Oh the agony

It's time to hike

I was so excited to hike tomorrow but I can't because my almost 15 year old  only got 87% on her algebra test, so she wants to stay after school on Tuesday and Thursday to study and re-take the test.  Only 87 percent, what's wrong with that?!  She says that test is 75% of her grade for the semester so she wants to do better.  Damn, I even had my lunch packed.  I guess I should support her in her endeavour to get an "A" in every class this semester.  It is her first year of high school and this kid is college bound.  I'm having a very frustrating time raising my teen, I am thankful that she is doing so well in school.

But this is it.. this is the last time I am putting off hiking this week.  I intend to hike at least three times during the break.  I would have been out there today but I had my evaluation conference to go to.  The quarter went very well for me, I enjoyed my class and I learned a lot, but now I don't know what to do with myself. 

I left my bicycle at the new REI in Olympia today, they want a fortune for a tune up so I'm just going to have them adjust the brakes and the front thing-a-ma-jig that changes the gears.  I really should learn how to work on my bike.  I'm also getting a rear rack and two small bags installed so I can haul more groceries around and so I can haul my backpacking gear to the trail head with a bit more ease.  I feel kind of funny putting a rack on a mountain bike but oh well, I know I'll get lots of use out of it.  It's not like I'm going to be jumping off cliffs with my mountain bike, those days are over.

I've got to get out tomorrow though, so I think I'll at least go on a mini hike close to home.  Then on Wednesday I'll go on the hike I had planned for Tuesday, then on Thursday I'll go get my bike back from REI and maybe I'll do a hike and bike over the weekend.  I also need to get my car to a body shop because someone backed into me two weeks ago and I put off getting it fixed until the quarter was over.

I have my lichen collection back, should I free all my lichens?  I know that most of them are still alive, so why should they die in a North Face brand shoe box?  It's a tough call, they look nice in their little white envelopes and typed labels.  But I think they would look better growing in my yard. Hmmmm I could turn them all loose and keep the envelopes and later if I change my mind and can remember what they all are, I can stuff them back into their envelopes.  I've already freed my bulls eye lichen, I hope it likes our polluted air.

  I helped my seven year old write a letter to Santa today.  She had me ask Santa for a toy mushroom and a toy lichen among other things.  Hmmmmm, is there such a thing as a toy lichen?  Santa may have to get creative. How can Santa make a toy lichen?  Maybe one of Santa's friends from class can knit a toy lichen?