Dream stream

After a comfortable night's sleep we awoke in our mountain retreat.  Instead of hitting the road straight after breakfast, we paddled in a stream and built dams and little cairns and such-like.

Then down into the village of Stowe, which is one of those picture-perfect New England places.  We found a cafe for coffee and snacks, then eventually moved on down the road for some lunch.  Finally we prised ourselves away and went in search of a hike.

The hike turned into more stream-paddling, and even swimming in shallow water-holes.  There aren't so many completely perfect moments in life, but I have come across them sometimes on warm days in cool streams with my family - and so I did today.  In fact I felt so entirely contented that I didn't even mind a bit when the Man told me he'd just dropped the camera in the water and it may never be the same again. 

We then had a long drive home (made longer by my erratic navigation efforts) but made it home safely.  What a happy day it's been, as good a birthday as I've ever had.

Al fresco shopping

Burlington is a modest-sized city on the shore of the very lovely Lake Champlain.  It has a lot of charm and character, and it's an attractive place to spend a sunny summer's day. It's probably a fun place to be a student - it's home to the University of Vermont.

But the biggest draw according to all the tourist brochures is...wait for it...a pedestrianized shopping street.  Such as you would see in almost any English town.  I mean, it's a good one, with interesting shops, pavement cafes, street performers etc... but isn't it a sad indictment of American town planning that the "Church Street Marketplace" is regarded as such a novelty?

Another big attraction in Burlington is the ECHO aquarium.  It's more a hands-on environmental science centre - not all that many fish to look at to be honest - but we had a few hours of fun there.

Tonight we're in the oldest purpose-built ski lodge in the mountain resort of Stowe.  It features "vintage 1940s and 1970s decor".  Shabby-chic, but actually quite a nice change from the usual interchangeable hotels.  We're looking forward to enjoying the fresh mountain air in the morning.

The scoop on Vermont's top attraction

And here we are, getting that change of scene I'd been hoping for (and a fair bit of drizzle into the bargain). 

We're up in Vermont, the Green Mountain State, staying in Burlington - which happens to be a Fair Trade Town.  Fair trade has ended up featuring rather heavily today, as our main visit of the day was to Ben & Jerry's original ice-cream factory.  B&J's have pledged that by 2013 all the ingredients in their ice-cream that can be fair trade will be.  Yay!

We took the factory tour, led by a guide who truly believes in the quality of the B&J's product and enjoys quite a lot of it (he is partly paid in ice-cream - 15 pints a week).  He was entertaining - told some cow jokes (very a-moo-sing) - and explained how the factory works.

Of course the tour ended with an ice-cream sample (Stephen Colbert's Americone Dream), followed by a visit to the "grave-yard" of some of the 350 or so discontinued flavours and more ice-cream/milk-shake from the scoop shop.  It is extraordinarily good stuff, but personally I don't mind if I don't see any more of it for quite a while.

Domestic idle

So, it's been another undemanding enough day, the kids doing their thing, me doing mine.  A stroll down the road together for ice-cream in the afternoon.  The Girl cycling to the library this evening.  It has been hot and sticky again - is that more or less likely to make a person irritable than cold and drizzly?

I'm itching for a change of scene - heck, even the novel I've just finished reading is set in this town!

Luckily, tomorrow is another day, when anything is possible...

Books etc

I had a good meeting this morning (see yesterday's blogpost), followed by a useful conversation with the owner of a new restaurant.  She not only already serves fair trade coffee and bananas but also wants to support Friends of Five Rivers in various ways.

The rest of the day went off as usual - yet more boat-building for the Boy and his buddy, and library-work for the Girl, followed by skating.  Tonight, a toad-rescue from the pool. 

Anyone got any reading recommendations for me?  I recently enjoyed Kate Atkinson's latest, Started Early Took My Dog, and now I'm reading a novel by a local (to here) author, David Klein called Stash - don't know if it's available in the UK but it would probably make a good choice for a book group, if you're in one.  Completely different, Ben Goldacre's Bad Science is very readable and well-worth your time.  But what else should I be reading this summer?

