Thursday, August 30, 2007
Things One Does Not Expect to Pack for Vacation
- sitz bath
- hair
- collapsible hair stand
- spandex swim cap to cover lack of hair
- "Wet Ones" wipes
I didn't actually manage to fit the sitz bath into my suitcase, but my rear-endal issues seemed to have resolved by the time I left anyway. I was a little worried the "Wet Ones" would be confiscated at the airport, since they're wet and all, but nobody cared. Also, the airline screeners neglected to notice the saline nasal spray I did NOT have in my ziplock baggie. I had forgotten it was in my tote bag; what if I had suddenly snapped and started squirting passengers or flight attendants with saline? It could have caused an international incident.
I had a delightful vacation; every August I go to Martha's Vineyard--my college roommate Sarah gets the use of her parents' vacation house there every year around her birthday (her parents aren't wealthy; they just bought land at an opportune time) and I have informed her that I plan to continue showing up until I am specifically uninvited. Her roommate Danielle also goes every year. They went earlier in the summer, which is when all the hot weather happened. This time it was chilly enough to require extra blankets, closed windows, and some afternoons of staying in watching movies and knitting socks.
This year we were being stalked by several Democrats with presidential aspirations, including Hillary Clinton, Barak Obama, and John Edwards. All three managed to be doing fundraising at the same time on the same teensy island. We could have paid to have drinks on the lawn of an Oak Bluffs house with Barak, or we could have paid to have a conversation and cocktails with Hillary, also in Oak Bluffs. I believe John Edwards was in Edgartown, which makes sense because that's where the bulk of the lawyers are. Oak Bluffs is a little more...um, populist.
It wasn't as exciting as the time we actually saw the presidential motorcade (and Bill Clinton's elbow), but it's nice to know that the candidates care where I'm vacationing and make an effort to show up at exactly the same time.
I wore my pink spandex swim cap to the beach, but wore a beach hat over it when I went into the water because I felt a little self-conscious about having just a swim cap on. They make swim caps with attached hair, but I didn't manage to get one this year for myself. Maybe next time. The collapsible hair stand was important for washing my wigs, although it did look freakishly like there was a decapitated head in the sink, then in the bathtub when I moved it.
I hate having to draw my eyebrows on every day, but it is kind of nice to be able to wash one's hair and be doing something totally different in another room when the hair is soaking.
Now I'm back from vacation. The lull after vacation is my least favorite time. I'd rather be having fun than writing reports, fixing printer jams, and dealing with meetings, appointments, scans and such.
Labels: Danielle, hair, Martha's Vineyard, Sarah, vacation
