant she was extremely hungry by the time we left the dentist around 9:00am this morning. The dentist office is situated above Urban Fare in Yaletown. Urban Fare is a grocery store that thinks it is Harrods Food Hall. A little more care is taken over the decor...but essentially it is just a grocery store. It caters to the Vancouver Urbanite; a professional family of 4 living in a 500sq ft condo; a professional couple living in a 300sq ft condo with a tiny dog that wears jewellery and little shoes; a single professional living in a cupboard. People pay a lot to live in Vancouver's hottest and fastest growing urban neighbourhood, and they demand to pay more for their commodities, goddammit! They want the exact same groceries that other "lesser" grocery stores sell, but these should be displayed in a style generally agreed to be more aesthetically pleasing (a mixture of rustic old-world, and modern utility), they should cost 20% more, and be labelled "gourmet". What's the point in buying an over-priced condo and taking out a massive line of credit if you don't get to pay more for everything you buy???   

Actually, they do have some "specialty" items that looked very tempting. I was drooling over the displays of  handmade chocolates and cookies and ogling the treats in the deli while providing Bronwyn with a running commentary on how delicious or how amazing this or that looked. Bronwyn tagged along and then finally said, in desperation, "Can I just eat something?" Oh yeah...she was hungry. So she chose 3 tiny organic "gourmet" iced-donuts that tasted like cardboard. (I could have bought 10 Timbits for the price of one doughnut). One was iced with chocolate, one with raspberry and one with maple syrup. There was also one topped with lavender (!?) flavoured icing. That just sounded wrong. But what do I know?

While we sat in the cafe area and ate the doughnuts, I happened to notice 3 women occupying a nearby table and "eating" breakfast. They were probably in their 40's, slim, and dressed smart/casual. I was quite hungry myself and couldn't help noticing as I walked past their table (and stared at their food) that they had all ordered a full breakfast only to leave all their fried breakfast potatoes and toast on their plates. What? Who would do such a thing? It makes no sense. Don't order potatoes then...don't order a big breakfast. It took all my strength to resist saying, "Are you gonna eat that?" I hate wasted food. But I remembered where I was and simply stared longingly. In my ideal world you will be able to ask people if they are going to eat the rest of their food and, if not, they will gladly give it to you.

I suspect that woman #1 decided to leave her potatoes because she's watching her figure and we all know that carbohydrates are from the devil. She might be worried that if she eats her pile of potatoes she'll get fat and unattractive and subsequently shunned by the Yaletown community. The second woman, not to be outdone, probably looked over and thought, "Shit, she's not eating her potatoes. Well then, neither will I. In fact, I'm not going to eat my toast either...ha ha!" And I'm sure the third woman, who was a little heavier than the other two, thought, "Bitches! I could eat all your potatoes AND my own. But I'm just going to take 3 sips of my water, push the food around my plate and not eat any of it...ha! And when I get home I'll bury my face in a tub of green tea, lavender soy ice-cream!"

So lazy...

Should have gone for a run today...but instead...I didn't. It is really cold out and I blow-dried my hair this morning so it was just right. It will not be just right any more if I go for a run. Those are my pathetic excuses not to exercise. Shameful! So I will go on the weekend and then promise, promise..that I'll get back on track next week. Since I had to stop Jazzercise I have not really done a lot. Or at least I have not had a good routine of regular cardiac/weights exercise. My core has become weak and as we all know....IT'S ALL ABOUT THE CORE, PEOPLE!

Last weekend I took myself off in the van for a solitary weekend of camping. The rain fell in a near constant torrent and it was very cold. Mostly I sat in the warm van, wrapped up in a sleeping bag, and read. I did attempt a hike...but after my hands and feet went numb and it felt like there were pokers being jammed in my ears, I gave up and scurried back to the van.  I read "The Sense of an Ending" by Julian Barnes. I really enjoyed it. Although I would recommend it, I won't say anything about it because I have a way of talking about books that makes people NOT want to read them. So take my word (and the word of the Manbooker judges) that it's a good book. It was a very relaxing trip, although for some reason, perhaps the rain, the cold, the early onset of darkness, I felt more isolated on this trip. And there were other people around. I caught glimpses of hooded, waterproof covered figures with hunched shoulders and heads bent low, wandering around with no particular direction, like zombies. Maybe they were zombies...which would explain my slight sense of unease. And the flat tire I discovered on Sunday morning! And the chilling screams and groans, and sound of tearing flesh, that woke me in the middle of the night! Okay, I made that bit up. But I was greeted on Sunday morning by a flat tire! That bloody van has got it in for me. Thank goodness for BCAA. But I should learn to change a tire, I suppose. Thank goodness for BCAA so that I don't have to! A couple of pics...rounding of the season nicely. It was actually quite beautiful with everything draped and carpeted in gold.