Fair sailing

Kids in the UK are in their first week of summer vacation.  My own kids have been off school so long already that I've lost track of time.  It must be more than a month already.  The days and weeks all roll into each other.

The Girl has no camp this week, but she's putting in all the hours she can at the library being a "book buddy".  And the Boy continues to spend all his available hours with his own favourite buddy.  They have built quite a flotilla of boats - it's costing me a fortune in sticky tape, but it keeps them out of mischief.

I've been preparing for a fair trade town-related breakfast meeting tomorrow.  It's encouraging to see that the FT movement over here is really starting to grow.  When I first began looking into FT Town campaigns in the US, in late 2008, there were only seven declared FTTs in the whole of the USA.  Now there are 23, including major cities like Boston and Chicago, and there are 40 on-going campaigns.  More than half of the 50 States have FTT activity going on somewhere - including Texas.  Here in the Capital Region of New York we have one declared FT Town (Ballston Spa), plus my own town's active campaign, and in the last few months a Fair Trade University (Siena) and the USA's first ever Fair Trade High School (Emma Willard).  There's a way to go before the US catches up with the UK (where there are more than 500 FT Towns and thousands of FT schools), but every step heads in the right direction.

We've got it covered

You may or may not know that a swimming pool needs tucking up at night under a special blanket, to keep it warm.  The blanket, or solar cover, also adds warmth from the sun if it's left on the water during the day.

The day we bought this house the vendors presented us with a huge piece of blue plastic bubble wrap, which is basically all a solar cover is.  We had fun cutting it to size our first summer here.  But as we discovered at the start of this swimming season, a cover doesn't last forever - ours had started to disintegrate.  Having got to the point where half of it had ripped and the pool filter kept clogging up with little shreds of blue plastic, we decided we'd better invest in a new one.

Here it is!  Just in time to conserve the warmth generated by the recent heatwave, now that summer has suddenly turned cooler (and wetter) again.

Midnight in the Capital District

Last night's sleepovers were survived, though of course actual sleep wasn't high on anyone's agenda.  It sounds as if the Man and I were tucked up and snoozing long before our kids were, even after our late homecoming from the cinema.  Ah well.

The Girl got back at lunchtime and slumped around for the rest of the day.  The Boy managed to last out the whole day at his buddy's house, mostly playing Monopoly, but he has gone to bed early rather willingly tonight.

The movie was ok, by the way.  It has received good reviews.  I'd give it maybe 3 out of 5 - it was fluffy nonsense, really.  Owen Wilson was quite good as Woody Allen.  From their murmured running commentary I gathered that the couple next to me had actually been to Paris.

The Man adds, Spectrum 8 is altogether the best place to watch movies in Albany - a proper stand-alone cinema. One could almost forgive them charging three dollars for a small bottle of water. (Almost.)

Empty nest

Not really.  Or rather, just for one night.  Both our kids are sleeping over at friends' houses.  For the Girl it's one of those mass multi-girl not-much-sleep-over parties (ah, she's always such pleasant company after one of those!).  For the Boy, a renewed attempt at staying overnight at his buddy's house.  It's two years or so since he tried this previously (and ended up at home again before we went to bed ourselves).  We're all hoping it will be a success this time.

Anyway, it leaves the Man and me unexpectedly twiddling our thumbs...or kicking up our heels!  What shall we do with ourselves?  A spot of late night clubbing, just like old times? (Oh yeah? Whose old times?)  Nah.  But we are planning on going out to see a movie - Midnight in Paris - and we'll be late home, so early blogging tonight.

A toute a l'heure!

It ain't half hot, mom

Hot, hot, hot.  Even first thing this morning, the heat outside felt heavy.
Just up to 99F today.  The pool was cool and welcome once again.  The Boy and his buddy have been designing paper submarines, which are more successful than they have any right to be. 

It's a bit cooler this evening, but my brain is still sluggish and I can't come up with anything much else to tell you.  So over to you - what's going on where you are?

Heat advisory

After a rainy start, we've really been having good summer weather this year.  But it seems there always comes a time during this season when the temperature just gets carried away - and so it has today, hitting  100F.  And just as, in the winter, wind-chill makes a cold day seem so much colder, in the summer the humidity makes it feel several degrees hotter.  Phew.

