Aug 30 - What Kind Of A Fool Takes A Swig From A Cider Can That Has Been Sitting Outside For A While?

I swallow a wasp
Much pain ensues. My system
goes completely nuts

Aug 29 - Happy Anniversary, Brother, And I Really Am Sorry I Forgot Your 50th Birthday

Donna takes first shift
I'm late, cycling down wrong streets
Jason left meatballs

Aug 28 - In Which I Find Myself Gazing Longingly At Those People Whizzing By On Battery-Assist Bikes, Even Though I Don't Want One

The ride home kills me
So it wasn't just the scotch
Grateful for this pool

Aug 27 - What Would Mom Say To Know That This Is Our First Family Dinner Since She Died, Not To Mention That I Didn't Even Remember My Own Brother's 50th Birthday?

Morning: Boil the eggs
Potato salad must chill
Pool party tonight

Aug 26 - Eventually We Are Able To Drag Ourselves Away From Our Lazy Day Poolside And Go To A Family BBQ, But It Isn't Easy

All day in the sun
Backyard pools must be treasured
Vacuum makes it gleam

Aug 25 - Just Another Work Day Except For That Hellishly Long, Hard Cycle Home Due To A Detour To Collect A Generous Gift Of Talisker

Where'd the slow days go?
Dazed kids appear on campus
Summer, don't go yet

Aug 24 - A Long, Fun Day In The Private Pool As Rosetta Experiences The Freedom Of Being Able To Float

R tries water wings
"I'm so happy!" she declares
Peppa would be pleased

Aug 23 - Moving Day, And We Finally Get That House With The Pool And The Garry Oak Meadow For A Back Yard

Cooper is healthy
One last trip to the dog park
Off to the country

Aug 22 - On Encountering A Man I've Heard Something About

Oh, yes - I see it
A businessman's ruthless eye
Icy blue to boot

Aug 21 - The Day When There Is No Question That This Dog Needs A Little Serious Intervention, And In Fact He Turns Around By Day's End With Drugs

Cooper's poo is bad
I'm up three times in the night
Hosing stink-towels

Aug 20 - Kira And Jose Got Married Last Night, While I Was At Hermann's And Paul Was Trying To Coax An Alert Two-Year-Old To Sleep

Wedding reception
Most are strangers, but we know
how to work a room

Aug 19 - What Are The Odds That Another Beloved Pet Would Fall Ill, Even If It Is With Something That He Is Known To Suffer From Due To Compulsive Scrounging?

We come back from chores
to find dog poo down the couch
Strange foods barfed up whole

Aug 18 - It All Looks Like We've Got Another Crisis On Our Hands Until I Learn That Cooper Just Has This Tendency

Dog's got a bad gut
Sick; whimpering on the floor
Hang in, says the vet

Aug 17 - These Are Dog Days For R As She Surmounts Her Wariness Of Adults If It Means Getting Closer To A Cute Pooch, And Then Leads Giant Cooper On A Park Walk

"Can I pat your dog?"
She and Salty, in the sand
Chalk up one for bold

Aug 16 - So Then She Says To Me, "It's Not Easy Being Green, Is It, Nika?"

Back with my wee one
I swear, she's really 20
We ride mini trains

Aug 15 - And To Think We Used To Call It The Dog Days Of August Back In My Journalism Years

This day felt breathless
But at least I joined Co-Op
Damn Paul's gone again

Aug 14 - The Upside Of Housesitting As A Lifestyle: Nothing Stays The Same For Long. The Downside: Nothing Stays The Same For Long

The routine clicks in
Face prep. Dog walk. Feed dogs. Leave
It will all change soon

Aug 13 - At The Cedar Hill Dog Park

Dog walk, and Remy
meets his match. Not a mean one
but still damn alpha

Aug 12 - My Long-Lost Lover Returns From The Wilds Of Alberta And Suddenly It Feels Like Old Times

O goes north; Paul, west
Welcome home, partner. Missed you.
Here's your two new dogs

Aug 11 - O And I Celebrate With A Modest Steak As The First Semblance Of 'Normal' Returns To My Life

Yay, the car is fixed!
Even when it costs a lot,
I'm glad to see it

Aug 10 - Owen Finally Gets To Try Out The Ceramics Place After We Hang At Weird Little Carnarvon Water Park

Sweet that this small boy
wants to make a plate for mom
Styled with hearts and love

Aug 9 - Everything That Hasn't Gone Right Catches Up With Me Today, Mitigated Only Slightly By A Very Good Value Village Shop With Owen

