“Dear Diary...today I was pompous and my sister was crazy. Dear Diary...today, we were kidnapped by hill folk never to be seen again. It was the best day ever.”
As many of you, my loyal fans, are aware that I live in Wisconsin, I'll skip the winter descriptions and simply state: It's cold, the snow is deep, and my girls are not driving icy roads to go anywhere we don't have to. (Which, if it wasn't for a blizzard, I probably could've talked Jac into taking me to KitsuneKon. Maybe next year.)
The question: What does a fandragon do in the off season, when the nights are long, the snow is ankle deep to a Titan, and vampires are roaming the Alaskan countryside? The answer: 42. Oh, wait, wrong answer. Or is that the wrong question? Or is that part of the answer? Perhaps some excerpts from my journal will explain...
November 25, 2010
My first Thanksgiving. Jac and CJ stayed here for the holiday, instead of joining family. (Technically, Jac is always here for holidays, though, as farm chores still need to be done and she's not big on large gatherings anyway.) We had Pork Chops, Baked Sweet Potato, Green Bean and Bacon Casserole, and Cheesecake for dessert. Watched episodes of Buffy, The Vampire Slayer. (For some reason, though, the girls wouldn't let me have any wine.)
December 21, 2010
Yule! We exchanged presents. I got CJ a pretty little broach and a lucky charm bracelet for Jac. The girls got me chocolate and Pocky and these really tasty Japanese gummy candy. While I enjoyed my gifts, I really wanted a little brother. Or a pony. I would have liked a pony.
December 24, 2010
CJ left for Southeastern Wisconsin, about 3 hours from home, to spend her birthday with her family. Jac prepared the movie marathon for tomorrow. We're gonna watch all four Die Hard movies back to back. She said she'll let me make the popcorn.
December 25, 2010
Happy Birthday, CJ! Wish you were here. The marathon went well. No interruptions except for chores, and even that went well. Jac let me feed the grain while she did hay and water for the horses. CJ will be home tomorrow, barring incident, barring blizzard.
January 14, 2011
Snow day! It came from above all white and fluffy, yet sticky at the same time. Jac and I tried to build a snow fort, but the evil snowman army didn't like that idea. They kept smashing it. The our neighbor came and plowed our driveway, creating a slab of snow that provided a great defense against the evil snowman army's IDBS's. (That's Inter-Driveway Ballistic Snowballs, for those keeping a glossary.) Jac and I were winning until I tried to attack their fort and got caught in an avalanche. That's when Jac rescued me and we went in for lunch. Ah, chicken soup. After lunch, CJ told us about a message from Sam. We've been invited to her Job's Daughters installation later this month. All in all, it was a good day.
January 22, 2011
Today was Sam's installation in Oconomowoc. On our way down, Jac hit an ice patch in Babcock and spun the car 180 degrees. No one was hurt, luckily, as we were the only car on the road at that space and time. Aside from that, the trip itself was uneventful. The installation however was neat. Sam was being installed as a Guide for Job's Daughters. The Masonic Temple we were in was fascinating. And we got to see a Living Cross. Congratulations Sam!
January 26, 2011
CJ is gone, again, and while Jac was tending to evening chores, she fell out of the hay loft. She bruised her hip and knee and cracked a few ribs. Even though I had to help her back to the house, I don't think it was a bad enough fall to stop her. Though chores twice a day until Sunday might.
February 19, 2011
Sleigh Rally. Too bad we had a heat wave and most of the snow melted. Jac won a neat little park bench in the raffle.
February 24, 2011
CJ left for MOSES yesterday and won't be back until the 27th. It's a good thing she left when she did. We got another snowstorm today, which sucks, because Jac and I were going to go to KitsuneKon this weekend. Of course, we could only go for one day because it's in Appleton and with CJ at MOSES, Jac and I have be home to do chores. I think we were going to go on Saturday, but now with six inches on the ground, Jac's not gonna be talked into a two hour drive. I can't wait until I'm old enough for a driver's license.
February 26, 2011
I should have gone to MOSES with CJ. Jac's been grumpy all day. She says it's because we couldn't go to KitsuneKon, but I think it's more likely that she's sore from all the cold. Plus, I don't think she healed right from her fall last month.
