Well………
No, not the Patriots — are you kidding? (I’m officially pulling for the G-Men.) Actually, I mean our upcoming New England Odyssey.
Last night, we nailed down the final lodging arrangements, thereby sealing our itinerary in wet cement. I mean, everything’s changeable, but we’re basically sticking with this plan, which is slightly different than our previous skeleton outline. We’ve decided against Canada and Detroit on the way home, and we’ll bypass some points in New York. But bring on all the rest, baby. I am ready today.
We’re especially looking forward to Bangor, Bar Harbor, Cape Cod, and the fabulous scenery on the Cafe Lafayette Dinner Train. Then there’s staying in the historic Hawthorne in old Salem. BoooOoOOooooOo (I understand the Hawthorne is haunted — terrific). Driving through — and stopping along — the countryside towns will be unforgettable, I’m sure. Lots of photography.
Fort Ticonderoga will be fantastic, but I still doesn’t wants to go on the ferry. 
Hershey, Philadelphia, Atlantic City, Foxwoods: all fun diversions. Man, snap your fingers and it’s June. Don’t I wish…
But nope, it’s still January, and I’m still going to work. Working all weekend, too. Innat nice? How about you? Any fun plans?
5:30 a.m. edit — Just got the call for a 2-hour delay. Now that definitely makes the list of Things That Do Not Bite. 
…I have feelings of minor trepidation. Can trepidation be minor? For today, yes.
I have enjoyed January this year, immensely. Pourquoi? Because almost every single school day, I’ve left at 3:15 to go home. It’s the only month of the year I will be able to do so, and as you surely know, January is coming to an end. I’m certain some of my colleagues have seen my skateboard exiting the parking lot post-haste and thought, “Where’s she going in such a hurry?” It’s just me, hittin’ the door runnin’ at quittin’ time, fiends. That’s all. Home to dinner, cooking, baking, blogging, reading, family, and bedtime at a decent hour.
But come the first of February and lasting right up until graduation, all that will be a distant memory, and it’s back to the Old Routine of living at school until 8:00 every night. It’s OK though. I enjoy it (most of the time), because the kids are fun to work with, and I’m not old enough yet to constantly think about getting home to relax and do my other life. I just think about it most of the time. 
There were some years in the not-so-distant past when all I thought about was doing what I needed to do in order to put in 100% at school. I sacrificed much in other areas, to my lasting regret. But recently (I’d say around this moment), all that changed. I’m a different person now. I care a bit less — not much, but some — about what others think of me. I’m having some success in that area. I’m saying “no” more. I’ve found more joy in small things. Does this mean I’ve finally grown up?
I hope not. 
Hey, it’s Tunesday, and I’m trying a new recipe (BoomR’s mom’s “Stay in Bed Stew”). Look for an update on TCF in the near future.
While cooking for a family dinner yesterday, Mavis and I talked about the eventual, hopeful remodel of my kitchen — especially since I plan to bake and write, hopefully for a little scratch, during my retirement years (and maybe even before then). Ah, if only the money in the bank matched the imagination in the brain, ja?
Anyway, part of the conversation included appliances, and how much they’ve changed. Mave told of a fridge she’d seen on TV with an embedded or mounted iPad on the front panel, which could display all of one’s recipes with one touch. Then, last night, I got to thinking about retro design as well. Remember the appliances of old, when your parents and grandparents called a fridge an “ice box?” And what about the ubiquitous mustard yellow and avocado colors of the early 70s? You can hardly find those shades available anymore (probably with good reason).
I found some awesome print ads for appliances at Found in Mom’s Basement. So glad that someone saved these gems:
Now would I love canary yellow appliances? Shyeah! How awesome is that? Or a pink washer and dryer? Mad love. I’ll bet you might have some tales to tell about the stuff your grandma had in her kitchen/laundry room. Alas, it’s time to put away the dreams and hit the shower and the road, however. It’s Monday. And there was much rejoicing.
Intrigue, suspense, betrayal, revenge: all in a day’s work in the political world. But it was done with great flourish in The Ides of March.
I’m not a great George Clooney fan (except of his face); nor do I think Ryan Gosling or Evan Rachel Wood are actors I’d count among Hollywood’s “beautiful people.” In fact, their faces kind of bother me. (Does that make me a bad person?) Still, they gave what I thought were honest and completely believable performances. And Clooney wasn’t really the star; that job fell to Gosling, playing a hard-working assistant presidential campaign manager who truly believes in the cause of the candidate (Clooney).
Early on, Gosling is told by a New York Times reporter/friend, “Don’t believe in politicians. They will eventually let you down.” He vehemently disagreed. He shouldn’t have.
Political films sometimes drag, but this one slaps your face at every corner. And I haven’t even gotten to the best part yet: Philip Seymour Hoffman and Paul Giamatti, playing rival campaign managers. They can steal a scene by simply walking in and looking around the room. I make it a point to see every movie they’re in. Flawless.
Much of the film leaves you wondering what’s going to happen next. You end up in a constant state of analysis — coming up with “if/thens” and “I’ll bets.” When the final intent is at last revealed, it’s a whole new game, but you’re not sure if you want to root for the same people or not. Uncertainty, curiosity, commiseration, pulling for the underdog: all in Clooney’s plan to string you along to the end.
Speaking of the end…it could have used some work, in my opinion. I think George settled for the tried-and-true as opposed to the let’s-kick-’em-in-the-gut-then-roll-credits approach. Still and all, a great Friday night treat. And the (very smart) inclusion of Giamatti and Hoffman in the cast was a most excellent bonus.
On the Rat-O-Meter scale of five cheeses, I give The Ides of March:
