Well! We're back from sunny southern California. For those not in the know, Mr. Pickles had a "conference" for "work" in San Diego, so we ditched the kids and I flew out to be with him for a few glorious days. I got to spend a couple days first with my mom & dad, which was a real treat (I got to be an only child!) and then they chauffeured me the rest of the way to meet Mr. P. What a luxury it was to be able to order my days as I liked, while Mr. Pickles was otherwise engaged. I could sleep in! I could sit and watch the Olympics all day! I could take a walk, and move at my own pace! I could go shopping in stores with breakable stuff! I still missed the kids horribly, especially Daniel (he's still my baby). But I made the most of my time, to be refreshed and relish the silence and solitude. It's made me acutely aware of how much quiet time I really need as an introvert, in order to feel like a functioning human being.
So anyway, I'm caught up on laundry (thanks in a large part to Theresa, who did the little kids' laundry for me and who deserves a gold medal for sure!), I'm caught up on email, I'm getting caught up on phone calls, after today I will be caught up with groceries, so now I can devote a spare brain cell or two to this blog!
Of course, I didn't bring a camera and the little bitty one on our new cell phone is crap and I can't figure out how to upload them anyway, so I don't have any pictures to show you. But just imagine you're in a downtown area that's a couple blocks from the beach, so you can smell the salt water and feel the moist breeze, and there are seagulls and palm trees everywhere, and after about 11am it's always sunny and 74 degrees (in the morning you have to wear a hoodie b/c it's in the sixties and cloudy) and there you are.
Yeah, it was hard to leave.
So here's what else I learned during my trip:
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A few degrees of latitude makes a big difference in sun position. One hour in the sun in San Diego is roughly equivalent to two hours in the sun in Virginia. Or so the cherry red stripe up half of one leg tells me.
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Adding 8 packets of sugar and 6 little tubs of non-dairy creamer to airport coffee still won't make it taste any less like scorched Wheaties.
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The nice lady in security doesn't enjoy feeling you up any more than you enjoy having your dignity and rights as a citizen violated. You're both slaves to a phenomenally stupid and ineffective process (unless the point of going through airport security is to prove that we're all mindless sheep capable of following rules blindly, in which case it's working).
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Apparently I dread going through airport security more than I do the possibility of the airplane crashing and burning.
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Pregnant women are not very effective at steering two-man kayaks. Not enough functioning abdominal muscles.
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I never truly appreciated how much more oxygen there is near the
beach. Since I've returned to smelly ol' Virginia I feel like I'm
breathing with one lung at altitude.
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Vacationing with food allergies is a daily adventure. It's nothing short of a miracle that Mr. Pickles didn't suffer serious gastrointestinal distress once during our stay. I tip my hat to all the lovely waitstaff at all the restaurants we patronized.
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On that last note, I leave you with this video:
What? No mention of your adorable nephews??? ;)
ReplyDeleteIt was good seeing you, Jen! =)
Everytime you have the small chance of visiting, I realize how much I miss you and how much I miss (read: need to) chatting with you.
Glad to hear you had a little refresher while here! (I experienced that when I took a few days to go to Sand Diego Comic-Con, leaving Joe at home with the boys. Just those few days was all I needed to feel HUMAN again!)
And I don't blame you about disliking the new airport security procedures. (I'm slowly making a list of airports that have contracted with private security rather than renewing their contracts with TSA).
Miss you! <3
Wow, airports are actually allowed to contract with someone other than TSA? I'm surprised the govmt is allowing that! Which airports have switched so far? I'm curious to know what the private security companies do. I don't mind having my luggage scanned; it's the naked scans and full-body pat-downs that I find insulting. And limiting carry-on liquids is just plain annoying. It basically means that women have to pay extra to travel, either to check a bag, or else to purchase all the personal care products they need at their destination, which they're going to have to toss again b/c they can't carry them back on the plane.
ReplyDeleteOkay, end rant. Yes, my nephews were adorable! I wish I could have spent more time bonding with my godson. You guys make cute kids. I hope you can make more! ;)
Well, I should be more specific about the private airport security: You'd still have to go through the same procedures you do now --take off your shoes, remove laptops and electronics, go through the scanners or opt for the pat-down, etc--, and the private security would still be under the supervision of TSA. However, because it *is* a private security, and not a government entity, they actually *have* to follow basic human-decency guidelines or else lose their jobs. ("...these contract employees — they're not federal employees; they're not guaranteed a job for life. If they don't meet the performance goals or maybe they're consistently rude, or maybe they miss objects that go through the machine, they are terminated. I can't remember how easy that would be to do with a federal employee. I don't think it is.")
ReplyDeleteCurrently, there are about 17 airports in the US that utilize private security, with about 28 more requesting to use private security. (The requests have to go through a government program on the subject.) And there are several government officials, senators and the like, urging and encouraging airports to use the private securities. Something about it saving tax payers money in the long run.
I can't seem to find the list I was building up of the airports that currently use the private security firms, but I have no doubt a more up-to-date list is somewhere in the internet.
Oh, and unsurprisingly, TSA is attempting to bar airports from using said private security. /roll eyes
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ReplyDeleteOh! Hey! List! Courtesy of the TSA blog... ironic? (posted 11/19/2010)
ReplyDeleteCharles M. Schulz-Sonoma County Airport (STS)
Dawson Community Airport (GDV)
Frank Wiley Field (MLS)
Greater Rochester International (ROC)
Havre City County Airport (HVR)
Jackson Hole (JAC)
Joe Foss Field (FSD)
Kansas City International (MCI)
Key West International Airport (EYW)
L.M. Clayton Airport (OLF)
Lewistown Municipal Airport (LWT)
Roswell International Air Center (ROW)
San Francisco International (SFO)
Sidney Richland Regional (SDY)
Tupelo Regional (TUP)
Wokal Field (GGW)
Hey, we actually flew through Key West two years ago, and I have to say that was hands-downs THE most pleasant security screening experience! The screeners all treated you like human beings and were capable of carrying on normal conversations. Even cracking jokes. (It helped that we were traveling with an adorable 5-month-old). :)
ReplyDeleteIiiiinteresting.