First off, can I just say that I can't stop repeating WAAAALLLL-EEEE, EEEEEE-VVVAAAA, to the point where I think SVV might just break our lease so he can move out and not have to hear me say it over and over again. One more time, all together now: WAAAALLLL-EEEEE. And if you are one of the hundred billion people who also saw this adorable, thought-provoking movie over the past week (critics are already talking some serious Oscar bidness), then you totally know to what I am referring. If you don't, then I suggest you jump on the bandwagon and get your booty to the movie to see it.
Also, I'd have to say the worst thing about leaving for vacation for 10 days is the coming back: the laundry; the grocery shopping because everything's gone sour or staled or was thrown out even before you left; the coming home to TWENTY-SEVEN bills with due dates all looming, um, now; the trying to cram all workout days you missed while on vacation into a mere afternoon (because I made it to the boat's gym all of once, and it's now just 27 days, gulp, until I must run 26.2 miles); the catching up on your work. Oh right, I guess I should mention that I have 60,000 words -- roughly a fourth of my book manuscript -- due tomorrow. As in, the day after today. How many words have I written, you ask? TWO THOUSAND. No, not even 20K, but a mere two. Wish me a speedy writing day, kids, and a forgiving editor. SVV also came down with a horrible virus-y like thing on our last day on the boat, Thursday, and still hasn't recovered, making his birthday weekend -- yes, he's an Independence Day baby -- in Seattle not exactly how you want to spend the foray into your 35th year (clarification: He turned 34, for all of you who failed math, but this marks the beginning of numero treinte-cinco). And my mom just called to say my dad's come down with the same thing, so I'm just biding my time until I get a hacking cough and 103 degree fever.
And it never fails that loads of things go wrong when you're gone. Like you wouldn't even believe the news we came back to: four kids in my hometown (of just 19,000) my sister's age died of car crashes and carbon monoxide poisoning, my good friend's dad found out he has cancer of the esophagus, a close family pal -- the DA in the area, it should be noted -- who got me out of my own arrest when I was but a baby of 18 was arrested for drunk driving thus ending his career and prompting a check-in to a rehab facility, and then there was the bad news that befell my own family, times two. News that makes me realize just how far away I am, because it pains me to not be home right now with my parents, sis, and all the extended family coming in and out of our home at the moment, and thanks airline industry, because do you know how much a last minute ticket from San Fran to Nashville costs? More than seven hundred effing dollars, that's how much. Who pays that, I ask you? I could go to Asia for that ludicrous price! If you have seats leftover the day before a flight that you need to get rid of, SELL THEM FOR CHEAPER. They're just going to go unused anyhow. So now I'm at a moral crossroads of sorts. And poor SVV doesn't know what to do with me, as I break out in tears at random about every 17 minutes, including at the Gonzaga alum Fourth of July kegger we attended (don't even ask; neither of us even went to school there, and it just completely reinforced why I never want to go back to college, because the drunken party lifestyle--PBR at that? So not for me. I only managed to choke down half a beer, that's how lame I am). And wow, who invited Debbie Downer to the party? But onto cheerier topics, and if you already popped that anti-depressant, sorry for that, back to our regularly scheduled program: Alaska.
Without a doubt my favorite part of our jaunt to Alaska was the scenic cruising through Glacier Bay. My mom insisted on the particular route we took just for this day of iceberg-gazing (um, did anyone by chance see that little-viewed movie about the cruiseliner and the ice, and yeah that was exactly what was going through my head as I marveled at the majestic of the quickly melting ice caps).
It really was an amazing sight to see, particularly as the world's ice is disappearing at alarming rates. (Did you read that later this summer the North Pole will likely be devoid of ALL ice??? Also, the penguins are becoming sick and endangered, which saddens me to no end. And damn, am I just a bucket of cheer today. Global warming, you can stop now, please and thanks.) We did witness a massive chunk of the glacier break off and fall into the ocean far below. It was quite surreal to see in person, but apparently my catlike camera reflexes weren't so catlike in Alaska, as I failed to capture it on film.
