First mate's log:
January 21, 1971
I heard that everything worked out OK with Alice. She was just hugging the postman because she won a prize in the Everpress contest, a stereo. Now she's going to enter a jelly-bean counting contest.
Bobby says Cindy isn't tattling as much now. He came over to tell me about wanting to join Peter's "neato" new club. The club president, Tim Cramer, said his dad will take the members camping in a couple weeks. And the clubhouse is in a tree, so Bobby would love to play in it. But he's only nine and they're twelve, so he's not sure if they'll think he's old enough. Peter has promised to put in a good word with the other members.
Carol Brady's diary:
January 23, 1971
Bobby fell out of a tree! He wanted to join Peter's new club, but he had to climb up to a treehouse as his initiation, and he didn't make it quite to the top. I'm just relieved he doesn't have any worse injury than a mildly sprained ankle. Dr. Cameron says Bobby should be fine in a week or less, as long as he gets plenty of rest.
January 25, 1971
Poor Bobby fell when he was trying to climb up to Peter's club's treehouse. I know what that's like, all the times I've fallen off roofs and out of coconut trees and off rockets and stuff. Luckily, he just sprained his ankle a little.
He's already getting around OK and he says it doesn't hurt much. He came over to show me the "neato" bird, a parakeet, that his parents bought him to cheer him up. So, even though he hasn't been able to join Peter's club yet, since he failed the climbing initiation, he's happier than you'd expect.
January 27, 1971
Bobby seems to be on the mend physically faster than Dr. Cameron expected, but I worry that there's been psychological/emotional damage from his accident. He was fine racing down the stairs after Tiger frightened the parakeet that Mike and I got Bobby as a get-well present. But when he had to try climbing up to the treehouse again, he refused to. I can understand that, and I have to admit I was nervous about it. But now he's refusing to do other tasks that don't trip my protective-mother alarm, like going on the camping and hiking trip Peter's club is planning on a nearby island, weekend after next, with the supervision of the very reliable Doug Cramer, father of Peter's friend Tim. I'm sure Bobby will be completely well by then, but he claims he's bored by mountains.
It's not just that. He didn't even want to go on the swings with Jan or bike-riding with Greg, although he made weak excuses to them, as he did to me about hiking. I don't want Bobby to be hurt again, but I also don't want him to live in fear. All he wants to do right now is spend time with his new pet. I hope he'll get over this soon.
Mike says he has an idea for a cure, but he wants to surprise me as well as the rest of the family.
January 29, 1971
Bobby has told me something he can't tell anyone in his family. He become afraid of heights after his accident. He's OK going upstairs, because he's done it so many times before. But even when he has a chance to do something fun, like jump on the trampoline that his dad borrowed, he's refused. I told him to give himself more time, since it's only been a week.
I can't help thinking how much I wish I could play in a treehouse or jump on a trampoline, even though I'm a grown man. Bobby doesn't know how lucky he is, but I didn't say that.
January 31, 1971
Bobby got over his fear of heights in a surprising way. It wasn't the trampoline that Mike borrowed from a neighbor. Instead, Tiger chased the parakeet again, so Bobby went after them. And when the bird flew into a tree for safety, Bobby climbed our backyard swingset to rescue his pet. Both boy and bird are fine now, and Bobby has successfully pledged Peter's club.
February 1, 1971
Peter told me that Bobby dropped out of the club, because they were using him as a gofer and he got tired of that. (Gopher on the ferry doesn't mind being one obviously.) So Bobby won't get to go on the camping trip this coming weekend. Peter is very excited, because it's just him and his friends, with only one adult, Mr. Cramer. They'll leave Saturday morning on Mr. Cramer's boat, go to a nearby island, and then come back Sunday evening.
It's funny, even though the Brady kids grew up on this island, and pretty primitively for the first four years, they all love camping. Not that they don't like having indoor plumbing and television most of the time, but it's fun for them to get back to nature every once in awhile.
February 3, 1971
Someone has broken my favorite vase! It was sitting in its usual spot on the hutch by the stairs when I last saw it intact. Mike brought home a bouquet for me last night, and I had the flowers put in the vase. It was a centerpiece at dinner, but it leaked all over the table. I could tell that it had been cracked and then glued back together, probably not long before.
Almost all the kids confessed to either me or Mike around Jan and Peter's bedtime, one by one. Alice even confessed to both of us! If it had been one person, I would've believed him or her, but six people? The one person who didn't confess just happens to have a camping trip coming up in a few days.
Mike and I decided that, rather than confront Peter, we'd pretend to believe the other kids. (Not Alice though, since I think she was just covering up for whatever kid did it, without knowing which it was.) We called all the kids downstairs and had a nighttime meeting in the family room. We said that the five who confessed will be punished, with Peter, since he's "innocent," determining the punishments.
He didn't want to do it, and the other kids didn't want him to, but no one confessed about the confessions. Today, Peter said Jan's punishment would be to help Alice bake cookies, while Greg and Marcia would take Bobby and Cindy over to Blenford on the ferry this weekend and have to babysit them at the movies and the little amusement park. We said these punishments wouldn't do, but we're giving him an extra day to come up with something better. Hopefully, he'll confess soon, rather than try to go camping after all.
February 4, 1971
Peter confessed something to me that he isn't yet brave enough to tell his parents. A couple days ago he and his brothers were playing ball in the house, even though their mother has always forbidden it. Back when the boys lived in a hut, Alice didn't mind too much, since repairs were pretty easy. But now there are some nice furnishings, and Peter accidentally hit his mother's favorite vase. It broke into three big pieces, but it looked fixable.
His brothers and sisters promised not to tell, and they helped him glue the vase back together. Unfortunately, they didn't have enough time for the glue to dry before Mrs. Brady wanted to use the vase for a bouquet Mr. Brady gave her. The vase leaked all over the dinner table.
The other kids covered up for him, unfortunately not telling each other that they were each going to confess. So now their parents think all five kids are guilty, and they want Peter to design the punishments. At first, he let his siblings come up with their own punishments, but Mr. and Mrs. Brady thought he was going too easy on his brothers and sisters.
Peter wants to confess, but his siblings, especially Greg, think Peter should just wait until he gets back from camping and take his punishment then. Peter feels really confused, particularly since his parents bought him a lantern at the hardware store today.
"What should I do, Gilligan?"
I really didn't know what to say, since if it were me, I'd have blurted out the truth by now. "I guess you're in pretty deep now."
"Yeah. I feel like if I say something, Greg and the other kids will still be punished, but maybe not as bad as if I don't say something. But I really want to go camping."
"I guess you're going to have to decide for yourself. Or buy a replacement vase that looks identical."
He laughed but shook his head.
February 6, 1971
I almost thought Peter wasn't going to confess, but at the last minute, when he, Mike, and I waiting at the dock for Doug Cramer to bring his boat around, Peter admitted he broke the vase. He understood that he couldn't go camping, although he wondered what he should tell Mr. Cramer. Mike and I urged him to tell the truth.
Mike and I weren't going to further punish Peter, since we felt he learned his lesson. But he voluntarily took on all the chores he'd assigned his siblings after we told him the first suggestions wouldn't work. I was so proud of him, but I gave him one more task. I wanted him to glue my vase together properly this time. Unfortunately, I was turning away as I tried to hand it off to him, and it shattered into many little pieces! He gently teased that I should tell Dad the truth. I laughed and gave him a hug, but it's not like it's Mike's vase.
Pity it can't be mended as easily as Bobby's ankle.
