jokes, vacations, and doggie tails

I’ve heard a good many knock knock jokes in the past two months. The following is my favorite:

R: Knock, knock.
A: Who’s there?
R: Youda
A: Youda who?
R: Youda best Aunt Alison in the world.


Other noteworthy jokes:

Q: Why did the orange stop in the middle of the road?
A: It ran out of juice.

Ryan original:
Q: What happened when the dinosaur knocked over the tree?
A: The other dinosaurs tripped.
This joke ended up being hysterically funny to Jackie and me because Ryan’s jokes usually make zero sense, so this was a happy surprise.

My family and I are on ‘vacation’ in Idaho. We’re on a fishing trip. I’m not sure how a fishing trip turned into an entire family vacation since Dad and Warren are the fishing fanatics, yet here we are.

See I like to fish. Sort of. I’m getting better at fishing at least. I can cast pretty well and I’m learning to watch for insects to indicate what fly I should tie on and I’m starting to figure out where the fish hide. And I have some pretty spiffy waders. But, on the down side I am sooooo sick of untangling my line and getting my hook unstuck from some God-forsaken rock or tree or branch or tiny bit of moss. And I think the main problem is that I miss the point in catch-and-release fishing. I spent hours today casting and tying flies and trying to catch fish. But, when I did experience the utter joy of catching a fish, I only got to hold it for a second while snapping a picture and then pulling the hook out of its mouth. Then, it’s adios and get the line back out there. All that work for a few moments with a fish that doesn’t like me and I don’t get to eat later. Whew.

The other point that I need to address is that fact that we call family togetherness-time ‘a vacation.’ I mean, let’s face it. This is not exactly the relaxing, lie on the beach and sip slushie drinks occasion that I normally think of when the word vacation is mentioned. This is a forced time of getting along, biting your tongue and feeling like a child again. Not my idea of a party. It’s amazing to think that Mom, Dad, Warren, Brad, and I all used to live in the same house. That was ages ago. We were once a clan of five, now we are a supersize family of eleven.

I sound totally pessimistic about this vacation thing. Well, I’m really not. It’s been a bit taxing today. Except for the following highlight:

Today, as the family sat in the car waiting on my Dad to get directions, we witnessed a dog trying to catch its tail. It was one of the most comical things I have ever watched. That dog went around and around and around. Then, he would try a quick half turn in the other direction and switch back to the original method. At one point, he actually caught his tail and then just spun around with such delight. My entire family cheered for the dog and then sighed when the poor guy lost his grip on his tail and started the whole process over again. Alas, what else is a dog to do during the last days of summer?