For all you Americans out there, Happy Thanksgiving week!
Right now, I’m powering through an audio book. I have 11.5 hours left in this one and it’s due in two days. Ugh! I’m off this week, because…Thanksgiving…and everything I’d planned on doing it has gone right out the window. All that writing I had intended to get done has now been swept aside by baking pies/cakes/cheesecakes, meeting family and friends, and Christmas shopping for early family events. How is it possible that I’m already two days into a VACATION and i’m already stressed out.
What I really need is a week, alone, in a hotel room with all my “stuff” to get over this hump and on the way down toward the end of this manuscript. Actually, if I could just lock myself in my office without being interrupted, that would be amazing. None of which is likely to happen.
Maybe I’ll just binge on pie instead. That sounds like a fine idea.
So, it’s Friday and we’re prepping to come back to Ohio from our vacation. I’m excited to say that we did nothing of substance. We didn’t see a show. We didn’t gamble. We didn’t do any of the random weird shit there is to do on the strip. We lounged at the pool, lounged in our room, and ate a shit ton of good food.
We stayed at the Venetian and our room was pretty epic. I’ve never stayed in a room with stairs.
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As awesome as our room was, there was some weird shit. There were three televisions; one across from the bed, one in the living area, and then one in the bathroom. Now, if this wasn’t weird enough…the television in the bathroom didn’t have as many channels and the channels that were on the television in the bathroom didn’t match up with the televisions in the other rooms. Shouldn’t they all be the same? I’m not even sure how you get that to work. Also, the shower has two random sprayers in addition to the main showerhead. They aren’t spread out and I can’t understand what purpose they serve.
On the credenza in our room is the usual selection of snacks that you would normally find – you know, nuts and candy and water – there is something else included in the line up between two bottles of water. I didn’t look that closely at it until Wednesday.
That’s right kids, if you’re fresh out of dirty stuff, you can open this little can and be provided with some quick and useful sexy item. Be careful though because below is the price listing…
That’s right! That little intimacy kit will run you $45!
On a happier and only mildly cheaper note, we went to buffets, we went to Bouchon and the Bouchon Bakery (Pistachio Macarons!!!!). AND. I. HAD. DIM SUM.
I leave for Vegas on Monday and I have nothing ready. I haven’t packed anything. I haven’t washed anything. Hell, I still need to buy stuff for myself, Ross, Scarlett, and the cat just to get through the week. I’m in trouble. I can already see this mad dash on Sunday night to get everything ready.
I don’t know what books I’m going to take or if I even want to take them. This is a conundrum for me. I should take my laptop and write. The question becomes, will I be more stressed out because I’m working or because I’m not. This is how my sick mind works.
Here’s my list:
new flip flops
new bathing suit
new clothes (because nothing fits)
cat food (because we don’t have any and a cat needs to eat…apparently)
Yogurt for Scarlett. You can’t imagine that child in the morning without her yogurt. It turns into an international incident.
travel soap
new underwear and bra (not specifically for the vacation but because, you know, I wear it every day)
new sandals that are comfortable to walk in
water wings or floaties or whatever the hell you want to call them for Scarlett
These are not small things. I should have gotten some of these things a month ago but when did I have the time? Never, that’s when. That’s why all of this shit is waiting until the last minute.
In the mean time, I’m low grade stressing and waiting for the weekend. #Adultingishard
Don’t forget to follow my exploits next week on the hashtag #TreatYoSelf
Scarlett is two and deciding where to go on vacation has been an ongoing conversation. Not only in the near future, but in the coming year. Ross and I both have a “use it or loose it” type situation with our vacation time; him more so. I can bank up to so many hours and I’m running up against that hard limit, pretty much every year now.
This summer, we’re just taking some day trips with her around the state. But planning something a little more involved raises questions.
Is she tall enough to really participate?
Will she be stimulated enough to not become a little terror?
Will she have fun?
Will Ross and I survive the fun without killing each other? That’s a real concern.
All of these are valid questions that neither one of us has the answer to. The overall vacation time issues are solved for us. One week of my vacation will be spent at RT in Reno in 2018. BY. MY. SELF.
Then, next summer, we’re spending my 40th birthday in Europe. An epic #TreatYoSelf. So, that’s two weeks down for me. Plus, Ross has an unusually high number of black out periods which makes scheduling anything a nightmare. And let’s be honest here, I don’t do heat or sun. I’m basically transparent and begin to sweat with a temperature higher than 72 degrees.
So, that’s what we’ve got. We need to spend two weeks of vacation, sometime between April-May or August-October (and that October is iffy since his week-long manager’s conference takes place in either September or October), that isn’t hot or sunny, and that a two year old would enjoy. Suggestions????
Our goal of hitting every chipotle-esque restaurant in town was a partial win.
On Monday, we went to Bibibop – which we love.
On Tuesday, we went to PokeBap – which was a total win! It was a little more expensive than the others but it was all fish based and totally worth it. In case anyone is wondering what Hawaiian Chipotle looks like, here you go.
Delicious right? I don’t know what half the shit on it was but it was good.
On Wednesday, we went to Aab India’s lunch buffet. Don’t judge. I only get to go when I’m on vacation.
We hit Chipotle, the classic and original, on Friday.
Then on Sunday, we went to Curry Up. This was good. I think I made a bad choice on the rice selection. They had a “spicy” rice. It wasn’t really spicy but instead had a woodsy/peppery taste that I just didn’t care for. Ross liked his and I think that if I’d made a different choice, I would have too. I ate everything but the rice. Do you how hard that is????
It was pretty though.
