all talk, no action
Yahtzee, 10pm and the fleshy part of my forearms is sticking to the table in the humidity.
Yeah, we're in Florida. You'll have to excuse the break from daily (or somewhat-daily) writing. It's a short vacation, but so far it's been a good vacation. Chiefly comprised thus far of the pool, the beach, and some evening drinks outside by the ocean. Like we always are, we're a bit smooshed in the time department - lots of things we want to do and people we want to see and not a lot of time to do and/or see them all.
Our flight out was eventful, with an emergency landing in Denver for a medical emergency which emerged, medically, about two rows behind us and across the aisle. Some poor soul had a (very frightening to watch) seizure-type thing back there two rows back and across the aisle. The crew put an open-ended request for a doctor on the PA and a man in a maroon shirt strolled back from the front, feet guided by his Oath. In the end, the afflicted gentleman walked off the plane in Denver under his own power, and we were off and running again after a brief refueling and visit from the cleanup-crew (this was not a clean medical emergency). And, with a sufficiently accommodating layover, we arrived in Florida later that evening spot-on time.
Tomorrow we're off to some new waterpark, another day with sweaty skin and wrinkled fingers. Sun and water, water and sun - and I have not practiced one single minute for the presentation I'm giving morning-Monday the day after we return. In all honesty, I'm feeling pretty guilty about my total and complete lack of preparation. I mean, I've been under-prepared before, but this time it's aggregious: I don't even have my material finalized yet, and I don't know when I will... maybe not until Sunday night when we get home. I'm doomed, I really am. Woe; woe is me.
I won at Yahtzee, but it's only because I add so poorly. Goodnight.
let’s get to vacating
10:22pm on vacation eve and I'm just now sitting down to write.
What? You already thought I left for vacation?
I know, you guys get confused with the times on this here blog. It's easy: I write at nights, usually the night before I post. However, being cheeky, I adjust words like "today," "yesterday," and "tomorrow" for the time when you'll actually be reading the post. So, even though it's Monday night while I write this, I'd refer to Tuesday as "today" when I write. Unless, that is, I'm writing about something I'm doing in real-time, in which case I'll usually say something explicit like "Monday night." See, simple?
Anyway, I'm pretty much all done getting things together... I'm bed-packed (which means everything I intend to take with me is laid out neatly in stacks on the bed, waiting to go into a suitcase). Sharaun just got home from her MOPS thing (that's the mother's group thing she does I always talk about, she runs the one for the teen girls - what a humanitarian I married, eh?), and she's yet to get packing. And, with an early 5am departure planned from here tomorrow, she better get going. Ahem, I also cleaned up the joint and did dishes while she was gone - I can't stand coming home to a messy house, kills me. So, in a word I am: ready. Let's do this, let's get to vacating.
I haven't mentioned it much here on the b-to-the-l-to-the-o-to-the-g, but some friends of ours are actually joining us in Florida this time around. That's right, we're bringing some California folk into the sticky South. For me, this is unique collision of circumstances, and I'm not ashamed to admit I'm a little excited about showing someone the place that holds such a special place in my heart. I want to take them drinking with my Florida friends, want to show them my old haunts, tell stories with immediate context as we drive down the road. I know, it's not that special of place to go visit... maybe even looks broken-down and busted to high-falootin' west-coasters... but I'm still excited.
Besides, the prospect of bringing your "now" friends to your "then" place is a concept I think I could get on board with. In fact, the close group of thugs we run with out here has even floated the idea of a rotating "hometown vacation series" thing a few times. Each of us in turn inviting the other friends to come visit our hometowns, staying in various family-held cabins and properties, experiencing the local color, and witnessing firsthand the loins which birthed those who are now seem so attached to us it's hard to remember they led other lives before the clique. Personally I think it's a great idea, I eat culture like Asians do rice, and a vacation series like that would serve it by the heaping plateful. Maybe one day...
Before I go, a funny story: Sharaun's home with Keaton this week when Keaton alerts her that she has to pee. She takes her into the bathroom, as usual, and removes her pants and diaper, as usual. But, instead of sitting down on her little potty like she always does, she instead moves in front of it, standing up, and just stares down at it. "What are you doing?," asks Sharaun. "I wanna make a peepee," she answers. "But you have to sit down to make a peepee," Sharaun notes. "I wanna make a peepee like a big girl, like Daddy does!" Ha, I liked that. Yeah, I know, maybe it's a little "Chicken Soup for the Whatever," but I liked it. Suck on it.
And, because I'm way behind on posting new pictures of Keaton, here's a small set from Bill and Susie to keep you going. Heave a sigh of relief though, as I dumped the last unsorted batch to the laptop before leaving for Florida with intent of weeding through and posting a new set while there. Look for it, OK?
Goodnight, until the sunny soupy Florida air is in my lungs.
mondayfriday
Sunday evening, the sun on it's way out and the house is at it's warmest from being open all day, baking.
I just came in from an afternoon spent working around the yard; one of my rare fits of activity. Was a good one though: got the lawn mowed, fixed a couple busted sprinklers (the tough ones, where you have to dig a trench and redo pipe and whatnot), tinkered in the garden, and finally got around to finishing up the mending I had to do on the fence ever since it blew down waaaaay back when (seriously, it was a long time ago). The work got bonus points because I got to use both my circular and jig saws, as well as my sawhorses. Any man'll tell you, he loves getting to use the tools he spends so much money collecting. Makes me feel virile... might not wanna get near me, may end up with twins just from my scent.
Today is both my Monday and Friday this week, as we leave bright and early tomorrow morning for a week-ish long (or short, rather) vacation in Florida. The plan is simple: Some beach time, some time by the pool, maybe some molasses-based Southern barbecue, and a good bit of time with family and friends. I'll tell you this: I'm ready for a vacation. Work has picked up of late, and looks to be aimed in that general direction for the next few months. I actually think I may have squandered my downtime... shame on me. At least we're getting away though - and I can't wait to see if Keaton is a little more keen on the sand and waves this time around, since she's getting so much better in the pool.
The other day Sharaun found one of these Fisher Price kids' digital camera things at the local Goodwill. I'd never heard of the things before, but she apparently had - and she realized the $3.99 pricetag was a steal, even if the thing didn't turn out to be in working order she figured it for a worthwhile gamble. When she got it home, I opened it up and put in 4 AA batteries and one coin battery, put it all back together, and turned it on. Thing fired up and worked perfectly. I bet the folks who sold it either didn't realize they needed to replace the coin battery, that, or it was stolen... one of those.
Keaton absolutely loves the thing, and acts like a professional photographer when she has it. She point it at you and say, "Onetwothree smile!," before she snaps. The pictures are fairly poor quality, something like a tiny cellphone camera, but she still enjoys it. It has enough built-in memory for her to take about sixty or so photos, but I noticed it also had a SD card slot. Unfortunately, I didn't have any spare SD cards, but I did have a gig MMC card I'd bought long ago when I was in Taiwan, it was for an old Nokia phone. Since MMC and SD are pretty much the same thing with just slight physical differences, I figured I'd try. I slid right in and worked great.
Anyway, I figure I may feature some of Keaton's photography soon here on sounds familiar, so keep an eye out for that. And, while I have no firm plans for blogging or not-blogging while we're in Florida, I can forsee a slow week (or, maybe all that free time will mean lots of writing... who knows). One thing I do want to try and do is my annual halfway best-of list... but, again, who knows.
Goodnight folks!
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