You see, for the entire year my husband has been saying he’s going to retire in December. He also forbade me to book any vacations because he works for the Federal Government and can sell back his leave when he goes.
(He gets 5 weeks off every year, so the payout can be substantial.)
Except now that the day is rapidly approaching, he decided he’s going to work a little longer.
Yes, his reasoning is sound.
The old boss he hated has left and been replaced with a laid back, drama free manager.
Starting next year, they’re going to push teleworking from home 2-3 days a week…. and since he already works four 10 hour days, it will probably be a 1 day a week commute.
Good benefits.
Good pay.
The ability to dump more in our TSP (Thrift Savings Plan, the government’s answer to a company matching IRA).
I get it.
I do…
But our retirement plan was to travel, and I’d like him to be semi-mobile and breathing without a respirator when we do. (Hauling a corpse in and out of resort elevators is such a drag.)
But back to the scrambling….
It’s almost the end of the year and I don’t have much time to plan and book 5 weeks worth of vacations before time runs out. It’s not easy with the holidays right around the corner. We have a timeshare on a points system and can go anywhere, but since he’s waited so long to request time off, he can’t get more than a week at a time…. which leaves out long distance trips. I hate spending 2 days flying back and forth for only 4 days on site. With the price of tickets these days, it’s not worth it.
So thanks to WordPress’s magic scheduling ability, as you read this… we are currently returning from a week at a ski resort in the western mountains of Maine.
That’s right Lionel, I haven’t been here for a week and you didn’t even miss me.
God bless technology.
Did we ski? Hell no, it’s too early for that… even in Maine. But it’s a beautiful area and I’m sure we explored. And drank. And took pictures.
So the last time I did one of these quite a few people knew what I know, and that’s disappointing.
So I’m upping my game, reaching deep into the grey matter to find some heretofore unknown tidbits because….
Did you know….
Hedgehogs were called urchins in medieval times?
The first recorded use of the word “hedgehog” wasn’t until the 15th century.
Did you know…
In France you can marry a dead person?
Article 171 of the French civil code states, “The President of the Republic may, for grave reasons, authorize the celebration of the marriage where one of the future spouses is dead.”
Maybe it’s just me, but is that really cause for celebration?
Did you know….
Pope Adrian VI died after a fly got stuck in his throat as he was drinking from a fountain?
That couldn’t have been pretty.
Did you know…
Robert E. Lee wore a size 4 1/2 shoe?
That doesn’t speak well for the size of his….
Oh, never mind.
Did you know…
Endurance training that involves alternating between high and low intensity is called fartlek? It comes from the Swedish word fart, meaning speed and lek, meaning play.
Oh, those silly Swedes.
Did you know….
The amount of potato chips Americans eat each year weighs 6 times more than the Titanic.
Damn. That’s a lot of spuds.
The only truth in advertising you’re ever apt to see.
The pollen is here and I swear it’s going to kill me before the other things have a chance.
This year we’ve seen a crazy increase in pollen. While we normally have a few days of yellow dust choking our air every spring, here we are starting July and we’re still covered in the crap.
How much pollen is too much pollen?
The barn porch furniture is covered.
The kitchen porch is covered.
The back deck is covered.
It’s in every outdoor crevice.
And running down the driveway in streams after a rain.
Nothing escapes it.
Open your windows?
It covers the stove.
And the washing machine.
You know those crazy videos you see on the news…
The ones where someone shakes a tree and clouds of pollen emerge?
I saw our neighbor do that but didn’t have my camera handy….
It’s insane.
Where there's only one step from the sublime to the ridiculous.