No More Wind - Half the Dust

Glorious day, here, in the Sandbox. Finally!!! There was no wind, the sand and dust were not whipping at you and blowing all around - although there still is some in the air [the pool, again, needs a good cleaning!], and it was in the low-hundred's, temperature-wise. I have much, much make-up work to do on my tan and will need to spend a good four to six hours a day out by or in the pool to get my color back to what it was before the nasty dust storm arrived two weeks ago.

Being a professional tanner is not easy. It is hard work. Much, much more difficult than one might think. To be covered in sunblock - and some non-sunblock - which, when you are in the water, necessitates being constantly reapplied. You must move with the sun - changing positions every twenty minutes or so to prevent uneven tanning. It is a challenge to stay thoroughly hydrated - I drank three liters of Evian this afternoon!

If the Kids are out with me - and they so want to be out there - then I have to deal with continually either letting them out or putting them in - one wants in - the other wants out - if one is out the other must be out, too - and if one goes in - then the other decides that's the place to go. What is that saying, something about "a dog only wants to be on the other side of a closed door?" The Boy can handle it outside, and he, too, works on his tan - but The Baby is covered in black curly hair, is as dark as she can possibly be, and has no desire whatsoever to "work on her tan." The Baby really can't take it outside, in the back yard on the patio or next to the pool in the direct sun for longer than about two and a half minutes. So it is never-ending to either have to get out of the pool or up off my chaise to let one of the Kid's in, or let one of them out - or both.

I started reading Redhunter this week while I was at the clinic on Wednesday and finished it this afternoon. My Dad read everything that William F. Buckley, Jr., ever wrote - all of his books and all of his articles - but this was the first book of Mr. Buckley's that I have read. It was very good, well written and incredibly chock-full of historical knowledge - it is only the third "novel" [although it was "fiction," it was so much more non-fiction!] that I have read in about ten years; I read non-fiction, exclusively. Now I am going to have to check out one or two more of William F. Buckley, Jr.'s books from our library - for all the bitching I do about this place, it isn't all bad - we do have a fantastic library! Redhunter has set the bar pretty high. I'll see what else is there - after all, I'm going to be spending a lot of time outside this week, "working," making up for lost time...

All in all - a beautiful day in The Sandbox! Refreshing...