In the few days since we arrived in Topeka, Kansas, a sad situation has arisen. An industrious bird (I think it’s a house sparrow.) has started building a nest under the front of our trailer. Kate in our office has named him Pete. Donny has had to disassemble Pete’s nest twice now, but he keeps putting it back together. The most pitiful addition so far is the decorative flower in the nest. He was trying so hard to make things pretty. We’re just hoping we don’t come out some morning and find eggs. (Update: after taking the nest apart for a third and final time, Donny spit on the site, confirming what he believed about birds not liking the human scent. Remember what they say about touching a baby bird? It worked! Hopefully Pete has found a better location for his nest-building activities.)