4 posts tagged “vacation”

Today is the summer solstice - the longest day. I usually celebrate the changes of season with the boys, but they are at their dad's...so tonight I am having John and Gavino over for dinner and making a nice creamy corn soup that has always been my favorite sharing soup. I call it cosmic soup because for some reason good things seem to happen when I serve it to someone, and I haven't made it for awhile and I think it would be nice for some good things to happen.

Not that it hasn't been a totally wonderful little break here for me. Yesterday was my first day off from work on this little mini-vacation I am taking. I kept meaning to go swimming all day, but it kept looking grouchy and overcast out, so I was stuck in the house, doing a little of this and a little of that. I actually read an entire book! I cannot express the sheer joy of being able to think a complete thought without being interrupted for this many days on end...much less being able to sit down and finish a book from beginning to end in one day. I felt like I had truly accomplished something.

Also, I took the bus downtown to Ego's to attend a poetry slam, which was ok. It was really nice to see the friends I went to see, but I just get so irritated with poetry slams and how everyone is trying to be more over-the-top than the next guy and everything ends up just all muddled and testosteroney. I guess I am old fashioned in that I don't think poetry should be slammed. Sure, sometimes someone does something that works and is entertaining and still somehow revealing of soul or humanity...but mostly it's just a group of people who all know each other trying to one-up the next guy. Which...yay! hahaha.

I feel like a curmudgeonly old grouch having said that. It was wonderful to see C again! hahaha. I wish I could have just gone and had coffee with her, as she is probably way more interesting than those who took the stage. Also, had some drinks and a burrito with a workmate who I really respect. She kept talking about the teacher institutes she's working on for work, and then getting self-conscious about talking about work, but I kept telling her "No, no! I love talking about this stuff!" And I totally do. I just love what our organization does and I think she and the others in that cluster do a great job of providing teachers with some interesting training so they may hopefully approach their curriculum in a more practical manner. It's really exciting to me. I guess I am kind of an education nerd. Among all of the other kinds of nerd I am. Also, K (the workmate) is really excited about social justice and environmental justice issues and just has a really neat perspective. I just love her. Love all of the cool people I work with. It was nice to see her out of the office. I hope I didn't scare her away with my temporarily drunk on an empty stomach and free from all of my usual constraints babble.

So, it was a good day yesterday. On the way downtown, the lady across from me on the bus kept staring at me. Hard. Like she was trying to communicate something to me. And then she fell asleep and totally started snoring REALLY LOUD. It was difficult not to giggle, but I wasn't laughing to make fun. I was laughing because how delightful it is to fall asleep on the bus! I wished I could have curled up next to her and slept, too.

Then, on the way home, a sad older (but not OLD old, just older than me) man who was very very drunk got on the bus. He was strikingly handsome in a way that was depressing, because obviously his looks hadn't saved him from whatever the fuck has clearly been dragging him through the muck for who knows how long. But he had the most gorgeous blue eyes and he kept looking at me questioningly. At one point he staggered over and sat in the seat next to me and put his hand really close to my naked knee...I comtemplated changing seats, but just dug my face further into the book. He smelled like alcohol, cigarettes and doughnuts. And obviously he had a habit of riding this particular bus in this particular state, because the bus driver stopped at his stop even though he didn't pull the dinger and turned around and told him "Sir...North Loop. This is where you get off." And the guy stumbled off the bus and into the night somewhere. To someone waiting? Worrying? I am actually worried about this person today. There really are so many sad and lonely people in the world. Cars do such a good job of separating us from our fellow humanns, you know? Traveling in a little capsule is like walking around with blinders on all the time.

But it's time for me to stop worrying. My cup-o-joe has been drunk, and I need to get to cleaning the kitchen and working on the soup. Gotta go to the store for a few remaining ingredients and maybe the bakery for some good bread to go with the soup. Yum!

I hope everyone enjoys the longest day. I always look at the change of seasons as an opportunity to think about what I have and have not accomplished since the last change of seasons and over the last 6 months-year, and to really consider where I am heading and what I need to adjust to get there. For me, summer is a time of withdrawal. It is so hot here in the summer that outings are a pain in the ass, so we swim, we stay in, we spend our time much as I used to spend my time in winters in Chicago. Fortifying, reflecting, planning, and waiting for movement in Autumn.

<3 <3 Lainie.

I assume this will be added to throughout the week, but here goes...

Lessons I have learned while traveling with the kids:

Necessary Hotel Amenities: indoor pool, in-room refrigerator, in-room coffee maker, television with cable. Beds? Optional. (Coley ended up sleeping on the floor both nights after falling out of the bed the first hour of the first night.)

