We tried to take you with us.

What a view! That restaurant had wings!



My luggage: The small purse within the bigger purse is a patented Gigi Mellow move that I felt proud to find myself employing throughout the trip.



On the first night of our road trip the hotel screwed up and gave us double beds instead of a king, so Dan said we had to play Rob and Laura Petrie for the night. (Which I totally dug because having a bed to myself is one of the biggest things I miss about being single. That and bukkake.)

You know when you’re playing phone tag with a friend for several months and by the time you finally get her on the phone, so much has gone down that you don’t even really know where to begin in catching her up? That’s kind of what I’m feeling right now. My usual technique in that situation---especially if the missed content is especially complicated, like an ailing parent or two---I’m inclined to gloss over things or deftly deflect if don’t feel like working that hard. That’s sort of where I am right now. So, rather than simply saying, “Vacation was great but how are you?” I’ll offer a bullet-point glance of things.

• I went to Austin and the city and my dear friend, Jarvino, rocked and rejuvenated my soul.
• I went to Pittsburgh, the Poconos and NYC and all I got you was this lousy blog entry.
• It was also soul-rocking and rejuvenating in that unique way that cranial massages followed by Broadway shows can be.
• Dan will be in charge of planning all vacations for the rest of our lives.
• I finished my submission for the writing workshop I’m attending in August and am now able to once again inhale and exhale to fruition.
• There’s an inexplicable onslaught of flies in my apartment and I don’t know why and it’s freaking me the fuck out.
• I am having an upper endoscopy and biopsy on Monday to check for celiac disease. (I filled out my pre-op forms and specifically mentioned that I woke up during my colonoscopy so they know to put this bitch out good this time.)
• I’ve had to eat a surplus of gluten in preparation for this test, which put 10 pounds on my ass and made me feel so ill and cranky that I picked 17.5 fights with Dan on our vacation
• The half-fight took place in my head.
• Dan still heard it.
• I’ve decided to return to a gluten-free lifestyle no matter what the test says.
• But first I’m gonna eat a spaghetti-stuffed burrito as a last hurrah.
• My dad’s MRI came back clean which means any cancer left in his brain is microscopic at this point. This is what we had expected since the mass was removed during surgery but he has started chemo to keep it at bay for as long as he can.
• My Spoffice is kind of a mess again.
• I miss my mom.
• Just a whole helluva lot.
• I wish I could show up at her house with sandwiches and we could have lunch together.
• I’m playing with the idea of taking classes at UNH.
• I’m playing with the idea of attending the four-day Harry Potter movie marathon which is playing at select theaters leading up to the release of the final film (even more than I’m thinking of going to school).
• I’m drunk right now.
• Not really, but we have this beer that tastes like Fruity Pebbles and I kind of want to have it for breakfast.
• I went mini golfing with Bec and her family last night despite a pretty firm stance of opposition to the entire sport (can we really call that a sport?), and though fun was had, I still believe it should be abolished.
• I think that about covers it.
• But at least we’re back in the game here.
• How are you?