Monday, August 23, 2010

Tell me, can you possibly think of any better way to come crashing down from your vacation high than by spending 6 hrs in bumper-to-bumper traffic during a biblical-proportions rainstorm, followed by 2 hrs on a Metro North train that is literally leaking rainwater on you, after which you wait for half an hour in a sweltering (and also leaking) subway station, only to arrive home to an apartment that was, while you were sunning yourself on golden New England sands, lovingly bespeckled with cat barf?*

No you cannot.

But in order to preserve sanity, we remember the good times, not the bad, yes? Yes! And so, without further ado, mes vacances!

J and I have just returned from Maine, where we stayed in a bustling seaside town whose visitors traditionally consist of equal parts gay men, Quebecois, and New England nuclear families**. It was lovely. The first day it was decidedly not beachy weather, but we consoled ourselves with a trip to the outlets, where I almost bought this:



We also consoled ourselves with beer flights, 2-for-1 oysters, and the first of what would ultimately be several lobster rolls.

The rest of the week was much beachier, and we got into full vacay mode.




On the beach, I read Jonah Lehrer's Proust Was a Neuroscientist, and seriously? This is an excellent book.



If you haven't read it I insist that you run out and get it immediately, even if you are not of the neuro persuasion. You have a brain, right? Anyone who has a brain would be interested in this book. JL interweaves stories of writers, chefs, composers, and scientists with such incredible seamlessness, I wanted to prostrate myself in front of this book and beg forgiveness for every poorly thought-out paragraph I've ever written.

A giant lobster on the side of the road tried to attack or possibly hug us in our rental car. Luckily(?), the light changed before we reached the denouement.



Later that night, we steamed our own lobsters, which we did not name, and for whom the verdict is still out as to whether they actually felt any pain. But we try not to think about such things; it makes them less delicious.

And then, suddenly, the week was over, and real life set back in...

*The day did have one extra-shiny bright spot as we had time for a quick visit with one of my absolute favorite internet-to-real-life blogger friends!
**If you think you know where I was, please allow yourself quiet feelings of smugness, but do not announce or guess in the comments--I'll delete them (right or wrong) immediately.