Monday, April 23, 2007

A Whirlwind Vacation

We had a wonderful time in California.

In just four days, we managed to cover a lot of sites we hadn't done before (San Francisco Zoo, Monterey Aquarium, 17 Mile Drive, Jelly Belly Factory) as well as some sites most people probably never see (the towns of Geyserville and Healdsburg, CA). The wedding we attended was just beautiful, and BusyBee even got to dance on stage with the band. She called them "the stars" and was in total awe of their sequinned and fringed dresses. I think we have a future performer on our hands.

BusyBee also handled the flights reasonably well, which was such a relief. Travelling is so complicated these days, but we had done lots of prior discussions on going through security and being on the plane. The only difficult part was getting her to sleep on the flight out there, as we flew into the sun and the light made sleeping very difficult. She did much better when we had to wake her up early to leave, and then had time to sleep on the plane. Something to keep in mind on future trips.

BusyBee LOVED the little time we spent at the beach and in the pool. This is heavily influenced by "The Little Mermaid," but I hope it lasts longer than its place in the DVD rotation will. I can't express in words how much joy it gives me to see her loving something so much. I didn't even mind the three tons of sand she managed to get all over herself.

Now we are back home and enjoying the tail end of our kitchen renovation. It's starting to come together very nicely, and I'm a little shocked by it. Using real silverware again? Working appliances? It seems to good to be true after a year of living without it.

Tuesday, April 10, 2007

Eye Color and California Dreaming

The BusyBee woke up with pink eye on Friday. This was devastating news, as she couldn't go to school and be Shabbat Helper. DEVASTATING - I've never heard her wail like that. We got meds, and she is getting better, but slowly.

This led to a few interesting discussions with BusyBee announcing that her eyes are all better. Usually, she'd say that her eyes aren't pink anymore, but that they're blue again. Two issues here: I wouldn't really call her normal eye color blue, and that she can't in fact see her own eyes (without a mirror, that is). I think she really believes she can see them as clearly as she can see the television screen.

The amazing news is that I myself didn't contract the pink eye. I seem to get pink eye on an annual basis, usually when I'm so stressed out that my body needs to actually plague me with something to get me to slow down a bit. I was using Purell with such an intensity on Friday that I'm a little surprised I didn't damage my hands. But with California coming up and a grad school paper to write, I couldn't afford to get sidelined.

We leave for San Francisco in just two days!!! Haven't packed a thing yet, but I'm a pretty efficient packer. Pray that our flight can leave on time and not be cancelled due to weather...

Thursday, April 5, 2007

An In Between Day

To quote a favorite poem from high school English class:

Today is very boring, it's a very boring day.

Well, not exactly. But it is an in between day. We spent the last few days with Mr. Bee's family for our Passover seder (and because BusyBee's school was closed). I am at work today, but have off tomorrow for Good Friday. Then I work just three days next week before we leave for a family wedding in California.

I had 374 new email messages when I got in today, after just 2.5 days away (and I did some deleting while away, too). I'm scared to see the total when I get back from four days away in California.

Tonight we are going to a Community Pesach dinner at our synagogue. It was a nice event last year, and I expect tonight will be as well.

Tomorrow BusyBee will be Shabbat Helper at her school. She is beyond excited to bring in her little flashlight, a Glinda doll from McDonald's, and an assortment of other small toys. Since it is still Pesach, we'll be bringing a box of matzah instead of a challah. I hope that is the only change to the routine, as BusyBee hates changes.

Back to work. Anyone know how to import a ticker list into Bloomberg?