Our house!

Like Buckwalter has already said (doesn't it seem like he beats me to the punch every time? Grr...) we bought a house! You can look at its progress here. We'll keep you informed on all the important information.
Also, tomorrow we leave for MN. We are ready, and excited to go, but I think both of us are, on some level, unaware that we're taking a huge car trip tomorrow. Not sure what the deal is with that, but I have a feeling the reality of it all will kick in some time around Grand Junction at Chili's. Yum.
To all of you in MN land -- we're looking forward to seeing you! You have been missed this past year! Hooray for short visits! See you on the other side!
And, for a parting adorable picture, feast your eyes on this cute button of a kitty:


Yes, she crawled up into that position all on her own. What a sweetie.

Moving all the time

And now that we're back from the magical land of enchantment that is New Mexico, we're set to go off to the land of 10,000 lakes in about a week and a half. How time flies.
Speaking of how time flies, I do not appreciate the fact that Target already has up their back to school display. Not cool. I had to shield my eyes when we walked by on our way to the envelopes.
Newest book for me is "Our Lady of the Forest" by David Guterson, which Buckwalter assures me is both wonderful and depressing. I finished up "Stars and Bars in NM, and it was great! Recommended by me, definitely.
I'm excited to visit MN, but it also makes me feel nervous. There's a feeling like you have to return to the place you left triumphant, or at least better off than you were. I really liked living in MN, but I have a bad taste in my mouth still about all the junk we had to put up with career wise. At least I don't have to see anyone from my old place of employment -- that's positive. And we get to see many friends and family! Hooray! And we get to bring all those boxes that didn't fit on the truck one year ago home finally. One year....I remember having to send those boxes home with my Mom and wondering how exactly all this would turn out one year hence. And it seems to have been good! It just leaves me wondering where all that time went, and how different everyone will look after one year.
I don't think I've changed too much...but I'll let you be the judge of that.
And once again (or perhaps for the first time?) let me comment on the Red Rock Buffet: not worth it. When compared to the buffet at the Suncoast, it is more expensive for the same food. The desserts include gelato, which is a great end to a buffet, but doesn't equal the extra money you spent. When you walk into the Suncoast, the food is better than you expected from the decor. When you walk into Red Rock, the food is quite less than you expected from the hip, savvy decor. I guess not everything is about atmosphere. Of course, the Red Rock does create wonderful conversation stimulation, as witnessed here. But could Buckwalter come up with something as genius as this without the lines at Red Rock? I think we all know he could.

Off we go

I'm really enjoying this "taking the summers off" thing. The great benefit of all the drama I had to deal with during the school year. Soon, Buckwalter and I leave for Las Mananitas, bringing the Boo (that's our cat) in tow. She so enjoys a nice drive in the MINI -- after she realizes that we're not abadoning her and stops yowling in that animalistic deep tone that only a scared beast can produce. That only takes about an hour to clear out of her system and then she'll just nap. I hope.
I just completed a book loaned (or "borrowed") to me from Chairwoman Mau. It's called "A Great and Terrible Beauty" and I enjoyed it very much. Good story, fun characters, delicious details. And yes, it's about the girl in the corset -- looks comfortable, doesn't it?
But I probably shouldn't have finished it up quite so quickly, because I have no idea what I will bring to read with me to Las Mananitas! Oh horror! Me without a book is a travesty that the world should never know! Seriously, though, I've been having a lot of trouble finding books to read lately. I have some pop fiction/horror/fantasy books that I love to read, but they're hardly something I can take out in public. It just seems to be a problem I'm having lately -- all these books, and nothing to read. Most of the books I've read lately seem to bunch together into several groups -- books that have a good plot, characters, etc. but I can't help feeling like I've read before, mainly because the plot is so similar to other books, like the one I've just finished, which (although very fun and enjoyable) owes a lot to "His Dark Materials." It's like Phillip Pullman meets Charlotte Bronte (pretty good combo, actually). However, you can only read so many similar books in a row. Then there are the group of books that are too literary for their own good -- books that I'd need a seminar class to make much sense of or understand properly. Although edifying, this is too much work for a summer vacation. And then there's the third group -- books that have a lesson to teach me about the state of the world. These can be great, but I really have to hit them at the right moment or I end up bored and listless, turning pages and skimming just to see if anything of any interest will ever happen. Usually the answer is no. Also not for a vacation.
So I guess this little run-on filled explanation leaves me with two choices -- buck up and bring those trashy novels out into the public view (which is not appealing -- as a former English major, aren't I supposed to become filled with bile at the sight of a horribly written book? Apparently not. I must admit, even though poorly written, they can be a lot of fun.) My other option? Fall back on William Boyd -- "Stars and Bars." I think I know which one will make me feel a little more like an intelligent human being and less like a simpering adolescent. Even though I love the adolescents and all their simpering, I don't really want to embark on that odyssey again. Wish us safe travels! And those of you in the MN area, we are coming to town soon. If you wish to see us, an email should probably be in order so that we can make sure there's a chance! (I'll be sending some out next week, too!)