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Who’s More Proud?

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So, a few days after Christmas, we decided to pack the kids up and head for the sierras. Someone twittered that it had snowed 12 feet in 10 days, which could have read “served 12 scoops of ice cream in 10 minutes” for all the excitement the kids had when we told them we were going. They haven’t seen snow in, like, twenty million years.
We bought them sleds.

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Neither of them have ever ridden a sled. I tried to get them started in the backyard on the sleds before we left, but muddy hillsides can’t prepare you for this lovely sugary flakiness.

While that describes me perfectly, I was in fact talking about snowy Lake Tahoe.

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Chas prefers to practice for snowboarding, which is what the big boys do around here, and he knows this intuitively.

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Damon adjusts Chas’ approach to suit the equipment because 10am is too early for tantrums and the subsequent boozing that will follow; remember that we are on vacation and we reserve the right to remain chill.

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Perfecting standing balance atop the sled is more fun, though. than sitting on it like, say, a baby. We brought a bottle of wine in our picnic bag. We are well-equipped for chaos.

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No chaos. Just Chas, jonesing to be BIG, impressing the ladies with his style,

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and with his impressive,

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utterly ferocious

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Incredible HULK impression!!!

If the word “PRIDE” doesn’t sum up all of his expressions here, then “cute as all damn hell” works for me.

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And I’ll Take New Digs, too



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Our new spread for the “Practical Taxidermy” section of the book I’m blogging: The American Boy’s Handy Book, by Daniel Carter Beard, at Boy’s Almanac!

Finally, I’d like to show you my little project that I’ve kept under wraps. I’d like to introduce you to the Boy’s Almanac. I mentioned it on Flickr, but in my absentminded bliss I forgot to post a note here. That’s what it’s like being blonde. I should consider dying my hair.

Boy’s Almanac is a blog about one year, three boys and one book: The American Boy’s Handy Book by Daniel Carter Beard. This is the book every nostalgic man has kept in his library, the book many dads have cherished for their sons, but sadly, the book most boy’s aren’t really carrying around anymore because fun has become dangerous! For one hundred years, this book has taught young boys how to make blow guns, build huts out of pine boughs, rig ice yachts–it’s taught the art of dangerous living way before The Dangerous Book for Boys. Well, we picked the ‘Handy Book a while back and couldn’t resist the urge to follow some of Beard’s ideas, just so I could prove what a nut job I really am. And to prove, just for kicks and grins, that it’s a far more dangerous book than its modern contemporary.

For the record, I’m not alone, either, my cohort Alis is just as nutty. She’s dragged her son Seth into this, too. That accounts for the third boy, just in case you were assuming I was pregnant again. Because I’m not.

Hello?! Crazy!

Boy’s Almanac is a *fantastic* time sink, what with all the projects we are trying to replicate. You’ve seldom seen me at this space lately for good reason. It’s been somehow easier to vacillate, minutes at a time, between Flickr, twitter, Facebook even (shudder) but not here. The decision purely selfish; I need to renovate this space, I need to feel like coming here because it’s satisfied me enough lately to do all the above, quite frankly, and the sheets here smell so musty! It’s time to do the laundry. So, if you don’t mind my humming as I throw a load in and dust off the sidebars, I’ve got some cleaning to do. It would please me to no end if you left me to that business while you go check out Boy’s Almanac!

Thanks!

*s