It was damned hot today. 107 said the bank flashing board as we drove through The Dalles in the air conditioned truck. On the up side, I bought red and pink sneakers and a Spanish movie, to, uh, help me with brushing up for more Spanish come, er, a month from now? Mom was so impressed with the sales and the cute shoes that she bought some like mine, same size and style, but a different color scheme. Cute, right? I'd have killed myself if we did that when I was in 7th grade. But, now it does just seem kind of cute. Maybe that's because I spend most my time at a college 3000 miles away.

Went with Mom to pick up some graydigger traps at the Byrnes' place. Wow. Hadn't been there in ages. I remember a slumber party there, and Rachel W. who wasn't wearing underwear, and a scavenger hunt that went awry and led our confused selves to a bee's nest in an old desk in the woods. Chicken poop on shoes when we searched for clues in the coop.

I released the graydigger across the ditch. I carried the trap across the water (no one was around so I just hiked up my skirt and waded across), and saw a salamander towards the opposite bank (odd, not many of those up there usually). Little scary, holding the trap door open as the little rodent got up the courage to race out and climb up a tree.

Mer got home from the fairgrounds, where she did some livestock judging & stuck prize stickers to art work. She was really overheated and I suggested a visit to the sand traps, with floaties. We did some, uh, extreme floating, as in, actual rapids that will splash you and give a little more of that adventurous "Oh God I'm going to die" feeling. The first run down, I was hoping there weren't any large rocks just beneath the surface (lots further upstream, so we didn't have very long runs). Before hitting the faster and higher crests, I had a "photographed moment." A moment of "was this a good idea?" But after that first run down, we realized all was well and went back down about 5 times. I almost got sucked down past the nice area into the weird cement thingy, that was no good. The water goes through narrow channels and I don't know what, not something I want to explore.

All packed for tomorrow... I'm to be dropped off around 1 pm at Grammy & Grandpa's, to be picked up by Aunt Donna & Uncle Dick. Spending the evening with them in Port Townsend, as I haven't ever seen their new house, then on a ferry the next day to visit Lindsey in Seattle! =)

Just saw a baby walrus chasing Jay Leno around his little stage, that was priceless.