What was possibly the coolest thing of all was all the whale-watching we got to do. One of the many excursions you could book at each port of call was a whale-watching day, but my mom had been told you saw so much wildlife from the boat that there was no need to do this. And she was right. I've never had much luck when it comes to spotting whales (with my overall propensity for things to go wrong, you're shocked, I'm sure): There was the time in Iceland when I went on a trip with a company with a 99 percent success, and as fortune would have it, my day fell within the one percent margin of error. Then, when SVV and I were in Hawaii last year, during whale mating season, everyone but me caught glimpses of humpbacks breaching every time they looked out at the ocean. I maybe saw a splash or two (but I'd ooh and ahh with the rest of them, just so they didn't think I was all Helen Keller). Luckily, July 2008 was my time at last. The day we cruised Glacier Bay, we saw no less than 50 humpbacks and gray whales. The final day, after we re-entered the Pacific, we were greeted by three pods of orcas in high numbers. Those entire days, our whole group just sat on the Lido deck and gazed out intently from the floor-to-ceiling windows; it was quite the crowd pleaser. Not five minutes would pass without a sea otter or seal swimming by. My mom and Justin even saw four puffins float by on a piece of ice; as I'm a HUGE puffin aficionado, I'm still bummed I missed this warm-and-fuzzy spotting.
So, if you do go to Alaska, don't pass up on Glacier Bay. The cities themselves weren't much to marvel at (more on that to come), but the ice formations were truly spectacular, for lack of a more descriptive adjective. It actually wasn't even that cold: After working out, I went on the deck in a tank and shorts and was fine for a good half hour (granted, we were there right after the solstice, so it was the warmest--and lightest--time of year). But it was funny to see all these wusses fully cloaked in wool hats, mittens and blankets when it probably wasn't any cooler than mid-50's out (they've clearly never visited San Fran in "summer"). And with that, more pictures:
Also, I'd have to say the worst thing about leaving for vacation for 10 days is the coming back: the laundry; the grocery shopping because everything's gone sour or staled or was thrown out even before you left; the coming home to TWENTY-SEVEN bills with due dates all looming, um, now; the trying to cram all workout days you missed while on vacation into a mere afternoon (because I made it to the boat's gym all of once, and it's now just 27 days, gulp, until I must run 26.2 miles); the catching up on your work. Oh right, I guess I should mention that I have 60,000 words -- roughly a fourth of my book manuscript -- due tomorrow. As in, the day after today. How many words have I written, you ask? TWO THOUSAND. No, not even 20K, but a mere two. Wish me a speedy writing day, kids, and a forgiving editor. SVV also came down with a horrible virus-y like thing on our last day on the boat, Thursday, and still hasn't recovered, making his birthday weekend -- yes, he's an Independence Day baby -- in Seattle not exactly how you want to spend the foray into your 35th year (clarification: He turned 34, for all of you who failed math, but this marks the beginning of numero treinte-cinco). And my mom just called to say my dad's come down with the same thing, so I'm just biding my time until I get a hacking cough and 103 degree fever.
And it never fails that loads of things go wrong when you're gone. Like you wouldn't even believe the news we came back to: four kids in my hometown (of just 19,000) my sister's age died of car crashes and carbon monoxide poisoning, my good friend's dad found out he has cancer of the esophagus, a close family pal -- the DA in the area, it should be noted -- who got me out of my own arrest when I was but a baby of 18 was arrested for drunk driving thus ending his career and prompting a check-in to a rehab facility, and then there was the bad news that befell my own family, times two. News that makes me realize just how far away I am, because it pains me to not be home right now with my parents, sis, and all the extended family coming in and out of our home at the moment, and thanks airline industry, because do you know how much a last minute ticket from San Fran to Nashville costs? More than seven hundred effing dollars, that's how much. Who pays that, I ask you? I could go to Asia for that ludicrous price! If you have seats leftover the day before a flight that you need to get rid of, SELL THEM FOR CHEAPER. They're just going to go unused anyhow. So now I'm at a moral crossroads of sorts. And poor SVV doesn't know what to do with me, as I break out in tears at random about every 17 minutes, including at the Gonzaga alum Fourth of July kegger we attended (don't even ask; neither of us even went to school there, and it just completely reinforced why I never want to go back to college, because the drunken party lifestyle--PBR at that? So not for me. I only managed to choke down half a beer, that's how lame I am). And wow, who invited Debbie Downer to the party? But onto cheerier topics, and if you already popped that anti-depressant, sorry for that, back to our regularly scheduled program: Alaska.
