The Burrito

Conversation overheard all week at nursery school pickup:

Random parent friend: "So, how was your trip?"
Me: "Amazing. I had this perfect burrito..."

It's not really fair to blog again without a photo - at least after an insanely fun 4 day solo trip to San Francisco. There's too much to share. But if I had to choose some choice thoughts to share from my excursion I'd go with these:

*Being away from my family is fun to a point, and then it starts to feel weird and wrong. Amazing, but it took a good 24 hours to discover that I am not and will never be the same person I was before I had kids... I mean, sometimes I fantasize that just being alone and traveling will allow me to be the way I used to be. NOPE. Even the keg stand and the lack of sleep didn't do it for me.

*Spending time with my favorite old friends, acting like there's no distance between us, and then having to separate to different states, countries, cities is PAINFUL. Why do we torture ourselves like this? We need one another. I'm perfectly capable of finding new friends anywhere I go (thankfully) but my college friends are the people I would choose to raise my family along side... to share our marriage woes, our parenting conundrums... and we are really worlds apart. This crazy computer is our glue. Again, weird. What I wouldn't do to live around the corner from Leah and Beth..

*One of my most satisfactory moments during the trip involved a burrito. A huge carnitas super burrito. The works... probably laden with plenty of lard, but not without perfect salsa, guac, sour cream, rice, beans, shredded pork. As long as my abdomen is wide. And I only had a tiny tortilla portion left at the end of my eating session. It was revolutionary and meant to be (the parking place directly in front of the restaurant was the sign). To sit still with my dear friend Beth and make lots of smacky sounds and comment on the flavor dimensions... and without children interrupting me. I was transformed for a moment, and I actually didn't miss the kids.

*Travel is healthy. And by that I don't mean traveling alone. Going places with the family is a great way to teach yourself and your children about the world (how easily I forgot that simple concept). While we took a brief outing to a beach I was awestruck by the Pacific Ocean... oh, and the Golden Gate bridge. Simple landmarks, monster changes in geography, ethnic food, unfamiliar smells in the air. It's all just plain good for your soul to experience new things. No, we don't all have $600 to throw at plane tickets, but we can hop in a car and head to the next state over. Or the next town that we know nothing about... so what if the kids complain the entire way? Or they scream the entire flight? Or they miss their nap and we all have a horrible night's sleep? The world has so much to offer us and I'm feeling guilty about ignoring it.

Anyone want some visitors?