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Didn’t take long to adjust to being home. Nothing a trip to school drop off, the bank, and grocery shopping couldn’t fix to make me feel at home, right back into the thick of it all. Food is expensive as shit here, compared to what I was paying in Tampa/Orlando/Kissimmee. Gas is nearly double the price per liter. Yuck!

The rainy, dreary grey opened its arms lovingly to embrace us upon our late night return. To think a mere 48 hours ago I was in board shorts sweating in the near ninety degree heat. And today I’m in full length pants, sweater, jacket and toque. I’m sporting the weakest of tans too. A brief reminder of being so, so hot in Busch Gardens for days on end. Waiting in 80 plus minute long lines for both of my kids favourite rides. Sweat just dribbling down the small of my back, pooling in my shoes. Stinging my eyes and matting our hair from the moment we stepped out of the AC, until we returned to it, or flopped into one of various available pools. We mostly avoided burning by using an SPF 50 very liberally. I, whom rarely bother as I don’t go shirtless or sans hat – ever, still slathered it on my face and ear tips & nose because those UV rays were feeling a bit EXTRA, as far as I was concerned. The two days we went to the only open waterpark from our package it was rainy, and cloud covered. I also wore a SPF 50 rash guard long sleeved aquatic shirt, so I avoided the worst of all that exposure.

But we are home, nose diving rather fast into December, and the Holiday break. It’ll be 2024 before you even know it.

While on vacation in Tampa & Orlando Florida for the last two weeks, I am almost Christmas’ed out. All day long the theme parks blared holiday jingles, and the decorations were up everywhere. Christmas town was unavoidable. I’m kinda done with it already. I am having flash backs of working retail and hearing the same playlists over and over again on constant repeat. Really takes me out of the moment. SeaWorld- Christmas!, Busch Gardens – Christmas!, Aquatica – Christmas! The only park that didn’t give us the holiday vibe was the one park that unexpectedly shut down on November 1st, not to reopen until March of 2024. That was a real bummer. The park being closed that is, not the loss of additional holiday cheer! We were very pumped about the holidays before we left. Sick of it right about now. Being from Canada for the last 37 years or so I need cool temperatures, rain or possibly snow on the ground to feel any kind of Christmas spirit, not feel like I’m melting in shorts when the mercury hits 93°F in the full sun, and only slightly less in the full shade. Where I’m from Santa doesn’t wear surf shorts.

It’s been a tumultuous fourteen days of traveling with both of my kids and my spouse, and I am less rested than I would have been just staying home. Delayed flights, extreme heat, long travel days, closed parks, rain, rain, and another week of rain, more travel, and then another heat wave in Tampa. Three different hotels, four (supposed to be anyway) theme parks or water parks, and a single beach day in Clearwater, and a very rainy day spent at Disney Springs shopping centre. I am exhausted. Sleeping all four of us to a room over multiple days means too much heat production, snoring, arguments about room temperature, bed sharing with cover snatchers, and dealing with bed hogs.

But today is our last day, so we’ll pack up the hotel room, and then spend one last day at Busch Gardens in this punishing mid eighties heat, and high UV rays. Slathered in SPF 50 sun screen, all oily and glistening in the partially cloudy sunlight. We will ride Iron Gwazi once more, wait in line for Cobra’s Curse yet again, and then see what else the day brings.

Then it’s off to get gas and drive to the airport to have dinner and then enjoy our flight back to cooler climes. Twas fun (mostly) while it lasted. Very strange to be inundated with Christmas music and messaging while the temperatures fluctuate between 93°F and 70°F. Usually we have had snow and lost all the leaves, and have to wear coats, hats, and gloves to take in the holiday spirit. Very odd sensation.

What a lovely show. Far superior to Paw Patrol or Peppa Pig, and any others of that ilk. Bluey is funny, charming and insightful where the others are loud, brash, and geared to selling toys. Feels as though Bluey was written to be bright and colourful for children, but a host to subtext and deeper conversations for parents that are watching too. It really is a joy to watch.

