Tuesday, July 20, 2010

Syrup and Salamanders

What a wild ride life is when you have four children in tow! All foods have to be carefully counted so that we’re prepared with an answer to, “How many cookies (pancakes, pieces of bacon, Jelly Bellies, etc.) are we allowed to have?” There’s a limit imposed on everything, lest the need to best one’s brother overcome one’s ability to be fair-minded and prudent. We allow two sodas per day to cut down on the number of unfinished and forgotten cans of pop we find on every flat surface when the kids leave any given room.

It took two and a half pounds of thick-sliced bacon and a triple batch of pancakes to soothe the savages. We offered four varieties of pancake syrup, but Ginette informed me that, since her children float their pancakes on a sea of syrup, perhaps we were being overly generous in offering real maple syrup as an option.” Besides which,” she said, “I doubt they’d appreciate the difference.” When the children heard this, they were incensed. Howe dare their mother impugn the sensitivity of their palates! This led to doling out of drizzles of real maple syrup because all of life can be a learning experience.

The only things Caleb and Max have fished for are crawfish. While they, with the assistance of their older sister Kathleen, have caught quite a few, none of them are big enough for the boiling pot, so mostly they’ve let them go. Their big game hunting has netted them a salamander which led to the purchase of a field guide to amphibians from Coker Creek Gallery, and another from Charles Hall Museum Gift Shop. These learning experiences can be great economic engines.

The salamander, now named “Rocko,” has also led to discussions of sleeping arrangements for the newest member of their family. While the boys want him to sleep in the RV with them, their mother insists that the air conditioning would kill Rocko. Kathleen was greatly relieved to hear that she didn’t have to bunk with an amphibian.

The Charles hall Museum was a big hit with Ginette and her children. The eclectic collection of guns, toys, telephones, Indian artifacts, phonographs, photographs, automobiles, and other items for any interest had them intrigued enough to want to return another day -- with Richard included in our group, to add running commentary.

We’ve seen Bald River Falls, swam at Indian Boundary Beach, collected crawfish from our creek, and saved salamanders (from what, I don’t know). Solomon and Richard’s pizzas were a big hit, as was our ice cream sundae party. The traveling road show will now head down to Georgia to visit other relations.

Richard can relax for a day, as I’m heading to Georgia to play at Vogel State Park with Ginette and Rachel and their children before over-nighting in Atlanta with Holly. The RV refrigerator is bulging with goodies from the garden, so I’m sure to have much cooking and canning to keep me from being too blue when I return to our House in the Holler.