You know how you feel after Christmas and New Year’s is over?  Kind of sad, depressed, let down and empty?  (Or is that just me?)  Coming home from a vacation like the one we were on is just like that.  BUT WORSE.

I keep joking that Kile and I are ruined for other vacations now.  That our expectations of just how awesome a trip can be has made our usual vacations to visit family in San Jose and Elko that much more… well… lame.  It’s not that visiting family is lame.  But we now know what a vacation can feel like.  And visiting family, as nice as it is, is not a vacation.  It’s not activities piled on food piled on adventure.  Good, yes.  Absolutely fabulous?  Not so much.

The bad news is: that’s the sort of vacation we take.  We’re not the sort of family that can just take these fabulous family vacations once a year (or even once every five years).  It just doesn’t HAPPEN. So I just worry that we’re going to feel depressed when it comes to vacation time now.  Because, you know, driving over Donner isn’t the Disney Cruise.  Shopping at Walmart in Elko isn’t the Magic Kingdom.

SIGH.

Our longing has been so bad that Kile has been madly researching future vacations that we might (theoretically) take.  Right now leading the pack is an Alaskan cruise.  It’s fun to play “what if” but I don’t know how realistic going on one of those would be.  But, oh boy, would it be awesome.

So life here in Reno has been rather disappointing since we returned.  In large part because August sucks.

Remember the venom I used to spew forth in regards to March?  Oh, how March was loathed here.  But then Evie was born in March.  And now it’s a “good” month (I’m still keeping my eye on it though).   With the focus off of March, August has stepped into the limelight.

My dislike for August isn’t exactly new.  Just like my dislike for March wasn’t a new thing when Jackson died.  It just is.  And why?

The big reason is Kile’s work schedule.  August is a mondo month at the University.  And a mondo month for the housing department.  It means long hours, working weekends, stress and no days off.  It was a REALLY big deal that Kile was able to go on our Disney Extravaganza considering such time off in August is not usual.  It makes him crabby.  And when Kile gets crabby, I get crabby.  And when I get crabby, the kids hide.

Seriously though, it does have an impact on the household.  And I count the days until September and things can return to quasi-normal.

Also: August is the month that I had the D&E back in 2005.  I had found out that my pregnancy was kaput and was sent on a hellish roller coaster that resulted in our nightly alcohol drinking for the duration of the month, just to get through. (Though come to think of it, I think every August should have nightly alcohol drinking because that wasn’t half bad.)   It was bad, that August.

Then there was that August a couple years ago that I was on an emotional roller coaster, unsure of where the ground was.  I eventually discovered I was pregnant and that was GOOD, but the emotional fallout from that month continues to haunt me to this day.  It was bad.  Bad enough that it has changed me in some not so good ways and I’m not sure I can ever be the same person I was before.

Finally, there’s the obvious: the heat.  Not a big fan of heat in general, by the time August rolls around I HAVE HAD IT.   The days and days and days of hot, hot weather have taken their toll and I’m just plain SICK of it.  It makes me crabby to have yet another day of mid to high 90 degree temperatures.  On top of everything else, the heat causes extra stress, extra pain and extra orneriness.   For instance, right now I’m so ready for fall and fall temperatures that when we had a downright COOL day on Sunday, I almost cried with relief.

We were married in August, which is GOOD.  In my opinion, a month like this NEEDS some good stuff.  But the anniversary is in the beginning of the month and August doesn’t really start to really suck the big one until the middle to the end of the month.

So yes, our Disney trip was AWESOME this month.  And you would think that would be enough to redeem the entire month, at least for this year.  But as I see it, the Disney trip was a respite from a shitty month.  And even the trip would have been that much more awesome had it taken place in almost any other month.  And the coming home from the Disney trip has only served to ADD to the suck that is August.

Basically, I’m a rather disgruntled person and if August knew what was good for it, it’d just hurry up the next seven days and get me the heck to September already.

I FINALLY saw “Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince” last night.  Since we just asked for our money back at the drive in (I won’t be going back THERE, thankyouverymuch), Kile suggested I take Harry while he stayed home with the little ones.  We went to the theaters down at the Summit Sierra mall.  I’d almost forgotten what it was like to watch a movie in a REAL theater.  It’s been a while.

Anyhow, I’m not going to go into big details here just in case there is someone out there who is as unlucky as me and hasn’t seen it yet.  But… yeah.  I liked it, for the most part.  I loved the way it was directed, the cinematography, the whole ATMOSPHERE of the movie seemed right on to me.  But there were some changes.  Things left out, things added in…. A lot of it made me want to tear my hair out, to be perfectly honest.  If anyone out there has seen it, feels the same, and wants to discuss it, just email me and we can discuss at great length what we liked and what we hated.  Sound good?

***

On the other hand, it was really nice going to see a movie with Harry like that.  We grabbed McDonald’s at the drive through on the way down to the theater and ate in the car.  Harry made a fine companion and it was nice to get to spend time with just him for a change.  He and I used to spend all sorts of time together.  I took him everywhere with me when he was little.  He was my sidekick.  We never get to do that anymore.

I would like to make this movie thing a semi-regular thing.  Maybe one a month or every two months?  Just he and I, out to the movies.  That would be so much fun!

***

I woke up this morning to overcast skies.  I cannot express to you how happy this makes me.  No sun = some relief from blistering heat.  I’m sure it’ll still be unpleasantly warm, but at least the sun isn’t out, making it worse.

Sadly, I doubt it will last.  The sun will come out and force it’s rays upon us.  But for now, I’m enjoying the dim.

