Well, Catey has finally done it. She has broken us down grain by grain, molecule by molecule, until we gave in and agreed to let her buy a hamster (why do I keep putting a “p” in that word?). She named it “Lemon Drop.”
First I had her write down everything she’d need to do each day and week to care for the hamster. She agreed to all of it even the part about picking up poop. She’s been responsible for the bunny cage in her classroom and explained (to me) all the steps in cleaning out the cage. Then she made a list of every item she had to buy or find. Then we went to the web and got prices. She counted up how much she had left from her birthday money stash (after saving some and donating some) and she had $27. So she had enough to buy a hamster and food and a water bottle, but no cage or toys. Catie desperately wanted a hamster ball, but we had a discussion about prioritizing her purchases to first buy the stuff the hamster to stay alive then the fun stuff. She could make money by doing big chores (cleaning the bathroom, etc) to make the money for the toys.
Since we need a cage, we put a message out to our neighborhood email group to see if anyone had a cage to sell or pass on. We got lucky, but the person with the old cage wouldn’t be home till 7:45pm. Can you imagine Catey’s anxiety?
We agreed to take her to the big-box pet store (after a pitiful cry-fest when she found that the family-owned pet store we’d prefer was completely out of hamsters) where she could buy her hamster in the afternoon and keep it safe till night when we could pick up the cage. This was a very happy day for my big girl. She can’t believe she really, finally has a pet of her very own. She put it in a big pot and watched it for about four hours. Then she waited for 7:45pm to roll around.
When we finally met with our neighbor, we learned that the cage had a wheel, water bottle, and food dish, so the money Catey had set aside for the water bottle could be spent on a hamster ball (you put the critter inside it and it rolls all over the house). Catey figured this out right away and was desperate to go back to the store for the ball. We had 20 min till closing, so we hopped in the car and drove to the store, hoping we’d make it. We did! And of course had to try out the ball right away when we got home.
Catey has been VERY responsible so far. We’ve been learning about the needs and habits of her Dwarf Siberian Hamster. She is cleaning up every bit of poop. So far so good.
So…umm….
Well, first, to avoid tempting fate, I have removed the last post (I think). It might still be floating somewhere in google space.
Next, we met with the city today – this was the official meeting – with Ch.t, me, a good neighbor familiar with city practices, and three city representatives, one of whom was the overall manager of the department we’re dealing with.
Our goal was to clarify steps and fee structures, historic consultant issues, and ordinance clarifications. I came out feeling like I’d just walked through a worm hole into an alternate universe.
I left my unofficial meeting on Monday with the impression that the current design is off the table (this was written in the cover letter I was handed, so I know I’m not imagining it). I left that meeting with paperwork describing the next three hoops we had to jump through to get an approved design concept. Also with the understanding that the rather unpleasant gentleman who did our first historic evaluation would be vetting the future designs we’d submit. That we had to act in such a way that our DPR forms looked the same before and after the addition (this was stated in the meeting again today, so I’m not imagining it).
But today, the big manager dude is indicating that we could move forward with the current design, recognizing that it may require some changes but overall looks good. That there is no first hoop, and the next three hoops are going to be rolled together into the hoop we’re trying to jump through right now. That the unpleasant gentleman previously mentioned is out of the picture. That the city doesn’t always force a strict adherence to the dept of Interior guidelines and sometimes accepts a compromise as the best way to balance all city goals.
I don’t know who my fairy godmother is, but I really hope she sticks around for a while.
So this is all really good. We still don’t have a crystal clear view of fees and I need to get a better handle on that. Also, I don’t know when or if the story might change again, but what I heard today is more in line with what MY historic consultant has been telling me.
I think I’m going to stick with this party. It’s much more fun.
My Catie (oh, wait, she wants me to spell it “Catey”) is so tender hearted. She can be such a stubborn little thing much of the time that I sometimes forget how sensitive she is.