Kids Eat Free means you have to choose from a very unhealthy menu and you still end up paying for it.

No matter how subtle the incline, if there is grass, the kids will find an excuse to roll around in it.

You actually can skin your face, if you are Coley.

There is nothing cuter than a pair of giant river otters...except maybe a whole mess of penguins.

Evidently, I am attractive to parrots.

Always always always eat a meal before going to the art museum.

Never bring your fragile-egoed 6-year old aspiring artist into a gallery of youth artwork. He WILL fall on the floor and cry about how he will NEVER be that good...and he wants to go home NOW.

If you are at a truck stop rest room, and the boys have to use the bathroom, better to bring them in the ladies room than chew your fingernails while you watch countless seedy-looking men stream into the restroom you just sent your boys into.

No matter how much you spend and how much effort you exert, the boys will talk endlessly about how great the hotel was (and the swimming pool) (and the cable television) and not mention anything else. You can count this as a victory. You did, after all, choose the hotel.

Also, three days after arriving home, when you spend a simple day at the park and get stuck in the rain and your impossible to please 6 year old tells you "This day was more funner than most other days." Don't take it personally. Just smile, and nod in agreement...and muse over his ability to stay in the present.

I am going to try to recap my adventures elsewhere (with links!) but  I feel compelled to say "it's over." All of my sxsw friends have flown away until next year, and I'm still in Austin. As anticipated, it was almost like the ending of/beginning of a movie with everyone twittering their airport frustrations, and finally landing at their varied destinations, weaving in and out of each others' paths, and rejoining their lives already in progress.

I spent much of yesterday working, and much of today so far has been spent sleeping, as I seem to have a raging case of cedar fever. It's good though. My body knows me well. I could almost hear it plotting for/against me "Look," my body says to all of the overactive little white blood cells... "there is no way she is going to let herself sleep in on the first day of her vacation unless we take her down by force!"

And take me down, they did. Now, I feel ok. Refreshed. I have a bit of a headache, but my body really needed the sleep, and I am up and at 'em. Playing Sims, planning a total house cleaning spree, reading to the kids, and making reservations and itineraries for my short jaunt out of town next week. I keep wavering between whether I want to go for one night or two...I will have to decide by tomorrow. On the one hand, I might as well hit three different points in Dallas while I am out...on the other, it's expensive to be away from home base for that long. On yet another...why not splurge while I have a little bit of throwaway cash. I guess I will see how far I get with the house cleaning and decide from there. At least I got my seemingly inevitable sick-while-on-vacation thingy out of the way right off the bat.

The change of seasons is close at hand. Winter to spring is a time for renewal. I have a lot of old habits and worn out relationships that I either need to upgrade or trade in to make room for something healthier and cleaner. In the interim, I have much to consider. It's also time to think about the daily/weekly/monthly rhythms we have established as a family, keep what works and discard the rest...and perhaps seek new rituals to fill the gaps. The boys are getting bicycles from the spring fairy, in addition to our trip to the museums of Dallas. They refuse to learn to ride, but I am tired of being bound to the car. I need to prepare them for the potential of one day not having a car, and I just think it sounds nice to go on a family bike ride. We'll see how they do.

So, that's it. I love it when there is such a marked and tangible ebb and flow in my life. The sxsw'ers washed up on the shores of Austin, left little gems of love and knowledge, and have drifted away on friendly tides. I'm so happy I got to share their presence, even though their absence makes me sad.

Aracarichestnut01

Due to an unexpected windfall, I am taking the kiddos on a little vacation-like jaunt to Dallas. I'm pretty psyched about this. We're heading out early in the morning (on an unspecified morning in the coming weeks) and will probably hit the Dallas Museum of Art or the Dallas Arboretum before retiring for a night's stay at a semi-posh hotel (my requirements are wi-fi and an indoor pool), in the morning, we will embark on an all-day exploration of the Dallas World Aquarium, which looks so cool that I am afraid to do any research to figure out if they are doing anything evil to the animal kingdom. I'm just going to take their word that they are funding rehabilitation programs and working on solutions to environmental problems, rather than contributing to them.

It has been about 2 years since I last took the kids out of town, and I'm really excited about this trip, even though it's a teeny tiny one. I would love to take another epic road trip, but I worry about the condition of my car and putting too much wear and tear on the old girl. I think, for now, short jaunts here and there will have to do. And, to be honest, there is a lot of Texas we have yet to explore anyway.

When all is said and done, I am sure I will twitter, blog, and podcast the entire thing. For now, I am in breathless in anticipation!