Took the van to "Big O" a fun-filled tire changing place on Broadway. I had to wait over an hour because people are doing the winter-tire changeover...and "winterizing" their vehicles. I didn't know I would have to wait that long. I was scared to ask the tire-changing men; they looked cold and fed up and nothing like the people in this ad...the last thing they wanted to do was to answer a question. And they had no intention of smiling. It was: bring your car in...shut your mouth...wait for us to do the f$$king tires...then pay us and piss off! But that was just my impression and I didn't hold it against them, they did a great job. Incidentally, it's 20mins per car. What a task; changing car tires day in and day out...in the freezing cold. To be fair, I was informed that when there isn't a line-up of 20 cars and it's not sub-zero temps then things are way more pleasant for everyone involved. Understandable.

Bronwyn back at the dentist tomorrow for more sedation and treatment. She has a cold and is congested so she may not be able to have it done. She will be very disappointed she doesn't get her "medicine".

The dentist chair...

Bronwyn had to take a return trip to the dentist last weekend; a new pediatric dentist. Apparently, she has weak teeth or something like that. The dentist didn't come out and say that, she just came out and said she needed: 2 extractions, 5 fillings, one tooth capped, sealants and spacers. You don't have to be an expert to understand that the short version for that is "expensive". Even with extended health 'benefits' to cover part of it, dental work here is outrageously expensive. So I put two and two together and came to the conclusion that she has weak teeth. She eats no more candy than the next kid and brushes every day. Still, there we have it. This time last year I took her to our regular dentist to have a rotten tooth pulled. Not fun. I was not keen to relive that experience times 100! The dentist gave us the options: general anaesthetic or sedation. General anaesthetic seemed a good idea until we thought it through and realised we were not comfortable with putting her under. (Mark, who has never received general anaesthetic in his life, has a morbid fear of being put to sleep). We decided to convince her to have sedation and offered a very hefty bribe....a Wii player! As it turns out she actually preferred sedation (she was afraid a general would make her puke...a bigger fear it turns out, than the needle). So it was a kind of wasted bribe. Damn it, I hate when that happens.Now we're on the hook for a Wii player (hopefully, Craigslist will be fruitful).

Off to the dentist at a stupidly early time...8:00am. Soon after we arrived, we were led to a little back room containing a small couch and a table. A portable DVD player was on the table. Bronwyn was given the sedative and...a lolly(!) and we settled in to watch G-Force and wait for the 'medicine' to take effect.

I was noting things down in my journal and Bronwyn asked if she could write in it. Here is what she wrote:

Translation:

'I'm at the dentist write now just about to get my teeth pulled out wich will not be fun and I got mummy and kitty with me and I am allso waching a movie right now it's called G Force. It's about Guine pigs and one mean hamster that's berly in the movie. There's allso a mole and one of the guine pigs has a mohock. There in a pet shop right now the girl one just got taken by a little hummen girl and this is what she did: put lipstick on her lips and nail polish on her nales and a crown on her head and the girl allso put a dress on her body.'

__________________________________________________ (after about half an hour of sedative)

'here I am again. I just drank some medasin at the dentast and this is how I feel. I feel like I'm flying and I'm also really tired and really drowsy and allso a bit dizzy and I see to mummys sort of and I feel sort of weard. I'm allso sitting in a room thats really really small and I can't eat eany food or drink eany water and I allso got a lollypop. the dentist might be comeing right now    wate achaly I don't think she's comeing. I am sitting on a couch right now.' (taken to the dentist chair)

__________________________________________________

'latter in the day. I just got my teeth pulled out. It  was fun!'

"Is this real life?"

Afterwards she told me how much she liked the "medicine" (a mix that includes Demerol).
"Can we get some of that medicine for home?" she asked.

Me: "No, unfortunately not, otherwise mummy would have it stockpiled in the medicine cabinet."

All in all it was a positive experience. She was very drowsy and very relaxed: high, I guess you could call it. Of course we have to go back for the rest of the work...and now she is actually looking forward to it! A keen journal-er, the recipient of an abundance of dental work, a penchant for drugs...it seems the apple does not fall to far from the tree!

