Hmph.

Where have I been since June 9? Let's see... Georgia, Connecticut, Seattle, home to Vermont, then going back to Italy tomorrow.

Do you like travel? Want to trade lives? I'm seriously over living out of a suitcase, even if I do get to go to Italy like every other month.

I just want to live in my apartment and bring my dog back to Vermont.

Ok, pity party over. Meh.

What do you do while wearing your pearls?

I love my pearls. I have two necklaces - a string of black pearls and a string of cultured white pearls. Growing up in the South, all the "proper" ladies wore a string a pearls. (Ok you lude people out there, get that alternate pearl necklace image out of your head.) When I think of a lady wearing a pearl necklace, I instantly think of someone like June Cleaver, a total throwback to the '50s nuclear household with a mom in a apron in the kitchen making dinner while wearing her pearls.

I have no family to make dinner for and I work in food plants so I can't exactly wear my pearls to work. On the rare occasions I do, I end up doing things far from making dinner. Like today I wore my white pearls to work, then came home and disassembled the doorknob to my front door while wearing my pearls. Or yesterday I installed my new air conditioner while wearing the black pearl necklace. Sometimes the dog gets a bath while I'm wearing the pearls. Back in college my boat was racing in an important national regatta. One of my rowers raced in her pearl necklace.

So clearly I am not June Cleaver, but I love aprons and I love my pearls. Pearls are classic and will always be beautiful despite the changing roles of those wearing them.

What do you do while wearing your pearls?

Advice for travelling

1) When you go to a restaurant, do not ask for the English menu. Figure things out the best you can from the native language menu and be surprise. I had ox tail tonight where normally I probably wouldn't order ox tail. It was fabulous! Though I did feel bad because I didn't eat much of the risotto because I was saving room for dessert.

2) Know how to say please and thank you in the language of wherever you are.

3) What the local channels instead of BBC or CNN. You might learn something.

Where am I?

Wow, long time no post. I'm sitting here in JFK, waiting on my 7:15 flight to Milan. Yes, Milan, Italy. For work. No joke. Doesn't it drive you crazy when people write 2-3 word "sentences" for effect?

Anyway, April and May are a flurry of business travel. I spent all of April and the first week of May in Knoxville, TN for work, only returning home for one weekend. The other weekends were spent at my parents' house in Georgia, or working. I finally went home on Tuesday and here I am today, Friday, sitting in another airport.

I am spending the next two weeks on Lake Como for work. I will have some free time, but the main priority is to complete factory acceptance tests on some equipment. Sounds glamorous, but when you've been at home for a total of 5 nights since April 3, it's hard to be excited.

What a little bitch.

I've been in Tennessee for work for the past 4 weeks. My kind next door neighbor took care of Daisy for 3 of those 4 weeks. The last week she stayed at a local doggie daycare. I was able (despite flight diversions and cancellations) to come home every weekend to take care of Daisy and go skiing, so I thought she'd be fine when I was home for longer than 3 nights. Wrong. My little 15 lb dog opened the cabinet under the sink, pulled out the trashcan, pulled out the bag and its entire contents, just to get to a Styrofoam tray that once held some chicken. The trashcan is 5 times bigger than she is. I guess she's just one strong little bitch.

I am 29 years old and no longer sleep with a blanket.

Yes, you read that right. I have had a blanket since I was born called "duck blankie". I slept with duck blankie every night and it traveled with me on vacations growing up. Duck blankie went with me to college, where it did not travel with me to regattas or co-op assignments. After college duck blankie moved with me to my first apartment and on to Connecticut. Duck blankie made it up here to Vermont with me as well.

Of course there were times in my adult life when I wouldn't sleep with duck blankie, like when a gentleman would stay over. I've thought about why on earth I slept with a blanket for so long and I think I've figured it out: I have to have something to hug at night. When I stay in hotels, I surround myself with the 50 pillows they provide on the bed because I like the snuggly feeling you get from a ton of pillows.

The other week I looked at duck blankie, all sad and falling apart and still sort of having the duck on it, and decided it was time to fold it and put it in my trunk. Now that I have nothing to hug at night, my bed is a wreck in the morning - the duvet is all twisted up around me in the morning along with my flannel sheets.

Do I miss duck blankie? No, not really. I miss hugging something at night.

Long time no write...

Wow has it really been a month since I looked at this thing?

The past month has been busy - work travel, personal travel, and skiing! I won't bore you with the work travel. Personal travel was down to CT to visit friends and then Georgia for Christmas. Christmas was uneventful and rushed as always. Also it just didn't feel like Christmas.

Skiing has been awesome though. I've joined a women's program at my mountain and our instructor is totally awesome. When I first met her, I thought she was just a little old lady that was there to babysit us (8 women) all day long. Turns out 3 of her 4 kids have been or are currently on the US Ski team. She also said one of her New Year's resolutions was to be more "nurturing". So ski instructor is a tough lady and puts me to shame on the slopes. I also love how blunt she is and just tells us what to do and doesn't sugar coat anything. This should be awesome.

Also please note the use of awesome 3 times in the above paragraph. I heart skiing.