Driving Miss Betsy crazy

We wake up, take Allison to school, walk two miles to the hotel, visit the worksite, chat with whomever crosses our path, return home for a nap before picking Allison up at one o'clock. Life's tough! I admit to being just a little bored at times, Allison, too, but Robert, he luuuuvs it! I tagged along yesterday to the nearby boat launch where he cast his line a few times and came up with a nasty "needlefish." I lounged in a portable folding chaise alternating between watching him and the gaggle, flock, squadron, of brown pelicans crowding the broken-off end of the pier. Something, a huge storm, I can only imagine, broke the center section off the pier so that now only the birds enjoy the farthest end, the best spot. Occasionally, one will take flight making a low run over the water in search of fish. They fly so low their wingtips appear to touch the surface of the ocean. I felt a twinge of envy watching that, just as I did a few days ago when I watched a raven catching the wind over our house. He would hover almost motionless in the airstream, making nearly imperceptible adjustments to stay level. It looked like purely recreational flying to me and it looked like fun.

Allison and I have our own little means of entertainment, one of which is to torment our little dog, Betsy Mayflower, with a game of escape we invented. It's our little revenge for the countless times she's slipped through the gate as we were preparing to leave. Off she'd go as we'd plead and chase her to put her back so we could depart. She took great delight in the chase rushing and dodging us until one of us finally caught her or tricked her into hopping into the car. Then we'd toss her back behind the gate. So now as we are leaving, Allison and I slip through the utility room door as Betsy watches, then we run like the dickens to the gate knowing in seconds that Betsy will double around to the dining room door and haul after us. We squeal in laughter as we get the gate closed just as she makes her way around the courtyard and scrambles through the car-port. It's so mean, but so fun. She's so clever though. I'm sure she'll find a way to outsmart us with a new move.

Yeah, things are a bit slow.