Five Things: Pre and post vacation edition

We all felt a little bit like George in this picture when we got home on Saturday night. It’s always good to come home. I love the Ann Patchett quote: “I think the best vacation is the one that relieves me of my own life for a while and then makes me long for it again.” Except perhaps on the weather front: It was in the low 70s in San Diego when we flew out and 94 in Olympia at 6:30 in the evening. Not sure how I feel about this current heat wave. Here a few things vacation and pre-vacation:

1. Telfer went deep sea-fishing with medical school friends the first day we were in California and this picture was definitely the highlight of his trip as he found out the hard way he suffers from massive and unrelenting seasickness on the open sea. Poor guy. But! Once on land and after throwing up 20-30 times on the boat, he managed to throw down fish tacos and a beer. He’s my favorite.

2. I read SIX good books on vacation. I so needed a break…Basically, on vacation I like to read and swim with the girls and then read some more. I don’t want to cook, I don’t want to see everything there is to see, I just want to be with Telfer and my girls and read. Hausfrau is definitely a highlight of my summer reading…not exactly light summer reading but beautifully written (and that cover!). Links to books (clockwise): 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6.

3. Before we left on vacation we ate our first greens of the year. Such a big moment for gardeners. I bought humboldt fog, a baguette from the bread peddler and made some boysenberry (subbed blackberries and raspberries) fruit compote to celebrate. Lovely.

4. The Sunday before we left for vacation we took the Duerres out on our boat. We planned to catch crab and let the kids play in the water at Boston Harbor. And about forty-five minutes into our trip, the boat engine started smoking and then made a terrible grinding noise with five children and four adults on board. Gemma (the terrible name of our boat) has officially sailed her last voyage. But not before the Harbor Sheriff had to tow us back to our slip. Sherry and I may have giggled while we documented the event in photographs. I wouldn’t want to be stranded on a boat with anyone else – such good friends and it helps that they are CALM.

5. Michael Scofield spent a day with us in California and he took this (high resolution) shot of the girls swimming with Telfer. Michael cares about my family which I so appreciate and the girls expect to see him when we go to California. I love that. Telfer is also so much more FUN in the water than me!

6. This is a window my new employee Clare and I did right before I left on vacation. Get it? Sailing on a sea of books! It looks prettier in person. And most of the books are blue with shades of green. Cate helped with the construction of the little boats but Clare definitely did most of it. I enjoy having artistic employees. I can come up with an idea but my piles of “waves” were a little too orderly.

7. The girls are little fishes this year. Both have taken swim lessons and are so fun to watch in the water. They dive for bars and for rubber squids endlessly. After an afternoon in the pool, Jane’s wispy hair is crunched into crazy dreads and it’s about my favorite thing.

It’s Thursday night and we are getting ready to join my whole family out at the Griffith Lake House tomorrow for the 4th of July weekend. When it’s this hot (over 100 today) and you don’t have air conditioning, I find it hard to get much done past 8:00 PM. Which is why I am sitting outside enjoying the slight breeze and writing this instead of preparing for a weekend away. Enjoy the 4th of July friends.