Vacation. Or Something LIke It

We are back from our second jaunt to our vacation house in the western North Carolina mountains. The only problem with a vacation house is that it is still your house. Which means that you are still cooking, cleaning, doing laundry, and tidying up..... you are just doing it in a less convenient spot. Usually NC is worth it because we can escape the near paralyzing Florida heat and humidity. Mother Nature, however, was apparently PMSing, and decided that it could be hot and muggy up there too. So sitting out on the deck with a book became far less pleasurable. We cranked up the window unit a/c, but that truly has a limited ability to cool an entire house, not to mention that it was not unlike sleeping with a Boeing 747 revving its engine in the bedroom with us. That sucker is LOUD. I'm thankful that we have it..... I just hated that we needed to use it.

Still, even with all my grousing about it, there really isn't anywhere else quite like that. It's secluded, 30 minutes to the nearest grocery store or restaurant, and there is no need to get dressed up or wear makeup. Which, to me, is Heaven. We've had some people go up there who decided that it was closer to Hell however, since they had in mind shopping, going out to eat and whatnot. All of which you CAN do up there, you just have to drive a bit to accomplish it.

So I've gotten home, and the house has been cleaned up, the mail and newspapers sorted, the groceries bought and put away, the cats loved on and cuddled with. Life is good.

Summer Musings

Well, after a month and a half in the mountains of western North Carolina I am back home in Florida. Several people have asked me why in the world I came back home, and frankly I've wondered about it myself. I missed my son who is boycotting NC until we get wireless internet and cell phone capability. I missed my husband who came up alternate weekends. I missed my shower in Florida which features good water pressure and water hard enough to actually get the soap out of one's hair (oh come on! that's valid!!). I was tired of bug bites, and I needed a hair cut. The fact that several other groups of people are going to use the house in the coming weeks also meant that I had to come home. So here I am. The morning we left North Carolina I woke up to 54 degree temperatures. Let me assure you that 54 degrees has not been seen in these parts for some time. QUITE some time. The heat is debilitating. On Monday I went grocery shopping, cleaned up the house and generally bustled about until I literally became ill. I don't do heat well. I plan to stay in the air conditioning until sometime in mid-October.

As for the son who I have missed so much. Well, he moved out. I knew that this plan was afoot, and he has only moved about 5 blocks away. From the condition of his room I could surmise that he took none of his clothes with him, and none of his toiletries. Still, moved out is moved out. The house seems empty even though between school, work and social commitments this kid wasn't here much anyway. On the bright side I won't be tripping over his size 12 shoes and won't be subjected to the boom-thumpa-thumpa of his music at all hours. The house seems awfully empty though.

My hair was, as I mentioned, in a state of complete disarray. 9 weeks without a cut or coloring. NOT attractive. I had an appointment set for the Thursday after my arrival home, but my hair dresser's daughter is apparently ill, and she isn't working right now. This isn't as big a tragedy as you may think since this woman took over my hair when the lady who I ADORED moved away. This stylist was..... okay.... but not great. As luck would have it tho, I saw an ad in a magazine for a salon that boasts people WILL ask where you got that incredible hair cut so I gave them a call. Attempting to be as honest as possible I described myself as a plump rutabaga with feet and 4 inches of pure white roots. My new, and FABULOUS, stylist is named Jim. If you ran into Jim on the street and had to guess what his profession was, you would NOT pick hair stylist. (English teacher comes to mind for some reason.) First thing he did was to pick a new color for me that is FAR more flattering than the faded blonde that my old stylist used. Second thing he did was give me an adorable hair cute that, wonder of wonders, I am able to recreate on my own! HURRAY for stylists who are talented that way. We are pleased.

So. Here I am. Mid July in Florida. Welcome home to me. Now turn down the a/c and pour me some iced tea!

Hello From Cullowhee, North Carolina

I'm up at our summer house in the mountains of Western North Carolina. The weather, however, is NOT cooperating with me. It is NOT supposed to be 90 degrees on my mountain! It's supposed to be cool and I'm supposed to be bundled into a sweater darn it. If I had wanted to be hot and cranky I could have stayed in Florida where at least we have air conditioning. Still, even with the warm days there is nowhere quite like here. We are so far removed from the rest of the world that you can forget about wearing makeup, fixing your hair, worrying about what to wear. You can just BE. Sleep late if you want to, stay in your pajamas till noon. Spend the entire day reading a good book, or even a not so good one. Nothing has to be accomplished, nothing has to be taken care of. It will all wait. You can see how we are in our own little world here. More as it happens!!