ETA: I should add that I was very impressed with the pediatric dentist, Dr. Anita Gartner at Tot2Teen dental office in Yaletown.  She was great with Bronwyn and explained everything that was happening. I sat right beside her as she did the dental work (something I couldn't have done a few years ago...ugh!).

Taking River to the dentist for dental work in the future is going to be a whole different challenge and I suspect we'll be back with Dr. Gartner. His last check up was okay...but he wouldn't let them clean his teeth at all:

River at the dentist: "No way!"

So that's why...

Skipping

by Robert Morgan

A carburetor skips, and rocks
will skip along the surface of
a pond. A fugitive will skip
the country if he can, and crooks
will skip the payment of their debts.
And one can walk content or run
with joy across a summer field.
But why omitting steps is such
a sign of pleasure's hard to say,
as if the gap and shift, the quick
eliding interruption of
a stride, reflects the shiver jolt,
releasing dance; accentuates,
as heart is said to skip a beat,
the lift, arrhythmic, breathless gasp
and rush and reach of crossing first
one threshold then another in
the vivid hop from foot to foot,
the hurrying toward and with delight.

"Skipping" by Robert Morgan, from Terroir. © Penguin, 2011.

I haven't posted a poem in a while, but I read this on the Writer's Almanac the other day.

River skips everywhere and so do many kids. It is wonderful to watch him skipping happily down street. I love how this poem captures that joyful action.

I want to ride my bicycle...

Last week I got it into my head to ride the approximately 50km from Vancouver to Lighthouse Park and back. I have often gazed across at Lighthouse Park from the Spanish Bank/Arcadia Beach shore and wondered how long it would take to bike there (without thinking that I actually would bike there). But I wanted to do something different on a Sunday, something that would take some time and that would be a to challenge myself. "Bike to Lighthouse Park!" I said to myself. It's far but there are quite a few bike paths...and so on Sunday that is what I did.

Stanley Park

A beautiful crisp and sunny Fall day; the perfect day for a ride. And it was a wonderful ride. It took me about 1hr and 45mins of riding to get there (I stopped for coffee at a cute place called the 'The Bakehouse' in Dunderave, West Vancouver). The most difficult, or arduous, part of the journey was the Stanley Park causeway; a long, slow climb to Lion's Gate Bridge.

On the bridge, heading to West Van

Looking East from Lion's Gate Bridge

The last part of Marine Drive, towards Lighthouse Park, is also a slow climb and a very narrow (sometimes scary) road to cycle. But I made it.

Beautiful trails

I walked through a trail (Arbutus Trail, I think) and found myself at Eagle Point, a perfect place to sit quietly, look out over to Vancouver and rest. It was warm and sunny by this time and so I spent some time sitting and thinking.

A beautiful place to sit with a fabulous view

The ride back took about the same time. It was pretty easy going really, aside from the actual distance. The toughest part of the way back was the climb up the first half of Lion's Gate Bridge, but once I reached the top I could basically free-wheel all the way to the end of Stanley Park. There and back I bike past Lost Lagoon in Stanley Park and along the seawall to the Burrard Street bridge. Most of the route consists of bike lanes and paths, with most of the paths being scenic and well away from the busy roads, which is fabulous and way different than I expected.

Lion's Gate from the West Van. seawall

I was a little sore, but mainly because I slipped on a rock and landed on my hip. As well, yesterday, my "iffy" shoulder (the one I previously had calcified tendonitis in) was acting up and I think it could have been due to the ride. Still, I really enjoyed the ride. Lighthouse Park is so beautiful and such a wonderful place to sit on a sunny day. I felt great to have done the ride. Go me..where to next?!

Heading to Stanley Park and home

I could sing of your love forever...

 This has been River's favourite song for a while now. He learned it at preschool and it took him a while to articulate the words so that I could understand and Google them. It's a Christian song...but I hear it's also a kindergarten favourite. He sings it out loud, swaying his head...pitch perfect. And right now, for me, it is River's song. And I hope he could sing of our love forever; beautiful, precious, joyful boy..

Camping with the girls...

 

A little belated. But here are some pictures of a camping trip that I took the weekend before last, with Bronwyn and her friend Gala. We returned to Sasquatch Provincial Park. As I've mentioned before, it is hard to resist; a quiet campground only 2.5 hrs from the city...with full cell coverage (if you're with Telus). It was a very lovely, fun trip.

