Vicarious Rocky

Thank you to Tyra and Claire (and Holly, of course) for a fabulous last night in Syracuse. I learned that Dr. Pepper is prune flavored (they keep that under wraps don't they)? That Ricki Schroeder should sue Teen Weekly for involving him in kiddie porn. That sadly Cain Trevors was, in fact, not up and coming. That Fifteen Holly Fun Facts is too few Fun Facts (did you know she polishes her cats)? That you should make sure your pool boy is a licensed masseuse. And last but not least . . . That peanut is a fabulous nickname.

If I lived in town, I would definitely start a Leftovers Club.

On my way to Syracuse with my dear friend Holly. That's right, blogging from the car and feeling exceptionally mobile. Holly is impressed with my technology, and I'm impressed too.

For the next 2 days I am going to try and focus on regaining some sense of self. I am so splintered right now with the business and kid and family life generally. I feel like a scruffy doormat quite often. So, this half week I'm family and kid free. A bit of work to do though, but even that is minimal.

Well, here's to hoping Holly's friends don't think I'm vapid and boring. Just what a doormat would say.

I can hear this little motherfucker carpenter bee munching on my porch ceiling. He's between my gutter and porch roof. I am right now off to find some RAID. I hate Bees . . .

All I had was Ant and Roach Spray. He didn't even take a break from eating. That munch, munch sound is the Tell-Tale Heart to me. AHHHH! SHUT UP!

I hate when nature encroaches on my civilization. Oh yeah, that means I hate Nature.

So the guy that drove me home from the car service station this morning told me his father died last night. Then he proceeded to talk about how there is no death leave at his work and how that is bullshit so now he has to take vacation. Then he lets me know that he's fine with the death -- knew it was coming, used to be a fireman and bagged bodies of children, had a nephew die of leukemia, his Grandfather died 2 year's back. And then he also reassured me that this wasn't a trend in his family. Just a string of death's lately.
He discussed some of the problematic logistics of flying on short notice. I suggested driving and he seemed genuinely impressed with the suggestion (uh, it's just to Boston), so that way his kids could go too. He said, sort of put out, "They're probably going to want to go."

It's just amazing to me how people deal differently with death. I have never had anyone close to me die. Can you believe that? I'm 33. Because of this I imagine the experience of grief as terrifying and horrible. Also, with death being so FINAL and all, I tend to also imagine that feelings in death are simple and black. Of course, I know they're very messy and this awkward conversation gave me an honest glimpse of that reality.

I had no idea I would LOVE Disney World. I was really blindsided by how crazy fun it was for Sage, me, and the kid. Indy was blissed out 24/7. Turns out he is obsessed with Chip and Dale. Nice choice. He also decided he liked Nemo and flipped out over the Indy Speedway Car ride. So, since that's his name, I had to take this picture:



I was pretty sad to come back from fantasy land into the real world, but my friend Holly is here at our house and that's making for a good transition. Got lots done at work yesterday and Indy is recovering today from general "back to life" disappointment, which was running high yesterday as I headed out for work.

Do I feel refreshed? I think I do actually. The farther I get from the vacation end date the more relaxed I feel about being back at it all. Back to accomplishing regular life things.

I haven't been on a real vacation -- like where you get on a plane and go somewhere far away and don't also see a client -- for, like, 3 years! We're taking our kid to Disney World. It was a plan I was not really keen on since he's only 2 1/2, and I felt that he was too young to squander Disney-type cash. But what I've come to realize is that if you're going to bother to take your toddler on vacation, and you want to have a nice vacation yourself, then you have to go somewhere that the kid will love and find constantly entertaining. Otherwise, he'll be hanging on you bitching while you're trying to relax on some beach or be enlightened at a museum.

I imagine at Disney, when my kid starts acting up at some buffet breakfast, I won't get the "You and your freaky screaming monkey stop ruining my brunch" look. I will instead get the, "Oh, so sorry, mine did that yesterday" look. When my kid starts melting down in the Dumbo ride line, I can direct him to the shaded area where other mother's are wrestling with dehydrated, angry children. Even if the food is crap and the atmosphere is screaming-monkey saturated -- as a toddler parent, I find these scenarios 1000 x more relaxing than the most adult tranquil vacation spot.

I think the fact that I'm harboring these beliefs, and I'll be awake at 7am every day on vacation, confirms that I am OLD.