I honestly don't know how people in Washington DC stay sane because even on the whole other side of the country our current political situation is enough to drive me over the edge. But other than writing our Congressman (which we did last night to weigh in on the balanced approach, no debt ceiling second vote next year and - as commercial aircraft owners - to rage against the tax loophole allowing corporate jet owners to have a shorter depreciation schedule than we are permitted), there isn't much I can do other than to be thoroughly depressed about the whole situation.

But man, do I so totally not need something in my life to depress me.

So yesterday we had out last dog training lesson where we learned yet again that we have done many things wrong and must work much harder at doing things right. However we do all agree that the puppy is now delightful and on the path to greatness as long as we keep things up and don't let him beat Hondo up. (Hondo used to be the big dog but we think Indy has now surpassed him weight-wise. I am frankly rather worried about getting him weighed as I think he's around 100# now.)

Standing there, trying to take everything in that I need to be doing and should stop doing and have to think about, I really kind of wanted to scream and/or cry. It would be so much easier to just not care about stupid dog training and although life would be a lot noisier (as we would be screaming at dogs a lot), at least I wouldn't have to analyze my own conduct constantly and worry that I'm doing the right thing. SIGH. Maybe I should not have pushed to get the puppy last December but I do like having two dogs and Hondo needed somebody to get him up and moving and Indy is pretty darn awesome. He's just young and big and strong. And we need to do this right. But it would be easier sometimes to imagine doing nothing at all.

On the plus side I finished reading a book for Booklist - okay but not amazing. (The book I reviewed Sun on Lake Tahoe was pretty cool though.) August column is off to Bookslut and this morning, after Forest Discovery program day one with my son (two and half hours tramping through the forest with a gaggle of kids), I will review two books for the Sept column and then pick out pictures for my MAP promotional postcards. Jenny D. had a lot of smart things to say the other day on books and publishing that I have been pondering. I also have an essay to outline on what it was like writing the book - just map out where I'm trying to go with that. (I'm hoping to get this essay published somewhere online.) (I do love writing essays more than basically anything.) It's about writing about aviation and ending up writing about my father, something I never planned to do but have now resigned myself to. In one way or another everything I write is about my family and I'm just going to have to learn to live with that.

Finally, if you missed it, Tanita writes about summer camps and Norway. She says what I don't know how to and it's beautiful and sweet and sad all at the same time. Also, the heroes who saved many of the kids on that island.

[Post pic: Brigitte Bardot at her home in Bazoches sur Guyonne by Leonard de Raemy, 1977, via Tomboy Style.]