The rain held off and we even managed to get some sun. I stayed in the background as usual; providing drinks, snacks, and some mediation when needed (which wasn't often). The girls had a fabulous time.

We did a fun walk down to the creek; the same one we went to when we camped with Bronwyn's friend, Nicky back in May. Then the water in the creek was high and fast due to Spring run off. Bronwyn and Gala washed their faces with smooth pebbles.

 Gala entertained us on the walk with a magic trick that she did with 3 pebbles...you had to choose one and she would shake them in her hands and 'magically', she would drop the one you chose into your hands. It was a cool trick but sadly she left the stones behind at the campsite.

We got a great campsite by the lake and they were able to explore the lakeside and take off on their own to the nearby playground. They even made a couple of friends. I enjoyed listening to them talk and getting a glimpse into their 7-year old world. Brownyn made up a song that they both sang at the tops of their voices;

Paradise is mi-ine,
God we rule the wo-orld


Paradise is mi-ine,
God we rule the wo-orld

Paradise is mi-ine,
God we rule the wo-orld

SAY IT

God we rule the wo-orld!

I suggested she said "Yeah" instead of "God"...it seemed it bit Evangelical sounding to my ears. She said it was "God" as in "Oh my God!" and did not take my suggestion.

We also walked the lakside trail. Slightly rainy and muddy, but all the better for it. To their shrieking delight the girls found a couple of frogs.

The leaves were steadily falling; carpeting the trail and draped over branches and twigs. Everything look golden. Bronwyn said to Gala, "Wow, this is beautiful!" and Gala replied, "Yes, it is!" And so are they.

The water level in the lake was quite low, leaving mudflats on the lakeside shore. These were too hard to resist and they made their way across to "islands of mud" as the clouds gathered and the day grew darker.

The sunset early and the we told stories around the campfire. Or rather I listened to them telling their stories and marvelled at the outrageous imagination of 7-year olds. This was Gala's first trip without her mom or dad. As evening crept in she would get quite homesick and she woke up both nights missing her mum. After the first night I wasn't sure she would want to stay a second. But the days were filled with laughter, chatter, play and discovery; no time to miss home. So she was brave and stayed a second night, again feeling the pit of homesickness as we sat around the fire and she realised that night was coming. I remember how that felt; I couldn't even go on a sleepover as a girl because I would miss my mum so much. Gala was brave and I was very impressed. So was Bronwyn. It was a really special trip and one that I think I will long remember. I hope they will too.

Settling in...

We are into October and the kids seem to be settling into school. River seems to be okay with kindergarten, although there are still some anxieties. He has a very inexperienced Special Education Assistant. This made us nervous at first. Some ways of dealing with River (and kids with autism in general) are way better than others. River's has quite a severe communication delay so it takes time to understand him and read his behaviour. Anyway, he decided to try out, and got away with, some behaviours that are not conducive to learning, i.e., running around the classroom and crawling under tables, and being really silly, etc. However, in the past couple of weeks we have worked with River's SEA and with the school. Matt has been willing to come to the house to work with River's ABA interventionists and also with our consultant. Sometimes inexperience matched with a willingness to learn can be a better thing than experience. So River seems happy and is beginning to understand what is expected of him. He's even brought some little projects home that he completed; cutting and pasting type of stuff. We still pull him out 3 times a week for at-home Behaviour Intervention sessions, which he needs. The school is fine with this and so it is working well. So far I am quite encouraged, but it is early days so I am still a little wary. I'm not sure what we are getting into with IEP's (Individualized Education Plans) and all that. Also speech therapy has gone by the wayside as we wait to go on the school board's list.

The other kids in the class seem to accept River. He cannot really communicate with them and they, being only 4 and 5 years olds, lack the patience that is needed to wait for an understandable, 'typical' response from him. But they take an interest and I think we may be able to put together a birthday party for him. It will be the first birthday party that River has invited his peers to!

He is very into garbage trucks...I could write a whole seperate post on it because I know a lot about garbage trucks now, oh yes. We also discovered that there are A LOT of people out there who are into garbage trucks. You may even be one of them. We discovered all kinds of YouTube videos. I even made one for him of the garbage truck going down our own alley. That is a favourite video. His favourite truck is the "side-hauler"...in case you're interested

Here's one of his favourite vids. A treat for all you garbage truck lovers...and you know you're out there! And the music is a cool too.