At least we have the pool, which the kids spent many hours in today.  The house stayed bearable enough for much of the day (when it peaked 92F indoors I gave in and let the Girl switch on the aircon).

It'll be another hot-hotter-hottest day tomorrow, but not to worry, it should plummet back down into the mere mid-90s on Saturday.  Ay-ay-ay.  You could almost call it scorchio! 

Needa lotta bottle (caps)

It's been another hot and humid day today.

The Girl is at a different camp this week, but again it's one that she enjoyed last year - Writers' Camp, at the SUNY campus in Albany.  She seems to be having fun and making new friends, and we may even get to see what she's written at the end of it.  Then this afternoon she had her skating lesson, and it was bliss just to sit and watch from the comfortably chilly bleachers of the rink.

This evening I was at a planning meeting for the Five Rivers Fall Festival.  Yes, that's coming round again.  I've been putting my mind to this year's children's craft activities, and have come up with decorated cardboard tube telescopes (even without a lens, they are quite effective tools for observing through) and fridge-magnet flowers made out of painted newspaper and bottle-caps (nicer than they sound). 

Now I just have to drink a thousand bottles of beer before mid-September.

Aquabatics

So long and thanks for all the fish flakes

There were farewells, sort of, this evening as we tuned into You Tube and watched "You're Hired", marking the end of the latest UK Apprentice series.  It's been corking!  We were happy that affable inventor Tom Pellereau won through - living proof that the Geek shall inherit the Earth (though I do wish he'd get a proper shave - he seems to have invented the blunt razor, as well as the curvy nail-file). 

As Tom described his ability to visualise inventions, fully formed, in his head our Boy, watching with us, smiled and nodded in recognition.  He's a bit of an inventor himself is our Boy.  Today he and his buddy have been successfully designing more puffle vessels for the pool - made from paper, but all carefully waterproofed with parcel tape.

Speaking of pools, for the last few weeks we've had two dishes of pond water on our front step, home to various tadpoles and froglets which we've been feeding with boiled lettuce and fish food. This morning we realised that one dish, which yesterday had a couple of teeny frogs no bigger than my little fingernail swimming around in it, was now frog-free.  I hope they've just hopped away, not met a more sinister fate.  At least we finally got to tip out the water, which gave us the chance to say goodbye to a growing number of "pet" mosquito larvae which we'd also been providing a home for.

Pool party

Yesterday the Boy was invited on a day-trip to Lake Placid with his buddy's family. It sounds like they had a high old time, eating ice-cream, lake-swimming, building sand-temples etc.  And they had quite an adventure when a mini-tornado briefly swept along the beach, picking up someone's lunch and hurling it about as it went.

Anyway, having had a six-hour round-trip car ride already this weekend, our son wasn't too motivated to go on any outings today, and in any case it looked set to be scorchingly hot.  So we decided to stay at home and enjoy our own backyard and facilities.  We invited the Exile and family to join us, and the Boy's buddy and family also stopped by.

As the temperature hit 92F, there was no nicer place to be than the pool, and we were glad to share it with company.

Tree time treat

The Man writes...prompted by a stall at the local Farmer's Market, today we finally got round to visiting a truly extraordinary back yard: the Pine Hollow Arboretum.

Entering through a normal looking suburban house, we were greeted warmly by the owner and creator John Abbuhl, and then set off on the many enticing trails, which wound between ponds and trees.

On the left (below), for example, is a metasequoia (Dawn Redwood) planted in 1968, and now nearly 100 feet tall with a 5 foot wide trunk at the base.

There are apparently over 2500 labelled specimens, spread over 25 acres, in an appealingly natural setting.  Fortunately on such a hot day, there are several shady spots to take a break, but we felt justified afterwards in calling in afterwards on the nearby Toll Gate for their famous home made ice cream.

More details on Pine Hollow can be found here, courtesy of the Exile.

