how I spent my winter vacation
I'm going to skip over the part where I discuss and make excuses for how long it's been since I've updated, and go straight into an update.
I spent the week before Christmas* on the Mendocino coast. We stayed at a vacation rental that was advertised as having ocean views from every room**. The very first thing we did when we arrived was to confirm that this claim wasn't true, but still, there were spectacular views of the ocean from big windows in many rooms of the large house. It rained almost the entire week, so I mostly enjoyed the ocean from indoors. I didn't really mind the bad weather, because it meant that instead of feeling obligated to engage in outdoor activities, I could spend the week sitting on the couch in pursuit of serious relaxation, which was what I really needed.
During the week, I read three books, played numerous games, dined well, watched two movies, caught up on LJ, consumed my weight in chocolate, appreciated the ocean, collected sea glass, ate strange gelato flavors such as Douglas fir and basil, stayed up and slept ridiculously late, and fell asleep to the sounds of waves and rainstorms. It was a good vacation.
For the first half of the week, I didn't feel like writing at all. I had told myself before the trip started that I didn't have to write if I didn't want to. Still, I had very mixed feelings about not writing. Then we watched Finding Neverland, the movie about J.M. Barrie, author of Peter Pan. Apparently watching a movie about writing inspired me, because when it was over, rather than watching the special features, what I wanted to do was go work on Falling Apart. I got some satisfying writing done for three days in a row. And during a brief dry period, I sat on a rocky outcropping as the waves and fog rolled in, and I figured out the remaining details of the novel that weren't yet clear to me. So now I know exactly how the rest of the story goes, and I only have a few more scenes left to write.
I was less than excited about returning to work on Tuesday. I only had a three-day work week to get through, and I survived it. Now I have four days off for the New Year holiday, so I can go through the shock of re-entry all over again next Tuesday. But for now, I'm not thinking about that, and I'm back in relaxation mode. Please pass the chocolate.
* It's been years since I've celebrated Christmas, but I was raised with the secular version of it. I've finally reached the point where it doesn't feel strange that the only special thing I do on December 25 is to call my family.
** I've just looked back at the rental site, and what it actually says is "BLUFF SETTING WITH PANORAMIC VIEWS OF THE OCEAN! ... The home has views from all rooms..." So I was mistaken in believing that the assertion was that every room had a view of the ocean specifically. Still, I think it's a stretch to maintain that all the rooms have views, except in the most technical sense.
I spent the week before Christmas* on the Mendocino coast. We stayed at a vacation rental that was advertised as having ocean views from every room**. The very first thing we did when we arrived was to confirm that this claim wasn't true, but still, there were spectacular views of the ocean from big windows in many rooms of the large house. It rained almost the entire week, so I mostly enjoyed the ocean from indoors. I didn't really mind the bad weather, because it meant that instead of feeling obligated to engage in outdoor activities, I could spend the week sitting on the couch in pursuit of serious relaxation, which was what I really needed.
During the week, I read three books, played numerous games, dined well, watched two movies, caught up on LJ, consumed my weight in chocolate, appreciated the ocean, collected sea glass, ate strange gelato flavors such as Douglas fir and basil, stayed up and slept ridiculously late, and fell asleep to the sounds of waves and rainstorms. It was a good vacation.
For the first half of the week, I didn't feel like writing at all. I had told myself before the trip started that I didn't have to write if I didn't want to. Still, I had very mixed feelings about not writing. Then we watched Finding Neverland, the movie about J.M. Barrie, author of Peter Pan. Apparently watching a movie about writing inspired me, because when it was over, rather than watching the special features, what I wanted to do was go work on Falling Apart. I got some satisfying writing done for three days in a row. And during a brief dry period, I sat on a rocky outcropping as the waves and fog rolled in, and I figured out the remaining details of the novel that weren't yet clear to me. So now I know exactly how the rest of the story goes, and I only have a few more scenes left to write.
I was less than excited about returning to work on Tuesday. I only had a three-day work week to get through, and I survived it. Now I have four days off for the New Year holiday, so I can go through the shock of re-entry all over again next Tuesday. But for now, I'm not thinking about that, and I'm back in relaxation mode. Please pass the chocolate.
* It's been years since I've celebrated Christmas, but I was raised with the secular version of it. I've finally reached the point where it doesn't feel strange that the only special thing I do on December 25 is to call my family.
** I've just looked back at the rental site, and what it actually says is "BLUFF SETTING WITH PANORAMIC VIEWS OF THE OCEAN! ... The home has views from all rooms..." So I was mistaken in believing that the assertion was that every room had a view of the ocean specifically. Still, I think it's a stretch to maintain that all the rooms have views, except in the most technical sense.