Once a year, the department Dode works for has a special day to show off what they do in the GIS department. We drove down to visit and check it out (and get our free t-shirts and pizza!).
Dode's globe made a repeat appearance
His boss' globe sure makes his look puny.
Elizabeth using the laser site binoculars
I think Dode's "toys" were more popular than the maps. Things like his new ground penetrating radar (GPR). It's the most expensive jogging stroller you'll ever find. $20,000 worth of equipment on the frame of an actual jogging stroller (it still has the foot rest for the passenger!). They even had to buy a cargo trailer so they would have a way to store and transport it. I've seen GPR used in movies and on television shows. The people using it are able to easily find objects like bodies hidden beneath the ground. The reality? The squiggles and lines it generates give a very subtle indication of hidden objects. We weren't the only ones interested in the GPR. The Tulalip Police came by and asked for a demo. Their question, "Can it find dead bodies?" The answer, "No, it can only indicate where the dirt has been disturbed."
Here's the image the GPR provides. I forgot to take one while I was there so we found this on the manufacturer's website. Dode says he's never seen one this clear. And, he's not looking for bodies, he's looking for pipes!
That's as close as Isaac got to putting on his free shirt!
The pizza? It wasn't arriving for more than an hour after we left.
End of an era
We've been delivering the Arlington Times for five years. That's a lot of newspapers folded, a lot of miles driven! Last month, they notified the carriers that the time the papers were being made available was changing from Tuesday at 3:30 in the afternoon to Wednesday at 3:00 am. Our routine was for Dode to pick up the papers on his way home from work. Everyone would work together to get the papers folded and into individual bags. While the kids were at youth night at church, Dode and I would deliver half the papers. The next morning, one of the children and I would finish off the route before picking up our seminary students. With the change in pick up time, I'd need to get up at 4:00 am to drive down and bring the papers home. Dode, Anastaya, and Isaac would have to get up extra early to stuff papers so we could deliver some in the morning. Then, later in the day, I'd have to finish stuffing and delivering. That delivering would cut into our homeschool day. So, with a heavy heart, I gave my 30 day notice to the paper. The first things the kids said to me were, "Hooray! No more papers!", followed by, "Does that mean we won't be able to go on vacation any more?" That's an answer I don't have yet.
Caroling for a good cause
Our nearest neighbor, Haggen grocery store, has a program during the holiday season where if a group comes in and sings for 30 minutes, they donate $50 to the Arlington Food Bank. The school my homeschoolers attend part time signed up for an hour Friday night. Elizabeth, Anastaya and I went over to sing. Anastaya wore the Santa suit I bought on a 90% off sale last year. She had to do some quick ad libbing when a young boy came up and earnestly started asking her questions like, "Where is your sled?" "On the roof" Where are your reindeer?" "On the roof with the sled" "Why does your hair have holes in it?" "Santa is going bald" (cheap wig!) She really enjoyed filling the role of Santa and wants to grant him his Christmas wish, a green matchbox car.
Anastaya doing her best at giving good answers
Elizabeth with her friend Katie
Already planning for next year
Dode had taken the challenge from the Crafty Maiden organizer to come up with something fabulous to heart. He's brainstorming something "Fun" for the theme, "Girls Just Want to Have Fun". He's been designing a Ferris wheel with Autocad. He recently took a class on doing 3D images with Autocad and has been putting his new found skills to work. When I watch him rotate an image around, it makes me dizzy.
3D
Lunar Eclipse
There was a complete lunar eclipse Saturday morning between 5-7 am. Dode is a good dad and agreed to wake up early to take the girls outside and view it with the telescope. Unfortunately, a few minutes after they were all dressed for the 23 degree morning and made it outside, the clouds moved in and hid the moon. They liked the little that they saw. The excitement the girls had for the eclipse reminds me of a solar eclipse that happened when I was in elementary school. I remember it happening during the day. We got ready for it by making special glasses and mirrors so we could see it. I remember the talk on the playground about how you'd go blind if you looked at it with your bare eyes so of course what did I do but glance at it and then worry all day that I'd be going blind! With a lunar eclipse there's no such worry, especially when it'd hidden by the clouds.
Our garage sale telescope looks pretty awesome on Dode's survey legs.
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