Brain, Brawn & Beach

We spent last weekend on the coast and it was fantastic.  The weather was cool and sunny, and the company was exceptional.  Our friends are nearly as nerdy as we are, adventurous, and full of energy.  Because of this,  it was not alright that there wasn't a dry way across a small river to the big beach.  We used levers, muscles and a civil engineer to turn a fallen tree, into a bridge.

We were quite proud of our work.  We watched visitors come to the beach and casually walk across our bridge.  The kids excitedly told the first few folks of our creation, but I think they felt snubbed when they weren't met with as much as enthusiasm as we had.

The day finished off with a walk, a sea food meal, a game of hearts (which was good for the competitive types, not me, so much, but I'll play) and a lot of laughter.  One of the best days of the year!

simple machines

muscles and a calculator watch

next, a pyramid 

Frenzied Passat

Last week I heard a whisper in the depths of my mind,  

"take the car to the repair shop and have it checked out before you leave on vacation for a week." 

I even ran into the man who repairs our 16 year old car, and told him I hoped I didn't have to see him much, other than socially.  Now that our car most likely won't ever run again, we will only have to see him socially.

5 miles from my grandparents town in the Sierra Nevadas, the car made a dramatic departure from this life.  It went into overdrive, 5,000-7,000 rpms.  I put it into neutral, pulled to the side and turned the key to the off position.  The car continued it's frenzied demise, though I had turned it off.  Smoke was pouring out of the tailpipe, and the engine roared!!  Silas said, "everybody out".  It did feel like it was going to explode. The kids jumped out and ran away, in a cloud of smoke.  I got out and followed them.  Silas jumped into the driver's seat and was able to kill the engine (or kill it some more).

We did end up at our destination in a rental car, but only after loading and unloading a week's worth of beach supplies five or more times, from one car to another.  From our porch, to our car, to my grandparents trunk, to my uncles's truck, to the rental trunk, to the hotel room.  It was an exciting and dramatic beginning to what is supposed to be a relaxing week at the beach.  

Our car is cooler than yours, as it is a VW,  it get 40-50 miles per gallon, the interior/exterior is in great condition, and it wasn't expensive to purchase.  Now we have to think about getting another car, and I just like the old one.

We now need to be able to travel back to our home at the end of the week, but are a bit stuck.  At least we are stuck at the beach.