Farm camp with jam on it

The theme of the Girl's beloved Indian Ladder farm camp this week has been "life on the 18th century farm".  As well as tending goats and chasing chickens she has been practising old-time skills - making soap, candles, bread, cheese and jam, among other things.  In fact yesterday parents were invited to stop by for a lunch of food prepared by the kids, including excellent hash browns, and homemade ice-cream. 

The camp is mornings only, but the Girl's afternoons have not been idle either.  Two sessions helping out at the library, a skating lesson, and acrobatics in the pool.  This afternoon she's been at a friend's house, and isn't home as I write.

The Boy's days haven't been quite so packed, though he's had a couple of play dates, and yesterday joined his sister in the pool for an impressive synchronised diving display (they both do actual somersaults off the side - full of surprises, those two).  Today has featured rocket-building.  Maybe we'll get to do a launch over the weekend. 

Gardeners' World

I have often driven past Farnsworth Middle School in Guilderland and wondered about the large garden plot near the roadside.  Today I noticed a sign saying the garden was open to the public, so the Boy and I (out on an errand together) pulled in to take a look.

It's an organic community garden, tended largely by kids from the school - they volunteer throughout the summer vacation.  We wandered in, and immediately a student appeared to show us round: the garlic patch here, the chard there, the produce stall over there... A row of sunflowers "just because they're pretty".  Further off in the garden a couple more students were busy weeding.

Profits from the sale of vegetables help sustain the scheme, but much of the produce is grown for donation to the local food bank.  I bought some zucchini (courgettes). If I'd wanted chard they'd have cut it for me right there - can't say fresher than that!  I plan on coming back in a couple of weeks when garlic, tomatoes and potatoes should be ripe and ready for harvest.  I'll also visit the butterfly sanctuary elsewhere in the school - kids help run that, too.

Well you know me - I love a worthy project, and this one really appealed to me: environmentally sound, educational (with added fresh-air-and-exercise), purposeful and community-minded.  I was pretty excited by it all.  But, sad to say, the veg-avoiding Boy's only comment on my new-found Shangri-La was "Can we go now?"

Pride and joy

A friend invited me along to a garden party this evening, in aid of the Pride Center of the Capital Region.  As well as being glad to support this good cause, I had a bit of a networking agenda. I'm trying to create an opportunity for Guatemalan fair trade weaving cooperative, Mayan Hands, making rainbow accessories to sell as Pride fundraisers - a similar scheme to the school bracelets project.  And I'd love to get another strong community group in our area, like this one, on board with the whole fair trade concept.

Though I arrived too late to speak to the director of the Pride Center, the idea should reach her. And I got to meet several other interesting people, including a local pastor interested in introducing fair trade refreshments at her church - so, some bonus networking success. 

The garden setting was lovely, and reminded me of the best English gardens - like the one belonging to our neighbours opposite in Linton.  It's unusual to come across really beautifully designed and tended private gardens over here, as the scale of suburban plots makes gardening too overwhelming for most.  It was a real treat to visit this one - sorry I didn't take pictures.

Doze of our lives

We've had another hot day, like yesterday.  The Girl was back at farm camp having fun with the goats and the chickens, the Boy had a friend round, and I discovered that sitting down on the sofa in the middle of a muggy day is fatal if you want to stay awake (though anyone that knows me well will point out that I'm liable to nap in the daytime whatever the weather.  It's all part of the creative process!  Or something...). The Man spent most of the day in a bunny suit (as is his habit these days).

The tadpoles that the kids adopted a little while ago are beginning to sprout arms and legs!  They seem to be thriving on a diet of lettuce.  Does anyone know what we're supposed to do with them next?

Right, I'm off now for a cooling star-lit swim.

Plunging in

The Girl had an appointment at the library today, for some job training.  She is volunteering this summer to help younger kids practise reading - her first actual session will be later in the week. 

It's great that the library is able to offer opportunities for tweens and teens to do a bit of useful community service.  It's great that the Girl is of an age when she wants to take on a responsibilty like this, and I hope it'll be a satisfying experience for her. 

I could at this point get rather sentimental about watching my daughter starting to grow up...but I'm afraid it's just too hot for any of that today.  I have to admit it's been one of those days when I've really appreciated our pool.  It's been 92F and humid.  The Boy has been honing his diving skills, while I've been happy just standing around in the cool water.

