Home Again


  This Frog Means Business 
  Originally uploaded by gwenda

With all the catch-up that entails — mountains of e-mail and laundry, the last packet of the semester to finish, etcetera etcetera, all to be dealt with in the next week.

Still, mostly I’m dreaming of: the Pelican Bar, frogs, the ocean, copious writing time, amazing meals that show up regularly through no effort of one’s own, rum, lengthy readings of the Worst Book Ever Published, games that reveal secret world domination tendencies, the ocean first thing in the morning, the smell of fresh beach towels, noodles, Christopher with a Red Stripe, the Jake’s specials board, revamped TV ideas involving Scott Bakula (sort of), rum, fresh mangoes, crabs covering and uncovering themselves in sand, biscuits, an ant army, crocodiles, the view(s), a bunch of great friends having wonderful conversations, and the hammock. The Green Flash will have to wait until next time (except for the three people who saw it).

But, hey, these are good dreams to have.

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Achieved!

And I finished the first full draft of le novel, which was my one and only goal for this week (besides swimming a lot and having fun; plus, Karen was there to applaud, making it even sweeter). Now we’re sitting out next to Jake’s enjoying the late afternoon sun and tonight we’re having a bonfire on the beach. Then home home home to our very sad (and rightfully so) dogs and slightly less sad cat, in hopes of cheering them up. If you get the chance to visit Treasure Beach, Jamaica, I highly recommend it.

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Keep Everything Crossed


  Most At Home I’ve Felt All Day 
  Originally uploaded by gwenda

I write this from the Miami-Dade County Public Library’s main branch, which just happens to be across the street from the federal building, home of the passport office. If all goes according to the (new) plan, I’ll swing over there and grab my shiny new passport (less than 24 hours, babee, since we discovered it was expired*), then we’ll book back to the airport and get on the 7:25 flight to Montego Bay… arriving mere six hours or so after we were supposed to and after our compatriots.

Are we this lucky? I hope so.

I already miss these guys, who were supersad to see us go. (And this guy too–cat, not boy who’s sitting next to me.) And yes, I’ll be completely fried by the time we (crossed) get out to the villa around 11:30 or midnight. Fried, but tropical. Keep it crossed and send the good karma, mon.

*Christopher’s Automated Phone System Fu is second to none.

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Me Have Troubles

Things never to do NUMBER ONE: Let your passport expire without noticing until the day before you need to use it.

If anyone has a fairy godmother who does emergency passports, please let me know. We’re working on it, if we can just get to Miami in time, etc.

Updated: We think it’ll work out and we’ll just get there a day and a half or so later. Keep your fingers crossed for understanding airport agents (so far, so good) and passport people. Also, for passport cancellations at the Miami center tomorrow! (I have an appt. but Thursday, but we could go standby tomorrow evening if I managed to get in early.) Oh and HEY, if anyone lives in Miami and I’ve spaced and you want to grab dinner or something (or has a recommendation for a hotel), let me know.

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Sunshine & Keyboard

So I’ve got my 70 SPF sunscreen (almost) packed and have vowed to finish my novel and we’re off tomorrow to Jamaica to beachify with friends… off so early it won’t even be bright yet.

I don’t plan on checking in here until we’re back and recovered, which means late next week, though I might post some photos at Flickr. Now to decide what books to take with. Oh, the agony. (Also: Read Molly Gloss’s new one, The Hearts of Horses, if you haven’t, because it is FABULOUS.)

Be good.

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TV Geek Moment

So, on the most recent episode of Bones, which continued the saga of the more-interesting-than-most-TV-serial-killers-because-a-secret-society-is-involved Gormagon killer(s), there was this absolutely delightful little homage to Buffy. Angel, er, Booth did a night visit to a cemetery to break into a crypt and they shot it right out of Buffy, even beginning with a close-up of an angel statue. Yes, we squealed like delighted children meeting Willy Wonka for the first time.

These kind of fun little moments are the reason that this show–while not a work of genius–never disappoints me. Which is a rare thing on teevee these days.

Also, I can’t BELIEVE that Wikipedia doesn’t have a Gormagon entry. Wow.

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Thundering Bookworms Unite

Yes, that’s right, we KILLED at bar trivia. Specifically, we killed the hopes and dreams of that child in front of that weird bar video game in the picture, whose one-man (with assistance from Dad) trivia team was called Don’t Underestimate My Power (cute, huh? he went DOWN).

If it wasn’t for that pesky question about what two mammals are poisonous, he’d have been CRYING for sure. (The shrew and the platypus — really? Huh.)

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Lost in the Woods

071105_hansel55_p323The New Yorker’s hosting online images of some of the striking art work that’s being exhibited at the Metropolitan Opera House’s gallery in honor of a new "Hansel and Gretel" production. I’m not a huge Wegman fan (or at all, actually), but this one is just creepy enough to drag me in.

Link via the lovely Betsy at Fuse, who also has a review today of Tim Wynne-Jones’ wonderful novel, Rex Zero and the End of the World. And now back to researching Pie Town, N.M.

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