Shoot, in the movie last night, I found myself gazing fondly at the screen during the snowy-winter scenes.  Oh, snow.  How I miss you!  How I love the sight of snow-covered mountains and snow falling and the crunch under your feet….

Damnit.  I want winter back.

***

I’m ignoring about 90% of my Facebook friends today.  Sorry, y’all.  But if you’re going to insist on posting about traveling to BlogHer, seeing people at BlogHer, being excited about BlogHer, etc and so forth?  I’m going to have to stick my fingers in my ears and go, “LA LA LA LA!!”

Nothing personal.

***

I hear my little girl waking up upstairs so I best go fetch her.  I haven’t seen her since about 5:30 last night so I’m actually looking forward to getting some cuddles in, as I’m sure she is too.

She really is quite snuggle-icious.

Enjoy your Thursday, all!

I don’t like hot.  I make no mystery of this on this here blog.  Summer is my nemesis.  Heat is my foe.

There are very few things that I like hot.  Most food is one of them.  Everything else?  Better be bordering on frigid.

The weather around these parts has gotten… toasty lately.  I don’t care for toasty.  Even with our window unit air conditioners, I have issues with the heat.  Because there are times I have to go to parts of the house that don’t have air conditioning.  And some times, (gasp) I actually leave the house.  And that’s when it’s real bad because I feel the rays of the sun just boring into my skin and the heat heat heat just bearing down on me.   Just thinking of how it feels makes me wince.  If there is a breeze, it is more like a blast furnace than cool refreshment.

It would appear, poor thing, that Evie has inherited my intolerance to heat.  Her room, like the boys room, is one of the ones that doesn’t have any air conditioning.  We may have to fix this.  Because last night she slept horribly.  She’s been having problems for the last week, waking up and crying.  Last night, she didn’t wake up and cry, thank goodness.  But I could hear her tossing and turning and moaning all night long.  And then she was up as soon as it started to warm up this morning (8, when she might normally sleep till 9) (yes, the room darkening shades are making me spoiled).  It’s fairly obvious that she doesn’t care to be too warm when she’s trying to sleep.

Just like her mama.

She’s a hot sleeper anyhow, and I’ve known this about her for a while.  I’m the same way, which is probably no big surprise.  She often wakes up from her naps, drenched in sweat even if it’s not very warm.  Her hair turns into a riot of curls from the dampness.  So you take a hot sleeper and add in a hot bedroom and you’ve got a recipe for misery.  Poor thing.

Unfortunately, there’s not much we can do right now.   We can’t exactly afford to run out and buy another window air conditioner at the moment.   I’m not above setting up a pack n’ play in our room (where there is a window unit, thank god) and letting her set up camp there until we start getting some cooler nights going on.

My big question right now… is how she and I both are going to survive Orlando in AUGUST.  Also wondering: why the heck do I live in NEVADA?

Let’s bring back this little feature, shall we?  Because while I’m actually NOT feeling particularly crabby today (I know… I’M SHOCKED TOO), there’s always plenty to hate on a Monday, including Monday itself.  And I didn’t post anything all weekend because I was too busy with the “ahh” and the “*contented sigh*” and that sort of thing.  Weekends rock.

Okay, on with the hate….

• caffeine headaches.  Yes, I know we all saw this coming with my addiction to Rockstar and all.  Shut up.  No one likes an “I told you so.”
• the iPhone OS 3.0 update.  Okay, the only thing I hate about this is that it’s not being released for another week or somesuch wrongness.  I WANT IT NOW.  SOUNDS AWESOME.
• our mailman.  Yes, it continues.  I NEVER know when the mail is going to be delivered anymore.  Is it SO hard to deliver stuff by 5pm EVERY day?  REALLY?  Do I have enough capitals in this post so far?
• headaches.  Really, how do you get rid of these?  Cuz ordinary pain killers seem to have no effect.  I’ve taken four ibuprofen and nothin’.  Suck.
• the sun.   I got sort of used to the sun being gone last week with all the storms and everything.  This summer weather is for the birds.  I want my rain back.
• that it’s five more days till the weekend.  Not right, man.  (Except that I now recall Kile is taking Friday off and his parents are coming to town so WOO HOO short week!)
• waiting.  It’s for the birds.  I hate waiting.
• my bruised big toe.  Have you ever had one of these?  I landed on it funny when I fell down the stairs last week and ever since it’s been in PAIN.  Turns out?  You use your big toe quite a bit when walking.  WHO KNEW?
• “Ned’s Declassified” on Nickelodeon.  This show is like nails on a chalkboard.  So is “The Naked Brothers Band”.  And come to think of it, I don’t care for “The Penquins of Madagascar” either.
• on the preschool side of things, I hate “Oswald”, “Miss Spider’s Sunny Patch Friends” and “DragonTales”, to name but a few.
• this stupid headache.  Seriously.  Get a clue, dude.

So that’s the list for this week.  Do you hate it?  You do don’t you?  You can tell me.  Anyhow, it would TOTALLY fit in with the whole overall theme.

I know I complain a lot about the wind around these parts.  It is constant.  And it is a year-long threat.  And I wonder if people think I’m exaggerating and then Reno will get on the news with the wind or a truck will blow off the interstate, all but landing in our backyard.  And no, not exaggerating.

It gets really tiresome, especially when it keeps you up at night.

Even MORE so when it keeps the kids up at night.

But the other day, I just had to take a picture of the sky because the wind was doing some really cool things to the clouds.

It’s not often that I can say anything even remotely nice about the wind, so you better enjoy it while it lasts.  The next post I write that references the wind will surely be a scathing diatribe.