Compliments to the chef

A couple of days ago the Girl surprised us by announcing, a propos of nothing, that she'd like to cook dinner on Sunday.  She pulled out some recipe books and planned a menu.

Tonight she carried through on her promise and presented us with a cucumber, cream cheese & sundried tomato starter followed by a substantial black bean & orange soup.  Both were great - we were very impressed.  She has promised to cook again, and we look forward to her future adventures in the kitchen.

For the moment she enjoys the process of cooking rather more than the product - but maybe next time she'll experiment with eating as well.

Conzoomer Reports

We have spent a happy, splashy day at Zoom Flume.  The weather was perfect and we expected the place to be packed, but in fact it was just comfortably busy (a comparable attraction in Britain would have been heaving, I'm sure).  We arrived soon after the place opened, and we left when they kicked everyone out nine hours later.  By then the Girl had shot out of the end of this pipe (the Mighty Anaconda) about thirty times.

Everyone's tired out now.

We met up with friends there which made it all the more fun.  One of them works for Consumer Reports (the US equivalent of Which?).  We didn't talk about her job, but it did inspire tonight's title.

Lemon-aid

I enjoyed the afternoon at a friend's house.  The kids came along too and saw their own friends, and the Girl got the opportunity to help out out on a lemonade stand.

The lemonade stand seems to be a staple of American childhood.  Drive around the suburbs long enough on a summer's day and you're sure to come across one.  A couple of young kids at the side of the road with a jug and some cups, maybe a plate of cookies too, taking their first steps along the road to fulfilling the American dream and becoming billionaire business tycoons. Or at least contestants on The Apprentice.

As my friend pointed out, when the kids tot up their day's profits they don't necessarily account for the initial investment (by a parent, inevitably) that went into the project.  But in fact today's lemonade stand was all for charity - the school in the Dominican Republic - so it would have been a bit mean to demand reimbursement.

What was the Boy up to during this exercise in catering entrepreneurship?  He was honing his business skills too, and without the charitable intentions - playing a cut-throat game of Monopoly (the Atlantic City version).

Tanabata

It's the seventh of the seventh, which in Japan (I've just remembered) is celebrated as "Tanabata-matsuri", the star festival, after a legend in which two divided lovers are permitted to meet as stars in the milkyway on this one night of the year. 

I was obsessed with Japan as a child, and at least once held a Tanabata party in the back garden.  Friends came dressed in international costumes, and we tied wishes to a tree branch, which is what Japanese people traditionally do.

I can't remember what I wished for at the age of nine or ten, nor what I wished for years later when I got to celebrate Tanabata for real as a student in Japan.  There are always little of-the-moment things to wish for (I wish the Girl's passport would arrive!) and huge things (world peace etc), but other than that...? 

Well, all good wishes to you!

The ice is right

I delivered the kids to friends' houses this morning and then set off to Siena College for the inaugral meeting of the New York Capital Region Fair Trade Coalition.  It was an interesting gathering - a mixture of retailers, advocates, not-for-profit representatives, educators, and volunteers.  I think we'll mostly act as a support network for each other as we pursue the activities we're already engaged in, but we'll also find opportunities to work together, welcome others to join us and generally try to give fair trade a higher profile.  It's exciting - this is the first regional (as opposed to single town-or-city-based) fair trade initiative in the USA, so we're blazing a bit of a trail here.

This afternoon I managed to get the Girl to a skating lesson.  It doesn't seem at all the right time of year for ice-skating, but actually when it's 89F and humid out, a rink is quite a comfortable place to be.  I sat in the bleachers and chatted to a "skate-mom" - she has three figure-skating daughters - and learnt with growing apprehension just how much time and money it's possible to spend if you really get into this sport.  One of the daughters had just bought a new pair of skates that cost $1,200!  And unlike a quality musical instrument or whatever, skates wear out...  Yikes.  Still, I think there's a way to go before we're aspiring to that sort of investment.

