A WALK INTO TOWN

This afternoon Sarah and I took Bowden and Lucy for a walk into town. This time of year the weather is just perfect here in Idyllwild. It felt good to get away from the camp and stretch our legs a little. It's spring here and the air is flavored with pine. In town, we walked in and out of the shops like tourists. The shops up here mostly carry wares that are priced way beyond our meager budget, but we enjoyed looking at all the things the clever artists and craftsmen had manufactured for persons richer than we. It's like a poor man's museum. Most of the shops sell art to weekend tourists up from the desert and other places. Pottery, paintings, handbound books, woodworking, handblown glass, sculptures, etc... Sarah and I get endless enjoyment from discussing which ones we like and which ones we don't. We also like to talk about where we would put the various pieces of art in our house if we had the means to buy them (Frankly, even if the Lord saw fit to trust me with millions I couldn't justify spending a penny of it on such ostentatious stuff, but it is fun to look at and critique it like we are a pair of sophisticates). I think we enjoy disagreeing more than agreeing because it leads to more spirited conversation. "What! You really like that?" Of course, Bowden is a concern in establishments such as these. He's a rather grabby little boy, and many of these fragile and expensive items are on display at his eye level. So Sarah and I watch him like a hawk. One lapse on our part could leave us the owners of a damaged work of art, and put us thousands of dollars in debt. "You break it you buy it!"

We stopped into one store which deals in minerals, stones, fossils and such and marveled at an IMMENSE skeleton of a prehistoric cave bear, which was on display there. The owner had recently traveled to Russia to acquire the skeleton, which was authentic. The size of the thing! It towered over us, and it's immense head with gaping jaws nearly touched the ceiling. Of course, it cost more than I make in a year, which is to say it was very reasonably priced. The owner had to take a special class in order to acquire it. It is impossible to ship an intact skeleton so he had to learn how to reassemble it correctly. Once it arrived in Idyllwild he was able to reassemble it. It made my hair stand up when I touched the tip of it's claw, and thought about how in another place, years and years ago, it would have meant certain death to be anywhere near those claws. It was very impressive, and I'm sure it will make a very interesting conversation piece in someone's home. I'm just glad they're extinct.

After leaving the Cave Bear, we went to a coffee shop and ordered two steamed milks. While they were preparing our steamed milks Sarah and I both realized that we had no means of paying for the drinks as she had left her purse at home and I had left my wallet there as well. So I ran home (literally) grabbed the purse and wallet, and then began a frantic, yet unproductive, search for our car keys. Finally I gave up, changed into my running shoes, and hoofed it back to the coffee shop. Somehow a hot steamed milk is less appealing after runnning about a mile and a half. I may be fat, but this chubby little boy can move!

After leaving the coffee shop we started walking towards the Post office to check our mail. This route took us past the Idyllwild Inn, which our friends Josh and Emily White own. We stopped in and talked with them for a while before moseying on. At the post office we found that I had recieved a letter from my Dad, which reads as follows:

Josh-

Here's one entry in the 'rhyme with licorice' challenge. While "fish" and "licorice" may not technically rhyme, they nearly rhyme enough to mostly trick the ear.

Happy As a Kid in the Candy Shop

"Black Jack gum, a tootsie pop,"
I told the man in the candy shop,
"Atomic Balls, a charelston chew,
And chocolate-covered raisins too;
A quarter lb. of swedish fish,
of cinnamon hearts and licorice.
I've lots of coins 'cause just today
I turned thirteen and got an 'A';
I mowed a lawn and lost a tooth-
Oh yes!, and please a Baby Ruth,"

I love it! That's definately going in my book! I can't explain why, I just really love children's verse. I like reading it, writing it, and sharing it with my kids. It's just so much fun. Thanks Dad! The picture above is of me reading Dad's poem to Bowden on the bench outside the post office.