Bronwyn continues to love school. I hope it stays that way...but doubt that it will. She is growing up so fast it is amazing.

I am putting out feelers (not very successfully) for work. Trying to find references and update my resume. It is scarier than I thought it would be. The world is not a forgiving place; particularly if you are a woman in her 40's who has left the workplace for 5 years. Thinking about working and what I can do...thinking about childcare (and childcare for River in particular) is giving me some anxiety I must admit. But it must be done. Five years is long enough and I am ready to do something else besides being a stay-at-home mum.

There's a small...and boring update. I will try to do more regular updates. I am conscious of the fact that I have slacked off lately. It happens.

Cascade Peninsula and other happenings....

Bronwyn skipping rocks into Harrison Lake

So here we are entering the 2nd...or is it 3rd week of September. Bronwyn is ensconced in her grade 2/3 split class; reacquainting with old friends and tentatively making the first strides towards new friendships. She is an assertive, straightforward girl...but she is shy to approach other kids she doesn't know. She told me at first that she wasn't going to be able to make friends. I gave her my pearls of wisdom: "Well young grasshopper, a wise woman once said, 'If you want a friend....be a friend'" (deep, I know). I think I got that from a fortune cookie. Or maybe I read it somewhere. That reminds me that I have a new pet peeve, particularly regarding websites and blogs. It is including out-of-context quotes (of wisdom?) from writers, philosophers, poets etc., in everything you write. Padding your writing with quotes from more intelligent, philosophical minds...does not mean that you are. It's getting tiresome. Let's face it...most quotes are harvested from a websites of quotations. If you Google 'Famous Quotes' plus your chosen subject, most likely you'll get pages containing bite-sized chunks of wisdom that you can take anywhere. It happens all the time on FB... Here's mine, "Random quoting of people who are wiser and more profound than you does not make you either wise or profound, or support your point (if you have one)". Feel free to use that. I think for fun I will add completely random quotes to this blog.

Last weekend we took a trip to beautiful Cascade Penninsula, a forestry campground on Lake Harrison. The weather was great; sunny and very warm. We did have to move camp spots because some rowdies turned up and played VERY BAD music loudly and non-stop. But once we moved it was fabulous. Bronwyn taught me to skip rocks and River had a great time. He absolutely loves camping and was really well behaved. Here are a few pictures.

Lake Harrison from Cascade Peninsula

Lake Harrison

Sticks are cool!

Bronwyn's "berry henna"

The closest we could get them for a picture!

Pressing on, pressing on...I have skipped a few blog-worthy things. Like the excellent night out I had with my wonderful sister. We went to see Ray LaMontagne at the Orpheum, then stayed the night at a hotel, and spent the following day lounging and then doing some downtown shopping (or rather looking...shopping requires having money). I live 20 minutes from downtown but very rarely go there. It felt like we were tourists. It was great fun. I am so lucky to have my sister and best friend living here in Vancouver. I took Bronwyn to the PNE to see Superdogs...she dressed as a dog. I got a kick that she's still unselfconscious enough to dress as a dog for Superdogs.

Bronwyn-the-dog petting "Pot Roast"

I have also done other stuff. Which will now be forgotten and lost in time. Oh well. Life can be go by fast sometimes. As I once read:

 "Contents and colours may vary. Please retain package for future reference." 

It was on a box of crayons. And it is very true, especially for a box of crayons; varied colours, I think, being an essential component. Worth remembering.

OMG! OMG! OMG!

School has finally started! It's, like, totally awesome...seriously! As much as I love my spawn, I love them to be in school! Actually, it has only started for Bronwyn...River still has to wait for a couple of weeks. He is doing "gradual" entry to kindergarten...loosely defined as "not-very-gradual" entry at all. I am trying not to worry about River being in kindergarten. I think he will really enjoy it. It wasn't quite the back-to-school experience Bronwyn was hoping for; put in a kind of holding class where she knows no-one while school sort out their numbers and decide who is going where. Hopefully, she will be in her new class next week and can then start to make some friends. The aura of fear and excitement that surrounds the kids during the first days of the school year is almost palpable. Combined with the smell of cleaning fluid and wax crayons, it gives me vivid flashbacks of my own experiences, about 100 years ago.

Now it is time for me to begin thinking about going back to work. The type of work that you get paid to do. I'd like to get back into teaching, but I don't know how feasible that is going to be. I will need to do some research. If not teaching then I will have to think of something else.

