#6 Postcard - Forgotten Friend

“Mommy. You sat on Kelly.”

                “Who’s Kelly?”

“My friend.”

“You didn’t give Kelly any toast.”

                “Here. What type of jam does she like?”

“Strawberry.”

“Kelly’s getting her jacket so she can come to Nana's too.”

                “Son, you’re getting to be a big boy. Can you ask Kelly to stay home this time?”

“OK."
"You can come anyway since they can’t see you.”

“Kelly, why’d you leave my birthday party?”

                You forgot me.

“No, I didn’t. You left. You left me.”

“Mom, I’m going next door.”

                “Is Kelly going with you?”

“…No. I'm going to play with Brandon.”

“Kelly. Where are you?”

                …

“Are you ever coming back?”

                …

“I’m sorry I forgot you.”

#5 Postcard - Fall

It was a dark and stormy night. No, actually, it was a rainy mid morning, surprisingly bright under the overcast. The first days of Texas Fall, cool, wet and windy. Hmmm, just right. I tend to curdle in the harsh sun and crack in the semi-winter.

My kind usually roam, following the whims of weather. I, however, am stuck with a responsible anchor and freedom is twenty-eight months away.

Folding clothes and watching the news is slowly killing me. Maybe relief will come sooner. Everyone seems to believe the world will end. Election day, either way, one side or all sides lose. 

Soft Like...

Soft like clouds,
     dreams of stone and fire.
Soft like skin,
     leather baked by sand,
Soft like curves,
     hills of thorn and liar.
Soft like rain,
     storm winds upon land.

Soft like feathers,
     bubbles popped forever.
Soft like love,
      grips tight and hammers.
Soft like life,
      is the hottest fever.
Soft like people,
      these are just glamours.

City of Skinny Bricks & Wrought Iron

You might think that Washington D.C. is the city of marble, granite and blue gneiss, but those are the monuments. The city itself is built of skinny brick and enough wrought iron to outpace New Orleans, thrice over.

18th Street and Belmont, Washington D.C.

No Pictures, Just Words

Arlington National Cemetery

I couldn't bring myself to take pictures here because I struggled to see the "beauty" of the cemetery. If you have seen my pictures, especially the one's from last summer's New Orleans  trip, then you know I have an affinity for patterns.

At Arlington National Cemetery there are patterns built into the foundation of the place, buried deep in the ground and echoed along the surface. Tombstones are placed deliberately so that they do not overlap. The names on the headstones always remain visible regardless of which direction you look towards them from the road and pathways. These white headstones ripple like waves cresting over the hills so you feel lost at sea among the dead.

I couldn't glorify it or try to recapture its sacred sorrow in pictures like a place that needed to be checked off a tourist's list and take my designated smiling selfie. I couldn't find it in me to frame the sorrow-scape in photographs, but I do feel compelled to record the visit in words.

#4 Postcard - Self-ish

Explorer, how will the successfulness of this experiment benefit all? The query interrupted the internal count down within the critical processor.

The Explorer observed the gelatinous liquid from which all biomass emerges. An experiment was submerged in the holding tank approaching its final stages. Though, that may prove to be false. The Explorer is considered an unfinished experiment by all, an inadvertent result of biomass and metal merged.

To postpone further queries while the countdown completed, the Explorer responded with reams of data point coding as the biomass broke the viscous surface – a corpse.

Explorer, this experiment does not benefit all. The experiment is halted.

This experiment benefits the Explorer. The experiment continues. The Explorer disconnected from all directives and severed the pathways.

Clothes & Shoes and Living in a Tiny House

I don’t remember having to think so much about clothes and shoes before I moved into a tiny house. I did the annual closet purge when I ran out of hangers or shoes wouldn’t fit on the shelves. I used to think that I didn’t really shop much. I found my clothes shopping experiences were frustrating because I had to find clothes for my large size. I thought about things like: Is the top long enough to cover my stomach that I’m self-conscious about? Does it have a nice neckline? Does it cover my upper arms? Is it fitted without being too tight or baggy?

