Tuesday night

Waiting for Maggie to finish her chips.

TV blaring about a "geezer bandit"

Valentinos/Pizza Roma

After this to Blockbuster and Market Basket

Sent from my iPhone

Cairo on Flickr

this is another good one, just searched for 'cairo' on flickr:

khan el-khalili bazaar

I had a great talk with Cassidy yesterday. She went to this amazing marketplace in Cairo called the khan el-khalili bazaar and bought a guitar of some kind and an egyptian drum! These are not her pictures, but a slideshow of what search results returned at flickr for "khan el-khalili bazaar."

Note from our vacation plane ride in July

S: How are you?

h: ok

S: You are a good kid. No trouble.

h: :)

S: I am so ready to get off this plane!

h: Same here.

S: Are you enjoying your book?

h: Doi!!!!!!

h: Lets keep talking like this

S: What do you want to talk about?

h: ?

S: you are the one who wanted to keep talking! So... KEEP TALKING! :-p

h: What does :-p mean?

S: I am sticking my tongue out at you.

h: Ohhhhh

S: Yesss.

h: I want a iphone

S: Who doesn't want an iPhone? They are so awesome. Your mom is the
coolest mom around because she has an iPhone.

h: Oh sure (roll of eyes)

S: LOL This is boring I want off the plane!!!! Aaarrafghgjhhhhhb!!!!

H: I @($&ing want of this plane!!!!!!!!!!

S: Agreed.

H: Are you even mad I wrote @($&.

S: Well

S: I understand why you wrote it!!!

H: Of couse

S: The end

Sent from my iPhone

How Cassidy is doing

I have been in touch with Cassidy a few times and thought I would share some details with you, dear reader.

Number one is, Skype is awesome. If you haven't gotten on board yet and/or you have loved ones far away, you need to get off the rock and go with the flow.

Number two, it's been interesting to ponder the impact of technology and access to social tools like skype, chat, facebook, twitter and etc. Especially as it relates to families of students who're overseas like Cassidy. What is it that makes us presume that being able to connect instantly is bad for the student? This sort of thing.

Back in the day, if you were moving west with your new husband, very likely that was it for seeing your family of origin again. But now, you can be all the way over in Egypt visiting with your dear auntie on the computer! Kids these days (ahem), they've grown up expecting that instant access. I believe that, used properly, this sort of tool can help kids feel more confident about expanding their world.

Look at Cassidy. She's not avoiding life in Egypt by sitting with me for 10 minutes before she goes to bed and I've just come home from work. It is as much an intrusion on her daily life as a phone call; the tools are just smarter!

Having said that, I'm dying for her to supply me some visuals!!! We are sending her an extra Flip video we happen to have lying around, and she says she'll upload videos to youtube or whatever. As that happens, I will post them here.

She needs her own computer first, since her host family's computer is in her host mom's bedroom and she's just borrowing the use of it for now. There is an Apple store right down the street!

Anyway, she's doing great. Just great. It sounds as if she simply cannot believe her eyes about 9 times out of 10. There are tiny rusty boxy little cars everywhere, she talked about seeing a boy selling limes in the street, people watching a movie in an outdoor courtyard, selling food and vegetables from carts, guys strolling down the street playing drums, etc. She says she appears to be a pale oddity to most; has not laid eyes on any obvious seeming westerner. The country is more modern than you might expect; most speak some English, and all are warm and friendly towards her.

So! That's about it! I'm interested to see what's involved in sending my first care package to her, what with customs and assorted regulations about what you can ship to Egypt. ("No satanic materials.")

If you'd like her address to drop her a card or letter or something, please email me! I know she would LOVE to hear from you (whichever one of my handful of readers you are.)

Signed,

the proud auntie

found photobooth pics

Fwd: HELLO, I LOVE YOU!

Sent from my iPhone

Begin forwarded message:

From: "Cassidy C."
Date: August 30, 2009
Subject: HELLO, I LOVE YOU!

Hi, everyone!
I have arrived at my host family's house safely. This is just an email to let you know that I am here and how to reach me. Here is my address and phone number:

..
Dokki, Giza, Egypt

...