March 15, 2011
BEWARE THE IDES OF MARCH. This statement is to be taken literally. Our barn burned down today. CJ was napping, (good thing too, she was thinking about mucking stalls), Jac and I were watching Full Metal Panic on Hulu. We heard a voice downstairs shouting “Hey, hey, is anyone home...” Jac went tearing out of the office and flew down the stairs only to find the living room empty. When she looked out the window, she said the sky was an odd color. When she reached the door she found out why. The barn was on fire. She went racing back upstairs for the phone and met CJ, sans pants, in the hallway. I was sitting in the office doorway. “What's up?” she asked Jac. “The barn's burning.” “What?!?” “Barn...Fire!” Even though I was watching her, I'm not sure how CJ got her pants on while going downstairs. When I asked her about it later she told me that she's pretty sure she teleported. It took the Fire Department (seven miles away) 45 minutes to come out. During that time, we lost the barn (+ 900 bales of hay, $10K in tack, an antique desk and washing machine, our camp chairs, tent, portable paddock, the chicken coop and nests, both of the girls' cars and our pick-up truck. We did not, however, lose any horses, chickens, or cats. Or humans. Or dragons. That was several hours ago, and even now the ruins are still smoldering. Jac's out making sure the flare-ups stay contained. I'm keeping CJ company and we're watching TV.
March 17, 2011
Happy St. Patrick's Day. So much for our annual trip to the Pub for lunch, what with all the vehicles burned up. The word from the Fire Marshall is: Electrical. As in electrical malfunction. The girls are pretty devastated. Jac did manage to find the horseshoe for CJ though. Clean-up is going to be difficult at best. At least we know who our friends are now. I guess this is what Jac means when she says “Life has a habit of getting in the way of life.”
April 23,2011
Celebrated Earth Day by planting tiny little pine trees and some catnip.
April 30, 2011
We did a charity pet portrait session for CWC's open house. Didn't have as many customers as the last few sessions, but the girls were busy enough for the day. The huskies returned, though not for a group shot this time. Got to play with Riley again.
May 13-14, 2011
A Region 10 youth horse show in Winona, MN. Nice hotel. Really nice competition grounds. CJ's dreaming about how to do that at home. Indoor arena, at least 90 stalls, a tack shop and a few wash stalls. Most of the people are nice, a few of them aren't, but isn't that the case when a large group of humans are occupying the same space? I'm impressed with Jac. She's only had 7 cigarettes, total, this weekend and hasn't tried to kill anyone. That e-cig thingy must really be working.
May 19-22, 2011
CJ went to ACEN again this year. Jac is most unamused. Downright cranky in fact. And I'm stuck here with her. Help me! Help me help me help me. It was also the opening weekend of the Chippewa Renaissance Faire and Jac can't take me to that either because we have a horse that keeps escaping the pasture. I think that's part of why Jac's cranky. And part of why we couldn't go to ACEN with CJ. Well, that plus the politics. And someday I'll understand what that means. Bright side though, we've been invited to Sam's installation for Senior Princess for Job's Daughters. CJ's been asked to be her installing officer.
June 4, 2011
Went to Dairyfest in Marshfield. The Ice Cream Social was neat because we got to tour one of the historic houses in town. Went to the fairgrounds after that. It was a craft fair and most uneventful.
June 5, 2011
Went to Oconomowoc for Sam's installation. Did a little shopping at Johnson Creek Outlet mall on the way down. Explored the neat haunted Masonic Temple. Watched Sam and CJ rehearse for the installation. Kept Sam's mom company for the installation. Congratulations Sam. Sam and her mom took me and the girls on a brief tour of Oconomowoc. We had supper at Rocky Rococco's, got some lily of the valley plants from Sam's house, and toured a cemetery. On the drive home, the girls decided that we would go to Chippewa next weekend. Yay! Ren Faire!
So what does a fandragon do during the tea-cup ice age? Well, he watches anime, eats Pocky (and other sweets), reads comic books, plays video games, and has various mini adventures. Until my next event....
Cheers,
Faraday, the Fandragon