That about sums up my vacation. A little yard work, consuming almost all of the back Flash episodes and Big Little Lies. All in all, a complete week.
Today is my last day at work before I disappear into a life of sleeping in until 7am – WOOHOO! – and eating what ever the hell I want for a whole week. Is this bliss? Yes. Yes it is.
I can always tell when my vacation is getting close. My temper gets a bit shorter and those who know me are probably asking “can it get shorter”. Yes, it can. Just keep that in mind. I have far less tolerance for shenanigans as my vacation approaches and let’s face it. I deal with quite a high level of shenanigans. So the fact that Ross and I aren’t even going anywhere doesn’t seem to matter. I’m going to get Indian buffet for lunch one day, do some yard work, and go to tea. I have plans!
I might also watch those 7 or 8 episodes of the Flash that have been shaming me from the DVR list. Who knows! I have a whole week.
I know its been a while since my last blog. For that I apologize. All I can say is that I was ridiculously busy with work, edits for Black Dalliances (#5 in the Blushing Death Series), my trip to Disney, RT, and GRADUATION!
A view from my seat at Graduation!
Since so much has gone on in the last few weeks (or six but who’s counting???), I’ll start with Disney this week…as each story should.
We drove from Tampa to Orlando because I had to be in Tampa on business for a day, then the rest of the weekend was mine. By the time we got to Orlando and checked in, Ross and I decided to have a low key afternoon. And as two thirty-something adults with no children the only thing we could do was miniature golf. Yep, I said it, miniature golf. There were lizards EVERYWHERE.
The Infamous Lizard
I realize its Florida and practically a swamp so I shouldn’t be surprised by lizards at every turn. I even thought they were cute until one crawled across my flip-flopped foot and that was it for me. No more lizards. Anyway, we tied the first game even though Ross tried to cheat and claimed he “miscounted”. Riiiiiight.
During the second game, I was kicking his ASS until about the 6th or 7th hole. That’s when my epic meltdown commenced. If there was a rock in that course, I hit it, got stuck behind it, or bounce back off of it. He beat me by a lot that second game. We stopped counting.
The next day, we went to Disney’s MAGIC KINGDOM which might be my favorite place on the planet.
I don’t say this lightly because I love a lot of places; the Columbus Zoo, Barcelona, my house, and NYC. Anyway, when we entered, they gave us our tickets and then took our digital fingerprints. DIGITAL FINGERPRINTS! We walked away from the entry kiosk and Ross said, “Should I be afraid that I just got bio-screened by Disney?”
I said, “Of course, how else can Disney take over the world?”
Ross made yet another reference to skynet, and we went into the park.
I’m not going to lie. I did run around the Magic Kingdom like a 6 yr old on crack. I’m not ashamed.
The best thing that Disney ever did was create the Disney Experience App. I could track wait times, change my fast pass options, and make reservations. I was kind of addicted. In fact, I didn’t actually delete it. While I’m sitting at my desk, sometimes I like to check the wait times on Peter Pan’s flight just to make my day better.
I bought a pair of Maleficent ears (the last pair in the park…might I add). You may ask why and all I have to say to you is why not? I also bought a pair of the Queen of hearts ears. Again…why not?
Ross rode Space Mountain and Big Thunder Mountain, even though he doesn’t like roller coasters, which made me very proud. We went into every gift shop because secretly, I love gift shops. We rode It’s a Small World which is a psychedelic nightmare. Whatever they were smoking, snorting, sniffing, or ingesting when they thought up that monstrosity, can’t be healthy for you.
I got my picture taken with the white rabbit and I stood in line to do it. Then I made Ross take the picture with me. HA!
He asked, “Are we really standing in line for the White Rabbit?”
I said, “Hell yeah, we are. I love minor secondary characters.”
On day two, we went to Animal Kingdom. The highlight was the 20 minute safari ride which if the animals are participating, they get really close. I might be a little jaded about this park living in Columbus. I thought this was going to be a great big thing and it ended up being kinda meh. Columbus has a great zoo (of which I am a member) and animal park in The Wilds so I see better exhibits all the time. Especially with the new exhibit. Needless to say, I was a little disappointed.
But I digress.
I bought another pair of ears at the Animal Kingdom. Again, because why not? I looked damned cute in them too.
I managed to get Ross on Expedition Everest which is the absolute highlight of this trip. He’s going to be so mad at me but it’s funny. Really…REALLY…funny.
So, as i mentioned, Ross doesn’ t like roller coasters. By the time we were ready for our fast pass, it was lunch time, I was hot and hangry and was willing to skip it. Let it be known that I GAVE HIM AN OUT!
He said, “No. We’re here and if I don’t go on this I’ll never hear the end of it.”
In truth, he was right. I would have hounded him relentlessly for eternity. He knows me so well.
We skipped the the front of the line, which was both a good thing and a bad thing. He didn’t have time to talk himself out of it but he also didn’t have time to prepare. We stood next in line to get in the car and I reached over to rub his back for reassurance. He jumped away from me and said, “Don’t touch me! Just don’t.”
I just giggled and said, “Ok.”
He screamed the entire ride. At some point it goes backwards, it stops to go down the big hill. This is where Ross LOST HIS SHIT! From that point on he buried his head in my shoulder and screamed at the top of his lungs while I giggled like a little girl.
I’ve given you a link to relive Ross’s torture.
When we got off of this ride, Ross was panting and clutching his chest.
I said, “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I’m okay.”
“Your heart racing?”
“Yeah,” he huffed.
“Adrenaline is racing through you?”
“Yeah.”
“That’s why people go on roller coasters,” I laughed.
“Adrenaline sucks!” he said and then we got some lunch.
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