I don't know how to make international calls from the USA so you will have to figure it out. Call my cell phone any time day or night!!!!!!!!
Today I am feeling a little sick because I drank some of the tap water so I am probably going to stay at home for most of the day. At 6:30, Marina is taking me to dinner with her friends. They are Muslim and are breaking their Ramadan fast at that time. Ramadan in Egypt is amazing! Apparently 60% of Egypt's total consumed food is eaten during Ramadan. It is kind of like the days are backwards. They eat during the night and take naps during the day. Last night when I arrived here, Marina's friends came over to greet me. They told me that they volunteer at an orphanage every day and now I am going to join them! I shouldn't be on the computer very much because I should be spending time with my family so I will go now. I do feel very homesick sometimes and the only way I can fall asleep is by telling myself that I can go home whenever I want. I miss you all so much but I am having a great time! Oh, last night Shereen ordered chicken shawarma for me because she knew it was my favorite food. I felt really sick and so so so tired but I tried to eat it and smile but then I almost gagged on it and I had to tell her that I felt sick from the water and I needed to go to bed. I apologized for a really long time but both Shereen and Marina were like, "This is your home! You must feel comfortable to tell us how you feel!" This morning I was woken up by the Muslim call to prayer. I have pictures to show you, also, but that will have to wait.
I love you all so much!!!!
Love,
Cassidy

Cassidy made it to Egypt

Hi, real quick -

Cassidy called Lanie and Lanie called me and now I'm writing to you.

Cassidy managed to sleep much of the way to Germany. The airport in Germany was super spiffy, apparently. The plane from Germany to Cairo was very fancy, with TVs for every seat!

As for Cairo, it is, apparently, 'ah-MAYYYYY-zing!!!'

Reports of lots of small boxy cars, folks in muslim garb and perfect weather. They had their first Egyptian meal and it was completely delicious. She and the others in her group are at a hostel in Cairo until tomorrow, when she'll meet her host mother and continue on with her journey!

Lanie said she sounded very strong, so. YAY!

That is all.

Short but sweet

Item:

• Seattle was great fun.

• Serah's wedding was beautiful.

(more here)

• I finally set foot in Katie's house! Yay!

• The waterpark in Renton, WA is awesome.

• I love my family!

• Brooke and Greg are having a baby!
• Cassidy leaves on her Egyptian adventure next week!
• next week!
• with her permission I will post emails she sends us from Egypt.
• Maggie starts kindergarten next week, Henry starts fourth!

• I recently turned 39.
• When Marcia was here we laughed and laughed down at the Legion.
• this blog slips my mind now a days
• I am for health care reform

Sent from my iPhone

The kids and I are leaving for Seattle tomorrow! Jeff left this
afternoon. I am turning laundry and will be packing tonight! Can't
wait to see everybody!!

Sent from my iPhone

Sunday evening

After all that rain, we have had a beautiful holiday weekend here in southern New Hampshire. I heard somewhere about how the mosquitoes for next week are going to be, like, four years worth of mosquitoes. (here's something on it.) And Henry has a wilderness workshop week of camp starting tomorrow! Gak. Luckily his cast comes off this Wednesday afternoon. I will have to set out some industrial strength bug sauce for the morning.

This camp sounds pretty awesome. It's called Wild Ways, I just discovered the guy's website. Check this out, it sounds fun:

Dan Mac heads various Primitive Skills and Wilderness Workshops for different age groups throughout the year. Specific Schedules and Descriptions of events will be posted soon. In general our ongoing areas of exploration include:

• Primitive and Advanced Shelter Construction
• Fire Starting and Fire Keeping techniques
• Wilderness Water Acquisition and Purification
• Primitive Navigation and Lost Proofing
• Animal Tracks and Sign
• Story Telling
• Trekking, Hiking, Sauntering
• Plant and Tree Identification (including techniques for procuring useful materials and avoiding dangerous ones)
• Wood Craft
• Self Defense
• Camouflage
• Stalking Games
• Buck Skinning
• Leather Craft
• Making Cordage
• Observation Techniques
• Primal Community Cooperation (Positive Pack Mentality)
• Individual Rites of Passage
• Group Spirit Quests (Mythic Adventures)

Cool, right? I bet he will love it. Stinks that he has to ditch the last half of the day on Wednesday to get the cast off, but at least the cast is coming off!

In other news, we have our rats! Thomas Jefferson (Jeff), John Adams (Adam), and George Washington (Washington). They are pretty cute and certainly curious. I think I may take one out and hang out with him free from distraction tonight.

