We live near three military bases (two Air Force bases and the home of the 82nd Airborne), so air traffic over our house can occasionally be quite busy - I think "loud" goes without saying. Tonight seems to be one of those times. So Grover comes down the stairs and says "Mommy, I can't go to sleep because of all the airplanes." Exactly what she expected me to do about it, I don't know, so I just looked at her and said "Well, I'll get on the phone to Fort Bragg and tell them to change their flight pattern". She looked relieved, said "Thanks!" and trotted off to bed.

No, I'm not talking about me, although I guess I could have been. I didn't realize I hadn't posted in so long. Grover had her 3-week track-out during which we cleaned like madwomen, welcomed my in-laws for a visit, drove from one end of NC to the other (literally... Blowing Rock to Calabash), went to the NC State Fair, wished my in-laws "bon voyage" and came down with colds. Grover finally went back to school this week and it's nice to have some peace & quiet again. BTW, check out the Calabash website - it's hilarious. Evidently, the mayor is running for re-election and has no qualms using the town's official website not only to promote his campaign but to bash (pun intended) his opponent. Fishmonger, you'll love it.

Anyway, the real subject of this post is the return of vintage toys. What with all the fuss about lead-infused playthings from China, I am pleased to announce the return of two of my favorite childhood amusements. Drum roll, please...


I think I'll ask for these from Santa just for old times sake. That and Harry Potter's broomstick and I'll be as happy as a pig in poop.

And the award for Best Summation of a Mom's Typical Day Set to Music goes to... .

As I was sitting here enjoying my daily ration of sugar and caffeine (Mountain Dew and a Bo'Berry biscuit from Bojangles), I remembered that it is Banned Books Week. I actually remembered on Sunday, but have only now got around to posting about it. I've always been fond of doing things that I've been specifically told not to or that other people find offensive, immoral or otherwise bothersome so BBW ranks right up there with Christmas as far as I'm concerned. I do love to read so that helps. Anyway, on with the fun...

The “10 Most Challenged Books of 2006” reflect a range of themes, and consist of the following titles:

- “And Tango Makes Three” by Justin Richardson and Peter Parnell, for homosexuality, anti-family, and unsuited to age group;
- “Gossip Girls” series by Cecily Von Ziegesar for homosexuality, sexual content, drugs, unsuited to age group, and offensive language;
- “Alice” series by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor for sexual content and offensive language;
- “The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things” by Carolyn Mackler for sexual content, anti-family, offensive language, and unsuited to age group;
- “The Bluest Eye” by Toni Morrison for sexual content, offensive language, and unsuited to age group;
- “Scary Stories” series by Alvin Schwartz for occult/Satanism, unsuited to age group, violence, and insensitivity;
- “Athletic Shorts” by Chris Crutcher for homosexuality and offensive language;
- “The Perks of Being a Wallflower” by Stephen Chbosky for homosexuality, sexually explicit, offensive language, and unsuited to age group;
- “Beloved” by Toni Morrison for offensive language, sexual content, and unsuited to age group; and
- “The Chocolate War” by Robert Cormier for sexual content, offensive language, and violence.

I was somewhat pleased to see that "To Kill A Mockingbird", "Catcher In The Rye" and "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer & Huckleberry Finn" have finally dropped off the top 10 list after a long and healthy run. Trust that they're still on the list, just no longer at the top. Anyway, I've read all three - two just in the last year - so I'm glad to get new ideas for reading material.

In celebration of BBW and to thumb your nose at those closed-minded yahoos who find the content of these books objectionable, pick up a challenged book and broaden your mind. I'm currently reading "Harry Potter And The Half Blood Prince" and enjoying it immensely, as I did the first five in the series. Incidentally, the Harry Potter books were voted overwhelming favorite challenged books by readers. I heartily concur - they're outstanding!

For more information about BBW, check out the American Library Association's website.

I went camping with our Girl Scout troop this past weekend and I'm utterly exhausted. Not that we did anything particularly strenuous, but you try spending two days with 13 2nd & 4th grade girls and see how you fare... especially when two of them spend the entire weekend talking about (and demonstrating) how much they hate each other. Oh, and the older ones were freaking out about the stuff summer camp residents had written on the walls about the cabins being haunted and how you'll die if you sleep in certain spots. The younger ones ignored the written warnings and focused instead on strange shadows and noises.

We camped at one of the G.S. camps which can be best described as "rustic". There was electricity in the unit house (for lights and a wobbly ceiling fan) and running water for toilets and showers but that was it. It would have been fine if it hadn't been so damn hot. Fall around here means little change in weather - it was 90 and on top of the disgustingly high relative humidity, we were on a lake so it was really muggy. I am hot-natured anyway, so I was dripping in sweat the entire time. I'm sure I smelled real nice when I got home yesterday. (My husband didn't stop me when I made a beeline for the shower - that's evidence right there.) I elected not to shower at the site because I prefer not to shower in the company of hairy, silver dollar-size spiders. I'd rather stink, thank you very much. Grover shared my enthusiasm for the outdoor showers; she took one look at them and said "NO WAY!"

Then there were the usual complaints about why it took so long to cook meals, why they had to wash their own dishes, how long the hike was, etc. The hike was quite fun actually. The troop leader is well-known for getting lost - in fact, she and the other two adults all drove in a caravan and got to the camp 30 minutes after I did because they went a different way. Anyway, the teenage scout who is helping our troop as part of her service award made a smart-ass comment about getting lost on the hike, so she and I were put in charge of it. Brilliant! Let the teenager and the least mature adult lead! We took everyone on the longest route possible to get where we were going, stopping every now and then to make unnecessary detours and when we got to the swinging bridge (one of our required visits), the two of us went first, jumping and shaking it to make the girls scream in terror. It was great. When we finally got back to our cabins, we lolled about letting everyone else get ready for supper because no one wanted to put us in charge of anything. Hee.. hee.. hee...

I took Grover and Ollie to school this morning and came back home to catch up on my sleep and try to get rid of my headache. Sleeping on cots lined with plywood in un-air-conditioned cabins, being interrupted every half hour by someone who needs to go to the bathroom and is scared of being eaten by some woodland creature does take its toll.


Oh, by the way... the title refers to the Boy Scouts from Raleigh who got lost in the Pisgah Forest and had to stay an extra night. It was big news around here, of course, and it did make CNN but you may have missed it.