Retreat Recap: Day Two

Leftovers from Monday/Tuesday: Monday night I was filling up the van at the East Cobb BP when Mr. Winkler drove up. I asked if he was in the A or B Group, which caught him off guard. I must remember to wear my LS nametag!

Tuesday evening everyone grabbed thier suitcases and headed off to thier rooms. I passed the Ninja Girl, who was thrilled to discover my duffle was TWICE the size of hers. She should've known why...shoes take up lots of space!

Mr. D talks about the Parable of the Talents, a passage I've been thinking about alot lately. He says the story can encourage, or be some of the scariest verses in the Bible. The story he expertly weaves is encouraging to me. After the 18 hour day young Peyton Roth and Will Sykes are ready to crash. I'm exhausted, but don't sleep well.

DAY TWO: The DNA group heads south, and the rest of us cross the Bridge of Lions, heading to the Castillo de San Marcos. On the way, Matthew P and I see A HUMAN FOOT on the side of the road. Almost no one else did.

Here's something you didn't know: One of the commangers of the fort in the late 1800's went on open a school for Indians in Carlisle Pennslyvannia. In the early days of American football, the fledgling school becomes a national powerhouse, coached by Pop Warner. His star player was a young Jim Thorpe, who later won the Olympic decathlon.

Leaving the fort, we walk several blocks north to the base of the 208 foot cross. Mr. Leiner and I talk baseball. Bringing up the rear on the way back, we see three dolphins in the water.

LUNCH is at the Anastasia Park. I dine with Matthew P and Gerald, unaware of the chaperones at the next table. Afterward we load up the vans...and wait. Joel was riding shotgun, with Blake and my lunch partners. Mr. Landrum's SUV pulls out, speeding off without announcement. Mrs. Hanson says she's waiting on Tia, and I respond that Charles is probably out of range. Joel laughs when we determine it was MRS. Landrum who'd left in the SUV, and I looked quite dumb. Charles was with us all along!

NATURE WALK: Mrs. Hanson finds a turtle, and the entire large group of students rush back into the woods to see. I wave my arms, telling the students that too large a group may startle the beast and make it shy. I'd hate for the turtle to go into it's shell!

On the walk back to the cars, I convince Amber that I'm not stalking. Good thing she says. She's hate to have to "take me out." The turtle is identified as a Gopher Tortise. Out loud I wonder if it's not indeed a Mimic Octopus. Mr. Landrum laughs.

LIGHTHOUSE: What's a Living Science retreat without a trip to a lighthouse? Our guide, from Maine by way of Jersey, was quite the character. We tour the lighthouse keeper's house, learning of the early days of maritime navigation. We learn that the plural of "cannon" is "cannon." A hip Kansas State grad explains methods of exploring shipwrecks, including scuba diving. MC is impressed with her 4H tatoo, which escaped my keen observation.

Up top the view is wonderful. Will Sykes takes a creeper zoom photo of Elin far below...just as she creepily looks up and waves. Claire joins me snapping pictures of flowers. Creeping on her Facebook, I see what an amazing photographer she is. I was just taking the flower photos to keep Mrs. Howell interested.

BEACH TIME: Back at the hotel, we hit the wide beach. Alyssa / Will / Matt / Holt / Kevin / Kara play soccer. The 9th grade boys play long toss with a little football. Mallory leads the 10th & 11th graders in a big game of ultimate.

I chat with Mr. Rees, then tell Grace & Hannah how I once was talking to a girl, and we both pointed to a guy we were related to...making us related to each other. Then I described how the daughter in my "adopted" family married Hannah's cousin - making US related! Or something like that.

On the way in DNA researcher Michael Taylor tells me how the day's experiment was unsuccessful. Later Mrs. D confirms this, dove-tailing with the scientist's statements in that night's Answers In Genesis video. Hmmm...a light bulb goes off over my head.

Inexplicably, Mr. D's Wednesday reading invates Mrs. D's turf...

...a sneeze can travel 12 feet.

...average speed of sneeze is 68 MPH.

...a sneeze can reach a top speed of 104 MPH.

...the longest sneezing fit on record was 977 days.

...the longest bout of hiccups lasted 68 years.

...adults can produce one quart of respiratory mucus in a day.

Mr. Landrum repeats my Mimic Octopus joke, and gets a nice laugh. I feel good inside, for more than one reason. As Living Sound leads singing, I realize this may be my last Senior Retreat. Or the last one for a long time. I decide to make the next three days all the more special.