What I've observed about rats so far, particularly these rats: Curious. Working full time with their whiskers to check things out. Jim is curious and friendly in a very socially appropriate way, I think. Charlie could care less. Rats poop. I would like to see them learn to poop in the litter tray of rabbit food I've got for them, we'll hopefully get there one day.

Rats are fun to shop for. They love to eat and store away and sort through their treasures. I like the idea that whatever is good for humans is generally good for rats. (Except.) There is a large fan base for the pet rat, and their heart is good and true. People like to sew for their rats. Here is just one example:


here's a closeup of the bottom level:


Right? That's a fan of rats. Very interesting. I am anxious for my sister Marcia to come visit. Marcia has been known to sew up costumes for rubber chickens to wear on holidays, but is so repulsed by the idea of pet rats that I can hear her shudder and shiver when I tell her about them over the phone. I am curious to see if a) the rats melt her heart and b) if the idea of sewing for them is as inspiring to her as a rubber chicken hanging from a rope.

(the closest thing I could find to a rubber chicken wearing a costume. A 'rubber chicken costume', yes but no 'costume for rubber chicken')



Regardless, Marcia just celebrated a birthday - HAPPY BIRTHDAY MARCIA! And, I also promised her that I will totally respect her feelings about getting to know the rats. I intend to honor this request and will not make her do anything she doesn't want to do .

'cause that's how I roll.

WOOO all of a sudden the birds in our woods began to sing and sing and sing!

I am happy and excited to be leaving on our vacation soon! We are going to Seattle and also down to Oregon for Serah's wedding!

Mobile blogging, or iPhone Haiku

I am sitting in my clean bedroom.

Jim and Charlie are doing that rolling around on the bed thing,
casually play fighting.

My dad wouldve loved Charlie. He really loves to play by being chased
and then chewing on my hand that I've been attacking him with.

He also loves to lay beside me and nap, which dogs loved to do with Dad.

My kids are hungry.

These may be short!

Sent from my iPhone

Tumbleweeds Graduation 2009

Here is the long awaited video of Maggie's graduation...

Test of email to blogger

Woof

Sent from my iPhone

Henry's Report on VENUS

Venus

by
Henry K.
June 11, 2009

---

Venus

My report is on Venus, the second planet from the Sun. Venus is named after the Goddess of Love and Beauty. Venus does not have any moons in its orbit, and has the same acid that's in car batteries in it's atmosphere (which is sulfuric acid).

The swirling clouds of Venus are so thick sunlight cannot go directly through them to reach the surface. The surface of Venus is rocky. The lava flow from erupting volcanoes make low plains.

Speaking of volcanoes and lava, the temperatures on Venus are hot enough to melt lead! A scorching 900 degrees Fahrenheit! That's hot! The atmosphere is so thick and dense that the 'greenhouse' effect makes it impossible for heat to escape. It can get in though!

Venus shines brightly in the East before sunrise, and in the West after sunset. We can see Venus easily because it is the closest planet to Earth (23.7 million miles). Also, the thick clouds I mentioned earlier reflect the sunlight, making it bright from Earth. By the way, Venus is pretty close to the Sun too (67.2 million miles) and in space distance, that's pretty close!

Venus is roughly the same size as Earth, and astronomers think it could have been born at the same time.

Venus' day is longer than it's year. One full rotation of the Earth takes 24 hours, or 1 day. It takes Venus 243 Earth days to rotate once. If 1 Earth day is equal to 24 hours, 1 Venus day is equal to 5,832 Earth hours!




One orbit around the Sun on Earth takes 365 Earth days, but one orbit around the Sun for Venus takes just 225 Earth days. Venus orbits around the Sun in the opposite direction of the other planets in the Solar System.

Venus cannot support any life. I think that it might've been able to have water, but then it all boiled away from the intense temperatures.

Space probes only last a couple of hours on Venus before melting away. If you were to land a manned mission on Venus and you walked out of the spacecraft, you would literally turn as flat as a pancake and look like a pancake in a pool of blood! No kidding!

The former Soviet union launched several spacecraft to either fly by or land on Venus in the 60's, 70's and 80's. That's around hippie time! There have been many probes sent to Venus and NASA's Magellan spacecraft has been orbiting Venus since 1990. Japan is preparing a Climate Orbiter that will be launched in 2010. Japan's "Climate-C" orbiter will carry five cameras and it's mission should last at least 2 years!

And that ends my report.