Without a doubt my favorite part of our jaunt to Alaska was the scenic cruising through Glacier Bay. My mom insisted on the particular route we took just for this day of iceberg-gazing (um, did anyone by chance see that little-viewed movie about the cruiseliner and the ice, and yeah that was exactly what was going through my head as I marveled at the majestic of the quickly melting ice caps).
It really was an amazing sight to see, particularly as the world's ice is disappearing at alarming rates. (Did you read that later this summer the North Pole will likely be devoid of ALL ice??? Also, the penguins are becoming sick and endangered, which saddens me to no end. And damn, am I just a bucket of cheer today. Global warming, you can stop now, please and thanks.) We did witness a massive chunk of the glacier break off and fall into the ocean far below. It was quite surreal to see in person, but apparently my catlike camera reflexes weren't so catlike in Alaska, as I failed to capture it on film.
What was possibly the coolest thing of all was all the whale-watching we got to do. One of the many excursions you could book at each port of call was a whale-watching day, but my mom had been told you saw so much wildlife from the boat that there was no need to do this. And she was right. I've never had much luck when it comes to spotting whales (with my overall propensity for things to go wrong, you're shocked, I'm sure): There was the time in Iceland when I went on a trip with a company with a 99 percent success, and as fortune would have it, my day fell within the one percent margin of error. Then, when SVV and I were in Hawaii last year, during whale mating season, everyone but me caught glimpses of humpbacks breaching every time they looked out at the ocean. I maybe saw a splash or two (but I'd ooh and ahh with the rest of them, just so they didn't think I was all Helen Keller). Luckily, July 2008 was my time at last. The day we cruised Glacier Bay, we saw no less than 50 humpbacks and gray whales. The final day, after we re-entered the Pacific, we were greeted by three pods of orcas in high numbers. Those entire days, our whole group just sat on the Lido deck and gazed out intently from the floor-to-ceiling windows; it was quite the crowd pleaser. Not five minutes would pass without a sea otter or seal swimming by. My mom and Justin even saw four puffins float by on a piece of ice; as I'm a HUGE puffin aficionado, I'm still bummed I missed this warm-and-fuzzy spotting.
So, if you do go to Alaska, don't pass up on Glacier Bay. The cities themselves weren't much to marvel at (more on that to come), but the ice formations were truly spectacular, for lack of a more descriptive adjective. It actually wasn't even that cold: After working out, I went on the deck in a tank and shorts and was fine for a good half hour (granted, we were there right after the solstice, so it was the warmest--and lightest--time of year). But it was funny to see all these wusses fully cloaked in wool hats, mittens and blankets when it probably wasn't any cooler than mid-50's out (they've clearly never visited San Fran in "summer"). And with that, more pictures:
6 comments:
1. I'm so sorry about all of the terrible news. I hope your fam is all A-OK.
2. What a cool trip. Not your typical cruise! The ship looks big enough -- and the water calm enough -- that such a trip would not be a barf-fest, even for me.
3. Happy birthday, SVV!
Oh, goodness. I'm SO sorry about your family troubles. And I hear you on the plane tickets. It costs $700 (at least) to fly home to PCB too. GRrrr. Shakes fist at Delta.
They didn't even give me a GRIEVANCE FARE when my grandma died.
You're in our thoughts!
(Alaska is incredible!)
Wow, bad news happens in...tens? That sucks! Let's go for a run and you can whine about it all you want. Well, if you can tear yourself away from the 58,000 words you need to write. Jeesh!
But the trip sounds amazing, and SV had better have taken photos of the puffins!
Purple is a great color for you.
And you totally reminded me to pay my Discover bill- due today- so thanks for that.
And wow. So much bad news!
Sorry to hear that you got so much bad news at once.
Your trip looks amazing - when I was little whales were my favorite animal (who am I kidding, I still love them for some reason) - I am so jealous!
I'm sorry about all of your bad news. Ahhh!! I hate coming back to stuff like that... it brings you back to reality with a thud. I hope you are able to get home to see the family.
The pictures are gorgeous. *hug*
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