Labor Day Weekend. You know what that means...
Saturday, August 30, 2008
Aloha fireflies---
Wow! Does that sound great or what? We are an official community now, with a name and everything. I don't suppose anyone out there is a designer of some kind and what's to come up with a little winged logo? :)
Well, it's Labor Day weekend, and you all know what that means. The kids are headed back to school. I know my son is twenty years old, and I should be far removed from all the emotions that come along with back to school, but I have to admit that it's still the same. My husband and I just took our not-so-little-boy to the airport and said goodbye until Thanksgiving. I have to say, it was still difficult. We had such a wonderful time when he was here. And yet...now I can breathe deeply again and worry less. As the bumper stick says: I can wag more and bark less. You all know what I mean. :) As soon as I finish making sure that he actually cleaned his room...See? Some things never change.
After the airport, we went straight to REI, which is a local sports clothing and equipment store in Seattle. This is a store for real sports enthusiasts; I could tell by the three story climbing wall and the rocky path built in the center of the shoe department to "test" your hiking boots. I used it, too. Not the climbing wall; the foot path. :) I put on the boots and pretended I knew what I was looking for. Fortunately, Susan Elizabeth Phillips, who is a walking goddess, gave me some tips. Mostly it came down to buy lots of cushions.
Once I had my new boots, it was off to the clothing department. As my regular readers know, I'm planning for a trip to Africa. Now, this trip is a GIGANTIC undertaking for me. I mean, really. I haven't been a world traveler for a long time. I've wanted to, been waiting for it, but you know how it is with kids. The big trips become so difficult to pull of. But no more; now we're empty nesters, and Africa here we come. So I ran off to REI to buy...khaki colored clothing that dries fast and repels bugs. I didn't even know you could buy clothing that repels insects. Or frankly, that you would want to. Oh, and you can buy insect repellent that is supposedly "great." But don't put it on your clothing, or it will eat through the fabric. Does this seem wrong to anyone else???
And just for the record--now I know why people come home from Africa with thousands of photos of animals. It's because we all look terrible--no hair dryers, one small carry on bag, khaki nylon clothes that smell vaguely of bug spray, and oh yeah, we'll be sweating. So expect me to come home with lots of animal pictures! Assuming I can take the camera out of the bag, turn it on, get it to my eye, focus, and snap--all before the lion moves on. :) Not a chance...
All of this makes me think of the "dream trip" that all we mothers have. We nurture it for years, secretly plan for it when the kids are gone. Some of you are lucky enough to go before the nest empties out, but I know a lot of you wait...like I did. Anyway, tell me, where you all dream of going.
The upcoming trip has forced me to do what I rarely do: organize my time. Thus, here goes: I'm thinking that in September we'll do a kind of writing how-to series on the blog. I'd like to be really interactive on this, so please, tell me what it is you want to know. I'll try to address all of your questions and give you as much information as I can. So fire away! When you ask your questions, why don't you tell me about where you are in the writing journey also. that way all the fireflies will be able to chime in. I bet you'd all be surprised by how much you can help each other.
In October, I'll be gone and inaccessible (no hair dryers, so no lap tops), so our lovely Kim will be stepping in, so perhaps she'd like to talk to you all about what it's like to begin writing and how hard she worked to sell her first book. (What do you think, Kim?)
And in November...we'll be judging the essays and giving out advance copies of TRUE COLORS. Really, I can't wait for all of you to start reading. It's so different from Firefly. I think you'll love the contrast. And it's set in one of the most beautiful, most secret corners of the Pacific Northwest.
Aloha everyone---
And thanks for being fireflies....
Kristin
Wow! Does that sound great or what? We are an official community now, with a name and everything. I don't suppose anyone out there is a designer of some kind and what's to come up with a little winged logo? :)
Well, it's Labor Day weekend, and you all know what that means. The kids are headed back to school. I know my son is twenty years old, and I should be far removed from all the emotions that come along with back to school, but I have to admit that it's still the same. My husband and I just took our not-so-little-boy to the airport and said goodbye until Thanksgiving. I have to say, it was still difficult. We had such a wonderful time when he was here. And yet...now I can breathe deeply again and worry less. As the bumper stick says: I can wag more and bark less. You all know what I mean. :) As soon as I finish making sure that he actually cleaned his room...See? Some things never change.
After the airport, we went straight to REI, which is a local sports clothing and equipment store in Seattle. This is a store for real sports enthusiasts; I could tell by the three story climbing wall and the rocky path built in the center of the shoe department to "test" your hiking boots. I used it, too. Not the climbing wall; the foot path. :) I put on the boots and pretended I knew what I was looking for. Fortunately, Susan Elizabeth Phillips, who is a walking goddess, gave me some tips. Mostly it came down to buy lots of cushions.
Once I had my new boots, it was off to the clothing department. As my regular readers know, I'm planning for a trip to Africa. Now, this trip is a GIGANTIC undertaking for me. I mean, really. I haven't been a world traveler for a long time. I've wanted to, been waiting for it, but you know how it is with kids. The big trips become so difficult to pull of. But no more; now we're empty nesters, and Africa here we come. So I ran off to REI to buy...khaki colored clothing that dries fast and repels bugs. I didn't even know you could buy clothing that repels insects. Or frankly, that you would want to. Oh, and you can buy insect repellent that is supposedly "great." But don't put it on your clothing, or it will eat through the fabric. Does this seem wrong to anyone else???
And just for the record--now I know why people come home from Africa with thousands of photos of animals. It's because we all look terrible--no hair dryers, one small carry on bag, khaki nylon clothes that smell vaguely of bug spray, and oh yeah, we'll be sweating. So expect me to come home with lots of animal pictures! Assuming I can take the camera out of the bag, turn it on, get it to my eye, focus, and snap--all before the lion moves on. :) Not a chance...
All of this makes me think of the "dream trip" that all we mothers have. We nurture it for years, secretly plan for it when the kids are gone. Some of you are lucky enough to go before the nest empties out, but I know a lot of you wait...like I did. Anyway, tell me, where you all dream of going.
The upcoming trip has forced me to do what I rarely do: organize my time. Thus, here goes: I'm thinking that in September we'll do a kind of writing how-to series on the blog. I'd like to be really interactive on this, so please, tell me what it is you want to know. I'll try to address all of your questions and give you as much information as I can. So fire away! When you ask your questions, why don't you tell me about where you are in the writing journey also. that way all the fireflies will be able to chime in. I bet you'd all be surprised by how much you can help each other.
In October, I'll be gone and inaccessible (no hair dryers, so no lap tops), so our lovely Kim will be stepping in, so perhaps she'd like to talk to you all about what it's like to begin writing and how hard she worked to sell her first book. (What do you think, Kim?)
And in November...we'll be judging the essays and giving out advance copies of TRUE COLORS. Really, I can't wait for all of you to start reading. It's so different from Firefly. I think you'll love the contrast. And it's set in one of the most beautiful, most secret corners of the Pacific Northwest.
Aloha everyone---
And thanks for being fireflies....
Kristin
