Panama

Oh, I wish I were going to Panama! No, I was just thinking about the famous palindrome, "A man, a plan, a canal, Panama." It makes it sound like a man woke up one morning, came up with a plan, and -voila!- the Panama Canal was built. I'm sure it wasn't that easy, but it's a really cool palindrome. Araceli's decisiveness made me think of it. When she wakes up with a plan, nothing can stop her. We don't even try anymore. Yesterday, she woke up with a fully-formed itinerary for the afternoon. She went straight to Scott and told him, "At 5:00, you're going to take me to get my ears pierced and the earrings are going to be silver and Xanthe can come too, and maybe we'll get her ears pierced. Maybe."

So that's what they did. Only the earrings are pink. Ari was outraged at the mistake and claimed, repeatedly, that it was because the lady "wasn't paying attention!" Fortunately, the pink earrings look darling. Ari, being the responsible person she is, has to stop what she's doing about every six minutes to twist her earrings so they won't...well, I'm not sure why. But that's what the lady said to do.

Hey, if you need a canal built, or just have to get something done that doesn't seem humanly possible, Araceli is your girl. My dad saw her walking to school one day and reported that she was walking at a 45 degree angle, her head way ahead of her feet, as steely and determined as a guided missile. This kid will change the world. Because the world certainly is not going to change her. And that's a good thing.