I just got home from a day trip to the northern suburbs of Chicago for my niece’s first birthday party; as my brother is not comfortable with me posting pictures of his children to my blog (which I understand completely, for the record) please allow as a substitute this most excellent picture of his dog Jack that my son took. Jack, you will not be surprised to learn, is a Good Boy.

Take bets in comments on whether I’ll make it through a single day of my big summer plan before it falls apart.