Vacation Adventures

Four am came early, as usual.

As much as I had tried to avoid it, I still had another load of laundry to tackle before we could leave. So I started that, loaded the dishwasher and started it, and began to tackle all the last minute stuff that just crowds into the hours before leaving on a road trip.

The children have gotten old enough to be in charge of packing their own bags, in fact they insist on it. This causes me to run around asking about particular items -- did you remember your swimsuit? church clothes? sunscreen?

I didn't get the answers I wanted. Little Girl does not have a skirt or dress that is suitable for the very conservative church we visit on this trip. She has outgrown them all. Same story with #2 Son and his swimsuit. Put those items on the list for the afternoon shopping trip we will make when we get there.

One precaution I have had to take this year has to do with my and Sweetie's bedroom. Sweetie has insisted on training us to let the cats in and out of our room when they want. Horizon is particularly fond of our room, but he is also the only one we can trust not to pee on the bed. Banning him from the room for the duration would be cruel as it is his favorite area of the house, and he is a very shy and neurotic cat. So, I took a blue roof tarp and spread it over the bed. I figure if that can keep water from leaking through a damaged roof, it will keep cat pee from soaking our mattress. Ah, the ways we spoil our pets.

After consulting the lists multiple times and four trips back into the house to get one last thing, it was finally time to go.

Our goal was to leave at 8am, and we almost made it. We pulled out at 8:09. First stop, the Golden Arches. The rest of the family wants breakfast and I'm not messing up the kitchen. Also, by now, I want coffee -- I've already been up 4 hours and have a long day ahead.


Today is

Beypazari Havuç, Güveç, Turkey (weekend festival celebrating a traditional carrot dish)

Bonza Bottler Day

Children's Awareness Memorial Day

Day of the Rice God, Japan

D-Day

Festival of Chiu Hsien (Taoist festival of the Spirit of Wine)

Flag Day, Sweden

Memorial Day, Korea

National Cancer Survivors' Day

National Gardening Exercise Day- Get out and exercise with your plants.

National Yo-Yo Day

Sjómannadagurinn, Iceland (Seaman's Day, first Sunday in June)

St. Claude's Day

St. Martha's Day

Svenska Flaggaans Dag -- Flag Day, Sweden

Queensland Day, Queensland, Australia


Birthdays Today:

Staci Keanan, 1975
Max Casella, 1967
Ena, 1966
Bjorn Borg, 1956
Sandra Bernhard, 1955
Harvey Fierstein, 1952
Robert Englund, 1947
Gary U.S. Bonds, 1939
Thomas Mann, 1875
Nathan Hale, 1755


Today in History:

Twenty-four wagonloads of Talmudic books are burned in Paris, 1242
The Qing Dynasty Manchu forces led by the Shunzhi Emperor capture Beijing during the collapse of the Ming Dynasty; the Manchus would rule China until 1912 when the Republic of China is established, 1644
The Ashmolean Museum in Oxford, England, opens as the world's first university museum, 1683
A devastating fire destroys one-third of Moscow, including 18,000 homes, 1752
Napoleon's brother, Joseph Bonaparte is crowned King of Spain, 1808
The Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA) is founded in London, 1844
More than 100,000 inhabitants of Bombay are killed as a cyclone in the Arabian Sea pushes huge waves into the harbour, 1882
The eruption of Novarupta in Alaska begins, the second largest volcanic eruption of the 20th century, 1912
The Chrysler Corporation is founded by Walter Percy Chrysler, 1925
The first drive-in theater opens, in Camden, New Jersey, United States, 1933
A new Instrument of Government is promulgated making Sweden a parliamentary monarchy, 1974
Mongolia holds its first direct presidential elections, 1993