GinohnNews

G: John went away and I did stuff. Let's see. Thursday was my and perhaps the first Franklin's ride of the year. Dorian, Rich, Gary and Margit showed up here and off we went. We picked up TVTom along the way. Margit had a spiffy new bike, but hadn't really been a bike rider for 15 years. So early into the ride she decided she wasn't up for the whole shebang and went back. Hopefully by the next time we go she'll be in more practice.  We had a nice ride and a good time at Franklin's. Noelle showed up; that was the first time any of us had seen her in a while. Ray showed up too. Lori came after work, but we weren't there very much longer after that.

Friday night I went to see Jenny and Brenden at their new townhouse. It's near Potomac Mills mall, and it only took 50 minutes to get there - no traffic!  Jenny and I chatted until Brenden came home - and he gave me some Anise Hyssop plants. I tasted a leaf and it was yummy. We snacked on mangoes, peanuts, and popcorn that I dipped in salsa. Jenny showed me an episode of an old British tv show called Father Ted. It was strange and pretty funny.

Saturday morning I started my training for my new internship at Greenbelt Om. I'm working an easy job in exchange for two free classes a week. So, I took some this week and really enjoyed them.

I saw Dorian down at the center, and he told me he and Amethyst were planning on going to Quiet Waters in Annapolis later that day with their dogs and Dina's dog Ima (who they were dogsitting). Later in the day they canceled, and I reluctantly gave up on the idea, until TVTom called to see if anything was going on. It was getting a bit late, but I thought there was still time so I asked him to go with me and he agreed. So we took Katy there, and found the dog beach and she started running as fast as she could up and down the beach to get the bigger dogs to chase her. Many did. There were even a few snarly times with her and a couple of other dogs. But mainly she charmed me by surprising me again with the things she does. In the woods she started going in the water once other dogs showed her. I didn't know what she would think of a large body of water, and she didn't seem to want to go in at first, but it wasn't long before she was happily chasing a tennis ball into the water. It was the same depth for a ways out, so she never had to swim, really, just jump through neck high water. She would occasionally wander around and play with other dogs, but mostly we played with the ball.

Later in the hour, some people brought a little chihuahua, and he did to Katy what she did to the bigger dogs - ran around really fast so she would chase him. It was so cute! And he was very friendly. Tom sat on a log and this little guy jumped up next to him, and then onto his lap.

After we got tired we took Katy to the fenced dog park area for little dogs. That was uneventful and short, except a fight broke out in the park for large dogs - we couldn't see what was happening, it was too far away, but I don't think anyone was hurt. The parks are really nice. I don't have any pictures, John took the camera with him on his trip.

Sunday was yoga, Woodlands, and dance night. I had a nice day.

This Friday [that is last Friday because this file wasn't uploaded soon enough - ed.], Dan Hart will be at the New Deal Cafe, for perhaps the last time, he warns - his wife is looking at a job out of the area. I will miss seeing Dan if he goes. Come out and enjoy the show! 8:30pm.

Makes me want to point out the obvious - I really like funny music and have a soft spot in my heart for the people who make it.  Al Yankovic, Dan Hart, and now Jonathan Coulton (to name some) - I really enjoy what they do.

J: I went to a game designers' retreat for the extended weekend, and had a great time playtesting, arguing, tweaking, and designing games. I met some new designers and saw a few I hadn't seen since the last game designers' convention I attended (Pow Wow).

J: OK, I'm finally letting the cat out of the bag. I am a super hero. Potentially a super hero, that is,  if I ever find an heroic way to use my super powers. Maybe you mere mortals out there could suggest a service I might perform to gain recognition as a super hero. Here are my attributes:

• Super name: Chalk Boy
• Super powers: I don't get ice cream headaches. Ever. And I am immortal, so far. And finally, I can sneeze while keeping my eyes open.
  
• Super mutation: My hands sweat. A lot.
• Secret origin: I come from a race of mole men. We are not subterranean, we just have moles.