Friday, April 13, 2012

No good deed goes unpunished

I tried to get a little bit of incremental cardio in each day of my vacation. Two days I spent some time on the exercise cycle, but it occurred to me that I can see the inside of a health club every day. So then I took a long stroll on the hiking trail and, on my last day, I swam laps in the indoor pool.

And got an itchy chlorine rash on my legs for the trouble. Spa time is supposed to leave my skin looking happy, not angry and red!

I should have stayed on the trail! It was so green and pretty. Or maybe I should have just skipped the exercise altogether and had a cocktail. I'm still such a big, fat moo-cow that I get discouraged about the exercise, anyway.

My home away from home




I stayed in one of the rooms in the Chiswell-Bucktrout House. Upstairs, far right. It was charming! And much quieter than I thought it would be. After all, at least three of the nine rooms had tenants. We each had our own bathroom and our own TV, so I expected to hear my neighbors. Except for the whirr someone's hairdryer while I was on our shared staircase, I didn't hear a thing.

There were things about staying in a Colonial House that remind you that you're roughing it a bit, at least compared to the luxe accommodations at the Williamsburg Inn. It was rather dark in the shower, but that's because indoor plumbing was placed where a walk-in closest once was and the shape of the room made illuminating both the area over the sink and in the tub difficult. The dramatic pitch of the roof made me knock my head a couple of times. But for me, this all reinforced the atmosphere.

I did have to call the front desk once about the thermostat. First we couldn't get the ac to work in my room (it was in the mid 70s during the day on Monday and Tuesday so the room got warm), then we couldn't regulate it when the mercury outside dropped into the 40ºs overnight on Wednesday. You might assume this was because the building is so old, but that wasn't it. It was a brand-new Trane thermostat -- just installed -- and no one in maintenance had yet been shown how to use it! Oh well, it was nothing that couldn't be remedied by either opening the window or adding a blanket, as the case may be. You know, old school.

How cool is this?


The performers are doing the "Pyramus and Thisbe" thing from Midsummer's Night Dream on a very important spot in American theatrical history.




Trifecta

For this weekend's challenge, write a letter of apology in exactly 33 words. Addresses, salutations, closings, etc., do not count in the 33 words. 



Dear Beth,

I’m sorry I played with Daddy’s softball bat when I know I’m not allowed to. I’m also sorry I hit you in the head. I was aiming for your stomach, but you ducked.

Your sister,
Tess


The part of vacation I don't like

My living room is an explosion of stuff -- a week's worth of newspapers,* laundry, souvenirs, suitcases ... I'd much rather download my photos and share tales of my trip back to the 1770s, but I think I'm going to be a grown up and do a little housework first.



*Thank you, Chicago Tribune, for ignoring my vacation stop request.