---

SOURCES

"Guide to Space" by Peter Bond.
DK PUBLISHING


"The Martian Chronicals", blog by Ryan Anderson

http://martianchronicles.wordpress.com/2008/12/17/agu-day-2-venus/


"Mercury and Venus" by World Book's Solar System & Space Exploration Library.
WORLD BOOK, INC.


hk/slk

Milford Library

I am sitting in the 'Quiet Study Area" at the Milford Library. Brought Henry here because he has a lot of homework due tomorrow, and figured this might be a good way to help him focus. Except for the rotating stand of science fiction and fantasy novels he keeps gazing at (who could resist a book called 'Robot City'?!), things are going well!

I figured I could talk to you, blog, while he does his business. When what is due tomorrow is finished, we'll work together on his book report for Venus. We'll publish it here, and it's due on Thursday, so check back later this week!

(that was last night. now it's tonight. I'll post it right now.)

blog!

I miss you!

I will now take a few moments to bang out some recent life experiences: 7 things.

1. Henry is a trooper. If you haven't heard by now, he fractured his left arm, the bone above the elbow. he has to have a full arm cast, for the next six weeks. What a trooper. No complaining. I fear cast stink.

2. Maggie graduated preschool! I really need to buckle down and do some personal computing. There are a series of videos I got with our Flip and I just need to download something and restart and etc. and I keep putting it off. But they are adorable. You must see them.

3. Dave Matthews Band was completely awesome. We had sort of semi cruddy seats, the classic Fenway Pole, I'm told. But setting that aside, what a show. What a bunch of playing! Cassidy found this video of their cover of 'Dirty Water', which is another Fenway classic (I'm told).



4. Henry broke his arm the night of DMB. Thank goodness for text messaging. And thank goodness for Christine. All those Hauptmans are quality people.


5. Jeff and Lanie and Cassidy had a great time in Washington, D.C. Cassidy leaves in late August for Egypt, I can hardly believe it.

6. Work is crazy. Very busy.

7. I wish I wrote more. Will try harder.

Maggie's video blog

Maggie's Screened Porch Obstacle Course

Chicken Noodle Soup, the recipe!

I love my Sister Crockpot.

I pull stuff from the freezer, toss it in while breakfast is being eaten, turn it to low, and out the door we go! Come home from the day and bam, done. Good smells, a dish and a spoon, some crackers on top, mmm. Hearty. Delicious. Satisfying. And there's extra! Spoon out the leftovers into a ziploc freezer bag and toss it in the freezer and you've got an even more delicious dinner some other night down the road. Just toss the frozen lump into the Sister, turn it to low, and out the door you go! You can't beat that.

Thank you, Sister Crockpot!

This is my favorite recipe. Henry love love loves this soup. Both he and I highly recommend a liberal serving of goldfish crackers and a tall glass of cold milk with this meal. And when you reheat it, don't be afraid to add water to soup it up.

CHICKEN NOODLE SOUP

You Will Need

1 package McCormick® Slow Cookers Chicken Noodle Soup Seasoning
1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 3/4-inch cubes (I use frozen chicken tenderloins and either have giant pieces of tender chicken that melt in my mouth and cut with my soup spoon, or I fish some out and chop them up and add them back in.)
2 cups sliced carrots (I use frozen crinkle cut carrots. a delicious time saver.)
1 cup sliced celery (chop chop chop.)
1 cup chopped onion
5 cups water
1 cup uncooked medium egg noodles

PLACE chicken and vegetables in slow cooker.

MIX Seasoning and water until blended. Pour over chicken and vegetables. Cover.

COOK 8 hours on LOW. Stir in noodles. Cover. Cook 10 minutes longer on HIGH or until noodles are tender.

Makes 8 servings.

IMPORTANT: For best results, do not remove cover during cooking.

PRODUCT INGREDIENTS

SALT, MODIFIED CORN STARCH, HYDROLYZED CORN GLUTEN, SPICES (INCLUDING BLACK PEPPER, ROSEMARY, CELERY SEED, BAY LEAVES, AND THYME), MALTODEXTRIN, GUAR GUM, CALCIUM SILICATE (ADDED TO MAKE FREE FLOWING), CHICKEN FAT, VEGETABLE OIL (CANOLA, SUNFLOWER, AND SOYBEAN), CHICKEN BROTH, NATURAL FLAVORS, CITRIC ACID, EXTRACTIVES OF TURMERIC, LACTOSE (MILK), AUTOLYZED YEAST, AND SOY LECITHIN.