How I Spent My Summer Vacation

[mood swung]

(read that as "winter vacation", bottom dwellers )

Where the heck is everybody and how are they spending their idle hours?

[BlueChair]

What vacation?

Actually, in terms of content I don't have much to complain about this summer. In June, Red & I spent some time in California; in July, we celebrated my sister's wedding; and in August we celebrated our own wedding anniversary and got to spend some time at the cottage. We've seen a number of great concerts, like Leonard Cohen, CSN, She & Him, and Squeeze/Aimee Mann tonight. We're off to MA this weekend, randomly, and shortly after our return we've got another friend's wedding and the Toronto International Film Festival to look forward to.

My main complaint has been the weather. It's rained a lot here this summer and never seemed to get all that hot. We've barely gotten to sit outside and our tomato plants never really produced anything all that exciting... the few tomatoes that have ripened have tasted watered down and bland. We've managed lots of zucchini though.

Overall I would rate this summer 3.5 stars out of 5.

[migdd]

I have been too successful at my job and I have eliminated my own position. Oooops. The summer has been busy accomplishing that monumental task but now that I'll be unemployed as of tomorrow, we'll be sailing between tropical depressions to the Eastern Caribbean on Sunday. If I come back, I'll start looking for another job. We've managed to put away a big chunk of cash though so I might just book another cruise instead. Maybe I'll take a year off and "redefine myself" Or perhaps another high-powered, high-pressure corporate job will come my way. Regardless, I plan on spending a lot of time doing many of the activities listed on this poll.

"Laugh and be happy" - Randy Newman

[Boy With A Problem]

What vacation?

We're off to MA this weekend, randomly

If you're free Sunday; we're having a barbeque. In fact, if anyone from the board is in the area this weekend - you have an open invite - just pm me for directions.

I've been working all Summer with at least 5 or 6 trips back and forth to the UK and Central Europe. Got to hang out with Verbal Gymnastics at his local one night - got to see Wreckless Eric with So Lacklustre one weeknight earlier on in the Summer (at least I think it was the Summer - the weather was as Summerlike as I've seen in the UK this year) - got to see Mose Allison in London - spent 4th of July weekend in Prague - WWAP and I went to Barbados for a week...saw Springsteen....going to see my brother the weekend after next and have tickets for all 3 Sox/Rangers game at the ballpark in Arlington.

Our compost is doing fine - we have a lid on it this year - we used to just do a chicken wire thing. How's your compost Moody?

[mood swung]

I'm sorry, migdd.

This economy sucks. Every day this summer that I've come to work, I've expected to get fired or laid off. It's not a fun place to live.

A cruise sounds like a good place to dream up a new dream.



My compost is ALIVE, BWAP. Alive! And it's so cool.

[Otis Westinghouse]

La Bella Italia. Firenze, Umbria, Le Marche. Beautiful hilltop towns stuffed with amazing medieval buildings, Gubbio, Cortona, and the more famous Perugia and Assisi. Amazing oldness. 12th and 13th century churches in fantastic condition with vivid frescoes. The astonishing Basilica of St francis in Assisi with Giotto's awesome Life of St Francis fresco sequence, more than 700 years old, and not damaged in the 1997 earthquake. And plenty of yummy gelati, pizza and pasta to keep the mutinous younger horde occupied, plus the welcome prospect of a swimming to recover from the low 30s endless sun in. then back to the English weather...

Talking of age, I was with my 80 year old father-in-law in the Fitzwilliam Museum and there was a figure of a seated humanoid caved in jade from China that was dated as 3,500BC. It looked remarkably modern. Astonishing really.

[spooky girlfriend]

Well, I didn't see the option that said, "took a sledge hammer to her old kitchen and spent weeks waiting on her new appliances and watched weird construction people tromp in and out of her house all summer" 'cause that would be the one I would have to pick.

I might actually get a night at a hotel for my birthday tomorrow though. It's not much, but I'll take it.

[Who Shot Sam?]

Just back from Niagara Falls (Canadian side). It was a very brief but very enjoyable vacation. If you've never been, it's really a lovely place and well worth a visit. Highlights:

-Getting absolutely drenched beneath Horseshoe Falls on The Maid of the Mist - very memorable
-Going down to the caves behind the falls - again, getting very wet
-The lovely walkway along the category 6 rapids further down the Niagara River, on the way to Lake Ontario
-Visiting the world's largest Butterfly Conservatory - blue morpho city!
-The tour of the Sir Adam Beck hydroelectric plant. I know it sounds dull but it was anything but.
-Spending the afternoon in Niagara-on-the-Lake (ouch, my wallet)

Great weather except for today, when we waited 1 1/2 hours to go through border control, due to all the holiday traffic.

[verbal gymnastics]

(read that as "winter vacation", bottom dwellers )

Where the heck is everybody and how are they spending their idle hours?

Vacation - huh!

My working life has been an endless procession of meetings.

Mind you I've spent a lot of time with Mini VG (11 months old today )

We have a week off next week and we are going to the Isle of Wight for a no doubt sun kissed glorious week. However in reality it will probably be raining.

[StrictTime]

Migdd: Sorry to hear that. Even I know this economy sucks majorly and I'm not even a part of it yet.

Verbal: Glad to hear the little one is doing well! I imagine she's still as cute as she was the last time we saw pictures.

I've been attending to college financial stuff, other college stuff, and more college stuff (that's university to you Europeans I guess). It's an endless parade of crap, tell you what. Red tape, financial crap, orientations, blah blah blah. Right now, right at this minute, I'm writing down my entire syllabi in a planner so I know what's going on. My Gender in America course and my Art History course are turning out to be pretty interesting. I'm also on a loaner laptop, so I don't even have a reliable computer. It's been quite the summer.

[colrow26]

Took early retirement at end of March then flew to Perth with missus to visit friends for three weeks. Since returning I was hoping to spend 6 months sat in my garden soaking up the sun and I think Ive been able to twice at the most!! the weather this year has been the worst I can remember in my 50 years on the planet!
So instead Ive had a trip to Moscow to watch United win the European Cup (Moscow was amazing, not visitor friendly at all but just a fantastic place to experience), Ive spent weekends in Glasgow and Brighton, Ive been to see Paul Weller in concert twice (Blackpool and Bournemouth which was the best Ive seen him) plus Lloyd Cole and Joe Jackson who were both superb. Spent a week in Mojacar, Spain which was glororious, 7 days solid sun!!
The best bit of the summer was I got to work four days as an extra on the new Ken Loach film, Looking for Eric. They were filming in Salford and asked for any United fans to come along so me and a mate went along. Had a great time got to watch the great Mr Loach at work and on the Thursday Cantona turned up on set so got to meet him. What a top bloke! Gave autographs and had his picture taken with all the lads on set.
And that was my summer, must dash cos got some job applications to post off!!

[Otis Westinghouse]

What an awesomely superb summer! I saw King Eric at OT one December the night of their Christmas party. We waited in the standard place and eventually the great man appeared, vast, hirsute, imperious. A brief wave and into the car. It was wonderful. Any chance of a photo of you with the man being posted here?

[verbal gymnastics]

Verbal: Glad to hear the little one is doing well! I imagine she's still as cute as she was the last time we saw pictures.

Thank you fair maiden.

I sent some photos to Spooky so I hope she posts them soon. Mini VG's fan club is getting bigger!