Boring blog updates lately. Now I don't have children disrupting me every minute I may be able to write something down! We are enjoying some very good weather right now...so we're still out and about with friends and having fun. Fall will likely see us begin to hibernate. I am already looking for a knitting project.

Relief!

Got the results and the lump is benign. That word is music to my ears! Biopsies are no fun at all...neither is the wait (which, thankfully, was not very long). I shouldn't have to go back for another year. Hurray! Well, there is a chance that the lump will have to be removed anyway...but I am not bothered about that. It is not the same type of surgery as before and I think the surgeon may just decide to leave it for now. Now...back to summer. What?? There's only a week left! Then it's back to school for the kids who have reached the lolling about, bored, swinging legs and sighing stage of the summer holidays. To school with you!

No encore, thank you!

I went for a mammogram and ultrasound the other day...always fun! I was hoping for the all-clear...silly me. Oh no, not so fast, you don't get let off that lightly. A few days later I get a call from BCCA.
- 'You need to come in for an ultra-sound guided biopsy. Monday at 11:00am.'
- 'Errr...say, whaaat? Okay...what is that?'
- 'It's a biopsy guided by ultra-sound.'
- 'Oh thanks for clearing up my confusion.' So helpful.

Apparently it is ordered by the radiologist and done under local anesthetic; it takes about an hour. That's the amount of information I have been given. So here we go again. Nothing to worry about, lots of women have biopsies. Only it is not so easy for me to say that now. I was disappointed, to say the least. Called back in for yet another examination on the other breast. Excuse my language but...fuck that! I'm hoping they're just being hyper-vigilant, as they should be, but really? But do I need this? No I fucking do not!! Deep breaths...and try not to think about it. At least I will get another opportunity to flutter my eye-lashes at the handsome Oncologist...joke! I would never do anything like that. It would be very unprofessional and I take my patient responsibilities very seriously. I debated whether to say anything to anyone; sympathy and concern are not always welcome because we'd rather not need either. But of course I appreciate it is well meaning. And it is always nice to be cared about.

Despite having that in the back of my mind, we had a good week. It has been fun hanging with Jenn and Sapphire and Little River...as well as Nicole and Gala. The girls have had a great time playing in the sun. They seem to have ironed out their differences and are having a good time together. Bronwyn can be very bossy. But I have absolutely no idea where she gets it from.

So I am just trying to look forward to a relaxing weekend with the kids. Weather looks good so we will spend some time at the beach, feed carrots to fat rabbits, and maybe take a trip to Granville Island. And I will try not to think about Monday or any of that.

I'm back...

Eeek...it's been a while. Where have I been? Certainly not sitting at the computer updating this thing. Oh no...the weather has been good and we have been spending our time at the beach, at playgrounds, watching bunnies, and generally enjoying the outdoors on our own, and with friends. Dust has gathered on surfaces, the laundry basket is overflowing and every one is down to the their last pair of underwear. Disintegrated cheerios coat the living room floor, along with the sand that is trailed in from our sandals. The (new!) fridge is relatively empty, as are the cupboards. There may as well be a sign on the door saying, "Gone Fishing". Potential burglars probably look through the windows and assume we've already been done over. But we waited a while for some good weather and goddammit we're going to enjoy it.

Big River and Little River

Feeding the wabbits

Close to Jericho beach there is an area of brambles and hedges, pock-marked with rabbit holes, known as the "Bunny Circle". Here bunnies live happily (or 'hoppily'...eh eh) and freely; stretching out in the sun, having 100s of babies, getting fat and lazy on carrots and lettuce. I think their only predators are coyotes...but they don't seem overly worried about it; lounging openly in the sun and not even backing down to the barking of frantic dogs. The kids love going there to visit the cute bunnies and force carrots upon them. Occasionally we have seen hamsters huddled together and hiding. I'm not sure the hamsters stay for very long. Why do people drop off their hamsters to live in the 'wild'?

Leaving the safety of their little plastic world, they are forced out into the land of bunnies, crows and coyotes. Yeah, they'll get a better life; if you consider bewildered panic, quickly followed by paralyzing terror at finding yourself as the main course to be a "better life".

In other news I bought some new toothpaste. It is called Crest Pro-Health and it contains grit. It is like brushing your teeth with sand. Nowhere on the package does it say that there is grit in the toothpaste. It is very odd. Be warned...