Kickin’ Back Chat

The relaxed sort of kickin’ back…. not the drag me away kicking and screaming type….

Although I sort of lost the mood after reading some of this mornings news. News is a real mood-breaker isn’t it? Almost as bad as reading some of the craziness available in blogdom ( but not me-never me;). I decided to write in this mode last night, when I actually still felt relaxed and easily amused, with that sort of amiable openness I sometimes feel. Like, oh yeah, say what you want…I’m off in my objective and floating space.

It passes quickly when reading the news and having to come down to those irritating mundane problems. If it were only the mundane that would be good, but it is getting hit in the face with bad news. It’s like when my dad used to throw cold water in my face.

But then I am trying to recapture that place of relaxed “things are good” , because the actual circumstances of my life are pretty good. Oh yes, the vacation.

The vacation was lovely. We went to the oceanside where I only worried about the cost and drive time for just a wee ittle bit. And with that baby talk attitude. The weather cooperated and I escaped the rain and cold of Ohio for a week. I gathered stinky shells that smelled up the vehicle on the way home and I did a tiny bit of swimming ( I don’t swim well) and I laid on the beach. The only real reading was a book I bought at a local bookstore on the area’s history.

Did alot of considering about Southern US culture. Because it leaves me mystified. And I had -thanks to blogging- been reading all that stuff about Jacksonians and Rednecks and Black culture.

So. Why can’t you get a decent cup of coffee in the South unless you happen upon a Starbucks?

I didn’t get to eat enough seafood because I always hit the good places between opening and closing. They all close for lunch at between 2:30 and 3:00 and don’t open again ’til 5:00. And each time I missed it. Lesson for vacation: make the husband stop when you first see the place, don’t say to yourself “We’ll hit it on the way back”…or tomorrow or whatever. Strike while the iron is hot. We’re here-we’re stopping! I am getting my crabcakes! Otherwise, you get McD’s or Subway again. And that is no way to vacation.

Speaking of eats, I was really glad to have stopped at a Health Food Market and picked up some fine curried chicken and great taboule.

But the best part was going to the beach every day, except for the day we hit the Aquarium. That was interesting, but way too small for the money. It was the Charleston Aquarium, and we did some geography review yesterday, just so the things we saw would stay fresh. You start in the mountain area ( just as we did traveling ) and move on through the Piedmont into the Low Country. The mountain part was neat with mists and all. That was the day I convinced the family to ride out to Kiawah only to have to turn back after lots of driving. We weren’t going to pay five dollars parking for five minutes of just seeing what that park was like. My bad. We bought some nice stuff from farm market stands on the way back to the homebase, though. One excellent apple-pear-praline pie that was something to remember for a long time.

I did exercise, too. One was unexpected when I volunteered to ride to the beach access on an old bike with my youngest daughter. Only I forgot which beach access to meet the fam ( driving in the vehicle later). So, riding a bike-which I am no longer used to- on a hot South Carolina afternoon for a good mile out of your way and having to track back. That was fun. The search party had gone out- so I was later than is usual even for me.

But it was fun- and the search party didn’t mind their combing of the beaches so much… and I wasn’t so stiff as I thought I would be-must have been those continually warm muscles;). Just one hint, though- don’t ride a bike in sandy places.; it is like a bad dream… the ones where you are thinking you’re moving but you are only going an inch in slow motion.

Now I am back… with lots of laundry that I haven’t touched yet, a bit tan ( who cares about wrinkles…tomorrow, I’ll think about that tomorrow) . That reminds me, I saw Gone With the Wind again, along with that documentary on Elvis they did last week. I also heard lots more drawl than on previous visits to the South. This Yankee came home saturated.

And -oh yes- what kicked off the vacation? We were at Georgia Tech graduation ceremonies! My oldest son graduated …. absolutely fabulous for him and we are very proud of him. As we are of all our sons and daughters – but it was his big day. I’m telling you, Georgia Tech Graduation is like being in Geek Heaven. It is crawling with geeks;)

that’s all for now, folks.