Snow..... and then some.

Yesterday, we received about a foot of snow. And for once, I was glad to see it come. The neighborhood looks great. Everything nice and clean looking. Kids out having a good time. My neighbors and I helping shovel each others driveways.

We actually had to shovel them 3 or 4 times yesterday as the snow continued and the wind was swirling around helping to coat everything anew.

I'm looking forward to having a white Christmas this year. However, after new years, I'm always ready to see Spring arrive. It's that period between January 1st and the end of April that can bring you down. A vacation is a true necesity that time of year.

This year, in recent discussions, the idea to visit Northeast Brasil has been bandied about. I can say that it would be a long flight. However, I think it would be a great vacation. Nice and warm there year 'round. And the beaches are some of the worlds most beautiful. So, I've heard anyway. Not to mention some of the worlds most beautiful women. Take all of these items and roll them into a vacation and you've got yourself a week to remember.

I will keep you posted as plans progress. In the mean time, enjoy that snow!

Just Another Monday

Is Monday morning really the beginning of the work week? I don't think so.

Quite frankly, Sunday afternoons should be considered the beginning of the week. You wake up, go to breakfast or church or whatever your normal Sunday schedule is. Then, the thoughts of Monday start creeping in. The heart rate picks up with each thought of the phone calls, emails and whatever else normally happens at the start of the week. Just enough to basically ruin a perfectly good day off from work.

I would much rather be thinking about what time my flight to Miami leaves the following morning! Or, what time do I want to go to the beach tomorrow. Or, I wonder if we have enough beer and cigars on hand? Positive thoughts!

It seems like my clock runs about 30 percent faster on weekend days than it does on work days. I swear that a Saturday or Sunday does not last anywhere near as long as a day during the work week. Friday comes to a close and the next thing I know, it's Saturday afternoon and rolling quickly into Sunday. Somebody put the brakes on this weekend!!

Well, all we can do is put the nose to the grindstone one more time and muddle through another week and pray that we come out on Friday afternoon in one piece.

Distracting yourself from such depressing thoughts is one of my favorite pastimes. The only way to do it is to think of something else, something tranquil, escape oriented, fun, ....... visions such as walking out the door at the Miami airport into the warmth and humidity of South Florida, walking on the beach, of good coffee at a sidewalk cafe, of warm sunny days, fine cigars on a balcony overlooking the beach, mixing icy martinis, palm trees blowing in an ocean breeze........

Keep on dreaming.......................

10 Degrees

Well, it's not Friday. It's only Thursday.

The other sad fact of the matter is that it's only 10 degrees out there this morning!

I was just imagining how nice it would be to be waking up down in Miami Beach. 80 degrees.......Slipping on your running shoes and a pair of shorts and heading out to the beach for a nice long walk. Watching the first rays of the sun come up over the Atlantic.

Hmmmm..... Then, by the time you come back, you're ready to stop at Starbucks at the South Beach Marriott. Get your Venti Italian Roast and a newspaper and settle in at one of the tables outside to savor the beauty of being on vacation, of the setting, of the people, of life without worries. However temporary that may be, it is certainly a feeling you never forget. Nor can you get enough of.

Soon, you will be looking for any opportunity to "exit stage left" and do a disappearing act.

I know I am.

Who Can't Wait To Go On Vacation???

I don't know about you. But, there isn't a day that goes by that I don't wish that I was getting out of town and going on vacation.

Right now, TGIF is all that I can say. It's 7:25 am on a Friday morning. Ten more hours more or less and I will be on my own 2 day vacation known as the weekend.

The only bad thing about the weekend is that they are way too short. By the time you wake up on Saturday morning, you realize that Sunday is tomorrow and the next day is Monday. Granted, two days off is better than one or no days off from work. But, I feel that the only way to really decompress from the work a day world is to take the plunge and get that two week vacation in.

I have only pulled if off once in all of my years. But, it was the most relaxing, rewarding two weeks that I have experienced. When you return from being away from work for two weeks, you really feel relaxed. All sense of burnout has faded from your mind. You have given youself ample time to recharge, refresh, and release yourself from all of the things that were irritating you prior to your departure.

So, these are your orders for the day:

1. Start thinking about when you might be able to get out of town for a two week period.

2. Start thinking about where you might want to go and what you might want to do for two
weeks in order to really escape from the daily grind.

3. Start thinking about how to approach your boss about asking them for two weeks of vacation
in a row.

Enjoy the weekend!

Looking For An Escape Plan

It's 19 degrees out tonight as I write this. I just heard the furnace kick on. If that doesn't make you want to head for warmer climes, I don't know what would.

Right now, I wish I was sitting down at Ted's Hideaway in South Beach. Or maybe hanging out at Playwrights on Washington Street. Enjoying the beach by day and spending the warm nights enjoying the scenery and sipping on a cold Stella.

The dark dismal days of winter are setting in now. It's getting dark around 4:30pm. This is the time of year when you ask yourself why you live where you do and why you don't just pull up stakes and head for the tropics. I've been asking myself that same question for years.

I remember my first trip to Florida. Spring Break in Daytona Beach. The weather was great and the beach, although not the kind of beach I like to visit now, was heaven. Good friends, cold beer in the Ocean Deck tiki bar on the beach, sun, fun........ hmmm how perfect it feels to walk down the beach on your first day of vacation. Or sit down at the outdoor bar and order up a cold beer or a Bacardi and Coke.

Ever since then, the beach in a warm tropical place has been my idea of the perfect escape from the realities of every day life.

I love waking up and walking out onto the patio with a cup of joe and feeling the sun on your face. Listening to the birds squawking, eating breakfast in an outdoor cafe. Knowing that your biggest problem of the day will probably be deciding what type of beer to buy next door at the little market or what restaurant to go to for lunch.

Here in the great white north, I sit here watching the temperature drop another degree by the hour. It's now 18 degrees and I have to get up in 5 hours to go to work...............

Time to get the plans rolling and get out of here before I freeze up.

All Work And No Play

Well, I'm sorry to say that since my last trip to Miami, I have been stuck with my nose to the grindstone for over 1 year. That, in and of itself is a crime.



I am beyond needing a vacation folks. As Jimmy Buffett said in the well know song "Boat Drinks", "I'm close to bodily harm." Not literally. However, I am more than ready to blow out of town for a little R & R.



The gears are turning and plans are being formulated for a fabulous trip to someplace warm and tropical!



If you have any suggestions on new, tropical places to vacation, feel free to post a comment here. Let me know of your favorite place to get away from it all. I love going to Brasil, Miami and The Bahamas. However, I feel the need to mix it up a bit and head for someplace new.



I'm planning on heading out on the last week of December or the first week of January.



I can't wait to sit back in that lounge chair on the beach or on the balcony overlooking the ocean. Mix up a nice rum and coke or Martini. Fire up a great cigar and just sit back and let the world go by for a while.



So, if you feel like you know of a place where I might enjoy relaxing next month, post it here and maybe I will give it a shot!



Thanks in advance...........



The Traveler