How I Spent My Summer Vacation

Ever since becoming an “adult,” I haven’t found vacations to be nearly as restful as the idyllic experiences of my childhood—frolicking on the beach, staying out all night, sleeping in as late as I like. Back then, my most stressful moments revolved around inadvertently dropping my perfectly ripe nectarine or tuna salad sandwich or just-purchased-from-the-ice-cream-man chocolate éclair in the sand. That, or losing my bikini top when I took a particularly daring plunge into the water.

I swear I'm not complaining (okay, I am...but let me explain). I mean, yes, the past couple weeks were a bit hectic—chasing after my three-year-old son, seeing my mother bald and bedridden. And let's face it, the real bummer is that I'm freaking old and just don't have the energy to (god, this sounds awful, but...) have fun like I used to. However, there were plenty of good times in the mix, not the least of which was the news that while the chemo is definitely kicking my mom’s ass, it seems to be kicking the cancer’s as well. Meanwhile, since Mom was pretty much out of commission for our visit, she planned lots of activities for us, like:

The Del Mar Fair!

Sea World!

Cordiano Winery!

I also forgot to bring reading material with me, and found myself searching for something on the shelves of the condo we were renting—and boy, did I discover a gem. I know I’m about seven years late on this, but I finally cracked open THE LOVELY BONES and was absolutely riveted. I did kind of like the first half better than the second, and wasn’t totally satisfied with the ending…but overall, I was pretty much blown away. Anyone else out there care to share their thoughts on that particular novel? Again, I know I’m seriously late to the game, but now I’m desperate to discuss it with other people who’ve read it. (Hey, 2002 was a really busy year for me, okay? I didn’t have time to join a book club.)

What else? Oh yeah. If you’re French (or you speak French), MEILLEURES ENNEMIES, TOME DEUX came out on the 11th of June! So…here’s a message for all my French-speaking amis:

Je serais si heureux si vous achèteriez MEILLEURES ENNEMIES, TOME DEUX immédiatement. J'aime tous mes ventilateurs français et espère que vous appréciez livre deux autant que livre un. (And yes, I know that a fan, in the context of someone who likes my books, is not really called a “ventilateur” in France, but I thought that would be a cool—no pun intended—way to translate it since I don’t know the correct word. :-)

I think that’s probably enough updates for now. I’ll be posting more frequently over the next several weeks, since my son’s summer vacation is officially OVER until mid-August (and therefore, mine is kinda/sorta beginning!).

If you're heading somewhere fun, here’s hoping you don’t drop any of your ice cream in the sand...

XO