So here we are, back to Monday. Pretty soon we will return to our regular schedule, and be diving straight into birthday parties, and the holiday season. Madness. Going to need a vacation from our family trip. Truth be told traveling with small kids isn’t exactly restful or invigorating. But I digress. Happy Monday to all, and to all a good night.

Has become a trend in our house with both of my kids looking at all of the rides around the world. We started doing it in preparation for going to Canada’s Wonderland this year and it has just kind of stuck around. The best part is the videos themselves rarely extend beyond four to five minutes, and if you watch the versions put out by the parks themselves then they are shot in 4K or better, and are done on bright days, at the very front of the coaster. I got my oldest prepared for Yukon Striker by using the pov from YouTube. Still, we ended up riding it for the first time in mid October, at 11:15pm at night during a Halloween Haunt in the dark, so the pov was not really all that helpful. The three second dangle over the 90° drop is just as terrifying in the light as it is in the dark! It was just about our last time going for the season when I got her to try Leviathan. Then we rode that four more times that day. It’s a very fast gigacoaster. Funny how we were both nervous because of how tall the ride is, and how big all of the drops are, but it quickly became one of our favourites. Helps to go when the lines are under ten minutes a ride. Now I fear all other coasters will feel like less of a thrill because we became so accustomed to three very large, very fast, and very thrilling rides from our home park.

Happy Lazy Sunday to all whom celebrate.

Cleaning up the place before we head out for the day. Lots of driving to do today. Even more stairs to do after that. My hips ache, and my feet are sore. Feels as though we got a bit of a UV burn yesterday without the presence of sunshine, while out and about in all that rain yesterday. Had a tough time sleeping I felt so hot.

Not much going on today, so far atleast. Have a great Saturday!

How much time gets spent changing the layout of our favourite apps needlessly. I liked it the way it was, that was why I was using it. Don’t go shake things up every quarter just to feel useful. Try adding new optional features or making the current application more seamless or streamlined. I don’t care if the buttons go from rounded edges to sharp corners. Do something substantive and not just add lipstick to the pig. Silliness.

Welcome to Friday y’all. The last day of the work week (for a good chunk of the population). What does everybody have on the books for the weekend? I for one know that I have even more driving to do. So I can look forward to that, I suppose. Otherwise I’m not putting anything definite on my schedule. Between laundry and having a quick clean up today, I don’t think I’ll do much of anything.

Hope the week ends on a high note for you all.

Rain, overcast, thunderstorms, and high winds. These are the things we have to contend with while trying to keep the kids entertained and their programming moving along. Making due as best we can given the circumstances. Not awful but not great either.

In other news today is Thursday. Almost through another week. Will be looking to put up our Christmas tree in the next week or so. Do I let the kids help this year, or do it myself while they are at school? Decisions, decisions. I can put the ground lights up myself instead and wait for help from the kids with the tree. I think they’d like that option the best. Have a day. Ciao Bella!

I’m building a great track record for not going hard in the paint for milestones on the day they happen. Perhaps because I use them for reflection and not as the goal to stop on/at. Frame of mind I suppose. But I’m closer than ever to reaching the two year mark. Thirty days or so and I’ll have it. We’ve met a number of challenges over that period, and somehow came out on top. I’m not 100% there yet, but I’m closer than ever! We had black outs, major snow storms, ice storms, freezing rain, heat waves, SARS Covid-19, vehicle break downs, extended family health concerns with dementia and now throat/tongue cancer. Even busier work year two years running, building on last years successes. Lots to derail this little writing challenge. Yet – I’ve come through, hell or high water. I do not know how long it will last.

I’m doing ok for viewing numbers, but nothing like when I was writing creatively on a consistent basis. I still have little flashes of story snippets come to mind, but it’s hard to put into words what a brain drain it is to write any appreciable sized block of creative writing. Even the super short stories I lean on will make it difficult to brain after a while. My hat is off to those who can do it. I wonder sometimes if the SARS Covid-19 brain fog has left some lasting impairment and that’s why I can’t seem to hold a story / characters / places & dialogue in my head for more than just a brief glimpse or flash of insight. Troubling to think about. Best not to linger.

To the best of my recollection it is Wednesday. Ciao Bella.