On show, and no show

I had business at the library this morning, setting up a fair trade exhibit in the foyer.  I'd borrowed craft items and other products from various vendors and churches and managed to put together quite a nice collection that demonstrates local commitment and also illustrates some important aspects of fair trade - safe working conditions, employing marginalised people etc. 

The librarian who gave me the key to the glass cabinet said she recognised me "from that Our Town program on TV" (it was broadcast again the other night).  Ha ha!  Who'd have thought anyone would ever think of me as "that person off the telly"?

Anyway.  The display will be on show for the next month, and I hope it will generate some interest. 

Important P.S. for UK readers:
I have finally managed to have a conversation with someone about the Girl's delayed passport.  Not good news - we should expect to wait another seven weeks before we see it again.  "Unexpectedly high demand" for passports is what they're saying, but I think "major screw-up" is more likely.  16-week turnaround for a passport?  That's ridiculous.  Whatever, it doesn't look like we'll be visiting the UK this month after all.  If it seems like we'll be able to make it at the end of the August, obviously we'll let you know...

Bang to rights

Though we could have gatecrashed a British friend's annual Independence Day "runners up" party (which might have justified the title "Third Fourth, on the fourth") in the end those of us still at home today mostly stayed here.  It has been a perfect day for neighbours round about to host barbecues, and for us to laze on the lawn and splash about in the pool, and listen to fireworks going off after nightfall.

The Man adds... Sale of fireworks to the public is strictly forbidden in New York State.  Fireworks can be purchased in next door Pennsylvania - there are apparently many stores near the state border -  but only by people who are not residents of Pennsylvania (unless they have a special permit) and who intend to take them out of the state!

None of this confusion in the Live Free or Die state, New Hampshire, where you are pretty much free to endanger your life however you so choose - still no seatbelt requirement there except for under-18s, no need to wear a helmet if you ride a motorbike, and of course, fireworks a-plenty.

The main public display in the centre of Albany will no doubt have attracted a large crowd, but we have avoided it since we were warned that it takes an hour to get out of the car parks afterwards. Probably sounds like a normal day in Cambridge, but we are not used to that sort of thing anymore.

Second Fourth, on the third

We were invited to another 4th July party today. 

In contrast to yesterday, but in common with much of this summer, this morning it tipped with rain - monsoon-like bucketloads of the stuff, and the house shook with all the thunder.  But the weather had calmed down by the afternoon, and by the time we joined the other guests at the party it was mostly quite warm and pleasant to be outside.  Adults stood about chatting over cheese and crackers and, in some cases, raw clams from Long Island. Kids and dogs happily swam in a small lake.

We didn't stay late this time - or at least, most of us didn't. We left the Girl behind, enjoying homemade sausages. Apparently she and a bunch of other children will be camping out, so fingers crossed it will stay dry tonight and they won't have to wring each other out in the morning.

Fourth on the second

It has been a beautiful day here.  Nice and sunny for the farmers' market this morning, and staying warm and bright this afternoon for a pre-4th July party in Schenectady at the home of one of the Man's colleagues.

There was a pool, which the kids enjoyed, and garden games including a baseball practice machine.  We were surprised at how well our children, not famous for their love of baseball, performed with a bat.  The Exiles brought along their genuine French petanque set, and a tense game ensued:  Man & Exile versus me & a friendly biker who'd never played before.  Guess who won?

The festivities went on until well after dark.  We hadn't planned on staying so late, but we were having fun so we did.  We all felt quite sleepy on the car journey home.

Whatever floats your boat

The children have spent the week doing some of the things they like best.

The Girl has been attending her favourite farm camp. She's spent her mornings hanging out with goats, crafting a dream catcher, hanging out with goats, making cheese, hypnotising chickens (seriously!) and hanging out some more with goats. She has had a blissful time.

The Boy has had his buddy over nearly every day.  As well as enjoying swimming in the pool, they've been using it to sail puffle ships on.  They've crafted several of these - some entirely out of cardboard wrapped in tape (not so seaworthy); others combining card on top of plastic containers; and today they made one from balsawood.  Some of the puffles have ended the week cleaner than they began it, but they've certainly earned their sea-legs (or would have, if they had legs).