Dateline--The First 24 hours--Tallahassee

June 20, 2009


Random musings from vacation

--They never put restrooms at good places for 6 year old boys. As a member of the group of “Great North American Bathroom Tour” participants, Luke’s sense of timing is BAD. Also, I would like to make a public apology to the guy that told us it was okay for Luke to go behind his produce stand. Watch your step, okay?

--Other people’s class reunions are not THAT fun. (Or, as an astute friend pointed out, neither is your own) We walked into Jason’s 20th High School reunion where we were blasted by 80s music and not enough air conditioning. Being that I’m not exactly the social butterfly, it was awkward for me, at best. Jason introduced me to lots of people that I couldn’t hear their name and they couldn’t hear a word I said. Then they turned up the music to +11, I think. I was amused greatly by the DUUUUDE that walked in out of the 100 degree heat with a motorcycle helmet and a leather jacket. He looked like he’d just walked out of the geeky YouTube rendition of “The Terminator” that had been filmed in his mom’s basement. Someone else showed up in a stretch Hummer limo, which probably would’ve been cooler if anyone had actually seen who got out of it. The posturing of high school never ends, apparently.

--Earplugs are a great investment for vacations with my family, but only if you remember to put them in... An anesthesiologist would’ve also come in handy. I am a light sleeper and always the last one to go to sleep, so being in a room full of violent/gurgly snoring (Jason), humming (Emma), flailing (Luke) sleepers is not the best set-up for sleep for me. I wandered around the room at 2:00 a.m. trying to find my earplugs in my luggage, knocking stuff over in the process. Of course, the chainsaw sleeping in the other bed was undisturbed. I am a ZOMBIE today!

--How do hotel housekeepers wash the coffee pot? This is what I think about at 3:00 in the morning. And why do they put the coffeemaker in the bathroom, just mere feet away from the toilet??? There are some sick people in this world, and the thought of what some fool might have done to the coffeemaker bothers me greatly.

--The End?--Jason’s parents moved from Tallahassee in 2003, so it’s not really “home” anymore for him. We had not been back here since Christmas 2002 so he had not had a chance to say goodbye to his old house or hometown. He took us to all the places he used to live, play tee ball, eat, and attend school. We even visited a country store from 1927. It was like going back in time. I felt a little sad for Jason because he wonders if we will ever go back to Tallahassee again. I wish the kids had been a little more impressed with his history and nostalgia, but they’re kids. All they can think about is the beach. In my mind, we are already there, instead of two hours away…and in the car AGAIN.