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September 5, 2011  

Why We’re Not Taking Stock Of Our Summer of Funner

September 5, 2011

Over the past few days, I have been supposing that this last entry for our Summer of Funner 2011 would be something like one of those top-ten lists the media produces over the lazy days of the new year. I thought that I would write an overall assesment of our highs and lows, our tops and bottoms, our tidiest and messiest, etc.

Today, though, I’m feeling tentative about the task of looking back over our Summer of Funner 2011 and trying to figure out what our various activities meant or what they did for us. I’m not ready to think about what we might hope to do again in ten month’s time, either, or what we hope we’ll never need to do once more.

With lists in mind, I’ve been thinking about Orpheus and that wife of Lot a little overmuch this long weekend. And, I’ve been saying to myself, superstitiously, “turn back, now, and be damned, yourself.” If I look back too soon, I keep thinking, everything might fade or blur, receding further and further away from me, if not in terms of my memory of what we did or how things went, then in terms of my (in)ability to access or, worse, to feel the sentiments I felt at the time we were doing what it was we were doing. Right now, then, searching for the “place where our summer is erased,” so to speak (with my apologies to Graham), isn’t exactly something I would derive great pleasure from. Come look for me and you would find, if not a pillar of salt, per se, a puddle of salt tears.

I’m not ready, then, to write the Summer of Funner 2011 in Review. Nor will I ever likely write that kind of thing…And, as for the kids, I’m hoping for the best there, too. I’m hoping, that is, for the classic”What I did on my Summer Vacation” essay to have gone by the wayside [I can just see their heads exploding, now! Which? How to choose?] — in favour of some more modern, goal-oriented assignment.

So where does that leave us? Looking forward to our time ahead. Sure, sure, we’ll be documenting our Summer of Funner again in June 2012. And, in the meantime, starting tomorrow, in fact, we’ll be heading over to The Lunchbox Season to casually document our off-summer adventures. Feel free to join us there!
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Pictures
1. Orpheus and Eurydice. 1806. C. G. Kratzenstein-Stub, 1793-1860. Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek, Copenhagen.
2. Lot’s Wife Leaves Sodom. Giustu De’Menaboui.
3. Inman Gallery, Jason Salavon. The Top 6 Grossing Films of All Time, 2×2: Can you tell which one is Titanic?
4.Orpheus Leading Eurydice from the Underworld. Jean Baptiste Camille Corot.
5. Lot’s Wife and Lot Salt and Pepper Shakers. Artist Unknown.
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August 26, 2011  

Egg Update

August 26, 2011

On Tuesday’s Egg Day, we began a 3-day experiment. We placed a raw egg into a mason jar full of vinegar and sealed the jar, setting the whole thing aside for a few days.  At that point, the kids hypothesized that the egg would explode inside of the jar.

This morning, we had a look at our egg to see if it had transformed.

When Bea went to unscrew the lid, the jar made a popping sound, as if gasses had been released.  Aside from the strong smell of vinegar, however, we didn’t sense any off-putting smells.

Each of the kids had a turn trying to remove the egg from the jar.  This was difficult. The egg had expanded. And, it looked even larger than its new, expanded size because of the presence of the liquid.  It also seemed rather squishy.  I finally had to remove it with a large spoon.

The kids were amazed by the results! They were left with a bouncy, rubbery chicken egg the size of a goose egg. It had an orange tinge from the yolk still trapped inside.

They spent some time squishing it, but neither of them wanted to bounce the egg to see if it would break. So, we wished it well and deposited it back into the jar of vinegar for safekeeping. We might break it out again at Halloween, perhaps transforming it into a “floating eye” for display by the cauldron of candy we keep at the front door!  Come “trick-or-treat” at our place and you can have a look!

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