Summer Break Starts Now

Thankfully, this has been a relatively good blog week so far. Because this morning, I don’t have much time for writing.

Today, is officially the last day of school. But the Fussy Little Children are advanced for their age, so they finished a day early. The last day of school is more ceremonial than anything else. As far as I can tell, they watch movies and eat ice cream. So I don’t feel too badly about pulling the kids out of these festivities.

We’re going to do something even more exciting. We’re loading up the car for a six hour drive.

Somehow Mrs. Fussy gets a pass on the mega-drive to her family’s farm. She’s hopping on a flight to San Francisco out of Albany today. And I’ll be joining her there on Friday. My flight takes off from Pittsburgh, which is where I’ll be headed just as soon as I drop the kiddos off at their grandparents.

That means Mrs. Fussy and I will get to spend our 15-year wedding anniversary on Friday with my old childhood friends ADS, J9, Raf, and LH who orchestrated our Berkeley nuptials all those years ago.

Besides eating dinner with them on Friday night, and hanging out over the weekend, I actually only have one plan for our visit. I want to have some good al pastor. Maybe some banh mi too.

But that’s about par for the course. I am the world’s worst traveler. I don’t make any plans. Although I suppose that has both its advantages and disadvantages. I’m never stressed out about schedules, or rushed. Nor do I ever feel anxiety about needing to keep an eye on the clock. But I also feel like a terrible friend to all of the people out in the Bay Area I love deeply, and think about often, yet haven’t even told I’ll be visiting.

I don’t even know exactly when I’m coming home. There’s a plane ticket. Hold on. Let me look. Okay. Wednesday morning, we fly out of SFO and back to Pennsylvania to pick up the kids. And somehow, I’ve got to make it up to Saratoga Springs on Thursday Night for the Big Brothers Big Sisters Chef’s Challenge. Thankfully, I don’t have to judge it. I only hope we don’t hit crazy traffic somewhere in the 300+ mile journey. It’s really a helluva commute.

Yelp is a sponsor, so take this plug as you will, but it does look like a lot of fun.

And apparently, the next day, we’re getting a visit from my wife’s brother and his family. Then it’s a trip to Connecticut for Independence Day. My mom’s birthday involves a train, a boat, and a dinner on July 5. Right when we return, I’m dragging the kids out somewhere close to Utica to see my cousin (on my father’s side) and his family. Then swimming lessons start. Then there’s a Yelp dim sum event. Then both kids start two different camps in two different cities, but just for a week. Because right after that, we’re off to the Adirondacks where we’re renting a house with two other families, all of whom are friends we’ve known since college.

At least the only travel I have scheduled in August so far, is one week down on the farm. It will be nice to make that drive and actually be able to enjoy the slower pace of life in the Johnstown-Bedford-Altoona area. But I won’t be making any plans for that trip either, beyond making sure to enjoy an ice cream soda from The Cow. And maybe seeing if I can finally get a stuffed hashbrown from the Fishertown Country Store.

It’s good to set modest goals. But now I need to pack, because everything I need for a week in California somehow has to fit into a teeny tiny duffle bag.

The blog will continue from the road. It has to. Otherwise, I’d be taking the next month off. As challenging as the summer schedule may be, I do feel lucky to be able to spend so much time with friends and family. I know there are a lot of other people out there who don’t have the same flexibility. Everything has its upsides and downsides. This is no exception.