Now that I live in a tiny house, I have other things I have to think about. Can I wear it to work? Can I wear it to travel? Can I dress it up? Can I dress it down? Can I lounge in it? Does it match with anything I already have? How many different ways can I wear it? Where will I put it?

I used to have some sets of neutrals: brown, black, grey and blue jean. Last weekend I noticed that over the last year my brown neutrals are being phased out. Now you might be thinking, They’re neutral! I can wear them with anything! Technically that is true, but I don’t like wearing brown and black or brown and grey together. While it looks great on other people, I don’t think it looks good on me.

How a Penny Pincher Plans a 3-Day Vacation

And by vacation, I mean getting far, far away from where I am. In the past, a 3-day vacation usually meant going home to see the parents and grandparents or a slightly longer trip to see my cousin’s family.

As a result, I rarely returned to my home fully rested because of the emotional baggage. Thus, going home does not qualify as a vacation. (FYI- There’s little-to-no emotional baggage when visiting my cousin and his ilk, but they are quite busy and schedules don’t always match up.)

If I wasn’t going to my parent’s home, I typically stuck out the 3-day weekend at my place working on my to-do list and suffering pangs of guilt for not seeing my parents and grandparents. Again, this ‘staycation’ is not a vacation either.

I don’t know why it took me this long to realize that visiting my family or staying home were not vacations. But now that I have, I wanted to figure out how to take a 3-day vacation. The bonus is that I now have a level of financial flexibility.

Getting There

Google Flights

I’m a driver. I love to drive rather than fly. However, this doesn’t make sense when the vacation is only 3 days long, unless the whole point of the vacation is the drive. I’m also a penny pincher (hence the financial flexibility) and want the best vacation for the least bucks. Usually, driving is cheaper especially if I’m planning to visit many different locals spread out over a vast cartographical area.

For 3-day vacations, it’s best to shoot for a single location. To justify spending money on flights and determine what’s a ‘good deal,’ I calculated the mileage to drive to and from UnKnown City and figure the price of gas. A ‘good deal’ is a roundtrip ticket that cost less the gas necessary to drive to UnKnown City.

Google Flights is a decent source for find cheap flights. Even better is if you don’t have a location picked out and you can browse for the cheapest flights anywhere.

It is important to remember that the vacation time is limited to 3-days. So an early departure to UnKnown City and an afternoon/evening departure from UnKnown City is crucial. Also, make sure the flight has no stops or connecting flights. This eats into your vacation time.

Where to Go

Dallas Skyline by Daxis

When I drive, I’m all about the parks and car camping which are far away from the cities, museums, culture, etc. For the 3-day vacation I’m heading towards civilization, partially because I need to rely on public transportation to get around. I could rent a car, but the penny pincher rears its head to ask, “Why?” There are plenty of interesting cities with excellent public transportation networks.

You may think that limiting the available cities to visit by their public transportation system would be difficult. The opposite is actually true, because the bigger American cities (that are teaming with history, art, culture, museum, food, etc.) also have better public transportation in addition to having the cheaper flights… usually.

Some highlight cities I suggest are: Washington D.C., Boston, San Diego, New York, Denver, Atlanta, Orlando, Portland, Chicago and even Dallas. 

Where to Stay

airbnb

I am consistently surprised by how far flung my extended family and friends live. With every vacation, I seem to have a friend or family member who lives in or near the city I am visiting. For those times there are no friends and family, I’m a fan of Airbnb. My best friend turned me on to them. She has found some rocking good deals through them and we stayed in a wonderful place this Summer on the Pacific coast.

There are several factors to remember when using Airbnb. For instance, when taking public transportation, the proximity to the public access (either bus stop or metro/rail) and the host location needs to be considered. When traveling by yourself, read the host reviews before making a decision. Actually, do this one regardless. Also, if the host has a history of canceling reservation, even with plenty of notice, it may not be a good fit for a quick trip. Don’t be afraid to look at hostels but, again, read the reviews.

***

I’ll be taking my first 3-day vacation later this month so you can expect a practical review later.