She called a friend the other day and arranged a play date. We’ll just skip the whole drama about their refusal to play with Beck, Beck’s subsequent behavior, and my rapid arrangement of a play date for Becky. Consider it all skipped. So as we were leaving to take Beck to HER playdate, we noticed a poor little woodpecker jumping around on the ground. It looked like its wing was not working right. The woodpeckers never fly into our windows or fall out of the trees – I couldn’t think what could be wrong with it – I thought about rabies (do birds get rabies?) and left it alone.
But when we came home from Beck’s drop off the poor bird was dead. Just dead! Catie was so upset. She gets very angry when she is sad and takes it out on me. On this day, I managed to gently deflect much of her anger and bring her back to her sadness. Once she got over the first few waves of shock, she and her friend decided we should bury the bird. I did the burying part and the girls spent the next two HOURS decorating the bird’s grave.
It was just so amazingly sweet. If you can’t read the sign they made it says, “Violet was a very good bird and now is dead. Love, Catey”
Yeah. Okay. I told you to expect inconsistency. Was I wrong? No. But I must say, the biggest balls award goes to a true patriot (and someone who actually READ the constitution, not to mention the patriot act).. Dennis Kucinich. Houston, we have found a politician with a spine. Not surprisingly, the media have all but ignored the story.
But that’s not what I was going to write about. No. I was going to finally get back on the blog to tell you about a HUGELY IMPORTANT THING! The MUDDY BUDDY race. Yes! And this should bring a smile to your face, not to mention an strangely pervasive feeling of personal cleanliness no matter how grimy you are today.
WAY back in January, Ch.t’s brother Myr.n emailed to invite him to be his “partner in grime” for the Muddy Buddy race in San Jose. Ch.t agreed. And this past Sunday was the race. Check out the website for the full description, but in short here is what they did: Over a course of 7 miles or so, one partner starts off running, the other on a mountain bike. Every mile or so, there is an obstacle (cargo net crawl, a low wall, monkey bars, cargo net climb, or a hay bale obstacle). At the obstacle the partners complete the obstacle then swich to the other transport (bike or run). At the end of the race, the first arriving partner waits for the next guy and then they CRAWL TOGETHER ON THEIR STOMACHS THROUGH A 50 FOOT LONG PIT OF MUD before crossing the finish line together. Oh, man! What fun. No, really. As soon as I heard about it, I called up my friend Max and suggested we sign up. But we wimped out (the registration is, like, $140). But the mud part sounded like a lot of fun.
But Ch.t and Myr.n did the race and had a great time. Myr.n’s family came up and we always have a great visit with them. The girls love Auntie L.za and their cousins (who gamely tolerate the girls). See lots of pics on the Flickr link to the right.
Now scroll down because I’m back filling a bunch of stuff from the last few weeks.
Our little Jules has graduated from 8th grade! Sigh! I remember when she was just a tiny, screaming, toddler running around Yosemite valley in her father’s cowboy boots. Look at Jules & Beck. Don’t they look like sisters. Just goes to show that blood tells.
I got to see Jules’ baccalaureate mass on Thursday (sans my girls) and then I took the girls with me to see her graduate on Saturday. Ch.t couldn’t go as his muddy brother (see previous post) and family were visiting & they had to pick up race packets that day. But the girls and I had great fun. The commencement ceremony was actually very nice (I expected to be bored). But the speakers had good things to say and the kids did a fun review of their previous 8 years together at their school.
Then we went back to Aunt M’s & Uncle P’s for a great brunch party. I gotta say, that Aunt M can throw one HELL of a party – and it seems to come off so smoooootthly. Hot waffles, a baked ham, fruit salad, eggies, croissants, other stuff. All piping hot and delicious and done so fast. The girls had fun visiting and searching for tiny paint balls in the grass. Oh. And eating GOBS of whipped topping. Gobs.
(Scroll down again for more backfill.)
Well, Catey has finally done it. She has broken us down grain by grain, molecule by molecule, until we gave in and agreed to let her buy a hamster (why do I keep putting a “p” in that word?). She named it “Lemon Drop.”
