At the zoo.

June 25, Mendon.

I went to do laundry after the jump; it was ninety-five degrees in the shade and we are living in what feels like a capsized boat, so laundry duty didn't look all that bad.
I came back to find Fridman building bookshelves for the kids' room. They had been in the plans since I arrived, but there was always something else going on. The house was head over heels for a while, toys forming an alarming pile: with things moved from here to there in fifty square feet it tends to look stuffed and erratic fast. A coat of paint and the room will finally look as we have envisioned it, plus an immaculately white (not for long) Ikea armchair found for five bucks at a PA yard sale.
Today we were given a tour of the Southwick Zoo by its owner, who also happens to be the vet who came to check on the circus animals. The facility is a fabulous, impressive woody haven, and Dylan and Nicolas got to see cheetahs and gazelles, giraffes and lemurs, too many different primates to count, and endangered species like rhinos, and even tapirs.
The zoo is spacious and beautiful; it looks and feels like a true labor of love.