What my mechanic has been working on this morning

It's only about 7:30 in the morning and my mechanic has already been working on the Suburban.

The radiator needs some TLC before a trip and my mechanic is taking advantage of the cool, pleasant morning to remove it to take it to a radiator shop.  Lucky me--my mechanic is Bill.

Several years ago "someone" (not Bill or me) wrecked the front end of the Suburban.  The body parts were replaced and the vehicle looks fine, but the radiator and the air cooling unit in front of it both got pushed in and both are shaped like a saggy mattress on edge.  Both cooling units have continued to function until now.

We are hoping the old radiator can be repaired because a new one won't fit into the slot the old one came out of.  The front cooling unit impinges on the space for a new radiator.  Unless we can get the shop to put a nice curve into the flat unit so it matches the old one's curve . . . .

Barring that, Bill is going to have to do some frame work to straighten it to accept a new radiator.

If you give a mouse a cookie . . . .

What if everyone thinks this is what apricots are supposed to be?

I picked up some apricots yesterday at Sprouts because I really like this fruit and the price is usually so high I can't justify buying them. The ones I chose have a very pretty color and are a nice size.

But!  I was really disappointed when I bit into the first one!  It was firm, sour, and almost tasteless.  This morning as I ate another one out of a feeling of obligation I realized lots of people think this is how apricots are supposed to taste.  If they've never picked some from a backyard tree and eaten them soft and warm, with the juice pooling in the hand cupped below the holding hand, they might think grocery store apricots are all there are.

Apricots are (supposed to be) soft with a thin skin, not exactly what can be easily transported to the grocery store.  When I was pregnant with my second son 23 years ago I was staying with my parents.  My dad knew an apricot orchard being torn out and replanted.  The reason?  The old orchard was planted in wonderful, delicious Blenheim apricots that simply couldn't make it to market out of the region so it was being replaced with a hearty variety with looks and little taste.

The farmer told my dad to help himself to all the apricots he could pick before the trees were pulled out.  He brought home a dozen or so lugs of perfect, aromatic fruit which we ate by the baleful, then I turned into jars and jars and jars of sweet jam.

I'm thinking I need to look into apricot varieties that grow in my area.

Bon Voyage!

Today Caroline and Elizabeth are leaving on a trip they have been anticipating ALL SCHOOL YEAR!

They'll fly to Washington D.C. tonight and start touring just about as soon as they get there tomorrow morning.  They have had hours and hours of extra classes to learn about the history of Washington D.C., and by extension, about American history.  When they arrive for a tour of the White House or the Washington Monument or the Holocaust Museum, they will know why it's important to our history and to them personally.