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We celebrated New Years last night on Rio de Janeiro time so everyone could go to bed as early as they wanted or needed. My mom (Grandi Mac to the girls) isn’t a napper, but she managed a five hour nap yesterday afternoon, and still was able to sleep a full night starting at 10 PM, so I guess she needed the sleep! Both the girls also have colds. It seems worst for Elena, who hasn’t really ever been sick before.

Andrea and I stayed up just late enough to watch the ball drop in Times Square, then headed off to bed – today we’ve just been poking around the house resting up for the year ahead. It’s amazing to remember that last year at this time, we were all still waiting for Elena to be born!

Andrea got me an aluminum water bottle for my birthday. I drink a lot of water from bottles, while bicycling, hiking, or just tooling around with the family. She’s read lately about how plastic vessels can leach harmful compounds in to the liquid, and it gets worse if the liquid in question is more caustic than water, e.g. orange juice or a salty, sugary sports drink. My first question was, “Aluminum? Doesn’t that leach, too?” Sigg had already answered my questions.

The only negative so far with the included “Active”, or maybe it’s “Sport”, bottle top, is certain friends and family have commented that I look like a gerbil when drinking from it. I’m also not yet skilled enough with its press-to-activate sipping mechanism to use it on the bicycle. With all the rain we’ve been getting lately, I should have plenty of opportunity to practice while riding my indoor trainer!

At 7:36 A.M., a little over an hour after my uncle David dropped me off at the deer stand, my pocket vibrated, the short notification of an incoming text message: “Will pick you up closer to 9, unless I hear you shoot, then I’ll be by at 8:30. Please acknowledge.”

I felt ridiculous sending my reply from “the swamp,” but later found out he was browsing the web the whole morning!

After I was done fumbling with my phone to send the requested reply, I saw motion just past the far end of the field, and three deer walked past. They never ventured in to the field and I wonder I spooked them with all the moving around it took to take off my gloves, fish the phone out of my pocket, send the message, and put the phone back in my pocket. They never paused once I spotted them, but I bet they were watching me the whole time.