The kid looks homeless
New-old shoes help out, more pants
Feeling discouraged

Aug 8 - New Dogs, New House, Back At Work, Paul's Still Gone, No Car, Hastily Thrown Together Plan B For Owen

O goes to Kass's
I go to work, though my brain
doesn't come along

Aug 7 - Stop-And-Go Traffic On The Malahat For An Hour Fries My Clutch And Leaves Owen And I Stranded

Come on, not today!
I get that plans go awry
But this is brutal

Aug 6 - Sometimes A Trip To Coombs Can Be A Bit Overheated On A Summer Day, But The Ice Cream Cones Are Amazing

Coombs and mini golf
I drive R while the boys play
Though I want the pond

Aug 5 - A Long, Delicious Day At Qualicum Beach With The Tide Out

Miles of sand and sea
The boys build a sand castle
We rescue dead crabs

Aug 4 - The Family Converges In Our Little Vacation Yard As All My Kids Arrive For A Morning Hangout

The valley gang's here
R is crabby, sleepy, off
The 'rampoline' helps

Aug 3 - Wasn't Sure If The Boys Would Be Into A Day This Lazy But I Am Happy To Oblige

What shall we do next?
Lie at the pond, eat the food
Wait for R and R

Aug 2 - The Teenagers Lead Me To A Swimming Hole At Little Qualicum That I Haven't Been To In 15 Years

We jump two fences
to sneak to the secret pool
The boys leap from cliffs

Aug 1 - A Third Grandson Joins The Clan At The Qualicum Bay Trailer And It Almost Feels Like Old Times

Zac arrives at six
Suddenly, they're little boys
Water guns in hand

July 31 - Things Start To Feel More Like A Real Vacation As I Grab Owen And Gage In Courtenay And We Head To Qualicum

Kids, stuff, groceries
Let's hope they can eat all this
Smokies for supper

July 30 - And Isn't That Just Like Anti-Karma To Show Up With A Traffic Jam On The Day When It Would Have Been Really Nice To Catch The 5:20 Ferry?

I drive like crazy
Alas, Chilliwack stops me
Brannen Lake's near dusk

July 29 - The Longest Drive I've Ever Made On My Own Puts Me Back Near The Town I've Never Liked Much

Long, hot, smoky drive
I set up west of Golden
Not quite dark, but close

July 28 - Barbara Turns 90 In The Shadow Of All That's Going On, Though At Least They Didn't Release Bud Yet

Cake, steak, clarity
Paul will have to finish up
But let's get started

July 27 - In The Original Plan, Bud Was Going To Lead Us All On A Day-Long Stampede Fest, So We Go In His Honour

This day is for fun
Bucking broncos, glitter girls
Their horse butts sparkling

July 26 - The Realization That The Transition Process Out Of Hospital Is No Better In Alberta Than It Is In BC

Sheets at bankrupt Sears
Bud seems worn, but they tell us
he comes home Friday

July 25 - Getting Used To The Reframing Of A Fun Holiday Into Many Hours At The Hospital, Though The Quality Inn Is Very Nice

We perch on walkers
Watching Bud eat flat chicken
Drinking Real Fruit Chills

July 24 - Paul's Cousin Treats Us To A Meal At The Beefeater As We Bring Her Up To Date On Developments Here In Medicine Hat

Poor Bud, thin and red
Tomorrow the research starts
Tonight, steak with friends

July 23 - Back In Stunning Waterton, Where Even The Knowledge Of What We're Driving Into Can't Wreck A Two-Hour Ride

Meadows and mountains
are prettiest when viewed from
the back of a horse

July 22 - West, West To The Crow's Nest Pass, With An Interesting Stop At The Creston ER

Doc gets Paul on pills
Plan B lands us in mountains
At a church retreat

July 21 - Now The Bad News About Bud Really Has Us, And Poor Paul Looks So Rough With All Of His Own Stress Manifestations. And We're Living In A Tent

Lake hikes and swimming
Two trips out to find signals
Bad time for no phones

July 20 - This Is The Day When Things All Start To Go Screwy, Though We Don't Yet Know It As We Start Our Drive South

If I had a horse
No one would see me again
Lost in golden hills

July 19 - In Which I Realize That Cold-River Swimming Is Possibly My Favourite Recreational Activity

This is happiness:
Cold, clear river, deep enough
to catch bold kids

July 18 - And The Camping Begins, With Night One At Bromley Rock After An Uneventful Drive From Tsawwassen

Young cedar waxwings
Bunched tight on a branch, preening
Beaks stained with berries